lol =)

I am officially in love with twitter! I love to chat and exchange things with my friends. It is so easy to let them know what I'm doing without actually calling and telling them. Twitter is the best way to communicate with the people you love because you can do it publicly and privately. In January 2010 tech crunch found that found that 75 million people have visited twitter since it was created in July 2006.

Twitter is these easiest way to publish information about you. Your section of the site is completely based on what you like and the things you may value and like to share. With tools like twitpic, retweets, and trending topics; it is easy to keep in touch with your friends and yourself. "Twitter is a social networking and microblogging service that allows you answer the question, "What are you doing?" by sending short text messages 140 characters in length, called "tweets", to your friends, or "followers"(tweeternet.com).

Twitter is good for a person like me. In it is interchangeable and you can use it for what you want. You have complete control of what happens on the website; therefoe, it give you independence of not being violated. I rarely ever give out my phone number and using this website I do not ever have to. It is an easy can common way to share with my friends without getting annoyed by their text or instant messages. Sometimes I feel like too much communicating is uncomfortable, and breaks the boundaries we try to set up naturally.
When people consider giving away information to their lives they often hesitate. I personally don’t like the idea because you can trust everyone to have the best intentions for you. So when you long into a site like Twitter, you are saying that you are willing to put yourself out there for no particular reason besides entertainment. The idea seems absurd to people who are private and never really are interested in other peoples’ lives.

Internet Piracy

     The Internet provides people with more information and connections than ever now. Basically if you want something, it's at your fingertips. For example, if you like a song and simply google it, chances are you can download it in the first couple links provided. Additionally, it's free. So if it is illegal, why is it so easy? Programs like BitTorrent and Limewire are among the top programs used to pirate by connecting with other users who already have the music or programs and simply transferring it between computers. Internet piracy is not limited to just music however, with movies and software programs such as Photoshop growing in popularity. 

     Most who pirate claim that it is so easy, they don't even give a second thought to the problem. The fact that the product is digital rather than physical also contributes to the idea that it has less importance. Companies are trying to make it so their products are easier to attain legally, but are having trouble keeping up. For example, iTunes released DRM-free music a while ago because people were angry they couldn't share their music. Most people are happy to pay for music as long as it is the most convenient method.

     Another issue with piracy is the "astronomical" loss that music artists and companies are losing due to their products being given away. Record companies are a rip off to artists in my opinion. The money they lose is nothing compared the the 80% of profit they get compared to the 20% given to the artist. One artist who fought this was Radiohead with their most recent album "In Rainbows." They quit their record label and released their CD online with a new concept. Pay as much as you want for it. Essentially, it was free if you desired. Sales showed that on average, most people payed around $9.99 for it. The profit for the artist was a great deal more than what it would have been should they have been signed to a record label. This inspired a slew of other artists to do the same in hopes of changing things.

     The biggest group of offenders as of now seems to be college students. Despite the government and other threats of being caught, the rate of piracy has barely flinched. Napster was the biggest crackdown on Internet piracy I remember with the dismemberment of the company and numerous people charged and sued for stealing. So is Internet piracy rebellion or just convenience? When the subject is brought up among friends the reactions are very different. So what is your reaction to this problem? Is it right or wrong? Have you done it? Will it ever be solved? And how could people be deterred from piracy besides fear of punishment and greater convenience of products?