MODERN life would be almost unimaginable without wi-fi connecting us to friends, family, work and the worldwide web around the clock, wherever we are.

So universal has wi-fi become it seems astonishing its spread has come in just twenty years.

In fact, the technology behind wi-fi has been around for a lot longer, with some crediting Hollywood film star Hedy Lamarr with its invention in 1942.

An inventor as well as an actress, Lamarr’s scientific breakthrough was intended for the US navy during the second world war to allow them to guide missiles underwater using undetectable radio signals.

Wi-fi as we know it today was developed in the 1990s and released for home use in 1999.

Notable names include former senior research fellow at the Delft University of Technology Vic Hayes.

READ MORE: Social media may be as ‘bad as drugs’

Known as the “father of wi-fi” he help established the regulatory standards that made wi-fi feasible.

At its most basic level wi-fi is a networking technology that allows computers, mobile phones, iPads, game consoles and other devices to communicate with each other through a high frequency radio signal.

But as Muhammad Imran, professor of communication systems at Glasgow University, explains, the real transformative power of wi-fi came as a result of the size and quality of files it allows users to download or share at high speed across the globe.

“In the days before wi-fi, browsing of the internet on mobile handsets was not a very good experience and it could take a long time to download even a webpage. Wi-fi was the trigger which demonstrated what could be done,” he said.

As the power of the technology became more widely understood it led to the rapid development of web applications that have changed society forever, such as Facebook and Youtube.

And wi-fi itself developed too, so that rather than being physically constrained in small indoor locations it began to appear in shopping centres, public buildings and academic campuses.

Mr Imran says the technology has fuelled a significant transformation in the relationship people now have with information.

He said: “Instead of waiting for information to come to them from outside sources, people are now their own producers of information with their own news, pictures, videos and other content shared across peer to peer and social networks.”

The existence of wi-fi, and the expectation that it will be freely available everywhere have significant implications for all sections of society.

Schools, colleges, universities, businesses, public buildings, tourist attractions, coffee shops and hotels are all expected to provide wi-fi, usually free of charge.

READ MORE: Reliable internet and modern computers a priority for schools

Will Evans, director of Performance Networks Ltd, which designs bespoke wi-fi networks, said there had been a significant change in how pupils and students communicated and learned.

“The education sector has been no exception, with schools, colleges and universities adopting digital methods to aid teaching,” he said.

“We’re now living in a digital generation where young people relate to the internet similar to how previous generations related to textbooks.”

Senior education officer for technologies at curriculum body Education Scotland Kirsty McFaul said schools were well advanced in developing digital learning.

While there have been concerns over the reliability of some school networks, she said the technology had opened up new possibilities in the classroom.

“Teachers and pupils can now share all sorts of digital information in the classroom and beyond without having to go to a bespoke digital suite,” she said.

“That opens up significant possibilities in terms of teaching techniques or the use of online software tools that make learning easier for individuals with different needs, such as those with dyslexia.”

Other public services have also seen significant benefits. Far from acting as a constraint on public libraries, many have never been busier thanks to the availability of free wi-fi.

READ MORE:

Concern for elderly as hundreds of computers are lost to Scotland's libraries

Pamela Tulloch, chief executive at the Scottish Library and Information Council, said libraries were supporting the public “day in and day out” with digital literacy and skills.

She said: “Libraries have always been about the provision of information and the digital world is the 21st century way of providing that for the public. Far from not being a need for libraries, the need for them has never been greater.”

But the incessant demand for free, accessible wi-fi can also be a problem. Marc Crothall, chief executive of the Scottish Tourism Alliance, said free wi-fi was now a minimum expectation of visitors.

“The first question asked now is ‘have you got wi-fi and what’s the password?’ A majority of businesses are now making wi-fi free, but we are still challenged with a good number of parts of Scotland where there isn’t any connectivity and that can be a concern.”

Professor Harald Hass, chair of mobile communications at Edinburgh University, warns some sections of the country are still missing out because of the issue of a lack of connectivity.

He said: “While we get faster and faster speeds in urban areas, rural areas suffer more from an increasing divide and it is a key challenge of modern society to ensure fairness in access to these networks if everyone is to benefit.”