Saving the World: One Connecting at a Time

What a powerful thing the Internet is. We can type out words and then have other people read them instantly as you are probably doing now. It is used for VoIP services so you can connect with people all over the world. Zuckerberg believes that connectivity is a human right. He recently posted, "The more things we all know, the better ideas, products and services we can all offer and the better all of our lives will be.” It might sound great and all that but the truth of the matter is that there is always a business angle. More Internet users mean more data, which can be sold to advertisers (Facebook) or used by the advertiser (Google), and all of which must be transmitted through some device (Nokia, Samsung, Qualcomm). The corners of the world without Internet present vast, untapped markets. On the other hand, the Internet is not magic. The Internet cannot nourish, and it cannot give a homeless person a home. Just something to think about during your meals.

Working for Nothing

If you are like one of the many recent college grads, you are probably still looking for a job or have taken an unpaid internship. The unpaid internship may include answering internet phone calls and even taking out the trash. Unpaid internships are, at best, ethically iffy. A necessary precursor to jobs in certain fields, they act as both a gateway and a barrier to entry. Young people believe they have no choice. Anyone unable to forgo pay risks being shut out. Legally, they’re murky. The Labor Department holds that unpaid internships in the nonprofit sector are “generally permissible." Interestingly enough, the Labor Department does not, for example, routinely monitor job boards for suspicious ads. Nor have lawmakers on Capitol Hill tried to draw attention to the culture of unpaid internships, with task forces or hearings or education campaigns. Have you ever been in this position?

Defcon: How to Hack Safely

At the annual hacker convention, there is a program that encourages kids to hack, safely of course. One of the best things about these types of programs is that it teaches the kids about technology at an early age. It sets the groundwork for future application development and for the kids to be aware of the different type of technologies and how they can be used. It's like training-wheels for learning about the technology … having kids start sooner, getting people who wouldn't normally get into hacking sooner, and spreading that it's not necessarily hacking in the evil sense but a lot about curiosity, finding flaws and sharing knowledge. The r00tz Asylum program provides kids a safe environment in which to break the rules. Learning it in a controlled kind of environment under guidance is much better than people going off on their own and perusing it in any way they please. There should definitely be more programs such as these.

Apple vs. Samsung

The companies are currently embroiled in dozens of high-stakes patent disputes, four of which are playing out in the United States. Billions of dollars are on the line, and the titans are fighting to take each other's products off the shelves. The good news for consumers is that the trial proceedings in such disputes typically take so long that the products in question are often long obsolete by the time a judge rules on the case. The latest ruling is expected to take place on Friday, when a federal court will decide whether to ban the sale of some older Samsung smartphones in the United States. A lot of phone services, especially VoIP because there is less security with it, are being more regulated as far as price goes as well. After the Snowden leak, more people are suspicious of what the government is doing and how they are using the information. It reminds me of a book about a dystopian society where the government monitors data and looks for anomalies. It sounded ridiculous but is that not the direction that we are headed in?

Digital Textbooks

There’s a bunch of freely available education content on the web, so why not round it up and cobble it together into virtual textbooks? That’s the idea behind Boundless, a Boston-based company that turns open-source content into free textbooks that serve as alternatives to the big-name textbooks assigned by college professors. This is probably music to all those college kids' ears. If you’re wondering if traditional textbook publishers might have a bone to pick with Boundless, you’d be right: The company is currently being sued by three of the major players. “That’s not a surprise that they’re trying to fight innovation.” These are the same publishers that are own about 80% of the market. I can tell you from experience that some of the textbook cost an arm and a leg. Some professors are even choosing to use IP telephony to further help the students learn and understand the material. In what direction do you think textbooks and publishing is going?