Tag: The Internets!

Various and Sundry

The New Generation Combating Online Misinformation

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

I’ve been offline for much of the past few weeks, but –in a sense– that’s okay, because the Internet can be dark and full of terrors… and terrible misinformation. Luckily, there are some energetic folks who have just may have found their calling, or a significant first act, learning how inane conspiracy theories and misinformation propagate on the Web. Learn more in this long-form article by Oscar Gonzalez for c|net. And stay curious… and skeptical.

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Various and Sundry

Globetrotting – Radio Edition

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

I remember playing around with shortwave radio growing up in the previous millennium and the excitement at finding broadcasts from other countries. Well, thanks to some enterprising folks over in the Netherlands, you can do some globetrotting yourself without leaving the comfort of your Internet browser. Radio Garden is a project that allows you to tune into all sorts of small radio stations all across the globe. Be warned, it can be a bit of…

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Various and Sundry

You Too Can Die of Dysentery!

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

Nowadays, there are so many different types of timewasters online, but sometimes it’s nice to enjoy a classic. I had been reminded that one of the quintessential games of my generation, The Oregon Trail, was available to play for free online. It seems just and right to play it on a site dedicated to Oregon tourism. Enjoy and, remember, trade to get food and always get help crossing the river.

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Various and Sundry

Google Uncomfortable with Reining in Cookie Monster

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

It could be the parts of the web where I roam, but I’ve been reading a lot more about privacy, whether it’s Apple’s recent efforts to make their iOS more inherently private (see pieces in Bloomberg and The Verge) or the growing rumblings of government regulation (see pieces in CNBC and in Recode/Vox). By virtue of simply being online, all of us have been inducted into one or more Big Data Mining ecosystems whereby not…

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Various and Sundry

The State of Online Gaming, the Gated Internet, and, of course, the Money

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

I am not the biggest gamer nor the biggest technology maven, but even so, one sees news about how much more all content is being pushed online, how more companies are trying to have consumers access things by apps, and how controlling access –to the internet and apps– is key to many corporations making money. Into that sphere of information comes this longform article by Nick Statt at The Verge about a recent flashpoint between…

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Various and Sundry

Supporting your friendly local bookstores…

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

So many industries are being shaken by the coronavirus pandemic, the retail section overall is suffering, but specifically, small retail businesses are hurting. What with coming from a family of librarians and book-lovers, I’m especially keen to see independent book shops weather this latest storm, so I was happy to see an article earlier this month about how one online outfit, Bookshop.org is helping brick-and-mortar operations have an online footprint too. My “unread” bookshelf is…

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Various and Sundry

Navigating Being Online, Offline, and Increasingly In-Between

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

After Wednesday’s post that focused a great deal about how to curate one’s persona online, I was surprised that I hadn’t written at length about Jenny Odell and her efforts to help people curate their involvement in the “attention economy.” I’ve found the article bears repeat reading, because there’s so many different ideas it raises and so much that you, personally, need to reflect on. And yes, I mean need. At its core, and related…

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Various and Sundry

The Internet’s Altar of Umbrage

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

I’m working on some other posts related to fandom. One is a follow-up in the Crisis of Infinite Star Treks series (where I talk about fan involvement with Star Trek throughout, but specifically go into more here and here.) I’m also working on a longer piece about getting one’s own creative work out there and developing fans oneself. One struggle I’ve had of late has been how much the Internet thrives on hate and outrage.…

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Various and Sundry

I, for one, don’t welcome our net ‘bot overlords…

By Bjorn Munson | by Bjorn Munson

Though from reading Max Read’s piece in New York magazine, it’s kind of moot whether I welcome them or not: a huge portion of the Internet is fake. I mean, it’s not that it’s a huge surprise that the Internet is full of automation to simulate traffic for ad revenue purposes, engage people for some Machiavellian monetization motives, or otherwise amplify some ill-conceived echo chambers… But it’s depressing to have it validated to such a…

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