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Dharma Sutra's Position Net Neutrality: An Editorial
By Augusta Wray

According to the textbook, Telecommunications Law and Policy, Network Neutrality is "a proposed regulatory regime under which the owners of Internet infrastructure would be constrained in their ability to change different prices to different content or service providers, for example, based on quality of service differences. Absolute network neutrality would require that all bits on the network be treated exactly the same."

Our think tank, Dharma Sutra, takes the position that Network Neutrality is a very important aspect of current technology news AND will continue to be a huge topic of discussion in the coming years. Our group is in support of regulations enforcing network neutrality. We are of the opinion that it would prevent unwanted interference from the network providers and also prevent the internet from being divided into a multi-tier system. This measure will also ensure that the content providers are not discriminated against by the network providers. We believe that Internet service providers, or ISPs, will continue to consider themselves to be so-called "traffic cops" on the open-market of the Internet until such a time that the Federal Communications Commission, or some other regulatory agency yet to be created, steps in and explicitly states what the ISPs can and cannot do.

The source on the definition is the textbook, Telecommunications Law and Policy, pg. 1178.

Vaishnav Vijayakumar proofread this editorial.

I want to thank my 642 group, Dharma Sutra, for an excellent semester in a difficult class.

Posted by A:\wray at 07:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Cyber attacks on the U.S.A, a growing problem
By Augusta Wray

Last week in a speech at the RSA security conference on Tuesday April 8th, 2008, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff outlined a plan to enhance cyber security for the United States government. While he compared the plan to the Manhattan Project, he was very vague on details, citing the project’s classified status.

Since 2006, the number of cyber attacks on the United States’ government and certain key defense contractors has increased exponentially. The most popular tactic is sending an innocuous email with an attachment that holds a code. This code would log all keystrokes, browse and obtain potentially sensitive files, and report anything back to a “Master” program. Many of these attacks appear to originate from within China. However, China’s government has denounced the allegation that they are sponsoring the assault.

Source
1.Dignan, Larry. “Attacks escalate on critical U.S. government networks: Will a Manhattan Project work?”. ZDNet.com, April 13th, 2008. Accessed on April 13th, 2008 from http://blogs.zdnet.com/security/?p=1024
2..Grow, Brian, Epstein, Keith, & Tschang, Chi-Chu. “The New E-spionage Threat.” BuisnessWeek.com, April 10th, 2008. Accessed on April 13th, 2008 fromhttp://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_16/b4080032218430.htm.
3.Associated Press. “Chertoff Pushes for Cyber Security – Warning System Would Flag Attacks.” The Journal azette (Ft. Wayne, IN). April 9th, 2008, News, Page 11A.

Posted by A:\wray at 07:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This paper discusses the importance of gathering data about the competition and the global marketplace in an ethical manner in order to gain a competitive advantage for your company. It also discusses the importance of strategic uses of the intelligence gained. Lastly, this paper discusses the importance of a good leader at the helm of every competitive intelligence initiative.

Continue reading "Competitive Intelligence: Using Information Strategically" »

Posted by A:\wray at 07:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Comcast Throws an Olive Branch to BitTorrent
By Augusta Wray

In a statement made on Thursday, March 27, 2008, Comcast agreed to stop interfering with BitTorrent’s traffic. Comcast said they would also boost broadband capacity to allow for more rich multimedia transmission.
BitTorrent has agreed to make its software more efficient to alleviate some of the major internet traffic it fields. By the end of 2008, Comcast will no longer target files based on the type of protocol used. “The outcome will be traffic management technique that is more appropriate for today’s emerging Internet trends,” said Tony Werner, Comcast’s chief technology officer. (Yao, 2008)
There is no word yet on the impact this will have on the FCC’s inquiry on the cable provider, but Comcast and BitTorrent have said that they want to work this out without government interference.

Source:
1.Fernandez, Bob. “Comcast agreement in dispute with BitTorrent.” The Philadelphia Inquirer. March 27, 2008, City-D Edition, Page D01. 2.Yao, Deborah. “In about-face, Comcast to stop hampering of Internet file-sharing.” Thestarpress.com. March 27, 2008. Accessed on March 27, 2008.

Posted by A:\wray at 07:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Cable Companies want in on Advertising Dollars
By Augusta Wray

America’s six major cable networks are banding together to begin an initiative that would allow advertisers to buy customized and interactive ads across their systems. They have temporarily named it “Project Canoe.” The masterminds of this effort are Stephen Burke, the president of Comcast, and Landel C. Hobbs, chief operating officer of Time Warner Cable. This idea of customized advertising is something the cable industry has promised for quite some time, but the internet really took the idea and ran. The idea is to build a national service that can sell focused ads across all six cable systems. The projected added revenue from this targeted system would be about $15 Million, up from the $5 Million current advertising profit. They hope to gain a foothold in the advertising business; much like Google has done in recent times.

Sources
Arango, Tim. “Cable firms join forces to attract focused ads.” The New York Times. March 10, 2008. Late Edition, Page C1.
Smith, David Lee. “Cable Strikes Up an Advertising Band.” The Motley Fool. March 14, 2008. Accessed March 16, 2008.

Posted by A:\wray at 07:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Knowledge management is vital to effective leadership. Information is the main component of knowledge and thus the key to knowledge management. Communication is the form that information takes for successful leadership.

Continue reading "The Information Flow: Knowledge Management and the Effective Leader" »

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China’s Virus that Won’t Die
By Augusta Wray
Chinese-produced digital photo frames that were sold at major American chain stores were found to be carrying a dangerous Trojan that was designed to collect game passwords. These photo frames have since been discontinued, but the virus lives on. It is immune to antivirus protection from more than 100 security programs. It hides in the photo frames, lying in wait to be hooked up to a PC. Once hooked up it downloads files, randomly names them, and then hides them in various places, making it that much more difficult to remove. The real security issue came when a security vendor realized how much intelligence the virus really had. Brian Grayek, head of product development at Computer Associates, believes this virus could be a test for something much larger and more sinister: a Trojan that targets personal, private, and/or financial information. According to Grayek, when the code was studied it was linked back to a well-funded Chinese group.

Sources
Gage, Deborah. “Trojan Horse probing defenses.” The San Francisco Chronicle. 5Star Edition. February 15, 2008: Business Section, Page C1.

Patel, Nilay. “Insignia photo frame virus much nastier than originally thought.” Engadget.com. Accessed February 15, 2008. < http://www.engadget.com/2008/02/15/insignia-photo-frame-virus-much-nastier-than-originally-thought/.>

Posted by A:\wray at 11:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In this paper I will discuss the importance of the context of leadership through discussion of Dr. Jay Gillette’s paper “Leadership for the Information Renaissance: Clarity, Challenges, Opportunity,” discussion of J. Thomas Wren and Marc J. Swatez’s essay, “The Historical and Contemporary Contexts of Leadership: A Conceptual Model,” and my own analysis of John W. Gardner’s essay “Leadership in Large-Scale Organized Systems “.

Continue reading "Context of Leadership" »

Posted by A:\wray at 10:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Microsoft Bids for Yahoo!
by Augusta Wray

Early Friday morning, Microsoft made an unsolicited $44 .6 Billion dollar bid to buy up Yahoo! This bid was made in an effort to expand Microsoft enough to suitably compete with Google's online presence. Yahoo! has been losing ground on the online search and advertising fronts and said they would “carefully and promptly” examine Microsoft’s bid. However, the bid faces regulatory analysis in Washington and Europe.

Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said Friday that he won’t be turned away. “This is a decision we have – and I have – thought long and hard about.” Ballmer said in a conference call, “We are confident it’s the right path for Microsoft and Yahoo!”

To prove their determination in this takeover, Microsoft is offering a 62 percent premium to Yahoo!’s closing stock price of $19.18 Thursday. Yahoo!’s share price climbed nearly 50 percent to $28.38 on Friday, while Google’s price fell almost 9 percent.

Source
"Microsoft’s bold bid: $44.6B for Yahoo!." The Indianapolis Star. 2 Feb. 2008: C3.

Delaney, Kevin J., Robert A. Guth, and Matthew Karnitschnig. “Microsoft Makes Grab for Yahoo.” The Wall Street Journal. 2 Feb. 2008: A1

Posted by A:\wray at 11:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Abstract
Leaders have had a huge impact on molding history. In modern times, leadership and management have been compared and contrasted. Both seem to be two sides of the same coin. Both are vitally important to a company’s success. In our Leadership Seminar class, we have discussed the significance of these two qualities and created illustrations to go along with them. These discussions have increased our understanding of what it is to be a leader.

Continue reading "How Princes Should Keep Faith" »

Posted by A:\wray at 02:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)