High court strikes-down CDA
June
29, 1997
By JIM BROOKS
As expected by the law's opponents and the Clinton administration,
the Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a portion of the Communications
Decency Act unconstitutionally restricted free speech on the Internet.
The CDA, part of the Telecommunications Reform Act that President
Clinton signed into law in February 1996, attempted to ban indecent
material on the Internet, where the law's supporters said children
had easy access to it.
The Supreme Court, in a 7-2 ruling, said the law was too broad
and too vague, and in trying to protect children, limited adults'
right to free speech on the Internet.
The court let stand the law's provisions on child pornography and
obscene material, which are not protected by the constitution as
free speech.
Writing for the court, Justice John Paul Stevens compared the CDA
to an earlier freedom-of-speech case that "amounted to burning
the house to roast the pig."
"The CDA, casting a far darker shadow over free speech, threatens
to torch a large segment of the Internet community," Stevens
wrote.
According to a story on the ABC News Web site (http://www.abcnews.com),
the Clinton administration's next moves will be on two fronts.
The first will be an educational initiative to encourage parents
to learn what their kids are doing online.
The second will be to encourage the industry to provide better
tools for parents to monitor and control what their children are
doing online. President Clinton has said recently he would like
to see online providers become self-regulating.
The CDA ruling is the high court's first ruling dealing primarily
with cyberspace, though not likely the last.
WINDOWS UPGRADE. Do yourself a favor if you still run Windows
3.1 -- upgrade to 3.11, or Windows for Work Groups.
It wasn't until recently that I discovered that Microsoft made
available the files that would upgrade older versions of Windows
3.1 to the more stable 3.11 operating system.
The upgrade files do not give you all the network functionality
of Windows 3.11; what you get are the core program files that will
give you a much more stable operating system.
The upgrade works.
Like most other Windows 3.1 users, I had been plagued from time
to time with the dreaded GPFs -- General Protection Faults. These
unrecoverable errors usually abort the program you're using at the
time they occur, and in some cases, will take you back to a DOS
prompt.
The upgrade files won't eliminate the errors, but it greatly reduced
the problems with lock-ups and GPFs.
The cost? Nothing -- the upgrade is free. You can find the upgrade
files on AOL (search for Win 3.1 upgrade) in their computer software
section, or at the ZDNet Software Library (www.zdnet.com) on the
World Wide Web.
ETRADE CRASH. If you're interested in the stock market,
you've probably seen or heard the many advertisements for ETrade,
the online brokerage service that lets investors make stock moves
via their home or office computers.
ETrade's computer system crashed this week, forcing investors to
call in their trades during a period when stocks were soaring on
the Dow Jones Industrial average.
A broken hard drive was the culprit, a company spokesman said.
The crash didn't stop Etrade subscriber's transactions, and the
company didn't have to issue any refunds to investors.
The company's stock hadn't suffered either by Thursday, and the
company offers assurances backup systems would prevent a reoccurrence
of the problem.
For more information on ETrade, visit their Web site at www.etrade.com.
CNET EXPANDS. Taking on a new challenge -- after creating
premiere Web sites and television programs about the Internet --
CNET: The Computer Network announced this week it would be going
into the online service business.
Snap! Online, CNET's online service, is actually more a package
of content that will be bundled with software from a wide range
of Internet Service Providers.
C|Net has already signed a number of deals that would combine its
content with the startup software for a number of Internet providers,
including EarthLink, AT&T, BellSouth.net, Concentric, MindSpring
and Sprint.
The Snap! Online Starter Kit CD ROM would feature hands-on multimedia
tutorials about using the Internet, World Wide Web and e-mail.
The starter kit will also take a user step-by-step through the
installation of the ISP's software and registration.
The Snap! Web site would offer content from C|Net and other points
around the world. A staff of 30 editors will update the site throughout
the day.
The service is aimed at both new and veteran Web users, and is
set for a September launch.
KIDS' SAFETY. While all of us as parents are concerned about
our children's online safety, there's an aspect of safety that's
often overlooked: Physical safety from strain or injury while seated
at your computer.
I'm as guilty as anyone of letting my child play on my computer
without realizing that she's making many of the same mistakes I
make that lead to eye strain or muscle fatigue.
Sometimes I catch her sitting improperly, not supporting her arm
while using the mouse, or keeping her cup of Kool Aid next to the
surge protector.
I may know better, but my four-year-old doesn't, and as parents
we need to look out for their welfare.
To that end, Sesame Street Parents magazine last year offered some
tips for parents with kids who use the computer.
** Keep power strips and surge protectors out of reach. Keep them
turned off when the computer equipment isn't in use.
** Health concerns remain about the effects of electromagnetic
fields generated by computer monitors; while no conclusive evidence
of health problems exists, keeping your kids three feet away from
the monitor's front, back and sides is cheap insurance for their
future.
** Make sure your kids can see the screen without strain by keeping
window shades drawn to eliminate glare.
** Children aren't as likely to suffer repetitive strain injuries
from occasionally using your computer, but frequent breaks will
prevent fatigue or soreness from non-stop mouse operation.
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