… would have to be - the COMPUTER. I know it’s technically an innovation (a further-developed enhanced typewriter) but I think that it has made a huge enough impact on society to be classified as an invention. Besides, a typewriter was exactly that: a tool used for typing. Computers of today offer so much more. I mean, there’s very little you can’t do with a computer, from typing a letter, to playing games, watching movies, and chatting to people on the other side of the world. And if you want to get technical and say, “Well, you can’t make yourself a meal with a computer” – think.again! (Geddit?) Let me remind you that robots (another type of computer) are being developed faster than you can imagine and very soon, forget mere menial tasks like preparing meals, but robots will be able to do almost anything!

Computers are amazing. To focus on just one aspect of it, take the Internet. It’s a whole new world! (Yeah, I’m still a bit of an Aladdin fan!) I mean, imagine that in a space of about 10-20 years – even if we say 25 years, as some say that it has in fact been around for ages but just wasn’t accessible by the general public – in the relatively short period of time that Internet has been around for, society has created a database of millions of sites; where even a search for the most unheard-of topic will yield results showing thousands of hits!

Information jungle aside, the Internet has opened up a whole new category for socialising and communicating. If you thought e-mailing was impressive, you clearly haven’t been around for a while. There are chatrooms galore, blogs (like mine), forums, instant messaging, Skype phone calls and video calls! Gosh, you can even have your own personal page on social sites like MySpace and Facebook; and if you really want, you’re most welcome to create your OWN site! Yep, the Internet is definitely on of the most incredible facilities of a computer. 

You know, the world of computers and technology is progressing at an unbelievable rate. For example, Microsoft has been working on a secret project, Code Name: Milan, for the last couple of years and recently Popular Mechanics ran a feature on it. Basically, they have developed a computer on a completely new interface: a coffee table. It’s sooooo cool! Like if you place your digital camera onto the surface, your pics are automatically uploaded onto the system and can be “passed around” the table for others to look at. Take out a cellphone, place it on the tabletop and pull a few photos to it: and hey, presto! The images are uploaded onto the phone. Code name: Milan belongs to the category of computers called surface computing. It has no external peripherals; instead it boasts an impressive multi-touch interface which will enable one to do practically anything, for instance, to resize a picture, you hold it down with one hand and pull the corner with the other.

Computers are the coolest invention ever but while saying that I’d have to admit that the most important invention is undoubtedly electricity. I mean without electricity we wouldn’t have most of the other cool inventions around today, like: the TV (no HIP2B2 on Mondays!), the stove/oven, the DVD players, the iPods, CELLPHONES, constant hot water, air-cons, heated-pools, Jacuzzis, microwaves, fridges, guys – no PlayStations and Xboxes and girls: NO HAIR STRAIGHTENERS and hairdryers!!!

So computers are my fave invention...no surprise then that I’m determined to pursue a career in the IT field! What’s yours? Let me know...you can leave me a comment at the bottom of this page and maybe we can chat about it. Anyway...g2g IT homework calls...same place same time – next week...