ABSTRACT
Electronic data processing evolved from virtually nothing
50 years ago to its virtual omnipresence in the industrialized
societies of the world today. The technologies that have
been harnessed to manipulate data converted to its lowest
common denominators (zeros and ones) have made a huge
impact on the lives of people throughout the world.
Digitized information, or data, is being used to enable every-
thing from live conversations between continents via satel-
lite, to the advancement of scientific discoveries and
research, to controlling the temperatures of different rooms
in a home. The recently emerged raft of online services
provides not only the links to communicate with personal
computers, but provides access to oceans of information to
navigate, capture, and use by anyone with a computer.
Businesses like banks and credit card companies use mas-
sive computing systems to provide everyday conveniences
like easier and faster access to money, in turn making it
easier to bill or manage accounts. Even supermarkets and
retail department stores are using powerful, data-intensive
information systems to do everything frommanaging inven-
tories to monitoring consumer spending habits. The applica-
tions list goes on and on; everyone in virtually every walk of
life is exposed in some manner or form to the impact of the
ongoing revolution called the Information Age.
