For a long time now, I have been very cynical whenever someone asks me for any of my information. You go into a store and at the checkout counter they ask you for your phone number or something....what is THAT?! Any time you sign up for something you run the risk of having your information sold.
This problem of the commercialization of information is only going to get much worse as the internet develops in front of our eyes. Powerhouses like Google and Yahoo will someday control the world. Obviously I'm kidding, but if you were to be a little open-minded about it...why COULDN'T they control the world?
You always hear on the news that Google is being asked to turn over search records for some legal proceeding. As far as I know, they don't turn the records over.....but the fact that they are even keeping records of what I search for in the first place is very unsettling.
That being said....if you had told me 10 years ago or 15 years ago that I would soon be able to type anything that I am interested in into a box and press search...and then the WORLD would be INSTANTLY searched for content related to my interest....I would have definetely thought you were crazy. Google and the like are far more than search engines now...they are portals to everything you can think of. Google Earth is several years old now and it is SILL very amazing.
I actually like the whole Google Books idea. It will become something like Napster with publishing rights, but with the right amount of regulation, I think it's a great idea.
