Wired for life in this modern world

In this increasingly wired world, there is a soaring demand for modern conveniences to be provided by electronic gadgets. Certain appliances have become more than basic needs for most of us, we have become dependent on them for our comfort and pleasure. The Jakarta Post's reporters I. Christianto, Christiani S. Tumelap, Imanuddin, Aloysius Unditu, T. Sima Gunawan, P.J. Leo and Ivy Susanti, switch on to the trends. More stories are on Page 9.

JAKARTA (JP): Try as they might, the baby's parents could not get her to stop crying during the blackout. They cuddled her and sang sweet lullabies, all to no avail.

She only ceased her wails after they put her in their car and drove her around the neighborhood.

Was it the dark that unsettled her? And what was the car's magic that had her purring softly again?

Its air conditioner.

Like many other infants and children here, the baby is not used to the heat even though this is a tropical country. They are accustomed to air conditioners or, at the very least, the breeze of an electric fan. No wonder they suffer when a blackout hits.

Late last month, several areas in South Jakarta were without electricity for between two and 23 hours, the second blackout to strike the city this year. The first occurred in April, affecting most of Java and Bali.

People were suddenly without their usual comforts. They could not watch TV, listen to music on their stereos or bathe. Food rotted in darkened refrigerators. People stormed supermarkets and stores to buy not only candles and batteries, but also water and food.

"I couldn't take a shower, I missed my favorite TV show and I couldn't even cook rice," complained a resident, Dina.

A dependent on modern conveniences, she could not do without her electric rice cooker, not to mention the blender, mixer, oven, toaster and, of course, refrigerator in her kitchen.

Another woman, Ratih, keeps some remnants of old ways in her house. She does not have a microwave, and still uses a broom and mop to clean the house. But she has a washing machine and keeps entertained with TV, a stereo system and LD player.

Her reliance on all things electrical is representative of millions of urbanites who probably never dreamed they would be wired for life in their childhoods.

"Electricity reached our house in 1975 when I was in high school," she said. "Every night, before we had electricity, I would gather with my brothers and sisters near the petromax (a type of lantern) in the living room.

"We had a black-and-white TV, and the power to turn it on came from a storage battery."

She said the location of her home on the outskirts of Jakarta was "still a jungle" just 20 years ago. She was thankful her house got electricity because "many people still don't enjoy it".

In 1996, 95 percent of urban households had electricity compared to 59.5 percent of rural homes. Three years before, electricity covered 90 percent of urban households and 38.8 percent of rural households, according to the Indikator Kesejahteraan Rakyat 1996 (1996 People Welfare's Indicator).

Encouraging economic growth in the past two decades, and its accompanying rise in consumer purchasing power, has exerted many changes in the people's lives. Almost every urban household has a TV, stereo and refrigerator. Many others also have microwaves, vacuum cleaners and sophisticated audio-video systems. Many children have electronic toys instead of the traditional ones their parents had. Some adults also like to indulge themselves with high-tech games.

James Limengka, general manager of PT Pentanum Global Electric of Panggung Electronics, said the demand for electric appliances increases from 10 to 15 percent annually. "But this is for the middle and upper level group, the rate may be higher for the lower income people," he added.

Pentanum is the distributor of General Electric products in Indonesia. From monthly sales of about Rp 2 billion, 47 percent are for refrigerators, 28 percent for air conditioners, 15 percent for washing machines, 7 percent for ovens and 3 percent for miscellaneous GE products, such as air dehumidifiers.

"We sell about 200 refrigerators, 400 electric stoves, 125 washing machines and 50 air coolers monthly."

He believes that in the long term, the market for electric tools will continue to increase, provided the economic situation gets better.

President of PT Sony Indonesia, Yoshinori Ishikawa, said the country was considered one of the most prospective markets for the audio-video business in Southeast Asia, but it would have lower growth in the coming year due to the rupiah depreciation.

"The demand for audio-video sets might drop by up to 50 percent next year," he said.

For Andrew, the manager of a private company, the monetary crisis has had little effect on his pleasure pursuits.

Every month he allocates from Rp 200,000 to Rp 300,000 to buy VCDs or LDs, which he watches in his home theater.

Andrew installed the home theater in his house in Bekasi, East Jakarta.

"I also installed air conditioning and tried to improve the room's acoustics. I plan to prepare better equipment from the best brands, but my small house won't be appropriate for such new equipment."

Andrew said he spent several million rupiah for the home theater. A more sophisticated home theater, however, could cost tens million of rupiah, considering that the price of an oversized TV set costs more than Rp 10 million.

More people are buying audio-video sets to better enjoy good music and films, but some just use the equipment as decoration in their houses.

"My house would look empty if I didn't have the audio-video sets," said Hadi, an employee of a non-profit organization. "So I installed them even though I rarely turn them on.

"But I think it's also important to have the equipment just in case you want to enjoy it."

Every morning, he listens to music on his portable radio before he leaves for the office.

"I go home late and rarely watch movies. I just watch television to keep updated with the latest news."