FREE ESSAY ON CYBERSPACE FOR ALL BY ESTHER DYSON

CYBERSPACE FOR ALL BY ESTHER DYSON

In this essay I will be summarizing Cyberspace for all by Esther Dyson. Cyberspace is a
place that all people can benefit from. Cyberspace used to be a place where only techies
and nerds would hang out. The Net, as it is called, is a place where everyone can go and
find something of interest to them. Lost in the furor over porn on the Net is the
exhilarating sense of freedom that this new frontier once promised- and still does in
some quarters. Cyberspace has games, reference materials, tutorials, and much more. The
Net is the greatest source of information on the planet.
The Internet is a super-highway without a cop to stop you. There are no rules or
regulations as to who can see what or when on the Net. However, people see this as a bad
thing and in turn say that the Internet should be regulated. Regulation of the Internet
would be unconstitutional and an untrue interpretation of the Internet. The Internet is
like a highway, you choose where you want to go. The Internet is different in that you
can avoid things that you don't want to see, unlike the highway. 
Cyberspace has many characteristics that we are unable to control in real life. First,
you can have a private conversation with a friend or family member that is private and
non-regulated. Second, there are services that can only be accessed by subscription or
special request. These things help keep out children and other people who might not be
allowed to access such materials. Third, you can hang out with whomever you want, unlike
real life where you might have to put up with someone who annoys you. Ultimately,
cyberspace does not force you to go somewhere or see anything you do not want to see.
Instead of regulation being the key to keeping the Internet safe, Labeling may be the way
to go. For instance, everything that had to do with pornography would have a label of
"alt.sex." This would allow parents the ability to filter out all pornography from the
view of their children. In another view this may make it easier for people to find what
they are looking for within this huge melting pot of information.
I totally agree with the author and her opinions of Cyberspace. The Net might is a great
place for everyone but it would be better with a few rules. I was especially interested
in the part where the author states "Cyberspace allows communities of any size and kind
to flourish." On the Net there is no race, gender or age unless you tell someone or they
tell you. This means communities on the Net should have fewer problems then we do in real
society. However, we still have to live in a world that is much more cruel than that on
the Net.