The World is Flat opens with an explanation to an increase in communication and the flattening of the world, which leads to a change in society causing a need for alterations in education and preparation for a lifestyle of continued learning. Thomas Friedman investigates the development of businesses and competition in the web-based global playing field. Using case studies, interviews and statistics, Friedman presents the idea of preparation for the fast moving world that most people are not able to keep up with. The global economy requires governments, businesses and individuals to stay ahead and be innovative to remain competitive. A global market has been born, the world is becoming flat, and globalization is no longer a western driven process. "More people in more places now have the power to access the flat-world platform ” to connect, compete, collaborate, and, unfortunately destroy ” than ever before.  “ Thomas L. Friedman, The World is Flat pg 205. The flattening of the world, the spread of globalization began with the development of computers. At first computers were not easy to use, the programs that ran the computers did not collaborate. Computers were hard to work with and appeared strange and confusing to the average person. With the development of computer programing, information and data was shared between coworkers and parts of businesses, then whole businesses, and eventually information could be shared between corporations. Computers soon spread to the public, and many places across the globe. With the increase in technology, communicating with people thousands of miles away suddenly became easier, increasing the spread of information and innovation of new technologies. These changes dramatically effected the world creating a web-based, global economy. "It is a world in which comfort with ideas and abstractions is the passport to a good job, in which creativity and innovation are the key to a good life, i