"The world is changing fast and we are fed with opinion that internet does more bad than good and that the addictive nature of the internet has drawn people away from the habit of reading. ...
It’s time to spread the message to the world that though teens feel it’s cool to drop books and newspapers and chose the internet as an alternative, media moguls whose businesses thrive on the internet allow books and newspapers to complement the internet. Reading is an activity that one can cherish which also allows a peep into the diverse cultures of the world and a way into the hearts of creative individuals. Some might argue that videos on the internet do the same. Books do it in a way that make memories last longer."
More: http://www.nation.lk/edition/undo/item/12572-why-books-shouldn%E2%80%99t-die.html
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Showing posts with label Internet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Internet. Show all posts
02/12/2012
30/11/2012
The battle for your thoughts
"We have this position where as we know knowledge is power, and there’s a mass transfer as a result of literally billions of interceptions per day going from everyone, the average person, into the data vaults of state spying agencies for the big countries, and their cronies – the corporations that help build them that infrastructure. ...
The people who control the interception of the internet and, to some degree also, physically control the big data warehouses and the international fiber-optic lines. We all think of the internet as some kind of Platonic Realm where we can throw out ideas and communications and web pages and books and they exist somewhere out there. Actually, they exist on web servers in New York or Nairobi or Beijing, and information comes to us through satellite connections or through fiber-optic cables.
So whoever physically controls this controls the realm of our ideas and communications. And whoever is able to sit on those communications channels, can intercept entire nations, and that’s the new game in town, as far as state spying is concerned – intercepting entire nations, not individuals."
More: http://rt.com/news/assange-internet-control-totalitarian-943/
SpyWriter Jack King "A new King of thrillers on the horizon" www.SpyWriter.com
The people who control the interception of the internet and, to some degree also, physically control the big data warehouses and the international fiber-optic lines. We all think of the internet as some kind of Platonic Realm where we can throw out ideas and communications and web pages and books and they exist somewhere out there. Actually, they exist on web servers in New York or Nairobi or Beijing, and information comes to us through satellite connections or through fiber-optic cables.
So whoever physically controls this controls the realm of our ideas and communications. And whoever is able to sit on those communications channels, can intercept entire nations, and that’s the new game in town, as far as state spying is concerned – intercepting entire nations, not individuals."
More: http://rt.com/news/assange-internet-control-totalitarian-943/
SpyWriter Jack King "A new King of thrillers on the horizon" www.SpyWriter.com
11/02/2012
Literature vs Social Networking. And the winner is...
"There can be no doubt that books are losing ground to other pastimes, especially electronic ones.
Educators see this as a problem because as social media becomes popular, young people are missing out on the many benefits of reading, including increased vocabulary, improved cognitive skills and improved concentration.
Good literature communicates with its readers on a personal level and gives them insights into the world around them in a way that news reports and twitter updates simply can’t. se of the time than we could get from reading about the major events in a history book. We connect with the story and the characters and in doing so, we come to understand that period in history.
And that’s not the only thing we understand. We develop sympathy for some of the characters. We make value judgements about the actions of other ones. We make a mental picture of the events in the novel. We engage our intellects and our imaginations when we read. Books broaden our horizons and inspire us. Furthermore, the impact lasts much longer than the shelf life of the average Internet sensation."
More: http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=editorial&NewsID=22718
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www.SPYWRITER.com
Educators see this as a problem because as social media becomes popular, young people are missing out on the many benefits of reading, including increased vocabulary, improved cognitive skills and improved concentration.
Good literature communicates with its readers on a personal level and gives them insights into the world around them in a way that news reports and twitter updates simply can’t. se of the time than we could get from reading about the major events in a history book. We connect with the story and the characters and in doing so, we come to understand that period in history.
And that’s not the only thing we understand. We develop sympathy for some of the characters. We make value judgements about the actions of other ones. We make a mental picture of the events in the novel. We engage our intellects and our imaginations when we read. Books broaden our horizons and inspire us. Furthermore, the impact lasts much longer than the shelf life of the average Internet sensation."
More: http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=editorial&NewsID=22718
### END OF POST ###
www.SPYWRITER.com
07/02/2012
Writers as performance artists
In today's world, where online presence and public appearances are often stipulated in publishing contracts, writers are, basically, performance artists. Does it impact their writing, and should it?
"Through the last century, the relationship between readers and writers was largely impersonal. The reader related in the first instance to a book, not to its writer; and writers, for their part, did not confront their audience directly in the manner of musicians, singers, actors and so on. This was ... one of the reasons why writers were able to take greater risks in hurling defiance at society at large.
The situation has changed dramatically in recent years. The internet ... has made it possible to subject writers to great pressure ... If this process continues unchecked, its impact on the freedom of thought and expression may be greater than any explicit policy of repression."
"literature is coming to be embedded within a wider culture of public spectacles and performances. This process, which got underway almost imperceptibly, has now achieved a momentum where it seems to be overtaking, and indeed overwhelming, writing itself as the primary end of a life in letters.
A frequently heard argument in favour of book festivals is that they provide a venue for writers to meet the reading public. Although appealing, this argument is based on a flawed premise in that it assumes that attendance is equivalent to approbation. Books, by their very nature often give offence and create outrage, and this is bound to be especially so in circumstances where there are deep anxieties about how certain groups are perceived and represented.
Performances are secondary and inessential to a writer’s work. Our books, which are our principal vehicles of expression, can reach people through impersonal mechanisms.
Public spectacles are a sideshow."
More: http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/ColumnsOthers/Writings-not-writers/Article1-807658.aspx
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www.SPYWRITER.com
"Through the last century, the relationship between readers and writers was largely impersonal. The reader related in the first instance to a book, not to its writer; and writers, for their part, did not confront their audience directly in the manner of musicians, singers, actors and so on. This was ... one of the reasons why writers were able to take greater risks in hurling defiance at society at large.
The situation has changed dramatically in recent years. The internet ... has made it possible to subject writers to great pressure ... If this process continues unchecked, its impact on the freedom of thought and expression may be greater than any explicit policy of repression."
"literature is coming to be embedded within a wider culture of public spectacles and performances. This process, which got underway almost imperceptibly, has now achieved a momentum where it seems to be overtaking, and indeed overwhelming, writing itself as the primary end of a life in letters.
A frequently heard argument in favour of book festivals is that they provide a venue for writers to meet the reading public. Although appealing, this argument is based on a flawed premise in that it assumes that attendance is equivalent to approbation. Books, by their very nature often give offence and create outrage, and this is bound to be especially so in circumstances where there are deep anxieties about how certain groups are perceived and represented.
Performances are secondary and inessential to a writer’s work. Our books, which are our principal vehicles of expression, can reach people through impersonal mechanisms.
Public spectacles are a sideshow."
More: http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/ColumnsOthers/Writings-not-writers/Article1-807658.aspx
### END OF POST ###
www.SPYWRITER.com
30/11/2011
What hacker-activists have in common with secret services
"WikiLeaks raises the question as to what hackers have in common with secret services, since an elective affinity between the two is unmistakable. The love-hate relationship goes back to the very beginning of computing. One does not have to be a fan of German media theorist Friedrich Kittler or, for that matter, conspiracy theories, to acknowledge that the computer was born out of the military-industrial complex. From Alan Turing's deciphering of the Nazi Enigma code up to the role played by the first computers in the invention of the atomic bomb, from the cybernetics movement up to the Pentagon's involvement in the creation of the Internet – the articulation between computational information and the military-industrial complex is well established. Computer scientists and programmers have shaped the information revolution and the culture of openness; but at the same time they have also developed encryption ("crypto"), closing access to data for the non-initiated. What some see as "citizen journalism" others call "info war".
WikiLeaks is also an organization deeply shaped by 1980s hacker culture, combined with the political values of techno-libertarianism that emerged in the 1990s. The fact that WikiLeaks was founded – and to a large extent is still run – by hard-core geeks is essential to understanding its values and moves. Unfortunately, this comes together with a good dose of the less savoury aspects of hacker culture. Not that idealism, the desire to contribute to making the world a better place, could be denied to WikiLeaks: on the contrary. But this brand of idealism (or, if you prefer, anarchism) is paired with a preference for conspiracies, an elitist attitude and a cult of secrecy (never mind condescension). This is not conducive to collaboration with like-minded people and groups, who are relegated to being the simple consumers of WikiLeaks output. The missionary zeal to enlighten the idiotic masses and "expose" the lies of government, the military and corporations is reminiscent of the well-known (or infamous) media-culture paradigm from the 1950s."
MORE: http://www.eurozine.com/articles/2010-12-07-lovinkriemens-en.html
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www.SpyWriter.com
04/02/2010
What is LOL
Recently I came across two examples of inappropriate uses of the common online expression LOL. Both parties used it in emails, to express sympathy for the loss of a friend. Presumably they meant: Lots Of Love, noneteless it made my hair rise. LOL!
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