Group Presentation 2

Group Presentation 2

My group presented on the last day. Overall I think all the presentations were quite informative. I am really interested in reading the book “Burn Rate” The liked the topics that were covered throughout the book. For example, Face recognition is now getting better as technology progresses.
The book my group presented was “Steal this file sharing book.” Our group picked this book because it talked about the illegal and legal aspects of file sharing. It also shows step by step on how to protect your computer when downloading through file sharing. It gives diagrams on how each file sharing server work.
We decided that we would use PowerPoint to present the topics covered in the book. Then we divided topics covered in the book. Overall I had a fun time meeting the people in my group.

Group Presentation 1

The first group presented the book “Against the Machine, Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob. The author Lee Siegel talks about how the internet is re shaping our thoughts about ourselves. The first chapter talks about profit and idealism. This talks about the how the internet is sold modern commerce. The group presenters believed that this author had views that they did not agree with. Also, they looked at the reviews of the books and agree with the views of others. I found this interested because I looked at the reviews for my book and found it to be quite accurate.
The second group presented the book written by Howard Rheingold. The book is called “Smart Mobs: The Next Social Revolution.” The first presenter talked about texting and that the place he visited was Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo is the world’s most advanced texters and they have texter gangs. The author later talks about computer chips and how it can be embedded into money. A lot of these topics the author is talking about are actually currently being used or still in development.

File Sharing (P2P)

File sharing or Peer to peer (p2p) is a system of sharing files directly between network users. It does not need the assistance of a central server. Typical programs include Kazaa,Limwire, and Bitcomet. Many people use these programs to share music,movies, and programs illegally. Basically people are stealing because they are not paying for the products they download. In the United States it is illegal to download music that is not purchased. I view this as stealing because the artist or producer are not being paid for their product. Would you go to a music store and steal a cd? Most likely no, but downloading music illegally is the same as going to the store and stealing it. Today, companies like Itunes and Realone offer an alternative way in downloading music. For example, each song typically sell for .99 cents. Although many people would prefer to download illegally because it is convenient and best of all its FREE!!! plus the chances of being prosecuted is quite low.
File sharing can be dangerous for the user because many files that are downloaded come with spyware,virus, and trjoans. This could lead to identity theft because a hacker could control the computer and steal information. Here is a video that talks about the dangers of file sharing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcuH27IwWVk





http://andrewfry.blogspot.com/
http://mdkr13.blogspot.com/

Virtual Vacation

What is a vacation? Webster dictionary states " a period spent away from home or business in travel or recreation." Would it be weird to say that I am taking a vacation in a virtual world? Would it be consider a vacation? I would say yes because a person is spending their own time away from home or business in recreation.
If I could choose a place to travel in the virtual world, I would visit race tracks around the world. For example, I would go to a track in Japan and would later try one in Germany. This would be fun because I could drive exotic cars and crash them lol

Feed Tacoma

Kevin Freitas visited our class and discussed FeedTacoma.com. The website was really interesting because of what it has to offer. The website gives the bloggers and readers in the Tacoma area a sense of community. The website is low maintenance, which I found shocking. Exit 133 has higher maintenance because Derek Young, the founder of the website worries about taking vacations if he does not have someone else in charge. Also, I found it interesting that Kevin Freitas is not trying to make money. He could easily put a few ads or charge other businesses around Tacoma to advertise. I explored the website and found businesses around Tacoma that I would like to visit in the future. Also, it's great that it gives me directions for the particular business.

Finance

Why do people prefer the internet as a way to do their finances? Or to buy and sell products online? I believe the main reason is convenience. It’s quite easy to transfer funds from one account to the other. With one click of a button one could transfer their entire funds to a different account. Or I could buy or sell an entire vehicle without too much effort. Do people know the dangers of putting their personal information online for other people to see? In order to purchase or sell products, one has to put their name, address, credit card number and in some rare cases their social security number. Personally if a website asked for my social security number I would not give it to them because what would happen if someone uses that for a different reason. Most commerce websites have some sort of WEP or encryption to protect personal information such as credit card numbers. But is it really that safe? Could it be broken? Well so far I’ve purchased a lot of things online, but yet to encounter theft. Maybe its luck?

Virtual Shopping

At first I was skeptical about buying things online. What happen if someone steals my credit card information? Well I don't have that much in my account anyway so whatever I will try it. I used pay pal because I find that to be really secure. My credit card number is covered from the seller and only pay pal sees my credit card number. I am hooked on buying things online. I buy mostly car parts and text books. I drive a Honda s2000 and buying parts from the local part stores are a rip off. Online I have a huge selection and prices are lower. Sometimes I can get free shipping on big purchases. I personally do not buy clothes online because I have no idea if it would fit or not. It is a hassle if it does not fit because I would have to repackage the item and send them back. They will take the return usually, but they will not refund the shipping cost.

Vanity Search

Did I find information about myself? No...well not really. I found my facebook, but I knew I would find it before I searched. It showed up immediately when I typed my full name in Google. Although it showed my facebook account I did not put any personal information on facebook. I noticed that some of my friends put their phone numbers and home addresses in the profile. Personally I would like to keep that to myself and not have it all out in the public. I tried the search again with http://www.intelius.com/ and did not find anything. I tried my parents name and found their information on there. Why does it show their name and info, but not mine?

Could people use this information to cause harm? Mr. Fry talked about how people could search their homes through satelite images. "If someone eggs my house on Halloween...I know who it is" stated Mr.Fry Has this ever happend to anyone? I could just search Andrew Fry and find his address and phone number :) Call that number to confirm that this is the right Andrew Fry. Get the address and directions and I am on my way.




I would never do that

Newspaper vs Web

Are newspapers becoming extinct due to the internet? I would say yes because it can be seen through the decline of newspaper sales. The subscription rate for delivered paper goes down more than the previous year. I believe internet search engines like Google provide excellent up to date news. News can be even calculated by the most relevant to the reader and the time. Can a newspaper report news by the minute? The answer is no, but Google can deliver this. Also many people use the classifieds to sell their items through printed newspapers. Today we have Craigslist.com and it's the largest online classifieds. I personally love Craigslist. A person can post and sell their items locally for FREE!!! I have sold several cars on Craigslist and many other items. I understand that people can get scammed on craigslist, but I personally believe one must use common sense. A car valued at $20,000 and is selling for $2000.00 and the owner wants you to wire money...come on doesnt that sound kinda fishy.

Email vs Postal Service

I believe that email plays a major role in today's society. Email is faster than the postal service. We do not have to use stamps in order to send our messages. Thus saving money and time. How long does it take to send a letter through the United States postal service? Maybe 3-5 days depending on the location. How long does it take to send an email?? Wow!!! instantly basically...well close :) Which one would I prefer? That is a hard question to answer because both email and the postal service have their pros and cons. I believe that as humans we need both email and the postal service. Email can send messages through text quickly, but the postal service can send an actual item that we can touch and feel.