Chapter 10: The Internet & Chapter 11: Smartphones and Tablets
Scripts
"Application loading" in gray box = java program is downloading -Written with subset of Java computer language -Can change the appearance of buttons as your mouse "rolls over" them and perform other interactive tricks -Common Gateway Interface Scripts (CGI): at e-commerce sites, your credit card and order information is funneled to the web store's computer with this interactive program
During WW2, the British secret service developed an all-electronic digital computer
"Colossus" -Conceived by computer pioneer Alan Turning -Purpose: to crack Nazi secret codes
Poor designs
"Cool" web pages with artistic designs, unreadable text, and slow-loading videos that don't help users complete a well-defined task -Healthcare.gov in 2013 champion of bad designs (slow response time, frequent session crashes)
First words of internet operator (1969)
"L...O..." trying to tell the other person to log in -System crashed before message was completed
Over 1.5 million applications at the Apple app store have existed
Amazon, Google, Blackberry, and Microsoft have app stores of their own -Facebook is most popular app (found on 3/4 of all Apple and Android phones) -Messaging apps were all represented in the top 10
Mobile media are making big media money and drawing in large audiences
App sales are a big business ($50m gross/year) -More than the annual global movie box office Mobile ads ($12b/year in ad revenues) -Growing bast, surpassing advertising on conventional PC in 2016
Techniques thought to increase user engagement
-Contest and giveaways -Continual updates of content -Episodic storytelling -Short content -Graphic designers adapt eye-catching colors and attractive layouts from magazines
Political movements across the world are fueled by social media
-Facebook and Twitter played key roles in the rebellions that swept North Africa in 2011 and Occupy Wall Street Movement in the US -2016: presidential election to attract supporters -2015: murderous attacks perpetrated by terrorists who were radicalized through social media
New media can fatten revenues
-Facebook's 1.5 million users -Netflix in 130 countries Knowing audiences behavior to help online media produce original content with predictable appeal
The FCC encouraged cable companies to institute the Connect2Compete program that offers low cost computers $9.99/month broadband connections and free computer training to free lunch families
Federal government's broadband stimulus program did not provide the funds needed to keep libraries open longer hours (contributing to homework gap)
Leading portal sites include Yahoo! and those of ISPs
Many portals scrape the news from traditional news sites without paying for the information -Social network sites now compete with conventional portals by offering news and sports updates of their own -Facebook dominates by being the only destination that many internet users visit in the course of their days
Alphabet
The holding company behind all Google properties -Current Goliath, dethroning Yahoo! and Microsoft -Most visible as a search engine company but most revenue comes from serving ads on the internet
Web 2.0 websites were first popularized in the years after the dot-come bust
asked the audiences to provide much of the content and promote them to friends and family -
Search engines match the words you type into the "search window" to seek information
based on: matches to the keywords supplied by website owners, the content of the website, and the behaviors of the other searchers who have looked for an item in the past
The reinvention of the internet involved
bringing computer technology to the desktop of average users
B to C
business to consumer -E-commerce businesses that make sales directly to consumers
Most homes in the US get their broadband connections from
cable TV companies
50 other "virtual carriers"
called mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) -TracFone Wireless (don't have networks of their own but lease space from major carriers and resell it)
Modems (Modulate-Demodulate)
convert digital data to analog signals and vice versa
Modems (modulator-demodulators)
covert digital data to analog signals and vice versa
Homework gap
created by racial and income disparities in home internet connections -Limits the ability of children in minority and low income homes to complete homework assignments that are commonly available in the nation's schools
leading name in social networking (est 2004)
Local Area Network (LAN)
link computers within a department, building, or campus -linked computers at the Livermore, CA atomic weapons lab
Local exchange carriers (LECs)
local telephone service -including the 3 remaining regional operating companies (Verizon, AT&T, and CenturyLink) and hundred of local independent phone companies as well as competitive local exchange carriers (Comcast) that offer local and long-distance services over their cable networks
Everyday objects (clothing, furniture, pantry products) will have
miniature sensors, identification tags, transmitters, and data processors that will connect them to the internet or send text messages to your cell phone
Mobile app may spawn innovators who could someday push aside social media giants
mobile apps further conceal and fragment information that was once freely available inside walled gardens
Smartphones
mobile phones that can access the internet
Augmented reality
more practical for mobile applications -superimposes virtual images on the real-world environment (instant face recognition)
"Casual" games
most popular genre of online games -"Scrabulous" online version of scrabble is popular -Clash of Clans and Candy Crush played with such intensity, no longer "casual" -Browser games: played through your internet browser, usually for free
Portal content is organized around familiar categories
news, entertainment, travel, computing, health, and personal finance -Interpersonal communication features: e-mail, chat rooms, and discussion groups
In the past, the prevailing imperative was to continually make computers more powerful
now there is a countervailing movement to make them simpler and more compact -Tablets and smartphones are popping up in college lecture halls as part of "less is more" scenario -Low cost Chromebooks are designed to provide fast internet and email access -As more apps and data move onto the internet and cloud, the amount of proccessing power and storage capacity needed in personal computers decreases
Tim Berners-Lee (1991)
of the CERN lab in Switzerland -Wrote HTML and the first web browser to solve the problem of transporting text documents across different computer systems -Birth of WWW
Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs)
offer mobile services by leasing capacity from network owners
Common carrier
provide service to all on an equal basis
A widening user base of college professors helped
push the internet out of the embrace of the department of defense as connections to major universities were added
If you are temporarily in a location with no satellites, cell phone service, or wifi signals
sensors in your phone can track the direction and speed of your movement -Ultimate goal seems to be to track out movements within inches
App
short for application -software applications for use on smartphones
Wi-Fi
short for wireless fidelity -a standard for wireless data
Amazon.com
stater in 1995 as an electronic bookstore -Evolved into an online mega-mall
FCC'a new net neutrality rules forbid the ISPs to block, flow or prioritize traffic for pay and they apply both wireline and mobile provides
the FCC also reclassified ISPs as "common carriers" -Subjecting them to the same rules as telecommunication carriers such as AT&T and Verizon (must offer their services to all on an equal basis and there is the posibility of rate regulations)
2nd generation of digital wireless phones came along in 1995
the FCC decline to select a technical standard -The rest of the world settled on European standard, GSM (Global system for Mobile Communications) -Lower prices, wider availability, and more rapid innovations -Left the US behind in world of telecommunications for first time since invention of telegraph (deregulation may help)
E-Commerce (electronic commerce)
the ability to buy and sell online -follow the familiar catalog shopping model, but product information and order blanks are online -Retail trade call them "Category killers" specializing in one line of products
The Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)
transmits digital video as well as data and voice at the speed of millions of bits per second over standard telephone lines -Is a broadband connection (transmits data at speeds of over 768 thousand bits per second)
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)
was formed as a nonprofit private corporation to oversee the assignment of internet address (called domain names) and to develop new ones
85% use the internet in gomes with annual incomes of $100,000 or more
54% of homes with incomes under $25,000
Plug-ins
"helper programs" that work with browser software to perform a number of functions -Audio and video (Windows Media Player), activating animations (Flash), or displaying documents (Acrobat) -Some are large programs that must be downloaded and installed before the features will work but more popular ones eventually get built into new versions of web browsers
Many conventional media outlets are adopting the
"if you can't beat them, join them" philosophy -Magazines --> online only formats -Books on e-readers and kindles
Other milestones of social media evolution:
-Advent of blogging (1997) -Wikipedia (2001)
Digital divide
-Caucasians are more likely to use the internet (75%) than African Americans (64%) or Hispanics (61%)
Political communication across boarders became problematic
-France: no problem with breast but tried to ban political obscenity (online sales of souvenirs from Nazi Germany) -China: bans online criticism of their government and pro-Tibetan websites by blocking dissident Web pages and monitoring public internet cafes -North Korea: prohibits all internet access to prevent its citizens from learning of the world beyond their borders
Cloud computing
-Google Drive: available on an as-needed basis through the internet and lets you store your own files there instead of on your computer's hard drive -Apple's iCloud, Microsoft One Drive, and Dropbox are other free versions
2000, the dot-com boom gave way to dot-com bust
-Investors soured on internet stocks -online consumers tired of the novelty of clicking on banner ads -General economy weakened
The social media craze has reached such heights that every major website is going "social"
-Online newspaper stories invite commentary from readers -websites connected to popular TV shows solicit real-time user comments to stimulate viewer engagement -Links to FB and Twitter pop up everywhere to react to what we are seeing -Diggs creates lists of top news stories and entertainment based on votes of visitors -Kaboodle "shopping community" -Groupon organizes discounts through social interaction at that website
Media related websites 2015 winners
-The New Yorker (magazines) -KCRW (radio/podcasts) -HBO GO (media streaming) -Imgur (social media) -The Tonight Show (TV)
Nations are behaving badly online
-Two years after a massive internet surveillance program by US national security agency was exposed, a European Union court ruled in 2015 that agreement governing the flow of data between the European Union and the US was invalid -Demands grew louder to place governance on the networks in international hands
Pay entertainment services are beginning to dominate
-Youtube subscription service -Like iTunes, programs that require a payment for the purchase of music and video for the user to "own" -Netflix, base of paying subscribers that exceed that of popular pay cable channels and produces own original content -xfinititytv.com: videos are "free" if the user subscribers to the level of cable TV service on which the channel is carried -App model" user pays a fee for using a downloadable app with limited shelf-life -Pandora & Spotify: promise of free services but charge for commercial-free premium
The same technologies that we find on our computers are migrating to entertainment media and mobile devices
-iPod, iPad, and iPhone are computer hard drives or flash memory devices with a small computer display and data connection -TiVo and other DVRs are computer hard drives with connections for your TV and new smart TVs have built-in hard drives and computer operating systems -LCD displays and other "flat-screen" technologies for TV were originally developed for laptop computers
4 competitors with national cell phone networks:
1. AT&T 2. Verizone (2 largest with over 100m customers each) 3. T-Mobile 4. Sprint
Telephone companies can be divided into 3 categories based on the scope of the calls they carry:
1. international 2. long distance 3. local
Advertisers are excited about:
1. location based advertising 2. Smartphones that can scan bar codes from billboards and in-store displays
Story of telecommunication in the US is intertwined with history of AT&T
1876: Alexander Graham Bell called to his assistant through an apparatus on his table that replayed the words over wires into the next room -1880: he invented an early ancestor of the wireless phone (photophone), transmitted voice wirelessly through air over beams of light
2.1 billion mobile broadband subscriptions
195 million tablets sold in 2013
Today's social media trace back to the first bulletin board system (BBS)
1978 to exchange e-mail, post opinions online, and share information
Yahoo!
1994 -created from students at Stanford -an online search engine (before Google) and evolving into an advertising-supported portal
Ebay
1995 -made its mark as a marketplace for oddball collectibles
The first land-based mobile radio through which voices were heard in the US were
2-way radios installed in Detroit police cars in the early 1920's -Mobile radios advanced rapidly during WW2 as they became commonplace in tanks and airplanes
The first generation cell phones, Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS), used analog transmission and are not extinct in the US
2nd generation digital phones introduced the world to text messaging -Are also on their way out
Internet use in the US has started to decline
3/4 of Americans age 3 or older used the internet at its peak -Today, number fallen Perhaps due to criminal behavior, corporations, and governments having an impact (cyber-bullying, trolling, partisan screeching, oversharing online driving others away; hacker attacks, privacy invasion, incessant advertising, cost of internet)
50 million fewer wireline phones than in 2000
39% cell phone only homes
Other network trend is wireless
3G and 4G cell phones make it possible to check your email and surf web pages with your phone faster than current networks and run two-way video conferences and watch HD TV on your cellphone
62 million tablets sold in 2013
62 million mobile broadband subscriptions
303 million US cell phone subscriptions
95 per 100 inhabitants
6.8 billion world cellphone subscriptions
96 per 100 inhabitants
Semantic Web
A development designed to attach useful indexing labels to the content of the web -Could identify the location and nature of the story and indicate that the headline is about a hurricane hitting the Central American country of Belize -Then it would become easier to organize information about Belize, Hurricanes, and incorporate that in compiling databases about Central American countries or global climate change even if the specific terms were not used
Apple could claim to have developed the first modern tablet computer
A pen-based handheld computer called the "Apple Newton" (1993) -Was a flop due to flawed handwriting recognition system -Microsoft's Tablet PC preceded the iPad by a decade, but was aimed at business users rather than consumers
1972: birth of the internet
ARPANET had it's first public demonstration, email was first introduced, and the network acquired its name and essential character
1984
AT&T forced to sell local phone companies
"Going viral"
Advertising and public relations were picked up by social media using this idea -pitches were picked up by users and spread through internet -Affordable and easy to use technology lowered the barriers to entry (anyone with computer or camera would be a media star)
1876
Alexander Graham Bell invents the telephone
The first commercially available personal computer
Altair -inspired a young computer hacker, William Gates, to write a programming language for it and founded Microsoft Corporation -Also inspired Steve Jobs to build the first Apple 2 in 1977
Old media is not dead
Analog vinyl record and books printed on paper making a comeback as niche products -online can be consumed anywhere at anytime
Wearable computers
Apple watch and Fitbit -Part of new trend that will soon include "smart" belts, shoes, and underwear
!984: Apple's Macintosh introduced high resolution graphics and multimedia to personal computers
Apple's HyperCard software popularized the hypertext concept, the "linking" function that connects to the web
The transmitter in each cell are relatively weak so it is possible to reuse their frequencies in nearby cells without causing interference
As the user moves, the call is handed off to the next cell in the network and automatically reassigned to a new channel
The internet is made up of high speed digital lines that are leased by the regional networks from long distance telephone companies
At the local level, the ISPs lease or own high-speed lines that connect their local users to the internet -The larger ISPs maintain their own high-speed networks, interconnecting with the rest of the Internet only at regional access points (NAPs)
POTS (plain old telephone service)
Basic local telephone service -Functions: dial tone, transmission, and switching (unchanged since 1890's) -1970's: computerized switching added options like touch-tone dialing, call waiting, speed dialing, conference calling, call forwarding, caller ID, voice mail, automatic redialing -Wireline phone companies are beginning to imitate cell phone features, too
GeoCities
Began in 1970's -Hosted personal web pages in the mid 1990's, resembling social networks of today -Sixdegrees.com was another profile site with friend lists
1880
Bell's photophone anticipates fiber optics and smarpthones
Social impacts of mobile phones
Benefits: can convey a sense of security in emergency situations Downfalls: using them while driving is a safety hazard; constant texting and taking is annoying in public; can distract people (murdered in Florida); can be a way of withdrawing from face-to-face interaction; add to the stress of staying connected in a gadget-saturated environment; addictive qualities; health hazards from electromagnetic radiation
3G phones were the first to cross a telephone and a handheld computer, with a built-in Web browser and an email service
Boast broadband transmission speed of 1-3million bits per second -Enough to send full-color motion pictures through your cell phone, download your favorite music and video files, and surf the Web on handheld computers
Google is outdoing both cable and telephone companies with fiber-optic networks
Boasting speeds of 1 billion bits per second -So far only in 15 locations -For rural residents out of the reach of cable TV and other high speed networks, HughesNet and Exede beam web pages via satellite
Growth in cable TV subscriptions exceeds rate of inflation in US
Broadband internet connection more expensive than in most advanced countries
Biggest category of e-commerce
Business to business (b to b) -sites that sell products to firms -Online shopping malls for business supplies and services
1983
Cell phones debut in the US
HTML5
Combine semantic web features with multimedia players -Plays videos, video games, and music files without having to download and launch plug-ins, making media consumption on the web as convenient as tuning a stereo or TV set with a remote control -New types of interactions with Web pages are possible (ability to drop and drag elements within a page, to draw objects on a page, to work offline with interactive apps, and interact with forms in new ways- using slider bar) -Also for smartphones with built in geo-location capabilities -Chrome and Opera have best support -New version designed from the start to minimize conflicts with older HTML implementations so all websites should work even if browser is outdated
1934
Communications Act establishes the FCC
Apple no longer has an exclusive lock on combining voice recognition with AI
Competitors: -Google Now -Cortana (Microsoft) -Alexa (Amazon) -Hello Barbie (talking doll) Digital assistants are also examples of "cloud computing" in that requests are automatically relayed from a smartphone to a remote computer that processes the request and replies with synthesized voice
C to C
Consumer to consumer -Ebay
Where is internet headed?
Corporate domination -Trade hegemony of Big Media conglomerates (Disney and Viacom) who want to rule the second (computer) and third (smartphone) screens -Government regulators are trying to keep a level playing field -Proposed merger between Comcast and Time-Warner cable was shot down over concentration of ownership concerns
Online publications are crowing out the printed output of organizations
Corporate sites run by large companies publish information about themselves, their products, and their services that was once distributed in paper brochures, annual reports, and press guides -Many offer useful information to consumers and professionals in their fields of interest
Metcalfe's Law
Credited to Bob Metcalfe -The value of network is proportional to the square number of user -Drives continual internet technology growth and explains explosive popularity with internet apps like Vine -Value of internet rises are it becomes more universal (people who use it and number of applications those users take advantage of)
"Dark Web"
Criminal behavior is a threat here -Silk Road: illegal drug exchanges and stolen files of credit card numbers are exchanges -Websites hosted on hidden servers with content protected by encryption and their web addresses are only circulated among the cirminals
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
Established the basic rules or protocols for communication between networks
The FCC soon launched an antitrust investivagation
Dragged on for almost 50 years -Ended in the Modified Final Judgement (MFJ) in 1984, forcing AT&T to sell off, or divest, its local phone companies -The local exchanges were parceled into 7 regional Bell operating companies (RBOCs)
Much early speculation of the telephone centered on multichannel mass media functions like conveying news and music to the home
Early phones often had party lines shared by multiple users who occasionally joined in on the conversation -Forerunner of today's chatrooms
Mobile telephones for personal use have been around since 1947
Early systems only had 23 channels -Years-long waiting lists for new customers and busy signals for subscribers
Smartphone apps that use their built-in cameras to scan bar codes make this an efficient shopping strategy
Electronic wallets that will let us pay for our fast-food meal by clicking our cell phones at the cash register are starting to appear in the US -Text-payment services will let you transfer cash to those who do not accept credit cards
Many videos on the internet are produced by ordinary users
Facebook videos, peer-to-peer video shared in Vine, Skype, and live video game feeds
Nokia
Finnish phone manufacturer -Came out with a line of cell phones that added email and address book function in 1996 -Could also be first smartphone
Microsoft dominates personal computer operating system software and many application categories
Google chrome is the new leading internet browser
The web has had a disruptive influence on conventional media
Google is a new king of the media -Surpassing TV and cable networks, newspaper chains, and magazines as the #1 advertising platform
Specialized search engines for academic publications that can help college students with
Google scholar (term papers), google images (still images, and youtube (moving images) -Lexis-Nexis, Web of SCience, and ProQuest for search engine to cite term papers without going to the library
1921
Graham Act calls for universal telephone service
Samuel F.B. Morse's telegraph was an early forerunner of the internet in 1844
He tapped out the first words "what hath God wrought?"
Web 2.0
Internet applications in which users can provide content as well as consume it -Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, Wikipedia, etc
Daniel Czitrom (1982)
Historian that called the telegraph wires "lightning lines" -Both for their speed of transmission and for transforming effects -Together with the railroads, the telegraph made national economic and a national culture possible
Access to the internet and contents is another issue
Instead of curing poverty, ignorance, and isolation, the internet perpetuated them -Gaps opened in access by minority, low-income, and rural families -Developing countries in Africa, Asian, and South America were left further behind the development of a global information economy for lack of access
Content restrictions became an issue as internet collided with the cultures of diverse nations
In the US, a portion of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 was written to ban indecency -Banned: naked female breast, sexually explicit materials, etc
Dependent design firms and web developers also blend the creative talents of graphic design professionals with technical skills of webmasters and computer programmers
Interactive ad agencies are another source of web creation expertise -Traditional graphic design, advertising, and public relations firms have entered the market -Web hosting companies: provide server space and domain names for clients and will design and maintain the sign itself for an additional fee -Free lancers and independent contractors: Web-savy college students -Other content providers: National Weather Service, school lunch menu, homepages on the web, or even Facebook profiles
Wireless telecommunications as we know them today are an outgrowth of WW2 radar detection systems
Initially, wireless communications were microwave systems found at the center of the telecommunications networks, rather than at the periphery to carry bulk quantities of calls between cities
John Vincent Atanasoff (Iowa State University)
Invented the electric computer in 1939 on the eve of WW2
Demand for mobile communications still mounted, prompting the FCC to reallocate TV channels 70-83 for a new type of mobile telephone service that gave cell phones their name, "Cellular radio"
It became available in the US in 1983
Digital telecommunication began in 1962 with the introduction of a digital carrier system (TI)
It converted voices to digital pulses and back again -Reconstructed a simulated voice for the listener on the other end -By taking turns transmitting short digital voice samples from multiple calls, 24 simultaneous conversations were combined on a single copper wire circuit -When used for data instead of phone calls, TI lines carry 1.5 million bits per second
Telecom carriers around the world are adopting
LTE (long-term evolution) standard
Google maps
Location-based service -In top 10 list Others: Foursquare, Tinder
iPad screen is large enough to make a viable video player and game device, and music player, and e-book reader
Many of the apps for smartphones also play on tablets
Hardware sector
Makers of: -Computers (subdivided into sub computers, mainframes, minicomputers, workstations, and personal computers) -Computer Storage Devices (disk drives) -peripherals (printers and scanners)
1896
Marconi invents the wireless telegraph
Online games
Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) are elaborate multiuser communities inhabited by players who adopt roles in an online virtual environment -World of Warcraft: 12 million players and 10's of thousands playing online at one time
Smartphones and tablets are making inroads on online purchases
Mobile purchases are over $53b/year -Top rated apps (Facebook) draw in on $100m visitors/month Mobile ad revenue are gaining on those from conventional personal computer platforms -The 3rd screen on smartphones and tablets may surpass the 1st and second at the center of commerce and culture in society
Flash
Most popular Plug-in -Turns computer into a multimedia machine that can display HD streaming videos in the same wie-screen format as HDTV -It was banned from Apple because Steve Jobs did not like it -HTML5 is replacing Flash on desktop and mobile hardware
The Huffington Post Blog
Most popular blog, with political chatter and original stories organized by Arianna Huffington
1975, the CB radio service opened up to general use and quickly became the first wireless communication craze
Movies like "Smokey and the Bandit" and hit songs on the radio popularized the new medium -CB airwaves were clogged with "good buddies" imitating the slang of long-distance truck driver -Many people enjoyed sharing information about the activities of traffic police and doings at the local truck stop (popularizing this early form of social media)
Wi-Fi hotspots that are popping up everywhere are known as IEEE802.11
Named after the standard from the Institute for Electrical and Electronic Engineers that defines service
4G phones were introduced in 2010 and covered about 4/5 of the US as of 2015
Network coverage and average speeds lag other advanced countries (South Korea, Japan)
Wi-Fi sends the Internets TCP/IP packets through the air to wireless receivers at speeds of over 1b bits/second (broadband system)
New Wi-Fi varieties are entering the market -Some with ability to move from one hotspot to another without losing the connection -Cellphones that use WiFi networks allow you to make "free" telephone calls through your home connection or anywhere you happen to find WiFi
The market for mobile video is also promising
Nielsen Media Research estimates 133 million smartphone owners watch videos on their phones each month -Almost half of the number who watch "regular" TV -Smartphone viewing still pales in comparison -2016: FCC auctioned off some of the spectrum occupied by broadcast TV to make more space available for mobiles
ICANN
Non-profit corporation in CA that operates under contract with the US department of Commerce -Decides who gets the rights to domain names -Charges annual fee to the domain owner -ICANN authorizes other domain name registries around the globe
Marketers can track the success of brands and celebrities by counting the number of FB friends, Twitter followers, and Youtube views they receive by monitoring the words that are used in Twitter
Now there is a counter movement away from social media -Invaded by snooping parents and advertisers -Snapchat is popular because it deletes posts -Everyme users define themselves different for the different social groups in their lives rather than one profile that everyone sees
Telephone companies and Google are installing fiber-optic system connections directly to the home
Offering a data transmission speeds of up to 1 billion bits per second to home users -Cable TV companies are also installing fiber optics in their networks but they usually make the final connection to subscribers with a copper-based medium
Blogs are an older but still influential form of social media
Organized around special themes such as technology and celebrity gossip -HOpes of attracting like minded contributors -Upstaged more recently by FB discussion groups ("Blogsphere" has growing impact on public discourse) -Many are written by professional journalists in their off hours
Portal sites borrow their basic "everything you need to start your day" strategy from newspapers
Other inducements to stick to e-commerce sites are drawn from retail promotion -coupons, sales, and celebrity appearances
The AT&T of today was reassembled over the decades through a series of acquisitions and mergers that gave it control over local wireline services in the Midwest, far west, deep south, and southwest
Other remaining holding companies: -Verizon: covering the eastern seaboard from Virginia to NY -CenturyLink: spanning western states from the Pacific Northwest to Minnesota and south to Arizona and New Mexico The wireless revolution has made those territorial rights to provide wireline service increasingly irrelevant
Magazine websites post tidbits from their latest issue and interactive features for free and offer paid subscriptions online
Others are using the web to extend their brand names in hopes of inciting apps of themselves for tablet computer that enhance the conventional print experience with video and personalized content -"Walled gardens" that are not freely accessible through the Web and search engines -Online magazines are not limited to Big Media companies -Thousands of amateur magazines, many covering aspects of pop culture ("zines" --> "blogs")
Over 3 billion people worldwide use the internet
Personal communication is the most common activity -The time we spend each day on the internet is quickly catching up to the amount of time spent on TV (due to social networking sites but now streaming audio and videos) -Most webpages are viewed for less than a minute
Obama Administration made closing the gap a priority
Pledgind millions of follars to put broadband in 90% of US homes by 2020 -$7b was allocated through American REcovery and Reinvestment ACt 2009 to upgrade broadband internet networks and community computing facilities in schools and libraries
Sharing of music files introduced millions of people to the concept of getting their entertainment through the internet for free
Practice has spread to: print, video, and video games -Two important differences: content is increasingly "shared" by commercial enterprises and much of it is no longer free
Internet Service Provider (ISP)
Provide connections to the internet -AT&T and Charter Cable are industry leaders (account for more than 50% of the us internet subscriptions) -Some ISP, such as AOL, create original content and combine roles of ISP and content provider -Earthlink is purely ISP (providing access but little i the way of content, aside from portal pages that welcome their users with the news of the hour when they log on) -Usually lease high-speed connections to the internet backbone from telecommunications carriers or local phone companies or are affiliated with companies that provide network connections of their own -More than 400 ISPs in the US with national coverage and many more that cover local communities -Giant telephone and cable companies dominate
Cell phone technology has evolved through a series of generations
Signified by the capital G that mobile providers use in their ads
Practical wireless telecommunications dates back to Marconi's wireless telegraph of 1896
Radio was primarily a 2-way communications medium for the first 25 years of its existence, before radio broadcasting dominated the airwaves -All of the messages were text, transmitted in the Morse Code that wireline telegraphs used and such bulky equipment was required that only large oceangoing vessels (Titanic) had mobile radios
US broadband service is considered slow and expensive
Ranks 16th among 34 leading developed countries
E-commerce, like Amazon, intimidate shopping malls by carrying many different types of products
Some are pure e-tailers that exist online only -Walmart and others are online offshoots of brick and mortar retailers called "Clicks and mortar" operataions
Social media has come synonymous with Facebook and other social networking sites
Replaced published albums of pictures with interactive online profiles -No longer fits definition that specifies content generated through social interaction -Facebook has evolved into a general-purpose platform to deliver news, entertainment, and advertising to its users -Friending tagging, wall posting, and participating in social games and discussion groups = social media -New ways of social sharing are emerging (Facebook Live) -Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Reddit account for 3/4 visits to social media sites in the US
Reformatting content produced for the old media side of business
Requires dozens of employees with web design skills (New York Times) -Many newspapers or other old media firms create new or extended content for the Web and provide ways for readers to contribute both stories and commentary
Other sits depart from the catalog shopping model
SErvices as well are products are sold online, with the internet taking the place of the travel agent (expedia.com), taxi driver (uber), hotel clerk (hotels.com), auctioneers (ebay)
Cell phone manufacturers are part of the wireless picture
Samsung and Apple are the world leaders in terms of market share
1844
Samuel Morse invents the telegraph
The same queries posed to other search engines may have varying results because of the different ways in which the engines search for keywords
Search engines also differ in how they look for key words in various locations -Title of the Web page, how high it appears on the page, or the frequency in which the keyword appears -Also depends on how often the search engine's software or "bot" searches the internet
1962
The first digital telephone network is introduced & The first communications satellite Telstar is launched
"Dumb" cell phones have their features programmed on the computer chips built into the hardware
Smartphones require software and supplying that software is becoming and important part of the wireless industry -Smartphones have operating systems like computers -Google and Microsoft have competing system's but Google's Android is dominant
Familiar apps like Facebook and Twitter lose some of their appeal as parents, college admissions deans, and prospective employers learn how to use them to monitor younger users
Social media offering features such as photo albums, video, disappearing messages, and anonymous chatter, become attractive as the 2nd and 3rd hourly social media check-ins
Visits to "app stores" were the starting point in an effort to define app genres
Some of the app categories at Apple fit neatly into the functions of the mass media -Surveillance (news and weather apps) -Values transmission (education) -Entertainment (music and games) -No obvious category marches the interpretation function, but social networking and book apps might fill that niche
Web pages are often made by in-house design departments
Some of the largest are the multimedia design departments at old media titans (Disney) -New media companies (Google and Amazon) have in-house staff, as do other large and small companies not directly connected to media business
Portals compete with one new customer services
Some will keep track of appointments or remind you of anniversaries -They fill the surveillance function, once the province of newspaper headlines and TV news broadcasts, with a new personal twist -Advertisers see them as the web's equivalent to the electronic mass media
Bell Telephone Company established in 1877
Soon after, it acquired Western Electric -An electrical equipment-manufacturing firm -3rd cornerstone of a vertically integrated monopoly that included its local and long-distance networks -Company used its patent rights to undercut competitors and refused to interconnect competitors with its long-distance network
To keep up with all the music and digital video files that broadband users download, the connections in the internet backbone are also being upgraded to fiber-optic cables that carry billions of bits per second
Telephone companies connect individual homes to fiber in some parts of the country that transmit hundreds of millions bits per second
FCC is redirecting universal service funds that formerly subsidized telephone connections in low-income households to $9.25 monthly subsidies (Connect America Fund)
That broadband connections often costs over $50/month subsidy that may not make it affordable to low income families still
According to Moore's Law, processing capacity in computer chips has doubled about every 18 months since late 1960's
That is why new personal computers are so obsolete as soon as they come out of the box
Intellectual property became an issue too
The US has strict copyright protections, but other countries have more lenient rules -Haven for file-sharing services that supported massive copyright piracy -Thousands of college students in the US were threatened with lawsuits from the recording industry as a result
The story of the infrastructure is the story of how diverse cultures create the means to communicate distance
The ancient Greeks and Romans had fire towers to carry messages from distant outposts of their civilization -Yoruba's of eastern African had a network of drummers -Anasazi people of the American Southwest "broadcast" fire signals from atop high plateausin in the 12th century -France had mechanical semaphore signal towers that sent dispatchers across during Napolean's day -Are all now "wireless"
2010
The iPad popularizes tablet computing & 4G cellphones are introduced in the US
The Very-high-speed backbone network service (vBNS)
The internet backbone that connects ISPs, Web servers, and individual computers around the world -Not for profit enterprise of major regional networks (MERIT)
M-commerce is starting to catch on in the US although it has been common in Europe and Far East for years now
The many shoppers who bring their cell phones into stores to search the web for deals at other retailers or not order out of stock sale items online represent on aspect of this trend
The analogy to computer software extend to many apps that are being developed for smartphones
The markers of the operating systems make their own apps, but the app craze has also created industry of more than 100,000 independent developers
Governments began calling for international oversight and an end to US control
The ruling bodies of the internet (Internet Architecture Board and the Internet Engineering Task Force, IETF) gradually expanded to include international representatives
The 4G phones treat both voice and data streams as packets of data like those on the internet
They have theoretical download speeds of up to 100 million bits per second in a speeding car and up to 1 billion bits per second standing still -Actual speeds average only about 10 million bits per second in the US (enough to support HD TV streams and video conferencing)
In the US personal computer market, HP and Dell are the leaders
They started the personal computer trend -Apple and IBM are now lesser players -IBM's personal computer operation was sold to Lenovo -Personal computer sales are decreasing as users switch to tablets and smartphones -HP and Dell are the leading manufacturers of internet servers and sales rise as cloud computing replaces conventional computer networks
The original mobile phone service operated from a single central antenna in each city and only handled 46 simultaneous conversations at any time
This meant that the 47th caller did not receive a dial tone -Happened often as the subscriber base grew and multiple users contended for the limited number of channels
The amount of time one spend on a site should not be criterion for a "good" site
This reflects old media thinking -The key from the Webby awards perspective is lots of empty white space with small print, intriguing video clops and large graphic design space
Central Processing Unit (CPU)
Traces evolution of computers -where all the actual data processing takes place -Today's personal computers are 4th gen computers with very-large scale integrated (VLSI) circuits with millions of components each
Online casino and poker games that allow real-world bets to be made were once the rage
US players were cut off when law enforcement cracked down on credit card payments to poker website -US DOJ ruled that online poker is legal if kept within state boarders, so online poker is returning -Some states are cracking down on fantasy sports (FanDuel) arguing it is gambling
Regional or local providers who own their own networks
US Cellular, nTelos, and more
Government information is growing in importance
US government web pages among the most popular -All levels of government have a trend towards e-government so that citizens can find public information about everything -Applications and transactions with government agencies can be completed online
Efforts to reign in AT&T's monopolistic behavior established the framework of government regulation that still oversees telecommunications and internet today
Under threat of an antitrust suit, AT&T promised to provide quality service for all -The principle of the universal service, codified in the Graham Act of 1921
Great interest in the media industry in apps that deliver versions of print publications to the device
Unlike web publications open to anyone, apps create "walled gardens" that discourage users from surfing away as they read and make it difficult to hotlink into articles without viewing the ads that go with them -Publishers keep possession of proprietary information about reader preferences and activity inside the app
Amount of time spend on a page is an indication of a bad esign
Usability and human computer interactions (HCI) researchers time users and train cameras on them as they surf web pages -Try to identify and correct confusing features that slow users down -Designing web pages around tasks, giving all page in a site a consistent look and feel, supplying site navigation aids, and minimizing download times are key design considerations
Most demanding broadband application of internet users
Video streaming -3 million bits per second is sufficient for Netflix and Hulu -25 million bits per second is the new norm for broadband service established by FCC
The industry leaders also do business under wholly owned subsidaries
Virgin Mobile and Boost (both owned by Spring) -Target young adults
2016
Virtual reality apps for smartphones & Mobile ads catch up to personal computer ad revenues
Portals
Web pages that users launch when they first log onto the web -Combine directories, interpersonal communication, and information into an all-purpose, customizable "launch pad" -Greet registered visitors by name and keep track of their favorite types of content
First handheld personal communciation device also appeared on WW2 battlefields
Walkie talkie -Al Gross invented them who went on to pioneer an audio forerunner in today's chat services, citizens' band (CB) radio, and the telephone pager
1992
Was IBM's Simon the first smartphone?
Strategy is personalizing content to individual users
Website gets to know its visitors -Responds to and anticipate your needs -Amazon: suggestions based on previous purchases and follows up by sending an email saying they found something you'd like (visitors will return because of this established relationship) -Abandoning the site would incur the cost of reentering detailed personal information at a new portal, selecting from its content, and waiting for it to learn our desires through tracking
New Markup Language
XHTML (X for extensible) lets programmers define their own tags -Tags are the commends that tell your browser how to display the document where to locate a picture on the screen and how big it should be -XML is a "meta language" from which tags for specific applications can be made -RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is another form of XHTML hat posts frequent updates from other websites to personalized reader page, like iGoogle
Voice calls using geostationary satellites (used by satellite companies) aren't feasible because callers have to wait for the signal to make a 45,000m round trip to the satellite and back
Wireless voice and data service can also be provided by satellites that fly in low Earth orbit (LEO), a couple miles up -The lower orbits mean smaller and cheaper receivers with a small whip antenna instead of dish -Low-flying satellites constantly change their position (dozens needed to ensure coverage) -Satellite phones have never been an economical option so are mainly used by foreign correspondents and arctic explorers who travel take them to places not served by terrestrial cell phone networks
Google has emerged as the giant among search engines
Yahoo! and Bing trailing far behind -Google is consistently one of the top 10 web properties so much so that turning up near the top of its search results is a key to success for many websites
Capacious hard drives store all of your iTunes, family pictures, and video downloads and re transmits them to all the rooms of your house
Your smartphone "talks" to your PC or your smart TV through wireless computer network technology -Advanced video game machines fill the niche, playing Blu-ray movies and connecting to the internet -Virtual reality displays are leaving the lab for the living room and computing power needed to run them may once again convince computer buyers that "more is better"
Internet has been repeatedly reinvented
a Cold War weapon --> a medium of scientific exchange --> public information resource --> online shopping plaza --> social interactions --> digital amusement park
Internet Architecture Board (IAB)
a committee within the ISOC that makes important policy decisions about operations and future developments -Members are employees of large corporations (Microsoft) that have important financial stakes in the internet -Technical matters are overseen by the IETF through its various working-group committees
Gig.U Project
a consortium of over 30 universities that aim to extend gigabit networks to neighboring communities -High resolution medical imaging and instant downloads of HD movies are possible apps
Packet Switching
breaks up digital information into individually addressed chunks or packets
Internet2
a new, faster version of the internet -Involving more than 200 universities that conduct experiments with the next generation of internet technology and gives us a preview of more things to come at speeds of 100 billion bits per second
ISOC (the internet society)
a nongovernmental international membership society that promotes the orderly use and development of the internet -Modeled after the professional associations that college professors belong to
Networks merged under the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 1986 to form NSFNET
an email system for university professors (BITNET) and a popular discussion group system (USENET) grew at the same time
a web portal, software publisher, a smartphone distributor, a social networking system, an e-mail service, and an online video distributor
Wearable
accessories that monitor your heart rate as you jog or notify you that you have "sweaty palms" -Wristwatch phones and other forms of cell phone jewlery are other examples of wearables (still bulky-looking and touch screens are small) -Gadget makers are working on cellphone implants you could wear in you instead of on you (surgically installed headphones?)
Some e-commerce sites don't actually sell anything
act as clearing houses for comparative shopping information -Others have product directories, coupons, and buyer incentives
Facebook is becoming a new kind of media
acting as a portal to news and entertainment, social interactions, and as a force on online advertising -No longer what it used to be, users switching to restricted social media like Everyme and Google+ or Snapchat and Vine that do not leave permanent tracks
Creative commons
advocates that authors opt into or opt out of specific copyright protections from their work
2016: US launched a campaign on cyber attacks
aimed at disrupting communication and operations of Islamic militants -Could bring the internet full cycle back to its origins as a weapon of war
Special purpose computers might take over office, living room, and kitchen
all connected through the Internet of Things
Online safety is threatened by security "holes" in browser
allow hackers to get access to personal information stored on computer -Or to use your computer to launch spam or viruses at other users using robotic programs (bots for short) -Crucial to update your browser and operating software and accept automatic notifications promptly
The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
an international membership organization that formulates and approves standards for the Web (HTML5)
Phishing
an online scam in which criminals pretend to be someone you trust in an effort to obtain money or sensitive information
You use the internet when
anytime you use a device or application that transmits information using the packet structure specified by the TCP/IP protocol -Surfing the web, checking social media, watching netflix, playing video games online, talking or texting from mobile device
Early history of electronic telecommunication was dominated by wireline communication
before coming full cycle back to wireless int he current century
NFC (near field communications)
being built into smartphones -Short-range radio transmitters that allow you send information, such as authorizing a credit card charge, by "bumping phones" with another NFC-equipped device but could also be used to detect your location in relationship to a product display inside a retail store
Micro-payments
being implemented by a variety of business models -to use the software by the minute or the hour -Pay per usage, flat monthly fees -Advertising-supported cloud services
Inter exchange carriers
carry domestic long-distance telephone calls made between area codes and those completed within area codes that cross local access and transport area (LATA) boundaries -Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint are leaders but hundreds of smaller long-stance companies
Third-generation (3G)
cell phones have high-speed data transmission capacity for video and internet
Online horrors began to emerge
child molesters stalking children, teens harassing one another, online gamers destroying their families, identify thieves trolling for private information -Parents regarded the internet, rather than TV, as the number one media threat to children
2016: Charter Cable acquired Time-Warner Cable
concentrating ownership of broadband cable networks in the US -2015: FCC issued a landmark neutrality decision that aims to prevent Internet service provides like Comcast and Charter from providing preferential access to their subsidiaries and business partners
Wide Area Networks (WAN)
connect computers that are miles apart
Cable modems
connect personal computers to cable TV systems
Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)
connections caught up to cable modems in the race to wire the country for broadband connections capable of millions of bits per second
The internet was originally developed to
continue weapons research at Livermore and other labs even if civilization was wiped out in a nuclear war -Originally called "ARPANET" and was funded by the US department of defense
Internet browsers and plug-ins are distributed for free
creators profit from the sale of other programs that make new content and the specialized software that runs the servers on the internet -Google Drive is part of a large scheme aimed at capturing more information from internet users that can be used to support the company's ad sales
SAGE air defense system
dating from the early 1950's -introduced modems to feed warnings of approaching Russian bombers into the first wide area network
Inferior access to employment and education opportunities
deepens the cycle of poverty that costs all citizens dearly in this country and worldwide
Cell phones get their name from
dividing large service areas into clusters of small zones (cells) each only a few miles across
m-commerce
electronic shopping transactions completed with a cell phone
Disintermediation
eliminating distributors that serve as intermediaries between manufacturers and their customers
Many found the internet to be a venue for social connections
engaging in public debate, learning about political candidates, finding a good deal on products and services, and exploring pleasant diversions
The Communications Act of 1934
established the FCC to regulate communications -Define AT&T as a common carrier, requiring them and other telephone companies to offer service on an equal basis to all paying customers and prohibited them from having any financial interest in the content
Governments around the world began to consider how to control an international medium
evading their laws and challenged national media system -Beginnings of a movement that now threatens the existence of the internet 20 years later
Mobile communication uses techniques very similar to radio broadcasting
except that mobile services operate in different portions of the communications spectrum and use far less powerful transmitters
Millions of web surfers have their own blog
far too many to keep up with but there are websites that index the latest postings from thousands of blogs -Tumblr and Blogger are popular social media sites that make it easy for you to start your own customized blog -Medium blog site might post essays and rants for a wide range of audiences
The first cell phone that we might recognize as a smart phone was IBM's Simon
first introduced in 1992 with touch screen, data, and voice capabilities -Built in "apps" were calendar, calculator, e-mail, and games -Aimed at business users and was too heavy and bulky to catch on with consumer
Alto Computer developed by Xerox Corporation (1970's)
first personal computer -had a mouse, graphical user interface, and a high speed LAN connection (Ethernet) -Invented by Bob Metcalfe
Blackberry
first sold in 1999 -Handheld communication device that made mobile messaging a popular cultural phenomenon
Personal Data Assistants
handheld personal organziers -introduced around same time as Simon -Some could be purchased with cellphone add-ons as extra cost options
International record carriers (IRCs)
handle long distance calls between countries -Was the exclusive domain of AT&T in the US, but now there are dozens of options
Broadband
high speed internet connections
Cell phones have completely replaced landline phones in nearly half of US homes
iPhone in 2007 and iPad in 210 began to shift content once confined to computers, TV, game consoles, and home video screens to mobile platforms -Mobile have joined TV (1st screen) and computers (2nd screen) as they 3rd screen widely viewed in the home
Communications Spectrum
includes the range of electromagnetic radiation frequencies that are used in wireless communication systems
"Walled garden"
information on facebook is "off limits" to search engines -You can get to Facebook via google, but not direct posts
The concentration of such activities in the US makes other nations, companies, and users nervouse
international organizations like the International Telecommunications Union have tried to assert ore control over internet governance (so far with little success) -Efforts continue to globalize control of the web -The UN established the Internet Governance Forum to further diversity, security, and education in the information society and convened the World Summit on the Information Society to address ICANN control, the digital divide, and other global issues surrounding the internet
Jon Postel
internet pioneer -Contributed to the system of naming and numbering addresses on the Internet
Laser
invented at Bell Labs -Held the key to practical fiber-optics system by producing intense beams of pure, concentrated light
An update to the basic Internet Protocol (IP version 6)
is quickly becoming dominant -Extends the length of internet addresses so that more can be made -Older version 4 has only about 4 billion addresses, not enough to issue addresses in all of the world's major languages or give your smartphone, car, TV and toaster their own IP address -Launched in 2012: supports trillions of address and smoother streaming of audio and video -Major ISPs (AT&T and Comcast) have made the transition
Some consider the internet a cure for
isolation, poverty, ignorance, political oppression, and boredom
The telephone slowly expanded from the circle of wealth tradespeople and professionals at the turn of the 20th century
it become a "social network" thanks to the women who reinvented it as a medium of social exchange -Became a lifeline to rural families (feeling less isolated) -Helped with automobile, helped spur migration from cities to suburbs -Connected women to family and friends, but confined them to their homes more than when they went out on social visits in person
Social media
media whose content is created and distributed through social interaction
The future of the internet is shaped by changes in network transmission tehcnology
move those packets at ever-higher speeds by the software that runs internet apps and changes in rules that are used in internet transactions
"More is better"
multimedia computers add new sounds and video processing capabilities until they become home entertainment servers sitting in the middle of a high speed computer network that distributes entertainment and information throughout your home
Conventional mass media, such as newspapers and TV, were never ideally suited for some other vital functions that we have apps for
navigation, making money, staying fit, being productive at work, or acting as a flashlight (but there's apps for them) -Other categories are defined by what you like to do (lifestyles, favorite play activity)
Wifi
offers wireless broadband access from hot spots covering a growing number of college campuses, airports, internet cafes, and homes -Newer versions offer speeds many times faster than cable modems and make it possible to move around without losing connection -can be your own mobile hot spot through a device connected to your computer that lets your smartphone and other wifi capable gear share a wireless connection
Advertyising-supported online entertainment preserves the illusion that it is "free"
online entertainment attracts audiences in numbers that appeal to advertisers -Youtube most well-known, compete with regularly scheduled programming and broadcast TV -Hulu specialize in TV services from Big Media like NBCU -Ad-supported stremaing radio stations (iHeartRadio)
Electronic publishing
online versions of conventional print publications and information published only on the internet -Even formal "old" media reorganize content for the internet crowd and add links to other sides from inside newspaper articles, searchable indices of past articles, online forums, and multimedia extensions -The multimedia extensions include audio and video files and computer simulations
Many internet users have gotten hooked by
playing online games, social networking, or compulsively answering emails
Reverse auctions
priceline.com -Let shoppers name the price and sellers bid to meet it -Or, shoppers can buy things from other people by tuning into newsgroups that specialize in buying and selling goods
Satellite communication was inspired by science fiction writer (Arthur C. Clarke)
proposed that three microwave transmitters circling the planet could cover the globe if their orbits were such that their rotation speed matched that of the earth -Communication satellites are essentially microwave transmitters launched into space beginning with AT&T's Telstar satellite in 1962 -The same same principles apply if we put the transmitters atop tall towers, which is what mobile networks do
Telecommunications Act of 1966
restrictions prevented telecommunication companies in one industry from entering another telecom industry were relaxed -AT&T, Verizon, and a plethora of new entrants including Sprint and T-Mobile were free to compete with one another for cellphone customers -Decades following, falling rates and expanding coverage meant that cellphones began to replace wireline connections -Telephones transformed from household utility to personal communication device
Software manufacturers resembled book publishers
sales were made through retail outlets that offer titles from many different publishers -Much of that software that winds up in the hands of consumers is bundled with computer hardware at the time of purchase -Increasingly, software is bought and downloaded over the internet -Part of cloud trend, software products can be rented by paying annual subscription fees and are automatically updated to latest versions
Cookies
small files that websites leave on their visitors computers -Can track and collate information between sites without the user's knowledge, -3rd party cookies place by companies that monitor web advertising may also do so without the user's knowledge
Technological challenge from mobiles
social media and internet-based serices face competition from "third screen" mobile applications -Leading to Facebook acquiring WhatsApp -Shift in user paradigm soon as the majority of internet traffic originates from mobile devices rather than personal compyters
Freeware (or shareware)
software (Linux operating system, Firefox, and Avast anti virus program), whose developers lack a sophisticated distribution network or that pursue an alternative to the "pay up front" software business model (some hope people will pay voluntarily) -Users can often download the software for free and pay on the honor system later if they like it -In other cases, the software is free but the user may be asked to pay for documentation, enhanced features, or updates
Tracking
some websites leave cookies which can allow them to recognize visitors and not make you log in each time -Even when no cookies or bugs are present, your privacy is not ensure --> basic operation of the internet protocol routinely uses your IP address to route information -When you switch from one page to another, the site you leave receives information about where you go and the next one will know where you were last -Version number and fonts you use help to uniquely identify each web user
Spyware
sometimes called adware or malware -programs downloaded to computer when you install other applications from the internet, such as music file sharing programs -Monitors your surfing behavior and also causes ads to pop up on the screen
GPS (Geographic Positioning System)
system that locates your smartphones position in the real world by comparing the strength of signals received from 3 or more satellites turning overhead -Also power turn-by-turn directions and locate your social networking partners -Locate phone by measuring the strength of smartphone's signal at nearby cell towers, wifi nodes, or Bluetooth transmitters
Satellite
systems send information back and forth to relays in orbit around the earth
Fiber optic
systems that use light instead of electricity to transmit information -Ideal for computer data since they are immune to electrical interference that plagues copper wire systems (relatively error free) -Send information, turning the light source on and off, is well suited to the 1s and 0s of data communication -Fiber optic signals travel hundreds of miles before they face and have to be regenerated (further reducing error)
Microwave
systems transmit information between relay towers on highly focused beams of radio waves
Uniform Resource Locator (URL)
the addresses of webpages -Jumbles of letters, "slashes", and "dots" that indicate the networks addresses of content stored on Web servers
Most important issue
the assignment of addresses and domain names -ICANN was entrusted with the task
Bluetooth
the desktop version of wireless networking -named after 10th century Danish King with dental issues -Links your earpiece to your phone and your phone to personal computer, or to wireless printers, scanners, and digital cameras -Early versions had a range of only about 300 feet and top speed of 1m bits/second -Advanced versions have speeds up to 24m -Also connects smartphone to the information systems that are quickly becoming standard on new automobiles
Internet relies on servers
the hardware that directs packets of internet data to their proper destinations
Coaxial cable
the high-capacity wire used for cable television transmission
2007
the iPhone is introduced
Apple did not invent the cell phone or smartphone
the idea of adding visual displays was not news -AT&T's pioneering experiments with TV in 1920's (Video chat or Vine today) -AT&T periodically announced from the mid 1960's on that video phones were going to be the "next big thing" but failed to catch on them
The operations of the net was turned over to commercial providers in 1995
the internet craze was in full swing -Fostering a culture and economic phenomenon that became known as the "dot-com boom"
Top-level domain
the last set of letters (.edu, .com, .org) -Each country also has a top-level domain of its own -Others reflect the basic types of institutions that own the address -ICANN opened the top-level domain system to include domain names that use non-Latin letters (Arabic and Chinese) -Thousands of new top-level domain names are on the way (.travel and .singles), many corporations can apply for their own
Regional Bell operating companies (RBOCs)
the local telephone operating companies that AT&T divested in 1984
ENIAC
the original general purpose computer -Enlisted in the Cold War that followed -Running calculations for the first hydrogen bomb
Universal Service
the principle that everyone should have basic access to telecommunication services
infrastructure
the underlying physical structure of communication netwoks
Web bugs
tiny, one pixel, or invisible images embedded into the HTML code -When your browser pulls them up, the server that stores the invisible image receives a notification -Bus can follow your tracks inside a website and also track you to other web pages -Can extract codes from cookies stored on your computer that identify you uniquely at the sites you have registered -Your emailed can be bugged, too, letting sender know when you open it and if you forward it
The basic way to transmit computer data is to
turn on a tiny electrical voltage to represent a 1 and turn off the voltage to present a 0 -For those that still rely on dial-up internet, the modem converts digital pulses to signals that can be accepted and processed by the phone system as if they were sound
Spamming
unsolicited commercial emailing
Location-based services
use information about the location of mobile phone users to tailor content to specific locations -vary their content according to where you are
In the wake of 9/11, it became evident that terrorists
used the internet to coordination the plot, raise funds, and help recruit new members to their cause
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
used to format pages on the web
Net neutrality
users are discriminated against based on the amount or nature of the data they transfer on the internet
Virtual reality
wearable visual displays that use smartphones to create immersive images of virtual environments -Debuted in 2016 -Video games, educational, and work-related applications anticipated these -Instead of attending lecture, could learn in a simulated classroom -Virtual reality threatens safety as texting and driving is a hazard
Deep Web
web content that is hidden behind pay walls or user log-is where search engines and inquiring minds cannot easily find
Encryption
when a message is written in secret code
During the Great Depression, AT&T continued paying dividends to stockholders (mostly republicans)
while laying off thousands of workers (mostly democrats) -Placed communications policy on the agenda of FDR (democratic president)