Sun Taken by Oracle

Sun Microsystems, creator of the highly popular and successful internet technology, Java has been taken in merger by the database giant, Oracle. This acquisition, announced in April of 99 (Roe, 2010) has gone through all the channels, and is official as of January 27, 2010 (Oracle, 2010). It is somewhat hard to believe that the company responsible for Java is gone, leaving nothing but its technological fingerprints for another company to capitalize on, but Sun is no more. Oracle holds Java now. What will they do with it?

It was in 1995 that Java was first released as Java. Since then, Java has exploded into many areas of online and industrial uses (Oracle, n.d.). The trick that Java had, that other languages did not, is a little something called a Virtual Machine. Java language programs where not designed to run on hardware, but on software that was written for any targeted platform. Write the virtual machine for a platform, and any Java program would run on that platform, without porting or recompiling the Java program. This made Java a great web language, and new platform for games, business software, and mobile phones.

Oracle is probably best known for database solution software, although they are in a variety of markets. They have a professional collaboration software suite called ‘Beehive’, beside E-business solutions and a wide range of other technologies that they have acquired in the past few years by other mergers and intellectual property deals (Brown , 2009) (Brodkin, 2007). Their software has a large customer base in the telecommunications, financial, and health care industries (Oracle, 2010). Now with the acquisition of Sun, they have a new slogan, “Software. Hardware. Complete. (Oracle, 2010)”

With more than a dozen acquisitions, mergers, and intellectual property deals by Oracle in the past few years (Brown , 2009) (Brodkin, 2007), why is the new slogan ‘Complete’ with this acquisition of Sun Microsystems? The answer is Java. “[Java] is the most important software Oracle has ever acquired (Guseva, 2010) “. Several of Oracle’s software products are rooted in Java technology (Oracle, 2010). They have vowed in press releases to continue developing Java, with a large sum devoted to research and development for the next incarnations of the technology (Guseva, 2010). I have no doubt that Oracle will try to curve Java in a direction that makes their other solutions easier to develop, and implement.

The Java buzz has died down in the past half decade, with other technologies landing on the internet. Could this new spark of development funds push Java abilities back into the spotlight? What new abilities will Java have when Oracle is finished with this next Java push? Whatever Oracle comes up with, Java will be back in the spotlight. Only time will tell if they destroy, or enhance it.

Resources:

Brodkin, J. (2007, October 12). Oracle's 12 acquisitions since january 2007 . Retrieved from http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/101207-oracle-acquisitions.html

Brown , B. (2009, April 20). Before Sun: oracle's recent acquisitions. Retrieved from http://www.cio.com/article/491362/Before_Sun_Oracle_s_Recent_Acquisitions?page=1 &taxonomyId=3112

Guseva, I. (2010, February 18). Oracle + sun: what it means for content management. Retrieved from http://www.cmswire.com/cms/enterprise-cms/oracle-sun-what-it-means-for- content-management-006561.php

Oracle. (2010, February). Oracle website. Retrieved from http://www.oracle.com/us/

Oracle, . (n.d.). The Java history timeline. Retrieved from http://www.java.com/en/javahistory/timeline.jsp

Roe, D. (2010, January 22). Oracle gets eu thumbs-up for sun acquisition. Retrieved from http://www.cmswire.com/cms/enterprise-cms/oracle-gets-eu-thumbsup-for-sun- acquisition-006483.php

The Greatest Show on Earth

What do you get when you mix common sand, metal oxide, a pinch of witches brew, 400 million dollars in venture capitol and then bake it for six hours?
What you get is either an energy source that will save the earth or a hoax of the proportion that PT Barnum would be proud of. That is exactly what the world is waiting to see.

Bloom Energy has mounted a massive media blitz. It started last Sunday with an exposé on the news television show 60 minutes. On the show, the inventor K.R. Sridhar, (who was an ex NASA scientist) explained that this was the best thing since sliced bread. KR went on to explain that his research was originally to design a method to produce oxygen on the planet Mars. When NASA torpedoed that plan KR decided to reverse engineer the process and came up with a device that would burn fuel like natural gas and produce electricity and water as a byproduct. You ask what is this miracle invention ? It’s a fuel cell

OK the hype, Kleiner Perkins has raised over 400 millions dollars in venture capital which by any measure is not chump change. This company has been an early investor in more than 300 IT and biotech firms, including: Amazon.com, Electronic Arts, Genentech, Google, Intuit, Netscape, Segway and Sun Microsystems with a record like this of eight hits and one miss (Segway) you can see the buzz starting develop add some famous personalities’ like the former secretary of state Colin Powell who is on board of directors for Bloom and the governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger. For the topping add some customers including Bank of America, Coca-Cola, eBay, FedEx, Google and Wal-Mart, who are showing sizable reductions in both energy costs and CO2 emissions.

A power generator that saves money and the environment? This must be Tomorrowland! And just like that you have gotten the attention of million of people from investors looking for the next Google to earth huggers searching for another way to save the earth.

The reality, fuel cells have been around since the 1960’s they were used to power the Apollo spacecrafts and currently power the space shuttles. They are also used to power buses and produce electricity for some commercial businesses. Part of the appeal is the tax credit that realized for purchasing these devices, in addition to the federal government some states most notability California is also offering tax credit. Therefore there should be no surprise that most of Bloom customers are located there.

On the down side they are expensive to manufacture, operate at extremely high temperature, which can reach 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit and a short life span of ten years. Not to mention the other byproduct that it produces is CO2, our favorite greenhouse gas.

Will it be our salvation or just another hoax just like the discovery of cold fusion? It will take years to determine, but in the meant time as sign in Barnum's American Museum proudly displayed “This way to the Egress”






http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35590515/ns/technology_and_science-innovation/

http://cleanenergysector.com/2010/02/10-things-to-know-about-bloom-energy/

http://www.bloomenergy.com/

Karen Johnson - Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentines Day?

"Other forms of social problems involve the easy access to pornography and “cybersex”. There has been the designing of wireless sex suits which supposedly gives the user a virtual sexual experience via teledildonic [sic] devices that, it turns out, look a lot like dildonic [sic] devices (Stein, 2000). The suits apparently frighten the users more than pleasure them, but development of such devices progresses as a way to wirelessly enjoy sex. A social decline and rise in wireless forms of communication has replaced intimate talking and face-to-face interactions with images of sensual arousal and sex performed in real time via a digital medium." (Javadi 2005)

I was both interested in delving deeper into ethics along with researching what some of the latest and greatest technological offering in the arenas of wireless communications, mobile devices and the internet. Initially the thought was to find what was the societal impact of wireless communication in terms of it's origination and development and impact on future technology. This class has been about how we use the internet and this technology to communicate with one another. I know that a lot of this technology takes away from the face to face communication and even the use of the telephone but this technology referenced above takes this to another level of “non person to person” communication.

Like many other parents, I often lament over the fact that the best way to reach my 22 and 24 year old children is to send them a text message. Heck the best way to reach just about anyone now is to send a text message, well maybe except for my parents, but they still don't even have call waiting on their phone. Our society is moving to a world were telecommuting for work is becoming ever increasingly popular, even online class offerings are filling a much needed niche in our educational system. While there are many many positive uses for this technology this, in my opinion, bizarre article saddens me to think that what should be an very intimate, loving, caring act with another human being can be turned looked at, researched and possibly further developed so that sex is truly “cybersex” with no face to face, no vocal communication, no real communication with another human being. I am offering these thoughts, views up for discussion and comment. Just where are we going with this?

Reference

Kia Javadi (2005) Impact Of Wireless Technology On Society, Retrieved from http://www.askkia.com/articles/societal-impact-of-wireless-technology-on-society.html

Not as Good?

Some say that online classes and degree programs are not as good as traditional classes. Arleen Bejerano writes, “A Second Argument against online education is that students enrolled in online courses need to be self-disciplined in order to succeed (Bejerano, 2008).” If you read the argument carefully, it is, in effect, saying that requiring self discipline is a bad thing. These are the type of weak arguments be made against online education. They take the attributes of online classes that make them better, and turn them into bad things. With experience in both, I can say that online education is, in many ways, superior to a traditional classroom.

Arleen Bejerano argues that Social Integration with the campus helps the student. In 2001, I attended classes at a local community college. I went, sat in the class, heard the lecture, and read the book while the professor was talking. When class was over, I didn’t want to go home, and write a paper about what I had already spent the day hearing about. Instead I went to the student center, and played a few games of pool. Then when I got home, it was not time to get to work on my paper, but it was time hang out with my friends. After all, class was over. In an online class, that has no ‘class time’, all time is class time. My mind stays engaged on the subject, even when I work or play. This dynamic does far more for me than having access to campus life did, back when I was playing pool. At best, the “Social Integration”, that Bejerano writes so highly about, only served me as a distraction, which degraded my attention to the subject. The Social Integration of campus life is not required to learn the subject, but studying is required to learn the subject. When Social integration cuts on study time, then it is not a good thing to have.

The second argument that Bejerano brings, quoted above, is the weakest argument of all. It is true that online classes require self discipline of the students (Bejerano, 2008). However, this difficulty is a good thing, not a bad thing. It has brought the best out of me, in terms of my personal scheduling ability, and activity evaluation. You don’t find me at the pool hall any more, when a paper needs to be written. You find me at the computer researching, thinking, and typing. Placing the times and learning outcomes in the hands of the learner teaches self discipline. If the student fails, then the student should have spent more time on the subject. If students refuse to acknowledge this, then they should not have the degrees they are seeking. This is true of any classroom type, either online, or traditional class, and the reason we have grades. Classes should not be easy, but they should weed out the students who truly do not have the self discipline and mental facilities to qualify them for the degree.

The only valid argument against online learning for the student is due to a misconception about online learning. It is the fifth argument supplied by Bejerano, that online degrees “are not as marketable as traditional degrees (Bejerano, 2008).” The misconception is that an online degree is easier to obtain than a traditional degree. This thought is hinted at in Bejerano’s article in some places, as she contradicts herself with her first and second arguments, which pose the online degree as more difficult. In terms of subject matter mastery, an online degree is more difficult to obtain.

The misconception that an online degree is easier baffles me, because the same people, like Bejerano, also argue that too much self discipline is needed, and drop out rate is higher, calling this type of difficulty a bad thing. If fewer people can do it, then how is it easier? Also, if it screens for higher qualities, like self discipline, then why is that bad? Perhaps they argue against it both ways, because they don’t have the self discipline required to get a degree this way, and they are intimidated by those who can. The result is a lash-out against the idea, saying that it is too easy to be a real degree. As long as the intimidated can keep the idea that it is less of a degree, they can feel safe in their jobs. How far can a self starting, self thinking, self disciplined employee shoot above another employee who needs the boss to tell them to get to work, due to lack of self discipline?

I often wonder if the people who argue against online learning have ever tried it. The online learning environment is challenging and stimulating. In online classes, I am pressed to use my own brain to study, research, and produce independent works in a way that a traditional class cannot match. I don’t have somebody telling me the subject; I have to read it, research it, and think about it. I have to budget my time, and communicate on purpose to get it done. Attending school has become about learning to think, instead of learning how to hear a lecture and sit in a chair. Developing self discipline, instead of requiring external discipline, is a positive side effect.

Reference:

Bejerano, A. (2008). The Genesis and Evolution of Online Degree Programs: Who Are They For and What Have We Lost Along The Way?. Communication Education, 57(3), 408-414. doi:10.1080/03634520801993697.

Digital Storytelling

For thousands of years, information was disseminated via storytelling. Individuals had to remember things and spread the word via storytelling rituals. Centuries later, the printing press was invented which allowed mass production of information and history was documented in writing. My personal opinion is the most abrupt advancement has been the Internet which has provided vast amounts of information to the average person beyond anything in history.

In the 1960’s, Marshall McLuhan quoted, “Today each of us lives several hundred years in a decade”. These words are equally appropriate in the 21st century with social networking sites such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. All of these sites require active user participation making each of us an “author” launching a whole new digital age of storytelling and making the printing press obsolete. I am excited to see what the next technological advancement will be and I bet it won’t take centuries to discover.

McLuhan quote retrieved from http://www.springerlink.com/content/d333l83427057462/

Do your actions come across clear?

In a recent study of group research, Stephenson Beck, and Joann Keyton state, “To understand the connection between group member perception of communication messages and actual communication messages, new research methodologies are needed.” (Beck, S. 2009)

After reading the article entitled “Perceiving Strategic Meeting Interaction”, I found their research on meeting interactions quite interesting. This article went on to observe a small group of department heads conducting a weekly meeting of their company. Each person played their part well. Some members of the group were more prominent than others. To follow up with my quote, these two have done a great job at fulfilling their attempt to gather information in new ways. Six participants were chosen to be a part of this group including Jim, Don, Katie, Mark, Cal, and Lynn. At the end of the focus group, the participants were asked to review their participation and make statements on their intentions at each point in the conversation. Katie and Don were perceived as fighting according to Mark and Jim while they both tried to explain their point of view in their conclusions. A great point made during the recap of the interview was how tone and targeting of questions toward one person affects each person’s view of the conversation. This is also a big factor with regards to email messages, especially in my place of employment.

I frequently struggle with perception of messages due to the email factor. Tone is non –existent when working with an email, unless followed by some sort of smiley face. There are a lot of things I might find negative, while others see no problem with it. Individual perception is extremely important and being able to see the results of a professional study helped shed a little light on how communication unfolds, even in a small group.

In summary, I think further study groups like this could benefit not only individuals, but also promote a better sense of team building if everyone was able to understand the fundamentals of their speech. I would also be interested in finding out if they have done any other research conducted specifically toward internet communications within the work place.


References
Beck,S. (2009, April). Perciving strategic meeting interaction. Retrieved from http://sgr.sagepub.com.dml.regis.edu/cgi/reprint/40/2/223

Ways to a Better Life- Volunteer

Herman Melville wrote: "We cannot live for ourselves alone. Our lives are connected by a thousand invisible threads, and along these sympathetic fibers, our actions run as causes and return to us as results."

There have been numerous studies that indicate that people who volunteer are happier and healthier. Those who volunteer feel more connection to their community, and live longer. Volunteering provides confidence, and a feeling of well being to those who go out into the world to help others in need. Herman Melville expressed this thought when he wrote the above about volunteering. In a world where people get more self-involved, volunteering allows each of us to contribute to someone else. The connection of “…a thousand invisible threads…” lets us know that every person we pass in the street is connected to us in some way. So we need to contribute to those people so that our lives are just as fulfilled.

The final part of the quote “…our actions run as causes and return to us as results” brings to light the organizations need for volunteers. There are also many different organizations that rely on volunteers to survive. These organizations range from children’s organizations to organizations that provide support for disaster areas. All of these organizations cannot survive without volunteers and many of those who volunteer find they cannot live without these organizations.

In the past it was hard to track down organizations that fit both the volunteer’s needs and the organizations needs. In today’s modern society there is no excuse to not find an organization that fits a person’s needs. Many organizations now are advertised on the web. There are even many different organizations that have volunteer needs on the internet. All it takes to find an organization in need is a click of a mouse key. Today it is easier than ever to gain the benefits of volunteering by just searching the internet.

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,948218-3,00.html#ixzz0fAnN2Q46

Desperate Internet Housewives by Jennifer D.

“The computer screen is the gateway to new forms of negotiation and relationship building by enabling individual imaginations to meet with the collective imaginings of others through various online communities of television fans.” (Bowen, 2008, p.569).

The purpose of this blog is to explore how people have become more intimate with their favorite fictional television characters and how this behavior is shared with other like-minded viewers participating in fan websites (Bowen, 2008, p.570).

In the past, television programs could only be viewed once a week based on the networks programmed schedule. If you missed a new episode, you would most likely fall behind and not be able to catch up again until the network showed a re-run of the episode. Now that television networks have established websites with streaming video, people are able to watch their favorite television programs at any time during the week or even watch several episodes in one sitting.

More importantly, viewers can now develop a more personal attachment to their favorite television characters by becoming more familiar with them. The Internet has provided a way for viewers to create fan websites where information regarding the television program can be shared with other viewers. The creation of these websites has led to new Internet communities, where viewers can discuss their favorite characters and plots. New cyberspace friendships emerge and this online experience is “more likely to shift viewers’ sense of intimacy and connectivity to distant others, fictional or otherwise” (Bowen, 2008, p.570).

In conclusion, the Internet has provided a way for television viewers to enhance their fondness of a television program and it’s characters by bringing it to life on the Internet. The experience is then enhanced when the viewer is able to connect with other online users who share similar interests and opinions.

References:

Bowen, T. (2008). Romancing the screen: an examination of moving from television to the world wide web in a quest for quasi-intimacy. Journal of Popular Culture 41:4, 569-590. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-5931.2008.00537.x

Cyberlearning & Cyber-Squirming - by Russ Smith

Camilla Anne Czubaj once wrote, "Communication is defined as the transmission of information, the transmission of understanding, and the use of common symbols (2002). Looking a bit deeper into Czubaj’s comments, one could easily see that the author is able to comprehend how communication can be used to not only transmit ideas, thoughts and information, but she focuses on how learning must be understood by those involved. Taking a closer look into Czubaj’s study, allows one to see the results of cyberlearning and its effects on children.

When Czubaj conducted her examination into how cyberlearning affects children, she was able to grasp the human side of such a technological frontier. As the world continues its never-ending quest for faster modes of communication, it's easy to lose sight of the fact that we’re communicating with one another, rather than a programmed cyberbot. Yet, no matter how much fluidity one may try to incorporate into their communication, there seems to be a lack of real human understanding and support, which Czubaj tried to examine in her study. How often has one tried to complete an online course, only to wonder who or what is on the other end? For many people—online communication, especially that which accompanies online learning—the lack of support, the sound of a human voice, and in particular, face-to-face interaction with fellow classmates and the instructor, can be very overwhelming.

Throughout her study, Czubaj explored how students learned, the various learning styles associated with web-based courses, as well as with how educational administrators dealt with at-risk students. There were also a number of objectives that Czubaj was searching for which included: the demographic characteristics of the students, motivation and learning strategies, and how specific learning styles affect motivation and achievement. Moreover, it was Czubaj's intent to find out how cyberlearning would affect at-risk students, if at all.

Just as Czubaj conducted her own study on how cyberlearning affects children, I was quite nervous about re-entering the educational realm as a working adult. Not only did I have to contend with life outside of the classroom, but I had to worry about time management, accessing my assignments, figuring out what was required from one class to the next, and coming face to face with my own level of confidence. Could I really succeed as an adult cyberlearner? While there have been a few struggles, I have found my experiences to be quite interesting and rewarding. Yes, there are the intrinsic rewards that one looks for, but being a cyberstudent has significantly increased my confidence; pushing me to reach both educational and professional goals that I may not have sought out otherwise. Cyberlearning taught me to rely on my abilities to search for answers on my own without seeking assistance through technical support or via the instructor. Furthermore, I believe that online learning has allowed me to take chances with my writing; expanding my creativity through the various writing assignments that I’ve had thus far.

Interestingly enough, Czubaj found that web-based learning not only improved self-confidence for at-risk students, it also promoted positive communication between classmates and the instructor. Furthermore, while there is some positive feedback from Czubaj's study, she did find that cyberlearners can sometimes run into many of the same issues that I ran into when I embarked on my own journey of self-discovery as an adult student. She noted that lack of communication cues such as gestures, facial expressions, and consistent instructor feedback was a problem for the children in the study. Furthermore, she also found that technological problems and instructor ambiguity led several students to drop the cybercourse altogether.

While cyberlearning can be difficult for both children and adults, it's clear that the methods used for such instruction has both positive and negative effects. Such effects, however, will only increase over time, thus leading to a similar conclusion found in Czubaj's report in which students dropped the course. And although I have struggled with some of the courses that I have had at Regis, I shall continue to recommend web-based learning to those who may not have the time to sit in, nor do they want to deal with the traditional classroom environment.

References:
Czubaj, C.A. (2002). A Study of Studies: Cyberspace Communications, 123(2). Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.dml.regis.edu/ehost/detail?vid =3&hid=13&sid=18d24dc8-4fdd-43c7-b4c8-00caf5d44b89%40sessionmgr4
&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbG12ZQ%3d%3d#db=ufh&AN=9134797

Did you hear what I heard ?.......by mikie b

‘The history of the social impact of technology reveals the existing connections between a particular type of technology and a specific form of society. Not every technology serves any society, nor can every society absorb any kind of technology. Insofar as the technological factor is the instrumental variable, and given that machines are incapable, still, of dictating social ideals, it falls exclusively to the social body to determine the models of coexistence that it wants to establish
Piscitelli, Alejandro (2002) Ciberculturas 2.0, Paidos, Buenos Aires.


We are in the age of machines. Not unlike the industrial revolution of the 1800's which was fueled by the invention of the steam engines, this present day one is driven by the electronics revolution. Never in history have communication and technology combined to become such a global force. What drives this development of science and technologies is the overwhelming need to consolidate power. For in order to maintain power you must be stronger then your adversary As the jailer in George Orwell’s 1984 says: that power is not a means to an end, that the object of power is power it self.

This technology also has an effect on global politics. More then 90% of the scientific research takes place in a handful of nations. This results in a technological gap which in turn becomes a powerful source of dependency for the majority of nations. This technology of politics can be seen quite vividly in the election process which has fast become a media spectacle. This as the candidate’s try to sell their image as their consultants put “spin” on the news stores that incessantly appear on our televisions.

As it was with the ending of the Cold War which was to be the beginning of a new world era of open borders and trade World leaders and Economists spoke of an global economy where the cup of wealth would overflow on to the less fortunate thereby creating a worldly paradise it never happened. We continue to live in a world of have and have not’s. So how do we strike a balance between this revolution and human dignity? We need communication that cultivates a community thereby enabling the silenced to be heard and denouncing discrimination and oppression.
http://web.ebscohost.com.dml.regis.edu/ehost/pdf?vid=4&hid=5&sid=48254566-eb1c-4e1a-830d-333c15ca3649%40sessionmgr4