We're not so different...or are we?
I have just recently returned form a two week excursion to China & Japan. The trip was fantastic, and while I could drone on about the amazing experiences I had, there was definitely a technology component to the trip that I feel is worth sharing.
For starters, I was pretty disappointed with my cell phone carriers (Verizon) performance throughout the trip. I did my due diligence in advance, and ensured that A) my Blackberry could actually function in the countries and regions I was traveling to, and then called Verizon to have international dialing and data services turned on for the duration of my trip. Naturally, this was going to cost me more for the month, but I was willing to pay. As you might imagine from the tone of the paragraph, performance was almost non-existent. I was able to send text messages in China (though no phone or data services) and I couldn't do ANYTHING while in Japan, despite the fact that the Verizon rep told me everything would be fine (and I was being charged for the services). UGH!
That aside, here are some tidbits of note: there is a huge market opportunity in the web sphere in China. I mean huge. They are not even remotely close to putting products and services on the web like we have here in America, but its only a matter of time as the country becomes more and more connected. However, there aren't a lot of companies there doing this type of work...yet. And, there is the issue of government control, but that's another post.
Subway systems in both China and Japan (specifically Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Tokyo) are leaps and bounds ahead of many systems I've used here in America (especially DC's aged metro system). From on-time arrivals, robust displays of current train/station status, to purchasing tickets/rides -- every system worked well, was new and fresh, and was accurate and easy to use. Tokyo even completely accommodates visually impaired riders, with different textured walkways that help them determine where to go.
Of course, much has been made of Japan's love affair with high tech phones and QR codes, which also sometimes server as their metro pass and their wallet. Not having one of these fantastic devices, I wasn't able to experience this integration first hand (read up on QR codes here -- but I certainly witnessed it all day, every day. The sheer (observed) convenience of walking up to a street side vending machine, waving a phone in front of the circular target and grabbing a hot tea seems so simplistic -- but it adds real value to daily life.
There is definitely a lot to be learned about user friendly and efficient uses of every day technology, that other cultures already have down pat.
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