A brief light hearted look a how digital technology affects the everyday life of Joe Blogs.

1. The Role of Digital Literacy in the Lives of
Adults and Young People in Society.
The following depicts the day in the life of
the average man in the UK. In doing so it
is hoped that the reader will discover how
the use of digital/computer technology
has become as vital a tool to a modern
society as fire was to the development of
man.

2. A Day in the Life of Joe Blogs
Morning has Broken
From the time we rise in the morning ‘til we go
to bed at night, even while we sleep, we are
immersed in a life surrounded by digital
technology and communication. Whilst for the
more mature, like me, an old clock radio is still
their preferred alarm; there are those who use
the ring tone on their Smart Phone or Several
hundred pounds iPhone to wake them.

3. Got to get to Work on Time!
Whilst sipping their first cup of tea or Costa style “Americano”
emails or posts from Facebook are checked. Joe checks the
TV to see if there are any delays to the route he normally
takes to work. The technology used today to transmit a signal
to a TV differs dramatically from the one used for so many
years and developed by Baird. Technology used by Virgin
Media, cable, not only allows a TV signal to be received but
also allows broadband at very high speeds to be accessed by
the user. If Joe’s route has to change then he can use either a
free application on his phone or a satellite navigation system
to plan an alternative route. Some systems are so
sophisticated they will amend the route whilst in transit,
depending on the status of the roads.

4. Daily Grind!
Having got to work, Joe will have to perform certain tasks
requiring us to use a PC, laptop, tablet or mobile phone. For
many, communication by email, whilst providing an invaluable
asynchronous mail service, has become a daily chore requiring
the user to sort the incoming mail and address those messages
to believed most important and for Joe this is no different. The
convenience of sending/receiving vast amounts of data and links
to websites at very little cost has changed how business
communicates internally and externally. Unfortunately, the
proliferation in the use of email has meant that users are
bombarded with information so much so that they unable to
digest it all. Joe has checked all his mail and Outlook has
reminded him about a meeting he had forgotten to prepare for,
but it’s one of those meetings he just can’t miss.

5. Daily Grind!
At the meeting, Joe hears a small group of staff discussing a night
out they all went to but was not invited to because he was not part
of a private group set up in Facebook. At lunch, Joe is sat at a full
table in a crammed canteen, yet no one is talking. Everyone is
either texting friends, even if they are sat adjacent; sending or
checking Facebook posts; looking at the latest trend on Youtube or
reading/watching the latest news on their phone or tablet. Joe’s
been asked to do a presentation about a subject he is not too
familiar with. So, for the next three hours he researches the topic
on the Internet. It took longer than he planned, as there was so
much dross he had to sift through before he found what he was
looking for. Still, he didn’t have to leave his desk and get soaked in
the pouring rain as he used to when going to the library. Just
before he starts to make his way home his partner phones and tells
him that she’s just bought a bargain and it was 20% cheaper
because she had bought the good online.

6. Relaxing Evening?
Although Joe has two 40” TVs at home, his wife
wants to watch her favourite soap and the kids
are playing the latest hit game on the latest
£400 gaming station. They are playing their
friends from a town fifty miles away but it
seems like they are in the same room. So, He
decides to go to his man cave and watch his
favourite fishing program over the Internet
whilst putting in an hour on an exercise bike.
Joe and his wife don’t feel like cooking so he
uses a website to have a pizza delivered.

7. Relaxing Evening 2?
His oldest child has just started the local
comprehensive school and Joe checks their
website to see what homework he needs to do
over the coming week. He discover his son
needs to read “Decline and Fall”, by Evelyn
Waugh, within the next week. So, it’s on to
Amazon and the book is downloaded onto Joe’s
wife’s Kindle for £1.50.

8. Relaxing Evening 3?
He’s had food and he’s nearly finished working on that
presentation when Joe remembers that there’s a football
match he wants to watch, but he’s got to finish his
presentation; he quickly sets his Tivo box to record the
match for him to watch later. It’s a good job he decided to
record the match because he’s just remembered he has to
tax his car. Fortunately, he can go on line and tax it without
leaving the house. With his new super-fast broadband he
no longer has to download that latest film he wanted to
see using a dodgy bit torrent site, he realises that he will
never be able to see all the films he’s recorded on his home
file server.

9. Conclusion
This mildly satirical look at digital usage, by a
typical member of the public, highlights how
pervasive this relatively new technology has
become. Just like any technology, it seems that
for every plus there is a minus and the laws and
cultures of societies around the world have to
develop/change to deal with this technology.

10. Conclusion
There is often a “Cultural Lag” where a society’s conventions
impede the development or use of new technology and vice
versa, when society subverts the intended use of a particular
technology to fulfil a need in that society. Currently, it is my
belief that both cycles are running concurrently, depending
on the technology in question. Technological advancements
in social media have been used for purposes they were not
originally intended for but have been redeveloped to
account for consumer and business requirements, e.g. the
commercial development of Facebook which was developed
for students to communicate with each other. Collaborative
applications, like Hackpad and Google Drive, are
technologies sitting there just waiting for a greater
exploitation of their facilities.