27 February 2008

College P2P: A Hard Lesson (and a complicated issue!)

My latest published article to the March 1, 2008 issue of PC Magazine. This one was complicated to sort through and is the result of no less than six hours of interviews and poring over statistics. It was challenging and, at times, frustrating, but most of all, it was a fantastic opportunity to illustrate the difficulties higher institutions are grappling with and attempting to address.

My editor in Manhattan sent me a couple of advance copies of the magazine and I was pleased with the layout. It should be on the newsstand tomorrow. To my friend Ed B., thank you for your encouragement, coffee and the gentle reminder to "just breathe", when I was frustrated with the proposition of compiling so much information into such a limited amount of words. A couple of hours at Port City Java with good company can do wonders to clear one's head.

College P2P: A Hard Lesson

02.25.08

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FILE-SHARING ORIENTATION
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A new bill threatens to crack down on P2P downloading at colleges, but administrators say that Congress is misguided.

by Susie Parker

There is a small section in the College Opportunity and Affordability Act that is creating a wave of anxiety for administrators at American colleges. Along with measures to make college more affordable and loan agencies more transparent, the bill includes provisions to crack down on students downloading music and movies over the school's network. If the bill passes (the House is currently debating it), penalties for noncompliance could include taking away federal funding, such as Stafford Loans and work-study programs. Although most school administrators agree that illegal downloading is wrong and that offenders should be penalized, they say it is nearly impossible to control—and not for lack of trying.

You can read the rest of it here, if you're interested... "the rest of the story".

Yes, I still have a "real" update almost finished. My life isn't as technical as P2P file sharing, I just need to find a couple of seconds to finish a blog entry. More later...

25 February 2008

Obamamania...

A real update is in the works but, until I finish writing it (almost done!), I had to share this. If you need to laugh today, take a look. Apparently SNL is funny again. Thank goodness the writer's strike is OVER...and just in time. Enjoy.