I have written many papers for this class sadly through my disorganization most have been lost. here are a small few that i managed to find for the pleasure reading of all who care to read them
FINAL RESEARCH PAPER
During this long and tedious process to get something started because lack of knowledge of the subject offered we learned that all good things have a catch. Ours being that we have to sit idly by while everyone else knows what he or she is doing. But we have found that if you don’t know what to do the make it up as you go. In the end it’s all the same anyway. If anyone were to tackle this subject they wont be too challenged. There are many books and everything but this is a mainly opinionated subject. Either you agree that information should be shared via the Internet or you think that downloading information that shouldn’t be downloaded is wrong. There is no real middle road unless you don’t believe it is right but still do it anyway. For me to improve my work would prove to be an easy task. As of right now there have only been a few interviews/questionnaires done to get any feedback from the community. This is what I will be incorporating in my paper in the spring term.
As for the subject as a whole I haven’t really learned anything that I didn’t already know. I had hoped that there was other information out there that I didn’t know. But I had found that with the Napster issue I had learned everything about the digital realm of piracy. When Napster had been big I had participated in the hype. The ability to download any song you wanted in a matter of minutes. After Napster was shut down for copyright infringement, it was not them who was infringing but they had their service used by the infringers. The musicians of many different record labels fought to keep their music off the web to secure their property and rights to sell that property. This was the start of the digital piracy revolution. Following in Napster’s wake Morpheus followed with huge success. Morpheus provided users with the ability to share more than just songs but to share all data; movies, music, software, and images.
When I started this research I
had questioned if people really care what people download even if it is against
the law. I also questioned if people had their own information being downloaded
off of the Internet if their opinion would change. I have yet to get these
answers because there have been no interviews by our group. But I have a feeling
that people do not care what others do as long as it does not directly affect
them.
In my research I found that my
feeling is mostly correct. With the younger population, who have now grown up
with computers, downloads are the highest among any age group. The reaffirmed my
feeling because teens don’t really care if what they are downloading is
pirated or not. I have also found this out from some of my fellow students.
While adults care ever much what other people think teens are carefree and will
do what they feel they need to do.
For this paper you request a
reflection on the ethnographic encounter but I feel that this is all this whole
paper is. There is little fact presented just general knowledge. Our group never
really had an ethnographic encounter but I assume it wouldn’t differ from that
of a job interview or a first date. It is all in how you present yourself to
others. If we had done some interviews I would have sat there and asked them to
give their opinion on a subject then get the data needed to complete the paper.
I feel as if an ethnographic paper is not appropriate for this class. There is
no real time to go out and do a good job unless it was the whole term long but
this wasn’t so. This type of work is best suited for an ethnography class. But
that is just an opinion.
By doing this research I have
discovered what everyone else has. This is that the digital information has
grown faster than we can protect it. This has caused the problem of piracy and
we need to slow down with the progress of new technology until we can protect
the information that floats around on data storage disks. I have found that many
authors on this subject agree with that but they also have other opinions on how
to go about it. One author expressed that the digital age is at a faster pace
than digital protection and in order to equal them out would be to increase
spending into the privacy/protection of computer information. Of all the
information I have absorbed I have yet to really find a person who disagrees.
There are those who feel that it is not necessarily a money issue but a hacker
issue. Hackers are computer experts that devote their time to cracking computer
codes and encryptions. These authors feel that it is these hackers that are
allowing for data to be transferred so easily. All it takes is one person with
an idea to change how things are done. This is how Napster and the creation of
the .MP3 happened. It was all because some computer savvy person had an idea and
made it work. The .MP3 revolutionized data storage for music. Before the .MP3 a
song was 5 times as large as they are now. This is just one example on how
someone has made data transfer easier. With a smaller file the transfer of data
takes a much shorter period of time allowing for more information to be
transferred in a day.
With all these innovations
there have not been many innovations in the way of preventing this type of
digital piracy. Attempts have been made and some have worked temporarily until
that obstacle has been over come. I could go on for pages about what has been
done and how to bypass the security precautions but that wouldn’t be
appropriate.
Piracy will always be a
problem. With each new innovation there will be another to counter it. This is
the way it has been since the start and I don’t feel it changing anytime soon.
THE AGE OF ACCESS
“The importance of private property in the modern world is unquestionable” P76
“In the industrial economy, with its emphasis on mass production and the sale of goods, securing a share of the market was utmost in the minds of every entrepreneur.”
“The
shift in emphasis from manufacturing and selling products to establishing and
maintaining long-term commercial relationships brings the marketing perspective
to the forefront of commercial life.” P102
“Similarly, for the better part of the twentieth century, a new form of capitalism has been slowly gestating and is only now about to overtake industrial capitalism.” P 137
These are just a few examples that I found in the book. I see a trend in his mind. Private property and ownership are now more important than that of mass production and quality.
I believe this but for the most part that is how it has been since the industrial revolution. After the revolution people started shifting to a market economy. Which is what Mr. Rifkin seems to be stating. As for this “new form of capitalism” I have a thing to say. Capitalism is going to be capitalism no matter if it changes or what. We do not live in a fully capitalistic society. The corporations do not fully control our government. We are a hybrid of Democracy and Capitalism. To me it appears as if Jeremy Rifkin starts out each section with a little thing about how we are changing the way we act or think and do things.
“Although CIDs are the most visible manifestation of the changing sensibilities in housing, other forces also are helping to re define the nature of the “home experience” P123
“While travel and tourism is steadily stripping away the cultural landscape, enclosing bits and pieces of it into commodifined tourist areas, a similar process is occurring in the public square.” P153
Jeremy Rifkin is trying to express that with the way we do business we are loosing any sort of culture and community. With the loss of community we lose who we are. I think that this is false. I do not believe that living in gated communities or traveling to another country affects the culture or community of a particular area. In fact by bringing people closer together we strengthen our differences and embrace those who are of a different culture or community. I think if there were no travel then the world would be even worse with ethnic and religions hate crimes rising. Before travel Americans hated almost everyone who wasn’t “American” This has changed over the years and we are more accepting to other people and their cultures. If we had never traveled or anything there would be no Asian cuisine or Indian cuisine in the US you would have to travel and then end up where we are now anyway. I don’t see how Rifkin has a problem with isolation and integration. With out technology exchange and other things like that we could still all be back in the industrial revolution. Maybe that would be better but I highly doubt it. I do see a thing that could be wrong with this is that we, as Americans, have a large influence on others thus creating a problem and then possibly destroying a new culture but that is unlikely to happen anymore. I think that Jeremy Rifkin isn’t seeing the good in our capitalistic society and is just focusing on the bad.
“Why you spend more and own less” Front cover
“The New Culture of Hyper capitalism where all of life is a paid-for experience.” Front cover
“Monopolizing Ideas” P55
“Everything is a service” P76
I see that Jeremy Rifkin has a problem spending money. In this day and age everything cost money and that is true but if you were to not pay money for things such as water you would be drinking all the filth and every pollutant that has ever been there in that water. This is a reason for paying for a service. If you wish to not have that service then cancel it. Everything in the world cost money. A cow, crops, a home, land, electricity. It cost money because of the time and assets involved in obtaining these things. If you were to buy your own cow to raise and then kill it for food then you have to cut it, clean it, and feed it up until its death. This is all a cost if you wish to not do it yourself. If you do it yourself then you are only buying or trading for a calf. This is the basis of Capitalism. What is made easier, safer, or better is going to cost something. I would rather pay money for running water then have to drink rainwater and poop in a bucket. That is very unsanitary and causes disease. If people started to purify the air we breathe then they would probably charge us money for that too but that is not likely to happen. Everything takes money and time to produce so they pass that cost on to the consumer plus a little more to make a profit so they can buy goods as well. This is how it has been since the early days of the Greeks, Romans, and even Mesopotamians. Goods have always been traded for other goods or wealth.
Rifkin provides information to back up his claims but they do not appeal to me to be totally legitimate. Well at least he can’t prove to me that what he is saying is causing problems in the US due to our capitalistic society. I think that we have one of the best countries and we have the second highest gross domestic product (GDP) next to Luxembourg. This means that our economy is self-sufficient and we can survive on our own. So if capitalism is so bad why are we one of the most powerful and successful countries in the world? To me capitalism isn’t a bad thing but I don’t think it’s the greatest system either but I have no problem with it. I have done research on capitalism and other countries that try to adopt it but it never works because of economic shortfall. Most of these countries were former communistic/ socialistic countries that adopt democracy after decades of oppression or economic failure. Then they decide to do what the US does thus causing a problem. It’s not the society that is bad its that he views us as tyrants of the world trying to strangle the little people weather its another country or our own citizens. Even though we have huge corporations who seem to rule with an iron fist over its competitors we must look closely at Enron. Enron was one of the world’s largest corporations and now they have collapsed in on them selves. All of this happened within one year. If large corporations keep the little guy down then what toppled a giant like Enron?
Even thought this book has views I do not agree with I still respect his views and his ideas and I feel somewhat enlightened that my views have been somewhat challenged.
Digital
Copyright
Copyright
laws started back in the late 1700’s protecting the interests of creators of
new work. These laws provided protection to these creators and their
distributors. But now in the new
millennium these laws do not make sense to the common consumer. In 1998 lobbyist
convinced congress to pass laws regarding the expansion of copyright’s owners
control over the private uses of their works. (Page 4)
These
new laws spawned lawsuits of major Internet companies suck as MP3.com and
Napster. (Page 7) This is something
I don’t entirely agree with. When Napster became big it took away from record
sales or so the artists say. This “fact” that file sharing was taking away
from the artists of the work started the major legal battles between
artists/record labels and Internet sites. File
sharing isn’t so much a bad thing, but when people use it as a means of
obtaining material for free then it takes from the originators of the work.
This
is what the new laws were supposed to prevent.
People in this society seem to ignore these laws and I do not blame them.
If it is so easy to copy music and files why not do it? Since almost anyone with
a new computer can burn (to make a copy) a CD there is little to stop people
from taking advantage of what is so easily accessible.
The
whole problem is people are uneducated about this subject. People just think
that if its there it can’t be bad for me to do it since everyone else is doing
it. This is the mentality that I get from people and the author also expresses
this as well. The author believes that if people understand that it is wrong and
it virtually stealing then they may stop doing it. Also people don’t know the
punishment of participating in the exploit of file sharing. For copying and
distributing copyrighted software carries the steepest penalties by law. But
this distribution must result in profit. If found guilty a person could be
subjected to a $500,000 fine and 5 years in prison. (page 47)
The
author believes, as do I, that the law needs to be written with the average
person in mind. People do not understand what copyright really is and therefore
do not care. Technology is moving in a faster direction then copyright
protection. This is the most fatal flaw. Our companies have actually obtained
the advantage of those who are trying to “free” all digital information.
DVD’s now come encrypted to prevent the casual person from copying them but as
I am typing this Apple computers is releasing a DVD copying program and DVD
burner.
People
will only copy what is easy. A paragraph of a book to the copying of an entire
movie on disk take very little effort to copy.
I
never got to finish the book since I just got it today and all so I do not know
what the author thinks about copyright law in the digital millennium in detail.
Over all this book is great and provides many insights to the reasoning of
copyright infringement.
GPS
Global Positioning System (GPS) is a dual use (military-civil) satellite-based radio navigation system initially developed and currently sustained and operated by the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD).
The Global Positioning System was created because of the problems experienced by the US military forces during the Vietnam conflict. During the conflict ground forces were unable to communicated to other troops to get positioning information. This became a problem as there became an issue of friendly fire. After experimenting with radio signals and other technology, they failed because of dense forest, weather, and other factors, they then experimented with a system consisting of 4 satellites which they initially named TRANSIT. TRANSIT was available primarily to the US military and was also accessible by mariners. There was a big drawback to only having 4 satellites in orbit… this was because the service was only accessible every for about 2 hours a day as the satellites circled the globe.
The NavStar system was then developed to combat this problem and was operational in a limited way from 1986, but instead of a two hour window there wasn’t much advance. There was now only 3-4 hours coverage per day caused by the same issue from TRANSIT. There was a reason why the NavStar system was only available in a limited way because they were to put more satellites in orbit but the Challenger Space Shuttle disaster of 1988 caused a halt of the deployment as the shuttle was the main launch vehicle for the satellites.
When hostilities began in the Persian Gulf in 1990 GPS became “partially operational.” Here, new experimental satellites called Block 1 were used in addition to the established satellites of 1986 now called Block 2.With the addition of Block 1 there were 21 satellites in orbit allowing for a more accurate system. The GPS satellites operate in circular 10,900nm (20,200km) orbits at an inclination of 55 degrees and with a 12-hour period. They are not in geo-stationary orbit.
The US Defense Department made the system operational for civilian users in late 1990, which is the same GPS system we enjoy today.
The GPS satellites orbit the earth twice a day, 11,000 miles above the earth, transmitting their precise position and elevation. The GPS receiver acquires this signal and then measures the interval between transmission and receipt of the signal to determine the distance between the receiver and the satellite. Once the receiver has calculated this data for at least 3 satellites, its location on the earth's surface can be determined. The more satellites calculated for the more accurate determination. Generally no more than 6 satellites are readable at one particular time.
The GPS system consists of three different segments: space, control, and user.
The Space Segment consists of 24 operational satellites in six circular orbits 20,200 km (10,900 nm) above the earth at an inclination angle of 55 degrees with a 12-hour period. The satellites are spaced in orbit so that at any time a minimum of 4 satellites will be in view to users anywhere in the world. The satellites continuously broadcast position and time data to users throughout the world. There are currently 27 satellites in orbit which assures the availability of 24 operational satellites.
The Control Segment consists of a master control station in Colorado Springs, with five monitor stations and three control up-link stations located throughout the world. Monitor stations track all GPS satellites in view and collect ranging information from the satellite broadcasts. The monitor stations send information they collect from each of the satellites back to master control, which in turn computes extremely precise satellite orbits. The information is then formatted into updated navigation messages for each satellite. The updated information is transmitted to each satellite via the control up-link stations, which also transmit and receive satellite control and monitoring signals.
The User Segment consists of the GPS receivers, processors, and antennas that allow land, sea, and/or airborne operators to receive the GPS satellite broadcasts and compute their position, velocity and time. GPS is owned and operated by the U.S. Government as a national resource.
GPS can do more than tell a person where they are. GPS has been implemented to be used on unmanned craft such as spy planes and missiles. GPS controlled smart bombs have been used extensively against terrorist camps and Taliban targets in Afghan. A GPS smart bomb costs $15,000 a piece but they are much cheaper than the $1 million Tomahawk and more precise than weapons used in Gulf war. GPS was in its early stage of deployment and not used for guiding weapons during the Gulf War.
GPS technology can even now help you find a specific destination in your car… this technology is just starting to become popular with people but has been around for a couple of years. On Star is one of these such “car GPS” companies. They work just like that of a handheld receiver but they tend to help more with directions.
GPS receivers range in price from $70-$300+ plus if you want to pay for the licensing to get a more precise reading that will run you even more money. I think that with the current events and falling economy you should be able to pick one up at a cheaper price in the coming months. The future of GPS is uncertain. We know it will be around and still used just as much but with the way technology is we could all have GPS on our palm computers or on our watches. These GPS receivers have a map, range, of their effectiveness. I believe that the maps will become more detailed to include for houses, roads, lakes, rivers, etc. This will add to the user applications as well. With present technology only some geographical information is included on the base map. In the future you may be able to take a 3D tour of a city before you visit it and then plan on how to get there with your GPS watch.
What would be some of the ethical or social responsibilities associated with GPS you might ask? GPS, as some know, is used as guidance in missiles. This would be a ethical responsibility for using GPS. People don’t always appreciate things that can be adapted to be used in warfare. But as we have seen in Afghanistan GPS can also fail and destroy civilian buildings. GPS can also be used as a tool instead of a “weapon”. This technology can be used to guide a person safely when lost in a totally unfamiliar place. Since GPS can be used as good and bad it has a really high ethical responsibility to it.
GPS can also help bring people together. GPS allows people to find their way around easier so they are more likely to travel to other countries without the worries of paying for guides. GPS can tell you where roads, major buildings, and other important landmarks are. This could help unite the world in a sense by bringing people together on a global scale. With people more able to go to places without having to ask directions or buy maps it could expand the economy of the world. Some governments could perceive that the GPS unit could be used to mark locations of important government installations. This was the case with a US man being detained in Russia because they felt that he was spying on the Russian government with his GPS unit. There are always drawbacks to technology and with technology that uses satellites they drawbacks can be quite large.
In the end GPS is very helpful to everyone. It keeps civilian buildings from being inadvertently bombed during war; it keeps troops from suffering friendly fire or being bombed by their own forces. Police, fire fighters, also can use it and ambulances to help find their way to problem areas with a quicker response time saving lives.