Smallish Post, due October 31

     Most people would vehemently deny that they are thieves. They would never consider walking out of a store with a product that they have not paid for. These same people would probably admit to having burned a music CD or maybe downloaded a popular song off of the internet for which they have not paid. As the world becomes digital these actions are brought into question. Is it really morally wrong to burn a CD for friend? Is it worse to download an e-book from a questionable website than to borrow the book from the library? Anyone with an internet connection can perform a vast number of illegal actions from the safety and comfort of their own home. I think we need to rethink and redefine what we consider right and wrong in this changing digital world.

Book Inspired Post, due October 17

     Even in the computer age which we currently live, most people hardly pay attention to their computer's security. We all think that as long as we have a password and virus protection software our computer must be safe. It is a rare occurrence for us to even consider that someone might be trying to steal the secret information on our computer. We think our home computers are safe and thus we assume our work computers must be safe also. Herein lies the biggest security flaw there is. Human error is the number one reason that computers get hacked.
     I believe that a vast majority of security issues could be resolved if we focused on fostering a security based environment. We know how to avoid most computer attacks but it is either lack of research or lack of effort that leads to security flaws. Almost every encryption method can be broken under the right circumstances. It's only when we properly implement methods as directed that we are truly safe. When we neglect to change a default password, we open a way for an attacker to enter our account. Every password that we set with a weak security level gives one more opportunity for someone to intrude into our lives. We need to be vigilant and always remember that security should always be a priority.

General Conference Tweets

     I am undecided as to rather reading live tweets is helpful while watching general conference. Most of the tweets I read didn't say much about the content of conference but instead said things such as: "that was great", "Holland is awesome", or "I love conference." While these are great things to say, reading them didn't help me focus more on conference nor help me feel the spirit. After reading live tweets for the first hour of conference, I gave up because I found it distracting, repetitive, and a little annoying. Perhaps if I was following the right people I may be more likely to get more out of the experience. As it is, I think I'll just watch conference the normal way.

Current Event, due October 8

     I truly am glad with my choice of major. The industry is growing and that's a good thing for almost anyone coming out of college with a technology related degree. I realized how blessed I am after going to the career fair. It is a relief to know that there are job openings and many companies are hiring directly out of college. I've seen many people struggle to get a job out of college and I am glad that my skill set is currently in demand. After working as a software developer during the summer, I can't wait to jump into the industry. I really want to start gaining experience and learning the skills most needed by companies right now. I'm ready to finish school and start contributing to the evolving industry.

Link to Event: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-57605562-71/apple-now-has-10-percent-of-all-corporate-cash/

Smallish Post, due Oct 3

     In the past I always found family history to be rather boring. It seemed that my family history was either completely done or impossible. My father's side of the family has been members of the church for a very long time. Because of this, that side of my family is very well documented and most of the temple work is already done.There is very poor documentation on my mother's side of the family which has severely halted our progress in discovering more of my mother's ancestors. Because of the new tools that we have at our disposal, I feel that I can actually make progress on my family history. With the expansion of the internet, more data is available that I can use to identify more about my ancestors. I believe that with these new resources, I will be able to discover much more about my mother's ancestors and be able to perform all of the temple ordinances for them.