The Disruptive Nature of Technology

Abstract

This hour and five minute long podcast features a session from the Seminars on Academic Computing Conference by Jon Udell, Evangelist of Microsoft Corporation. Mr. Udell is an author, information architect, software developer, and new media innovator. His 1999 book, Practical Internet Groupware, helped lay the foundation for what we now call social software.

Web 2.0 and other emerging technologies invite exploration, innovation, and building with “small pieces loosely joined.” Yet those opportunities can disrupt traditional academic processes that undervalue amateur participation, discourage faculty from venturing outside their realm of primary expertise, and look to “enterprise solutions” for administrative convenience. Can the academy include “half-baked ideas” in its core mission and processes? This session addresses these issues from the perspective of an IT professional outside the academy.