5.10 Ethical and Social Implications of Computing Systems

Now, we are finally done with creating our classes! However, there are a few additional concepts we need to cover in relation to programming and its impacts on the wider world.

Impacts

Programming has numerous impacts on the wider world, including social, economic, and cultural impacts. 

For example, access to technology and computer programs can be unevenly distributed, leading to social inequalities. Some people have access to technology while others don't get this access. 

Economic impacts include the reliance of the global economy on technology and computer programs, especially in stock trading and economic predictions. Programming and technology has also led to globalization, which includes the mixing of cultures globally and increasing the ease of communication between people anywhere in the world. 

However, this has also led to a generation gap, with younger generations being highly exposed to digital technology and older generations being less exposed.

These impacts on society, the economy, and culture can be beneficial, harmful, or a combination of both. 

System Reliability

When making programs, programmers also have to take into account system reliability. With system reliability, different devices can perform the same task at different speeds and in different ways. In different systems, there can also be different security issues inherent to the system that allows hackers and other people to exploit system loopholes in their programs.

To improve system reliability, any bugs, which are unintentional problems caused by the code, should be fixed as soon as they are detected. Once they are fixed, these are released to users in the forms of updates or patches, which fix the problem on individual computers so that they can be used safely and also correctly.

Intellectual Property

When creating programs on the internet, usually, the program is the property of the people who made the program. However, with the rise of open source programs, this line gets blurred. With open source programs, anyone can make edits to the code to make it better, provided the program owner grants permission. 

Licensing and access also play a role in allowing others to adapt and build upon existing code to create their own programs. There are many different types of licenses that one can get and each has a different use. Some include the Creative Commons Licenses and also the MIT License.