Buzzword :: Globalization


Even in 1492, when Columbus sailed the ocean blue, leadership understood that achieving the leading edge required the ability to reach distant lands faster than anyone else.

It wasn't called "globalization" then. To most of civilization, the world was still "flat". But, the objective was the same, to spread influence and power across all known lands.

Today, "globalization" is a common buzzword used in all industries. It refers to companies expanding to cover a larger consumer base in different countries. Open any prospectus of a Fortune 500 company and you will find a section dedicated to their efforts to globalize.

In the past, much like the empires of old Europe, distance and slow communication left the counterparts overseas alone, to fend for themselves. Courier, by boat or horse, made communication required weeks to months to correspond. Telegraph reduced it to hours, but only if such services were accessible. Telephones became the standard of contact, allowing people to reach one another within seconds. Even then, only limited amounts of information could be conveyed. With the invention of the fax, hard copy information could be passed between people. But it was the onset of the Internet that we achieve true real-time contact. Not only could colleagues speak at the same time, critical data could be passed instantaneously. Bulletin boards, virtual whiteboards, databases, email, Internet phone, and instant chats.

The idea of globilization expanded into the general populace, as more and more people came online for "fun". Long distance relationships were becoming more acceptable to allow for work to take people further and further apart. Internet Romances moved from talk show abnormalities to frequent occurrences. People were interacting, chatting, and becoming friends with others around the world. A resurgence of personal mail, only this time in the electronic form, surfaced. Cultural and experience exchanges and learnings were shared through the Internet media. On the Internet, time zones didn't matter. The Cyberworld was truly the "Land that Never Sleeps". Any hour of any day there could be someone online.

Despite all of this, the goal to reach full globilization is still not realized. There are limitations that prevent us from reaching this goal.

  • Language
  • How do to deal with Law on the Internet
  • Technical gaps between people and areas
  • Human nature's need for physical contact

Language
Up until recently, all webpages were done in English. This made it easy for most of the Western world to understand and read them. But now, more and more countries are coming online and creating pages in their native languages. Western computers have no ability to view many of these character sets, like Japanese. To just look at the page correctly requires special software, like TwinBridge, that only works if the page was initially setup in the required format. And even when viewed correctly, one must understand the language for the data to be truly useful. Many companies are now going to hosting 3 to 4 copies of their websites just so they can display similar information in different languages. Thus, each subsequent change to the information requires someone to change each individual language's. A cumbersome and time-consuming task. Good translation and transliteration becomes the key to avoid blunders.

The copyright of the article Buzzword :: Globalization in Internet & Society is owned by Caroline Baker. Permission to republish Buzzword :: Globalization in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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