Videos

Social and Ethical Issues (23/05/2008)

Lecture 12

The following were the main points from this weeks lecture,

• Problems from using the Internet
• Plagiarism, security, privacy etc
• Why these problems occur
• Protecting yourself

Tutorial 12

The main points from this weeks tutorial were,

• Protecting yourself from Internet attacks. For example, privacy and security
• Information about the "copyright" system
• Researching about music and the Internet
• Threats of viruses and Trojans etc
  

Week 12 Tasks

In Australia, Copyright protects a wide range of sources accessed in educational institutions. Some of these include,

• Written material - books, articles, essays, websites etc
• Computers - Computer programs
• Artistic work - paintings, drawings, photographs etc

However, Copyright does not cover information, techniques etc. All individuals can access and research material and information from different sources and write about a certain topic. Only when an individual copies the exact wording of someone else's work does Copyright come into place.

Educational Institutions are allowed to copy and use material for "educational instructions" provided the use...

• Does not conflict with normal exploition
• Copying is not made for profit
• Use amount to a special case

Copyright protects a wide range of sources accessed through libraries. These include,

• Libraries are allowed to copy certain Copyright material for clients, collection and for other libraries
• Amendments affecting libraries and the Copyright system came into effect in December 2006
• Can make replacement copies
• A libraries collection has to be available to to public directly or through loans
• Minimise infringement risk be displaying warning signs
• Use Copyright material to maintain an operational library

Copyright laws relating to the use of quotations and extracts include,

• Permission needed usually depends on whether the information wanted is a "substantial part" of where it comes from
• "Substantial part" is determined by whether the information needed is important, essential or distinctive
• There are a few situations where you can use "substantial parts" without any permission
• Special exceptions eg. dealing for criticism or review and dealing for research and study

Websites are Copyright protected in many ways. Some include,

• Each agreement should state each persons responsibilities relating to Copyright and moral rights
• Web designers should have written agreements between themselves and the client
• Whole websites are not protected
• Component parts of a website are protected. For example text, artworks, logos etc
• Owner's permission may be required. For example uploading a website, downloading, scanning, emailing etc

Information used for research or study usually has strict Copyright laws

• If material is used for the purpose of research or study, you can not infringe the Copyright law if you use it fairly
• Do not need to be enrolled in a particular course. You can just study for yourself
• Libraries can copy material if it is to be used for research or study purposes
• For research and study, you are able to copy a whole articles from a magazine or newspaper
• If is it available for purchase, copying all the content of the article is unlikely to be considered as fair and therefore cannot be done

There are many people who don't know the first thing about music and the Internet. There is so much information people should be aware of before downloading and/or buying music off the Internet. Although there are many advantages on downloading from the Internet, there are also many disadvantages to go with it. Below is a lost of what you need to know about music and the Internet.

• Misconception that music which is downloaded is free
• "Free" music means that the artists don't get paid for their music
• New distribution avenues eg. digital downloading, ringtones, webcasting
• Adds value to businesses and services operating online
• Downloaded music is exploited by a number of rights
• Musical work is property contained within any song eg. melody, chorus etc
• Reproduction of musical work consists of operating a downloading service

No matter what you do, your computer is never fully protected from viruses, Trojans and other attacks on privacy and security. You could use every protection software but you can just as easily have you privacy invaded by anything from viruses to computer hackers.

Viruses can easily destroy your computer completely. Although they are only a small piece of software that attach themselves to other programs, they can cause a great amount of damage. For example, a virus attaches to a certain program and everytime you run that program, the virus runs, spreading to more and more programs. You can protect yourself from viruses in many different ways, some of which include,

• Using virus protection software eg. Macro
• Avoid using programs with unknown sources
  
• Never open an email attachment unless you know what it is and who the sender is
• Using a secured operating system
• Using commercial software

Trojan, on the other hand is simply a computer program. However, the program claims to do something (perhaps a game) but it actually causes damage when you run it. Trojans are prone to erasing your hard disc if you try and run a programs containing a Trojan. By using the above steps, you should be able to minimise your risk of receiving a virus.

Your own personal information is not even safe on the Internet. Hackers and people pretending to be someone else are the main causes of attacks on your privacy. People with internet banking are at a disadvantage as hackers can easily gain access to their personal banking details. To help protect yourself from hackers, you should never give out details about any of your personal information. Although you may think the slightest information will not give hackers enough, they will find a way to gain access to your most valuable information.

Reading Summary 1: EFF's Top 12 Ways To Protect Your Online Privacy

There are 12 ways that you are able to protect you online privacy. Below I have listed the top 6 methods in Internet privacy,

• Do not reveal personal information - use pseudonyms, refrain from using your real information eg. email address,
  
• Turn on cookies - shares incoming information to you, only enable on sites that you trust
• Keep a 'clean' email address - posted addresses can easily be tracked by spammers, use pseudonyms or an alternative address
• Don't reveal personal details - for example your full name, employment details, phone numbers etc
• Avoid sending personal emails at work - you may be monitored, could compromise banking details, email address and other information
• Don't click on 'reward prizes' - not real prizes, information entered is easily gathered eg. your name and address etc

Reading Summary 2: Ethics in Computing - Electronic Monitoring

There are many different companies that are able to monitor your privacy on the Internet. Many include monitoring in the workplace, legal issues and other policies

• Workplace privacy
• Technological surveilence
• Monitoring in the workplace
• Through the keyhole: privacy in the workplace
• Workplace privacy? Forget it!
• Epic's

Reading Summary 3: Brown & Michaels - Overview of Intellectual Property

There are three kinds of basic intellectual property protection, including patents, trademarks and copyright. Patents are used when it related to a method of doing something. These include the following,

• Utility Patents - used for inventions
• Plant Patents - used when a new variety of plant is descovered
• Design Patents - used for ornamental items eg. automobiles

Trademarks cover logos or a name of a symbol

• Coca-Cola
• Sounds
• Sequence of notes
• Music
• Fragrances

Copyright covers authorship, composition and art

• Music
• Books
• Paintings
• Computer programs
• Architecture

Building Knowledge (16/05/2008)

Lecture 11

The main points from this weeks lecture were,

• Data, information and knowledge
• Definitions and characteristics
• Data relationships
• Strategies for assignment work

Tutorial 11

The main points from this weeks tutorial were,

• Dictionary terms for data, information, knowledge and wisdom
• Graphical representations
• Relationship understanding
• University study
• Organisations that collect information

Week 11 Tasks

This webpage was very helpful in determining the definitions of the terms data, information, knowledge and wisdom. From the information available, I constructed my own definitions of the above terms.

DATA - In the computing world, data is referred to as coded invariances. Also, data is the use of records and/or recordings which can be used in computers, all of which contain certain information.

INFORMATION - Consists of contents which can be retrieved from a database or the Internet etc, intended for the use in computer systems. Information can also be used as the representation of a certain term during a form of communication.

KNOWLEDGE - The ability to know and understand information given to an individual. Developed inside a system, knowledge can also be referred as being information that is clearly organised and structured.

WISDOM - Knowledge which has been accumulated by an individual. Wisdom is the ability, through experience, to apply knowledge, common sense and understanding to everyday activities.

Being able to understand the relationship between data, information and knowledge can assist your university study in many different ways. The term "data" usually refers to the research needed for a university assignment. For example, research of facts, statistics etc. In relation to university assignments, the term "information" refers to the building of your assignment. Once you have collected all the relevant data, the data is put together where patterns start to emerge within the structure. The term "knowledge" relates to composing your assignment. During this phase, you begin to make judgements based on the data you have collected. From this, you are able to develop your own understanding from the way you interpret the data and information you have collected and put together.

There are many organisations that collect information from clients and the public. Below I have listed five companies and why they collect this information.

1. WA Police Force - collect information to help with their inquiries and to recover information about certain people in relation to the law
2. Commonwealth Bank - collect information related to public account and so they can process anything related to these accounts
3. Wanneroo Council - collect information related to the public within their area. For example, client information, blueprints for houses, rubbish collection etc
4. RAC - collect information from members relating to insurances and other policies they may have. For example, client information, car insurance, roadside assistance etc
5. City of Joondalup Libraries - collect information relating to the burrowing of books and other services. For example, due dates for books, client information, locations etc

Reading Summary 1: Data, Information, Knowledge and Wisdom

There is little sense as to what the definition of knowledge actually is and how it relates to data, information and wisdom. The contents contained within the human brain can be categorised into five group. These being,

• Data
• Information
• Knowledge
• Understanding
• Wisdom

Data, information, knowledge and understanding all relate to the past of what has been known as well as what is currently known. Wisdom, on the other hand, relates to the future. This allows people to not only take hold of the present and past, but they can also create the future.

Reading Summary 2: The production of knowledge

Having an understanding of information and how it can be categorised, will enable you to become successful at researching information. To gain knowledge of something, you must be able to think of an idea and keep with it and pursue it further. Funding is also a major role to enable the production of knowledge in addition to time. Research is usually performed by a person who is part of a large group because they have more reliable resources. For example institutions, government agencies, universities etc.

Information Management (09/05/2008)

*As I do not have Internet Explorer at home, I was unable to complete the favourites task as the tutorial was based using Internet Explorer.

garyC

Lecture 10

The main points from this weeks lecture were

• Information formats
• Principles of organisation
• Information management
• Atom-based
• Bit-based

Tutorial 10

The main points from this weeks tutorial were

• Bookmarking on the Internet
• Favourites on the Internet
• Information relevance
• Positives and negatives of using "atoms"
• Pros and cons of using "bits"

Week 10 Tasks

This is the tutorial from the Internet on bookmarks and favourites, which we had to complete. Basically the tutorials show how to bookmark a website and how to add a website to your favourites. There are four different tutorials to complete, which guide you step by step on how to add to your favourites. In this case, the website "Blue Mountain Arts" was used.

I believe, just from reading Negroponte's webpage that his ideas and information are not relevant as they previously would have been. The ideas Negroponte has published were most likely relevant when he first publicised his ideas, however the information has not been updated since 1996 and it is now 2008. Within this twelve year period, the information and ideas could have dramatically changed numerous amount of times. As the webpage has not been updated in those twelve years, there is no way to determine whether the information and/or ideas are still relevant. There could still possibly be quite a number of ideas which would not have changed over this period of time; therefore they would still be of relevant use.

There are many pros and cons of using 'atoms'. Some of which include,

• Most information is delivered in atoms
• For example, newspapers, magazines and books
• Trade and balance sheets are recorded with atoms
• Atoms are not worth very much
• Get caught up in customs

There are many pros and cons of using 'bits'. A few of these include

• Worth more than atoms
• Weightless
• Don't get caught in customs
• CD's, videos, CD ROMS

Reading Summary 1: Grazing the Net

The potential of grazing the Internet is amazing. Ideas of cultures and human civilisation may soon become available over the Internet. Schools and governments are rushing for advice, encouragement, pressure etc. Schools and children are engaging in helpful learning indicators including,

• Authentic and disciplinary tasks
• Interactive learning
• Exploration
• Students are responsible for their own learning
• Strategic

Communications (02/05/2008)

Lecture 9

The main points for this weeks lecture were,

• Communication problems
• Examples of ICT use
• Using ICT
• Benefits of using ICT

Tutorial 9

The main points from the tutorial were,

• Searching "groups" using Google
• Investigating topics and messages
  
• Podcast
• Benefits of Podcasts for university students

Week 9 Tasks

I searched the group "Fremantle Dockers" and came up with many different groups. They included aus.sport.aussie-rules, rec.sport.football.australian etc. Each group mainly contains solutions, self opinions etc on the specific group I searched.

This is a post recorded at aus.sport.aussie-rules, which contains information about the Fremantle Dockers. Basically the information contained within the post is about the Dockers and how they can improve their performances against rival teams. Individual people are posting their opinions on how Fremantle can change the way they play the game.

This post was retrieved from rec.sport.football.australian. Although it only contains one posting, it is quite informative. The person who posted this topic is informing people about his opinion towards the new Femantle Dockers team and how their uniform disgusts him .

This is a site given to us which is used to view podcasts. The site is http://podcasts.yahoo.com/
I searched a few terms which interested me, however I was unable to view them as my computer would not allow me to.

There are many potential benefits of podcasts for university students. Having looked through the library's website, there are many podcasts available to students. For example, there are podcasts on bibliographies, journals etc. This is quite useful for university students as they are able to gain information from these podcasts about how to perform a certain task. Without podcasts, university students would have less information available to them.

Reading Summary 1: Guide to using E-mail

When using email, there are many things you need to check before you send an email. These include,

• Making sure email is the right communication tool
• Specify who should respond
• Be clear
• Provide context

When you are receiving an email, the following should be taken into account,

• Don't make assumptions about the sender
• Clarification
• Organise messages
• Beware of viruses and spam
• Don't respond straight away

Reading Summary 2: The problem with SPAM

Spam is commonly known as Unsolicited Bulk Email (UBE). UBE is a form of advertising that has no cost and has the potential to destroy someones computer and email system. There is no limit on the amount of UBE's someone can send and millions can be sent at one time. The following problems can occur by UBE,

• Costs recipient money
• Time consuming
• Destroys email
• Other communication problems