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I have been trying to come up with something interesting to write, on the topic of law and less of technology and programming that I have been writing about recently.  I have noticed however that I am not sure what is the best thing to write about, and was inspired by a recent post that I read - that was outlining different ideas taht they had had which were worth discussing but insufficient for a full blog post so they listed 30 of them on their own site.  This is my attempt, and if you, the readers are in favour may become a regular part of this blog (I have attached a poll at the end for you to have your say)

1. If Bert is really evil - is Ernie his accomplice or is he suffering from Stockholm syndrome?

2. Is it undemocratic for the leader of a country or organization to determine when elections are to be held? Because if it is to be the people’s will, why should the leader be able to choose when to measure that will?

3. Is there morality on the internet? is it ok to bend social networks to your own will? I have listened to a fair few SEO podcasts lately and it seems that gaming and manipulating social networking phenomenon, such as stumbleupon, digg and wikipedia are all fair game.  Knowing that what you are seeing may not have just organically grown affect the way you view these sites? One prime example is Subvert and Profit, where users are paid to digg or to stumble particular posts.  Although this may subsidize the user for the simple process of clicking a few buttons, does it destroy the network for everyone else?

4.

"Skype and UK cellphone operator 3 are currently working on a new handset that promises to "make Internet calls mobile." According to Reuters, the phone is expected to "work in the normal way," but also include an option to let users bypass all those hefty cellphone charges and contact other Skype users directly in order to save a few bucks. We assume that means Skype will operate over 3G data"  http://www.engadget.com/2007/10/12/skype-and-3-team-up-for-mobile-internet-phone/

 

I like Skype it is reliable, cheap and easy to use. I like the ability to have cheap land line calls, and free calls skype to skype, will this be the VoIP killer to crush the other networks.  Could you put skype in numbers from all over the world into one phone, and and receive the calls for free?

5. Recently I blogged about Copyright Violation (here), Asking the question, does the punishment fit the crime? My conclusion was that the punishment should only put the victim in the same position as if there was no violation. The difficulties of this were also discussed.  Reading in the news about the $220,000 (US) fine awarded for hosting a few pirate songs is a bit over the top (*).  Who did this really hurt? I think that this is a case of "justice" putting one person (the perpetrator of the crime) in a much worse situation than should really be the case.  This is not just about putting the victim in the same situation as if the crime had never occurred, that is impossible to tell, but unlikely.  Is this truly the way the "justice system" is designed to operate, I think not? It is not about hurting people, it is about rectifying legal disputes.  If rectifying disputes is truly hurting people then the whole system should be rethought.

6. Why is is it that the things that you loose are always in the last place that you look for them?

7. Am I the only one that the more an advertising jinjle sticks in your mind, the less you wish to purchase it. 

8. Enemybook and Snubster are parodies on the online friendships that people accumulate though social networks.  I tend to agree that these seem to be shallow, even though I have been on some social networks for a while - i have not actually found any friends, or people that actually want to talk to me, thus are they really social networks, or just disjointed networks of people who are actually just sitting around?

9. Previously I blogged about the ethics of blogging (more), I have had some further thoughts on this, once concerning advertising of blogs and the subtle advertising that I was not aware of until I actually started blogging, affiliate marketing - Affiliate marketing is where people are paid to promote a particular product or link, and where the owner of the link pays the blog or promotor depending on what you do.  This is acheived by putting cookies on your computer and having special codes in links.  Although I considered myself pretty technologically savvy I was not aware of this practice until recently.  Is this ethical? Is selling people’s comments for cash something that really should be done if blogging is to compete as a news and reputable source? Is there any way to prevent it - and should there be a disclosure? I am still unsure, and am toying with the idea of using it on my own blog, but do not want my copy to be affected. 

10. The other is the the ethics of the no follow.  This is where a link is changed, such that search engines will not index the page that is mentioned nor give it any credit in its standings.  In my blog I have tried to reduce my use of these for everything except for comments (to reduce my spam) I however have a problem with people using it.  I use experts-exchange, a large service where I am one of its top 100 experts of all time.  What I am annoyed about is that in my profile I can not link to my blog without these tags being added, I think that if they are to be used it should be to reduce spam.  If you have a trusted person (an expert for example) then their links should be allowed to go where you want them to.  I think that this is artifical gaming of links and that should only be done to prevent spam and that is it - what do other people think?

11. 

AUSTRALIANS would feel "let down" if the Bali bombers on death row were not executed, Prime Minister John Howard said yesterday.

He said a shift from capital punishment had "been festering" for some time in Indonesia, where a legal challenge to the death penalty was under way. "I think there would be a sense of letdown if that was the sentence delivered, but not carried out," Mr Howard said on the anniversary of the 2002 bombings, in which 88 Australians were killed. (here)

 

I am strictly against the death penalty - I feel that it is against my idea of what justice should be.  I hate the idea personally that if you were innocent and accused of a crime wrongly that you may be killed, I think it sets a bad example and have not seen evidence that it is an effective deterrent.  for this reason I can not expect that people will be killing people in other countries - i also think that there is problems that Australia is outraged at sentences for drug dealer,s at the same time in the same legal system that they expect the same outcome for other convicted criminals - is an election time to tell people what they want to hear rather than what is the truth

12.

Tens of thousands of people have been taken to a pro-government rally in Rangoon in a show of strength by Burma’s junta, as a United Nations envoy returns to south-east Asia to pile pressure on the regime.  (here)

 

Although I do get disappointed with our government and what it does - and how it treats people - and how it professes to e a democracy, but the people’s opinions do not seem to be garnered all the time - and that at least we in Australia and other western democracies have freedoms that are not available to people in more oppressive regimes - the fact that I can write this, and I do not have to join the army if I dont want to, that I do not have to fear when walking outside or working each day, makes me happy and makes me want everyone to have the same opportunities that I do.

13. As I am still an IT guy; an interesting comment was posted on my post - 1001 posts to read before you die, about 10 Things your IT guy wants you to know, I especially like the line;

Not everything you ask me to do is “urgent”. In fact, by marking things as “urgent” every time, you almost ensure that I treat none of it as a priority. http://thinksmarter.wordpress.com/2007/08/04/10-things-your-it-guy-wants-you-to-know/

14. Why is my house always tidiest and I am at work for longer hours when exams are coming up and I am supposed to be studying?

15. Is having templates the best thing for people’s licensing models.  I notice that much of the content on the internet is going towards the creative commons licensing

  Attribution. You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work).

 

However - I notice that most people do not mention how they want to be attributed.  This causes a real problem - Do I need to list at the bottom of each post, or in the alt text or do I have to hyperlink - it says in the manner specified, but if there is no policy to saying exactly what that specification method is then I am a a loss to know what is appropriate - I do not want to break people’s licenses, but if they make it hard…. putting a licence stamp is probably not enough

 

  16. Do licences mean anything online anyway - I say this because my content seems to be copied in numerous places across the Internet, and even if I email the owners saying please remove it they don’t - why should my work be used to make other people money? it is probably where I draw the line, but then if it is online then it is fair game? I don’t know - and probably need to work out what to do with it in the future - I am nto sure if imitation is flattery or if it is just cheating

 

17. Is blogging going to get much bigger? The number of blogs is estimated to be in the millions, but this is really a small number compared with the estimated Internet users across the world - also if one considers the number of hits and subscribers, from say Scoble, there are not that many readers (much more than mine though)- think about even a modest program in Australia, and the numbers, then look at a blog with international exposure - I say the only direction for blog subscriptions is up.

18. Why do games that you once thought to be really fun, years later appear really stupid? Having played stunts, civ 1, and tetrinet over the last few days - I can not believe that I spend hours playing them in the past, about the only game that appears to be timeless is solitare.

19. What is the best way to exercise your brain? This is not seen to be a big thing, but what happens if you are not using a skill that you trained yourself in for some time? it will atrophy - well how to do you keep up with past skills, while learning new ones? This is particularly relevant for people in management who are not doing the skills that they are managing people to do - and for those things like languages that we would hate to loose? I am not sure if there is a correct answer, but would be willing to develop a solution with anyone who is willing to help.

20. What is the best way to make people comment on your blog? Since I want discussions and people coming back, comments are the best way to do this, but even if I ask, the number of comments compared with the number of readers is a shocking conversion rate.  Is this something I should not be caring about - or should I ignore it? The point of me spending hours on each post is for people to read it and to consider what I have said and to provoke questions of their own.  This does not seem to be happening.

21.  Blog Etiquette - is there such a thing, should I be commenting on similar posts to what I have written and putting up my own link or is this spamming? Since I am not sure what I should write and what I should not on other people’s comments, it makes me err on the caution of not writing anything at all, but this I feel is rather destroying the point of everything.

22. What is the best way to put advertisements on a blog - should I introduce them now (as it may be my eventual plan to do so) even though I know that I will not make any money from them?; also what is the best network to go with -

• clixGalore
• ReviewMe
• BlogsVertise
• AuctionAds
• LinkWorth
• WidgetBucks
• Adsense
• TTZ Media
• Commission Junction
• Ad-Brite
• Bidvertiser
• Kontera
• Text Link Ads

 

Are there any others I have not listed? What is your opinion of each?

23. Do people make random calls on Skype? I was woken at 1am by a seemingly random skype call (they did not leave a voicemail message)

ok - those are some of my thoughts, I’m happy to discuss any of them and look forward to your comments; please fill in the below poll to express Your thoughts on if this is the right thing for this blog - and additionally can you please let me know if you want more information or expansion of these ideas in future posts?

24. Am I the only one that does not have posts appear on blogs because they think I am spam? I’m not sure why - it is not as if I send out thousands of comments about Viagra, but try as I may, the bigger the site the more chance I don’t have of appearing (only about 25% of my comments get out there)

25. Am I the only one that has great trouble keeping track of time? The more I am supposed to be keeping timesheets, the less I am able to actually fill them in.  I am not sure if it is the distraction of writing down, or commitment issues.  I need to develop a working solution to tracking where I am spending my time.

26. I would like to say how much I appreciate KeyPass Password Safe, I had been looking for a password manager for some time but had been too lazy to implement it, I am really glad that I did.  Keeping all my passwords and information in one secure place has really improved my productivity.  I just wish it integrated with firefox better.

27. I still want to get my blog mentoring scheme off the ground but am currently at a dead end about where to start.  This should be like a pyramid scheme, where a successful blogger teaches someone with drive and aptitude about how to blog, those apprentices then become the master and take on their own contacts and help them.  This is not going to be a huge investment of time for anyone but really would inspire the community, and also create lasting friendships and real social networks (as opposed to the online ones) - any ideas would be appreciated.

28. Am I the only one who is sick of people talking about the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray battle? Basically, they are expensive and not very common, I am just going to buy whatever the winner is, at the last possible moment, when sticking with DVD is no longer a good idea.  I also think that I will do the same with Vista (yuck)

29. I would just like to urge all Australians to register to vote if you have not done already - you have until 8pm on Wednesday 7th October, otherwise your voice won’t count - according to the radio news today 400,000 young australians have not registered, this is so many that it could really influence the next election.

30. People who have been through real trauma say that they should live each day like it was their last, the thing is if it were my last day, I would not be at work.

 Thankyou for reading my 30 ideas of the week.  If you have any feedback I would really appreciate it in comments below, If you like this you may like other articles, which are available through my RSS feed.

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