Week 9: Constant Change in American Culture

          In Manufacturing Desire, in “What Teva Means: Technological Warfare among Everyday Products,” Berger talks about the “constant change in American culture” (Berger 213).  He states that “in some cases the changes are quite minor, though corporations may rise and fall on something as trivial as the invention of Velcro or the development of new kinds of aluminum frying pans” (Berger 213).  He also talks about how advancements in computers and the development of CD-ROMS and Moderns have created opportunities for infinite businesses to expand and for countless businesses to arise.  These businesses have changed Americans lives for forever and have kept us on the continual and everlasting path of change.

          Microsoft has not only changed American culture, but it has changed the technology world worldwide.  “The whole 'information at your fingertips' thing” — a proposal that Bill Gates initially introduced in a 1990 industry speech — has changed the way that Americans receive and put out information.  According to BBC News’ Charles Miller, Bill Gates “has all but accomplished his famous mission statement, to put ‘a computer on every desk and in every home’ - at least in developed countries”.  For those who think that the “computer revolution” would have happened without Bill Gates, they need to realize that 90% of computers run Microsoft’s Windows.  The “computer revolution” has connected people that are states and countries away from each other through cyberspace.  This revolution and Microsoft’s technological advances have changed how people communicate, consume merchandise, advertise, work, and construct their daily lives.