Computer & Society UGB03 Lecture Notes PDF

Pharos University in Alexandria Faculty of Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Dr. Hosam Selim Dr. Hosam Selim 1  Social informatics Prepared by: Dr. Hosam SELIM Dr. Hosam Selim 2 ...

Pharos University in Alexandria Faculty of Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Dr. Hosam Selim Dr. Hosam Selim 1  Social informatics Prepared by: Dr. Hosam SELIM Dr. Hosam Selim 2  Introduction What are the effects of computerization on our society? For instance, what does it mean when people say that the Internet will re-shape society? How much will people telecommute and how will telecommuting practices change the way we work? Dr. Hosam Selim 3  Introduction Will the increased use of computers and the presence of the Internet reduce the registrations in colleges and universities whose programs are place-based? How will the Web change the ways that people search for and use medical information? Dr. Hosam Selim 4  Introduction These questions are a sample of the ongoing and ever- increasing discussion about the ways in which computer-based systems more broadly information and communication technologies (ICTs) are playing powerful roles in reshaping organizations and social relations. Dr. Hosam Selim 5  Introduction We have also discovered that we are vulnerable to their malfunction and misuse, creating problems such as computer crime, software theft, hacking, viruses, invasions of privacy, an over- reliance on intelligent machines and workplace stress, each of which has created one or more ethical problems for the computer profession. Dr. Hosam Selim 6  Introduction Most technological problems these days get blamed on computers including power supplies failing, phone systems going down. Also computers get blamed for mistakes made by utilities, governmental agencies, credit-checking offices, the police, etc. Dr. Hosam Selim 7  What is a society? Society can be defined as “a community, nation, or broad grouping of people having common traditions, institutions, and collective activities and interests. Society and information technology are rapidly developing , and often in surprising ways. Society and networked information technology are changing one another. Becoming socialized means learning what kinds of behavior is appropriate in a given social situation. The increasing trend of digitizing and storing our social and intellectual interactions opens the door to new ways of gathering information that was previously disconnected. Dr. Hosam Selim 8  How is IT & Society linked? In the past few decades there has been a revolution in computing and communications, and all indications are that technological progress and use of information technology will continue at a rapid step. Accompanying and supporting the dramatic increases in the power and use of new information technologies has been the declining cost of communications as a result of both technological improvements and increased competition. Dr. Hosam Selim 9  Impacts of Computers on Today’s Society Computers have the greatest impact on society compared to other major technologies. They are associated with every aspect of our daily lives and without them, we would not be able to live as we do today. Computers allow us to achieve almost everything that seems impossible with other technologies. Dr. Hosam Selim 10  Impacts of Computers on Today’s Society Computers are essential tools in modern society, used in various industries such as design, medicine, and space exploration. They have become an integral part of daily life and are required for most jobs. Without computers, it would be challenging to run organizations and industries. Dr. Hosam Selim 11  Impacts of Computers on Today’s Society Computers changed the world a lot. It helped man step forward into the future. Thanks to computers, space exploration came true, new designs of vehicles and other transportation were made; entertainment became more entertaining, medical science made more cures for diseases, etc. Dr. Hosam Selim 12  Impacts of Computers on Today’s Society Computers impacted our lives in many ways. You may not notice it but they did make life a lot easier. Some people say that computers are taking away manpower. That may be true but computers did make the impossible possible. Dr. Hosam Selim 13  Impacts of Computers on Today’s Society Computer completes many task easily and quickly. It save time and efforts. Many companies use computer for keep record & maintain data. Banks use computer for maintain accounts and manage financial transactions and provide online transaction , credit card & debit card we use for online shopping & paying bills. Moreover computer use in every field of life such as education, medical, business, industry, airline & weather forecasting etc. Dr. Hosam Selim 14  Computer Crime New technology brings with it new opportunities for crime, but in many ways, computers and computer networks have left many open doors for criminal to enter. People are stealing or manipulate data, or threatening to destroy data to extort money from companies. ATMs (Automated teller machines), EFT (Electronic funds transfer), EDI (Electronic data interchange), cellular phones are all vulnerable. Desktop publishing has made forgery and counterfeiting easier Dr. Hosam Selim 15 than it used to be, as is phone fraud.  What is Social Computing? It is a general term for an area of computer science that is concerned with the intersection of social behavior and computational systems. Social informatics refers to the body of systematic research about the social aspects of ICTs Dr. Hosam Selim 16  What is Social Computing? It refers to systems that support the gathering, representation, processing, use, and publishing of information that is distributed across social collectivities such as teams, communities, organizations, and markets. Moreover, the information is not "anonymous" but is significant because it is linked to people, who are in turn linked to other people. Dr. Hosam Selim 17  What is Social Computing? An area of computer science that is concerned with the intersection of social behavior and computational systems. Dr. Hosam Selim 18  What is Social Computing? Creating or Recreating social conventions and social context with the use of software and technology. Dr. Hosam Selim 19 Dr. Hosam Selim 20 Dr. Hosam Selim 21 How Computers can be used to Develop the Society Computers for personal use Home banking and Shopping Computers in Education Computers in Entertainment Computers in Healthcare Computers in Agriculture Dr. Hosam Selim 22  Infrastructure Basis of Social Computing From an Information-Processing Perspective, social computing technological infrastructure includes: Web Database Multimedia Wireless Agent, and Software Engineering Technologies Dr. Hosam Selim 23 Dr. Hosam Selim 24  Social Informatics Definition Social Informatics (SI) refers to the body of research and study that examines social aspects of computerization including the roles of information technology in social and organizational change and the ways that the social organization of information technologies are influenced by social forces and social practices. Dr. Hosam Selim 25  Social Informatics Definition Social informatics relates to interaction between society and information-communication technologies (ICT). Dr. Hosam Selim 26  Interaction Interaction between society and ICT, i.e. Social aspects of computerization, what can be observed at two levels: Interaction of ICT and society at micro level of specific ICT applications, what includes individual (i.e. Human computer interaction) and organizational aspects of specific ICT applications. Interaction of ICT and society in at macro level, what relates to general changes in society due to the introduction of ICT, i.e. Issues related to information society; Dr. Hosam Selim 27  Application Applications of ICT in specific areas of social sciences and humanities, e.g. computer modeling of social science data, design of information systems in areas related to social sciences (e.g. application in public sector, social services, etc.). Dr. Hosam Selim 28  Social Informatics is Problem-Oriented This means that social informatics research focuses on the 'real-world' design, development, and use of ICT. Dr. Hosam Selim 29  The Value of Social Informatics 1. How can we best understand the meaning of "access to the Internet" in ways that help to foster policies to reduce the "Digital Divide". 2. How can organizations effectively use computer networks to help their professionals share important information about expensive projects? 3. To what extent and when have ICT developments fostered "paperless offices"? 4. When can ICTs in K-12 classrooms replace traditional media, such as textbooks? Dr. Hosam Selim 30 Work Processes Matters With Documentary Systems The social informatics approaches have been applied to some issues that are of particular concern to designers of digital libraries -- working with documentary systems. How do people work with documentary systems in practice? The paperless office. One of the hot items in a "paperless office" is a laser printer. Why are laser printer sales rising steadily -- and faster ones, more colorful ones Dr. Hosam Selim 31  Socio-Technical Systems Socio-technical systems is a complex, interdependent system consisted of: 1. people in various roles and relationships with each other and with other system elements. 2. hardware (computer mainframes, workstations, telecommunications equipment). 3. software (operating systems, utilities and application programs). 4. techniques (management science models, voting schemes). 5. support resources (training/support/help). 6. information structures (content and content providers, rules/regulations, access controls). These elements are not simply a static list, but are interrelated within a matrix of social and technical dependencies. Dr. Hosam Selim 32  Social Informatics Themes 1. ICT uses lead to multiple and sometimes conflicting effects. 2. ICT uses shape thought and action in ways that benefit some groups more than others. 3. A mutual relationship exists between ICT design, implementation, use and the context in which these occur. Dr. Hosam Selim 33  Key Social Informatics Issues 1. The context of ICT use directly affects their meanings and roles. 2. ICTs are not value neutral: their use creates winners and losers. 3. ICT use leads to multiple, and often paradoxical, effects. 4. ICT use has moral and ethical aspects and these have social consequences 5. ICTs are Configurable – they are actually collections of distinct components. 6. ICTs follow trajectories and these trajectories often favor the status quo. 7. ICTs co-evolve during design/development/use (before and after implementation) Dr. Hosam Selim 34 Dr. Hosam Selim 35