Cyberspace and contemporary society.

22Oct09

When considering cyberspace and its relevance to contemporary society, one has to first explore exactly what cyberspace entails. The term cyberspace was first coined in the revolutionary 1984 sci-fi novel ‘Neuromancer’ by author William Gibson (William Gibson Books, n.d). Despite the term being coined in a world 25 years younger and much less technologically apt, today the definition of the word remains the same, except for one rather large contributor, the Internet. As it was when it was coined, cyberspace refers to the non-physical, limitless world that is created when computer operators communicate with each other through computer networking (Whittaker, 2004). A more contemporary definition of cyberspace is “the electronic system of interlinked networks of computers, bulletin boards, etc. that is thought of as being a boundless environment providing access to information, interactive communication, and, in science fiction, a form of virtual reality“ (Yourdictionary.com, 2005).

The introduction of the internet changed the face of cyberspace forever, it allowed people from all over the globe to communicate with each other and share thoughts, feelings, desires, information; almost anything instantly. Before the internet cyberspace was limited to time and place, I feel this is why the terms cyberspace and the internet have been mistakenly used interchangeably in our society for some time now. The fact is, the internet is not cyberspace, and cyberspace is not the internet . Cyberspace is the ‘space’ where people are given the ability, through using the internet, to communicate in an almost boundless environment (Wise Geek, 2007). It is the space where people can become their alter egos, where males can pose as females and likewise. In cyberspace people can shop without moving anything but their computer mouse, people can virtually visit other places in the world, watch movies and television shows, and communicate instantly with people across the globe, it has very much so become a virtual reality (whittaker, 2004).

In answer to the question of cyberspace and its relevance to contemporary society, I would say that cyberspace is more relevant to contemporary society today than ever before. With no sign of the world slowing down, and technology continually advancing, cyberspace today is a bigger part of everyday life than ever before. Everyday millions of people log onto the internet to access numerous different things from cyberspace. as of June 2009, 1,668,870,408 people worldwide are frequent internet users (Internet World Stats, 2009). One of the most popular things people do on the internet these days is social networking. Sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Myspace allow people from all over the world to stay in contact with friends and regain contact with long lost friends. These sites also act as a replacement for meeting with people face to face, it has become more common for people to catch up via a social networking site than it is to call, or visit, according to Martinez, Facebook users collectively spend more than 8 billion minutes a day on the site (Gigoam, 2009). The freedom and convenience of cyberspace allows people to retain friendships in such a busy society. I know that more than five times daily I check my Facebook page, to see what friends are up to and stay up to date with what is going on in my social world. As a busy student working two jobs I don’t necessarily always have the freedom to meet with my friends, Facebook offers a fantastic alternative, and cyberspace makes this possible.

As the internet and cyberspace become a more integral part of everyday life more and more services and companies are tapping into this resource as they realise the value cyberspace has to offer. Television stations are offering online TV shows to watch, radio stations are now online, many new music artists are discovered via sites such as Myspace and Youtube. Cyberspace is taking over the world and changing the way things are done in society. More people are choosing to log into cyberspace for relaxation time and enteratinment rather than going out, more business is done online, international business is now easier than ever before.

For me and my life cyberspace is a place I spend much time, and I think it’s safe to say this is the same for millions of people around the world, proving that cyberspace is more relevant to contemporary society than ever before, and there are no signs of this slowing down in the near future.

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