internet Archives - The Blog Herald

The Story Of Aaron Swartz And How His Death Could Change Computer Crime Laws

July 31, 2017 by Blogherald Blogger 1 Comment

In today’s digital world, the programmers are among those who are reaping the benefits of internet technology. They are among the techies who enjoy high salaries and who get to create innovations that the present generation now make full use of. They are the founders of startups and the brains behind various new technologies.

Aaron Swartz was one programmer who carved a niche in the internet industry but who, unfortunately, ended his life too soon. His life story has been told via the movie “The Internet’s Own Boy” produced by Storyville which provided many insights into his mission, the world wide web and how the government views the internet. [Read more…]

It’s No Longer OK to Not Know How the Internet Works

August 7, 2013 by Jonathan Bailey Leave a Comment

Last year, as the debates over SOPA and PIPA raged, Joshua Kopstein at Motherboard wrote a post entitled “Dear Congress, It’s No Longer OK to Not KNow How the Internet Works“. In the post, he blasted Congress for joking about how little they understood about the Internet while, at the same time, attempting to legislate it.

A year later, it’s time to revisit that message, but in a different context.

With the recent NSA scandals, the attack on Tor network (widely suspected to be orchestrated by the U.S. government), and deep concerns about how government and private entities are cooperating to share user data, it’s clear isn’t just the government that needs a primer on how the Internet works.

The everyday user that does as well.

For most people, including many who grew up with the Internet, the Web seems almost magical. They click to visit a site or send an email and they get content or data from half a world away, nearly instantly.

But where most people take the time to understand at least the basics of how their car works, far fewer have taken the time to understand how the Internet works, even as they depend upon it more and more as part of their daily lives.

But like not knowing how a car works, ignorance can be dangerous and, also like a car, a little bit of understanding can go a long, long way. [Read more…]

Happy 20th Birthday To … The Internet!

April 30, 2013 by James Johnson Leave a Comment

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear modern day internet, happy birthday to you.

Okay, corny I know, but on April 30, 1993 the internet’s daddy Tim Berners-Lee and his employer CERN made available for free the very software that would eventually become what we now refer to as the internet.

In a statement released on the CERN website, the agency on Tuesday said:

“By making the software required to run a web server freely available, along with a basic browser and a library of code, the web was allowed to flourish. [Read more…]

Social Influencers: The Voices Of The Internet Movement [Infographic]

March 27, 2013 by James Johnson Leave a Comment

The internet is the home for billions of voices. Users take to Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and various other social networks, forums and websites to share their experiences with friends and strangers.

Among those billions of voices are a handful of internet evangelists who seem to understand how to deliver web based messages better than their peers and followers.

The team at MBA In Marketing has examined those voices and the communities they support.

The study found that 54% of consumers are more likely to buy a product from a community with a smaller user size while 31% of online purchases are influenced by blogs.

But who is influencing those buyers? In many cases it is the brands themselves, but other times it is people like internet evangelists Robert Scoble, Chris Brogan and Seth Godin. Those users understand the web, they grew up in tech and they have been consistent and unrelenting voices in their fields. [Read more…]

How to Make the Freemium Model Work

September 20, 2011 by Blogherald Blogger Leave a Comment

The last few years have seen a revolution in terms of online marketing. The rise of new, disruptive technologies such as peer to peer and social media have led to a fundamental shift on how business is done. A model that emerged as a possible answer to these problems is the Freemium paradigm. In essence it relies on gathering a large following and then trying to capitalize on it with low yield methods. Its adepts claim that the high volume will make up for the relatively low profit margin.

Promising as it sounds, this model has lead to multiple business failures. However, there are success stories as well. It’s obvious that the Freemium model CAN work, but only if you know what you’re doing. [Read more…]

The Social Impact Of Bin Laden’s Assassination

May 3, 2011 by Tanner Godarzi Leave a Comment

Late Sunday evening my Facebook news stream was bombarded with posts exclaiming Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden was captured and killed. An elite operation that required tactical precision took out Bin Laden and his supporters over the course of minutes. The raid was live streamed to the President and his cabinet but a very different picture unfolded over Twitter.

Around 1 AM as a US helicopter closed in on Bin Laden’s compound in Abbottabad, an IT consultant some miles away live Tweeted the entire raid unaware of what was really going on. Sohaib Athar under his handle @ReallyVirtual Tweeted that a helicopter was hovering around the area and later crashed from gun fire.

[Read more…]

Internet Kill Switch Seen As Good Idea By US Government?

January 31, 2011 by Darnell Clayton Leave a Comment

In order to protect American citizens from threats beyond their comprehension, it looks like the US Senate is proposing creating an “Internet kill switch” which would grant the government the authority to turn off access to the world wide web (similar to what Mubarak did in Egypt).

The bipartisan bill is sponsored by Maine Sen. Susan Collins, the ranking Republican on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The bill — called “The Protecting Cyberspace As A National Asset Act of 2010” S.3480 — was approved by a Senate panel this week.

S. 3480 would create a new government agency called the National Center for Cybersecurity and Communications. The NCCC would have sweeping powers to control the Internet, including the ability to shut down the web for a 30-day period. Considering that at least 60% of Americans get their daily news fix from the Internet, this is a staggering proposal. (The Blaze)

Unless our world is under assault from a killer virus from the future (whose purpose is to turn machines against mankind), it’s hard to justify giving the US government this power, especially since a lengthly shut down could literally kill off companies that rely upon the Internet in order to survive.

Hopefully American bloggers (or anyone for that matter) will consider calling their Senators and politely ask them to quickly kill this bill.

While a few organizations are mobilizing opposition to this bill, hopefully some of the tech giants (notably Google, Facebook, Automattic and Twitter) will use their influence to alert users regarding this bill as having the Internet shut off without warning.