I entered the University of Illinois just when it became popular for all students to receive Internet accounts upon admission. Back then, nobody really knew where the Internet was going to go. Like many things, the Internet made a start in the military world, and went through academia before finding a permanent place in commerce. The Internet is different, though. It is especially exciting for me and my generation, because it is something that we have helped shape.
I started working at the Computing and Communications Services Office (CCSO) in January of 1995. The first version of Netscape Navigator came out during that winter, so I immediately took an interest in the World Wide Web. I started my own web page in order to experiment with the usefulness of the web. Before long, I was helping the local Finance Club run a stock trading game over the web. As more useful sites like CNN and Amazon were born, I started to realize the possibilities of the Internet.
Currently I use the World Wide Web for my daily news, stock trading, academic research, and personal interest searches. However, in the spirit of the Internet, I also contribute content. I created a web page where I can share my experiences and opinions about my travels, academic work, and personal interests. While I may not get as many hits as some of the bigger sites, I am happy to know that my contributions have been useful to some people.
The future for technology, for better or worse, is in bridging the gap between the people who understand the changing hardware and software available to the public. The web is a great example of the endless resources that are available to almost everyone. However, these resources are useless to people who cannot locate and use them to their fullest potential. The truly successful business person will have not only a strong personal understanding of the technology that surrounds us, but will also have an ability to assist others in the application of technology.
Accountants are experts at gathering, organizing, and presenting information in a useful form. I believe that this role will be expanded to include much more than financial statements and product costing. The new AICPA WebTrust initiative is just one example of how the role of the accountant is evolving. I intend to stay on the cutting edge of all technological developments. My goal is not to increase the gap between the haves and the have-nots, but to help bridge the gap and offer quality value-added services to all who stands to gain from technology.