The Needle Drop, online resources prove to be excellent source of music

By Thomas Hair Online Copy Editor Music is infinite in the 21st century. There are infinitely many genres, infinitely many artists and infinitely many ways to access and share the music itself. Though most people have different tastes, nearly everbody likes music of some sort, whether it be hip-hop, post-rock, thrash metal, free jazz or anything else. In this day and age, when there is infinite music instantly at your fingertips via the internet, there is little excuse to continue to listen to garbage music, or even to keep listening to the same exact music over and over and over. As a self-proclaimed music enthusiast, I am constantly on the lookout for original new artists and am…

Proposed “Stop Online Piracy Act” could alter internet usage

By Thomas Hair Online Blog Editor When the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) was introduced to the House of Representatives in late October, it immediately became a subject of intense debate and is already one of the most controversial topics of 2012. SOPA, in addition to its senate counterpart (PIPA), was proposed by Texas Republican Lamar Smith. If passed, it would give the US government power to regulate both piracy of copyrighted materials and sale of counterfeit goods. This piece of legislature would grant the federal government, and copyright holders, the ability to reprimand, black or even destroy offending websites. In short, your favorite website for illegal movies could be gone by February, along with all unauthorized music on…

Censorship bill faces opposition from internet companies, users

By Mary Whitfill Features Editor Popular social networking sites in the last 24 hours have been flooded with users angry over the recent SOPA act; a bill that many are claiming would lead to Internet censorship. The bill stands to put artists in a tight spot: on one hand, it protects their originally produced works, but on the other, it could prohibit the collaborative creativity enabled by the Internet. The controversial Stop Internet Piracy Act was recently presented in the House of Representatives (along side its Senate counterpart, the Protect IP Act) as a way to prevent the illegal copyright violation of products owned by movie studios, record labels and other commonly copied media online….

Laptops become a backpack necessity

Why tediously record notes on paper when you can type them? Is it necessary to email work to someone when you can just give them your flash drive? And why use the dictionaries in your English class when Google operates in a matter of seconds? While NTH@C emphasizes the use of technology to as paramount, CHS also inhibits an increasing reliance on Macs and smartphones. Freshman year, I had maybe one or two teachers who weren’t finicky about electronics-the others were not afraid to keep it for the rest of the day, maybe even send it to the office. My junior year has blessed me with the privilege of having a schedule that only consists with…

Trying to conquer the Internet addiction

Maddie Walters Staff Writer It is well known fact that kids of our generation will forever be remembered by our adaptation and embracement of the advancements in technology which have taken place over the course of our short lives. From the Internet to the cell phone to the iPod, technology has shaped the way we think about things. And while these advancements have not only created new ways to communicate, such as texting and blogging, they have taken away from the past times that we used to enjoy before inventions such as Facebook. For me, the distractions of the Internet have hindered my life in ways they were never intended to. Whenever I do homework…

Arguably the best use of the internet: Chatroulette

By Angela Almeida Opinions Editor I have an addiction. It requires at least roughly an hour a night and rarely leaves my thought process. It is called Chatroulette, a phenomenon I have succumbed too. So, for those of you unaware, Chatroulette is essentially a global chatroom which allows you to connect with people from all faces of the globe. It requires no login name or service fee. Personally, I have conversed with people from Russia, Ecuador, Northwestern and someone in their “grandmother’s attic.” Ties have been forged with these dubbed “strangers” and my global networking continues to soar. The other day, I met a guy from Vermont. He appeared on my screen, clad in a…

Windows 7 has arrived

Windows 7 has arrived. Laptops and desktops are changing at a rapid rate, and you’ll find that a lot of the familiar components are nowhere to be seen. Computers are now becoming smaller in size, but smarter than ever. PC does in particular have to be the fastest growing brand of technology seen today. One can do everything from watch movies to surf the internet. Since internet seems to be the most popular laptop based activity, PC has created yet another tool to intrigue several customers, the “net book”. Basically it is a small easy to use and inexpensive laptop created mainly for internet usage, “people were so excited about the small, easy-to-carry size that…

Google Chrome takes internet to whole new level

By Rebecca Fowler Staff Writer Google runs my life.  Seriously.  I cannot even remember the last time I went to the library to research with an Encyclopedia or a pile of books. And now the most widely used search engine has revolutionized our internet experience once again with the new Google Chrome. Google Chrome is a “fast, free web browser” that is designed to be quick, easy and creative.  It can be personalized to your own taste, able to have a background of stars, jellyfish, clouds, flowers and even Britney Spears. The new Google browser allows you to “arrange and organize tabs however you wish” and “get to your favorite websites with just a click,…

On the battlefield: Internet vs. novels

By Rebecca Fowler Staff Writer What is your status? You know what I’m talking about. Not your class rank, mood or physical location, but something much more exciting: your favorite quote on Facebook or your minute-to-minute action on Twitter. It is logical that as society changes our vocabulary changes as well. It seems that meanings of words evolve until “liking” something no longer means enjoying it but rather declaring you are creative enough to recognize a song lyric or inside joke from a friend, and “tweeting” is now typing words on a computer. These terms would seem outrageous to our grandparents—and even many of our parents.  However, we, the nation’s youth, fully grasp them and…