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From: patth@dasys1.UUCP (Patt Haring)
Newsgroups: comp.society.futures
Subject: Re: Sammie's data
Message-ID: <1846@dasys1.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 29-Oct-87 22:49:30 EST
Article-I.D.: dasys1.1846
Posted: Thu Oct 29 22:49:30 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 4-Nov-87 06:21:50 EST
References: <8710220138.AA09366@bu-cs.BU.EDU> <8710220524.AA12093@bu-cs.BU.EDU> <1006@maynard.BSW.COM>
Organization: The Big Electric Cat
Lines: 51
Keywords: why?
Summary: changing the world thru computer networking

In article <1006@maynard.BSW.COM>, campbell@maynard.BSW.COM (Larry Campbell) writes:
> In article <425@nuchat.UUCP> steve@nuchat.UUCP (Steve Nuchia) writes:
> 
> <>I've been amazed, sometimes _very_ amazed, at the kinds of people
> <>who know absolutely nothing about electronic communications.  I'm
> <>talking about ...   professionals in all
> <>kinds of fields.  When the usenet comes up in conversation I usually
> <>have a _lot_ of explaining to do.  The hardest part for them to
> <>deal with is often not the technology but _why_ one would want to
> <>exchange these notes.
> 
> Well, I am both a computer professional and a system and news
> administrator, and I often find myself wondering why I spend the time
> and effort on Usenet.  The actual value of the Usenet is, I think, highly
> overrated.  It's an entertaining pastime, but it's not going to change
> the world.

I think we've come a LONG way towards changing the world already!
Consider this:  Paul Levinson, Ph.D. started CONNECTED EDUCATION,INC
back in 1985 with 12 students taking courses for credit towards
an M.A. degree (EIES network, New Jersey Institute of Technology);
today he has 125+ students studying ONLINE for M.A.'s and Ph.D's;
they range in location from United Arab Emirates, Japan, Australia,
Canada, South America, Mexico, France, Italy to cities all over
the United States.  Consider this too:  login to EIES around 2 A.M.
or thereabouts - you'll find quite a few people online - willing to
chat, help you with a paper, etc.

Dr. Levinson has also developed these programs for banks here in
NYC whose employees work at night, can't get to a university to
attend degree granting programs, etc. 

Senior partners at law firms where I've worked know ZILCH about
typing; they *believe* that anyone who types should be classified
as *nonlegal* personnel (*arrgghhh*); fancy this:  young associates
coming in to a law firm from Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, Yale,
etc. now make their first request "Please may I have an IBM XT/AT
for my desktop?"  One senior partner I spoke to couldn't understand
this thinking at all.  Said I, in reply "would you go to a doctor
who still uses leeches and cups to suction poisons out of your
body?"  "Same goes for lawyers who don't use computers and bill
clients for 40+ hours of legal research that can now be done
in 20 hours!"

We're changing the world, Larry - this is just the tip of the
iceberg.
-- 
Patt Haring                       UUCP:    ..cmcl2!phri!dasys1!patth
Big Electric Cat                  Compu$erve: 76566,2510
New York, NY, USA                 MCI Mail: 306-1255;  GEnie: PHaring
(212) 879-9031                    FidoNet Mail: 1:107/132 or 107/222