File Sharing

File sharing has become a topic of interest.  Personally I believe file sharing can be viewed as a good thing and a bad thing.  It all depends on he situation on whether file sharing should be legal.

Artist should be the ones to decide on how they want their music distributed.  If the artist doesn't mind having his music shared for free then their music should be able to be shared.  On the other hand if artist are against file sharing then there should be some copyright on the music and a fine for people who share the music.  However if the artist is under a record label then the label are the ones to make those decisions.  

However the problem is determining illegal sharing.  If a person buys a cd or program, then he or she should be able to share it with his friends.  But if they are going to share it then they have to put it on a cd.  This way people won't share like crazy because it will cost them money to buy blank cds.  This means that programs like limewire wouldn't be legal.  

Programs like itunes are good programs that help get rid of illegal sharing.  itunes could change some things like letting users download songs for free but only for several days so that they can check out the songs and see if they want to buy it.  Another good thing about itunes is that you can buy single songs and not have to buy the whole album.  Nowadays not much artist make albums that are filled with good songs, so it seems like your paying 15-18 dollars for couple songs.

In conclusion, file sharing online should not be legal unless it is like itunes.  People who buy cds can share their music only if they burn it on their own blank cds.  

Analog vs Digital

Analog usage in my life has been slowly decreasing.  All the movies that I have on video tapes are just collecting dust.  I no longer watch them and some of them don't even work.  However, I do still use a VCR to record shows on TV because we don't have TiVo.  Nowadays the digital world is starting to take over my life.  Whether I like it or not I had to adapt to digital.  Everything is being done on computers nowadays.  For example, registration was done over the internet and if you didn't have a computer then you wouldn't be registered for classes.  Even movies are starting to be done digitally.  Movies like 300, lord of the rings, and star wars all made digitally.  You can even watch movies and tv shows over the internet.

The good thing about analog is that it gives you a more real image.  The bad thing about analog is that it is hard to replace, which is the reason why my video tapes are no longer being used.  They also have a limited amount of space that you store data in.  Digital pros are the exact opposites of the cons for analog.  Digital has more space to store data and can easily be copied.  Digital devices are also smaller in size.  The cons of using digital is that the image might appears fake.  However, technology is growing and that problem should be fixed in future years.  After looking at the pros and cons of digital and analog, I have concluded that we will be seeing a lot more digital devices in the future.

E-Waste

Electronic waste is becoming a big environmental issue.  Computers, cell phones, and other used electronics are being dumped illegally in countries like China and Nigeria.  Countries like the United States have no system for recycling these electronic devices.  Most places end up sending their e-waste overseas to China and Nigeria because it is inexpensive.  The electronics that are being dumped in those countries can cause environmental issues.  The electronics are burned to get precious metals.  Those parts that are burned such as the plastic give off cancerous pollutants.  The problem is that the labor it takes to recycle these electronics are expensive, so countries just send their stuff to countries where the labor is cheap such as China and Nigeria.

Some ways that you can recycle your old electronics is to make sure the recycler you use is environmently friendly.  Most computer manufacters have good recylcing programs.  Another solution is that you could try and use your electronics as long as you can.  Instead of getting new cell phones and computers every year, try to use the same one for as long as you can.