Canuk Feds accused of softening stance on anti-spam law

Feds accused of softening stance on anti-spam law

OTTAWA — The Conservative government has buckled under pressure from businesses to water down its anti-spam legislation so some marketers can continue to send unsolicited e-mails.

And the government is now looking for an opposition party to help pass a bill with new loopholes, after Industry Canada officials released a list of more than 40 proposed amendments on behalf of the government. Some are technical and will not affect the scope of the bill meant to curtail junk mail, but others will narrow the reach of the proposed law.

They include new exceptions for: product updates, solicitation to participate in surveys or market research, and information on self-governing professions.

The government proposal also expands implied consent to receive unsolicited e-mails in instances where a person has provided her e-mail address to the sender, and removes the need for explicit consent for software programs for updates or upgrades, if consent was obtained in the past.

The John Howard Society of the NWT Logo

The John Howard Society of the NWT Logo
Originally uploaded by The MediaMentor

George Lessard
is pleased to announce, that at the John Howard Society of the Northwest Territories AGM Oct 8, 2009 he was elected to serve as Vice-president of the Society. The society's office is located in the basement of the Tundra Building (867) 920-4276...

JOHN HOWARD SOCIETY PARTNERS FOR HOMELESS DAY SHELTER

YELLOWKNIFE (October 1, 2009) – The Honourable Sandy Lee, Minister of Health and Social Services, Mayor Gordon Van Tighem, City of Yellowknife, and Richard Morland, Interim President and Chief Operating Officer of BHP Billiton’s EKATI Diamond Mine are pleased to announce their partnership with the John Howard Society. The John Howard Society won the request for proposal and will operate the day shelter in Yellowknife.

The day shelter will be operated as a pilot project for three years to allow the facility’s usage and future capability to be evaluated. The day shelter will be open and ready for use by the fall.

For more information contact:
Damien Healy
Communications
Department of Health and Social Services
Government of the Northwest Territories
Tel: (867) 920-8927 Fax: (867) 873-0204

Max Hall
City of Yellowknife
Tel: (867) 920-5624 Fax: (867) 920-5649

Deana Twissell
Superintendent of Corporate and Community Affairs
BHP Billiton Diamonds Inc.
Tel: (867) 669-6107 Fax: (867) 669-9293

Lydia Bardak, Executive Director
The John Howard Society of the NWT
(867) 920-4276

Who Makes the News

Who Makes the News

In November 2009, the world news media will once again come under scrutiny during the 4th Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP). Volunteers from women's rights organizations, media associations, academia, etc across the world will collaborate in a one-day global research on gender in their local news media. GMMP research results are applied as a tool for change towards gender equality in and through media.

Livebrush

What is Livebrush?

Livebrush is a drawing application. It employs an easy-to-use brush tool
that reacts to your gesture. By combining simple motion controls with
brush styles, Livebrush offers a fun and unique way to create graphics.

Livebrush runs on all major operating systems. But it should be noted that
as an image creation tool, the type of image you're trying to create plays
a large part in how the software performs.

An internet connection is required to access help files and documention

http://www.livebrush.com/index.html

Webnographers: Resources for Virtual Ethnography + Cyberanthropology

Cyberanthropology is but a fetal field, far from defined. This website was developed in the interest of providing a central hub for those interested in ethnography of the internet. Created by and for webnographers, its success in contingent on your participation.

Ethnography is not constrained solely to anthropologists, and indeed the barriers that divide the various social sciences are at once arbitrary and collapsible. Any individual interested in the complex social, cultural, and psychological facets of humans relating with and through the internet is encouraged to join in this nascent community.

http://webnographers.org/index.php?title=Main_Page

ISES Solar World Congress (SWC) 2009

http://www.solarworldcongress2009.com/

 Renewable Energy Resources can Unlock Africa's Potential

The potential solutions that renewable energy resources can provide in solving the world's energy problems will be presented by scientists and researchers at the ISES Solar World Congress (SWC) 2009 at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg from 11 – 14 October 2009. 
 

 The ISES SWC 2009 will not only focus on global issues but will clearly reflect significantly on Africa, while also paying increased attention to environmental and social responsibility issues, global warning and climate change. The Congress will address, in particular, the role that the renewable energy resources can play in the sustainable development of poor and rural communities in Africa.  
 

 First and foremost will be the use of various new technologies that can convert the abundance of solar energy on the continent into electricity to boost much-needed economic development, which relies heavily on energy supplies. Presentations will include the latest research and technological advances in these conversion processes. 

 "Our continent's potential to be one of the biggest users of renewable energy should not be underestimated," said Jon Adams, Chairperson of the conference steering committee and member of SESSA. Therefore, the timing of this event on the African continent is seen as very appropriate. "In most places in Africa photovoltaic systems are the only source of providing light to those infamous two billion people that live on less that $1 a day and without access to electricity," Adams continued.  
 

 Top international scientists and researchers will share their latest findings and innovations with peers and the energy industry. Presentations will cover a diverse range of themes such as Resource Assessment, Solar Heating and Cooling, Solar Electricity, Solar Buildings, and Solar Energy & Society.  

The Congress programme is still being finalized, but it already holds promises of a good balance between science and research with a generous touch of current affairs and controversy. High profile national and international speakers will address the most recent and current topics in the sustainable energy field.  

Another speaker who is expected to attract wide attention is Prof. Vivian Alberts of South Africa, who will discuss his reasons for moving his enterprise to Germany. A panel discussion on concentrating solar power and Eskom's technology choices is bound to attract considerable interest from governments and industry in the southern African region.  

The recent announcement in South Africa of the Renewable Energy Feed-in Tariff (Refit) has created quite a buzz in the industry and it is expected that the pros and cons of Refit and the level of the tariffs will be hotly debated during the congress. Dr. Hermann Scheer who first introduced the Feed-in Tariff into the German Parliament will also be one of the keynote speakers.

"The above examples represent just a small sample of the level of debate that can be expected at the Congress. We will make more information available about the programme as invited speakers confirm their participation," so Adams.

ISES SWC 2009 key objective are to:

• ensure a sustainable energy future
• promote and increase the use of renewable energy and energy efficiency
• promote the use of renewable energy resources to positively impact on the quality of life for future generations
• development of future opportunities for the use of renewable energy in Africa
• jointly seek solutions which are consistent with the principles of sustainability - affordability, environmentally sound and socially acceptable .

 

Renewable Energy Expo

http://www.solarworldcongress2009.com/index.php/expo.html

Parallel to this Congress, SESSA will also promote the interest of the trade and the public by introducing a Renewable Energy Expo, a trade exhibition. The theme of the Expo is Efficient; Alternative; Sustainable, and it will focus on solar, renewable, sustainable, alternative and efficient energy resources and products, services and developments. The Expo will showcase the industrial and domestic use of new technologies and inventions that will be of interest to the business sector and the public at large. SESSA envisages this Renewable Energy Expo to become an annual event. 

Pulitzer Center Internship Fall 2009

Pulitzer Center Internship Fall 2009
  Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
  http://www.idealist.org/en/internship/142968-111
Location: Washington, District of Columbia, 20036, United States

[excerpt]

"... Last day to apply: October 14, 2009
The internship pays $1,000 per month and runs through May

The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting seeks an intern for spring 2010, preferably starting the week of January 3, 2010. We are especially interested in web-savvy applicants eager to get the word out about our international reporting projects to as many people as possible - through social networking platforms, online media, campus networks, special events, and other avenues.

With the aim of increasing traffic to our reporting projects and expanding the debate around these international issues, the intern's main duties will include:
• maintenance of our website
• maintenance of our online profiles and channels (including YouTube Channel)
• outreach to the online world, including blogs, social networking sites and new media tools
• compilation of newsletters
• efforts to increase online traffic and expand newsletter subscription base
• assistance with event coordination

Not required but desirable: familiarity with HTML, familiarity with the blogosphere, and experience with increasing web traffic through campaigns such as Google Adwords and social networking sites. Applicants should also have an interest in, and some familiarity with, current international affairs.

The Pulitzer Center is a non-profit leader in sponsoring the independent journalism that media organizations are increasingly less willing to undertake on their own. Pulitzer Center-funded stories shed light on underreported issues and regions around the globe. Our Global Gateway education initiative then brings those stories and the journalists into high schools and universities.

For information on our reporting projects and outreach efforts please see our website, at http://www.pulitzercenter.org The Pulitzer Center is located in the heart of Washington, D.C., near Dupont Circle.

The internship pays $1,000 per month and runs through May. Possibility of internship extension through summer 2010 based on further discussions with applicants and upon mutual agreement. ..."

CHINA: Censorship and attacks on journalists in run-up to 1 October anniversary

Reporters Without Borders/Reporters sans frontières
www.rsf-chinese.org

29 September 2009

CHINA
Censorship and attacks on journalists in run-up to 1 October anniversary
http://www.rsf.org/spip.php?page=article&id_article=34609

"Government security paranoia in the run-up to the celebration of the 60th
anniversary of the proclamation of the People's Republic of China on 1
October has led to a reinforcement of online censorship and abusive
behaviour towards foreign journalists," Reporters Without Borders said
today. "A case of police brutality towards three foreign journalists was
particularly unacceptable."

The press freedom organisation added: "What the authorities are trying to
portray as a big celebration is turning into a major head-ache for
Internet users and a reporters."

Internet control agencies have redoubled efforts to prevent Internet users
based in China, including foreign residents, from using censorship
circumvention software such as Freegate and virtual private networks
(VPN). Experts have told Reporters Without Borders that tens of thousands
of IP addresses suspected by the authorities of using Freegate and VPNs,
especially those that are free, have been blocked in the past few days.

"The Electronic Great Wall has never been as consolidated as it is now, on
the eve of the 1 October anniversary, proving that the Chinese government
is not so sure of its record," Reporters Without Borders said. The new
restrictions are making it even more difficult to access social-networking
websites such Facebook and Twitter, or YouTube's video-sharing sites,
which have been blocked since July.

China's leaders have made combating separatism one of the watchwords of
the 60th anniversary, and new regulations have just been issued for
combating online separatism in the far-western province of Xinjiang.

A Reporters Without Borders study of Uyghur-language and Xinjiang-based
websites has established that the clampdown imposed during last July's
rioting in the province has not been loosened. Most of the sites that
existed before the unrest are either still inaccessible or their content
has not been updated. Of the 65 sites included in the study, 54 are still
blocked for Internet users in China or abroad.

Even Tianshannet.com, a Xinjiang-based website that was held up by the
authorities as an example of a site that respected the regulations, is no
longer accessible. Xinjiang residents have been cut off from the Internet
for almost three months and Uyghurs are being deprived of all news and
information that is independent of the official media.

Three China-based Mongol websites – Mongol Ger Association
(http://www.mongolger.net/), Mongol People Chat Room (MGLhun), which is
hosted on the Sina.com site (http://www.sina.com.cn/), and Mongolian
People (http://www.mongolhun.com/) – have been rendered inaccessible in
the past few weeks.

The Mongol Ger Association site had become very active in promoting the
Mongol language and had referred to sensitive subjects such as arbitrary
arrests and the right to land access for Mongols. The site's owner,
identified as Sodmongol, was arrested by the Chinese authorities on 13
June. Mongol People Chat Room, which covered politics, culture and the
environment and organised events centred on the rights of Mongols in
China, was closed without prior warning.

The Mongolian People site offered a range of services to Mongols in China,
putting people in touch with each other and organising charity events. The
authorities accused all three sites of conspiring with hostile and
separatist foreign forces – the same grounds that have been cited for
censoring dozens of Tibetan websites and forums
(http://www.rsf.org/Authorities-tighten-grip-on.html).

Chinese hackers have meanwhile posted crude messages and xenophobic
slogans on Taiwanese and Australian film festival websites in protest
against the screening of "The 10 Conditions of Love," a documentary about
Uyghur exiled activist Rebiya Kadeer, who is blamed by the Chinese
authorities for stirring up the violence in Xinjiang. The hackers, who did
not hide their affiliation to the Communist Party of China, called on the
festival organisers to apologise to the Chinese people for including the
film in their programmes.

China-based foreign journalists have also been the target of hacker
attacks. Emails containing viruses have been sent to French, American,
Singaporean and Italian correspondents. The Chinese assistants of foreign
reporters have received booby-trapped emails that try to establish a
parallel control over the recipient's computer. At the same time, Chinese
websites based abroad such as Boxun have received very aggressive
distributed denial-of-service attacks DDOS (in which targeted servers are
swamped by simultaneous communication requests).

Police have used violence against foreign journalists trying to cover the
preparations for the 1 October parade. Three journalists employed by the
Japanese news agency Kyodo, for example, were attacked in their hotel room
by plain-clothes men after a parade rehearsal on 18 September. They were
hit about the head and their computers were smashed.

This occurred after the authorities warned more than a dozen of foreign
news media not to film or photograph the preparations. The Foreign
Correspondents' Club of China has asked the foreign ministry to explain
the ban, which is not based on any rule or law.

----------

CHINE
Censures et bavures à la veille du 1er Octobre
http://www.rsf.org/ecrire/?exec=articles&id_article=34610

"La paranoïa sécuritaire des autorités à la veille des célébrations du 60e
anniversaire de la proclamation de la République populaire de Chine, a
conduit à un renforcement de la censure sur Internet et à plusieurs
bavures à l'encontre de journalistes étrangers. Le comportement de
policiers à l'encontre de trois journalistes japonais est particulièrement
inacceptable. Ce que le pouvoir souhaite faire passer pour une fête se
transforme en un casse-tête pour les internautes et les reporters", a
affirmé Reporters sans frontières.

Les administrations en charge du contrôle d'Internet ont redoublé
d'efforts pour empêcher les internautes basés en Chine, notamment les
expatriés, d'utiliser des softwares de contournement de la censure, comme
Freegate, et des logiciels VPN. Selon des experts interrogés par
l'organisation, des dizaines de milliers d'adresses IP, soupçonnées par
les autorités d'utiliser Freegate, et des réseaux VPN, notamment ceux qui
sont gratuits, ont été bloquées au cours des derniers jours.

"La Grande muraille électronique n'aura jamais été aussi consolidée
qu'avant les célébrations du 1er octobre, preuve en est que le
gouvernement chinois n'est pas aussi sûr de son bilan", a estimé Reporters
sans frontières. Ces nouvelles restrictions rendent encore plus difficile
l'accès des internautes aux réseaux sociaux Facebook et Twitter et aux
sites YouTube, bloqués depuis juillet dernier.

Alors que les dirigeants chinois font de la lutte contre le séparatisme
l'un des mots d'ordre de ce soixantième anniversaire, une nouvelle
régulation vient d'être promulguée pour lutter contre le séparatisme en
ligne dans la province du Xinjiang. Selon une étude de Reporters sans
frontières sur les sites en ouïghour ou basés au Xinjiang, l'étau ne s'est
toujours pas desserré depuis les émeutes de début juillet 2009. La plupart
des sites existant avant les événements ne sont toujours pas accessibles
ou leur contenu n'est plus actualisé. Sur plus de 65 sites consultés pour
cette étude, 54 sont toujours bloqués pour les internautes chinois ou
depuis l'étranger. Même le site tianshannet.com (basé au Xinjiang),
pourtant salué par les autorités comme un exemple de respect des
régulations, n'est plus accessible. Depuis pratiquement trois mois, les
habitants du Xinjiang sont coupés d'Internet et les Ouïghours sont privés
de toute information indépendante des médias officiels.

Par ailleurs, trois sites mongols basés en Chine ont été bloqués, à
l'approche du 1er octobre. Mongol Ger Association
(http://www.mongolger.net/), Mongol People Chat Room (MGLhun, hebergé sur
la site http://www.sina.com.cn/) et Mongolian People
(http://www.mongolhun.com/) ont été rendus inaccessibles au cours des
derniers jours. Le site Mongol Ger Association était devenu très actif
dans la promotion de la langue mongole, évoquant des sujets sensibles tels
que les détentions arbitraires et le droit d'accéder à la terre pour les
Mongols. Le propriétaire du site, Sodmongol, a été détenu par les
autorités chinoises le 13 juin 2009. Mongol People Chat Room a été fermé
sans avertissement préalable. Il traitait aussi bien de politique, de
culture, d'environnement et organisait des événements sur les droits des
Mongols en Chine. Enfin, le site Mongolian People offrait des services aux
Mongols de Chine, mettant en relation les gens et organisant des actions
de charité. Selon les autorités, ces sites conspirent avec des forces
étrangères hostiles et séparatistes. Ces même motifs ont été évoqués pour
censurer des dizaines de sites et forums tibétains
(http://www.rsf.org/fr-pays57-Chine.html).

Par ailleurs, des hackers chinois ont posté des messages vulgaires et des
slogans xénophobes sur les sites de festivals de films taïwanais et
australien pour protester contre la diffusion du documentaire "Les dix
conditions de l'amour" sur l'activiste ouïghoure en exil, Rebiya Kadeer,
accusée par Pékin d'avoir incité à la violence dans le Xinjiang. Les
hackers, qui ne cachent plus leur affiliation au Parti communiste chinois,
demandent que les organisateurs s'excusent auprès des Chinois pour avoir
inclus ce documentaire dans le programme.

Des journalistes étrangers basés en Chine ont également été les cibles
d'attaques informatiques. Des messages électroniques contenant des virus
ont été adressés à des correspondants français, américains, singapouriens
et italiens. Des assistants chinois de reporters étrangers ont également
été visés par ces emails piégés qui visent à prendre un contrôle parallèle
sur l'ordinateur du destinataire. Au même moment, des sites Internet
chinois basés à l'étranger, notamment Boxun, sont victimes d'attaques
D-DOS très violentes (attaque durant laquelle le serveur cible est attaqué
par plusieurs ordinateurs simultanément).

A Pékin, les journalistes étrangers qui ont tenté de couvrir les
préparatifs du défilé du 1er octobre ont été violemment pris à partie par
des policiers. Ainsi, le 18 septembre, trois journalistes de l'agence de
presse japonaise Kyodo ont été agressés dans leur chambre d'hôtel par des
hommes en civil après une répétition de la parade officielle. Des
reporters ont été frappés à la tête et des ordinateurs ont été détruits.
Les autorités ont mis en garde plus d'une quinzaine de médias étrangers de
ne pas filmer ou prendre des clichés des préparatifs. Le Foreign
Correspondents' Club of China (FCCC) a demandé au ministère des Affaires
étrangères de s'expliquer car cette interdiction ne repose sur aucune
règle ou loi.

Vincent Brossel
Asia-Pacific Desk
Reporters Without Borders
33 1 44 83 84 70
asia@rsf.org

Reporters Without Borders

Social Network Site Privacy:A Comparative Analysis of Six Sites from the Privacy Commissioner of Canada

Social Network Site Privacy: A Comparative Analysis of Six Sites

http://priv.gc.ca/information/pub/sub_comp_200901_e.cfm

The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
February 2009
Researched by: Jennifer Barrigar

This report was prepared for the Office of the Privacy Commissioner by
Jennifer Barrigar, a consultant and researcher with experience in both
privacy law and developments in internet technology. It was originally
commissioned in late 2008, and a final report was delivered to the Office
in February 2009.

Social networks frequently make amendments or additions to their privacy
policies and protections. As a result, some of the observations made in
this report may appear outdated or even incorrect. This is certainly the
case with Facebook, one social network that has undertaken successive
rounds of privacy amendments in 2009.

This is not the case with many of the other social networking sites
identified by Ms. Barrigar. They are among the most popular sites with
Canadians, but are largely developed and headquartered outside Canada. As
a result, they offer significantly different levels of privacy protection
for their users. This report identifies areas where these sites need to
improve their policies and take steps to effectively protect the personal
information of their users.

Colin McKay
Director of Research, Education and Outreach

cfp: Chinese Journal of Communication Special Edition

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Radhika Gajjala <cyborgwati@gmail.com>
Date: 2009/9/27
Subject: [Air-L] Chinese Journal of Communication Special Edition Call for
Papers
To: aoir list <air-l@aoir.org>

*****Special Issue CJoC 3(4) CFP******

Chinese Journal of Communication

Special Edition

Call for Papers

"Emerging Media and Challenges in Chinese Communities"

Editor
Professor Louisa Ha, Bowling Green State University, USA
louisah@bgsu.edu<mailto:louisah@bgsu.edu>

Submission by January 15, 2010

Launched in 2008 and published by Routledge, Chinese Journal of
Communication (CJoC) is an English language scholarly publication aimed at
elevating Chinese communication studies along theoretical, empirical, and
methodological dimensions. This special issue of the Chinese Journal of
Communication (CJoC) is to address the impact and nature of emerging media
in Chinese communities or comparison with other countries or ethnic
communities. Emerging media is defined as message delivery vehicles
achieving higher utilization among the general population, but has neither
universally accepted technical standards for content transmission and
display, nor established operation models such as revenue sources and
content strategies. Examples of emerging media are digital television,
webcasting, podcasting, cellular phones, IPTV, blogs, social media and
networking sites, etc.

China is at the forefront of emerging media. The number of Internet users
in China is the largest in the world and Chinese consumers are among the
most avid users of media technologies. The adoption of these media can
have significant political, social, and economic implications on Greater
China and present challenges to the current media industry structure
there. The use of the emerging media by overseas Chinese can reconnect
them to the mainland and connect them to the Chinese around the world.

Topics for papers could include, but are by no means limited to:

1. Political, social or economic impact of emerging media on Greater
China and other Chinese communities

2. Public perception of emerging media and their role in politics and
formation of public opinion

3. Comparison of the use of emerging media between Chinese and
non-Chinese markets

4. Comparison of emerging media use in different Chinese markets

5. Business models of emerging media in Chinese markets

6. Market competition and management of emerging media in Chinese markets

7. Comparison of the use of different emerging media by Chinese
consumers

8. Policy and regulatory issues on emerging media in Greater China.

9. Online advertising, online games, and Internet search services
development in Greater China

10. Audience measurement of emerging media in Greater China

11. Methodological issues in studying emerging media in Chinese communities

Both quantitative and qualitative approaches to the issue are welcome. We
especially encourage the collaboration of Chinese scholars and non-Chinese
scholars to submit manuscript to this issue to facilitate exchange of
ideas and offer cross-national perspectives on the issue.

Submissions should conform to the editorial guidelines of the Chinese
Journal of Communication to be found at
http://www.informaworld.com/cjoc under "Instructions for Authors."
Papers for consideration in this special edition should be emailed to:
louisah@bgsu.edu<mailto:louisah@bgsu.edu>.

Papers will undergo a double blind peer review process and should be
submitted by January 15, 2010. Informal enquiries are welcome and please
contact the special issue editor for potential topics. Planned publication
date is December 2010.

Chinese Journal of Communication (CJoC) is a refereed journal serving as
an important international platform for students and scholars in Chinese
communication studies to exchange ideas and research results.
Interdisciplinary in scope, it examines subjects in all Chinese societies
in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau, Singapore, and the global
Chinese diaspora. The journal will be published quarterly beginning 2010.

The CJoC welcomes research articles using social scientific or humanistic
approaches on such topics as mass communication, journalism studies,
telecommunications, rhetoric, cultural studies, media effects, new
communication technologies, organizational communication, interpersonal
communication, advertising and PR, political communication, communications
law and policy, and so on. Articles employing historical and comparative
analysis focused on traditional Chinese culture as well as contemporary
processes such as globalization, deregulation, and democratization are
also welcome.

Published by Routledge, CJoC is institutionally based at the Communication
Research Centre, the School of Journalism and Communication, the Chinese
University of Hong Kong . For more information and submission
instructions, please visit
http://www.informaworld.com/cjoc

--

Radhika Gajjala
Professor of Communication Studies and Cultural Studies
Interim Women's Studies Director 2009-2010
233 Shatzel
Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green, OH 43403
http://personal.bgsu.edu/~radhik
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is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org
Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at:
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Join the Association of Internet Researchers:
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OpenOffice.org Portable 3.1

OpenOffice.org Portable 3.1
http://portableapps.com/

Packing a number of office applications can be an onerous undertaking, but
this portable version of OpenOffice makes this task a bit easier.
Essentially, users can use this open platform program with any storage
device (such as a USB drive) to take their materials wherever they need to
go. This open source office suite includes an email client, an instant
messaging client, a PDF reader, and so on. This version is compatible with
computers running Windows 2000 and newer. [KMG]

via / from / thanks to:

The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2009.
http://scout.wisc.edu/

Convenient

Now you can carry your favorite computer programs along with all of your
bookmarks, settings, email and more with you. Use them on any Windows
computer. All without leaving any personal data behind.

Open

PortableApps.com provides a truly open platform that works with any
hardware you like (USB flash drive, iPod, portable hard drive, etc). The
entire platform is open source built around an open format that any
hardware or software provider can use.

Free

The PortableApps.com Suite and Platform is free. It contains no spyware.
There are no advertisements. It isn't a limited or trial version. There is
no additional hardware or software to buy. You don't even have to give out
your email address. It's 100% free to use, free to copy and free to share.

Employers grappling with social network use

Employers grappling with social network use

[excerpt]

http://news.cnet.com/8301-10797_3-10360849-235.html

Social networking is on the rise, both on and off the job, leaving
companies uncertain how to monitor their use by employees, reports new
survey.

More than 50 percent of companies questioned said they have no policy to
address the use of social networking by employees outside the workplace,
according to a survey released Wednesday by the Society of Corporate
Compliance and Ethics and the Health Care Compliance Association.

Typically, companies shy away from restricting an employee's actions off
the job. But businesses are concerned about employees who use social
networking and reveal private details or post inappropriate pictures that
could embarrass the company.

Reporter’s Guide to Multimedia Proficiency, English & En Español

Now printable! Reporter's Guide to Multimedia Proficiency

http://mindymcadams.com/tojou/2009/now-printable-reporters-guide-to-multimedia-proficiency/

Reporter's Guide to Multimedia Proficiency (PDF; 536 KB)
http://www.jou.ufl.edu/faculty/mmcadams/PDFs/RGMPbook.pdf

Translations
En español (PDF; 600 KB) — translation by María Elena Brizuela, a
journalist and journalism educator based in Córdoba, Argentina. (Posted
Sept. 8, 2009.)
http://www.jou.ufl.edu/faculty/mmcadams/PDFs/RGMPespanol.pdf

Posts in this series in HTPL...
http://mindymcadams.com/tojou/2009/rgmp-15-maintain-and-update-your-skills/

* RGMP 1: Read blogs and use RSS
* RGMP 2: Start a blog
* RGMP 3: Buy an audio recorder and learn to use it
* RGMP 4: Start editing audio
* RGMP 5: Listen to podcasts
* RGMP 6: Post an interview (or podcast) on your blog
* RGMP 7: Learn how to shoot decent photos
* RGMP 8: Learn how to crop, tone, and optimize photos
* RGMP 9: Add photos to your blog
* RGMP 10: Learn to use Soundslides
* RGMP 11: Tell a good story with images and sound
* RGMP 12: Learn to shoot video
* RGMP 13: Edit your video with iMovie or Windows Movie Maker
* RGMP 14: Publish your video on your blog

The "blog" of "unnecessary" quotation marks.

For anyone who enjoys the humor of unnecessary quotation marks, and
sharing that humor of "unnecessary" quotation marks.

Facebppk page
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10952466351

Blog
http://www.unnecessaryquotes.com

Media is a Plural: Just Say Yes Men

Fake NYPost paper online at http://nypost-se.com

---------------------------- Original Message ----------------------------
Subject: Media is a Plural: Just Say Yes Men
From: "MediaChannel.org" <mediachannel@mail.democracyinaction.org>
Date: Mon, September 21, 2009 12:59

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Media is a Plural -- September 21, 2009

Just Say Yes Men
By Rory O'Connor

I've long been a fan for years of the zany duo of performance
artists/political activists known as the Yes Men, ever since their
turn-of-the-century stunt of creating their own "corrected" World Trade
Organization website at GATT.org (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade).
Soon their fake site began to receive real email queries from confused
visitors, including invitations to address various elite groups on behalf
of the WTO. Naturally, and hysterically, the Men responded as if they
actually represented the WTO ? all of which is documented in their very
funny and very pointed 2004 film "The Yes Men."

Now the Men have a new, almost as amusing documentary about to hit movie
screens across America ? "The Yes Men Fix the World," which they
accurately describe as "a screwball true story about two gonzo political
activists who, posing as top executives of giant corporations, lie their
way into big business conferences and pull off the world's most outrageous
pranks. "

But it is in their actual stunts - and not just in their documentation of
them ? that the Yes Men truly excel. Of late they have taken to targeting
the media directly, such as last fall's fake New York Times? which
declared the Iraq War over, Universities to be free, Bike paths expanded ?
and even announced the much-anticipated resignation of NYT Op-Ed apologist
? oops, I mean, columnist - Thomas Friedman.

Now comes their latest effort - this week's stunning "SPECIAL EDITION" New
York Post, trumpeting the headline "WE'RE SCREWED" in large point type.

The Yes Men's latest elaborate media hoax/heist blanketed Manhattan early
Monday morning with a fake "truth-telling tabloid" about climate change
and how it will soon affect New York City ? and the rest of the world?

New Yorkers were met with the appearance of a "special edition" of the
Post highlighting warnings that the city could face "deadly heat waves,
extreme flooding, and other lethal effects of global warming within the
next few decades." The most alarming thing about the spoofy newspaper was
that the news within it came from a spooky - but official - City report.

Distributed by thousands of volunteers throughout New York City, the paper
was created "as a wake-up call to action on climate change" by a coalition
of activists. It appeared just a day before a United Nations summit in
which Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon will attempt to persuade world leaders
to reduce carbon emissions in the lead-up to December's upcoming climate
conference in Copenhagen. (Ban has called the Copenhagen gathering a
"once-in-a-generation opportunity" to halt the global rise in greenhouse
gas emissions "if we are to avoid catastrophic consequences for people and
the planet.")

Although the 32-page Post is a fake, everything in it is true. "This could
be, and should be, a real New York Post," said Yes Man Andy Bichlbaum.
"Climate change is the biggest threat civilization has ever faced, and it
should be in the headlines of every paper, every day until we solve the
problem."

The fake Post's cover story reports the real conclusions of a scientific
panel commissioned by the mayor's office to determine the potential
effects of climate change on New York City. (The report, released in
February, received little attention in the real media.) Other articles
described the Pentagon's warnings about global warming; the government's
inadequate response to the crisis ("Congress Cops Out on Climate");
China's alternative energy program ("China's Green Leap Forward Overtakes
U.S."); and how, if the US doesn't quickly pass a strong climate bill, the
crucial Copenhagen climate talks this December could turn out instead to
be a "Flopenhagen."

The paper includes original investigative reporting, such as an article
revealing that Deutsche Bank - which erected a seven-story "carbon
counter" in central Manhattan - not only invests heavily in coal-mining
companies worldwide, but recently entered the business of coal trading
itself. It also displays the world's gloomiest weather page, covering the
next 70 years?rather than just the next 7 days ? and an "Around the World"
section that describes the disproportionate effects of climate change -
such as droughts, floods, famines, water shortages, mass migrations and
conflicts - on the poor. Although they have done little to cause the
problem, developing countries will bear the brunt of its effects.

But all the news in the faux Post isn't bad ? one article ("New York
Fights Back") reports that the Big Apple's carbon emissions are only one
third the national average. There's also a lot of Yes Men-style humor,
including a page of cartoons and a number of pointed but funny ads ? for
sex ("Awesome. No carbon emissions."), tote bags, and even tap water
("Literally comes right out of your faucet!"). A more serious ad promotes
civil disobedience and encourages readers to risk arrest in a planned
global action November 30, just before the conference in Copenhagen.

Scared of the future effects of climate change? Angry at the media's
failures to highlight the problem?? Anxious to do something about it???

Just Say Yes Men!

(Editor's Note: The fake New York Post paper is one of 2500 initiatives
taking place in more than 130 countries, part of the "Global Wake-up Call"
on climate change. For more information, visit www.tcktcktck.org/wakeup or
contact The Yes Men at tabloid@theyesmen.org. To see the New York City
report on climate change click here. Link to video news release:
http://nypost-se.com/video/)

Comment on this post:
http://www.roryoconnor.org/blog/2009/09/21/just-say-yes-men/

Aviation Safety Network Database of incidents, hijackings and accidents

Aviation Safety Network

Mission Statement

"Providing everyone with a (professional) interest in aviation with
up-to-date, complete and reliable authoritative information on airliner
accidents and safety issues".

Content / scope
The Aviation Safety Network is a private, independent initiative founded
in 1996. On line since January 1996, the Aviation Safety Network covers
accidents and safety issues with regards to airliners, military transport
planes and corporate jets.

The ASN Safety Database contains detailed descriptions of over 10,700
incidents, hijackings and accidents.

Sources
Most of the information contained in the Aviation Safety Network site is
based on information from official sources (authorities, safety boards).
Sources used as a basis for the accident database are aircraft production
lists, ICAO Aircraft Accident Digests since 1952, and NTSB, TSB etc.

http://aviation-safety.net/

Photos
http://aviation-safety.net/photos/
This section contains photos of aircraft taken before the crash; photos
taken after the actual accident and miscellaneous photos (ARFF, emergency
exits, safety placards).

Your Google docs: Soon in search results?

September 19, 2009 6:31 PM PDT

Your Google docs: Soon in search results?

[excerpt]

Google on Thursday wrote in a blog post
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Google+Docs/thread?tid=0ca72389c9b26ef4&hl=en
that "in about two weeks, we will be launching a change for published
docs. The change will allow published docs that are linked to from a
public Web site to be crawled and indexed, which means they can appear in
search results you see on Google.com and other search engines...This is a
very exciting change as your published docs linked to from public websites
will reach a much wider audience of people."

"Marie" of Google was quick to note that the crawling for search results
"only applies to docs which you explicitly publish using the 'Publish as
Web page' or 'Publish/embed' option, and which are linked to from a
publicly crawled Web page" (documents for which users choose only to
"allow anyone with the link to view" will not get crawled, she wrote,
adding that users can unpublish documents they wish to remain uncrawled).

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10357137-2.html?tag=mncol;posts

"Espresso Book Machine" - Google To Reincarnate Digital Books As Paperbacks

Google To Reincarnate Digital Books As Paperbacks

[excerpt]

http://www.siliconvalley.com/news/ci_13357835

Google is giving 2 million books in its digital library a chance to be
reincarnated as paperbacks. As part of a deal announced Thursday, Google
is opening up part of its index to the maker of a high-speed publishing
machine that can manufacture a paperback-bound book of about 300 pages in
under five minutes. The new service is an acknowledgment by the Internet
search leader that not everyone wants their books served up on a computer
or an electronic reader like those made by Amazon.com and Sony.

[...]

The "Espresso Book Machine"
[ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espresso_Book_Machine ] has been around for
several years, but it figures to become a hotter commodity now that it has
access to so many books scanned from some of the world's largest
libraries. And On Demand Books, the Espresso's maker, potentially could
get access to even more hard-to-find books if Google wins court approval
of a class-action settlement giving it the right to sell out-of-print
books.

"This is a seminal event for us," said Dane Neller, On Demand Books' chief
executive, as he oversaw a demonstration of the Espresso Book Machine
Wednesday at Google's Mountain View headquarters.

In the background, some of the books that Google spent the past five years
scanning into a digital format were returning to their paper origins.

[...]

- - - - -

http://www.ondemandbooks.com/home.htm

What Gutenberg's press did for Europe in the 15th century, digitization
and the Espresso Book Machine®
will do for the world tomorrow.

Library quality paperbacks at low cost, identical to factory made books,
printed direct from digital files for the reader in minutes, serving a
radically decentralized world-wide multilingual marketplace.

Espresso: something made to order, one at a time, at point of sale, quickly.

Our EBM Locations
http://www.ondemandbooks.com/our_ebm_locations.htm
Video of The Espresso Book Machine 2.0
http://www.ondemandbooks.com/video2.htm
NEWSFLASH: On Demand Books and Google Sign Agreement
http://www.ondemandbooks.com/ODB%20and%20Google%20Press%20Release%2009-17-09.pdf

British Newspapers, 1800-1900

British Newspapers, 1800-1900
http://newspapers.bl.uk/blcs/

The British Library has done historians a tremendous service by creating
this extensive and thoroughly engaging collection of British newspapers from
1800 to 1900. The site contains over two million pages of 19th century
newspapers, though it is worth noting that many of them require the payment
of a fee. Visitors can browse complete articles from the "Penny Illustrated
Paper" and "The Graphic" free of charge, and they should also click on the
"Topical Articles" area. This area contains thematic essays on matters such
as the Sepoy Mutiny, the Napoleonic Wars, and the abolition of slavery. Each
essay also includes access to relevant articles from the newspapers of the
day. This area also includes detailed information on how best to use the
search engine in order to locate items of interest. [KMG]

Via The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2009.
http://scout.wisc.edu/

Creative Commons Publishes Study of “Noncommercial Use”

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Richard Forno <rforno@infowarrior.org>
Date: 2009/9/15
Subject: [Air-L] Creative Commons Publishes Study of "Noncommercial Use"
To: air-l@listserv.aoir.org

Creative Commons Publishes Study of "Noncommercial Use"
Mike Linksvayer, September 14th, 2009
San Francisco, California, USA — September 14, 2009

http://creativecommons.org/press-releases/entry/17721

Creative Commons announces the publication of Defining "Noncommercial": A
Study of How the Online Population Understands "Noncommercial Use." The
report details the results of a research study launched in September 2008
to explore differences between commercial and noncommercial uses of
content found online, as those uses are understood by various communities
and in connection with a wide variety of content. Generous support for the
study was provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

The study investigated understandings of noncommercial use and the
Creative Commons "NC" license term through online surveys of content
creators and users in the U.S., open access polls of global "Creative
Commons Friends and Family," interviews with thought leaders, and focus
groups with participants from around the world who create and use a wide
variety of online content and media. The research behind Defining
"Noncommercial" was conducted by Netpop Research, under advisement from
academics and a working group consisting of several Creative Commons
jurisdiction project members as well as Creative Commons staff and board
members.

Creative Commons provides free copyright licenses to creators who want to
grant the public certain permissions to use their works, in advance and
without the need for one-to-one contact between the user and the creator.
"Noncommercial" or "NC" is one of four license terms that creators may
choose to apply to CC-licensed content.

Creative Commons noncommercial licenses preclude use of a work "in any
manner that is primarily intended for or directed toward commercial
advantage or private monetary compensation." The majority of respondents
(87% of creators, 85% of users) replied that the definition was
"essentially the same as" (43% of creators, 42% of users) or "different
from but still compatible with" (44% of creators, 43% of users) theirs.
Only 7% of creators and 11% of users replied that the term was "different
from and incompatible with" their definition.

Other highlights from the study include the rating by content creators and
users of different uses of online content as either "commercial" or
"noncommercial" on a scale of 1-100, where 1 is "definitely noncommercial"
and 100 is "definitely commercial." On this scale, creators and users
(84.6 and 82.6, respectively) both rate uses in connection with online
advertising generally as "commercial." However, more specific use cases
revealed that many interpretations are fact-specific. For example,
creators and users gave the specific use case "not-for-profit organization
uses work on its site, organization makes enough money from ads to cover
hosting costs" ratings of 59.2 and 71.7, respectively.

On the same scale, creators and users (89.4 and 91.7, respectively) both
rate uses in which money is made as being commercial, yet again those
ratings are lower in use cases specifying cost recovery or use by
not-for-profits. Finally, both groups rate "personal or private" use as
noncommercial, though creators did so less strongly than users (24.3 and
16.0, respectively, on the same scale).

In open access polls, CC's global network of "friends and family" rate
some uses differently from the U.S. online population—although direct
empirical comparisons may not be drawn from these data. For example,
creators and users in these polls rate uses by not-for-profit
organizations with advertisements as a means of cost recovery at 35.7 and
40.3, respectively—somewhat more noncommercial. They also rate "personal
or private" use as strongly noncommercial—8.2 and 7.8, respectively—again
on a scale of 1-100 where 1 is "definitely noncommercial" and 100 is
"definitely commercial."

"As more people have begun to make, share, and use content online, the
question of what constitutes a 'commercial use' versus a 'noncommercial
use' has become increasingly important to understand," said Josh Crandall,
President of Netpop Research. "With this study, we were particularly
interested to see that—contrary to what many might believe—there is little
variation between creators and users in the perceived 'commerciality' of
particular uses of copyrighted content. Furthermore, where they do differ,
users tend to have a more conservative outlook than creators. This study
provides useful data and perspectives—from both members of the general
public and people who work closely in the world of copyright—that can help
people begin to think more clearly about the issue."

The study report and its associated data are available at
http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Defining_Noncommercial, where members of
the public can contribute feedback about the report. Defining
"Noncommercial" is published under a Creative Commons Attribution license,
and the research data is available under a CC0 public domain waiver.

"We're excited that the results of this important project will be
available for all kinds of uses—including commercial use—by anyone," said
Joi Ito, CEO of Creative Commons. "We encourage researchers and our
community to use what we've done and expand this investigation further,
building upon the data we collected and incorporating more perspectives
from Creative Commons adopters worldwide."

In the next years, possibly as soon as 2010, Creative Commons expects to
formally launch a multi-year, international process for producing the next
version (4.0) of the six main Creative Commons licenses. This process will
include examination of whether the noncommercial definition included in
licenses with the NC term should be modified or if other means of
clarifying noncommercial use under the CC licenses should be pursued. The
results of Defining "Noncommercial" and subsequent research will be an
important thread informing this process.

About Creative Commons

Creative Commons is a not-for-profit organization, founded in 2001, that
promotes the creative re-use of intellectual and artistic works, whether
owned or in the public domain. Through its free copyright licenses,
Creative Commons offers authors, artists, scientists, and educators the
choice of a flexible range of protections and freedoms that build upon the
"all rights reserved" concept of traditional copyright to enable a
voluntary "some rights reserved" approach. Creative Commons was built with
and is sustained by the generous support of organizations including the
Center for the Public Domain, Google, the John D. and Catherine T.
MacArthur Foundation, the Mozilla Foundation, Omidyar Network, Red Hat,
and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, as well as members of the
public. For more information about supporting Creative Commons, please
contact development@creativecommons.org.

About Netpop Research, LLC

Netpop Research, LLC is a San Francisco-based strategic market research
firm that specializes in online media, digital entertainment and
user-generated content trends. Netpop Research has fielded numerous
studies for major profit and nonprofit entities, and is the creator of the
Netpop tracking study of Internet usage among broadband consumers in the
United States and China.

Contact

Mike Linksvayer
Vice President
Creative Commons
ml@creativecommons.org
+1 415 369 8480

Press Kit

http://creativecommons.org/about/press/
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