blog #3

The digital divide encompasses both a national and regional concern.  It addresses issues regarding third world countries, skilled workers, and the overall divide in the world.  

One argument presented in “Internet Freedom: Controversy” is that everyone should have the skills it takes to compete in the economy.  This is one side of the debate in the UK, in which Tony Blair has supported this claim.  Minorities should be allowed a voice and should be given the opportunity to participate.

In the US, Al Gore has addressed the issue of language, race, and civil rights in connection to the digital divide.  However, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, it states that race divide is getting smaller.  

However, when talking to some people, such as the CEO of Netnoir.com, David Ellington, he believes the digtal divide is not an issue anymore.  

There is debate over what are the exact factors of the digital divide.  It varies such as race, gender, education, socioeconomic, and age to name a few.  

I used Yahoo.com. It is a search engine compared to a metasearch engine or subject directory.  

I searched terms such as “digital divide controversy,” “digital divide debate," both with and without quotes.  

First Site: One of the first sites I found was “Internet Freedom: Controversy.” http://www.netfreedom.org/controversy/latest/amis.asp

• Since the site included the authors names and the companies they are associated with, I believe that this site is accurate.  However, not knowing when it was written worries me that it could be old viewpoints reflected in the writings.  
• Internet Freedom is responsible for this site.  It is located in the UL and is a online free speech blog.  
• It does not specifically state how the site is funded, but it is a $35 fee to become a member.  Therefore, I assume they receive funding from their members.  
• There is no date given for the articles.
• What I liked about this article is that they present arguments that are presented in different countries.  Also, there are viewpoints given by individuals such as CEOs of companies.  
• Since the site does not include a date, old viewpoints may be reflected in this article.  Therefore, the site may be lacking updated opinions.  
  
  
  
  

Second Site: "Digital Divide" 

http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Digital_divide

• New World Encyclopedia is responsible for this site.  They work to provide information to the public, similar to wikipedia.  
• The site is funded by UPF/IIFWP and is under contract with Paragon House Publishers.
• This specific site was last updated on February 25, 2009.                                                                                                                                
• This site ties the issue of the digital divide to unequal physical access, resources, and skills.  The site acknowledges that there are a wide variety of causes, therefore increasing the number of debates associated with the digital divide.  
• I think this site does a good job at addressing the basic issue but does not go in depth about them like the other site.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

blog 2

I used AltaVista.  I have used it before and thought I would give it a try this time to see if it has changed.  

I searched "what is wifi" without quotations.  When searching just "WiFi," I got a lot of search results for WiFi companies.  

Two helpful sites were How Stuff Works http://computer.howstuffworks.com/wireless-network.htm and Country Mile WiFi http://countrymilewifi.com/what_is_wifi.html

How Stuff Works- "How Wifi Works"

The organization responsible for the site is the Discovery Company.  They post articles regarding how things work. 

How is the site funded?

   -  There is no page on the website that says who funds the site.

How current is the information?

   -  The page was first posted on April 30, 2001.

What useful information about how your technology works is there on the site?  Be sure to note any useful images and diagrams that would help explain and translate technical information for an audience of your peers. 

-   What I like about this website is that it provided many diagrams and visuals that would be helpful for our presentation.  

Given your answers to the questions above, what kind of information might be missing or unreliable on the site?  What other kinds of sites should you search for that might provide the missing information?

-  The site seems to provide a lot.  There are numerous pages to the article.  However, it does seem to cover WiFi on a broad level.  It we wanted to go further in explanation, a more detailed site would probably be useful.

Country Mile WiFi- "What is WiFi

What individual or organization is responsible for the site and what is their purpose or mission?

   -  The site is responsible by C. Crane Company, Inc. in Fortuna, CA.  

How is the site funded?

   -  It does not say how the site is funded but as I researched the site, they seem to sell different types of technology.  

How current is the information?

   -  There is no date given.  

What useful information about how your technology works is there on the site?  Be sure to note any useful images and diagrams that would help explain and translate technical information for an audience of your peers. 

   -  Again, this site uses a few diagrams to explain the process.  It also clearly lays out the different types and speeds of WiFi.  The site seems very introductory so the terminology used is not that difficult.  

Given your answers to the questions above, what kind of information might be missing or unreliable on the site?  What other kinds of sites should you search for that might provide the missing information?

-  It worries me that there is no date given as to when it was posted or updated.  It would be a good starting point site, but I would feel more comfortable using a site that has references and is updated with a date.  

About Wifi-

WiFi is wireless communication between computers and tech devices.  It is the way people access the internet without their computer or laptop being plugged in.  WiFi is also known as 802.11 networking.  Many airports, restaurants, libraries, and hotels have WiFi to allow people access to the internet at all times.  

The wireless network is created by radio waves, similar to cell phones and televisions.  The wireless adapter in the computer translates data into radio signals through an antenna.  The wireless router then receives the signal and reads the code.  The router is then able to send the information to the Internet using an Ethernet connection.  This process can also be done in the reverse.  WiFi transmits at a frequency of 2.4GHz or 5 GHz.  

Blog #1

I used yippy.com because it was a site we learned about in class and I have never tried using it before.    I was interested in how the site presents its results and the format of the site compared to other more common search engines.  

The two best sites you found: give the full URLs and URLs to any specific pages that are especially helpful.

http://www.newmedia.alma.edu/communication/303winter2002/digitaldivide/history.htm

http://www.edutopia.org/digital-generation-divide-connectivity

Information on http://www.newmedia.alma.edu/communication/303winter2002/digitaldivide/history.htm

• The Digital Divide Quest Group.  This group is run by a group of college students majoring in multiple areas of communication. 
• The site is does not state specifically who funds the group.  

• The copyright year is 2002.  However, there is a lot of history and concerns on the site, which does not particularly need to be updated or changed.  
• Along with the history of the digital divide, current concerns, and actions taking place, the site also has statistics.  These statistics cover the global perpective, U.S. perspective, telephone use, income and educational factors, and ICT statistics.  
• I feel that this site has a lot of information.  They do site authors throughout their writings, but I would like to know further information about the group and how updated it is.  Since they site the authors, I would look up those authors to see their specific writings.  

History Information Addressed:  In regards to economics, it changed the overall perception of information and it's cost and worth.  However, people felt that it could build a better future.  In the 1960s, the main focus was put of technical innovation.  Between 1960 and 1978, 400 billion dollars in taxpaying money was put towards research and development, which was mainly put towards military development.  This development then led to a society of information.  Due to federal deregulation, private industry was promoted.  This led to people feeling constrained when trying to create free information.  

The Clinton and Gore administration stressed there focus on the digital divide and finding solutions.

Information on http://www.edutopia.org/digital-generation-divide-connectivity

• Edutopia.  Edutopia is an organization that supports educational reform.  It focuses on research and promoting helpful learning environments.  They work with students that are struggling by forming a community of leaders and improving online tools and resources for educators to share.  
• The site is funded through donations towards The George Lucas Educational Foundation 
• This specific article was originally published on October 27, 2009.
• This article gives a great run down on the history.  It is brief but provides may links to people and organizations that they reference.  This article would be good to use as a starting point.  I learned in the article that Hammond, one of the co-inventors of the phrase "digital divide" now teaches at the SCU Law School!  
• It seems as though it is a reliable source since it is a .org site.  The author of the specific article is a political and architectural writer, but I could find no further information about his educational background.  To get further information about the topics in the article, I would visit the sites they provide as links on the page.  

History Information Addressed:  The article fights that the digital divide may have not become a national issue until 1991 when the High Performance Computing Act was passed.  This act funded the fiber otic network that led to the internet.  Between 1991 and 1996, the number of personal computers owned went from 300,000 to over 10 million.  After that, search engine sites became popular, making the internet even more popular.  During this boom of technology use, the Clinton administration noticed the potential of technology being unequally distributed.  The National Telecommunications & Information Administration recognized this as a problem in 1995.  A White House aide, Albert Hammond addressed the issue that jobs will eventually require computer and internet knowledge.  Hammond and Larry Irving co-created the term "digital divide."