Week 11 EOC: The Future of the Internet

The future of the Internet is unknown but from what we have seen develop in the last 20 years; the next 20 years will also be very surprising.  Alvin Roffler wrote ‘Future Shock’ where he predicted lots of changes  “In a series of global best-sellers, co-written with his wife Heidi, he anticipated, long in advance, today’s computer revolution, as well as cloning, the fragmentation of the family, cable television, VCRs, satellites, customized products, the speed-up of daily life, niche markets, virtual agents and the rise of the "knowledge economy." Ted Turner has credited Toffler with inspiring him to start CNN. According to Time magazine, the Tofflers "set the standard by which all subsequent would-be futurists have been measured."”   (tp://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnists/toffler/toff05.htm)

In the future the Internet will just evolve even more, I can see us using our thumb print to access our job instead of carrying a company badge.  I think the internet will be governed a lot more closely and everything we share online can come back to haunt us at a later time.  Medical technology will also evolve just like mentioned in the quote below; computer chips will become a norm on the surgery table.

“In the near future, we may be capable of installing the Internet directly into the user’s field of vision via a tiny computer chip implanted into the eye. Sound far-fetched? I doubt that it would sound far-fetched for Barbara Campbell, whose sight has been partially restored by a digital retinal implant (CNN reports on Barbara’s artificial retina²²).” (http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/08/11/the-future-of-the-internet/)  I think in the future everyone will have a chip installed on them maybe as part of a requirement at birth even pets; this will help minimize missing person alerts.  Just like in the movies that portrait the future, computer chips will be available and installed on a lot more objects.  Your voice will also serve as a command to say start your car.  Computers will be within easy access at various part of the city or even be carried on as small as a pen.  I think technology is great in that it makes our life much easier but it can also be a scary place for we don’t know how much more it will evolve, it’s a scary thought but definitely an interesting one.  

Week 10 EOC: Three Things On The Internet That I Think are Scary

The most important thing to remember when you are on your computer is to always protect it.  It very easy to be hacked by malicious hackers on the internet and your information on your pc should always be safe.  The scary part is that it is so easy to be attacked by hackers, the tools needed are just very minimal and the main tool you may already have your smart phone.  Hackers can be in a location where WiFi is available and with a copper wire, tin can and a smart phone able to access your computer, but there is more to this, this can be an extreme problem especially for businesses if they do not have a secure network.  There is actually a name for people who do this that is War Drivers,('Once a war driver connects to the network, he has the same access rights as any other user, and so can use all the network's resources and data.  If he is a hacker, he can also try to take control on the network or damage it.' How The Internet Works book pg 331). 

Another scary thing is that you can be sent a virus and it can come from your friend or families in an email form.  You should never open emails with attachments, especially if they have .exe on attachment.  Once these emails are open you inviting the hacker to take control of your computer. Lots of time these viruses are just dormand and nothing will happen until open, that is why it is extremely important never to open anything from unknown senders.  These hackers pose as someting nice but are very evil so be ware.

Most of all it is very important to always protect your computer with sometype of firewall and especially turn it off from time to time to give it a fresh start.

Week 9 EOC: What is Cyber Monday?

Cyber Monday is THE place to shop now, no need to wait in line the night before the opening of your favorite store hoping to be one of the lucky ones to purchase your item.  Cyber Monday is the first Monday following Black Friday, the start of the holiday shopping many merchants have adds, deals, coupons and specials going on that are only valid online and on Cyber Monday only.  Companies offer incentives to bring in new customers to their online shopping experience giving retailers much more exposure to new customers.  Most visitors on these sites may not shop on this particular day but most do come back to purchase before December 12 which guarantees receiving item right in time for Christmas.  For retailers the internet is becoming extremely powerful and I am sure no retail shop will want to miss out on this once a year opportunity and be part of this new trend.   As time goes on Cyber Monday will definitely become more popular changing the way we shop for the holiday season.