Essay of My Wonderful Life, New Digital Divide

One day I happened to listen to the radio program of the English conversation. It was a very interesting conversation. I couldn't remind of the details of this conversation, but I remember the outline as below.

"One of my relative often calls me the telephone in trifle matters of her personal computer (PC), saying that my PC was affected by virus or that she couldn't know how to install the new software. It is really wastes of time and the misfortune".

Her next words made me so impressed. That is;

"It was only a few years ago when the words of the digital divide was born. In accordance with the spread of the Internet, a divide between those who can make use of Internet and those who can not has been becoming outstanding. People were afraid that finally it would cause the social problem. At that time, the standard of the digital divide was whether you could make use of e-mail and browse web sites or not. "

"However nowadays I dare to say that there is a new digital divide. That is, there is a big difference between those can make use of Internet quite well and those who can not make use of not only Internet but also PC itself. The latter people don't know how to cope with virus and how to install new software."

I quite agree with her opinion. It has certainly advanced from the stage of E-mail and a browser. The TV reports such people who can earn huge amount of money through Internet business.

Then, I think of my self. Am I beyond of a new digital divide or not? I have such knowledge of homepage. And... Well, I make use of Internet, such as reservation of flight and trains, research of words and expression, finding maps, checking restaurants and shops and so on. Of course I make use of PC for legal research. But I need not research Internet, because all of Japanese laws, Cabinet orders and main cases have been installed into my PC. Anyway maybe I have already passed the test of a new digital divide.

However, Internet has been progressed to such extent that I can't imagine. On the other day my wife happened to see a woman patient at a hospital. She is suffering a cancer on her pituitary gland. She is housewife and an inhabitant of Gifu Prefecture, quite far away from Tokyo. When she was sentenced that her disease was a cancer, she was desperate. She was said that it was quite difficult cancer. Her doctor seemed to be at a loss how to treat. She tried to find some other specialist of this type of cancer. Through Internet, she could find a doctor, who is staying in Tokyo. When she contacted with him by E-mail, the doctor kindly replied. After a few times exchanging E-mail, the doctor asked her to send her X-ray photograph and recommended her to come to Tokyo for getting necessary operation. She said that she couldn't find a good doctor and hospital, without Internet. Her operation was successful and she will be all right for the time beings.

I am very impressed by her story. This is the new digital divide. Internet can even save our lives. I understand that this is the Internet revolution of 21st Century. I must catch up with the progress of Internet.

( January 24, 2005)