World Without Secrets By Richard Hunter

After watching two groups discuses this book I thought I should state something about it in my blog. Also both groups kept me interested as well.

It was published in the year 2002 and it talks about privacy and security. On the privacy side of the story, people are so worried about their identity being out in the public but what they don't know is that when they purchase something online such as Amazon.com or Nordstrom.com they are giving private information out onto the internet. Someone could hack into their account and steal their identity easily. Also they talk about smart houses. Lots of money was put into smart houses and depending how many electronic devices they wanted into their houses allowed people to easily hack into the computer behind the smart house and see their every move in every place in the house. Thats really scary!

They discovered the open source software movement where anyone could access it and use it. Linux was the name and they didnt think it would've been successful but it was. By the year 2003 they noticed it was very successful and Microsoft saw linux as a threat to their company. So microsoft stated bad things about the code so people wouldnt want to use it.

They also talked about Hackers and Crackers- its ethical by nature. You have to be accepted by the community to be a hacker. An example is a mentat which are people who fill in the gaps that computers cant do. Its like a trust between a client and a mentat. She gave an example that kevin fritas was an example of a mentat.

Overall i thought this book was pretty interesting.

Against the Machine by Lee Siegel

After watching the first group present in class I thought it was an interesting book to talk about.

The book is about the internet reshaping out thoughts about ourselves, other people and the world around us. In other words, the internet is separating "us" from the real world. I thought that was interesting that he stated that in his book since we did discuss that topic in class... is the internet really separating people from the outside world? The group also talked about the Bait and Switch method which relates to Ebay. Also Online expressions as in everything is the same and anyone can put whatever they want on the internet. For example: expressing who they are or who they aren't. Siegel doesn't believe people can be both artists and a professional. Its kind of like the "click" in high school. One group can be part of another group, its just wrong. He says that there is not originality and no one has personality. He talks about how culture changed from watching a movie on TV to watching a TV show like American Idol where you can express yourself by voting. He also says the only reason people are doing things online is so that people will notice them and it will help them become more popular like web 2.0. So overall Lee Siegel is very negative and contradicts himself a lot. He seems to be really against the internet and how popular its become.

Class Presentation

When we were preparing for our group project we first had to decided on a book to read and present. We decided on Burn Rate. We evenly divided the chapters for everyone I the group. I was stuck with the last few chapters, which didn’t help me understand the book much.. in fact at all. When we undated Professor Fry on our status of the group project he suggested that we should inform everyone about their parts in the reading and explain from beginning to finish. We decided to e-mail Scott our notes we took from each chapter and he summarized the book with our notes. Thanks Scott! Now that we all have a better understanding of the plot, we now have a draft to go off of and we feel more confident about our presentations. This Monday were planning to get together and practice our presentation and hopefully understand the entire book! Our overall presentation will involve a power point with clear information to share to the class.

Traveling in the Virtual World

After discussing in class how people travel in a virtual world I thought it was quite interesting. People (gamers) who travel to different states just to meet up with a group of other gamers to play computer games against one another is a bit funny. Is that really considered fun? Come to think of it, I feel like my boyfriend and his roommates would do that.. embarrassing ( :

First off, I don’t think I’d ever travel in a virtual world just because it isn’t my style. But if I had to I’d probably meet a group of people somewhere in Cabo to learn about facebook and the works behind it. I think its so fascinating how they’ve came up with a communication online that is personal and your own. I think it would be an interesting experience and it would open my horizons. Can I even consider that a trip in the virtual world? I hope so because that’s the only place I’m willing to go! Haha ( :

Kevin Freitas

Kevin Freitas is a successful computer scientist who works for the company Site Crafting where he is a programmer and team manager. On his personal website [kevinfreitas.net] he shares stories about his life with fantastic pictures, etc. While he works on his own website he also created a site for the community of Tacoma, FeedTacoma.com.

This none profit organization, FeedTacoma.com, allow people to read blogs that were tagged as Tacoma. It’s a good chance for people to get their voice out there regardless who they are. The website is self maintained which means people can post pictures and descriptions of the item and transactions can be completed. That’s really remarkable! ( :

I think this website is a great way for people in the Tacoma community to communicate with one another and share there thoughts. Its amazing what the internet can do!

Financing Online

We have embraced the idea of financing online for many reasons. Financing online has not only made the business society evolve into a world that no one could have predicted, it has made everyday actions easier then imaginable. In today’s world, you can find anything you need online, ranging from a doll hand made in china, to eggs from the local grocery store down the street. This is all made possible through online dealings and financing online. Not only can you shop online, internet banking has become possible so anywhere you go you can check your bank account and get a current statement of how much you can spend and not go over. Financing online is not only reliable, it’s quick, easy, and safe as well. You can have anything delivered right to your door just by sitting down and going online.

We have also embraced financing online because in addition to being able to shop online, or order things directly to our door, online financing can bring entertainment into your house that was previously unavailable. For example, many games can only be played by internet access and online payments, as well as internet gambling which many people participate around the world.

Uncomfortable Purchasing Online?

Come to think of it, I can’t really think of many websites I’d feel uncomfortable purchasing an item online. Large corporations like Nordstrom, Mercer, Juicy Couture, Victoria Secret, etc are usually 100% reliable, and if it doesn’t work out you can always bring it back with full refund. Websites like Ebay would probably be my biggest concern. Even though I’ve never actually purchased anything from their website I think it’s a bit sketch. When looking up designer jeans, sunglasses, and handbags from the website you never actually know for sure if it’s going to look exactly like the picture. My friend Andrea showed me a Juicy Couture zip up and pants off Ebay that she wanted to purchase that said BRAND NEW but was half the price. Why would someone sell a BRAND NEW outfit off the website and only make half the prophet off of it? I kind of think it’s a scam and it’s not the actual designer brand [more like a knock off]. I’m sure some of the items are reliable, but not for me.

Other than that, I think purchasing items online is a safe bet. I actually buy a lot of things offline, since sometimes items on their website aren’t sold in their store. The only problem is the cost of shipping and handling.. sometimes it’s not worth it.