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NATION LIBRARY:
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The Future of the Internet - And How to Stop It* indicates link to
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About
the Book
This
extraordinary book explains the engine that has
catapulted the Internet from backwater to
ubiquity�and reveals that it is sputtering
precisely because of its runaway success. With
the unwitting help of its users, the generative
Internet is on a path to a lockdown, ending its
cycle of innovation�and facilitating unsettling
new kinds of control.
IPods, iPhones,
Xboxes, and TiVos represent the first wave of
Internet-centered products that can�t be easily
modified by anyone except their vendors or
selected partners. These �tethered appliances�
have already been used in remarkable but
little-known ways: car GPS systems have been
reconfigured at the demand of law enforcement to
eavesdrop on the occupants at all times, and
digital video recorders have been ordered to
self-destruct thanks to a lawsuit against the
manufacturer thousands of miles away. New Web
2.0 platforms like Google mash-ups and Facebook
are rightly touted�but their applications can be
similarly monitored and eliminated from a
central source. As tethered appliances and
applications eclipse the PC, the very nature of
the Internet�its �generativity,� or innovative
character�is at risk.
The Internet�s
current trajectory is one of lost opportunity.
Its salvation, Zittrain argues, lies in the
hands of its millions of users. Drawing on
generative technologies like Wikipedia that have
so far survived their own successes, this book
shows how to develop new technologies and social
structures that allow users to work creatively
and collaboratively, participate in solutions,
and become true �netizens.�
Reviews
"This book is fundamental. It will define the debate about
the future of the Internet, long after we haven''t stopped it.
Absolutely required reading."-Lawrence Lessig, Professor,
Stanford Law School, and author of Free Culture and The Future
of Ideas (Lawrence Lessig )
"This remarkably researched
and highly entertaining book is a must-read for all who take the
ubiquitous nature of the Internet in our everyday lives for
granted. The future of the internet is NOT a positive one,
unless we all work collaboratively to ensure its lasting
success. Zittrain's analysis is first-class and should be widely
heeded by leaders from all sectors of society."-Dr. Klaus
Schwab, Executive Chairman and Founder of the World Economic
Forum (Dr. Klaus Schwab )
"The most compelling book ever
written on why a transformative technology''s trajectory
threatens to stifle that technology's greatest promise for
society. Zittrain offers convincing road maps for redeeming that
promise."-Laurence H. Tribe, Carl M. Loeb University Professor
and Professor of Constitutional Law, Harvard Law School
(Laurence H. Tribe )
"Jonathan Zittrain does what no one
has before-he eloquently and subtly pinpoints the magic that
makes Wikipedia, and the Internet as a whole, work. The best way
to save the Internet is to turn off your laptop until you''ve
read this book."-Jimbo Wales, Founder, Wikipedia (Jimbo Wales )
"A superb and alarming discussion, from one of the most
astute and forward-looking analysts of the Internet. Zittrain
explains how the glorious promise of the Internet might not be
realized-and points the way toward reducing the current risks.
Absolutely essential reading."-Cass Sunstein, Karl N. Llewellyn
Distinguished Service Professor of Jurisprudence, The University
of Chicago Law School, and co-author of Nudge: Improving
Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness (Cass Sunstein )
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