In this issue we are pleased to introduce Camilo Jose Daccach T, teacher, international speaker and business consultant in e-commerce. In addition, he is the author of Delta Report, circulation weekly electronic newsletter that is distributed free to more than 160,000 people worldwide. In this interview he refers to the issue of the “Great Online Community” that is the Internet and the role they play in the community search tools.
Eduteka: Engineer Daccach, thank you very much for sharing with our readers / users experience on the subject of finding information on the Web could talk about the great community of Interconnected? which has enabled Internet?
Jose Camilo Daccach T .: Internet has only 30 years. He was born in a closed within universities and research centers with very few initial users redoubt, it is estimated that today has about 500 million users and the trend indicates that in the next two years will reach 1,000 million. The great “Interconnected Community” is currently composed of universities, students, companies, researchers and people in their homes. This is a huge community with a common goal: access to information and interact with many others, because the distance and language are no longer a barrier.
E: There currently online all kinds of information and resources, published largely by members of this great community of Interconnected ? What role do the search tools in the Community?
JCDT: The first thing is to understand what is meant by Internet and what really is the Internet. Who spent more than 10 years in contact with the Internet, we had to use tools such as Gopher, Archie, and other available only in text format that provided service to people who could use or have access permissions. Only 10 years ago appeared the Web, a graphical Internet that is what people commonly believe that is the Internet. That other party in text format, seems to have been shelved. However, large banks existing data are focused on the text format and do not think to convert graphical format.
If these two worlds together, they make up the entire Internet. If you only search the Web using different search engines, we will find only a part of what we could use. In addition, we should note that there is information to the public and private access. So when a search is performed, you have to know where it will look for and where to access the search tool to be used. As there are two worlds, one clearly available and the other rather hidden, the search tool that you use to enter them must be appropriate.
When was the Internet, information was available for free available to everyone. But with the need to monetize the use of the Internet to obtain financial resources through the information hereby provided, they began to emerge locks to access this.
There are even search engines that require a payment to access the data they produce such as Northern Light. Also, consider the quality that is achieved, there is a lot of free commercial type and results of research on products and market trends (White Papers). However, many and very relevant as necessary to advance an investigation requires the payment of large sums sometimes exceed $ 5,000, as in the case of market research.
Nor can we ignore the fact that about 70% of hits to a site on the Internet are made through search engines and many of them require a payment to index a site in its database . Fortunately there are places on the Web as DMOZ have been given the task of indexing sites to make them available to search engines. This indexing is done by people who apply the best criteria for these data can be effectively and appropriately located.
E: When a student has a problem of information, how to recognize the most convenient tool search to find what you really need?
JCDT: The first thing to do is determine how much information you have and how much known about the subject that is your goal. There are basically two types of Internet search tools. The first are the subject directories , ranging from the general to the particular addressing the classification of who armed the directory. For example, you can find a category that “technology” is called, from there down to a subcategory “Software” and continue to fall within that structure tree, up to what is being sought. This tool is very useful when very little is known about the research topic or when it is not known how this classified information on the Internet. Tools that probe You start by inquiring about a topic in a directory, then the information is analyzed to find that form is stored it needs and thus better refine the basque. La second, are search engines, within indices, yielding to arbitrary classification criteria, which are the most relevant or those containing a greater number of times the term being searched sites. To use the engines, you need to know to look. Associated with search engines, meta search engines are also doing the same search on multiple engines simultaneously and present the abridged results. They are important because it is estimated that between 10 and 15 thousand engines.
Google is a search engine that has positioned itself very well in the last 18 months. It has a very clean interface that provides advanced search option that allows use very easily.
E: If it is true that you need to master the art of search tools to avoid getting lost in this sea of information, do not you think that is perhaps more important to develop the critical thinking which recognizes the right information for an investigation?
JCDT: Internet is a very rich tool information. But the abundance that there exists good planning involves making regarding what is required to locate, to establish certain assumptions, to determine criteria for assessing whether or not these are correct and then to a summary of all the information found. Before students possessed a few encyclopedias and summarize them was relatively simple. Now with the Internet, information abounds and presents from absurd or false results, even excellent results. If not develop critical thinking in students then they can not determine the course of any investigation that is and is not relevant. It will be very difficult for them to select the really important information.
E: What do you think about the need to develop proficiency in Information Management (CMI) in students?
JCDT: Currently students are exposed to enormous amounts of information, starting with television offers about 100 channels, have increased the number of radio stations and also have the option of Internet provider of this. If there is good management then it can not determine what is relevant, what is true or discover inaccuracies. It is very important that students learn to manage information, because it is necessary to do with it, how to process it , as synthesising, etc. There are currently no excuse for not having knowledge. What is happening is that there inability to manage it and to act on it.
E: What is the function, which in their opinion, should have the Information Technology and Communications (ICT) in education in Colombia?
JCDT: With the reduction in costs Technology may have it in Colombia under the same conditions and at the same time it is for sale in other countries. Increasing access to infrastructure communications can link almost anywhere within the country. In education it is important that students have access to ICTs as part of the regular curriculum not like 10 years ago when the computer class was separate and not part of the curriculum. Today the trend is to incorporate the technology into each materia. Por example, a student must perform as classwork a sales brochure travel to Japan to investigate from airport names and cities, airlines and exchange rates available until the difference in schedules. This type of task is facilitated with the help of ICT and access to them it is critical to achieving increase the degree of knowledge of the estudiantes . En the near future the differences between the population will be taken for the proper handling of information not available and that have access to it because this will be transparent. Social class and race differences tend to disappear to give way to two communities: one that knows where to get the information and use and one that really has not been exposed to it or did not want to learn to use.
