New Pew Report: Networked Workers

A new report from the Pew Internet and American Life project:

The majority of employed adults (62%) use the internet or email at their job, and many have cell phones and Blackberries that keep them connected even when they are not at work. 

Working Americans express mixed views about the impact of technology on their work lives. On the one hand, they cite the benefits of increased connectivity and flexibility that the internet and all of their various gadgets afford them at work. On the other hand, many workers say these tools have added stress and new demands to their lives. 

One of the major impacts of the internet and cell phones is that they have enabled more people to do work at least occasionally from home. Some 45% of employed Americans report doing at least some work from home and 18% of working Americans say they do job-related tasks at home almost daily.

New Pew Reports Released

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The Pew Internet and American Life Project has released four new reports:

• Teens, Video Games and Civics
  finds that 97% of all teens age 12-17 play computer, web, portable, or console games, and s”ome particular qualities of game play have a strong and consistent positive relationship to a range of civic outcomes.” They seem to be stretching when they look for a connection between game-playing and civic engagement.
• Whither the internet? “A survey at the first global Internet Governance Forum shows activists’ want an online Bill of Rights and more competition among service providers.”
• The Engaged E-patient Population: “Home broadband has now joined educational attainment, household income and age as the strongest predictors of internet activity. For example, 78% of home broadband users look online for health information, compared with 70% of home dial-up users.”
• Podcast Downloading 2008 ”Currently, 19% of all internet users say they have downloaded a podcast so they could listen to it or view it later…Still, podcasting has yet to become a fixture in the everyday lives of internet users, as very few internet users download podcasts on a typical day.”

New Pew Report:Mobile Access to Data and Information

The Pew Internet and American Life Project, probably the best source of data on Americans’ use of the internet and related technlogies, has released a new report: Mobile Access to Data and Information.

A personal note: I love having internet access on my cellphone. I use it to check email, and to do searches. Often when I’m out and around I check on addresses, business hours, and other information that makes my life easier. I use Google Maps for directions. I’ll even check book reviews while I’m in a bookstore.

I feared that having email on my phone would tether me to email,  but instead it frees me from my computer.  For example, I can recheck details on a meeting while in transit, or check for updates from someone I’m supposed to be meeting.  And I can do email during interstitial time.  It’s too hard to key long notes, but often all I do is delete unnecessary email or key a short reply.

From Pew:

Some 62% of adult Americans have taken advantage of mobile access to digital data and tools. The Pew Internet Project’s new report, entitled Mobile Access to Data and Information, examines mobile access in two ways and finds that:

58% of adult Americans have used a cell phone or personal digital assistant (PDA) to do at least one of ten mobile non-voice data activities, such as texting, emailing, taking a picture, looking for maps or directions, or recording video.

41% of adult Americans have logged onto the internet on the go, that is, away from home or work either with a wireless laptop connection or a handheld device.

Overall, 62% of adult Americans have either accessed the internet with a wireless connection away from home or work or used a non-voice data application using their cell phone or PDA, according to the Pew Internet Project’s December 2007 survey.