Current event #5

Samsung is ordered to pay Apple $290 million. 

Julianne Pepitone. Jury orders Samsung to pay Apple another $290 million. CNN. CNN, 21 Nov. 2013. Web. 22 Nov. 2013. <http://money.cnn.com/2013/11/21/technology/mobile/apple-samsung-damages/index.html>

Samsung is being accused of using Apples design, software, and hard ware ideas, this case has been open for about two years, it started in August 2012. The jury originally stated that Samsung would need to reimburse Apple with $1 billion however, Judge Koh said that the jury miscalculated and there was another trial putting about $450 million on the line. Apple was reimbursed with $290 million more, they feel that they should be granted even more money while Samsung feels that they shouldn't have to pay as much.

I feel that if Samsung did take Apples ideas then by all means, they should have to reimburse them. I feel that you can't just go around taking ideas that aren't yours, especially when they are copyrighted and you're in a big industry like this. Not only does it affect the other company, it affects your image and how other companies will see you. This event affects me because by seeing examples of plagiarism in such big, well know companies this could influence not only myself but others that it's okay to plagiarize.

This event impacts the world because we are taught in school not to plagiarize. If we see well known companies doing this then we might think it's okay for us to do so. Another way that this event affects the world is because if you pay for an iPhone and then you see another phone that has the same features but cheaper you are going to feel like you got cheated out of your money. "Apple accused Samsung of 'slavishly' copying both the iPhone and iPad for its own devices, including the hardware design as well as software features like double-tap zooming."(Apple. 2013.) If this is true then it only reinforces the statement that people who are paying money for iPhones and iPads are being cheated out of their money.

Bi- weekly current event number 4

Driving Selfies

Young drivers snapping 'selfies' at the wheel. 

Heather Kelly. Young drivers snapping selfies at the wheel. CNN. CNN, 6 Nov. 2013. Web. 8 Nov. 2013. <http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/06/tech/mobile/selfies-while-driving/index.html>

The newest trend is to take selfies, photos of yourself, while driving. The hash tags #drivingselfie, #drivingselfies, and #drivingtowork  have become very popular in the social media networks Instagram and Twitter. Taking 'driving selfies' is against the law and any driver seen taking these can be given a ticket. 

I think that taking driving selfies is a very dangerous thing to do.  By doing this you are putting not only yourself but other people around you in a lot of danger. This event affects me because I get into a car everyday and if there is a person taking selfies instead of paying attention to the road that could cause me or anyone else around them to be in a serious accident. I think that it is important for drivers to realize that when you are driving your eyes should be on the road at all times. There would not be a law against being on an electronic device while driving if it wasn't needed. 

This event impacts the world because it makes it a less safe place to be. If people are distracted while driving on the road this can lead to many accidents. "Taking a photo of yourself while you're driving a 2,000-pound vehicle down the road at 50 or 60 miles per hour? That is putting your life in danger and putting the lives of those around you in danger," (Jackie Gillan). Can you imagine if you were taking a picture of yourself driving and you caused a death because of that? "Distracted driving played a role in 12% of the fatal accidents." (NHTSA). Driving while you are distracted is against the law, if people would just put their phones away while driving then there wouldn't be nearly as many accidents.

Bi-weekly current event #3

Privacy settings are changed.

Facebook changes privacy settings for teens.

Heather Kelly. "Facebook changes privacy settings for teens." CNN. cable news network, 17 Oct., 2013. Web. 18 Oct., 2013. <http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/16/tech/social-media/facebook-teens-privacy/index.html>

Facebook has decided to change the privacy setting for teens, this would be the age group of 13-17. This is meaning that they now have the option to share posts, photos, and more publically. This also will allow complete and total strangers to be able to send friend requests and messages. Stangers and companies collecting data of the public will be allowed to view certain posts. These changes will go into effect promptly in a way to try and revive facebook because teens no longer have an interest in it.

I think that facebook should lift the privacy settings for a certain age group. Letting a 13 year old choose their privacy settings is unsafe. I feel that it was just an attempt for Facebook to try and come back into the popularity of the social media world. "A recent Pew study reported that teens are showing waning enthusiasm for this social network"(pew study). This event affects me because as a Facebook user I now have the ability to change my privaccy settings to nothing. This is not just affecting me though, many teens out there can change their privacy settings to nothing if they choose to and this can lead to messages from strangers. People who don't even know you will be able to view your profile.

This change in privacy settings is a very important issue to discuss because it impacts the world in so many ways. This is giving teens the choice to pretty much share everything with the world, though it is their choice some teens are not as responsible as they should be. This can lead to unknown people messaging and adding them as a friend. Also people who you don't even know can see everything that you post. This is effecting the world majorly because it is giving online predators a new way to stalk and interact with uncareful teens.

Bi-weekly post number 3

My week has been really good! I'm so excited that fall is finally here. It's my favorite season.  I did okay on my report card. I'm really looking foward to this weekend though, one of my friends is having a party and I'm so excited! Also this weeekend is my last drivers ed class so I won't have to get up at 6:00 in the morning anymore.

Sane, Ian. Fall. Photograph. Flickr. Flickr, Oct. 21, 2010. Media. Sept. 4, 2013. http://www.flickr.com/photos/31246066@N04/5115966185>.

This week we got some new terms:

Online predator: Commonly used and misunderstood, term for someone who uses the internet to develope online rlatioinships with kids or teeens.

Risky: Harmful to you physically or emotionally.

Manipulative: Getting people to do something they don't want to do to benefit you.

Stereotype: Judgements about people because of a physical asset.

This week we learned how to use Animoto. Animoto is a way to make music videos online. A positive thing about Animoto is that it is free but a negative thing is that if it's over 30 seconds than you have to pay for it. Another tool that we used is called Chogger. Chogger is a way to make comic strips online. A positive thing about it is that it's free and easy to use. There isn't really anything that I find negative about it.

Make your own slideshow at Animoto.

This week we learned about online predators, risky relationships, and how to be safe online. These topics are very important to learn about because if you are online then you never know if the person you're talking to is actually who they say they are. It's important not to trust anyone online. Just because you don't know the person doesn't mean that you can't try to be friends with them, just be cautious. You should always be respectful online and treat people how you would want to be treated. Just because you're online doesn't mean you should act like a different person. This new information makes me realize that not everyone is who you think they are and that I need to be more careful online.

Current Event #2

Twitters Emergency Notifications.

Twitter launches emergency notification service.

Sho Wills. Twitter  launches emergency notification service. CNN. CNN, Sept. 26, 2013. Web. Sept. 27, 2013. <http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/25/tech/twitter-emergency-tweets/index.html>.


Twitter has decided to make an emergency update notifictation service. What this will do is alert people if there is critical situation such as inclement in weather and other things of the type. Anyone who signs up to recieve these notifications will recieve them through either text message or a push notification. It is said that over 60 organizations have signed up to be a part of this new alert system. You can choose what organizations you would like to recieve alerts from, these organizations range from Red Cross to the World Health Organization.


I think that this is a very good resource to have and to be using. The alerts will allow you to be able to know when a critical situation is happening. I feel like this can help change the world in a better way because this will help people who arent't in the house or by a t.v to know that a critical event is underway or will be happenening. This affects me because I will be able to know if there is something unforseen happening or if there will be an inclement in weather.


"Twitter Alerts[...] brings us one step closer to helping users get important and accurate information from credible organizations during emergencies, natural disasters or moments when other communications services aren't accessible,"(Gaby Pena). This statement shows that people really do think that these alerts will impact the world in a good way. I think that they will impact the world by alerting us. If something catastophic ever does happen then people with these notifications will know when and where this is happening in the world. I think that these new alerts will be very helpful in the future.

Bi-Weekly Blog #2

My week so far hasn't been the greatest. My aunt died so I had to go to Ohio for her funeral. I missed Monday and Tuesday of school and I had a lot of make up work to do. Tomorrow and Sunday will be good though, I'm going to Scarowinds and then I'm going to a baseball game.

Snyder,Phil. Baseball field. Photograph.flickrcc.flickr, 24 July, 2009. Media. 16 Sept, 2013.<http://www.flickr.com/photos/37341680@N04/3767567403>. 

New Terms:
Privacy: your own personal things that only you or people that you want to see can see.
Self Expression: The way that you express yourself, the way you dress, your style, etc. Who you are.
Connected Culture: Treating others the way that you would want to be treated.
Respecting creative work: Give credit. Use others' work responsibly.
Ethics: A set of morals about other peoples behavior, it requires respect and honesty.
Ethics: A set of morals about other peoples behavior, it requires respect and honesty applied to online and digital services.
Digital citizenship: Being a good citizen online. Safe, responsible, and ethical approach to the online world.
Publish:To present a finished piece to a public audience.
Trustworthy:Accurate and dependable.
Evaluate:To carefully examine something to determine its value.
Criteria:Standards on which you base your judgement.

The digital literacy that we learned about this week was how to be a good digital citizen. We learned about privacy, self expression, connected culture, and respecting creative work. This means that you should act like you would in person on the computer and treat people how you would want to be treated. This affects me because it shows how to be an even better digital citizen then you already are. An example of this is if someone asks you not to post a picture in the internet and you do it anyway this is invading their personal privacy. You should honor ther request and not post the picture.

One web 2.0 tool that I used this week was Mix-book. It is a really useful tool to know how to use and I like it a lot. It's a creative way to do a project. In Mix-book you make a book type book you can use it to make short stories, scrapbooks, and just a random presentation. Some downfalls of Mix-book are that if you and a partner are working on one together you can't both edit at the same time. Overall I really like Mix-book.  

| Start your own Photo Books | Create custom Christmas Cards

Is Apple making people in China work longer then they should have to?

"Apple faces new China labor allegations"

I got this article from technology newsCNN.

Sophia Yan. Apple faces new China labor allegations. CNN. Time Warner Company. 6 Sept, 2013. Web.  6 Sept,2013. http://money.cnn.com/2013/09/06/technology/apple-china-labor/index.html

Apple is being accused of labor charges, it is said that they are making these people work longer then they should have to. The factory that is said to have done this is owned by Jabil Circuit, his plant works on backs of a less costly iPhone. Apple claims that the workers should work 60 hours a week and only work over time under very rare circumstances however, this seems to not be the case in this factory, according to China Labor Watch "some workers at the plant would stand for more the 11 hours a day, and alleged new employees were forced to sign contracts stating their overtime would be considered voluntary." (CNN and China Labor Watch.).

I think that Apple should not make their workers do overtime if they don't want to, it shouldn't be a forced thing especially considering that Apple has a policy of only 60 hours per week of work anyways. I was very surprised to hear this because Apple is a worldwide company, when you hear something like this coming from such a well kown company it doesn't sound good at all. When I first saw this article I thought maybe the allegations could be false, but as I read on I found that this isn't the first time that Apple has been on the "hot seat" (CNN).  This event affects me because when you see a big time company doing things they shouldn't this can set a bad example. Apple is a worldwide company and moreover shouldn't be setting these kinds of examples.

I think that this event impacts the world because Apple is so well known. This tarnishes not only the company of Apple inc. but also the way the the U.S' companies look as a whole. If we have companies with labor allegations against them what does this say about U.S. companies? Not anything very good. I'm not saying that all U.S companies are going to do things like this but because Apple is one of the U.S' biggest companies this sets an example for what all the other companies could be like.

Bi-weekly Blog post

My first two weeks of school have been really good. Everyone is really nice and I feel really welcome here. There is a lot of work in the classes though, but it’s worth it. Everything is just going good my classes have been what I expected them to be, they are challenging but manageable. I’ve made new friends here and have some from my old school that I went to last year. Overall these past couple of weeks have been great.

So our new terms for my intro to publications are:

Fair use: The ability to use a small amount of someone's work without permission, but only in certain ways.

Commercial purpose: A use in connection in a business, usually for a profit.

Copyright: A law that protects a creator’s ownership and the control over the work he or she creates, requiring other people to get the creator’s permission before they copy, share or perform that work.

Creative Commons: A kind of copyright that makes it easy for people to copy, share and build on someone’s creative work- as long as they give the creator credit for it.

Public domain: Creative work that is not protected by a copyright and is therefore free for you to use however you want. 

The digital literacy that I learned about this week was copyright this affected my personal/academic life online because I now know that I have to cite things that I use in projects or other things that I may need to present. I also learned that I have been using peoples work and ideas without their consent.

The new web 2.0 tools that we have been using are like really new to me, they can be confusing at times but I think that I pretty much have them figured out. A few tools that we have used are Schoology, and Quizlet. These tools have been very helpful to me during these past couple of weeks. Schoology has helped me to stay organized during the week, and I'm happy to have it, it helps me remeber to turn in assignments. Quizlet has helped me study.

School
http://www.flickr.com/photos/42622766@N00/31355171 flickrcc.net