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Episode #1822
New
Technologies
Lewis: Mitchell Lewis, Host
Daniels: Dr. Fonda
Daniels, PhD, IBM
Harris: Eric Harris, OASYS Information Services
Kuttner: Jonah Kuttner, UNC-TV
Lewis:
Who
says there is a digital divide? African Americans are online,
in tune, and working in technology industries. Meet a few
of them next on Black Issues Forum.
Voiceover:
This program was made possible by contributions to UNC-TV
from viewers like you. Thank you.
[THEME
MUSIC]
Lewis:
Good evening everyone. I am Mitchell Lewis, your host
tonight. Thanks for joining us. Tonight’s guests have
both professional and personal interests in current and emerging
technologies. First, we have Dr. Fonda Daniels, an enterprise
architect at IBM in the Architecture and Integration group.
Eric Harris is the founder of OASYS Information Services in
Raleigh. Joining us from the UNC-TV network operations center,
or NOC, we have Jonah Kuttner, the network operations coordinator
at UNC-TV. Folks, welcome to Black Issues Forum.
Kuttner:
Thank you.
Daniels:
Thank you.
Harris:
Thank you.
Lewis:
Fonda, I’ll start with you. Tell us what your job
involves.
Daniels:
Whenever you have a computer system someone has to design
the system. Someone has to think about security and reliability
of the system. Is it there accessibility for people that are
handicapped or blind? What I typically do is I build systems
and I make sure all of those characteristics are accountable
when I design computer systems.
Lewis:
Eric, give us some background on OASYS Information Systems.
Harris:
OASYS Information Services is an information technology
solution provider. We have a number of analysts, designers,
technicians, and architects that go out and work with corporations—small
and medium sized businesses and nonprofit organizations—to
deliver solutions and provide support.
Lewis:
We’ll go to Jonah. Tell us a little bit about your
work here at UNC-TV, Jonah.
Kuttner:
Here in UNC-TV’s network operations center, this is
where we are broadcasting digital channels free all over North
Carolina. Right here, this is part of our network operations
center. It is one of our control rooms. Right now we are showing
these—the four channels we are putting out over the
air. We call these standard definition channels and this digital
television is one the new types of technology that will bring
you standard definition channels or high definition. It is
a brand new transmission format that will bring you crystal-clear
pictures and sound.
Lewis:
I understand that you have some footage from the network
operations center. I believe they are about to roll that.
Tell us a little bit about the center itself.
Kuttner:
The network operations center here at UNC-TV—these
pictures are of the main room. Our network operations center
from this room—this is where we broadcast and we monitor
quality control all of our transmissions all over the state.
This room is manned 24 hours and there is always somebody
there making sure that your favorite PBS programs are on.
Lewis:
Thanks, Jonah. Eric, we hear a lot of talk about the digital
divide here in North Carolina between those who have access
and those who don’t. From your perspective do you believe
that there is such a divide and why?
Harris:
Yes. I believe that there is a divide in the technology area
mainly because of access to the hardware and software. There
are some cost barriers but, most importantly, it is the education
and the knowledge and ability to take advantage of the technology.
Because technology continues to advance it is a challenge
to keep up, even for people that are in the business or in
the field every day—you have constant learning. When
you think about the entire state and the general populace
it becomes a challenge. In some of the more rural counties
there is a challenge to access. It is something that is just
a continuing challenge that we need to pursue and try to achieve.
Lewis:
Do you see this challenge especially among African Americans
and other minorities?
Harris:
Historically I would agree with that. I believe that the
technology industry has really advanced over the last 20 to
30 years. We do have a lot of individuals, minorities, that
are involved in the technology field. There is still a gap
between income ranges. That is something that has to be addressed.
It is something that is an ongoing challenge.
Lewis:
Fonda, do you think women are gaining the access that
they need to technology? Are there areas of technologies that
women are excelling in?
Daniels:
I think that, just as minorities, women are included in
that. It is a bit difficult for us to excel the way we should
be. Historically technology has been more prone towards men
because they have more of the opportunities. I think that
that gap is closing. I’m a technologist so that I try
to make sure that I am very aggressive in keeping up to date
on things that are going on. I try to target women mentors
that are doing the same things that I am doing. I won’t
say that it is equal but they are making strides to do that.
I’m hoping that that gap will be closing very soon.
Lewis:
Jonah, of course we in the television industry have heard
a lot about digital conversion. Why should our viewers be
aware of this and what impact will this new technology have
on them?
Kuttner:
The digital conversion was mandated by the FCC as part
of the Congressional Balanced Budget Act of 1997. So, digital
television is something that all television stations—public
broadcasters and commercial broadcasters—were required
to make a conversion towards. Now that it is after May 1st,
2003 and all stations—just about all stations—in
North Carolina, as well as all over the country, should have
a digital signal up. It is a free digital signal, pending
the purchase of set-top box, but it is free in-services such
as the ones I illustrated earlier that are available to all
North Carolinians.
Lewis:
I know you talked a little bit about it earlier, but what
will be some of the main features that viewers will have through
digital television?
Kuttner:
Digital television gives us the technology to take four
channels and put them into the space that we would traditionally
broadcast one channel in. Or it gives us the technology to
broadcast a high-definition picture—a picture that is
formatted in terms of the height and width of the screen like
a movie theater’s screen. When you are watching these
high definition pictures, or even the standard definition
pictures that you are used to seeing ever day, you also get
digital CD-quality audio as well as potential datacasting
capabilities that may be related to the program you are watching,
or unrelated, for some private use.
Lewis:
Explain a little bit more about datacasting.
Kuttner:
Datacasting is a means for digital television stations
to get information out—a lot of information out—at
a relatively high speed, compared to, certainly, a phone line.
Digital television has capability that can be used to perhaps
get information out to the underserved areas of North Carolina
to help get that information out while those folks are still
waiting for DSL and cable modem access and all this high speed
internet. We can use digital television to help get information
out along those lines.
Lewis:
Thanks. Fonda, what do you see as some of the new and
emerging technologies that will be able to assist us personally
as well as professionally? I think you have a few graphics
here.
Daniels:
Yes I do. Basically, right now everybody has to have a
palm pilot, a cell phone, and a laptop. You have to be wireless
at home. I am wireless at home. These are some of the things
that are just a little bit more advanced. Right now they have
“smart cards.” The smart cards will actually act
as your driver’s license, your passport, your credit
card, your ID card, and it can contain your medical history.
What is going to happen is different pieces of the smart card
will be encoded with specific information. Only vendors or
services that are privy to that information are entitled to
that information. We won’t have this wallet with all
these credit cards and all this ID information anymore. You
can just actually have one card that can serve all those purposes
for you. I think that that is definitely coming, to try to
consolidate some of the things we have now.
Lewis:
Eric, what are some of the things that you are seeing?
Harris:
With the internet, you are able to link so many individuals
together very cost effectively. What we are doing is we are
using the internet to create a secure communication link between
various locations. What we are able to do with that is we
are able to link into some of the rural counties—maybe
down in Eastern North Carolina or in the Western part of the
state. We can provide centralized services like accounting
services and consulting services that would be centralized
in this area but we have this direct link down to other parts
of the state. In many cases it saves people time in driving
and it also allows you to get work done quicker.
Lewis:
As far as banking is concerned—what will be some
of the things that may be available to folks soon?
Harris:
I think this whole convergence of cell phones and palm
pilots and so forth—we carry all of these things around,
or many of us do. It would really be convenient to have one
device that allows all of this information to be consolidated
into one portable device. That is something that is coming.
You have one device that is your cell phone and pager and
you can get on the internet and send emails. I think that
that is a growing area, especially with the wireless technology
that is really emerging this year.
Lewis:
Fonda, you had mentioned smart cards. Are there any concerns
about security as it relates to those cards?
Daniels:
Definitely. Security is always a big issue when you have a
smart card, or just one device. If you lose that device, then
all of your information is going to be available to that person.
There are encryptions and algorithms and things like that
that can be used to protect that information. It is a digital
world. It is going to be very difficult to protect someone’s
privacy and security but I think we as consumers just have
to be a little bit more diligent. Check your bank balance
and look at your statements. Be mindful of who you are talking
around and lock your device. You’d be very surprised
that most of our viewers probably do not have a password on
their telephone—their cell phone. If you lose your phone
I bet you someone could dial right now. Those types of things
are going to protect you, from a consumer perspective. There
are encryption algorithms. There are hackers that are going
to break into that information, but I think it is just that
the consumer has to be a little bit more diligent. Be mindful
of your money and those types of things. If it has a password
then utilize it. We have alarms on our homes and we have passwords,
so why don’t we do that for our devices?
Lewis:
How are things as far as your end of the business as far
as security is concerned? Is it pretty much the same?
Harris:
In many cases we are involved in implementing many of
the solutions and working with the people that actually use
them. So, like the advice that Fonda mentioned, we have to
find a way to convey that to our clients and help them to
enforce certain policies. In many cases you protect your home
and lock your door. You have an alarm system; you protect
your wallet. In this information age you are really taking
these same types of concepts and then applying it to today’s
technology.
Lewis:
I wonder if Jonah is still with us. Jonah, as far as implementing
digital television—what are some of the challenges that
we face with that?
Kuttner:
The biggest challenge for digital television for all broadcasters,
including UNC-TV, has been a financial one. All of this equipment
that is required to broadcast and transmit digital signals—it
costs money. In addition—probably most people don’t
know this—but in essence all TV stations have two transmitters
now—an analog and a digital one at least for a certain
amount of time prescribed by the FCC. All of these costs to
build a transmitter, build a tower, build all of the pieces
to feed the transmitter and then build all the pieces here,
like in a facility such as this, to feed that does require
a lot money. A lot of broadcasters have had to find various
ways to fund all of these changes—in our case through
the Higher Education Referendum Bond a few years ago.
Lewis:
You touched on cost. What will consumers be looking at
in trying to gather the equipment that they need in order
to be, for lack of a better term, in compliance and to have
true digital quality?
Kuttner:
The good news is that often you hear that digital television
is going to cost a lot of money. You have all these sets that
you want to buy for high definition. It is true that if you
want to see high definition pictures in your house it will
cost a lot of money to buy a set. A lot of people don’t
really realize that if they have digital cable then they have
digital television. It is feeding into their television right
now. Digital television overall you can use with your standard
television and get a box—a special box on top of your
TV—if you want to see free over-the-air reception. Beyond
that, if you want to see high definition pictures, usually
the biggest cost along those lines is the TV to display those
pictures and any other potential audio systems if you want
the full theater experience in your house.
Lewis:
As far as your areas are concerned I would imagine that
cost is a very important issue along those lines. Fonda, what
are the costs associated with some of the things that you
are involved in?
Daniels:
Yes. It is expensive. I think that is probably one of
the problems for minorities. There is a cost associated with
it. I saw a palm I wanted the other day. It was a cell phone;
it handled my email; it was really nice—it was $600.
I really—I kind of thought about it, but this is a digital
world and you can’t afford not to do it.
Lewis:
I see we have a graphic here of a palm.
Daniels:
Yes. That is one of the newest palms. There is actually
a digital camera on the top of that. If you go to a different
country—say, Japan—you can actually use the digital
camera to scan a sign or something like that and it will interpret
it in English for you. Those are some of the new technologies
that palms and things like that are going to be—those
things are coming. They are basically here and we can’t
afford not to embrace them. I have to decide where I want
to put my money and I am a technologist so I have to put it
in technology.
Lewis:
Eric, what are some of the costs associated with the work
you are involved in?
Harris:
What we try to do is advise out clients to not let the
train or the plane pass them by. We definitely want them to
get onto the plane or train and then we really want to see
whether we can move them from the back of the plane or train
up to the front. A lot of times cost is prohibitive. We may
not move them to the front; they may kind of sit in the middle—but
that is a whole lot better than being left at the station.
It is relative to the business.
Lewis:
I understand we have one more graphic. Fonda, tell us
about this graphic that is about to come up.
Daniels:
Okay. To me this is the coolest piece of technology. That
is really a keyboard. If you look at your thumb, there are
three sensors. The first sensor represents the first row of
the keyboard. The second sensor on your thumb represents the
second row and then the third sensor represents the third
row. So, if you want to type a character on the first row
with this finger then you just hit the first sensor. If you
want to type a key on the second row with this finger then
you just hit the second sensor. That is basically a keyboard—right
there what you are looking at. You don’t have to go—one
of the things when I’m traveling—I have to lug
a laptop. I don’t want to do all that. I’d rather
have something that I can very simply just tap it out very
quickly. I don’t have a lot of weight from my keyboard.
It transmits that directly to a file or something like that.
That is new. That is coming.
Lewis:
I was curious as to how far away is that type of technology?
Daniels:
That is probably a demo already. A lot of the things that
we are talking about exist already. It just depends on how
the world will embrace them. People are building things. A
couple of years ago we didn’t have the refrigerators
that are smart. Now, you can take an item out and if you don’t
put it back in it records that you didn’t and it tells
you that you need to go get milk. That is real today. That
is old actually. Some of the new things like that are probably
already prototypes. We’ll have to decide as consumers
if we are willing to buy in. I’m going to buy in. I
like it. I definitely see that as an asset.
Lewis:
I do believe that we do have one more item.
Daniels:
These are some of the things that are really nice too.
If you look at the one on the right, it is basically a credit
card. If I’m going to the grocery store or something
like that I just place my thumb there and the device on the
sensor subtracts money from my banking account. The other
one is kind of like EasyPass. I’m going to get gas—I
don’t swipe a card; I just beam my credit card information
right there. It takes my money right off. It is about making
devices and things more convenient for people. Both of them
have a key chain so you can just put them on your key chain.
You don’t have to worry about having a wallet and things
like that. Be mindful that if that is lost you might want
to make sure you are secure on your information on those types
of devices.
Lewis:
It seems like it would take away a lot from check-writing
too.
Daniels:
Yes. Those things from checks have to be encoded and microfilmed.
All of that is taken away. You don’t have to do all
that processing, which—in a solution you worry about
cost, and you don’t have that in that type of solution.
It will probably reduce the cost of trying to implement that
technology.
Lewis:
I know I am probably throwing you a curve here, Eric,
but what are—when you are trying to set up a business
to get it high-tech, if you will—what type of price
ranges are you looking at?
Harris:
Typically what you do is you look at the business. If
you are talking about access to the internet, for example,
prices are low today compared with in the past. In the past
a high-speed access to a wide network would cost you close
to $1,000. Now, for $49.95 a business could get online with
high-speed internet access. It is really relative. What we
typically do is we take a look at the business and we look
at their revenue streams. We look at where they are trying
to go and then we try to help them make technology decisions
that would be cost-justified in where they are trying to go
as an organization.
Lewis:
How do you see technology opening doors for African-Americans?
Harris:
My personal experience has been the knowledge and the
training created job and career opportunities. I think that
that is something that will continue. I believe that if you
are looking to move into more of an entrepreneurial realm,
the knowledge and the ability to leverage technology creates
opportunities for you to see ways in which you can serve your
community and serve other businesses. In the area of economic
development and community development, the use of technology
to deliver services more cost effectively and faster—technology
is really a tool, and we as technologists have to find ways
to make it practical, cost effective, and efficient for the
people that we serve.
Lewis:
Fonda, what are your thoughts on that?
Daniels:
I think it is important for us to embrace it because we
can be inventors of that technology. If you don’t get
on the train then you can’t participate. These devices—there
could be some technology that we foresee it being beneficial
to us. You have to embrace it. You have to say, “This
is a palm. Well, suppose the palm would do this.” That
is patents and intellectual properties. That is building your
portfolio. The light bulb and things like that were patented
information. Why can’t we as technologists do that?
You have to be involved for that to happen.
Lewis:
Jonah, we’ll get you back in on this conversation.
How do you see technology opening doors for African-Americans?
Kuttner:
Even though technology is often intimidating for a lot
of people, it is here. There are tools, in the case of television
services, to bring a lot more to people who might not have
had an opportunity to get the services before. It is potentially
intimidating and it is hard. The transition here from videotape
machines to basically what is all computer devices—it
is hard to wrap your brain around a lot of these types of
concepts. If everybody just opens up their minds and realizes
that these things are here to help and make our lives better
then you will have a better chance of appreciating them and
being able to utilize them.
Lewis:
Fonda, you touched on it: How critical will it be for—not
just African Americans but everyone—to become familiar
with some of the new emerging technologies?
Daniels:
I foresee it to not be an option. You have to buy in.
If you don’t know what a palm pilot is or you don’t
now what a laptop is; if your home is not wireless, then you
are behind. It is essential. We must embrace these technologies.
It makes your life easier. I don’t think anyone now
can kind of maneuver without a cell phone anymore. It is going
to be like that for wireless and—I don’t know
how to behave if my broadband is not working at home. I can’t
function anymore. It is essential. It just takes some time
but it is essential.
Lewis:
Eric, where do you see this?
Harris:
Over the last 20 years—and that is about the time
that I’ve been involved in information technology—it
used to be that some of the older adults would say, “That
is really good. It is good for my children.” They would
spend the time to make some of this technology accessible
to the children. Things have kind of sped up a bit. Over the
years I started to hear where people who were out at work
would say, “I need to learn a little bit more about
this, because my job is changing.” Most recently I heard
about in the supermarket where you have the self-service checkout.
What happens to the people that worked the cash register in
the past? You have to give thought to changes and how that
is going to impact all of our lives. The technology is here
and it is something that we can embrace and leverage.
Lewis:
I know we have talked about palm pilots and cellular phone
and broad bands—all of this. Is there any type of technology—let
us just say toys in general—that folks need to just
look out for?
Daniels:
Those are toys. A palm pilot is a toy. You can play games
and surf the Internet. Your cell phone is the same thing.
To me those are toys. My home is wireless. I can use the internet
wherever I want. That is a toy to me. That is something that
I can sit on the patio or do whatever I want to. I don’t
have to be physically connected. If you’d think of it
like all of those things are toys you might be more inclined
to kind of experiment. If you read the newspaper you can read
the manual. It is very simple to do.
Lewis:
Jonah, you touched on it earlier. There are many phobias
out here when it comes to people embracing new technology.
What advice would you give to folks to help them overcome
that phobia?
Kuttner:
Just take a deep breath. It is a very tough thing to work
around, especially with the proliferation of digital and computers
and menus on devices and all of these things. A remote control
with perhaps hundreds of buttons, it seems like in some cases.
You look at all these pieces and you say, “Wow. How
am I ever going to operate this?” It might take 10 deep
breaths. Just relax. Perhaps a manual here and there if you
are inclined to read manuals. Just play around with these
things. You can’t break something by hitting the wrong
thing on a remote. Just give them a shot. Play with them and
learn how it works. Take the time to do so, so you understand
how the technology is beneficial.
Lewis:
Eric, your thoughts on that?
Harris:
One of the clearest pictures I get is when I watch my
children play around with technology or something new. They
have no fear. They have a lot of curiosity and they are willing
to ask questions. We have computing equipment in the house,
and my daughter takes a look at that and she just jumps into
it without fear and asks questions. Next thing you know, she
is there working it like she is an expert. I would say for
all of us that maybe change is a little bit more challenging,
but just remember those days when you didn’t have as
much fear. Don’t treat it as something as something
that is so foreign. Just relax and get involved.
Lewis:
Folks I have to stop it here. Thank you so very much for
your input. I’d like to thank our professionals in technology—Dr.
Fonda Daniels, Eric Harris, and Jonah Kuttner for being our
guests tonight. For more information on tonight’s program
and guests, or for a transcript, please log onto the Black
Issues Forum website at www.unctv.org/bif.
When you visit be sure to send us your comments and program
suggestions. You can also call us on the BIF line at 919-549-7167.
Join us each and every Friday night at 9:30 p.m. for another
addition of Black Issues Forum. I’m Mitchell
Lewis. Good night.
[THEME
MUSIC]
Voiceover:
This program was made possible by contributions to UNC-TV
from viewers like you. Thank you.
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