Open source

The open source development structure is a stable and cost effective way to create software. Software companies create software in a closed proprietary environment so that the company can make a profit. Open source's free-labor free-results makeup does not allow for profit–if anything profit from open source comes in the form of pyramid scheme, where those on top reap the benefits. Companies need to design a development structure that takes advantage of open source development tactics, but allows contributors to be compensated. If companies cannot design such a structure, then open source saturation will ensue. Saturation will happen when a piece of open source software becomes an industry leader, which causes real businesses to close their doors. An example of such saturation is Wikipedia and the ever-diminishing Encyclopedia Britannica.

The World is Flat

As an American, I've been raised to believe that America is the best nation. The greatest inventions with their intelligent inventors reside here. The worlds leading companies are headquartered in one of the fifty states. The cluster of creation and innovation that is America has created an upward spiral of progress and prosperity that absorbs and includes any willing citizen. It's easy to be proud of America. It's easy to be an American. I do realize; however, my pride in America comes with a downfall. The downfall is located in the heart of my American pride. My pride is selfish. It wants for America and for myself, and does not want for others. I'm involved in a self-serving struggling to become successful. I want to experience prosperity. I want to be swept up in American opulence. To me, the flattened world is spreading the American "good life" over the surface of the planet, causing American abundance and plenty to become thin and less concentrated. I've always been told about the American dream, and now that dream exists for the innovative where ever they may be. "So, be creative and compete." I tell myself "Be better than the best." But, I wonder if there's enough prosperity to go around. I have to be capable of being successful not on the American stage, but on the world stage. As an American on the world stage, where do I fall?

Copyright

I'm imagining a world without copyright laws. I've completed my magnum opus–a rock n' roll album. I released the album to several distributors and I am waiting for revenue to start rolling in. But the big bucks will never come. After a few thousand purchases, the sales of my album drop despite its number-one spot on music charts. Instead of purchasing the album, fans are downloading and sharing my work for free on the Internet. In the end I hardly cover the production cost of the album. In the real world, a world with copyright laws, my album would be able to make a profit. Extremists are motioning there is no need to copyright anymore, and copyrighting itself stifles creativity. However, copyrights create money. Part of the fuel behind creativity is compensation for a job well done. Without the income that copyrighting creates, I would be less motivated to produce a high quality version of my album.

Electronic donations

The recent earthquakes in Haiti and Chile have started a wave of electronic-donation resources. These resources enable people to make donations to relief organizations and allow people to keep tabs on relief efforts. Such resources are a new avenue for people who, after witnessing such catastrophes, feel helpless to offer aid, but want to help. Electronic donations have also made it a lot easier to contribute. Now there is the opportunity to contribute anytime, anywhere. For example, many phone companies are allowing subscribers to use their cellphone accounts to pledge support by sending a text message to a specified number. Faster and more accessible ways to donate are allowing support to get to those in need in an expedient manner–resulting in a greater number of saved lives.

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Embracing Change

What does it take for a society to embrace a different way of doing something? Our current system of consuming electricity starts at a central power plant. The energy produced is then directed to homes through an extensive network of substations and power lines. Large costs go into each foot of the electrical infrastructure. Conversely, a new model for energy consumption has been created by Bloom Energy. This week, Bloom Energy released plans for the new electrical infrastructure that would put a micro power plant in every backyard. The company's plans outline a greener and more cost efficient way to produce and consume energy with a device called the Bloombox. But the current energy model is very invested into landlines and large power production companies. With a better model that saves money and stamps a green footprint in every yard, is there a obligation to convert society? I'm not talking about a single product, but the entire way that we think about energy consumption. A way that we've unanimously followed sense Tesla created the energy framework.

The Cuckoo's egg

In medieval times, castles with thick walls were constructed to protect persons and their possessions. Sadly, there have always been offenders who plunder for a profit. At first, arrows and rocks were used to attack. Then black powder and cannons changed the battle field. Today, the networked world first defended itself with passwords. Only the exact combination of characters could open the door. Then holes in operating systems and communication networks allowed modern pillagers to hack there way into sensitive information. The story of Cliff Stoll is evidence of a computer hacker's genesis cannon shot. The days of simple password protection crumbled after Cliff found out how far Markus Hess penetrated into government websites. Warfare requires rules and the prosecution of rule breakers. WWII produced the Geneva convention. The convention rules cross boundaries and allow the prosecution of war criminals. At the end of The Cuckoo's Egg, Markus Hess still walked free from his crime. There's no need for a cyber world war before standardized laws are created, allowing the prosecution of cyber criminals in other nations. With a law comes the ability to prosecute offenders. The cyber history of the networked world is still young. But the lessons learned from past warfare can be applied to the fresh battle field of computers. Governments need to plan, prepare, and protect now for future nuclear cyber attacks. Learning from the past lends to a safer and better prepared future.

Total Genealogy

One use of computers is to connect lives through genealogy. Relative's records, both of the living and of the dead, are linked together online. Personal lineages have been combined to form vast online databases of the human family. Though the information transition from personal pedigree to the online community happened seamlessly, there now needs to be a union of all the different online repositories of genealogical information. That is, there is a need if the end goal is to create a single bank of connected names for all humanity to reference. There is, however, a problem. The issue lies with online-pedigree databases that focus on profiting from the names collected. How do you combine information when segments are held under lock and key? I feel that, if money is to be made from genealogy, let it be made by creating applications that access a database of all gathered names, and not from the slice of the names to which someone has the rights.