KiyoshiMartinez

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on May 8, 2006.
Finals are hard and all too real, which is why sometimes you need to escape into a world where people can fly, villains wear ridiculous outfits and history is rewritten to be a lot more interesting.
Of course, I’m talking about comic books. OK, so maybe not […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on May 5, 2006.
When he first heard he would be returning home from Iraq, Rob Blockinger said he was scared because of the transition back to life in the United States. But on the day of his homecoming, Blockinger said he was excited to return home from Iraq - […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on May 1, 2006.
University officials are warning that e-mails asking for account and social security numbers from University Employee Credit Union members are illegitimate attempts by scam artists.
E-mails that were sent out to potential credit union members warned that their accounts “may have been accessed by an unauthorized third […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on April 20, 2006.
The Champaign County Republicans elected new officers Wednesday evening, including its chairman position.
Former Chairman Steve Hartman stepped down as Jason Barickman was nominated and elected to the position. Rep. Tim Johnson (R-15) said he knew what degree of commitment the position required.
“His energy, intelligence, wisdom, fresh […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on April 10, 2006.
When the University holds a ceremonial groundbreaking on April 28 for the Business Instructional Facility on the corner of Sixth Street and Gregory Drive, it will signify more than just another building on campus; it will be the beginning of a greener building philosophy.
The facility will […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on April 10, 2006.
The Illinois Commerce Commission approved a new process for Illinois utility companies Jan. 24 to purchase electricity amid protests from consumer advocacy groups and state government officials.
The commission’s decision will mark the end of 10 years of a heavily regulated utility market in Illinois and end […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on April 7, 2006.
On Thursday, the University of Illinois released proposed tuition increases for all three campuses, which will await approval of the Board of Trustees on April 11, 2006.
The tuition increase would start July 1, 2006, and would increase $666 per year for Urbana-Champaign students who are either […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on March 14, 2006.
Tuition could be increasing $700 for students at the Urbana-Champaign campus starting July 1, 2006, according to a document obtained by The Daily Illini. The same document also revealed tuition increases of $1,000 at the Springfield campus and $600 at the Chicago campus for the 2006-2007 […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on March 8, 2006.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - With 15 days until the primary elections on March 21, four Republican gubernatorial candidates debated Tuesday night, each saying how they would improve the state economy and business climate.
The debate was held at the Hoogland Center for the Arts in Springfield, Ill., and […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on February 15, 2006.
University President B. Joseph White answered questions from callers about the state of the University and campus issues Tuesday night.
The discussion was hosted by WILL-TV, and members of the panel included WILL-TV’s John Paul and Courtney Klemm, Illini Media Company employee. White said he thought his […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on Februrary 6, 2006.
Campus Information Technologies and Educational Services will begin to expand wireless Internet coverage in every public space on campus for University staff and students after receiving funding approval to install new hardware.
The University Board of Trustees approved more than $920,000 for CITES to purchase wireless networking […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on February 3, 2006.
“Lock ‘em in a room,” Judy Baar Topinka said in response to finding legislative solutions to reform education and improve the business climate in Illinois by bringing politicians and industry professionals together.
State Treasurer and Republican gubernatorial candidate Topinka said she was focused on defeating Gov. Rod […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on February 3, 2006.
It begins with the subject line “School girl fantasies gone bad” in your e-mail, and if your computer is not protected it will corrupt your Microsoft Word files and PowerPoint presentations.
The new computer virus is called Blackworm and, on Friday, infected computers will likely be faced […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 30, 2006.
Illinois gubernatorial candidates discussed issues including higher education funding, corruption and a statewide smoking ban at the first multi-party debate held at the Champaign City Council Chambers on Sunday.
Five candidates appeared, four Republican and one Constitutionalist, and all took aim at the current executive administration under […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 26, 2006.
With Judy Baar Topinka entering the Illinois gubernatorial race, the race for state treasurer has brought candidates from both sides of the ticket to claim the upcoming vacant seat.
Within the past week, candidates State Sen. Christine Radogno (R-Lemont) and Alexi Giannoulias (D) for state treasurer visited […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 24, 2006.
After being initially defeated last year, legislation proposed to ban assault weapons in the state has gained new support from Gov. Rod Blagojevich, drawing criticism and praise from lawmakers and advocacy groups.
The proposed legislation from State Sen. Edward Acevedo (D-2nd) intends to fill the void left […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 19, 2006.
Former Chicago alderman and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Edwin Eisendrath visited the University on Wednesday night and discussed his primary race against Gov. Rod Blagojevich with students. Topics ranged from the governor’s State of the State address to reforming ethics within Illinois.
“Number one, I’m running to restore […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 19, 2006.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Gov. Rod Blagojevich urged a bipartisan effort to pass legislation to create more jobs, give tax credits, provide health care and ban assault weapons during his State of the State address at the Capitol.
“We are making real progress,” Blagojevich said. “But there is […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 19, 2006.
On Thursday, the University Board of Trustees will decide on recommended purchases totaling more than $21 million, with $9 million specifically directed for the Urbana-Champaign campus.
The University’s Housing Division has recommended more than $3.3 million to purchase new furnishings for the Florida Avenue Residence and Illinois […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 13, 2006.
You know that journalists don’t make very much money, right?” my mom said to me when I told her that I was switching my major from materials science engineering to journalism.
When I made the switch, I did it because I couldn’t see being stuck in numbers, […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 13, 2006.
With rising energy costs becoming a growing concern for public universities on strained budgets, officials are seeking new solutions to conserve energy on their campuses.
On Tuesday, facility managers from Illinois public universities gathered to discuss energy management and share their methods with each other at the […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on November 10, 2005.
When President Bush was elected along with a majority in the House and Senate, the conservatives and Republicans declared a mandate. They had it all and some change to spare.
But now, the GOP is losing ground and the losses keep compounding into a negative media machine. […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on October 26, 2005.
Sometimes people become famous for their words, and others for their status and wealth. But once in a great while, the actions of an ordinary individual can resonate for decades and be powerful enough to permeate the social consciousness of an era and generations to come.
Rosa […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on October 10, 2005.
It starts with an instant message from a friend, inviting you to click on a link, but seconds later your computer has been compromised, sending data to spyware Web sites across the world. The virus then spreads itself to members of your buddy list.
Since Aug. 26, […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on September 28, 2005.
The University’s online Illinois Compass service went offline late Monday morning, leaving students and faculty from approximately 1,100 classes without access to their course grades, assignments and materials.
According to Lanny Arvan, Assistant CIO for Educational Technologies at Campus Information Technologies and Educational Services, technicians are working […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on September 6, 2005.
Candice Tillman does not personally know anyone who has fallen under hard times because of Hurricane Katrina, but when she watched the devastating effects and struggles of the victims to survive on the news, she decided she needed to act.
“I was just sitting there and watching […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on September 1, 2005.
There’s little need to re-cap the destruction and the chaos that has devastated the Gulf region after Hurricane Katrina’s storms. But what I do want to stress is the importance of how you, I and everyone we know can help make a positive difference.
I want to […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on August 31, 2005.
University officials now believe that the cause of the largest, campus-wide network outage on Aug. 27 came after a denial of service (DoS) attack on their core network equipment, which left students and faculty across the campus without e-mail and Internet services.
“Based on the information we […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on August 29, 2005.
Students who tried to check their e-mail or browse their favorite Web sites Saturday might have encountered problems when accessing the University network. For those accessing the Internet in the dormitories or other official University access sites, they were met with error messages while network engineers […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on July 29, 2005.
State Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, spoke in front of the Hallene Gateway at the University, Wednesday, to announce his bid for the Republican nomination for governor in the 2006 election.
“The people of Illinois need to understand what Rod Blagojevich and his adminsistration has cost us,” Sen. […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on July 27, 2005.
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - State Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, officially announced his candidacy for governor Tuesday at the Challenger Learning Center, ending a day-long, six-city tour throughout northern and central Illinois. He continues his gubernatorial announcement today in Urbana at the corner of Lincoln and Green Street […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on July 8, 2005.
A simple headline can change your emotions. One heartbeat you’re stressing over two economics midterms. A pulse later, your guts tighten into knots as you read:
London hit by multiple explosions during rush hour. Tube shut down, one bus reported destroyed.
And you can only think, “My God, […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on July 5, 2005.
With the smell of deep-fried candy bars and kettle corn in the heat of an upper 80s summer, residents from across Champaign county lined up along Lincoln Avenue Monday to watch the Annual Freedom Celebration parade.
At 1:07 p.m., the parade began with a bang as a […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on May 2, 2005.
Last Wednesday, President Bush signed The Family Entertainment and Copyright Act making file-sharing a pre-release movie, music or software on the Internet a felony, punishable by up to three years in prison.
The bill - S.167 (also H.R. 357) - was introduced by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on April 25, 2005.
The Roger Ebert Overlooked Film Festival showcased some of the most vivid movies I’d seen. They challenged not only cinema, but also the way we consider our lives. To the greatest extent, the film Primer, thrust the concept that when it comes to technology, no matter […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on April 18, 2005.
Senators John McCain, R-Ariz., and Russ Feingold, D-Wisc., introduced the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act in 2002, attempting to clean-up “soft money,” get rid of phony issue advertisements from corporations and unions and improve disclosure of independent expenditures and campaign contributions. While the intentions appeared good, the […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on April 11, 2005.
In a previous column I mentioned the passage of House Bill 4023, Safe Games Illinois Act. Being a gamer for my entire adolescent - and to a lesser extent, “adult” - life, I had several reservations against the idea of restricting the sale and rental of […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on April 4, 2005.
It sounded too good to be true. On April 1, 2004, Google announced they intended to launch a beta version of their own e-mail service. One gigabyte of storage, searchable email and a spam filter. They’ve got to be joking, right?
Nope. They were serious, and now […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on March 28, 2005.
By a margin of 91 to 19, the Illinois House of Representatives passed House Bill 4023, the Safe Games Illinois Act, on March 16 and received praise from Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
We are now one step closer to giving the state unsurpassed and unconstitutional power to dictate […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on March 14, 2005.
The war in Iraq has showcased incredible military technology, but what is often overlooked is how technology has impacted the daily routines of the U.S. troops.
With more than 150,000 U.S. troops stationed in Iraq, the need to help the troops stay in touch with their families […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on March 7, 2005.
Not one student or faculty member can survive a day on campus without it: e-mail. The free flow of fast, free and reliable communication acts as an essential core of the University of Illinois campus. But with our most reliable and frequent form of communication comes […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on February 28, 2005.
Last week Paris Hilton made headlines across the Internet when her cell phone contents were hacked. Once again a victim of both the Internet and digital technology, Hilton lost more than her dignity this time. It would seem that the Internet hates Hilton, but loves her […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on February 21, 2005.
On Saturday night, I witnessed technology destroying humanity’s fleeting shreds of common courtesy. It happened in theater 14 at the 9:50 p.m. showing of Constantine. Sitting in one of the front rows - imagine that, a theater filled with people watching a movie starring Keanu Reeves […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on February 14, 2005. Original published title was “Entertainment industry attempts to curb piracy.”
Editor’s note: This is part three in a three-part series. Names of students have been changed to protect privacy.
The MPAA and RIAA may not be able to herd all copyright-infringing file-sharers into court just yet, but […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on February 7, 2005.
Editor’s note: This is part two in a three-part series. The third part will appear next Monday. Names of students have been changed to protect privacy.
From server to server, a premiered, pirated movie flashes across the topsite networks. Couriers transfer the files from site to site […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on February 2, 2005.
Editor’s note: This is part one in a three part series. The second part will appear on Monday. Names of students have been changed to protect privacy.
In a few short years, the Internet has transformed digital piracy from low-key and hidden to mainstream and second nature. […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 24, 2005.
The results of the CBS news investigation into the airing of George W. Bush’s air guard memos has not only made news companies gauge themselves for bias and accuracy in reporting once again, but also added to the debate of where the blogosphere fits into the […]

Originally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on January 17, 2005.
It’s a bright November day in Texas. In between rhythmic, careful breaths you look through the scope of a rifle, waiting.
Then you see it: the presidential motorcade making a right turn into Dealey Plaza, in plain view. You see the governor of Texas, his wife, Jackie, […]

Orginally published in THE DAILY ILLINI on December 14, 2004.
This is a my final column in opinions, and the odds are pretty good that it will follow a cliché formula. It’s like the series finale to your favorite TV show: No matter how great the show was, the final episode always manages to bore you […]