The Swiss Army Knife of the Digital World

As humans and society evolves, technology follows in tow. With the progression of technology, producers are creating products that are multi-functional yet incapable of performing all tasks that are desired or required by their consumers. We are not incapable of producing technology that cannot perform, or converge, all of our tasks; the companies that create these products make them in such a way that renders society dependent on needing more, thus buying more.

Henry Jenkins

Convergence, in Layman's terms, is when different forms of media, or mediums, come together into one singular medium. Henry Jenkins explains convergence in his article "Convergence Culture" without necessarily defining convergence; Jenkins offers multiple examples of convergence within modern culture, allowing his readers to better understand the idea more personally. In his article, Jenkins discusses his coined term "black box," or the all-encompassing term for technology that is literally a black box-- the TV, DVD player, gaming systems, or technology of the sort. These black boxes are being converged, or combined, into simpler devices to make life more efficient and less cluttered for its users. It is theorized, however, that there will not be one singular black box to perform all tasks.

"We can see the proliferation of black boxes as symptomatic of a moment of convergence: because no one is sure what kinds of functions should be combined, we are forced to buy a range of specialized and compatible devices," this is directly from Jenkins's article in his discussion about his idea of the black box. Furthermore, if a company such as Apple created a singular black box, it would eliminate the necessity for other products or even other technology companies. Until then, however, we are left with all of our unnecessary black boxes left to converge over other various media such as, the television, Internet, and any form of technology that requires advancement.