The future of file sharing very much mirrors what it is today: the global standard for delivering files over the internet. With the amount of traffic BitTorrents experience each day, it is hard to imagine a drastic change or the internet without it. All that can be certain for the future of peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing is the inevitable introduction of new BitTorrent protocols. “Technology is always evolving and I have little doubt that 5 or 10 years from now we will be using a different protocol,” (Bunnell, 2007). Much is unknown about the new BitTorrent protocol except that it will perform better than the current BitTorrents. Even the name is unknown at this point and is being called exactly what it is, the new BitTorrent protocol. Those currently using BitTorrents will likely follow religiously over to the new BitTorrent protocol.

2. Development

Between 2009 and 2025, a major milestone will be the elimination of spammers and anti-piracy organizations who abuse BitTorrents to make money or to dig out illegal downloaders. The new protocol will indeed be designed with these problems in mind (Ernesto, 2007). This will happen only if BitTorrents become legitimate and legal. As of today, it is no surprise that the entertainment industries are fighting hard against illegal file sharing. Secondly, with the mass amount of junk hidden in BitTorrents, many users are looking to legitimate, reliable sources or are refraining from trying P2P sharing in the first place. Among the millions of BitTorrents available are viruses to spyware and incorrect files. If the new BitTorrents protocol can somehow filter these unwanted annoyances, millions more turning to the protocol will be a milestone in itself.

The second milestone will be the improvement in the quality of files. Many users shy away from BitTorrents because of its poor quality media files. Often one will have to download multiple BitTorrents before finding a desirable song or video file. It is because of this, numberless customers remain loyal to popular entertainment e-stores such as iTunes and Rhapsody. Although BitTorrents may offer media free of charge, iTunes offers a low enough prices to save customers the hassle of searching for media, slow downloads, and poor quality files. If the new protocol can somehow please both sides of the spectrum including users and distributors, it will offer strict competition to iTunes while playing fair. Much like the first milestone, higher quality files offered by the new protocol will bring in new users and take one step away from sneaky feel of illegitimate file sharing.

3. Rationale

Although legitimizing BitTorrents and illegal file sharing may sound farfetched, in reality it is not such a crazy idea. File sharing is a monster that is near impossible to eliminate due to the amount of people willing to go great lengths to ensure free multimedia. The entertainment industry and software companies can file as many lawsuits and charges as they please, but no matter what, they will not be able to stop a fraction of the pirates on the web. The crackdown on piracy is simply too overwhelming to accomplish. In the end, these industries and companies may realize that they are fighting a battle that cannot be won. As the cliché goes, they may have won the battle, but lost the war. Once they come to their senses, they will realize that anything they can squeeze out of BitTorrents and P2P users is a lot better than nothing. With the development of the new BitTorrent protocol on the horizon, companies might want to strike deals before it is too late to salvage anything. Bigger and better is what we can expect from the new protocol, which may just tempt those “loyal” customers to a free buffet of multimedia.

References

Bunnell, J. (2007). Leading BitTorrent Admins Discuss The Future of BitTorrent. Retrieved April 8, 2009, from Torrent Freak Website http://torrentfreak.com/the-pirate-bay-sees-a-future-without-bittorrent-071030/

Ernesto. (2007). The Pirate Bay Sees a Future Without BitTorrent. Retrieved April 8, 2009, from Torrent Freak Website http://torrentfreak.com/the-pirate-bay-sees-a-future-without-bittorrent-071030/

For my Facebook profile I chose Samuel Finlay Breese Morse. Not having a broad knowledge of him I researched him on the internet. After gaining general knowledge about him I began to create his fictional Facebook profile. I used a print screen shot of a Facebook profile and began to add relevant information on it using Photoshop. I started by using Google images for the profile picture and album photos. I then filled in the basic and personal information section of the profile using general facts from Wikipedia. I added shows, movies and books that he would most likely watch if he was alive in our time. I then added contacts to his friends list that he had during his time. I added wall posts from others stating congratulations on his achievements. I have used Photoshop many times before so the aspect of creating this profile using Photoshop was not very difficult for me.

Aside from the obvious uses of file sharing, the development of the internet and peer-to-peer systems has allowed us to transfer documents, files and anything digital to other people, anywhere in the world. Through peer-to-peer sharing, we are able to transfer enormous files to one another instantly with a single click. Nowadays, traditional courier services are second options when it comes to delivering and transferring items. Of course, physical materials such as a chair cannot be transferred digitally but pictures and descriptions of them can be. Up until the last 30 years, people were not as fortunate to have such choice, and were restricted to physical delivery.

Early on, items were delivered in anyway possible. Like any form of transfer today, people want the fastest possible method. In ancient history, receiving information quicker than your enemy was a valuable advantage. While large physical items were bound to the ground, small documents such as messages and parcels could be transferred by air. The development of pigeon post, which was postal service by pigeons, was first used by Egyptians in 2900 B.C. Pigeon post has been used all the way up till modern times and was the world’s fastest communication system until 1844 when the telegraph was invented (Fang, 2008). Although pigeon post proved to be a rapid method, it was often unreliable. Under various circumstances, such as loss of direction or attack from other animals the birds would would fail to deliver their parcels.

Around 486 B.C., the Persian Empire developed a relay postal system in which couriers would ride to posting stations set up along the path. At these posting stations there would be other horses or couriers ready to continue the journey (“History of Communication,” n.d.). Using the relay system sped up delivery process, where couriers averaged 200 miles per day. This proved to be quite successful as countries around the world including China, began using similar methods of relay and posting stations. Similar to peer-to-peer sharing, these postal services opened up communications with others. These communications with other countries were both commercial and personal. People were able to obtain items such as spices that were available only in certain areas or distant locations.

During the industrial revolution, the transfer of goods had become much more convenient and easy due to improvements made in transportation. The development of cars, trains, freighters and other technologies were used to transport and deliver items all over the world. Newly engineered roads, canals and railways were built in order to compliment these new technologies. The materials used in construction allowed for the roads to be used all year round (Vale, 2008). In 1752, one of the earliest courier services, Statenpost was founded, which eventually paved the way for future companies like United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) that followed in 1907. Early on, these courier companies primarily delivered goods by car. Courier companies became the standard in delivery services. Whenever someone needed goods shipped anywhere, they would find a courier company to deliver it for them. Just as courier companies such as UPS became customary when goods needed to be sent or received, peer-to-peer websites such as ThePirateBay, Mini Nova and IsoHunt have become customary when looking to share or receive a file.

After the industrial revolution, the methods of delivery remained, but the technologies themselves improved. Airplanes became bigger and faster, courier companies expanded and the computer was invented, which led to an intriguing innovation called the internet. Along with the internet came e-mail. In the 1960’s, e-mail began as a simple network allowing messages to be transmitted from one computer to another. Due to its rapid delivery rate, e-mail became a cultural phenomenon that literally changed the way we communicate, interact and share with each other. Although traditional postage and letters were still widely used, companies such as UPS suffered revenue loses and customer traffic (Wikipedia, n.d.). E-mail can be thought of as the first true form of file sharing because of its ability to send messages as well as video, pictures and audio.

As the way we share and interact with the world changes through technology, there are many similarities within historical methods of transferring and sending goods to the technological advancements of today. Digital or physical, we want to receive whatever it may be as soon as possible. Like the relay posts of the past, courier companies have airports and facilities set up all over the globe. One’s photo album can be uploaded for viewers across seas as opposed to pigeon post thousands of years ago. What was considered fast thousands of years ago would seem like years today. Without file sharing’s predecessors and historical techniques, none of the advancements that led up to peer-to-peer networks would exist today.

References

Fang,I. (2008). Pigeon Post. Retrieved March 18, 2009, from University of Minnesota Web site http://www.mediahistory.umn.edu/archive/PigeonPost.html

History World. (n.d.). History of Communication. Retrieved March 18, 2009, from History World Web site http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=aa93

Lookd. (n.d.). Postal Services History. Retrieved March 18, 2009, from Lookd Web site http://www.lookd.com/postal/history.html

Vale, B. (2008, December). Transportation and the Industrial Revolution. Suite101.com. Retrieved 18, 2009, from http://modern-british-history.suite101.com/article.cfm/transportation_and_the_industrial_revolution

Wikipedia. (n.d.). E-mail. Retrieved March 18, 2009, from Wikipedia Web site http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-mail

http://my.nowpublic.com/culture/sfu-surreys-subway-removes-special

Benefits:
By using a wiki format, input from other peers allowed for a much more diverse answer and final product compared to working by yourself. The wiki format also allowed us to change anyone’s work. If we saw something wrong or incorrect, we could let the person know or change it ourselves. We were also not constrained by time and place. We could complete our assigned part on our own time and place instead of having to organize a meeting at one place or time.

Limitations:
As stated above, a benefit of using a wiki format allowed for information to be found and input by many people in the class. While this is a benefit, it could also be a limitation because the information presented may not be reliable or true. Because you are able to edit anyone’s work does not mean that you are correct. Someone could edit your correct work thinking that it is wrong. The freedom to post anything makes it difficult to set rules and guidelines to what you think should be posted or not. Lastly, because the wiki is written by many people, the quality of the written work will be very inconsistent.

How did it change the experience of using a wiki to be in the same room as the other people using the system?

Being in the same room while using a wiki to complete the task at hand, was very slow moving at first but proved to be effective in the end. When we first received the task, we all lacked direction and everybody was trying to communicate through technology and the internet. As we soon found out, this was very difficult as many people had no idea what was going on or could not connect to the wiki. Finally, some people took charge and decided that the white board approach was much more effective. Using the whiteboard did not require everybody to be logged in to a wiki or connected to the internet because we were all already present in the room. Once we distributed tasks, and split into groups, we were able to collaborate quite easily as we could get up and discuss with other groups much quicker than waiting for a response through the internet.

At the tender age of 12, I discovered man’s best friend. No, its name was not Spot or Buster, its name was the internet. The internet had many things to offer me but none better than one thing. Free media! With the help of programs such as Limewire and uTorrent, I was hooked. A pirate if you may. One download, two download, three download, four. In a few short years, a million downloads more. Over the years, how much money have I saved downloading music, software, and movies among a vast array of pirated media? Name any digital form of media and you can guarantee it is available for free download on the net.

Pirated media is any form of media such as documents, software, music or movies that are illegally copied and redistributed to the public at little or not cost. The popularity of digital piracy has increased through well known file sharing programs and websites such as Napster, Limewire, BitTorrent and The Pirate Bay. Downloading what you want is usually quite fast depending on the popularity of the file, and is as simple as typing in the search bar and clicking download. This is possible because of peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing. This means that when you download a file, you are getting small bits of files from different people and web sources at the same time. While programs such as Limewire are P2P file sharing, the use of Torrents is true P2P file sharing because its users voluntarily upload and host files for others to download. Limewire type programs have “publisher servers” that put out files as well as uploading users. The rules of Torrent town are quite different from those in Limewire land. With Torrents, sharing your files or seeding results in faster download speeds. In comparison, Limewire allows you to download without penalty if one chooses not to share their files.

But how is the availability of free media affecting those in industries such as film and music? Perhaps the hardest hit industry has been music. The industry has been dealt blows financially and has had no choice but to respond with lawsuits. Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA, 2008), reports that, “global music piracy has caused $12.5 billion of economic losses every year, 71,060 U.S. jobs lost, a loss of $2.7 billion in workers’ earnings, and a loss of $422 million in tax revenues, $291 million in personal income tax and $131 million in lost corporate income and production taxes.” In the report by the RIAA, they state that their goal is not to sue anything and anyone possible but to discourage and warn those who choose to participate in illegal piracy that they can be persecuted. Realistically, the RIAA understands that piracy will always be evident and all they can do is try to bring piracy to a manageable level so that the industry can flourish.

How can something that feels so right be so wrong? From a consumer standpoint pirated media is the best thing to happen since sliced bread. I can name very few people that purchase media from retailers like Wal-Mart or even digital distributors such as iTunes. As a consumer, the positives of downloading pirated media far outweigh the negatives. The only significant negatives I can see are the quality of media that is downloaded is often quite poor and are frequently infected with viruses and mal-ware meant to harm your computer. Secondly, the risk of lawsuit is presented, although the chances are slim to none. Currently in my iTunes library resides 517 albums, 2,500 songs, all six seasons of Family Guy, eight seasons of Seinfeld and 44 movies. Not to mention the software and games, and don’t even get me started on the media that has been deleted. Now you may be reading this and think “CRIMINAL!” but the fact is, the person reading this is more than likely holds the same title. I would estimate that piracy has easily saved me over $100,000. My justification is that musicians, actors and those affected by piracy make enough money as it is, share the wealth. As a music fan, selling fewer records means artists must have more tours plus release more music equals win for fans, especially when the albums are free. Sure, this may mean that musicians work twice as hard but it’s a tough life when you make millions of dollars.

Realistically, pirated media is a monster that I do not see failing. Filters and technologies are being developed everyday to crack down on piracy but people are always finding a way to beat the system. Lawsuits are being filed but there are simply too many pirates to stop every single one. Much like the drug trade, it cannot be stopped, only regulated. Retailers can lower the costs of products to make their prices more attractive but even a $3.99 new release DVD seems like a fortune compared to free. The government could impose even harsher penalties but one could argue that murder is 25 to life, yet people are killed everyday. Those affected by pirated media can only hope that a wave of righteousness washes over consumers that they might make honest purchases. We all know how that will turn out.

References

Recording Industry Association of America. FAQ. Retrieved February 9, 2009, from Recording Industry Association of America Web site http://www.riaa.com/faq.php

Gil, P. (2009, January).Torrents 101: the Basics of How Bittorrents Work. About.com. Retrieved February 9, 2009, from http://netforbeginners.about.com/od/peersharing/a/torrenthandbook.htm

The different technologies I used for communication in 24 hours included the internet, web conferencing, and my cell phone. The internet allowed me to access instant chat messengers such as MSN and social networks like facebook to stay it contact and up to date with my friends. Communicating through the internet is good when using a computer because most users have some form of instant messenger, email or social network account. My cell phone was my most reliable form of communication because responses were always quick. Most people are not always connected to the internet or have access to a computer (unless they have smart phones) but most, if not all have their phones on hand. The cell phone is perfect for quick messages, convenience or communicating on a more personal level as opposed to the internet and online messaging where certain situations disallow you to convey the emotions you please.

2. What was the most common communication medium that you used in 24 hours? Why do you think this medium was the most commonly used one?

The most common communication medium that I used in 24 hours was my cell phone. I think it was the most commonly used because it was convenient and quick. Typing a text message takes less than 30 seconds and responses are usually immediate. Especially with new technologies as smart phones, almost everything done on a computer can be done on your phone.

3. What was the most common purpose for the communication media you used?

The most common purpose for my cell phone was texting friends or making quick phone calls to ask where they were or what they were doing.

4. What do you think you learned most about the role of communication media in your everyday life by keeping this journal? Please explain your answer.

I learned that almost all forms of communication are connected to technology in some form or way. More times than not, I am talking to someone through the phone, email, MSN, facebook or some other form of technology media. Even in person to person encounters, the meeting is often set up through technology.

For example, if I ask someone to hang out, usually the decision to meet is through the internet or on your cell phone. Even if you decided to meet in person, when you arrive or are waiting for the person, you will call them and ask, “where are you?” ,“what time are we meeting” or some sort of communication before the face to face meeting.

5. What was the most surprising thing that you learned from keeping this journal? Why is this surprising? Please explain.

The most surprising thing I learned from this journal is how everything I do is technology related. In my home, school and work. At school, lectures are almost always presented in some form of powerpoint or video. At home, If I am relaxing, I am on the computer or watching television and even when doing homework, I am checking the class website for assignments or marks.

6. What are some of the positive implications about having communication media in your life? Name 2 or 3 possible implications, and explain them.

- Convenient
- Entertaining

Communication media is so convenient because it is instant, quick, and effortless.
Secondly, life would be much more boring without the internet, cell phones, or television. To be completely honest, I would not survive 3 hour lectures without the aid of my cell phone or the internet.

7. What are some of the negative implications about having communication media in your life? Name 2 or 3 possible implications, and explain them.

- Always plugged in, less privacy
- Increases laziness and procrastination

Having social networks such as facebook always people and friends to constantly know what is happening in your life, even when you do not want them to. People are able to contact you in an abundant amount of ways. If someone really wanted to get in contact with you, they could.
Secondly, communication media causes laziness and presents distractions. Doing homework on the computer means I am connected to the internet. Being connected to the internet means quick 1 minute checks of my facebook news feed or hockey pool. If I did not have the internet in my home, doing homework would be harder but it would allow me to get a lot more work done

8. How do you think your life would be if you did not have access to communication media. Please talk about both the positive and the negative things that might happen.

If I did not have access to communication media, I would be much more productive learning wise. Reflecting on my communication media journal, I waste countless hours watching videos or surfing the net. Often I find myself watching television and then go to my room to do homework, but instead of diving straight into it, I find myself first checking emails and wasting time.

9. If you had to choose one communication media to take on a desert island, which one would you choose and why?

If I had to take one communication media to a desert island, it would be my cell phone. I would call for help.

The U.S. military is working on a new method of surveillance called COM-BAT. It’s a robotic shaped bat that is powered by solar, wind and vibrations. Concepts include tiny cameras, mini microphones and nuclear radiation/poisonous gas detection.

I can see devices like this being used by police forces in the future. Concepts like this utopian or dystopian? I can see a lot of benefits coming from something like this but at the same time it could cause a lot of trouble. What’s next, eye scanning spiders? I got Minority Report on the brain!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/nov/03/network-windpower

Comment!

I was born here in Vancouver and my chinese is as good as my German. I am an undergrad at SFU currently deciding between SIAT and Business. I graduated from Fraser Heights in Surrey. I’d call myself a sports fanatic, basketball being my favorite. GO CAVALIERS! I like laughing and Family Guy makes me laugh, especially Cleveland.  Youtube is also one of my addictions. sxephil anyone? I enjoy good music. That means no country, classical or Hannah Montana. Currently listening to: Death Cab for Cutie/Kid Cudi

My favorite technology would have to be apple products, especially my ipod touch. Music, movies, games, and internet. It doesn’t get much better. Oh and Photoshop is pretty cool too.