Page 3 - EngineerIT November 2022

FROM THE EDITOR'S DESK

Predicting the future

read somewhere that “technology today is evolving at a another year to settle down and then we can perhaps
rapid pace, enabling faster change and progress, causing an talk about what the’ new normal’ looks like.
I acceleration of the rate of change. However, it is not only
technology trends and emerging technologies that are evolving, The big move to working remotely, or from home if
but a lot more has also changed this year due to the 2020 you like, created great opportunities for cyber crime
outbreak of COVID-19, making IT professionals realise that their syndicates, and there are plenty of them lurking around
role will not stay the same in the contactless world of tomorrow. every corner! Many companies were not geared to
And an IT professional in 2023-24 will constantly be learning, deal with so many devices connecting to their network,
unlearning, and relearning (out of necessity if not desire)”. while many employees were not cyber crime savvy.
Many are still not, if the very high numbers of cyber
I believe that it will apply to all of us, not just IT specialists. In attacks are anything to go by. Much more education is
many ways we are architects of our own future! needed.

I have come to the realisation that the world overreacted to Coming back to the lockdown, I still cannot get my head
the pandemic, with unnecessarily long lockdown periods. In around the many industries that totally shut down and
hindsight, several two-week long lockdown periods would have then took a very long time to get going again. Surely
worked just as well and would not have brought the world to a any business person worth his or her salt should have
standstill. Ok! It’s easy to say that now, we did not know what to realised that when restarting, they would have several
expect. That is why I wish crystal balls were for real! months of production to catch up on. Credit to those
who made alternative plans during lockdown and came
While it is perhaps a sensitive issue, the three months of out of it stronger than before.
lockdown also had its benefits. Overnight, working from home
made those who want to see bums on seats come to a quick Still on the subject of lockdown, EngineerIT is not
realisation that remote working wasn’t such a bad idea. Yes, locking down for the festive season. We have the
some people battled with poor internet access and overloaded December edition planned, with great reads and a
networks. But hats off to the communications industry - they fresh and bright start for the new year with the January
were quick to respond and we saw massive expansion of edition, just as the schools go back. Throughout the
available bandwidth, even though it was robbing Peter to pay festive season we will publish our Tuesday and Thursday
Paul when it came to spectrum. That, of course, could have newsletters with interesting articles. Just making sure
been avoided if our government had not dilly-dallied for over a you don’t have to suffer from technology withdrawal
decade to make spectrum available, not to mention how some symptoms!
industry sectors ran to the courts when they could not have it
their way. Greetings until next month.

Working remotely has, for many, solved the traffic problems Hans van de Groenendaal
of not having to go to the office every day; in many instances Editor
they have added two extra hours to their day and reduced the hansv@nowmedia.co.za
amount spent on petrol and transport. I believe it will take 082 781 4631

EngineerIT | November 2022 | 3