The information super-highway is a high-speed communication system through which sound, television images and computer data are carried over glass fibre or copper wires to distant locations. Microwave and satellite technology are also employed.
Just as a road is for vehicles, on this super-highway, wires are important for the transmission of digitized information. One needs to be wired in order to be connected to this super-highway.
Indeed, nearly 99 percent of the Hong Kong population is now wired together by telephone lines. Other methods of connection include fibre optic cable.
Once a wire is laid, messages can be sent out. Mr. Philip Leung, head of the Microcomputer Application Support Section at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, said, "We should not be misled by the word 'telephone line'. In fact, it can transmit sound as well as images.
"The development of the super-highway in Hong Kong is still in its infancy.
"A sound telecommunications system is already developed, and the high population density of Hong Kong makes it faster and easier to connect the whole population together. However, we require skills. "
The world is becoming smaller and smaller with the creation of this super-highway, so small that it almost seems like a village, some say.
This may not be an exaggeration: The information super-highway is widespread to other countries. Since 1992, the United States has been putting a lot of effort into the establishment of a national information infrastructure.
U.S. Vice President Al Gore has been a positive force in promoting this new technology. He is calling for connection of every classroom, clinic, hospital, and library in the U.S. by 2000.
Other leading developed nations such as Japan, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, are also proceeding with the construction of national computing and communication infrastructure.
For example, the Japan has committed the fibre-optic connection of every home, business, school, and research laboratory by the year 2015.
Singapore meanwhile has made substantial efforts toward establishing a super-highway through similar computing and telecommunications networks to support health care, retailing and manufacturing sectors.
With this highway, people can send electronic mail everywhere in a second.
Not only can people write to each other, but also can they conduct face-to-face conversation, for images can be transmitted, too. This is known as teleconferencing.
It is anticipated that the information super-highway would change education as well, for it enables distance learning. In Japan, over 100 institutions are linked by computers and satellites.
In France, a newly discovered cave painting in Ardeche, almost impossible to reach, is accessible on computer network to scholars, teachers and students.
In India, five open universities are accessible through computer networks and there are 35 distance learning programs in conventional universities.
It is suggested that the information super-highway would change other industries dramatically as well. Video on demand, enabled by the creation of the highway, may threaten the traditional video rental industry.
"With the help of a set-top box, which connects the telephone line with the television, people can select their desired videos with a remote control," Mr. Leung said.
"A few minutes later, the program will be transmitted through the telephone line to the television.
"In this way, the video rental industry faces tremendous pressure, since there is now a tough competitor. Who will go to a video renting shop if one can make an order at home?"
Continued Mr. Leung, "The fastest growing aspect of the super-highway is computer networks, and the most noticeable example is the Internet."
Internet is the world's largest computer network. It links large commercial computer-communication services as well as smaller units such as universities, governments and corporate networks all over the world.
It enables computers of all kinds to share services and communicate directly, as if they were part of one giant, seamless, global computing machine.
The Internet evolved from a computer system 25 years ago by the United States Defence Department. It made its appearance in Hong Kong about a year ago, but it has taken off since then, said Mr. Leung.
He explained: "In Hong Kong, there are now three primary network services suppliers, which can connect to overseas Internet directly. Hong Kong academic network is one of them.
"Through this network, students and staff of the six universities can have access to Internet through the network at any time."
The Internet offers many services. These include:
E-mail: This is like postal services, but faster.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP): one can fetch programs and docu- ments from remote computers.
Gopher: it is a menu-based tool for searching information from the huge database in the internet.
World Wide Web (WWW): an- other information-searching tool.
Usenet: a collection of newsgroups covering almost every topic, from molecular biology to film reviews.
Telnet: This permits users to login on remote computer systems such as the one carrying the card catalogue for the U.S. Library of Congress.
Said Mr. Leung: "The Chinese University of Hong Kong is now carrying out a project named "RTHK on Internet" in conjunction with the Radio Television Hong Kong.
"The news and programs of RTHK are digitized and put on our WWW server, so users from all over the world can have access to them."
The Hong Kong Internet and Gateway Services, another primary supplier of Internet connections, was established in October 1993.
Mr. Roger Lau, its manager, said, "We help customers to connect to the Internet either by dedicated line or dial-in method. The former is charged on a monthly base, while the latter depends on usage.
"The monthly fee ranges from $6.8 to $12,000, depending on the bandwidth, that is, the capacity of transmission. As of March, we had a total of 2,000 customers.
"Indeed, the potential of Internet development in Hong Kong is great, since it is the centre of Southeast Asia, and its computerization process is gaining full speed.
"The growing demand of communication technology in China surely will add fuel to its development in the Territory," said Mr. Lau.
On the Internet, anyone with a computer and a modem can spread news and viewpoints to millions of readers around the world.
"Just consider this example. It is quite difficult for a Canadian to publish a newspaper in Singapore. However, now you can post your news on the Internet, thereby reaching those Singaporians who have accounts in the network," said Mr. Leung.
Mr. Kenneth Ho, an Internet user for more than three years, said, "Since I work as a computer dealer and write columns for computer books, Internet is an important way through which I could learn about what is going on in the computer world.
"I use almost all the services that are available, including E-mail, Telnet, World Wide Web and File Transfer Protocol. Indeed, I become an Internet user not only because of the needs of my job, but also because I have great interest in it."
Mr. Ho is now a customer of Hong Kong Supernet. For the services named above, Mr. Ho has to pay $25 for each hour's usage at peak time, and $15 per off-peak hour.
"I spend at least $1,000 on Internet per month," said Mr. Ho.
Mr. Leung of the Microcomputer Application Support Section said, "We need people to supply materials concerning education, entertainment and news on the super-highway, or we would be too dependent on foreign supply, which is a threat to our own civilization.
"Although the future of information super-highway seems promising in Hong Kong, there is still a lot to be done. Besides construction of the infrastructure, new legislation should be formulated ."
Mr. Ho added, "It is convenient to use the service in Hong Kong, but a system to govern Internet should be formulated as soon as possible.
"When I was in Britain, I felt quite sure that my electronic mails were not being read by others, since it is against the law. However, there is no such law in Hong Kong, and this gives me a sense of insecurity," added Mr. Ho.