Linux Development

Before I became a computer science major, I had never heard of the Linux operating system.  Nevertheless, there is no doubt that Linux has developed into an excellent source of good software.  Linus, the creator of Linux, had a unique way of optimizing the development of the Linux operating system.  While it is true that the more people you have working on a system the more flaws will be discovered in a shorter amount of time, it is also risky.  Using this approach puts the developer at risk for having unsatisfied users.  However, the more people you have working on a problem, the more likely that someone will have the capability to fix it.  This dramatically decreases the time it takes to solve an issue and make the new and improved version available for use.  A theory of Linus's that I do agree with is that people should not have to work on a project that they aren't intrigued by.  Someone is more likely to be successful and productive while working on a task that they find pleasure in.  This decreases the time it takes an assignment to be completed.  All of these components of Linus's style of development contributed to the successfulness of Linux operating systems today. 

http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/cathedral-bazaar/index.html

Hidden Weaknesses

From reading "The Cuckoo's Egg" I have learned how vulnerable computer systems around the world really are.  It is scary to think that there are so many holes in our computer programs through which hackers can sneak in to get our private information.  We are putting our society in danger by being so unaware of the damage that could be done if our computers are unprotected.  We are vulnerable to computer hackers out there that have discovered the flaws of various computer systems that we have yet to learn about.  They are ruining the trust that computer users need to have in order to be able to collaborate to benefit from the profitable resources that computers can be.  Those we call hackers need to stop playing games and pulling pranks, and realize how destructive they are being.  They are creating more work for innocent people.  Their pranks put people behind schedule in projects, in development plans, in schoolwork, and in jobs.  I have had many friends at school whose computers have crashed causing them to lose everything, including important papers or projects they had been working on.  When this happens, it is not just inconvenient, but it is completely vexing to have to either restore the information they had, or redo all the work they had lost.  Think of all the pictures, programs, and information that can be stored on one computer.  If all that is lost, it is like a chunk of data that has been documenting your life just disappears.  Flaws in computer programs need to be made known to the users and fixed.  There should be better ways of informing computer users of how to protect their private personal information.  We should be able to trust the creators when we buy their products, but we can't if they are holding back information regarding defects that could potential harm us.  Once users are made aware of weaknesses in their computers and of ways to repair them, they are responsible if problems that they could have prevented arise.  However, we cannot be expected to prevent problems if we do not know that they exist. 

This is Our Mission

As our generation becomes more and more familiar with computers and technology we are gaining more responsibility to do the genealogy work of our ancestors.  Gathering facts regarding the history of one's family is becoming easier and more efficient.  Through internet websites people can search for details about their relatives and combine their efforts with others to track down accurate information.  Resources such as FamilySearch enable people to document the temple work that has been done and that needs to be done for their family members.  Because youth today are so accustomed to using computers, using them to discover ways they can contribute to family history work should come naturally.  Elder Bednar encouraged youth in the last General Conference when he said, "Your fingers have been trained to text and tweet to accelerate and advance the work of the Lord—not just to communicate quickly with your friends. The skills and aptitude evident among many young people today are a preparation to contribute to the work of salvation."  Beneficial developments have been made in these last days for the purpose of saving souls.  It is necessary that we take advantage of our resources so that we may fulfill our obligations to do the work for the dead.

They're Watching You

As social networking sites become more and more popular, producers are finding better ways to encourage users to share their personal lives with the world.  This enables authorities to more easily watch our every move.  It is as though we have given them the password to all of our personal information.  If someone were interested enough, they could discover information regarding someone's gender, birthday, religion, age, family relationships, education, hobbies, friends, location, and ethnicity just by reading someone's past tweets on twitter.  This could be turned into either a good or a bad situation.  Most people would think this would be an invasion of personal privacy, but that is if it weren't for the fact that people voluntarily post this information for the world to see.  However, people need to be aware that if they don't want their personal life being open to the public, they shouldn't post it online. On the other hand, free access to unlimited information like this can benefit society under the circumstances that this information is used for research.  Public information can be collected and studied, to find patterns that may help in finding solutions to problems.  An example of this would be to watch people that show signs of abusing drugs and find out what may cause this or find correlations to prevent it in the future.  It is not necessarily a bad thing for people to post information online or for others to be able to see it, as long as they are mindful of who could access it or what may come of it.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/23/tech/social-media/web-1984-orwell-cashmore/index.html

Diminishing the Digital Divide

As technology advances, new devices are becoming cheaper, more efficient, and more easily accessible to anybody and everybody. This is an incredible improvement considering how expensive early technology use to be. At first, only those who were wealthy or had personal connections were able to benefit from new technology. Nowadays, almost everyone who wants it can have internet access, if not at home, then through the phones in their pocket at all times. The internet has become an amazing source of information and way of connecting to people. We are able to gain knowledge on any subject that exists, keep up to date with the latest news and game scores, and communicate with friends and family around the world. It is only fair that no one be deprived of the advantages of technology regardless of their financial budget or location. Everyone can benefit from the use of technology. The day is growing nearer where the gap between those who do and do not have high speed internet access will cease to exist.
http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/17/tech/mobile/ibm-digital-divide-gahran/index.html