Changes

I have never been a change agent myself, but I do remember the system analysts trying to convince my fellow employees and myself that his new system at work was going to be great. In 2010 the health insurance company I worked for changed everything about the platform we processed claims on(this was terrible). We switched from a program called COSMOS to an IBM based platform called PCOMM. The initial week was so hectic. The program would not run properly, the windows would freeze all the time, and everybody hated it. The company was still having these same issues even after I moved. I know it was all done to save money, but that was definitely the wrong decision.
This is my first semester at CCC so I never experienced the old system, but I really do appreciate the systems we have. Everything on Moodle is straight forward and easy to follow. I frequently make use of all the features it offers. I would have liked to see what was used prior, but this works for me. It definitely is a positive change for me.

Cybercrime

As far as I know I have not been a victim of cybercrime. I hope it stays that way! I don't have the time or the energy to deal with credit card companies, or identity theft protection agencies. But, cybercrime is a very real threat today. So taking the proper precautions is key in avoiding this unfortunate event.
I personally only give my social security number or make online purchases to websites I absolutely trust. If I am even the slightest bit hesitant of a website I don't pull the trigger. Websites that have a (s) at the end of the http in the beginning of the URL, or a combo lock symbol on the bottom of the screen on the website mean that these websites are SECURE and use encryption. This lets you know you can trust them.
I see cybercrime rates increasing over the next five years due to the fact that more an more companies are encouraging online bill pay, and many people are doing all of their shopping online. This means the security must be ramped up as well in order to avoid this most unfortunate event form occurring.

Convergence

Convergence

The technology device that I choose is..........the smartphone! How original huh!!? I know it probably will be the most popular response to the convergence discussion, but there is a reason for that. Off the top of my head I can think of four other devices I own that would become obsolete if I had a smart phone. I write down my school assignments and my daily schedule on paper still. BOOM! The smartphone takes care of that. I love my i-Pod and listen to music a lot. BAM! The smartphone has MP3 capabilities. I rely on my GPS for travel. BOOM! The smart phone has built in GPS. Oh, and it is a phone. Good by old crappy cell phone!
Convergence is a beautiful thing.

My PC

The Computer I use for school is a HP laptop that uses Windows 7 for its OS. I love using Windows 7. Vista! Not so much!
The things I appreciate most about my computer would be:

• The storage 300GB.
• The RAM 4GB.
• The screen size 15 inches.
• The size and shape of my keyboard.
  

Some things I think my computer lacks or I find challenging would be:

• The number of USB ports 3.
• The battery life. Usually lasts about two hours. This is a challenge when I do homework away from home or in place where I don't have access to an outlet.
• The touch pad is very difficult to use and you really have to press down hard on the right/left buttons to click.
• There is no Fire Wire port to connect directly to a camcorder.
  

I might consider upgrading my RAM some day if I get into web design or video editing. My RAM is more than enough for operating my OS and surfing the web, but I do wonder how well it would handle editing software.

Nanotechnology

I am not even going to begin this blog by saying I know anything at all about nanotechnology, but what I did glean from the book and from the article we were given is that our machines, especially the microprocessors, are now being built at the atomic level.
Why not concentrate on making our RAM chips smaller and more efficient? Can nanotechnology be applied to manufacturing RAM? Again, I am not a scientist, but from what I read in chapter four and from other books, is that a computers RAM is what really gives it a stronger, speedier performance. I want faster, smaller, and more affordable RAM. Primary storage people! The wait time is over. Can't you picture our programs loaded and ready at the blink of an eye? Isn't that what technology is all about, decreasing wait time. It never hurts to dream!

My Favorite Program

I am kind of a dork. I like real time strategy games! My favorite computer game is probably Age of Empires 3. Although, I have not able to play much at all since school started. I really enjoy the part of the game that lets your build your town and upgrade your civilization as you prepare for war. There is just something cool about controlling an entire army of early colonial troops bent on conquering the New World. I think the graphics are great for the type of game it is and for the time it was released. I also believe the game caters to those who like to play online or with more people than just the computer.
As much as I love the game there could be a few things to improve. I don't like that there is a civilization population limit of 200, or it least should be a bit higher. I know that it would really slow down the computer if there were a thousand little soldiers fighting on a battle field but 2oo seems low to me. I also think that there should be more places to start your civilization in. The game limits you to just North and South American places and doesn't include that many territories.
The computer that I use for my game is a HP G62 laptop that uses Windows 7, which I love! My computer has 300GBs of storage and has 4GBs of RAM. I could use more RAM but my game works fine with this amount. It is not an impressive laptop but it does everything that I require of it.

Web Browser

I love Mozilla Firefox! Some people think I am crazy for saying that-like my wife, but it works for me. I use it on my laptop and desktop computers at home for surfing the web and I use it for my school assignments as well. It is not like I have never used Internet Explorer. At work I use IE on my desktop. And if you are in Info. 1120 this year it is required in order to use myitlab which is great because being comfortable with more than one browser is a must these days.
I find that I like the familiarity with Firefox-you know like that comfortable old recliner that you can't ever replace. I also enjoy the plugins that I have with it: Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Flash, etc. I have a system for surfing the web with Firefox that works for me. I think the menus in Firefox are easy to follow and in a handy location, and I frequently make use of the bookmark toolbar.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. What works for some may not work for others. But when it comes to web browsing I prefer Mozilla Firefox.

Technology certainly has changed throughout the course of my lifetime. When I look back over the years at the evolution of the gaming systems, phones, televisions, music players, etc. I am taken aback at how so much has changed in a 25 year period. The Atari was the gaming system of choice when I was born, now it is the Xbox 360 or the PlayStation 3. The phone world has changed immensely, cell phones with video and MP3 capabilities have replaced over-sized phones with huge antennas. I remember buying tapes to listen to on my parents stereo, now you can go online and purchase mp3s and have them downloaded to your iPod in a matter of seconds. Certainly there was no HD tv or DVRs when I was growing up.
It is hard for me to even imagine the few things I mentioned above being improved upon, but they will. In the next ten years I could see phones easily replacing debit and credit cards, maybe they will even be able to carry our favorite tv channels we watch on DirecTV. In the next 20 years graphics on the gaming systems will be so far advanced that the graphics which look unbelievable now will seem obsolete. The way we listen to music is hard for me to see changing in the next two decades, but it certainly will; maybe mini disc players will make a come back. Whatever happens though, I am sure will blow us away!