Facebook will spend $9.5M to set up privacy foundation under the deal
A federal judge has approved a proposed settlement by Facebook in a class-action lawsuit involving its now defunct Beacon behavioral tracking service.
Under the settlement, Facebook will pay $9.5 million to set up a privacy foundation to fund projects promoting the cause of online privacy in return for the lawsuit against it to be dropped.
In approving the settlement, Judge Richard Seeborg of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California overturned several objections that had been raised by some members of the class-action in response to the Facebook offer.
In a 12-page ruling, Seeborg called Facebook's proposed settlement "fair, reasonable, adequate and proper and in the best interests of the Settlement Class."
The dispute stems from a lawsuit filed in August 2008 against Facebook by several users of the social networking site. The suit alleged that Facebook and Beacon affiliates such as Blockbuster and Overstock.com had violated several federal privacy laws, including the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and the Video Privacy Protection Act, when they shared data about Facebook users with each other.
In response, Facebook last September extended a settlement offer under which it said it would spend $9.5 million to set up a privacy foundation focused on online privacy issues. As part of its settlement offer, Facebook said it would shut down the Beacon service entirely.
Privacy advocates welcomed the company's decision to shutter Beacon. But earlier this year, consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, of Washington D.C, and some Facebook users asked the court to reject the offer.
In their complaint, the groups said that the proposed settlement did nothing to compensate victims whose privacy may have been compromised by Beacon. Other than formally disbanding a program that Facebook had voluntarily already discontinued, the settlement offered little else the groups complained.
They also argued that the settlement would give Facebook a direct role in drafting the mission and bylaws of the proposed foundation and in appointing board members. The complaint noted that one of the three initial directors of the foundation would in fact be a Facebook employee and chief lobbyist.
Facebook, meanwhile, claimed that the opposition to its settlement offer stemmed from a complete lack of understanding of the proposal . The company insisted that the proposed privacy foundation would be an independent entity run by three well known and respected privacy advocates.
In his ruling, Judge Seeborg expressed similar sentiments. Those objecting to the proposed settlement had not shown "any substantial reason to doubt the independence of two of the three directors," he wrote. It is reasonable to expect that the Facebook director would be opposed to any actions taken by the privacy foundation that would directly harm Facebook, the judge said.
However, that does not mean that the foundation will end up being a "mere publicity tool for Facebook," or be under its direct control, he said. He also rejected the objection that class members were due any monetary compensation. The chances of class members receiving any compensation if the case was to go to court are "speculative at best" given the circumstances of the case, he wrote.
A Facebook spokesman expressed satisfaction over the ruling. "We're pleased that Judge Seeborg has approved the settlement after carefully considering all opinions," he said in a statement. It added that Facebook will be releasing additional details on the foundation over the next several months.
Jaikumar Vijayan covers data security and privacy issues, financial services security and e-voting for Computerworld .
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/internet-based-applications-and-services/15658/judge-approves-facebooks-settlement-offer-beacon-case?page=0,0
Professional Web Design Chicago
Showing posts with label Facebook. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Facebook. Show all posts
Friday, March 19, 2010
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Facebook, Twitter most used Social Media Sites in E-Commerce
Ecommerce sites tend to use Facebook and Twitter above other Social Media Sites in their Digital Marketing Campaigns.
This is according to a new survey by Practical eCommerce, which shows that 78 per cent of the US online retailers it polled use Facebook, while 75.6 per cent utilise Twitter for social media marketing purposes.
Almost three in ten retailers cited other social networking sites, including LinkedIn, YouTube, MySpace and Google Buzz.
About 11 per cent of respondents revealed that they do not make use of any social media sites at all.
Nearly seven in ten retailers said they intend to up their social media online marketing activity in the future, with 26.8 per cent to keep their campaigns the same.
When asked how social media had helped their businesses, over half said it had had a beneficial effect.
A recent study by the Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth found that Fortune 500 companies are increasingly utilising social media marketing.
The number of firms found to be using blogs and social networking websites like Twitter increased significantly between 2008 and 2009, according to the research.
Source:
http://www.bluhalo.com/news/view/7769/facebook-twitter-most-used-social-media-sites-in-ecommerce
Professional Web Design Chicago
This is according to a new survey by Practical eCommerce, which shows that 78 per cent of the US online retailers it polled use Facebook, while 75.6 per cent utilise Twitter for social media marketing purposes.
Almost three in ten retailers cited other social networking sites, including LinkedIn, YouTube, MySpace and Google Buzz.
About 11 per cent of respondents revealed that they do not make use of any social media sites at all.
Nearly seven in ten retailers said they intend to up their social media online marketing activity in the future, with 26.8 per cent to keep their campaigns the same.
When asked how social media had helped their businesses, over half said it had had a beneficial effect.
A recent study by the Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth found that Fortune 500 companies are increasingly utilising social media marketing.
The number of firms found to be using blogs and social networking websites like Twitter increased significantly between 2008 and 2009, according to the research.
Source:
http://www.bluhalo.com/news/view/7769/facebook-twitter-most-used-social-media-sites-in-ecommerce
Professional Web Design Chicago
Friday, February 26, 2010
Users urge Facebook Accountability
Cyber Attacks on Facebook pages set up to pay tribute to two murdered Australian children prompted calls for the social networking site to be more accountable for its users.
Social media experts say it is natural that people who use sites such as Facebook or MySpace as a major form of communication should turn to these sites with personal tragedies.
These memorial sites often attract thousands of friends and well-wishers, as in the case of the pages set up after the deaths this month of Elliott Fletcher, 12, and Trinity Bates, 8.
Students from Brisbane College in the state of Queensland flocked to a memorial site set up after Fletcher was stabbed in a schoolyard fight two weeks ago, but it was defaced with offensive comments and images including child pornography and bestiality.
The same happened to a site set up in memory of Bates, who was taken from her bed in Bundaberg, Queensland, with her body found in a nearby storm drain. A teenager accused of her murder was also revealed to be a Facebook friend of her parents.
Queensland premier Anna Bligh has appealed to the owners of US-based Facebook to find ways to stop a recurrence of these types of "sickening incidents".
"To have these things happen to Facebook pages set up for the sole purpose of helping these communities pay tribute to young lives lost in the most horrible ways adds to the grief already being experienced," Bligh wrote in a letter to Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg which was released to the media.
"I seek your advice about whether Facebook can do anything to prevent a recurrence of these types of sickening incidents."
A spokesman for Bligh said the premier had yet to receive a response from Zuckerberg.
Facebook spokesperson Debbie Frost said the site had rules to check content and reviewers were quick to respond to any reports of hate or threats against an individual, pornography, or violent photos or videos, and would remove the content, and either warn or disable the accounts of those responsible.
"Facebook is highly self-regulating, and users can and do report content that they find questionable or offensive," Frost said in a statement.
She said in the tragic case of Elliott Fletcher, Facebook responded to reports of vandalism from others users and the police by removing the groups and disabling the accounts of the people responsible but that was about all the action possible.
"It is simply not possible to 'prevent' a person with a sinister agenda from undertaking offensive activity anywhere on the Internet where people can post content. Nor is it really possible in real life," Frost added.
Detective superintendent Peter Crawford of Queensland police said people should think twice before setting up such social networking groups. As well as memorial sites, Facebook pages popped up vilifying the man accused of murdering Bates.
"I would say anybody thinking about putting these sites up in the future need to realise that they're going to attract these kinds of people," Crawford told radio station Fairfax Radio 4BC.
"The reality is once you open these sites up to open access to anyone on the Internet, you are going to attract unsavoury people and clearly that's occurred again."
Source:
http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=30783:users-urge-facebook-accountability&catid=219:reuters
Chicago Website Design
Social media experts say it is natural that people who use sites such as Facebook or MySpace as a major form of communication should turn to these sites with personal tragedies.
These memorial sites often attract thousands of friends and well-wishers, as in the case of the pages set up after the deaths this month of Elliott Fletcher, 12, and Trinity Bates, 8.
Students from Brisbane College in the state of Queensland flocked to a memorial site set up after Fletcher was stabbed in a schoolyard fight two weeks ago, but it was defaced with offensive comments and images including child pornography and bestiality.
The same happened to a site set up in memory of Bates, who was taken from her bed in Bundaberg, Queensland, with her body found in a nearby storm drain. A teenager accused of her murder was also revealed to be a Facebook friend of her parents.
Queensland premier Anna Bligh has appealed to the owners of US-based Facebook to find ways to stop a recurrence of these types of "sickening incidents".
"To have these things happen to Facebook pages set up for the sole purpose of helping these communities pay tribute to young lives lost in the most horrible ways adds to the grief already being experienced," Bligh wrote in a letter to Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg which was released to the media.
"I seek your advice about whether Facebook can do anything to prevent a recurrence of these types of sickening incidents."
A spokesman for Bligh said the premier had yet to receive a response from Zuckerberg.
Facebook spokesperson Debbie Frost said the site had rules to check content and reviewers were quick to respond to any reports of hate or threats against an individual, pornography, or violent photos or videos, and would remove the content, and either warn or disable the accounts of those responsible.
"Facebook is highly self-regulating, and users can and do report content that they find questionable or offensive," Frost said in a statement.
She said in the tragic case of Elliott Fletcher, Facebook responded to reports of vandalism from others users and the police by removing the groups and disabling the accounts of the people responsible but that was about all the action possible.
"It is simply not possible to 'prevent' a person with a sinister agenda from undertaking offensive activity anywhere on the Internet where people can post content. Nor is it really possible in real life," Frost added.
Detective superintendent Peter Crawford of Queensland police said people should think twice before setting up such social networking groups. As well as memorial sites, Facebook pages popped up vilifying the man accused of murdering Bates.
"I would say anybody thinking about putting these sites up in the future need to realise that they're going to attract these kinds of people," Crawford told radio station Fairfax Radio 4BC.
"The reality is once you open these sites up to open access to anyone on the Internet, you are going to attract unsavoury people and clearly that's occurred again."
Source:
http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=30783:users-urge-facebook-accountability&catid=219:reuters
Chicago Website Design
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
If Google Wave Is The Future, Google Buzz Is The Present
Google has a problem. Despite having their hands in just about everything online, they’ve never been able to tackle what is a key part of the fabric of the web: social. Yes, they have Orkut and OpenSocial, but no one actually uses them. Okay, some people use them, but not in the meaningful social ways that people use Facebook or even Twitter. Today, Google may have just solved their social problem.
Google Buzz is easily the company’s boldest attempt yet to build a social network. Imagine taking elements of Twitter, Yammer, Foursquare, Yelp, and other social services, and shoving them together into one package. Now imagine covering that package in a layer that looks a lot like FriendFeed. Now imagine shoving that package inside of Gmail. That’s Buzz. If Google Wave is the future, Google Buzz is the present.
FriendFeed Reborn. On Growth Hormone.
Fundamentally, Buzz is a stream of status updates, pictures, links, and videos from your friends. You can “like” these items and you can comment on them. And if you use Flickr, Picasa, Google Reader, or Twitter, you can also automatically have those items imported into your stream. And Buzz will recommend items you might like based on your friends’ activity.
Yes, again, it sounds a lot like FriendFeed. But it has a critical component that FriendFeed never had prior to its acquisition by Facebook: a massive installed user base. Maybe you missed the key bit of wording above: it resides inside of Gmail. Rather than trying to build its own new social service from scratch, Google is making Buzz a key part of their email service (right below the Inbox tab) that 176 million unique visitors each month, according to comScore.
Source:
http://techcrunch.com/2010/02/09/if-google-wave-is-the-future-google-buzz-is-the-present/
Chicago Web Site Design Company
Google Buzz is easily the company’s boldest attempt yet to build a social network. Imagine taking elements of Twitter, Yammer, Foursquare, Yelp, and other social services, and shoving them together into one package. Now imagine covering that package in a layer that looks a lot like FriendFeed. Now imagine shoving that package inside of Gmail. That’s Buzz. If Google Wave is the future, Google Buzz is the present.
FriendFeed Reborn. On Growth Hormone.
Fundamentally, Buzz is a stream of status updates, pictures, links, and videos from your friends. You can “like” these items and you can comment on them. And if you use Flickr, Picasa, Google Reader, or Twitter, you can also automatically have those items imported into your stream. And Buzz will recommend items you might like based on your friends’ activity.
Yes, again, it sounds a lot like FriendFeed. But it has a critical component that FriendFeed never had prior to its acquisition by Facebook: a massive installed user base. Maybe you missed the key bit of wording above: it resides inside of Gmail. Rather than trying to build its own new social service from scratch, Google is making Buzz a key part of their email service (right below the Inbox tab) that 176 million unique visitors each month, according to comScore.
Source:
http://techcrunch.com/2010/02/09/if-google-wave-is-the-future-google-buzz-is-the-present/
Chicago Web Site Design Company
Friday, February 12, 2010
Google to Add Social Features to Gmail
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Google is trying once again to capture some of the momentum surrounding social networking companies like Facebook and Twitter by adding new features to Gmail, its popular e-mail service.
Later this week, Google will introduce add-ons to Gmail that let users post and view messages about their day-to-day activities, according to a person at Google briefed on its plans. This simple tweak to Gmail will allow Google to mimic the status updates that have driven much of the success of Facebook and Twitter, as people return to the services again and again to check out what their friends and co-workers are doing.
To date, Google has allowed users to post only a brief message about their status through its Chat system, which is linked to Gmail. The new features would allow a more vibrant back-and-forth among Gmail users.
It is not clear whether Google will link the new Gmail features to rival social-networking services.
The Gmail move signals that Google remains serious about becoming a social media force at a time when some of Silicon Valley’s younger start-ups have stolen some of its thunder.
“It might look like a minor feature advance, but this is another blow in the war against Facebook,” said Jeremiah Owyang, a partner at Altimeter Group, a technology consulting company.
Google has a full-blown social networking service called Orkut that has proved especially popular in Brazil. It also has a Web browser add-on called Sidewiki that lets people jot down and share information about a Web site, and a Profile service where people can post information about themselves.
These efforts have done little to put Google on center stage when it comes to social networking. Google, in fact, finds itself in a similar position to Microsoft, as a company struggling to figure out how to move into new areas by stretching its traditional strongholds and brand.
Microsoft, a rival to Google in several areas, has invested in Facebook. “You can see the factions starting to line up,” Mr. Owyang said.
Analysts remain skeptical as to whether a new twist on Gmail will do much to elevate Google’s position in the social networking realm. That said, the market remains relatively new, and there is room for companies to challenge the likes of Facebook, they said.
Google is also expected to create strong ties between Gmail and its YouTube video site and Picasa photo gallery service.
Source:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/09/technology/companies/09social.html?ref=technology
Web Designers Chicago
Later this week, Google will introduce add-ons to Gmail that let users post and view messages about their day-to-day activities, according to a person at Google briefed on its plans. This simple tweak to Gmail will allow Google to mimic the status updates that have driven much of the success of Facebook and Twitter, as people return to the services again and again to check out what their friends and co-workers are doing.
To date, Google has allowed users to post only a brief message about their status through its Chat system, which is linked to Gmail. The new features would allow a more vibrant back-and-forth among Gmail users.
It is not clear whether Google will link the new Gmail features to rival social-networking services.
The Gmail move signals that Google remains serious about becoming a social media force at a time when some of Silicon Valley’s younger start-ups have stolen some of its thunder.
“It might look like a minor feature advance, but this is another blow in the war against Facebook,” said Jeremiah Owyang, a partner at Altimeter Group, a technology consulting company.
Google has a full-blown social networking service called Orkut that has proved especially popular in Brazil. It also has a Web browser add-on called Sidewiki that lets people jot down and share information about a Web site, and a Profile service where people can post information about themselves.
These efforts have done little to put Google on center stage when it comes to social networking. Google, in fact, finds itself in a similar position to Microsoft, as a company struggling to figure out how to move into new areas by stretching its traditional strongholds and brand.
Microsoft, a rival to Google in several areas, has invested in Facebook. “You can see the factions starting to line up,” Mr. Owyang said.
Analysts remain skeptical as to whether a new twist on Gmail will do much to elevate Google’s position in the social networking realm. That said, the market remains relatively new, and there is room for companies to challenge the likes of Facebook, they said.
Google is also expected to create strong ties between Gmail and its YouTube video site and Picasa photo gallery service.
Source:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/09/technology/companies/09social.html?ref=technology
Web Designers Chicago
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Macworld 2010 Refocuses For New Era, Without Apple
Attending a Macworld Expo without Apple may seem like going to a rock concert to see the opening acts, but despite lacking the rock star presence, the show will go on nonetheless.
It was just prior to last year's conference, Apple announced that 2009 would be the last year it participated in the annual gathering, which has been held in San Francisco since 1985. This year's Expo, which has been rebranded Macworld 2010, will feature no keynote from Apple executives and no Apple booth on the show floor in Moscone Center's North Hall.
But while Apple's absence will certainly change the dynamic of the event, it hardly means that the show won't go on. There's plenty to do throughout the five-day event, which runs from Tuesday February 9 through Saturday February 13, even without Apple around.
Walking the floor
"It's going to be a smaller show this year," acknowledged Paul Kent, vice president and general manager for Macworld 2010. Last year's exhibition spanned both Moscone's North and South halls. "Many vendors decided to sit on the sideline and see what Macworld without Apple would look like. It's really up to those vendors, going forward."
The exhibition hall, open from February 11 to February 13, remains one of Macworld 2010's strongest draws, with more than 250 vendors, including the Mobile Application Showcase, the largest collection of iPhone developers ever assembled, and the Indie Developer Pavilion, a special area for independent Mac developers of all sizes. Plus, more than 60 vendors are introducing new products at the show. There's no question, said Kent, that the product experience remains a very central part of the show. "The three pillars of Macworld are product discovery, conference education, and the social experience."
Kent freely admits that rebounding from Apple's departure may be a two-year process, but he remains optimistic about the future. "I anticipate the vendors are going to come back in droves."
Naturally, it will help if the conference attendance is high. While the exact figures won't be known until the dust clears, there are more than 30,000 pre-registrations for the event. By comparison, Macworld Expo saw attendance of 45,572 in 2007, and a 10 percent increase over that in 2008. Attendance figures for last year's event, however, were not disclosed. Kent noted that he expects a packed house this year, including the more than 700 members of the media that have registered.
Headline acts
In addition to the exhibition hall, this year's show will have a number of feature presentations that Kent hopes will educate, inform, and entertain attendees. "You don't replace a Steve Jobs keynote," said Kent. "But we do know how to build very content rich events here."
On Thursday, New York Times tech columnist David Pogue will host a session called Late Night with David Pogue, featuring surprises guests and musical performances and noted writer and director Kevin Smith will hold a Q&A session on storytelling, technology, and filmmaking.
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/business-issues/14171/macworld-2010-refocuses-new-era-without-apple
Web Site Design
It was just prior to last year's conference, Apple announced that 2009 would be the last year it participated in the annual gathering, which has been held in San Francisco since 1985. This year's Expo, which has been rebranded Macworld 2010, will feature no keynote from Apple executives and no Apple booth on the show floor in Moscone Center's North Hall.
But while Apple's absence will certainly change the dynamic of the event, it hardly means that the show won't go on. There's plenty to do throughout the five-day event, which runs from Tuesday February 9 through Saturday February 13, even without Apple around.
Walking the floor
"It's going to be a smaller show this year," acknowledged Paul Kent, vice president and general manager for Macworld 2010. Last year's exhibition spanned both Moscone's North and South halls. "Many vendors decided to sit on the sideline and see what Macworld without Apple would look like. It's really up to those vendors, going forward."
The exhibition hall, open from February 11 to February 13, remains one of Macworld 2010's strongest draws, with more than 250 vendors, including the Mobile Application Showcase, the largest collection of iPhone developers ever assembled, and the Indie Developer Pavilion, a special area for independent Mac developers of all sizes. Plus, more than 60 vendors are introducing new products at the show. There's no question, said Kent, that the product experience remains a very central part of the show. "The three pillars of Macworld are product discovery, conference education, and the social experience."
Kent freely admits that rebounding from Apple's departure may be a two-year process, but he remains optimistic about the future. "I anticipate the vendors are going to come back in droves."
Naturally, it will help if the conference attendance is high. While the exact figures won't be known until the dust clears, there are more than 30,000 pre-registrations for the event. By comparison, Macworld Expo saw attendance of 45,572 in 2007, and a 10 percent increase over that in 2008. Attendance figures for last year's event, however, were not disclosed. Kent noted that he expects a packed house this year, including the more than 700 members of the media that have registered.
Headline acts
In addition to the exhibition hall, this year's show will have a number of feature presentations that Kent hopes will educate, inform, and entertain attendees. "You don't replace a Steve Jobs keynote," said Kent. "But we do know how to build very content rich events here."
On Thursday, New York Times tech columnist David Pogue will host a session called Late Night with David Pogue, featuring surprises guests and musical performances and noted writer and director Kevin Smith will hold a Q&A session on storytelling, technology, and filmmaking.
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/business-issues/14171/macworld-2010-refocuses-new-era-without-apple
Web Site Design
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Facebook's Photo uploader Gets an Overhaul Too
Hot on the heels of a visual face-lift, Facebook on Friday announced that the prototype version of its photo uploader, which was introduced in mid-November of last year, will soon be rolling out to all users.
Unlike the existing version of Facebook's photo uploader, the new uploader requires the installation of a browser plug-in. This inconvenience is rewarded with the option to leave Facebook entirely, while the photos continue to upload in the background. Previously, users would have had to leave that window or page running while the uploader did its magic.
Facebook also said the new uploader supports a few extra photo formats, though it did not specify which ones. The company has, for some time now, had unofficial support for a handful of alternate formats, including raw images. However, on its official spec sheet the company says only .jpg, .gif, .bmp, and .png files will work.
Facebook currently gets 2.5 billion photo uploads per month. To put that in perspective, the company hit the 10 billion mark in October of 2008, a whole three years after first introducing the photo-sharing feature in 2005. In other words, any small change that makes it easier for people to get their photos onto the social network could end up having a big effect on how fast Facebook's photo collection will continue to grow.
If you can't wait for Facebook to activate the uploader on your account, you can do it yourself. Just head over to Facebook's prototype page, and turn it on.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-20000051-248.html?tag=newsEditorsPicksArea.0
Chicago Web Design Firms
Unlike the existing version of Facebook's photo uploader, the new uploader requires the installation of a browser plug-in. This inconvenience is rewarded with the option to leave Facebook entirely, while the photos continue to upload in the background. Previously, users would have had to leave that window or page running while the uploader did its magic.
Facebook also said the new uploader supports a few extra photo formats, though it did not specify which ones. The company has, for some time now, had unofficial support for a handful of alternate formats, including raw images. However, on its official spec sheet the company says only .jpg, .gif, .bmp, and .png files will work.
Facebook currently gets 2.5 billion photo uploads per month. To put that in perspective, the company hit the 10 billion mark in October of 2008, a whole three years after first introducing the photo-sharing feature in 2005. In other words, any small change that makes it easier for people to get their photos onto the social network could end up having a big effect on how fast Facebook's photo collection will continue to grow.
If you can't wait for Facebook to activate the uploader on your account, you can do it yourself. Just head over to Facebook's prototype page, and turn it on.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-20000051-248.html?tag=newsEditorsPicksArea.0
Chicago Web Design Firms
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Apple Extends iTunes Web Previews to Apps
Just a few months after introducing its browser-based iTunes Preview pages for music, Apple has expanded the feature to include items from the App Store.
Now, when a user clicks an iTunes link for an iPhone or iPod Touch app, they're taken to a page with a similar layout to what they'd see when browsing the iTunes Store in Apple's iTunes software. But instead, it's in their browser. This allows users who don't have iTunes installed to see more information about an app without having the software installed. That said, preview pages attempt to launch iTunes each time you load them.
As mentioned in previous coverage, there are a few shortcomings to these preview pages compared to the sales pages in iTunes proper. These include only being able to see a handful of user reviews and other purchases by customers. Users are also unable to make a purchase, add the app to a wish list, and share it on Twitter or Facebook.
Despite these limitations, the iTunes Preview program is a strong hint that Apple is on its way towards taking its iTunes Store business outside of conventional software and onto the Web. Though Apple has not yet extended the preview program out to all its content, including movies, TV shows, podcasts, and audiobooks.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-20000041-248.html?tag=newsEditorsPicksArea.0
Web Design Firms Chicago
Now, when a user clicks an iTunes link for an iPhone or iPod Touch app, they're taken to a page with a similar layout to what they'd see when browsing the iTunes Store in Apple's iTunes software. But instead, it's in their browser. This allows users who don't have iTunes installed to see more information about an app without having the software installed. That said, preview pages attempt to launch iTunes each time you load them.
As mentioned in previous coverage, there are a few shortcomings to these preview pages compared to the sales pages in iTunes proper. These include only being able to see a handful of user reviews and other purchases by customers. Users are also unable to make a purchase, add the app to a wish list, and share it on Twitter or Facebook.
Despite these limitations, the iTunes Preview program is a strong hint that Apple is on its way towards taking its iTunes Store business outside of conventional software and onto the Web. Though Apple has not yet extended the preview program out to all its content, including movies, TV shows, podcasts, and audiobooks.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-20000041-248.html?tag=newsEditorsPicksArea.0
Web Design Firms Chicago
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Facebook Comes Out Swinging at Critics of Settlement Offer In Beacon Lawsuit
Facebook has come out swinging at those opposing a settlement offer it made last year in a privacy lawsuit involving the social networking company's controversial Beacon behavioral tracking service .
Under the offer made last September, Facebook said it would pay $9.5 million to set up a privacy foundation to fund projects promoting the cause of online privacy in return for the lawsuit against it to be dropped. It also said that it would formally drop the Beacon service.
But in complaints filed with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California last week, opponents of the settlement called it meaningless. In documents filed with the court they argued that all Facebook was doing was paying itself to fund a privacy foundation over which it would exercise undue control.
In response, a Facebook spokesman said yesterday the objections were false and called the settlement "fair" and in the interest of the members of the class-action suit.
The dispute stems from a lawsuit filed in August 2008 against Facebook. It alleged that Facebook and Beacon affiliates such as Blockbuster and Overstock.com had violated several federal privacy laws, including the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and the Video Privacy Protection Act, when they shared data about Facebook users with each other. As part of its settlement offer, Facebook said it would shut down Beacon.
However, in a complaint filed last week in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, of Washington D.C, and some Facebook users asked the court to reject the offer.
In their complaint, the groups said that the proposed settlement did nothing to compensate victims whose privacy may have been compromised by Beacon. Other than formally disbanding a program that Facebook had voluntarily already discontinued, the settlement offered little else the groups complained.
"At the heart of the proposed settlement is the foundation that Facebook will pay itself to establish," one of the complaints noted. The settlement also "improperly" gives Facebook a direct role in drafting the mission and bylaws of the proposed foundation and in appointing board members.
In fact, one of the three initial directors of the foundation is a Facebook employee and chief lobbyist, the complaint noted. "In exchange for what amounts to worthless "relief," all class members will release all Beacon-related claims against Facebook and the Beacon merchant partners," the compliant said.
In e-mailed comments, Facebook spokesman Barry Schnitt blasted such objections. "The suggestion that Facebook would pay itself is absurd, misunderstands how foundations work, and totally disregards the bylaws of this foundation and the enforcement powers of the court," Schnitt said.
The bylaws of the proposed foundation make it clear that its purpose is to fund and sponsor programs to educate users, regulators and enterprises on online privacy issues, Schnitt said. He added that the foundation will be an independent entity run by three well known and respected privacy advocates.
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/social-media/13874/facebook-comes-out-swinging-critics-settlement-offer-beacon-lawsuit
Chicago Web Design
Under the offer made last September, Facebook said it would pay $9.5 million to set up a privacy foundation to fund projects promoting the cause of online privacy in return for the lawsuit against it to be dropped. It also said that it would formally drop the Beacon service.
But in complaints filed with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California last week, opponents of the settlement called it meaningless. In documents filed with the court they argued that all Facebook was doing was paying itself to fund a privacy foundation over which it would exercise undue control.
In response, a Facebook spokesman said yesterday the objections were false and called the settlement "fair" and in the interest of the members of the class-action suit.
The dispute stems from a lawsuit filed in August 2008 against Facebook. It alleged that Facebook and Beacon affiliates such as Blockbuster and Overstock.com had violated several federal privacy laws, including the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and the Video Privacy Protection Act, when they shared data about Facebook users with each other. As part of its settlement offer, Facebook said it would shut down Beacon.
However, in a complaint filed last week in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, of Washington D.C, and some Facebook users asked the court to reject the offer.
In their complaint, the groups said that the proposed settlement did nothing to compensate victims whose privacy may have been compromised by Beacon. Other than formally disbanding a program that Facebook had voluntarily already discontinued, the settlement offered little else the groups complained.
"At the heart of the proposed settlement is the foundation that Facebook will pay itself to establish," one of the complaints noted. The settlement also "improperly" gives Facebook a direct role in drafting the mission and bylaws of the proposed foundation and in appointing board members.
In fact, one of the three initial directors of the foundation is a Facebook employee and chief lobbyist, the complaint noted. "In exchange for what amounts to worthless "relief," all class members will release all Beacon-related claims against Facebook and the Beacon merchant partners," the compliant said.
In e-mailed comments, Facebook spokesman Barry Schnitt blasted such objections. "The suggestion that Facebook would pay itself is absurd, misunderstands how foundations work, and totally disregards the bylaws of this foundation and the enforcement powers of the court," Schnitt said.
The bylaws of the proposed foundation make it clear that its purpose is to fund and sponsor programs to educate users, regulators and enterprises on online privacy issues, Schnitt said. He added that the foundation will be an independent entity run by three well known and respected privacy advocates.
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/social-media/13874/facebook-comes-out-swinging-critics-settlement-offer-beacon-lawsuit
Chicago Web Design
Sunday, January 31, 2010
MySpace Accepting Submissions For App Contest
MySpace has opened the submission period for its Developer Challenge, a contest in which the company will award US$50,000 in prizes for new applications and for innovative uses of the social networking site's application programming interfaces.
External developers have until Feb. 24 to enter the contest, which includes a US$10,000 award in each of five categories: best new MySpace application and the most innovative uses of the real-time stream API, open search API, photo upload API and mobile API.
The panel of judges will include MySpace COO Mike Jones and Google Engineering Director David Glazer, MySpace announced on Monday. The winners will be announced at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco in March.
To be eligible, contestants must be legal residents of the U.S., Canada (excluding Quebec), U.K., or Australia and be at least 18 years of age. Developers can participate as individuals or as part of a team of no more than three members.
Judges will evaluate applications and use of APIs according to four general criteria: originality, technical achievement, entertainment value and innovation.
MySpace also will host a free event called MySpace devJam on Jan. 14 at its San Francisco office to help developers get started on their applications for the contest, a company spokeswoman said via e-mail.
The developer contest comes on the heels of MySpace's decision about a month ago to open its users' public activity stream data to external developers via a new set of APIs.
MySpace wants developers to use these status updates and action notifications in external applications and in Web sites. MySpace has about 110 million members worldwide. They generate about 46 million status updates and action notifications every day.
Once the most popular social networking site in the world, MySpace lost that position to Facebook, but a new management team is trying to refocus MySpace so it can recover lost territory.
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/social-networking/12497/myspace-accepting-submissions-app-contest
Web Design Firms Chicago
External developers have until Feb. 24 to enter the contest, which includes a US$10,000 award in each of five categories: best new MySpace application and the most innovative uses of the real-time stream API, open search API, photo upload API and mobile API.
The panel of judges will include MySpace COO Mike Jones and Google Engineering Director David Glazer, MySpace announced on Monday. The winners will be announced at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco in March.
To be eligible, contestants must be legal residents of the U.S., Canada (excluding Quebec), U.K., or Australia and be at least 18 years of age. Developers can participate as individuals or as part of a team of no more than three members.
Judges will evaluate applications and use of APIs according to four general criteria: originality, technical achievement, entertainment value and innovation.
MySpace also will host a free event called MySpace devJam on Jan. 14 at its San Francisco office to help developers get started on their applications for the contest, a company spokeswoman said via e-mail.
The developer contest comes on the heels of MySpace's decision about a month ago to open its users' public activity stream data to external developers via a new set of APIs.
MySpace wants developers to use these status updates and action notifications in external applications and in Web sites. MySpace has about 110 million members worldwide. They generate about 46 million status updates and action notifications every day.
Once the most popular social networking site in the world, MySpace lost that position to Facebook, but a new management team is trying to refocus MySpace so it can recover lost territory.
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/social-networking/12497/myspace-accepting-submissions-app-contest
Web Design Firms Chicago
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Facebook Privacy Complaint Ignites War of Words
A high-profile electronic privacy group filed a federal complaint against Facebook on Thursday -- and now, Facebook is lashing back.
The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) called upon the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Facebook's recent changes to its users' privacy options. The changes, rolled out earlier this month, have been criticized by some for opening up previously masked personal details to the public eye.
"These changes violate user expectations, diminish user privacy, and contradict Facebook's own representations," EPIC's complaint (PDF) alleges.
EPIC's Facebook Complaint
The EPIC complaint -- supported by the Center for Digital Democracy, the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, and seven other advocacy organizations -- takes issue with Facebook's newly "public" treatment of such data as users' names, genders, cities, and profile photos. By default, EPIC points out, this information is now disclosed to search engines as well as to third-party Facebook applications.
The concern, according to EPIC, revolves around how this information could be used against a user's interests.
"More than 100 million people in the United States subscribe to the Facebook service," Marc Rotenberg, EPIC's executive director, said in a prepared statement. "The company should not be allowed to turn down the privacy dial on so many American consumers."
(Rotenberg was not immediately available to speak via phone for this story.)
Facebook's Response
Facebook, in response, says it's already spoken with the FTC and other regulators about the changes. A representative from the company notes that the revised privacy policy also adds a series of more detailed options for users, including the ability to specify different settings for every photo, link, or status update posted onto the social network.
"We've had productive discussions with dozens of organizations around the world about the recent changes," Andrew Noyes, Facebook's manager of public policy communications, said in a prepared statement. "We're disappointed that EPIC has chosen to share their concerns with the FTC while refusing to talk to us about them."
Privacy Perspectives
Other members of the privacy community are divided when it comes to EPIC's complaint. Berin Szoka, a senior fellow with the Progress and Freedom Foundation, questions whether getting the government involved is the right step to take.
"I think we're already seeing the marketplace pressures that Facebook faces move us toward a better balance between the benefits of sharing and granular control," he says. "We're concerned about the idea that the government would be in the driver's seat about these issues."
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/privacy/12159/facebook-privacy-complaint-ignites-war-words
Web Designers Chicago
The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) called upon the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Facebook's recent changes to its users' privacy options. The changes, rolled out earlier this month, have been criticized by some for opening up previously masked personal details to the public eye.
"These changes violate user expectations, diminish user privacy, and contradict Facebook's own representations," EPIC's complaint (PDF) alleges.
EPIC's Facebook Complaint
The EPIC complaint -- supported by the Center for Digital Democracy, the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, and seven other advocacy organizations -- takes issue with Facebook's newly "public" treatment of such data as users' names, genders, cities, and profile photos. By default, EPIC points out, this information is now disclosed to search engines as well as to third-party Facebook applications.
The concern, according to EPIC, revolves around how this information could be used against a user's interests.
"More than 100 million people in the United States subscribe to the Facebook service," Marc Rotenberg, EPIC's executive director, said in a prepared statement. "The company should not be allowed to turn down the privacy dial on so many American consumers."
(Rotenberg was not immediately available to speak via phone for this story.)
Facebook's Response
Facebook, in response, says it's already spoken with the FTC and other regulators about the changes. A representative from the company notes that the revised privacy policy also adds a series of more detailed options for users, including the ability to specify different settings for every photo, link, or status update posted onto the social network.
"We've had productive discussions with dozens of organizations around the world about the recent changes," Andrew Noyes, Facebook's manager of public policy communications, said in a prepared statement. "We're disappointed that EPIC has chosen to share their concerns with the FTC while refusing to talk to us about them."
Privacy Perspectives
Other members of the privacy community are divided when it comes to EPIC's complaint. Berin Szoka, a senior fellow with the Progress and Freedom Foundation, questions whether getting the government involved is the right step to take.
"I think we're already seeing the marketplace pressures that Facebook faces move us toward a better balance between the benefits of sharing and granular control," he says. "We're concerned about the idea that the government would be in the driver's seat about these issues."
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/privacy/12159/facebook-privacy-complaint-ignites-war-words
Web Designers Chicago
Monday, December 7, 2009
Boxee Beta is Cleaner, Better, Still Closed
On Monday, the media-viewing app Boxee is going into a closed, private beta test. This app has been in private alpha testing for about a year and a half, and has won praise while generating some frustration among its test users. At first, for example, it was a great interface to the Hulu service, but Hulu made its content unavailable to Boxee users (there's a less-elegant workaround baked into the current product). AppleTV users who hacked the app into their system have also hit speed bumps--the app won't work on the newest updates of the AppleTV product.
Boxee soldiers on, gaining fans and adding content from other sources. I recently covered the Boxee version of Clicker, for example, which shows us how the Boxee platform might some day do a credible job of replacing users' TiVos or cable boxes.
The Boxee experience is improving, too. Monday's new beta has a completely redone interface that is far superior to the alpha's. The idea of the slide-out toolbar menus, an anachronistic throwback to Windows and Mac desktop operating systems, is thankfully gone, replaced by a more visible and consistent interface.
The app also gets new features. If you tell Boxee your Facebook and Twitter IDs, it will scan your friends' posts continuously, and tell you what they're talking about in a new "recommended" column on the Boxee home screen.
The home screen also shows your queue, which can include content that pops up based on shows you're subscribed to. It also has a "featured" column that Boxee can use to promote new content, included paid placements--a new revenue stream for the company.
Boxee can also now search the entire Netflix online inventory. Previously, you could view your online Netflix shows and see a smattering of new ones. Now you can see and stream everything, assuming you're a paying user.
There are also new content partners: The Escapist (which makes the Zero Punctuation video), and SuicideGirls. (I wasn't aware until I got the beta demo that Boxee supports adult content; the NSFW feeds don't appear until you disable the parental controls.)
The new Boxee begins to address my biggest gripe about the system, which is that it can be hard to find content from the multitudinous streams that feed into the platform. A new TV menu combines content from the user's hard drive as well as subscription and streaming sources, and it has a useful search feature. There's also an improved table of contents for shows. But Boxee still doesn't have a global search to find everything it can play, so in some cases you need to know which "application" (Boxee content stream) has a show you want to watch. Boxee VP Andrew Kippen did tell me it's an ongoing goal to improve the search process on the platform.
Kippen says the company recommends the Mac Mini as the best platform for the app at the moment. There are also OS X and Linux versions, and a Windows port, but it's for 32-bit installations only. The Linux port will be used in the dedicated Boxee hardware, details of which are being announced shortly. In the meantime, Roku has a somewhat competitive hardware-based product now shipping, and it has the additional benefit of offering access to a user's Amazon streaming-video account, which Boxee doesn't do.
Boxee is still closed to most new users. Everyone, even existing alpha users, has to sign up for the beta lottery to try it out. The beta will open to all around the Consumer Electronics Show time frame, in January.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-19882_3-10410159-250.html
Web Design Firms Chicago
Boxee soldiers on, gaining fans and adding content from other sources. I recently covered the Boxee version of Clicker, for example, which shows us how the Boxee platform might some day do a credible job of replacing users' TiVos or cable boxes.
The Boxee experience is improving, too. Monday's new beta has a completely redone interface that is far superior to the alpha's. The idea of the slide-out toolbar menus, an anachronistic throwback to Windows and Mac desktop operating systems, is thankfully gone, replaced by a more visible and consistent interface.
The app also gets new features. If you tell Boxee your Facebook and Twitter IDs, it will scan your friends' posts continuously, and tell you what they're talking about in a new "recommended" column on the Boxee home screen.
The home screen also shows your queue, which can include content that pops up based on shows you're subscribed to. It also has a "featured" column that Boxee can use to promote new content, included paid placements--a new revenue stream for the company.
Boxee can also now search the entire Netflix online inventory. Previously, you could view your online Netflix shows and see a smattering of new ones. Now you can see and stream everything, assuming you're a paying user.
There are also new content partners: The Escapist (which makes the Zero Punctuation video), and SuicideGirls. (I wasn't aware until I got the beta demo that Boxee supports adult content; the NSFW feeds don't appear until you disable the parental controls.)
The new Boxee begins to address my biggest gripe about the system, which is that it can be hard to find content from the multitudinous streams that feed into the platform. A new TV menu combines content from the user's hard drive as well as subscription and streaming sources, and it has a useful search feature. There's also an improved table of contents for shows. But Boxee still doesn't have a global search to find everything it can play, so in some cases you need to know which "application" (Boxee content stream) has a show you want to watch. Boxee VP Andrew Kippen did tell me it's an ongoing goal to improve the search process on the platform.
Kippen says the company recommends the Mac Mini as the best platform for the app at the moment. There are also OS X and Linux versions, and a Windows port, but it's for 32-bit installations only. The Linux port will be used in the dedicated Boxee hardware, details of which are being announced shortly. In the meantime, Roku has a somewhat competitive hardware-based product now shipping, and it has the additional benefit of offering access to a user's Amazon streaming-video account, which Boxee doesn't do.
Boxee is still closed to most new users. Everyone, even existing alpha users, has to sign up for the beta lottery to try it out. The beta will open to all around the Consumer Electronics Show time frame, in January.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-19882_3-10410159-250.html
Web Design Firms Chicago
Citysearch Gets Real-Time Fever, Lets Biz Owners Log In, Update Twitter Remotely
The rush to incorporate real-time status updates has even hit IAC’s Citysearch. Starting today, business owners will be able to create and manage their Twitter accounts directly from a Citysearch page. A restaurant, bar or health clubs’ most recent three tweets will show up alongside their ratings, reviews and other info; Citysearch is also pulling in replies and other tweets that include the business’ Twitter handle.
Citysearch is only the latest company to work on back-end integration with Twitter: Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) and Google (NSDQ: GOOG) recently brokered data-sharing deals with the service for search, and LinkedIn also added Twitter support. For Citysearch, adding remote Twitter access is part of an ongoing effort to become the most comprehensive online resource for local businesses—particularly in the face of more competition from Yelp, and now, even Google.
“This is another way for us to help businesses manage—or even just create—their social identities, because it gives them one place to respond to reviews, update Facebook and post to Twitter,” said Kara Nortman, Citysearch’s SVP, publishing.
While there’s no financial gain for Citysearch (or Twitter) from the integration right now, Nortman hinted that the company had its eyes on a potential “premium” social media offering in the future: “Down the road, we think about rolling out enhanced features—business owners could pull content out of tweets for example, and highlight it on their page,” she said. “But we’re focused on keeping everything free right now.”
I asked Nortman about potential ad clutter—since Citysearch runs ads on its local business listings, and business owners can create sponsored tweets from third-party services like 12seconds—but she said the company had no plans to “interfere or restrict” the users’ access to Twitter. Meanwhile, she acknowledged that including tweets on business pages would have SEO benefits, particularly with the big search engines making it a point to index tweets.
Source:
http://paidcontent.org/article/419-citysearch-gets-real-time-fever-lets-biz-owners-log-in-update-twitter-r/
Web Design Firms Chicago
Citysearch is only the latest company to work on back-end integration with Twitter: Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) and Google (NSDQ: GOOG) recently brokered data-sharing deals with the service for search, and LinkedIn also added Twitter support. For Citysearch, adding remote Twitter access is part of an ongoing effort to become the most comprehensive online resource for local businesses—particularly in the face of more competition from Yelp, and now, even Google.
“This is another way for us to help businesses manage—or even just create—their social identities, because it gives them one place to respond to reviews, update Facebook and post to Twitter,” said Kara Nortman, Citysearch’s SVP, publishing.
While there’s no financial gain for Citysearch (or Twitter) from the integration right now, Nortman hinted that the company had its eyes on a potential “premium” social media offering in the future: “Down the road, we think about rolling out enhanced features—business owners could pull content out of tweets for example, and highlight it on their page,” she said. “But we’re focused on keeping everything free right now.”
I asked Nortman about potential ad clutter—since Citysearch runs ads on its local business listings, and business owners can create sponsored tweets from third-party services like 12seconds—but she said the company had no plans to “interfere or restrict” the users’ access to Twitter. Meanwhile, she acknowledged that including tweets on business pages would have SEO benefits, particularly with the big search engines making it a point to index tweets.
Source:
http://paidcontent.org/article/419-citysearch-gets-real-time-fever-lets-biz-owners-log-in-update-twitter-r/
Web Design Firms Chicago
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Facebook’s Killer Feature: The Mutual Friends List
2009 has been a busy year for Facebook. The Social Networking Service just reached a whopping 350 million users. It redesigned its site, then redesigned those redesigns (say that three times fast). And as Mark Zuckerberg, the site’s founder and chief executive, announced Tuesday, the company is getting ready to release a new set of privacy policies in the coming weeks.
Facebook has also been on the receiving end of some heavy criticism this year for an array of privacy issues and a perceived desire to look and act more like Twitter. Some of these concerns are valid, and some are just the growing pains of a five-year-old company in a market that continues to change and adapt at breakneck speeds.
All of that aside for a moment, I believe that Facebook has one important, underutilized feature that no other site can replicate or compete with: the “mutual friends” list.
When you go to an individual’s Facebook Page, the list sits in a little box on the left of the page, visually displaying who you know in common. For me, this often-overlooked feature has become an integral part of my Facebook experience. Sure, I still go to the site to update my status and peruse my news feeds, but I use Mutual Friends more than anything else.
This feature enables me to supplement the real world with additional digital information. When I go to a meeting or party, I take a minute to look up who’s attending and quickly explore friends we might share. It’s the perfect digital icebreaker. Increasingly, when I go to a conference and meet someone new, I’ll sneak into the hallway and look them up, too. Or, if they seem unencumbered by potential privacy concerns, we pull out our phones, and using Facebook’s mobile application, look each other up.
Last year, for example, I met Wired columnist Steven Levy at a conference in Boston. After a few minutes chatting about mundane tech stories, we quickly pulled out our laptops, zipped along to Facebook.com and sat for an hour discussing who we knew in common.
Of course, the “mutual friends” list has its drawbacks. Maybe I don’t want you to know we are both friends with the same political activist. Then there are the random acquaintances you’ve collected over the years — they’re not really friends, even though they send you messages that say “Hi, we have 10 friends in common so we must be friends!”
Still, for me, the Mutual Friends list has become an integral part of my digital life.
And five years after the site’s launch, this feature is something only Facebook really offers. It would be close to impossible for Twitter to do, since its service is built on a find-and-follow mentality. I follow people I’m not friends with, and in turn, people I’ve never met follow me.
What about Google’s Gmail? Its address book, although a prodigious resource, stores every e-mail address you’ve ever encountered, including those random Craigslist purchasers and every spammer who made it over the drawbridge and through its filter.
LinkedIn, the business social connection site, is Facebook’s closest competitor in the mutual-friends arena, but it generally connects people based on work affiliations, whereas Facebook tends to include personal friends, family and professional connections.
As the Facebook community continues to grow by over 600,000 people a day, there is a lot of potential for Facebook to move beyond who we know in common to what we know in common. As I update my status with movies I’ve seen, books I’m reading or news articles I like, these features could help make all kinds of conversation — not just introductory ones — a lot more engaging.
Source:
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/02/facebooks-killer-feature-the-mutual-friends-list/
Professional Website Design Services
Facebook has also been on the receiving end of some heavy criticism this year for an array of privacy issues and a perceived desire to look and act more like Twitter. Some of these concerns are valid, and some are just the growing pains of a five-year-old company in a market that continues to change and adapt at breakneck speeds.
All of that aside for a moment, I believe that Facebook has one important, underutilized feature that no other site can replicate or compete with: the “mutual friends” list.
When you go to an individual’s Facebook Page, the list sits in a little box on the left of the page, visually displaying who you know in common. For me, this often-overlooked feature has become an integral part of my Facebook experience. Sure, I still go to the site to update my status and peruse my news feeds, but I use Mutual Friends more than anything else.
This feature enables me to supplement the real world with additional digital information. When I go to a meeting or party, I take a minute to look up who’s attending and quickly explore friends we might share. It’s the perfect digital icebreaker. Increasingly, when I go to a conference and meet someone new, I’ll sneak into the hallway and look them up, too. Or, if they seem unencumbered by potential privacy concerns, we pull out our phones, and using Facebook’s mobile application, look each other up.
Last year, for example, I met Wired columnist Steven Levy at a conference in Boston. After a few minutes chatting about mundane tech stories, we quickly pulled out our laptops, zipped along to Facebook.com and sat for an hour discussing who we knew in common.
Of course, the “mutual friends” list has its drawbacks. Maybe I don’t want you to know we are both friends with the same political activist. Then there are the random acquaintances you’ve collected over the years — they’re not really friends, even though they send you messages that say “Hi, we have 10 friends in common so we must be friends!”
Still, for me, the Mutual Friends list has become an integral part of my digital life.
And five years after the site’s launch, this feature is something only Facebook really offers. It would be close to impossible for Twitter to do, since its service is built on a find-and-follow mentality. I follow people I’m not friends with, and in turn, people I’ve never met follow me.
What about Google’s Gmail? Its address book, although a prodigious resource, stores every e-mail address you’ve ever encountered, including those random Craigslist purchasers and every spammer who made it over the drawbridge and through its filter.
LinkedIn, the business social connection site, is Facebook’s closest competitor in the mutual-friends arena, but it generally connects people based on work affiliations, whereas Facebook tends to include personal friends, family and professional connections.
As the Facebook community continues to grow by over 600,000 people a day, there is a lot of potential for Facebook to move beyond who we know in common to what we know in common. As I update my status with movies I’ve seen, books I’m reading or news articles I like, these features could help make all kinds of conversation — not just introductory ones — a lot more engaging.
Source:
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/02/facebooks-killer-feature-the-mutual-friends-list/
Professional Website Design Services
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
FaceFaceTime's Database Acquisition Highlights Need for Web 2.0 Control
FaceTime Communications today announced that Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. has acquired its application classification and signature database to add a new level of security for use in Check Point Security Gateways. Check Point's purchase of the database validates the need for businesses to implement Web 2.0 controls and security.
FaceTime incorporates the database in its recently announced Unified Security Gateway 3.0 - the first secure Web gateway to combine content monitoring, logging, management and security of Web 2.0 applications, such as social networking, instant messaging, and Unified Communications, with URL filtering, anti-malware and Web anti-virus protection.
The momentous growth of Web 2.0 platforms and the benefits gained through their use introduces significant new compliance and policy challenges. Government agencies and corporations worry about sensitive information leaking out over Twitter or Facebook and organizations now face new rules, from regulatory bodies such as FINRA, specifically relating to content posted to social networks.
"The growth in corporate use of Web 2.0 Applications and in the number of different applications being used makes compliance with legal and regulatory obligations incredibly important", said Michael Osterman, principal of Osterman Research. "Our research has shown that a large and growing proportion of corporate users are using Web 2.0 tools on a regular basis. Consequently, organizations must control how these tools are used and the information that is transmitted through them or face significant consequences for not doing so."
Source:
http://web2.sys-con.com/node/1198097
Professional Web Design Chicago
FaceTime incorporates the database in its recently announced Unified Security Gateway 3.0 - the first secure Web gateway to combine content monitoring, logging, management and security of Web 2.0 applications, such as social networking, instant messaging, and Unified Communications, with URL filtering, anti-malware and Web anti-virus protection.
The momentous growth of Web 2.0 platforms and the benefits gained through their use introduces significant new compliance and policy challenges. Government agencies and corporations worry about sensitive information leaking out over Twitter or Facebook and organizations now face new rules, from regulatory bodies such as FINRA, specifically relating to content posted to social networks.
"The growth in corporate use of Web 2.0 Applications and in the number of different applications being used makes compliance with legal and regulatory obligations incredibly important", said Michael Osterman, principal of Osterman Research. "Our research has shown that a large and growing proportion of corporate users are using Web 2.0 tools on a regular basis. Consequently, organizations must control how these tools are used and the information that is transmitted through them or face significant consequences for not doing so."
Source:
http://web2.sys-con.com/node/1198097
Professional Web Design Chicago
New Oxford Names Facebook’s “Unfriend” as Word of the Year 2009
The New Oxford American dictionary has named “unfriend” as the 2009 Word of the Year, which literally means removing someone as a friend on popular social networking websites like Facebook and Friendster.
The word was chosen from a pool of finalists with a technology savvy lineage, Oxford said in a statement.
Oxford’s US dictionary program senior lexicographer Christine Lindberg said that the word was chosen among other finalist for its currency and potential longevity characteristics.
“It has an exact definition or meaning when being used as a verb or an action word by the online community. Its meaning is understood, because of this, the adoption of ‘unfriend’ as a modern form of verb makes it more interesting to be chosen as the Word of the Year,” Lindberg added.
Other finalists came from economic terms, technological trends, political, and current affairs as chosen by the Britain Oxford University Press, the publisher of the said dictionary.
For technology, “hashtag” was also named, which means a hash sign connected to a word or a phrase that allows users of popular microblogging website Twitter to search similar tweets; also chosen was “intexticated,” which literally means texting-while-driving; and “sexting,” which from the rootword means sending sexually explicit messages and MMS through cellphones.
Meanwhile, among the top choices for the economy terms were “freemium,” which means basic services that are offered free in some forms of business models; and “funemployed,” which refers to people or an individual taking advantage of his newly acquired status of being unemployed by pursuing or having fun with his own interest.
For the political and current affairs category, “birther, ”which refers to a person or a group conspiring or having a conspiracy theory regarding the birth certificate of United States President Barack Obama; and “choice mom,” which can be simply put as a single mother by choice.
Other words that made it to the shortlist of the Word of the Year 2009 were “deleb” or a dead celebrity; and “tramp stamp” or a tattoo on the lower back of a female.
Source:
http://www.socialnetworks10.com/new-oxford-names-facebook%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%9Cunfriend%E2%80%9D-as-word-of-the-year-2009
Web Design Firms Chicago
The word was chosen from a pool of finalists with a technology savvy lineage, Oxford said in a statement.
Oxford’s US dictionary program senior lexicographer Christine Lindberg said that the word was chosen among other finalist for its currency and potential longevity characteristics.
“It has an exact definition or meaning when being used as a verb or an action word by the online community. Its meaning is understood, because of this, the adoption of ‘unfriend’ as a modern form of verb makes it more interesting to be chosen as the Word of the Year,” Lindberg added.
Other finalists came from economic terms, technological trends, political, and current affairs as chosen by the Britain Oxford University Press, the publisher of the said dictionary.
For technology, “hashtag” was also named, which means a hash sign connected to a word or a phrase that allows users of popular microblogging website Twitter to search similar tweets; also chosen was “intexticated,” which literally means texting-while-driving; and “sexting,” which from the rootword means sending sexually explicit messages and MMS through cellphones.
Meanwhile, among the top choices for the economy terms were “freemium,” which means basic services that are offered free in some forms of business models; and “funemployed,” which refers to people or an individual taking advantage of his newly acquired status of being unemployed by pursuing or having fun with his own interest.
For the political and current affairs category, “birther, ”which refers to a person or a group conspiring or having a conspiracy theory regarding the birth certificate of United States President Barack Obama; and “choice mom,” which can be simply put as a single mother by choice.
Other words that made it to the shortlist of the Word of the Year 2009 were “deleb” or a dead celebrity; and “tramp stamp” or a tattoo on the lower back of a female.
Source:
http://www.socialnetworks10.com/new-oxford-names-facebook%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%9Cunfriend%E2%80%9D-as-word-of-the-year-2009
Web Design Firms Chicago
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Microsoft, IBM And Yahoo Are Vying To Take Part In India’s Unique ID Project
It appears that both Yahoo and Microsoft are duking it out to help power the technology for India’s Unique Identification project. Spearheaded by Indian tech czar and Infosys co-chairman Nanden Nilekani, the project aims to assign every Indian citizen with a unique identification number that will identify him or her, similar to a U.S. social security number.This is no small task considering India’s population of 1.2 billion citizens. It will involve a powerful technology to assign the numbers and a vast database to organize each unique ID. That’s where Microsoft and Yahoo come in.
Earlier this year, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates expressed a strong interest in participating in the project, meeting Nilekani and assuring him that Microsoft would be able to assign the IDs swiftly.
This week Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz lobbied India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to use Yahoo for the project, but Bartz says that there’s no commercial interest in the deal and Yahoo would help power the project on a non-profit basis. Bartz added that Yahoo would be the optimal choice because Yahoo has a major presence in India. The company claims that three out of four Indians access the Internet through Yahoo.
While Yahoo is vastly popular in India thanks to sites like Yahoo Cricket that appeal to the population, its hold may be slipping. Gmail recently overtook Yahoo Mail as the most trafficked email site and Yahoo was forced to shut down its Indian social network SpotM a few months ago, as Google’s Orkut and Facebook emerge as the dominant social networks in India.
It’s unclear if Microsoft has the same “non-profit” stance as Yahoo, but obviously both companies want a piece of a highly ambitious project that could be implemented in other emerging countries. And it looks like IBM is also throwing its hat into the ring as well, so it should be interesting to see which tech giant wins out.
Source:
http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/11/11/microsoft-and-yahoo-are-battling-to-take-part-in-indias-unique-id-project/
Web Design Firms Chicago
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Oracle's Sun Deal: Oracle May Need to Loosen Its Grip
When Oracle announced its $7.4 billion acquisition of Sun Microsystems in April, the software behemoth was acting on a grand vision. The deal was part of Oracle's aim to become a soup-to-nuts supplier of everything companies need to run their computer systems, from chips and operating systems to databases and business programs. The grand plan may need some revision.
In order to alleviate pressure from European Union regulators worried about Oracle's (ORCL) growing power, Oracle may be forced to give up some control of a key aspect of the deal: the open-source MySQL database software owned by Sun.
The EU on Nov. 9 formally objected to Oracle’s acquisition of Sun. A Sun regulatory filing said the EU believes Oracle’s ownership of MySQL would have “potential negative effects on competition” in the $19 billion-a-year database market. SUnN (JAVA) makes computer systems and software including the Java programming language and MySQL database, a kind of electronic filing system.
"Taking a Tough Stance"
MySQL, available free of charge, runs the Web sites of some of the Internet's biggest brands. Among them: Twitter, Facebook, Google (GOOG), and Yahoo (YHOO). "They're taking a tough stance because 10 years down the road this could be a pretty big competitor to Oracle," says a securities analyst who asked not to be named because he was expressing personal views on the deal.
After saying in September that it's looking into aspects of the deal, Europe's more formal objection to Oracle's acquisition of Sun sets the stage for negotiations on how to make the deal pass muster. Regulators may ask Oracle to release a new version of MySQL that it doesn't control to preserve competition. Sun bought MySQL for $1 billion in 2008.
Oracle declined to comment for this article, but issued a statement Nov. 9 that said the EU’s objection "reveals of profound misunderstanding of both database competition and open-source dynamics…Because MySQL is open source, it cannot be controlled by anyone," Oracle said.
MySQL is distributed under an open-source licensing agreement, which lets users freely modify its code, companies including Google, Amazon.com (AMZN), and a software development project called Drizzle that's staffed partly with Sun employees, have already modified the database or incorporated it into commercial products without buying an officially supported version from Sun. For example, Amazon.com on Oct. 27 announced that customers can rent the MySQL database from Amazon over the Internet, paying by how much data they store and transfer. Google maintains its own version of MySQL, too.
The EU Is Positioning Itself
The presence of these versions in the wild suggests that forcing Oracle to spin out yet another version of the software may be redundant. "The remedy's already there," says one industry executive familiar with the EU's thinking, who says a regulated new version of the software would have little impact on the way companies license and use MySQL, which is prized for its speed and adaptability to running large Web sites. "The vast majority of the installed base isn't controlled by the vendor…I'm at a loss why any other remedies would be needed," this person says. "There's something illogical in the whole thing."
Whatever the proposed concessions, even Oracle's competitors believe the Sun deal will get done. "They're doing what the EU always does—making provocative statements," says an executive at an Oracle competitor. Analysts say the EU wants to position itself as an advocate for technologies that are more open rather than proprietary—closely guarded by license owners.
Source:
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2009/tc2009118_559520.htm
Chicago Web Site Design Company
Friday, November 6, 2009
Facebook Poll Launches Secret Service Investigation
If you are a developer, you better watch the content you post on Facebook or else you could be on the receiving end of a Secret Service investigation. This has occurred after a third party application was pulled that allowed users to create Facebook polls. A recent poll that was placed on Facebook posing the following question: “Should President Obama be killed?”
The answers to the poll were either “yes,” “maybe,” “if he cuts my healthcare” and “no.” The Secret Service agency spokesman James Mackin has said an investigation has been launched because of the poll. Facebook users reported the poll to the site owners and it was quickly taken down. The application has been suspended until the developer can prove that they can better filter the content generated by the poll creator. Facebook handles these situations by asking users to police the site and flag any inappropriate content.
It appears that the application was created over the weekend and first appeared on the developer’s page Advanced Alien Technology. The user that created the poll has yet to be named.
Source:
http://www.gadgetell.com/tech/comment/facebook-poll-launches-secret-service-investigation/
Custom Web Design Chicago
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Google Launches Social Search
As promised at the Web 2.0 Summit last week, Google has introduced a new Google Labs experiement called Google Social Search, a way to find online content authored by friends and personal contacts using a Google Search.
To try it out, visit Google Labs and click the designated button to join the Social Search Experiment.
Google Social Search requires you to be signed in to your Google Account. It integrates blog posts and other online information authored by friends and associates into Google search results.
Google looks for people in your Gmail or Google Talk contacts lists, Google Reader articles, people linked to through your Google Profile -- from sites like Twitter and FriendFeed -- and people listed in Google Contacts. Then it includes posts and commentary written by these people, when appropriate and relevant, in your Google searches.
In a blog post explaining the new Social Search exeriment, Google technical lead Maureen Heymans and Google product manager Murali Viswanathan emphasize that this isn't some new form of privacy invasion. "All the information that appears as part of Google Social Search is published publicly on the Web -- you can find it without Social Search if you really want to," they said. "What we've done is surface that content together in one single place to make your results more relevant."
Google Social Search also provides a way to see only search results from one's social circle.
At the Web 2.0 Summit, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg said, "There is a very fundamental shift going on from the information Web to the social Web." It's a shift that Google has been participating in for several years, though perhaps not as effectively as the company might wish.
Google's commitment to social computing became evident in 2007, as Facebook and other social sites became popular.
Google has acquired companies with a social focus, like micro-blogging company Jaiku, video company Omniso, and mobile company Dodgeball. It has dabbled in social advertising through a deal with Italy's Dada.net. It has integrated social sharing features into services like Google Docs, Google Reader, and Google Books. It released the OpenSocial API and Social Graph API for integrating Social Network Features with Web sites. It has released social gadgets for its iGoogle home page.
Google launched Orkut, its own social network, in 2004, but the site, despite being quite popular in Brazil, has been overshadowed by Facebook and MySpace in the U.S.
In a separate but related announcement last week, Google said that it had reached a deal with Twitter to index tweets and make them available in searches to improve the availability of real-time information.
Source:
http://www.techweb.com/article/showArticle?articleID=220900747§ion=news
Chicago Web Design
To try it out, visit Google Labs and click the designated button to join the Social Search Experiment.
Google Social Search requires you to be signed in to your Google Account. It integrates blog posts and other online information authored by friends and associates into Google search results.
Google looks for people in your Gmail or Google Talk contacts lists, Google Reader articles, people linked to through your Google Profile -- from sites like Twitter and FriendFeed -- and people listed in Google Contacts. Then it includes posts and commentary written by these people, when appropriate and relevant, in your Google searches.
In a blog post explaining the new Social Search exeriment, Google technical lead Maureen Heymans and Google product manager Murali Viswanathan emphasize that this isn't some new form of privacy invasion. "All the information that appears as part of Google Social Search is published publicly on the Web -- you can find it without Social Search if you really want to," they said. "What we've done is surface that content together in one single place to make your results more relevant."
Google Social Search also provides a way to see only search results from one's social circle.
At the Web 2.0 Summit, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg said, "There is a very fundamental shift going on from the information Web to the social Web." It's a shift that Google has been participating in for several years, though perhaps not as effectively as the company might wish.
Google's commitment to social computing became evident in 2007, as Facebook and other social sites became popular.
Google has acquired companies with a social focus, like micro-blogging company Jaiku, video company Omniso, and mobile company Dodgeball. It has dabbled in social advertising through a deal with Italy's Dada.net. It has integrated social sharing features into services like Google Docs, Google Reader, and Google Books. It released the OpenSocial API and Social Graph API for integrating Social Network Features with Web sites. It has released social gadgets for its iGoogle home page.
Google launched Orkut, its own social network, in 2004, but the site, despite being quite popular in Brazil, has been overshadowed by Facebook and MySpace in the U.S.
In a separate but related announcement last week, Google said that it had reached a deal with Twitter to index tweets and make them available in searches to improve the availability of real-time information.
Source:
http://www.techweb.com/article/showArticle?articleID=220900747§ion=news
Chicago Web Design
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)