iGeneration

Zack Whittaker
Home / News & Blogs / iGeneration

Generation Y: 'Email is unfashionable and outdated'

By Zack Whittaker | August 24, 2009, 9:03am PDT

Summary

Steve Clayton, Microsoft extraordinaire and geek in disguise, posted an interesting set of statistics over the weekend, via Socialnomics, on the social media revolution  - the movement where media and information spreads far and wide through social techniques; Twitter and Facebook being the two best examples.
Students, or “Generation Y” seem to have taken a shine [...]

Topics

Facebook, Generation Y, Student, YouTube Inc., E-mail, Online Communications, Zack Whittaker

Blogger Info

Zack Whittaker

Biography

Zack Whittaker

Zack Whittaker

Zack Whittaker started playing with computers before he could even tie his shoelaces; although that skill wasn't discovered until he was 10. Amongst many things, he is a good-for-nothing, pink sock wearing, British student at the University of Kent in Canterbury, UK working towards a BA (Hons) Criminology and Social Policy.

In between studying, drinking, and occasionally sleeping, he works with researchers studying neurological illnesses like Tourette's syndrome (of which he suffers from), and gives talks and lectures on disabilities.

He grew up in "Robin Hood Country" in Nottinghamshire, UK for the best part of his life, but still heads there on occasion to see his ever-supporting and loving family, godchildren and his friends. Although due to his age he may seem inexperienced and misguided, but he's already totalled up many years of work, education, knowledge and general (mis)adventure.

Vendor HotSpot
Here to help you with your Document Management Needs

Read the DocuMentor blog now

Learn More »

Steve Clayton, Microsoft extraordinaire and geek in disguise, posted an interesting set of statistics over the weekend, via Socialnomics, on the social media revolution  - the movement where media and information spreads far and wide through social techniques; Twitter and Facebook being the two best examples.

Students, or “Generation Y” seem to have taken a shine in these statistics, with the rest relating to social web interaction and other interesting social networking facts.

If Facebook were a country, it would be the world’s fourth largest between the United States and Indonesia.

That’s true but something that has been covered before. However since then it has grown to roughly 270 million users which makes up the entire population of France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, the Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Switzerland put together.

2009 US Department of Education study revealed that on average, online students out performed those receiving face-to-face instruction.

This baffles me as it doesn’t go into detail. “Online students” could be having a face-to-face talk with their lecturer over webcam and Internet telephony. Personally, nothing beats sitting down with your teacher in their office and discussing criminology over a steaming hot cup of tea.

1 in 6 higher education students are enrolled in online curriculum.

E-learning is the way to go,and it really enables the learner to organise their studies better. There’s nothing worse than at exam time having a stack of paperwork so high, you need to apply for a licence to enter non-commercial aerospace. Online resources lets you click and choose at your leisure, and print out when you are ready.

Generation Y and Z consider e-mail passé. In 2009 Boston College stopped distributing e-mail addresses to incoming freshmen.

This angered me when I read this. Old news, perhaps, but not dishing out email addresses? I can understand that online identities are already established before you reach college - having sexybum2001, or narcoleptic69 gives you a good idea that one you might end up sleeping with and the other will most likely fall asleep (involuntarily) during your class. But a university email gives you that university’s identity and at least a little control over security, spam levels and mailing list distributions. You’re not just a student at a university, you also represent that university wherever you go.

The #2 largest search engine in the world is YouTube.

This doesn’t surprise me in the least. If you can’t find something on YouTube, you can find it on Google. If you can’t find it on Google, then it simply doesn’t exist. Facebook can be used as a social rule of thumb, but when Google yields no results then it either hasn’t been invented yet or you’re searching for a banned term in Chinese sovereign territory.

I still find the concept of a global interconnected network of people absolutely terrifying. Don’t get me wrong, the idea is exciting, exhilarating and opens the mind to possibilities never thought of before, which some would argue is why YouTube and Twitter became such a hit.

The world we know now has changed beyond recognition from what it was 30 years ago. The technology age that we live in has advanced us into the next generation just like the Industrial Revolution did for our ancestors. Being born into a world where these new developments blend into the background like an annoying cough at the back of a lecture theatre numbs the experience and limits the exo-perspective we gain when looking at it from a distance.

The thought of knowing that something bigger and better will arrive in my lifetime blows me away with over-excitable anticipation, but worries me at how far we have come already in such a short space of time.

Kick off your day with ZDNet's daily e-mail newsletter. It's the freshest tech news and opinion, served hot. Get it.

Zack Whittaker, the youngest in the ZDNet network, is a British student at the University of Kent, where he studies a BA (Hons) Criminology and Social Policy undergraduate degree.

Disclosure

Zack Whittaker

I worked at Microsoft as an intern a few years ago but have since cut my ties with them. I'm very grateful for their support over the years and the acquaintances I've made and the positive impact they've had on my future career. In spite of this, I remain impartial and unbiased to my views.

I don't hold any stock or shares, investments or industrial secrets in any company, but have signed confidentiality agreements with a number of UK and US organisations, whose names I am not at liberty to disclose.

I am highly involved with Kent Union, the University of Kent's student union, a charitable organisation which seeks to represent every student at either Canterbury, Medway, Tonbridge, Brussels or Paris campuses. Between May 2009 and December 2009, I was elected as a voluntary, non-salaried position - as welfare officer for Rutherford College at the university.

Between October 2009 and December 2009, I was elected as a voluntary, non-salaried position - as ordinary council member for Kent Union Council, the governing body for the students union. No other company, body, governmental department, non-governmental organisation or third sector organisation employs me or pays me a salary in any capacity whatsoever.

(Updated: 23rd February 2010)

Biography

Zack Whittaker

Zack Whittaker started playing with computers before he could even tie his shoelaces; although that skill wasn't discovered until he was 10. Amongst many things, he is a good-for-nothing, pink sock wearing, British student at the University of Kent in Canterbury, UK working towards a BA (Hons) Criminology and Social Policy.

In between studying, drinking, and occasionally sleeping, he works with researchers studying neurological illnesses like Tourette's syndrome (of which he suffers from), and gives talks and lectures on disabilities.

He grew up in "Robin Hood Country" in Nottinghamshire, UK for the best part of his life, but still heads there on occasion to see his ever-supporting and loving family, godchildren and his friends. Although due to his age he may seem inexperienced and misguided, but he's already totalled up many years of work, education, knowledge and general (mis)adventure.

More from “iGeneration”

Related Discussions on TechRepublic

Did you know you can take part in these discussions with your ZDNet membership?
Ask a Question Start a Discussion

Talkback Most Recent of 14 Talkback(s)

  • when they go to work ...
    They will more than likely have to use email. It would be interesting to see how the Gen Y kids that have made it to the work place are coping.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    lynn@...
    08/24/2009 09:55 AM
  • They Won't Have Jobs For Long
    Have you seen some of the crap these kids post on their MySpace and Facebook pages? Some just don't care, but they need to be aware that whatever they post can come back and bite them later on.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    itanalyst2@...
    08/24/2009 10:49 AM
  • Email is outdated?
    "Reading maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an exact man." -- Francis Bacon, Of Studies.

    Sir Pterry [Pratchett] additionally has observed that "Civilization is words."

    Language -- and the exactitude of thought behind one's use of written expression -- is sliding back to the cryptic superficiality of Akkadian cuneiform, suitable for maintaining beer and ration records, not the clear reasoning of Aristotle nor Burke.


    JJB
    ZDNet Gravatar
    JJ Brannon
    (Edited: 08/24/2009 11:39 AM)
  • This is the future?
    A bunch of idiots sitting around home tweeting what they're feeling right now?

    High school classmates finding me online to ask what I've been up to?

    My company recently had to send an all hands email telling everyone to get off the internet - everyone was sitting in their cubes watching a stream of Michael Jackson's funeral.

    Where are the high speed trains in every town and city? Where are the robots? Where are the cars that don't need driving?

    We're a bunch of frickin cavemen standing around using blackberries to tweet about what morons we are.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    HollywoodDog
    08/24/2009 11:35 AM
  • Yeah...
    I too think these Facebook / MySpace / Tweet nuts could use a life.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    LBiege
    08/24/2009 12:12 PM
  • At the risk of being facetious...
    What's the difference between tweeting/facebook and sitting around
    commenting on opblogs about how pointless tweeting/facebook is? Just
    asking.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    UsernameRequired
    (Edited: 08/24/2009 02:15 PM)
  • RE: Generation Y: 'Email is unfashionable and outdated'
    I think the Internet and social networking should be studied a little more and perhaps from a more prosaic point of view.

    I have some of the best conversations in my life face to face with people. Not so much with social networking. Social networking does have a use but as far as a huge trillion dollar value, I don't think so. People were social long before the Internet and will be long after the unsustainable infrastructure has been left to rot.

    The Internet may provide a convenient way to socialize but just like everything else the Internet has ever touched, it has corrupted it. The Internet is an abyss where everyone in it rushes to the bottom. Can I find out what "so and so " is feeling right now on Twitter? Sure, but who really cares?

    I post to ZDnet, does anyone care? Does it really change anything in my life?

    ZDNet Gravatar
    mr1972
    08/24/2009 12:15 PM
  • I find that Twitter is best suited...
    I find that Twitter is best suited for people that have nothing to say that is longer than 140 characters.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    WiredGuy
    08/24/2009 02:13 PM
  • I still like email.
    I still like email.

    The nice thing about email is that it's not a pushy as the other forms of communication. It seems that the other stuff just demands too much attention.

    I like a method where I can just check it once a day and not worry about it the rest of the day.

    "2009 US Department of Education study revealed that on average, online students out performed those receiving face-to-face instruction."

    This baffles me as well, as frankly that's just pure nonsense. Are we really so poor at face to face that it's gone below online?

    I think that's frankly telling that we've got our values in the wrong places and that we're killing our real life social skills by pretending to be "social" online too much.

    "1 in 6 higher education students are enrolled in online curriculum."

    That too is far too broad of a statement to mean much. I've seen all kinds of teaching approaches online. From very basic approaches of just using it to post and receive assignments, to full blown community-like online sessions. Could mean pretty much anything.

    "But a university email gives you that university?s identity and at least a little control over security, spam levels and mailing list distributions."

    . . . and frankly, I hate it. They send every tiny little event, no matter how uninterested you are, to everybody. Filtering by mailing list helps a bit, but frankly most of the time they are ignored and simply sent to the global list where you're supposed to get the important stuff.

    . . . and, frankly, Gmail's spam filtering is 100x better than the college system's sorry excuse for a "spam filter," which doesn't even deserve the name. I ended up just forwarding it to my Gmail.

    I'd much rather go with the world-class spam filtering of Google than some spam filtering system at a university which was probably done as a final project by some student with a bright idea that was only effective long enough to get a passing grade.

    Universities aren't really known for having the budgets to afford an effective enterprise-class solution.

    And, frankly, Gmail is more effective than even those.

    "The #2 largest search engine in the world is YouTube."

    Not surprised, but I don't use it. Waste of time.

    "The world we know now has changed beyond recognition from what it was 30 years ago."

    Yeah, instead of talking constantly on the phone, they're typing constantly on the phone. Forgive me if I'm not seeing that this "change" as really that big.

    It's the same thing in new packaging. Nobody's more productive because of it.

    Is this changing the world?

    Sure, if you count wasting inordinate amounts of time talking about nothing as "productivity" somehow.

    Talking more is not the same as doing more. In fact, talking more usually means doing less.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    CobraA1
    08/24/2009 08:16 PM
  • Face-to-face, like boring or egotistical lecturers
    Online or remote education offers much more opportunity to focus on education in one's own tmeframe without the distractions and other nonsense typically associated with in-person education.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Patanjali
    08/25/2009 12:55 AM
  • RE: Generation Y: 'Email is unfashionable and outdated'
    I am an IT student and I still prefer email above Facebook.
    Facebook is more or less a pressured thing, you are supposed to post messages and photos on it, while email is more direct and you are certainly not pressured by anyone to check/send an email.

    About the spam, I am also forwarding all my mails from my university emailaddress to GMail. The spam filter of GMail is just awesome and GMail is just easy to use.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    jeroenwar
    08/25/2009 12:51 AM
  • Inbox full of email not pressure?
    Obviously never had an inbox full of emails requiring attention.

    Emails from people expecting your attention without any regard to your legitimate priorities.

    Peple DO feel pressured by emails in work situations.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Patanjali
    08/25/2009 12:59 AM
  • RE: Generation Y: 'Email is unfashionable and outdated'
    attention spans getting shorter, naturally new media in the
    forms of twitter or facebook sticks. but email allows for more
    content and is of more formal representation. not the
    same and not substitutes for each other. - twitter.com/taysharon
    ZDNet Gravatar
    taysharon
    (Edited: 08/25/2009 08:31 AM)

  • ZDNet Blogger

    I agree with that
    I can only deal with "to the point" text messages. Texts which say, "hi, how are you?" I can't stand because it doesn't tell me anything.

    Even comments on here - I never bother reading the big ones. The short "Twitter" sized ones get more readers reading it.

    It's not so much the lack of attention span, it's just the fact I'm so damned busy.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    zwhittaker
    08/25/2009 08:47 AM

Talkback - Tell Us What You Think

advertisement
Click Here

The best of ZDNet, delivered

ZDNet Newsletters

Get the best of ZDNet delivered straight to your inbox

Facebook Activity

Blog Roll

Blog Archive

White Papers, Webcasts, & Resources
advertisement