Digital Planet, Tenth Edition, By George Beekman and Ben Beekman

For three years in the early 1990s, George Beekman spent most of his time writing a textbook for his popular computer literacy course at Oregon State University. The book, originally called Computer Currents: Navigating Tomorrow’s Technology, was designed to provide students with the background they needed to survive and prosper in a world transformed by information technology. The first edition was unique among introductory computing books because it devoted a whole page to that experimental network of networks called the Internet. [one_half] [slideshow id=”280″] [/one_half] [one_half_last] [slideshow id=”359″]  [/one_half_last] The book’s title, design, focus, and contents have changed with the technology. Computer Currents became Computer Confluence, which became Tomorrow’s Technology and You. Two constants have anchored it through the changes: an engaging writing and presentation style that clarifies complex ideas, and an uncompromising eye on the technological horizon that will define our future. In its various incarnations the book has been used at hundreds of colleges and universities around the world and translated into several languages.

The latest edition, coauthored by George’s son Ben Beekman, highlights the book’s global perspective with a new title: Digital Planet: Tomorrow’s Technology and You. The book draws on George’s decades of experience teaching at Oregon State University, writing for popular magazines, and demystifying technology in workshops from the Atlantic to Alaska, as well as Ben’s expertise in the workings of the Web, multimedia design, and emerging technologies.

Digital Planet has always been about convergence–the convergence of computers and communication technology; the convergence of the written word and multimedia; and most importantly, the convergence of technology and the people whose futures are changed by that technology.

A companion web site, digital-pla.net, is continually updated with cross-referenced links to relevant articles, videos, podcasts, and other multimedia material. with its interactive web site, Facebook page, and Twitter feed, and Prentice Hall supplements, Digital Planet is a complete learning package.