Blog 13- The internets effects on society.

Although we live in the technology age I think society should know the upsides and the downsides of the internet and all its capabilities. The internet is continuing to change and improve and some of the examples of what has helped the internet to change include that the PC has become common in households, the development of high-speed digital connections, communication via satellite, as well as the increase use of the internet by business, organizations, and/or the general public. With all these advancements in the internet are many downsides and some may wonder if many cases it may be doing more harm then good. Our society has grown to depend on the internet in so many ways. It is already changing the way we bank, work, shop, and even the way we live.

I know as a college student I am forced to use the internet inside and outside of the class room, whether it’s to print notes from online, an online course, research, or even this blog. The internet is a must and there is no way around it. Although in the college setting the internet is very beneficiary, with all the information available plagiarism has become a bigger problem. For children and young teens some may wonder whether they spend too much time on the internet. As well as what they are exposed to. Respondents from a UCLA study agreed that children are exposed to a lot of inappropriate material on the Net (Net does not impact society negatively).This is why many parents have a parental block, protecting their kid from material of sexual or violent nature, language that is rude and the advertising of children’s products. According to the same UCLA study, many parents had no problem with their children using the internet, as well as it didn’t affect the amount of time family bonding time, the amount of time children spend with their friends, or their children's grades. The major upside to children using the internet is the educational games and programs readily available.

I know many have wondered how the internet has effected communication. Do those who use the internet lose the ability to interact and communicate person to person or do they benefit by interacting over the internet? If you look at it from each point of view a person may be less personable over the internet but on the upside with social network sites a person can interact and meet more people. Electronic mail is one thing many of us could not live without, especially since there is an estimated 1.1 billion e-mail users worldwide and approximately 171 million e-mails sent per day (Fun fact). With social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, in many cases have helped improve communication skills. I used MySpace and Facebook not as a way to meet new people but as a way to keep in contact with family members, as well as old friends. The internet has allowed me to stay connected. The online social networking sites allow the feeling of community and “without communication there can be no action to organize social relations” (J. Fernback & B. Thompson).

The internet has made research and the availability of information for all so much easier. We can find almost anything online. In many cases this has caused a problem with copy right laws, which are designed to regulate how many times information or an idea is used (Copyright). Many internet users have committed copyright infringement, a violation of copyright, or simply using someone else’s work without permission. In many cases committed copyright infringement involves music. Music down loaders use P2P or peer-to-peer file-sharing programs such as Kazaa, Limewire, iMesh, Morpheus, and BearShare which is illegal. With the crimes committed towards music, many peer-to-peer file-sharing programs have adopted change, by just charging a monthly fee but still allowing music downloading.

Not only has copyright become a huge issue, identity theft has as well. Internet users are able to find out so much with just a little research and a couple clicks. Identity theft is known as a catch-all term for crimes involving illegal usage of another individual's identity Individuals need and should have the opportunity to decide and control what personal information about their lives or personal affairs is in public view (Wikipedia). It seems to be that in today’s world of computers and the Internet people are more willing to give up their privacy or simply less careful. Since the development of the internet, all our stepped can be traced and what privacy we have is at its limit.

As much as we accepted the internet for all it’s worth it’s hard to look past its downfalls. The internet has helped in so many ways and will continue to improve and make our lives that much easier. Individuals themselves need to choose what is right, either by places a parental block on young children’s computer or by protecting their privacy better. The internet is here, and it is here to stay.

J. Fernback & B. Thompson. Virtual Communities: Abort, Retry, Failure?

Net Neutrality

For those of us who weren’t aware apparently there is a huge debate on network neutrality. The debate involves new economy companies like Google and Yahoo but also the old economy companies like AT&T, Verizon Communications, Time Warner and Comcat. Congress is attempting to decide how much control the new and old companies should have involving the Internet pipelines (Wikipedia). To understand net neutrality we may think of it as no discrimination which is prevents Internet providers from speeding up or slowing down Web content based on its source, ownership or destination (SavetheInternet.com). Network neutrality is what allows us the ability to “access any Web site we want, whenever we want, at the fastest speed,” and watch “online video, listening to podcasts, sending instant messages anytime we choose” (SavetheInternet.com). Net neutrality is the “principle that Internet users should be able to access any web content they want, post their own content, and use any applications they choose, without restrictions or limitations imposed by their Internet service providers”( www.commoncause.org). Network Neutrality is what makes all of those things possible. Net neutrality is what allows economic innovation, democratic participation, and free speech online, something many of us take for granted. The reason for the debate is that the oldest and largest economy companies like AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and Time Warner want to decide which Web sites go fast or slow and which won't load at all, acting like a “gatekeeper” (SavetheInternet.com). Basically these companies want to tax content providers to guarantee their own speedy delivery of data and “discriminate in favor of their own search engines, Internet phone services, and streaming video, while also slowing down or blocking their competitors” (SavetheInternet.com).

Many may just believe that this just involves the corporations but it affects many others. Think of small business owners. They benefit from an internet that allows them to compete directly small business owners’ and Net Neutrality ensures that “innovators can start small and dream big about being the next EBay or Google without facing insurmountable hurdles”(SavetheInternet.com). Not just small business owners will be affected by the larges companies taking over the internet, everyone who uses the internet will be affected. Consumers are the ones ultimately in control. We decide what content, applications and services to use. The website Save the Internet says that without net neutrality the “Internet will look more like cable TV,” with network owners will deciding which channels, content and applications are available; consumers will have to choose from their menu.” Also decisions would be made by corporate boards, not the consumers. Without network neutrality, we would lose innovations, competition would be limited, and access to information restricted. Above all and the main reason to support network neutrality is that consumer choices and the free market would be sacrificed to the interests of a few corporate executives.

A major reason to support net neutrality is because it affects many of us. It determines what information if available to us and allows us all to have equal access to the internet. When comparing the internet to telephone providers, consumers are not told who they can call or what they can say. Broadband carriers should not be allowed to use their market power to control activity online as well. Many of us are unaware of the issues revolving network neutrality and those who may have heard of it are may be unaware it involves us, the daily consumers of the internet. The idea of an open internet is at stake.

(September 2006). A Battle for control of the web. The Wall Street Journal Savetheinternet.com Wikipedia.com

Virtual Economies

Learning about virtual economies is a completely new topic for me and one that I find overwhelming. It’s hard to fathom the idea that millions of people invest hours, upon hours of their time playing Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games and for many “it is more than just a game- it’s an escape, an obsession and a home” (Levy, 2007). A virtual economy is “an emergent economy existing in a virtual persistent world, usually in the context of an Internet game” (Wikipedia). The millions who play these games create new economies that for the participants involved are as good as real and in cyberspace, economies seem to mirror the real world. These virtual worlds also show a comparison to real life in that participants interact one-on-one socially. Wikipedia states that “people enter these virtual economies recreationally rather than by necessity; however, some people do interact with them for "real" economic benefit.”

Two of these virtual economies include Second Life and World of Warcraft. Second Life is considered an “open” virtual economy, while World of Warcraft is considered a “closed” virtual economy. Second Life was launched in 2003 with a downloadable client program called the Second Life Viewer. The program enables its users, called "Residents", to interact with each other through motional avatars, providing an advanced level of a social network service combined with general aspects of a metaverse. For those who do not know, metaverse is widely used term to describe the vision behind current work on fully immersive 3D virtual spaces (Wikipedia). Second Life is a user-defined world in which people can interact, play, do business, and otherwise communicate .Virtual worlds allow real people to live some of their lives through made up characters. Similar to the real world residents can explore, meet other residents, socialize, participate in individual and group activities, create and trade items and services from one another(Wikipedia). Second Life also had its own economy and a currency referred to as Linden Dollars. The virtual economy allows players to participate in an economy that features aspects of the real world. Residents are able to create new goods and services, and buy and sell them in the Second Life virtual world. Within the virtual economy there are also currency exchanges where Residents can exchange real world currencies for L$. Second Life allows for legal trading of in-world currency. Also one major point I learned is that although Second Life is considered a game, technically it does not have points, scores, winners or losers, levels, an end-strategy, or most of the other characteristics of games, though it can be thought of as a game on a more basic level because it is "played for fun".

World of Warcraft run by Blizzard Entertainment, is its fourth game set in the fantasy Warcraft universe, which was first introduced by Warcraft: Orcs & Humans in 1994. (Wikipedia.com) The virtual game has more than seven million players and is considered the most advanced and popular (Levy, 2007). The online role-playing game, World of Warcraft takes place within the world of Azeroth, four years after the events at the conclusion of Blizzard's previous release, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. Other aspects of the game include players going on quests and slaying mythical beasts, massing virtual wealth, gaining power as well. Unlike the game Second Life, World of Warcraft takes place in a fantasy world where there is “interaction between guilds and individuals relies on human choices and moral” (Levy, 2007). Players control a character avatar within the game world and game rewards player who succeed with money, items, and experience, which in turn allow players to improve their skill and power. Players can also participate in duels which are fought between members of the same or opposing factions, although these do not provide tangible rewards (Wikipeda.com). The game was designed to be an open environment where players are allowed to do what they please alongside optional quests that players can complete to advance further in the game. Blizzard has also created a way for members to become members of the virtual community. World of the Warcraft also believes that using real money within the game to gain an edge violates the game’s “egalitarian spirit” (Levy, 2007). Contrary to Blizzard there is an industry making tons of real dollars, by “gold farming,” which is the accumulation of in-game currency and selling it and also “power leveling, borrowing someone’s avatar and grinding through the game to gain experience (Levy, 2007).

Between Second Life and World of War craft are two completely different virtual economies, where one encourages, the other discourages. Both are two of the most popular online games available, with millions of members. Each game allows players to live their life through someone else, an avatar and whether I understand the ever increasing popularity of virtual games is beyond me.

Second Life

World of Warcraft

Giles, J.(2007). Life's A Game. Nature.

Levy, S. (2007). World of Warcraft: Is It a Game. Newsweek. Retrieved November 6, 2007, from

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14757769/site/newsweek/page/3/print/1/displaymode/1098

Asssignment 10- Print news vs. Online

A topic that was given much attention in both a newspaper and an online news source is the story of a mother, Theresa and father Roger Liao searching for a cure for their two sons, Jake and Nate. Although it is a graphic story, it seemed to me an important one. A news column by Anita Manning from USA Today called “An experiment to save a son” uses up a majority of the cover page of the Life section, as well as the entire second page. The article basically shares with the reader a mother’s struggle to find to a cure for her son’s disorder, epidermolysis bullosa. It also speaks about the trial and error treatment used on Nate Liao and that until now had only been tested on mice (Manning, 2007). I also found an article on the internet from an online paper, the Examiner called “Family waits for cure for son’s rare disorder.”

The Liao’s son has a rare disorder, epidermolysis bullosa, or EB. According to Wikipedia.com epidermolysis bullosa is a “rare genetic disease characterized by the presence of extremely fragile skin and recurrent blisters formation, resulting from minor mechanical friction or trauma.” The USA Today describes that the rare disorder is due to the lack of protein that is needed to keep skin attached to the body (Manning, 2007). Although I’m sure a majority of us have not heard of epidermolysis bullosa, an estimated one out of 50,000 births of males and females of all races and ethnic groups are affected with some type of EB, the worst form being Hallopeau-Siemens disease, which is lifelong (Kohlhepp, 2005). In the case of the Liao’s two of their sons carry epidermolysis bullosa, one of them in fact carries the worst from of EB, Hallopeau-Siemens disease.

After comparing the USA Today’s article, “An experiment to save a son” to the online article, “Family waits for cure for son’s rare disorder” I did notice one major difference between the two sources, the USA Today wrote more about the disease itself and the transplant experiment while the article online wrote more about the family and carrying for two children who live with EB. The online article also seemed to show how much the disease affects the children who carry it. The Examiner explains that because of Jake’s illness, his body does not adapt well to temperature changes, he spends little time outdoors and won’t be able to attend public school due to fear of him getting severally hurt and causing infection. And although the news print source goes into some detail, the online article explains in detail a major concern for parent’s whose children carry EB is the fact that their hands and feet can critically be damaged due to the fact they are used the most. The mother is quoted saying “He could live without toes, but it would be difficult for him to live his life without the use of his hands” (Kohlhepp, 2005).

I also noticed that the two articles focused on different children, the story in USA Today spoke more about the youngest boy Nate, while the article online spoke more about Jake, both sources choice to focus on one child over the other. Each source however used several pictures to illustrate how the boys are affected by the disorder physically showing the boy’s covered in bandages, their newest blisters, along with their several other healing sores.

Although I don’t necessarily keep up with current events, I prefer and believe news papers and online news papers sources are more informative when compared to looking to a blog for information about current events. Regarding the article “An experiment to save a son” and the article “Family waits for cure for son’s rare disorder” I believe both articles to be informative in different aspects. In the USA Today I learned more about the future cure for ED and in the online article I learned more about living with the disorder itself. I found that they each balanced each other out and what I did not get from one source I got from the other so in that case I find both online sources and the traditional print source important and valuable.

Epidermolysis bullosa. Wikipedia. Retrieved November 2, 2007, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epidermolysis_Bullosa

Manning, A. (2007, November 1). An experiment to save a son. USA Today, pp. D1, D2.

Kohlhepp, J. (2005, April 5). Family waits for cure for son’s rare disorder. Examiner. Retrieved November 2, 2007,
from http://examiner.gmnews.com/news/2005/0420/Front_page/001.html

Writing Assignment 9- Politics

Blogging has steadily become popular, although a blog wasn't always necessarily known in the format we know it today. Similar to blogs were Usenet, commercial online services such as GEnie, BiX and the early CompuServe, e-mail lists and Bulletin Board Systems(Wikipedia). By the mid 1990’s blogging seemed more like an online journal. Soon by early 2000’s blogs become more about politics. Blogging allowed politicians and political candidates a way to express their opinions on war and other important issues. By 2004, “the role of blogs became increasingly mainstream, as political consultants, news services and candidates began using them as tools for outreach and forming” (Wikipedia).Blogging may also be seen as a means of "getting around the filter" and pushing messages directly to the public. Politicians who use internet technology are able to reach out to their supports. The internet allows for people to have social debates online regarding their views and while also learning more about their favorite politician. The internet simply provides an alternative way for people to get involved in their nations politics.



Some are asking “Does the internet create Democracy?” Communication technology is continuing to develop and improve; the internet for example has helped to expand knowledge and freedom, democratizes culture (Thornton, 2002). I believe along with many others that the internet is doing just that, helping to create a more democratic nation as well as maintain what democracy we have left. One individual who is a small part of creating Democracy via internet is Elizabeth Benjamin, a citizen blogger. Benjamin has created a blog on NYDailyNews.com, called The Daily Politics based on the New York’s political scene. She simply provides information to the readers, allowing the readers to comment and voice their opinion. The internet allows citizens both internal resources for participation in political discourse as well as external resources in order to give voice to their opinions (Thornton, 2002). The site officially began on April 4, 2006. Her most recent blog is called Ron Paul Flies First in NY, featuring information about the ‘libertarian-leaning Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, an anti-Iraq War congressman” and his trip to Albany trip along with his conclusion with stop in New York, where Paul also included several NYC fundraisers.


The quality of the blog “Ron Paul Flies First in NY” is mainly objective. It discusses Ron Paul’s campaign and him trying to be placed on the ballet. Several people have even written comments about the blog, illustrating their support for Ron Paul even by going as far as saying “Dr. Ron, we patriots, are behind you” (nydailynews.com). One person who comments on the blog is clear with his opinion of the internet has helped and what it has done towards politics, he states “Ahhhh, media coverage the way it should be: just the facts, AND printing a useful photo sent in by a Johnny-on-the-spot, AND even a link to dailypaul.com” (nydailynews.com)! Other’s who have commented on the blog are simply making corrections, while also sharing the information they have learned. Internet technology has certainly helped in creating and/or maintaining democracy. Blogging and other forms of online communication allow individuals, whether they are supports or not, a chance to voice their opinions and be heard, as well as know the truth. The internet has helped create a link between politicians and the people. People are no longer in the dark and have a way to learn the truth.

Thornton, A. (2002). Does Internet Create Democracy? Retrieved October 23, 2007 from http://www.ublearns.buffalo.edu/com125

Benjamin, E. (2007). Ron Paul Files 1st in NY. The Daily News. Retrieved October 23, 2007 from http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2007/10/ron_paul_files_first_in_ny.html

Writing Assignment 8- Flickr

Flickr

http://flickr.com/

The web application Flickr is where anyone can manage and share their online photographs. Flickr works with Microsoft and uses the Windows Live Photo Gallery. The Windows Live Photo Gallery makes it an easy way to get your photos off of your camera, tag them, make simple corrections, and then upload them to Flickr. Flickr has two main goals, the first goal is to help people make their photos available to the people who matter to them and as a way to do this Flickr get photos into and out of the system in as many ways as it can. The second goal of Flickr is to enable new ways of organizing photos. Like photo albums Flickr allows you to organize your photos in a collaborative way. In Flickr, you can give your friends, family, and other contacts permission to organize your photos along with adding comments, notes and tags.

As a person who has never used Flickr my first impression was that I liked the site’s design. The site's design is very simple with no clutter. It helps first time users and account holders to find things easily. There are only a couple of advertisements on site pages which is also nice. I don't enjoy being bombarded with advertisements. One important aspect of the site is that it can give you a tour of the different applications Flickr is capable of.

The main social aspects of Flickr are that it is a community of many types of people, and the creators of Flickr want users to share. One aspect of this is that Flickr categorizes photos as a way for people to come together according to their interests. Groups can either be public, public (invite only), or completely private. Every group has a pool for sharing photos and a discussion board for talking. Flickr allows account holders to share blogs that contain pictures and captions. The site also allows outside views to get an idea of what the web application is like by showing some of the most interesting photographs found on Flickr.

I found the site to be very interesting and it could be very beneficial for someone who took hundreds of photographs. Flickr also allows users to be creative; you can simple print your photographs or create calling cards, photo-books, slide show-DVDs, postage stamps, etc... Flickr is definitely a useful and creative web application.

Writing Assignment 7:Community

All of us belong to communities; in fact most of us belong to several. Communities are important aspects of our lives. Similar to offline communities, online communities allow us all to meet with people who share similar interests. The internet acts as a mediator within groups or communities. According to the article, Virtual Communities: Abort, Retry, Failure? , the authors agree that the idea of "community has been long recognized as having a central place in our social fabric.” The main structure behind a community is communication and without communication there can be no action to organize social relations within a community. With the popularity of the internet today, virtual communities have become an even bigger part of the online world. A virtual community is a group of people who interact via Internet Web sites, chat rooms, newsgroups, email, discussion boards or forums; also called know as a online community (Dictionary.com). Online social networks have provided a new and organized method for social networking.

Sites like Facebook and MySpace allow us to network by using the Friend process, choosing people first and interests second (Boyd). Facebook is a social networking site I use frequently and it allows us to find friends as a way of networking. Facebook allows people to communicate and connect with new and old friends and exchange information. Facebook profiles allow us to gain information about people without actually meeting them first. When compared to offline communities, online communities also allow us to choose what people know and what information is present in their profile. Facebook profiles contain basic information about a person like a name, sex, religious and political views, interests, and activities. Facebook originally began in the college setting and so a profile can also list a student’s college along with their course load. A profile allows you to see how much you have in common with others, helping to establish or improve your social network. We can get to know a person without even speaking to them.

Online communities differ from the type of communication a person uses when face to face, for example expanding your social network. We can choose to associate ourselves with someone or not.Those of us who have Facebook or MySpace accounts understand that we are able to choose our friends. Belonging to social networking sites allows for individuals to pick and choose how they want to be presented to others. In face to face communication it is much harder to pull off. We are allowed to choose our friends by searching through our interests, college or school, or even by deciding who to accept as a friend. Offline social settings don’t necessarily allow us to pick and choose. Also internet communication allows us to be friends with people we necessarily wouldn’t be friends with in real life.

Communication within social networks is also different when you compare online to offline communication. Facebook allows people to message and comment on each other’s walls. Or for other online communities it may be blog comments, bulletins or simple Instant Messaging. Online communities allow us to send and receive messages and we decided whether we want to respond or not. Communication over the internet is convenient ways for most of us and unlike offline communication, individuals online don’t necessarily have to address or respond back to their friends and visa versa. Communication online also allows us to express how we feel more freely. With the lack of face to face communication people are more willing to say how they really feel about something, often times effecting social ties within a group.

The basic principle of a community is that it is a shared environment between people with common interests. A virtual community is a social network with a common interest, idea, task or goal that interacts in a virtual society across time, geographical and organizational boundaries and is able to develop personal relationships (Wikipedia). Socializing whether it is online or offline is a major part of our everyday lives. We all need to communication and to develop social ties.

www.Wikipedia.com

Virtual Communities: Abort, Retry, Failure?