Facebook is a commodity for a large number of people. It is the most trafficked social media site on the web, and is used by more than 100 million active users. It originated for college students but they now only make up half of its current users. It comes in more than 15 languages and allows the entire world to communicate. I love Facebook. I rely on it to keep me updated with the lives of my friends, to entertain myself, and to invite people to functions. It is a simple and easy way to contact people. Over the summer Facebook released an updated version. It was strange, everything was moved around and I didn’t like it, so I stuck with the older version. A few weeks ago I saw a memo that said that soon the new version was going to be the only version. I switched over then to try to get used to it. At first it was confusing and I didn’t know where anything was located. Now I am pleased with the new version. I no longer have to scroll all over a person’s profile page to be able to find their wall. The tabs are so convenient for finding what I need I just didn’t know how to utilize them before. Since the transition from the old version I have received a lot of invitations to join groups like, “1,000,000 Against the New Facebook” or “I HATE the New Facebook.” There are so many people who are unhappy with Facebook’s change. If you were to search groups for the updated version there are over 500 and they are all negative like the ones I mentioned before. I think everyone is just disoriented by the newer version, like I was, but if they really give it a try they would see that it was made with good intentions and that it really is handy. Just like the Zack Coleman says in the article, “The new Facebook may upset a lot of people at first, but eventually we will get used to it and probably enjoy it more than we used to. I’m sure that in a few weeks everything will die down and in a few months everyone will have forgotten completely about the old Facebook.”
Article:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/09/22/facebook.facelift/index.html
External sources:
http://www.new.facebook.com/s.php?n=-1&k=200000010&init=s%3Agroup&q=new+facebook&sid=aefdc7bdd37d8110d3e565c7c6b98820
http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Sunday, September 21, 2008
blog assignemtn 4
It is obvious that cell phones are a staple in today’s society. This point is proven when my statistics professor questions the class for an example, he says ‘raise your hand if you do not have a cell phone on you right now,’ and of over 120 students not a single hand is raised. They are a commodity and we use them to communicate, to listen to music, and to go online. A cell phone craze that came out only a few years ago has now surpassed the popularity of the phone’s original use, making calls.
Text messaging is everywhere. People walking, people driving, people socializing, people doing anything are texting. It has become the go to communication for teens and adults alike and it’s taking over the world. Texting is direct and to the point and that’s why many people prefer it to the pressure of calling someone.
Recently the dangers of multitasking with a cell phone have become more evident. Though specific statistics of text messaging involved in car related accidents have not been calculated, there are a number of accidents related to cell phone use reported every day. Each state has its own laws as far as driving and cell phone use but many fail to control it at all. According to the Government Highway Safety Association, only 5 states and Washington D.C. have a ban on driving with a handheld phone; as well only 5 states have a ban on text messaging while driving. Alaska, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Washington are the only states who have taken initiative to prevent text messaging related car accidents. If you ask me this is a good start however it is going to be difficult for a police officer to be able to spot a driver text messaging. I am startled to know that the same number of states bans driving and talking on the phone as driving and texting on the phone. Texting is much more dangerous than just talking because it requires you to take your eyes off the road.
Recently the most tragic locomotive accident occurred and it is said to be linked to the operator text messaging. Also five teenagers in upstate New York were killed recently in a text messaging related car accident. Currently legislators in that area are passing a text messaging ban. Texting while driving is dumb. I do not have text messaging, but I would never dream of thinking it would be safe to do so while driving. People need to start using their common sense, and they need to realize that taking their eyes of the road for even a millisecond can have serious repercussions. Vito J. Pinto, chairman of the Public Safety and Security Committee of New York’s Westchester County Board of Legislature agrees saying, “It may be cool in their minds, but it just distracts, I think even more than a cellphone. There are an awful lot of young people who feel that it’s O.K. to put the machine on their steering wheel and drive.”
Article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/20/us/20messaging.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=technology
External sources:
http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/14legiswe.html?ref=us
Text messaging is everywhere. People walking, people driving, people socializing, people doing anything are texting. It has become the go to communication for teens and adults alike and it’s taking over the world. Texting is direct and to the point and that’s why many people prefer it to the pressure of calling someone.
Recently the dangers of multitasking with a cell phone have become more evident. Though specific statistics of text messaging involved in car related accidents have not been calculated, there are a number of accidents related to cell phone use reported every day. Each state has its own laws as far as driving and cell phone use but many fail to control it at all. According to the Government Highway Safety Association, only 5 states and Washington D.C. have a ban on driving with a handheld phone; as well only 5 states have a ban on text messaging while driving. Alaska, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Washington are the only states who have taken initiative to prevent text messaging related car accidents. If you ask me this is a good start however it is going to be difficult for a police officer to be able to spot a driver text messaging. I am startled to know that the same number of states bans driving and talking on the phone as driving and texting on the phone. Texting is much more dangerous than just talking because it requires you to take your eyes off the road.
Recently the most tragic locomotive accident occurred and it is said to be linked to the operator text messaging. Also five teenagers in upstate New York were killed recently in a text messaging related car accident. Currently legislators in that area are passing a text messaging ban. Texting while driving is dumb. I do not have text messaging, but I would never dream of thinking it would be safe to do so while driving. People need to start using their common sense, and they need to realize that taking their eyes of the road for even a millisecond can have serious repercussions. Vito J. Pinto, chairman of the Public Safety and Security Committee of New York’s Westchester County Board of Legislature agrees saying, “It may be cool in their minds, but it just distracts, I think even more than a cellphone. There are an awful lot of young people who feel that it’s O.K. to put the machine on their steering wheel and drive.”
Article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/20/us/20messaging.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&ref=technology
External sources:
http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/14legiswe.html?ref=us
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Assignment 3
Our technological world is about to become and little less private! DEMO technology has invented a software program to prevent cell phones from being stolen. When you sign up with the software you give the company two numbers, yours and one of maybe your spouse or a friend. Once the phone is stolen and the thief replaces your SIM card with his the software gets to work. It immediately copies all of your information (phone book, pictures, and text messages) and sends them to the other number you have provided. It also hides all of that information so that the thief can’t access it. The phone also sends you a text message of its exact location. From this point the software gives you a number of possibilities. You can set off an alarm within the phone that will drive the thief crazy and you can eavesdrop on conversations and see texts being sent from the phone.
According to TIME, “The statistics are unsettling. In Am-sterdam last year, mobile-phone theft rose by 80%; in the U.K., it jumped almost 200% from 1995-2000.” Cell phone theft is clearly a rising issue in the world. I think that this new software is going to be great for stopping phone theft. It is innovative and seemingly successful way to catch or prevent people from committing the crime in the first place. The end of this article really struck a note with me though. It suggests that parents use the software to keep track of their children. Ideas like that really bother me, to a certain extent kids just need to be kids. Kids do need to be monitored but if they think or know that you are always spying on them or eavesdropping on their conversations there is going to be even more desire for rebellion. There needs to be a certain level of trust in child-parent relationships and it’s about time that parents realized this.
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/12/someone-stole-your-cell-phone-tell-it-to-phone-home/?ref=technology
According to TIME, “The statistics are unsettling. In Am-sterdam last year, mobile-phone theft rose by 80%; in the U.K., it jumped almost 200% from 1995-2000.” Cell phone theft is clearly a rising issue in the world. I think that this new software is going to be great for stopping phone theft. It is innovative and seemingly successful way to catch or prevent people from committing the crime in the first place. The end of this article really struck a note with me though. It suggests that parents use the software to keep track of their children. Ideas like that really bother me, to a certain extent kids just need to be kids. Kids do need to be monitored but if they think or know that you are always spying on them or eavesdropping on their conversations there is going to be even more desire for rebellion. There needs to be a certain level of trust in child-parent relationships and it’s about time that parents realized this.
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/12/someone-stole-your-cell-phone-tell-it-to-phone-home/?ref=technology
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Blog Assignment 2
According to the article the CIA, the FBI, and the National Security Agency are going to take part in a new social networking site similar to Facebook or MySpace. The intent is to make communication about national security quicker and more proficient. The article used this example to explain the benefit, “Missing crucial data can have enormous implications, such as an FBI agent who sent an e-mail before September 11, 2001, warning of people learning to fly airplanes but not learning to land them.”
A lot of research has been done about signs leading up the September 11th attacks. One of several examples found in the April 18th, 2004 edition of the New York Times follows: “…In late August 2001, George J. Tenet, the director of central intelligence, learned that the F.B.I. had arrested Zacarias Moussaoui after he had enrolled in a flight school. Mr. Tenet was given a memorandum titled “Islamic Extremist Learns to Fly.” But he testified that he took no action and did not tell President Bush about the case.” With any luck the new program, A-Space, will be able to keep the lines of communication between different sections of the government flowing freely and help to prevent future acts of terrorism.
It makes sense that the agencies would want to adopt this new communication program. I use Facebook practically every day and it does a great job of keeping me updated on everything my friends are doing. I’m sure A-Space, is going to be of even better use to the Government.
One thing I do not understand is why this article exists. If this program is going to be used by spy agencies then why is the world even being told about it? Any terrorist has the capability to go to CNN.com and read this article. I think the sanctity of our national security relies in these agencies not publicizing how they do things. The article also does not mention who is developing A-Space. Is it the Government? Or a third party? Whoever develops this software is obviously going to know all of its ins and outs and be able to use it better than anyone else. If the software is being developed by someone other than one of these agencies then the things posted on it are not likely to be safe because there is the potential for it to be seen by the developer. From there it could even be leaked to the outside world. At least nothing about the program pops up when “A-Space spy agencies” is typed into a search engine, but I still do not think that information about what these agencies are doing should be public knowledge; there are a lot of bad people in the world.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/09/05/facebook.spies/index.html
A lot of research has been done about signs leading up the September 11th attacks. One of several examples found in the April 18th, 2004 edition of the New York Times follows: “…In late August 2001, George J. Tenet, the director of central intelligence, learned that the F.B.I. had arrested Zacarias Moussaoui after he had enrolled in a flight school. Mr. Tenet was given a memorandum titled “Islamic Extremist Learns to Fly.” But he testified that he took no action and did not tell President Bush about the case.” With any luck the new program, A-Space, will be able to keep the lines of communication between different sections of the government flowing freely and help to prevent future acts of terrorism.
It makes sense that the agencies would want to adopt this new communication program. I use Facebook practically every day and it does a great job of keeping me updated on everything my friends are doing. I’m sure A-Space, is going to be of even better use to the Government.
One thing I do not understand is why this article exists. If this program is going to be used by spy agencies then why is the world even being told about it? Any terrorist has the capability to go to CNN.com and read this article. I think the sanctity of our national security relies in these agencies not publicizing how they do things. The article also does not mention who is developing A-Space. Is it the Government? Or a third party? Whoever develops this software is obviously going to know all of its ins and outs and be able to use it better than anyone else. If the software is being developed by someone other than one of these agencies then the things posted on it are not likely to be safe because there is the potential for it to be seen by the developer. From there it could even be leaked to the outside world. At least nothing about the program pops up when “A-Space spy agencies” is typed into a search engine, but I still do not think that information about what these agencies are doing should be public knowledge; there are a lot of bad people in the world.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/09/05/facebook.spies/index.html
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Blog Assignment 1
Customers are complaining about their iPhones. The phones are dropping too many calls and having trouble connecting to the 3G network. iPhones have been quite a big deal since their release in June 2007. The iPhone is only offered with AT&T service. Apple initially introduced the product with a steep price tag of about $500. In just a few months, the price had decreased to about $300. The iPhone is now “starting at $199,” according to Apple’s website. Though I am always impressed with Apple products, I think that the iPhone has too much hype to its name. I do not see the growing desire to diminish one’s eyesight by staring continuously at a tiny little screen in order to check email or watch a video. In this day and age, people are becoming far too invested in their availability. I’m sure there are very few moments in all of our lives when we don’t have our cell phone with us. We are always allowing ourselves to be accessed through telephone, and now, with inventions like the iPhone, through email as well.
The cell phone I have now has an mp3 player. I do not see the purpose of this feature, I never use it and it doesn’t hold anywhere near the amount of songs that I have. As a whole, the American population (and those in other parts of the world too) are becoming far too dependent upon this technology. I believe that cell phones are used for telephone calls, iPods are used for music, DVD players are used for movies, and that computers are used to access the Internet. When all of these are combined, the likelihood of the product functioning at 100% is lessened, just as though anything being overloaded with tasks wouldn’t function at its peak.
The big debate over the failures of the iPhone is in determining where to place the blame. The options are either with Apple or with AT&T. It seems that the majority are placing the blame on AT&T. Ironically, the company claims to have the fewest dropped calls. Many think that the iPhone itself is more to blame than that network. Problems have also been reported in parts of Europe, which would not be a part of AT&T. Something that is always a little suspicious is when companies refuse to comment on the topic at hand. According to the article, “Jennifer Bowcock, a spokeswoman for Apple, said executives there declined to comment about consumer complaints.” The president of network services for AT&T wireless divisions, Bill Hogg, did acknowledge the complaints.
Verizon is quick to take any opportunity to diminish AT&T’s reputation for its own gain. From a marketing stand point that must be the big break they’ve been waiting for, however they need to wait for the facts to come through before placing judgment on the network. It’s like a bad rumor, being started without knowing any facts. The Verizon Company commented that “they’d rather miss a deadline than have a bad launch.” In years past Apple has gotten in trouble with missing deadlines that destroyed its reputation, according to lowendmac.com.
If I were an iPhone owner who was having these issues I would be upset. The iPhone has a lot of bells and whistles and consumers are paying for each and every one of them. If I had something so pricey in my pocket it better work. As far as who is to blame, Apple or AT&T, I’m not sure. The experts don’t even know. I do find it suspicious that Apple is not acknowledging the complaints and it making software patches for the product. However, Apple has made a comeback in recent years and has gained a strong following. A feat like that could only come from reliable product.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/29/technology/29phone.html
The cell phone I have now has an mp3 player. I do not see the purpose of this feature, I never use it and it doesn’t hold anywhere near the amount of songs that I have. As a whole, the American population (and those in other parts of the world too) are becoming far too dependent upon this technology. I believe that cell phones are used for telephone calls, iPods are used for music, DVD players are used for movies, and that computers are used to access the Internet. When all of these are combined, the likelihood of the product functioning at 100% is lessened, just as though anything being overloaded with tasks wouldn’t function at its peak.
The big debate over the failures of the iPhone is in determining where to place the blame. The options are either with Apple or with AT&T. It seems that the majority are placing the blame on AT&T. Ironically, the company claims to have the fewest dropped calls. Many think that the iPhone itself is more to blame than that network. Problems have also been reported in parts of Europe, which would not be a part of AT&T. Something that is always a little suspicious is when companies refuse to comment on the topic at hand. According to the article, “Jennifer Bowcock, a spokeswoman for Apple, said executives there declined to comment about consumer complaints.” The president of network services for AT&T wireless divisions, Bill Hogg, did acknowledge the complaints.
Verizon is quick to take any opportunity to diminish AT&T’s reputation for its own gain. From a marketing stand point that must be the big break they’ve been waiting for, however they need to wait for the facts to come through before placing judgment on the network. It’s like a bad rumor, being started without knowing any facts. The Verizon Company commented that “they’d rather miss a deadline than have a bad launch.” In years past Apple has gotten in trouble with missing deadlines that destroyed its reputation, according to lowendmac.com.
If I were an iPhone owner who was having these issues I would be upset. The iPhone has a lot of bells and whistles and consumers are paying for each and every one of them. If I had something so pricey in my pocket it better work. As far as who is to blame, Apple or AT&T, I’m not sure. The experts don’t even know. I do find it suspicious that Apple is not acknowledging the complaints and it making software patches for the product. However, Apple has made a comeback in recent years and has gained a strong following. A feat like that could only come from reliable product.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/29/technology/29phone.html
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