As for the Kathleen's opinion about "70% of Koreans Use Internet", I'd
like to make two points as a native Korean.
Whereas Kathleen pointed out well that playing computer games is a way in
which Koreans learn computer skills, it seems to me that game players are
not the major part of the big population of Korean Internet users. Also,
easy access to Internet from Internet caf�s could be one of the positive
factors, even though many Koreans use Internet from their home rather than
the Internet cafes.
I'd like to point out two unique Korean cultures that have increased the
growth of internet user population, instead of emphasizing easy/cheap
access and game culture.
In my opinion, the culture of relation-based society accelerates the use of
"Internet Cafe", which is a different term from
that of Europe. Koreans call an internet cafe a PC bang (=room). What
Koreans call 'Internet Cafe' is a blog type of virtual cafe. People love
to create a virtual group where they can share the same interests, and use
the cafe as a group learning space. For example, before I moved to the
U.S. to attend my grad school, I joined an internet cafe where I shared
information with virtual users about grad schools in the U.S., and learned
the culture of American universities. I recently wanted to learn about
adoption. So, I typed the key word in one of the major internet caf�
providers and found a huge virtual caf� where I can learn about adoption
laws, people's real experiences, and case studies. Political activism and
civic engagement are becoming more and more active through the virtual
cafe activities. When there is a disaster or a political violence in
Korea, people attach a virtual black ribbon to cafe messages in order to
express the public level of condolence. People also have a caf� of high
school friends, a caf� of college friends, or a caf� of book club that
really empower intimate human relationship in the offline world. Along
with these internet cafe activities, online activities have been expanded
through the concept of "chon", which is a degree of kinship. 1 chon is a
kinship between parents and children. 2 chon is a kinship between
siblings. In one of the popular blog sites called cyworld
(www.cyworld.com), one can sign a virtual agreement with close friends on
"being a 1 chon", which stands for an intimate friendship inside the blog
site. My blog includes a drop-down menu that allows me to easily surf my 1
chons' home blogs. The website notifies my 1 chons' birthdays, news and
updates on a regular basis.
These relationship-enhancing activities are one of the strong factors that
involve many Koreans in internet activities.
Based on my observation and experience, the other factor that keeps
Koreans in IT skill development is the culture of license-based society. Most
college students have a driver's license even if they don't have a
car or they don't drive because the license itself can be "countable". As
for the similar reason, people in Korean society are encouraged to gain
national IT-related certificates by taking standardized tests such as a basic
computer literacy test (level 1 through 3), an
information-processing test and a word processing test, which measure
computer literacy from typing speed to data management skills. Some people
like me who didn't choose to take the standardized tests still buy books
and practice computer skills at home because you feel left behind if you
don't practice them. Even if I was in the field of education, I just
played with Flash and Photoshop programs at home to be prepared for future
competition with people in the job market who possess several computer
licenses.
I hope you found two comments helpful in understanding the "70% of Koreans
Use Internet" article, in addition to Kathleen's comments. Thanks.
Haejung Chung
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Sun, 6 Feb 2005 11:28:10 +0530
From: "Subbiah Arunachalam" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: [DDN] 70% of Koreans Use Internet (fwd)
To: "The Digital Divide Network discussion group"
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
reply-type=original
I agree with Kathleen. Skills acquired through gaming in one's early life
can flower into general computing and programming skills when one grows
up.
Also, we should work towards low-cost reasonable bandwidth internet
access
in all developing countries. Such access need not be confined to South
Korea, Argentina and parts of India.
Arun
[Subbiah Arunachalam]
----- Original Message -----
From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "The Digital Divide Network discussion group"
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Saturday, February 05, 2005 2:08 AM
Subject: Re: [DDN] 70% of Koreans Use Internet (fwd)
> We have personal experience with Korean internet use. Koreans use
> internet cafes, rather than home computers. Seoul, which has 11 million
> residents, has over 10,000 internet cafes. These internet cafes have
> high speed bandwidth and excellent machines. Internet-based gaming is
> very popular, and the players demand the best in speed and equipment.
>
> My son is/was a famous professional internet gamer, and spent a year and
> a half in Korea (for anybody who is into gaming, he was 'Maynard' and
> 'KGOR'). In Korea, internet gaming is covered nationally like soccer or
> football, i.e., as a sport. My son used to appear on Korean TV
> regularly, and get lots of emails with beautiful school photos of Korean
> fans, who are so polite in their email.
>
> I think that the skills learned by young Koreans in gaming will
> translate into dominance in all aspects of computing, and at this point,
> the best gamers in the world are Koreans. When my son was a dominant
> player, Americans were the best, along with Brittish, Canadian, and even
> Australian players, reflecting the history of the creation of the web
> and video gaming. Not so anymore, and I think this is a harbinger of
> our future in computing and cyberspace.
>
> In Argentina, many more people have home or business computers to use
> for email and internet. But the charges for using dial-up access are
> outrageous, so it is common for people to limit their use at home or
> work. High speed broadband is now available in Buenos Aires, and BA has
> thousands of 'locuturios' or internet/phone cafes. They are incredibly
> cheap, albeit tiny, and a new one seems to spring up on every block.
> They advertise their bandwidth, and charge more for higher bandwidth.
> But it is cheap--about 33 to 50 cents (US) an hour. I take my own
> computer and just plug in to their network, because the equipment is not
> so hot. Notebook computers cost a fortune in Argentina, so I get
> admirers! The equipment varies from old and slow to usable: a Pentium
> II with 256K ram is about average. Computers are expensive in Argentina.
>
> In Mexico, internet cafes often use dial up access! Often the equipment
> is as old as the hills. Some, however, have broadband if they are
> located in the cities. Sometimes the internet is an add-on to a long
> distance telephone location: send faxes, take and make phone calls, buy
> cigarettes, candy, drinks, and manifiestos, etc., all in the same tiny
> store. The best one for use I have come across was run by an Argeninian
> living in Mexico who also served coffee, drinks, and snacks. Yes, you
> can use the computer and drink your coffee at the same time. But I have
> never seen good fast equipment.
>
> Kathleen Muro
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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