November 27, 2000 New Thinking:
Machine error
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November 27, 2000
Machine error
By Gerry McGovern
One of the most interesting things about the extremely close US election count is the fact the Republicans are on the side of machines, whereas the Democrats are on the side of humans.
The Republicans have objected to hand recounts in Florida based on the argument that machines are neither Republican nor Democrat, and therefore are more objective and accurate than humans. While the Republican objections may also have something to do with the fact that George Bush was ahead on the machine count, the belief that machines can have more authority than people is deeply imbedded in many of our psyches.
My first job involved setting up a computerized accounting package for a small firm. The boss had bought the package because he believed that if customers saw printed, rather than hand-written, statements they would be: a) more likely to pay up quickly, b) less likely to query amounts. Something that was printed from a computer would seem more authoritative, he believed.
The basic proposition from technology is automation, efficiency and cost-savings. There’s no doubt that in a great many instances, technology has delivered handsomely on that proposition. However, there are times where technology is oversold or where too much is expected of it.
A recent report by Network Associates on network security among Britain’s top companies found that many had substantial security weaknesses. Less than one third of the 120 companies surveyed were satisfied that their network was secure enough against hacker or virus attacks. However, according to Philip Harragan, European managing director of Network Associates, the solution is not more technology, but better training of staff. "The staff in any organization are the biggest threat to security because they do not understand what is good and bad practice," he stated.
Technology is all well and good, but it is humans who design technology and humans who run technology. Humans get tired, humans get lazy, humans make mistakes. That’s life, and mistakes make life interesting. Mistakes can lead to new inventions, new technology.
The Internet to me often seems like a Trojan Horse. It has been sold as this wonderful place where costs are slashed, where so much is automated and everyone makes lots of money really quickly. But as the Internet becomes imbedded in the organization and in society, it will introduce a whole new range of hidden costs and job functions.
The network is open and thus open to attack from viruses and hackers. All the technology in the world won’t solve that problem, if staff are not trained and vigilant. The Internet is fueled by content. Quality content publishing can never be fully automated. Real people need to write it, edit it and publish it on the Web.
“There is a lesson here for those of you who are helping to feed the technology revolution,” Richard L. Brandt recently wrote in Upside Magazine. “You must assume that nothing will ever be perfect… Everyone involved with technology should keep that Florida ballot in mind when creating the interface between human and machine. If perfectly normal people can screw that one up, how will they deal with your new product?”
Gerry McGovern
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