Blog #9: Diffusion Theory

 

For the phonograph, later known as record players, it was a big invention for that time because it allowed people to listen to sound, more importantly music, whenever they wanted. To link this to the Diffusion Theory, so many people became early adopters because it was a novelty. They wanted to get their hands on it because it was so new and nothing like it had been produced before. 

As a novelty, the machine was an instant success, but was difficult to operate except by experts, and the tin foil, that it was first created with, would last for only a few playings. Eventually, the novelty of the invention wore off for the public, and Edison did no further work on the phonograph for a while, concentrating instead on inventing the incandescent light bulb. after the early adopters stage, comes the early majority. This stage was not a success at all. Because of all the flaws that the early adopters caught and the new versions of the phonograph not coming out until later, people were not as intrigued as it was in the very beginning. 

This invention doesn't have much to do with the communication of others or social media, but it did connect people to the music world and made them expand their music library and be able to listen to music in a whole new way. This invention was the start of a greater world and because of this invention we now have the vast music world that has become an intricate part in so many people lives.

It is hard to imagine a world where we did not have this technology or that even if this technology was created decades later that we would not have the many ways we can listen to music. This invention is for the greater good and to look at disadvantages of this technology is not comprehensive.