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In Friedman's book (p 191) he talks about how Napster was perhaps "the most popular website ever created. In less than a year, it went from zero to 60 million visitors a month." This article has a great picture and says that Napster, "redefine the Internet, the music industry and the way we all think about intellectual property. "

Background on Napster - important for virtual communications group.

Excellent article on what Google wave is intended to be: a step up from email to allow for document collaboration. OK, now I finally get it. Seeing people talk about it replacing twitter, etc. I was like "nah - not with THIS" but seeing this blog post made the light go on - a must read for those who want to truly understand what google wave is for and to not get so hyper about what it isn't.

Important NEW technology for workflow software group and virtual communications. This would make a GREAT topic of video and perhaps we could try to get some invites for students to test out.

While this article starts out about a lawfirm in Birmingham UK that is going to "track down people who make anonymous comments about companies online" it becomes an amazingly poignant article on the very nature of the Internet today and the push pull between anonymous commenting and accountability of the commenter. Push pull between free speech and online identity and brand protection. One person in this article claims that this sort of thing is the sign that the "wild west" of the INternet is coming to an end. Oh dear, I hope someone invents a new one if somehow anonymous commenters are now going to risk such! Also love the article's discussion of the Streisand effect wherein Barbara protested the sharing of some photos of her eroding beachfront which caused a stir and more people looking at the photos than if she had left it alone. This article is going to be a must read for Flat Classroom students and would be great for college-level discussions as well.

Important article that would make a great video story for someone predicting how the Internet is changing - with commenters being hunted down by companies!

"2012Phones.com Internet Trends June 7, 2010 CM Summit - New York City MSN/ MAIL: Lynda.wholesale@hotmail.com www.2012phones.comMorgan Stanley does and seeks to do business with companies covered in Morgan Stanley Research. As a result, investors should be aware that the firm may have a conflict of interest that couldaffect the objectivity of Morgan Stanley Research. Investors should consider Morgan Stanley Research as only a single factor in making their investment decision.For analyst certification and other important disclosures, refer to the Disclosure Section, located at the end of this report. "

"Business communication involves any kind of communication that foster strong partnerships, promote products or services, as well as relay information within a particular organization. It is imperative therefore that communications should be done clearly, efficiently, and accurately because it can have a great impact on a company's reputation and credibility, and will definitely say a lot about its level of professionalism. There are many types of business communication, including electronic communication, employment communication, verbal and non-verbal communication, as well as written communication and all these must be done properly in order to reap good results."

"Communication is fundamental to any form of organizing but is preeminent in virtual organizations. Virtual organizations are characterized by (a) highly dynamic processes, (b) contractual relationships among entities, (c) edgeless, permeable boundaries, and (d) reconfigurable structures. Relative to more traditional settings, communication processes that occur in virtual contexts are expected to be rapid, customized, temporary, greater in volume, more formal, and more relationship-based. To glean insight into communication processes for virtual organizations, we draw on the rich body of literature on synchronous and asynchronous electronic organizational communication. The vast set of empirical findings regarding mediated communication can foreshadow how communication will change as firms "go virtual." Six areas of electronic communication research provide implications for the major aspects of virtual organization design: (1) communication volume and efficiency, (2) message understanding, (3) virtual tasks, (4) lateral communication, (5) norms of technology use, and (6) evolutionary effects. "

"There are some special rules that apply to communicating virtually. The most important is to remember that you are communicating with real people, not a computer. Don't spam. That is, don't send unsolicited e-mail. Remember that the Internet is a pull system, where people can request information, rather than one where you send them information without being asked. A wise person once suggested you treat the Internet like a foreign culture; study it for a month or more, as an anthropologist would, before you participate. Using this example, it would also be advisable to strongly consider cultural differences of the people with whom we communicate. This entails avoiding profanity and slurs or criticisms against any group of people. It means respecting differences and striving for political correctness in all forms of communication and action. The CD-ROM "Information Literacy Toolkit" provides definitions of legal considerations included in dealing with virtual communications. Below are some ethical considerations for handling them. As with security considerations, ethics in dealing with material handled via virtual communication is rooted in traditional communications. That which applies to the paper world also applies in the virtual world. The fact that information is easily available does not remove traditional requirements for attribution, for the avoidance of plagiarism or for the appropriate use the information. The anonymity provided by the ability to surf and search a large number of documents provides a temptation to use material in an unauthorized way. This temptation must be avoided. The same browsing tools that allow wide access also provide a tool for proper attribution. The writer may simply insert a link (URL) to direct the reader to the source of the information cited. Privacy should be safeguarded and observed. Those who control their own information should establish systems to keep information that they do not want disclosed protected. Owners of

The World Is Flat: A Brief Summary from Wikipedia.

This website summarizes many important factors of how the world became flat.