Email has indisputably changed the way people interact and communicate. There are some pros and cons to weigh in this area. Email has allowed for instantaneous information in a way that neither standard mail nor the telephone have. A person can send off an email and in a few seconds, it's there. If the person is not available at the moment, the message will probably still get through. Sending mail and placing telephone calls to other countries can be expensive. The phone quality might not be the best and the mail may take several days to reach its destination. Email can be free and if I wanted to send a message to someone in China, it could be there in a few seconds. That is another point: email can be free. Google, Yahoo, and others provide free email service to anyone. This has the effect of allowing people to keep in touch over great distances.
On the downside, however, email when used in small-scale settings, such as in offices, can create artificial barriers between people. Email can also be used as a vector for internet-borne illnesses. Viruses can be spread in email attachments. If an HTML email message contains an image and the message is opened, it will alert the spammer that they have hit a functional email address and will continue to spam that address. Phishing is really more a form of social engineering, but it is primarily performed via email. Email has its pros and its cons, but I feel that as long as we are careful and use the technology properly, the benefits will far outweigh any of the risks.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Midterm Essay #2
Computer literacy is important for three reasons. First, an increasing number of jobs require at least some skill with a computer. It could be anything from a web developer to a police officer. Granted, there are some jobs that do not require such skills. However, one does not necessarily need for the computer to be central to whatever his or her job may be. Computer literacy may be required to a limited extent. People could use them for tasks as simple as exchanging email and submitting reports.
Another reason that it pays to be a computer user is profit. There are people out there, people like Kevin Rose, who made their fortunes on the internet. On a smaller and slightly less glamorous scale, money can be made in online commerce. Sites like eBay can be used to buy and sell items, maybe even for a profit. Services like Google's AdSense allow you to easily make money off of advertising on your site. In a much more tech-savvy way, a person could produce and distribute their own software. If a developer can think of a program, there is probably a market for it.
The third reason it pays to be computer literate is to stay informed. So much useful information is available on the internet, older media cannot possibly keep up in variety or volume. If the television networks are not reporting on a given event, there is a good chance that that event is being reported somewhere on the internet. Since the internet does not respect borders, it is very easy to get information from sources all over the world. It can often help to get an international perspective on an event and conventional media outlets here in the United States may not provide that extra perspective.
Another reason that it pays to be a computer user is profit. There are people out there, people like Kevin Rose, who made their fortunes on the internet. On a smaller and slightly less glamorous scale, money can be made in online commerce. Sites like eBay can be used to buy and sell items, maybe even for a profit. Services like Google's AdSense allow you to easily make money off of advertising on your site. In a much more tech-savvy way, a person could produce and distribute their own software. If a developer can think of a program, there is probably a market for it.
The third reason it pays to be computer literate is to stay informed. So much useful information is available on the internet, older media cannot possibly keep up in variety or volume. If the television networks are not reporting on a given event, there is a good chance that that event is being reported somewhere on the internet. Since the internet does not respect borders, it is very easy to get information from sources all over the world. It can often help to get an international perspective on an event and conventional media outlets here in the United States may not provide that extra perspective.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Midterm Essay #1
In Triumph of the Nerds, Steve Jobs quotes Pablo Picasso, "Good artists copy, great artists steal." Given the context in which that statement was made, I would have to say that I agree with him. It was made in 1996, when Microsoft had a virtual monopoly on the personal computer market and Apple was tanking. Jobs had been fired from his position at Apple due to creative differences with the CEO, John Scully. Jobs saw the company that he had helped to create being cornered by a company that had used some of Apple's own design techniques to make their own success.
I have to understand where he was coming from. He was angry about the situation at the time. He did have a point, though. Apple effectively stole the GUI from Xerox and, in turn, Microsoft stole it from Apple. Xerox owned the technology to begin with and could have effectively destroyed Apple and Microsoft before they got bigger. It would seem that in this situation, the person who stole the technology made a bigger profit off of it than the company they stole it from.
I have to understand where he was coming from. He was angry about the situation at the time. He did have a point, though. Apple effectively stole the GUI from Xerox and, in turn, Microsoft stole it from Apple. Xerox owned the technology to begin with and could have effectively destroyed Apple and Microsoft before they got bigger. It would seem that in this situation, the person who stole the technology made a bigger profit off of it than the company they stole it from.
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