A Gift Of Fire 2nd Edition

• A Gift Of Fire 2nd Edition

Product Description A Gift of Fire: Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues for Computing Technology, 4e is ideal for courses in Computer Ethics and Computers and Society. It is also a useful reference for computer science professionals or anyone interested in learning more about computing technology and its overarching impact. Sara Baase explores the social, legal, philosophical, ethical, political, constitutional, and economic implications of computing and the controversies they raise. With a computer scientist's perspective, and with historical context for many issues, she covers the issues students will face both as members of a technological society and as professionals in computer-related fields.

A primary goal is to develop computer professionals who understand the implications of what they create and how it fits into society at large. In the 4th edition of A Gift of Fire: Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues for Computing Technology, author Sara Baase takes a broad look at the social, legal and ethical issues around technology and their implications. Baase notes that her primary goal in writing the book is for computer professionals to understand the implications of what they create and how it fits into society. The book is an interesting analysis of a broad set of topics.

Combined with Baase's superb writing skills, the book is both an excellent reference and a fascinating read. The books gets it title from the mythical tale of Prometheus, who stole heavenly fire and gave it to the human race, which then used it to empower civilization. Someone commented to the author that perhaps Pandora's Box may be a better metaphor to use, as Pandora's Box held all of the ills of mankind. While Baase wrote the book to be used in her computer science course, the book is not an indigestible academic tome; rather a very topical reference. Its 9 densely packed chapters covering nearly 450 pages provide a comprehensive locus.

While legal themes are pervasive throughout the book, Baase writes that she is a computer scientist and not a lawyer and that appropriate legal counsel should be obtained before drawing any legal conclusions. Chapter 1 opens with an overview of how change and unexpected developments effect IT projects and information technology. And that is the overall theme of the book, of how new things often have unexpected problems and results. Anyone familiar with the Risks Digest edited by Peter Neumann will be at home with these topics.

The chapter details the notion of a kill switch and details some of the potential uses and risks involved, and how that more often than not, theses kill switches are improperly designed and deployed. The chapter concludes with the important thought that there are no simple answers (contrary to popular media belief) and that we can't solve ethical problems by simply applying a formula, algorithm or deploying a piece of software.

This is due to the complexity of human nature and that ethical theories don't always provide clear and incontrovertible positions on all issues. The chapter closes, like all of the chapters in the book with a series of review exercises, general exercises, assignments (remember this is a textbook), a list of books and articles for further reading, and an extremely detailed set of endnotes. Each chapter has a long set of endnotes due to Baase's attention to details and excellent research. This assignments and exercises for the class the book is used for can be downloaded here. Baase also has a web site with other supplementary information and resources.

Chapter 2 details various issues around data and personal privacy. An interesting fact detailed is that Maricopa Country in Arizona was one of the first municipalities to put complete public records on the web. Little did county official know that such an action would eventually lead the county to have the highest rate of identity theft in the USA. The chapter also compares US privacy regulations with that of the European Union (EU). Baase notes that the perception is that US privacy policy is far behind that of the EU. But what many people don't realize is that the US and EU have very different cultures and traditions, which manifest itself in how each regulates privacy.

Baase writes that the EU tends to put more emphasis on regulation and centralization; whereas the US puts more emphasis on contracts, consumer pressure, flexibility and freedom of the market. The US also has higher penalties for abuse of personal information via deceptive and unfair business practices. Chapter 7 deals with how to evaluate and control technology and is the most insightful chapter in the book. Baase writes of the inherent conflict between a democracy and open Internet, while dealing with the plethora of incorrect, foolish and biased information. She makes note of some totalitarian regimes that prohibit anti-government use of social media. She illustrates cases where these countries (China and Syria are just two of them) that create bogus dissident sites, find out which people are sympathetic to the cause, and then arrests these people.

Baase details and defends against many neo-Luddite views of computers, technology and quality of life. Baase provides numerous anecdotes of environmental and other anti-technology groups that rail against technology, but use computers and the web. She writes of the editor who considers himself a neo-Luddite, a person who sees technology as inherently evil; yet disseminates his views via email, computers and laser printers. Compare this with members of various anti-vaccination movements, who are obvious to the millions of lives saved by vaccinations. The chapter also details some of the duplicitous views of Kirkpatrick Sale, another neo-Luddite who rages against the computer machine, while simultaneously benefiting significantly from it, and using it. Baase defends technology in writing that those who are critical of modern technology point out their weaknesses, but often ignore the weakness of the alternatives. An example she gives is the millions of acres once needs to grow feed for horses and the hundreds of tons of horse manure dropped on the streets of cities, as recent as a century ago.

Candles, gas lamps and kerosene filled homes with fumes and soot; doesn't that make electricity a valuable commodity? Baase gives many other examples of the problems and controversial issues surrounding technology. But more importantly, notes, and celebrates the enormous benefits that computer technology and the Internet has brought us. The only significant negative of the book is its price tag. While it is officially a textbook, it is manifest in its suggested retail price of $102.00. Note though the book is available on Amazon for much cheaper, in addition to used copies which are even less.

Social media, computers and other aspect of technology have brought massive changes to society. Many of these changes are highly beneficial, others not.

There are myriad questions that need to be asked, and ideas that need to be understood, and the books covers and answers those in details. For those looking for an across-the-board superb reference on social and other issues in computing, A Gift of Fire: Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues for Computing Technology is a terrific resource and an invaluable reference guide. While the contents of this book might be good, I cannot get over how hard the format makes it to read. The digital download version isn't an eBook, as much as it's a large PDF. This precludes it from flowing or being re-sized. The only option is to zoom, which then makes you move around at least after every sentence if not more frequently.

I'd bought the Kindle edition so I could quickly read it as I traveled during my day. However, due to the font and format, I have to read it on my tablet in landscape to get a full line of text on the screen. Working in the IT field, I'm not finding that this book provides any new information. It also doesn't seem to provide any guidance on the social or moral issues it presents.

The tone is very passive from what I've read, which makes it very slow to read. I think the content would be great for student heading into the workforce, but not poor for anyone with an established career. This is the old textbook that was required to be bought back for CIS1 (first computer science class). It is an extremely easy read for most people.

In that class we had everything from 17 year young first time students to 80 year olds that were interested in computers, non of them had any type of issue with reading this textbook for all our assignments. Personally this book was fairly interesting to me to read and ranged from everything from old time computers to failsafe to encryption to a whole heck of a lot in between! If your in CIS or are starting out in computer science classes (or are at least interested in them) I would totally recommend this book. ONLY as long as it isnt super expensive!

. Pros Amazon Fire TV features. Voice remote with Alexa assistant.

Decent contrast. Cons Slightly skewed, undersaturated colors.

Shadow details can get muddy. Bottom Line The budget-priced Element Fire TV Edition is the first 4K television to integrate Amazon's media streaming platform, but picture quality is just average. We've seen Roku TVs before, but Amazon Fire TVs are new. Rather, televisions with the Amazon Fire TV platform integrated are new. Amazon's has been around for a few years, and now Element Electronics has incorporated that technology directly into its latest. At $649.99 for the 55-inch model we tested, it's certainly a wallet-friendly way to get a connected 4K television.

But it lacks HDR, and its performance simply doesn't compare with our Editors' Choice, the Roku TV-based, whose 55-inch model is the same price. A small four-direction joystick sits on the lower right corner of the back of the TV, letting you navigate the Amazon Fire TV menu system (though the included remote is of course much easier to use). A few inches further in from the edge of the TV, four HDMI ports, a USB 2.0 port, a USB 3.0 port, and an SD card slot face right. An Ethernet port, antenna/cable connector, component and composite video inputs, optical audio output, and 3.5mm headphone jack face down, from the same section of panel as the other ports. Voice Remote and Alexa The included remote holds an Element logo, but will otherwise be familiar to Amazon Fire TV device users. It's a slim, 6.3-inch wand with a prominent, circular navigation pad flanked by menu and playback controls. The power button and microphone button sit above the pad, along with a hole for the built-in microphone.

Pressing the microphone button lets you use voice search or the TV's Alexa features. A volume rocker and three dedicated service buttons for Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and Amazon Music sit below the direction pad. The remote connects wirelessly to the TV, letting you control everything without pointing at the screen. As an Amazon Fire TV device, the Element also features Amazon's Alexa voice assistant, which you can use by pressing the microphone button on the Voice Remote and speaking into it.

You can ask Alexa to tell you about upcoming appointments, the weather, and even order items from Amazon. Alexa's voice search feature also lets you bring up content from Amazon Video and Prime Music using your voice. If you have that are compatible with Alexa, you can also control them using the remote. TV controls are available through Alexa as well, letting you change inputs or adjust the volume using your voice. Amazon Fire TV We've seen the Fire TV interface in a variety of Amazon-made media streamers like the and the Fire TV Stick, but this is the first time we've seen it built right into a television. It's a similar execution to the Roku TV platform, taking a familiar menu system and installing it directly, with a handful of additional menus and connection options for accessing TV-specific features not used in media streamers.

If you've used an Amazon Fire TV device before, the Element's interface will be easy to pick up. Apps, services, and connections are displayed as large tiles arranged in a series of rows including Recent, Your Apps & Games, Inputs, and On Now. Recent and Your Apps & Games are standard lists for Fire TV streamers, providing easy access to your favorite apps and content. All the big streaming names you can use on a Fire TV device are available here, including Hulu, Netflix, Sling TV, YouTube, and of course all Amazon content. The Fire TV platform is almost as robust as Roku's, with hundreds of apps and services.

Because the system is based on Android, you can sideload your own APKs if you can't find what you want in the Fire TV App Store. Don't count on sideloaded apps to work reliably, though; most Android APKs are designed for touch-screen use, and won't function properly on a TV. On Now and Inputs are TV-specific. On Now shows you what live TV is currently available over the air or through your ClearQAM Cable connection. We plugged in an OTA antenna and picked up a few dozen channels, some in high-definition. We tested in Manhattan, and the channels available in your area might greatly differ. The Inputs row simply lets you access the HDMI, component, or composite video inputs, along with any OTA/cable programming available.

Pressing the Home button on the remote takes you to the Element's Fire TV main menu, letting you access connected features and media. Holding the Home button for a moment pops up a more TV-specific side menu. This lets you access a conventional program guide for live television and change display settings; the Settings tab in the main menu is only for Fire TV settings like network information and firmware updates. It lets you access display settings quickly, but like Roku TVs, the actual picture settings you can work with on the Element feel a bit sparse.

You can make basic adjustments like brightness, contrast, and choose from one of three color temperature presets, but beyond that there are no deep calibration options. We test TVs using a, a, and on a Razer Blade Pro notebook. After a basic dark room calibration adjusting brightness and contrast using PLUGE charts, the Element showed a good 344.03cd/m 2 peak brightness and a middling 0.07cd/m 2 black level for a 4,915:1 contrast ratio. This is solid performance for a budget television, but the TCL 55P607 blows it out of the water with a 507.85cd/m 2 peak brightness and 0.02cd/m 2 black level for a contrast ratio over five times greater. And unlike the TCL, the Element doesn' t support. The chart above shows Rec.

709 color values as boxes and measured color levels as dots using the warmest color temperature preset. The TV can reach a bit further past standard color levels with greens, but its whites skew slightly green and reds are a bit undersaturated and yellowed. The TCL 55P607 reaches well past the standard color gamut while keeping colors much more accurate than the Element. The also shows a far wider range of color while remaining accurate, with contrast levels similar to the Element's.

A Gift Of Fire 2nd Edition

The slightly undersaturated reds of the Element are apparent on Deadpool on Ultra HD Blu-ray. Deadpool's red costume looks natural but not particularly vivid, and the red plaid of Wade's sherpa jacket at the beginning of the movie appears slightly drab. Skin tones also look just slightly yellow-red under warm lights in indoor scenes, though they generally appear natural in most other lighting conditions. The Great Gatsby on Ultra HD Blu-ray further highlights the Element's minor color accuracy issues and shows off the TV's mediocre black level.

Skin tones occasionally skew slightly pink or yellow depending on the scene, appearing natural only about half the time. In high-contrast scenes with lots of shadow, the general contours of the black suits can be seen, but the texture of the fabric and the individual cuts and creases are sometimes lost in muddy blackness.

The tinting isn't overwhelming, and the shadows aren't overly muddy, but it isn't quite as nice a picture as it could be. Input Lag and Power Consumption Input lag is the amount of time between a TV receiving a signal and the display updating.

In the Custom picture mode, the Element shows a high 70.7ms input lag. The PC/Game picture mode doesn't do much to help, displaying a 70ms input lag. The LeEco's Game picture mode shows half as much input lag at 36.7ms, while the TCL's halves that again to 15.1ms. Under normal viewing conditions, the 55-inch Element consumes 125 watts, and has no power-saving picture modes or settings to speak of. This is in line with both the TCL and LeEco's calibrated picture settings. You can manually turn the backlight down to 70 percent to reduce the power consumption to 83 watts, darkening the screen slightly but keeping it very watchable.

Conclusions Element's Amazon Fire TV Edition offers 4K resolution and all of the benefits of an Amazon Fire TV media streamer, including a microphone-equipped remote that lets you use Amazon's Alexa voice assistant, all at a very reasonable price. However, the Roku TV-based TCL P-series simply has a far better picture for the same price, and that's one of the most important things to consider when shopping for a TV. The Element is by no means a bad option, but the TCL is a better buy, and remains our Editors' Choice. Senior Analyst, Consumer Electronics Will Greenwald has been covering consumer technology for a decade, and has served on the editorial staffs of CNET.com, Sound & Vision, and Maximum PC. His work and analysis has been seen in GamePro, Tested.com, Geek.com, and several other publications. He currently covers consumer electronics in the PC Labs as the in-house home entertainment expert, reviewing TVs, media hubs, speakers, headphones, and gaming accessories. Will is also an ISF Level II-certified TV calibrator, which ensures the thoroughness and accuracy of all PCMag TV reviews.