Trouble with Social Networking

 Defamation

According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Facebook on July 24, 2008, the High Court in London ordered British freelance cameraman Grant Raphael to pay £22,000 (then about US$43,700) for breach of privacy and libel. Raphael had posted a fake Facebook page purporting to be that of a former schoolfriend and business colleague, Mathew Firsht, with whom Raphael had fallen out in 2000. The fake page claimed that Firsht was homosexual and untrustworthy. The case is believed to be the first successful invasion of privacy and defamation verdict against someone over an entry on a social networking site. It showed that because of the rapid trend of social networking, personal data are laid including full name, address, email address, phone number, top friends, photos, and interests. With that, there are more possibilities for strangers to abuse you in making use of your contact information. There would be more chances for personal fraud, or simply people could pretend or verify themselves as being you.

Distraction to Education

Based from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Facebook, On January 23, 2006, The Chronicle of Higher Education continued an ongoing national debate on social networks with an opinion piece written by Michael Bugeja, director of the Journalism School at Iowa State University, entitled "Facing the Facebook". Bugeja, author of the Oxford University Press text Interpersonal Divide (2005), quoted representatives of the American Association of University Professors and colleagues in higher education to document the distraction of students using Facebook and other social network during class and at other venues in the wireless campus. Bugeja followed up on January 26, 2007 in The Chronicle with an article titled "Distractions in the Wireless Classroom", quoting several educators across the country who were banning laptops in the classroom. Similarly, organizations such as the National Association for Campus Activities,  the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, and others have hosted seminars and presentations to discuss ramifications of students' use of Facebook and other social networking systems.

Some research on Facebook in higher education suggests that there may be some small educational benefits associated with student Facebook use, including improving engagement which is related to student retention. Furthermore, using technologies such as Facebook to connect with others can help college students be less depressed and cope with feelings of loneliness and homesickness. According to one case study, students surveyed who were regular facebook users had, on average, lower grades than those who were not.

Because of the cool offers of entertainment and easier communication through social networking sites, students happen to enjoy much of its services and tend to overlap time for it than the responsibilities for school work. That’s why grades happen to be lower according to case studies.

 

Workplace Interference

It would be really a problem if people at work using social networking sites happen to be unaware or forget that anything they post on such sites will be visible in public, if not in the present but will be in the future, even if the said accounts are set privately. This happened in a Cisco employee who damaged his reputation before he even started at his new job. He twittted “Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh the utility of a fatty pay check against the daily commute to San Jose and hating the work” It wasn’t long before Tim Levad, a channel partner advocate for Cisco Alert, shared this open response, “Who is the hiring manager. I’m sure they would love to know that you will hate the work. We here at Cisco are versed in the web.” It was clearly shown that through social networking, certain companies may be a victim of offensive insights, and with that, the included employee would surely be meet the consequence of what he did, and the company will face the negative feedbacks from the description laid on the twit.

http://networkconference.netstudies.org/2011/04/social-networking-sites-more-harm-than-good/

Isolation and Weakening of Family Ties

Case Study in America shows that “twenty-five percent of the respondents in the 2004 survey appear to have no close ties, up from ten percent in 1984. Additionally a similar study amongst college student found that “1 in 7 say that social networking sites increase feelings of isolation” (Katonda News Network, 2010)  As well as “Nearly 70% report reading posts from someone close to them that seemed like a cry for emotional help, and while most students would offer support in some way, fewer than half would make a personal visit”.  This only shows that most people nowadays would tend to depend on the power of technology through social networking sites by simply using messaging, chat, twits or wall posts.  By this, the usual personal contact will decline and may only lead to the technology o virtual connection, decreasing the strength of relationships and family ties. http://networkconference.netstudies.org/2011/04/social-networking-sites-more-harm-than-good/

Bridge to Trouble

According to http://news.yahoo.com/nypd-scan-facebook-twitter-trouble-190941500.htm

In the London riots in particular, law enforcement suspects the looters relied heavily on BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) to coordinate and plan their riotous spree. Police there are working with BBM maker Research In Motion to decipher the messages and identify those responsible for burning and pillaging London stores.

It was said in http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/12/us/12bcfacebook.html?_r=1&ref=socialnetworking that the authorities in London arrested scores of people late Sunday and early Monday in hopes of heading off further violence after this weekend’s street riots, as evidence emerged suggesting that the unrest had been organized, at least in part, over private online messaging networks.

As the news said in http://news.yahoo.com/nypd-scan-facebook-twitter-trouble-190941500.htm, many, including the police, looked initially to Twitter and Facebook to find participants and organizers of the violence. But Jonathan Akwue, a media strategist in London, was among the first to write about the possible role BlackBerry Messenger, commonly known as BBM, played in organizing rioters.

Assistant Commissioner Kevin O'Connor is in charge of an NYPD unit created specifically to comb social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and BlackBerry messenger for information on planned crimes and their perpetrators.

Law enforcement has linked social media to increasing incidents of flash robs in the U.S. and the recent looting and rioting in London. Public safety agencies are consequently looking to step up their game in order to better protect citizens against these trends.

This concludes that through social networking, crimes, riots and chaos may be made more possible because of abuse of much easier access to communication.

LAW AND ORDER - Access Nation: Possible Technologies

http://compsci-11-12-1.blogspot.com/Some of the technologies shown in the movie are hacking, viruses, and file recovery after deletion.

FILE RECOVERY AFTER DELETION

I’ve read an article that says files could still be recovered though already deleted from the recycle bin, for as long as it wasn’t overwritten on your hard drive with other data and that you attempt to recover the files shortly after you delete them.

This technology is possible for an undelete program iRecover. According to the site, iRecover is an advanced data recovery program that will help you recover data that was lost because of file system corruption, formatting, virus damage, partition deletion or user error.Here are some other features of iRecover:

• Supports FAT, FAT32, NTFS and Ext2 formatted drives
• Extracts data from lost partitions
• Recovers data from deleted partitions (partition recovery)
• Unformat recovery - Recover data from corrupt, not formatted, RAW partitions
• Recovers data from formatted partitions (unformat recovery)
• Retrieves data from severely corrupted disks and volumes
• Digital image recovery, digital photo recovery - recovers deleted files from memory cards (e.g. camera flash cards.

http://www.rickysays.com

VIRUSES

Acording from such discussions in an article,http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-computer-hacking.htm, computer hacking has nothing to do with viruses. 

HACKING

Hacking is simply the ability to change (hardware or software) what the original creator had intended (i.e. changing how your windows system runs a certain program or adding certain components to your computer that weren't originally intended to be there). This could not only be about illegal manipulation and stealing of other’s private data, but can also lead to constructive development.

There’s this variation between hackers and crackers. Hackers gave us the Internet, PCs in general, game consoles, and before computers, things like the automobile and electricity. Hackers are innovators and make existing things better by figuring out how they work, and make them work better.  Often times companies hire hackers to hack into their own systems to check for weak points then have the hackers tell them how to fix it.While crackers just crack to open a system, and still data inside.http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-computer-hacking.htm

Actually there are hackers with good purposes. They are called ethical hackers. I’ve noticed it the movie that through hacking, the files of the victim, Tracy Conley, were opened without its consent. Files opened include bank accounts, medical files, driving records and even those internet activities or webs browsed can be traced by a hacker.

Professional Hackers hack government servers, making viruses in list, like in the FBI. They use certain actions like, keystroke logging, cracking, phishing and etc.

Phishing is a form of social engineering technique used by hackers to gather sensitive information such as usernames, passwords and credit card details by posing as a trustworthy person/organization.

Kernel-based software type keyloggers gain access to any information typed on the keyboard as it goes to the operating system.
Form grabbing-based software type keyloggers log web form submissions by recording the web browsing on submit event functions. This records form data before it is passed over the Internet and bypasses HTTPS encryption.

Packet analyzers-based software type keyloggers involve capturing network traffic associated with HTTP POST events to retrieve unencrypted passwords.

Keystroke logging(keylogging) is the action of tracking keys pressed on a keyboard, typically without letting
the user be aware that his actions are monitored.

Software Keylogging also feature:

•    Programmatically capturing the text in a control. The Microsoft Windows API allows programs to request the text 'value' in some controls. This means that some passwords may be captured, even if they are hidden behind password masks (usually asterisks).
•    The recording of every program/folder/window opened including a screenshot of each and every website visited, also including a screenshot of each.
•    The recording of search engines queries, instant messenger conversations, FTP downloads and other Internet-based activities (including the bandwidth used)

http://en.wikipedia.org

Misconceptions about Computers

I've heard a lot of such wrong sayings about computers, usually from parents and cousins. I know those weren't really true, but I'm not quite sure of the reasons behind this. But now through research, I think some of these misconceptions will be proven wrong.

 

Here are some of the popular beliefs about our computers:

Leaving your computer on for a long time will worsen a computer

Having your computer turned on for a long time (or have it turn itself off in standby or hibernate) isn't actually a big issue. This is fine as long as your computer has good components that can withstand your daily use. Because rarely, "stiction" (a tendency wherein the system has a hard time spinning into activation) may occur possibly, but in older computers only.

Deleting your files erases them forever

Many people believe that if you data in a computer, there wouldn't be found any traces of such files. But actually, if you delete those files, there's a possibility to find old social security numbers, personal files, and other information on donated hard drives if the hard drive hasn't been completely reformatted and Windows reinstalled. So, according to my research, to get rid of information for good, zap it with a free eraser utility like Eraser.

 Magnets murder data

This is considered true in the generation of floppy discs. Hard drives are also safe from magnets. CDs and DVDs are as well immune to  magnets. Memory cards are not also affected, considering that they are not magnetic in themselves. But endpoint, extremely powerful magnets can erase a hard drive but I guess that would not be frequently present.

Restarting is bad for a computer

This really isn't bad in the first place. Because restarting is like refreshing all the computer's data, and doing this will prevent your files to get clog as you input more and more data. And this will cause slow processes. And usually, this is the most preferred initial step in fixing a computer. 

Antivirus isn't necessary if a firewall is already present

Actually, antivirus and firewall are of different purposes. An antivirus, locates, isolates and gets rid of viruses from the system. But a firewall, protects the computer from the unauthorized users, may be through internet, to get in to your system. So an antivirus couldn't have a solution to such unauthorized users, and a firewall cannot do the work of antiviruses either. 

REFERENCES: http://dansdata.com/

                     http://ezinearticles.com

Misconceptions about Computers

History of Computers

Computers actually started for the need of counting and making other calculations, realizing that limitation of having only those ten fingers and toes used to make such computations. Based on my research, this started of with the so called ABACUS, an apparatus that used a series of movable beads or rocks. It's a manual installation, that is purposely made for livestock and trade. 

         

Then came Blaise Pascal's invention, the adding machine, that's initially built for commerce and not for science. 

         

Next was Charles Babbage's idea for a computer that would not only calculate, but also print mathematical tables. This uses punch cards that can use previous calculations to new ones. Then another mathematician, Ada Byron Lovelace got inspired of Charles Babbage's works. She realized that Analytical Machines are possible to produce graphics and music. She was then known for writing the world’s first computer program. Then the United States Department of Defense named a computer language in her honor in 1979. Afterwards, several computer inventions followed those earlier ideas.

First Generation (1940-1956) Vacuum Tube

The first computers used vacuum tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for memory, consuming a lot of electricity, causing it to have several malfunctions. The first electronic computer ENIAC(Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), the brain, came out in 1946. In 1951, UNIVAC was the first computer used by U.S. government, U.S.A. Then IBM computers were sold in U.S.A., next to Apple computers.

Second Generation (1956-1963) Transistors 

Transistors replaced vacuum tubes and were far of superior to it. Computers become smaller, faster, cheaper, more energy-efficient and more reliable than the earlier generation of computers. These used languages that let programmers specify instructions in words. This generation still relied on punched cards for input and printouts for output. The first computers of this generation were developed for the atomic energy industry.

Third Generation (1964-1971) Integrated Circuits 

Now this generation deals with keyboards and monitors and interfaced with an operating system. Integrated circuit was the special indication of the third generation of computers. I found out that transistors were miniaturized and placed on silicon chips, called semiconductors, which drastically increased the speed and efficiency of computers.Now computer turned accessible to users because it was smaller and cheaper.

Fourth Generation (1971-Present) Microprocessors 

This is the start of shrinking of all those large inventions that could fill up a room in the first generation into silicon chips. This is where Apple introduced Macintosh to consumers in 1984 . Then IBM mainframes were used by government and corporations which later on made open for the IBM PC consumers. This generation actually was more applicable to a lot of users that led to the realization of network and internet. Fourth generation computers also includes development of GUIs, the mouse and handheld devices.

Fifth Generation (Present and Beyond) Artificial Intelligence 

Fifth generation computing devices, are based on artificial intelligence, which covers that a computer will solve problems in exactly the way they are programmed to, regardless of efficiency nor alternative solutions nor possible shortcuts nor possible errors in the code. Quantum computation and molecular and nanotechnology will radically change the face of computers in years to come according to my research. These are are still in development, though some are already into process of applications. 

And based on Wikipedia, Quantum computer, Chemical computer, DNA computing, Optical computer, Spintronics based computer are still included in the theoretical or experimental computing hardware. 

In conclusion to that, we can't actually determine who invented the computer, considering that a lot of mathematicians and inventors contributed to the acceleration of computer generation. And though computers at present are far better than their predecessors, technology of today wouldn't reach that far if not for our earlier inventors that combined discoveries to create such a master of improvement to the society.

references:

http://www.webopedia.com

http://www.wikipedia.com

History of Computers