How will my kids see the Web?
I’m 27. I went online for the first time in 1995, when I was 13. Being introduced to the Web when it was still in a very 1.0 state colored the way I’ve used computers ever since. Sure, I’m up on all the latest social sites, and I’m well-versed in Web 2.0 theory. Social networking is at least 1/3 of my job — more on a good day.
But it shows in little ways — for instance, I still attribute content to Web sites. When my brother, who is 10 years younger than I am, talks about something he saw online, he attributes it to the person who showed it to him. Where the content originally came from never comes up. On a subconscious level, the Web will probably always be an information superhighway for me, filled with destinations that I visit. For him, it’s a conversation he’s having all the time with everyone he knows. Little distinction. Big difference.
How will my kids see the Web? If The Economist is right, the gap will be even more pronounced. The Web won’t just be about virtual destinations. It won’t just be about connections between people, either. It will be about connections between everything — between people and places and inanimate things, all at once, everywhere, forever. If I’m guessing correctly, Jesse Jr. won’t care about where information comes from OR who helped him find it. Information will simply appear from the cloud, based on where he is and what he’s doing.
And that’s only the outlook if I had kids tomorrow. In another five years, the prognosis might be different still. I wonder if these culture vantage points are immutable. Can I learn to think like my brother? Will I be able to understand my hypothetical child’s point of view? I don’t think these differences will affect my ability to adapt and put new technology to work — after all, my dad is more plugged-in than I am. But they might come up in other ways — in the way I process information, the way I assess a situation, the way I attack a problem.
Do fundamental differences exist between the way difference age groups use the social Web? Are these differences important? Can you re-learn how to perceive the Web?
Image credit, pavlen, via iStock
Twitter
Facebook
Linkedin
RSS
To answer that we must define change; a generation born into a world that is digitally connected may not necessarily change how they think, but how they act.
Users are adapting new browsing behaviors due to this massive amount of available information.
I expand further on this trending subject in my most recent blog post – visit my site to read more.
Paris
Great post, Jesse!
I work with social media every day, even though I started my work life using Selectrics. Every day I understand it a little better and become more of an advocate for it, but I can’t imagine not attributing things to a source, be it a web site, print publication, or interview with an expert.
I remember sitting in a restaurant in Casper, WY, one day and watching two teenage girls at a nearby table. They never exchanged a word, just kept texting — not, I hope, to each other.
Not only am I interested in how each generation will view the web differently, I’m also interested in how it will change face-to-face interactions and even infrastructure. For example, if we can buy everything online, what does that do to the traditional downtown area of businesses?
Thanks again for a great post!
More importantly, I beleive that constant communication using social media will change the way we think. We know that the brain does not exist in a vacuum and that how we interact with the world can and does impact how we think. Ironically, we may see expression chnage in that we are typing more than we are talking–which is a return to the written word–but not in the same format as in previous times when we had the “luxury” of unlimited time and space. I also beleive it will change the way we learn, and the advent of the overload of stimulus has created an addiction to frequent tidbits of input vs. long dedicated time. We will all need to adapt.
Ann
Perhaps it’s vice versa — our minds and behaviors are changing the way the Web, communication, and information flow works. About the two girls in the restaurant who were texting rather than speaking… I think young people feel life is one continuous string of communications that occurs simultaneously. Maybe it seemed weird to the observer, but not to the girls or their friends. I’ve seen teens text, talk to friends in person, and even share phone conversations all at the same time.
[...] Will persistent social networks change the way our minds work? [...]
Social comments and analytics for this post…
This post was mentioned on Twitter by sbosm: Will persistant social networks change the way our minds work? http://ow.ly/11Qpu...
[...] Will persistent social networks change the way our minds work? Published: January 29, 2010 Source: SmartBlog On Social Media How will my kids see the Web? I’m 27. I went online for the first time in 1995, when I was 13. Being introduced to the Web when it was still in a very 1.0 state colored the way I’ve used computers ever sinc… [...]
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by SmartBrief on SocMed, SmartBrief on SocMed, Amanda Gravel, Joan Weytze, John Avery and others. John Avery said: RT @amandagravel: Really interesting questions about how we perceive the social web based on age differences http://bit.ly/cC4oFt [...]
[...] Will persistent social networks change the way our minds work? [...]