Introduction
Proper communication is essential to the development of any organization. In fact, lack thereof compromises the growth potential of any corporate establishment. With this idea in mind, it is worth appreciating the impact of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) to the development of the global economy and communication since their development in 1997. According to the Journal of medical system, the utilization of pagers in the years before was quite limiting since these devices had a narrow communication spectrum (Kuziemsky and Francis 337). Consequently, PDAs were developed to enhance the sharing of information between individuals through the utilization of the internet and email services. Due to their higher processing abilities, the PDAs combined the services of a cell phone, a pager and minor computation activities such as document management and internet browsing. A decade later, these devices were replaced by smartphones, which offered more services and had more processing abilities. However, the role of PDAs to the economy during the commencement of the 21st century was immense. The impact of Personal Digital Assistants on communication and commerce was immense as it created a good interaction channel for organizations and individuals.
What was the need of this technology?
Personal Digital Assistants were developed to complement the services offered by the desktop computers by introducing portability. According to Nair, Pradeep and Jean-Pierre (40), the effectiveness of using computers in communication, the health sector, and other business transactions was limited to specific locations. Specifically, people could only access the information they need from their organization while at the firm’s premises. For instance, medical records stored in a hospital's database could be accessed exclusively from the computers within the medical premises. Additionally, sending and receiving emails over the internet required one to have access to computers, which were not completely mobile. As such, the development of PDAs was aimed to enhance the services already provided by other forms of technologies by introducing the aspect of mobile communication. Through this device, making transactions over a network was made lesser challenging among organizations. Sending and receiving emails could be done from any geographical location as long as one had connectivity to the internet. Consequently, Personal Digital Assistants provided a solution to the health, communication, and commerce sector by making information sharing convenient.
Describe the impacts of this technology on specific fields
The development and utilization of the Persona Digital Assistants revolutionized the economic and business systems by enhancing communication. Due to their portability, the corporate personnel could make business transactions away from their desk. This situation was made possible due to the document processing services offered by this device. In fact, the International Journal of Mobile Communications argues that the PDAs were linked to the central servers of business establishments for remote data access (Scornavacca, Mishul and Hans 563). The PDA user was required to log in to a profile using their job ID, and they could access their required information. Additionally, since the Personal Digital Assistant had a wireless connection to the Internet, geographical limitations were minimized in the corporate sector. As such, enhanced communication made it lesser challenging to secure business deals and market one’s products. Since the services offered by an ordinary cellphone were incorporated into a PDA, business people could send text messages or make phone calls thereby enhancing the stability of the firms they worked for. Consequently, Personal Digital Assistants had an influential role in the economic and business systems as they enhanced communication and data processing.
The performance of the medical sector was equally enhanced through the introduction of the Personal Digital Assistants. Precisely, health professionals used these devices to communicate among themselves while at the hospital. According to Tempelhof (103), such services improved the overall patient service and accommodation since the medical practitioners had faster access to relevant information. Additionally, PDAs complemented the services that were initially offered through the pager. Through their integration with the hospital database system, it was relatively less challenging for the hospital personnel to extract the required information from the central server as opposed to the traditional methods of data access. The maintenance of the patient’s medical records was made better through the introduction of these devices to the medical sector. Specifically, the recipients at the counter could request for information from the hospital server at their desks using a computer and transfer the information to the PDA for portable access. These improvements enhanced the performance of the medical sector immensely as communication and information processing could be achieved through a portable device.
How has societal, political and business systems developed alongside the technical discovery?
The invention of Personal Digital Assistants greatly enhanced the communication sector. Specifically, it was easier to send and receive information than it was using a desktop computer. This situation made it easier for people to keep connected to their loved ones regardless of their location. Through the utilization of internet services, the PDA users had real-time access to the market and information sector through the updates provided on the internet. The business systems were, therefore, great beneficiaries of this technology since the corporate activities could be conveniently conducted in a shorter span of time and more productively. Additionally, having higher data processing abilities in a portable device was a great convenience for corporate organizations as their business systems were continually being developed. Through these services, the development of the economy was significantly enhanced since the business systems were more productive than they were before this invention. Influential data access and inventory management were achieved because of the good communication platform created by the PDAs.
Describe the impact of this technology on your home region
Personal Digital Assistants had a constructive impact on the corporate and medical sector in Kuwait. According to the Medical Principles and Practice, the utilization of these devices promoted instant access to drug information at hospitals (Matowe 290). Instead of using printed copies of the inventory to determine the medical supplies in the hospital, it was relatively easier for medical practitioners to browse the digital inventory through the personal digital assistant. This feature improved the speed of service delivery at drug stores and hospitals in the nation. On the other hand, the corporate sector greatly benefited from the development of this device as it enhanced the levels of communication. For instance, drug store owners in Kuwait could inform the suppliers of any inadequacies when they required a restock of their supplies. This situation led to the development of the supply industry due to improved communication.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the development of Personal Digital Assistants in 1997 has had an immense impact on the development of the global economy. This situation is largely accredited to the fact that it has improved communication thereby enhancing the performance of the business and health sector. Through its portability, the PDA was successful in offering computer services through a hand-held device. Additionally, its powerful processing abilities made it possible for this gadget to replace the pager that was utilized for similar services. Without a doubt, the impact of Personal Digital Assistants on communication, healthcare and commerce were immense as it created a good interaction channel between organizations and individuals.
Works Cited
Kuziemsky, Craig E., Francis Laul, and Raymond C. Leung. "A review on diffusion of personal digital assistants in healthcare." Journal of medical systems 29.4 (2005): 335-342.
Matowe, Lloyd. "Use of personal digital assistants for instant access to drug information." Medical Principles and Practice 13.5 (2004): 290-291.
Nair, Harikesh, Pradeep Chintagunta, and Jean-Pierre Dubé. "Empirical analysis of indirect network effects in the market for personal digital assistants." Quantitative Marketing and Economics 2.1 (2004): 23-58.
Scornavacca, Eusebio, Mishul Prasad, and Hans Lehmann. "Exploring the organisational impact and perceived benefits of wireless Personal Digital Assistants in restaurants." International Journal of Mobile Communications 4.5 (2006): 558-567.
Tempelhof, Michael W. "Personal digital assistants: a review of current and potential utilization among medical residents." Teaching and learning in medicine 21.2 (2009): 100-104.
