Restricted space

Restricted space published on No Comments on Restricted space

Once again, facebook is in the news and on the blogs, because of recent changes they have made.

The change getting the attention this time  around, is the “Gestures” feature that facebook has implemented.
Facebook wants you to believe that they are making sharing easier by automatically sharing what you’re doing on Facebook-connected apps.This auto-sharing functionality is called “Gestures.”

From now on, when you add an app,you will choose “Add to Timeline” and that app will have permission to share your activity to facebook. Instead of having to “Like” something to share it, it will just do it for you every time you interact with it.
You give permission to the app ONLY ONCE EVER, and it handles the rest.

For example, the apps could be sharing news articles you read, game scores and achievments, videos you watch, music you are listening to,etc.

This sounds great, but it does raise some concerns. Users are likely to forget they have given permissions to share, and then suddenly those articles you read about the latest movies star’s leaked sex-tape is posted on your wall for everyone to see.

All of this is really part of Mark Zuckerberg’s Open Graph API. They need to have open access to data to achieve the ultimate plan.?

So what is that plan?  Put very simply, Mark wants facebook to BE the internet.
He wants everything  you do, say, listen to,read or watch, to be somehow done via facebook.
And they way things are going now at present, it seems feasible.

Yet, this all seems so familiar…
A global monitoring of all the things we do by a private corporation? You may be thinking “Hey, wasn’t that the basic premise of “1984” by George Orwell?
Yeah, probably. But I was thinking about Google…

 

 

Space Hug

Space Hug published on No Comments on Space Hug

A hug can be the best motivational tool ever.

In this modern world, where connectivity options are more abundant than they have ever been before, it amazes me how alone we can still become.
People can actually became more isolated from society by utilising social networking, blogging tools and mobile communication apps.

I fear that Sci-Fi may actually be correctly predicting a future in which humanity operates and interacts totally via virtual, computer enhanced means. An environment where Virtual Reality is the only reality we know.
(think eXistenZ, The Matrix or MindWarp)

To combat this is a very simple thing – We just need to keep up human contact and not be so scared of it.

Yes, it is true these days that you need verbal and written permission, 3 forms of ID and an officially approved government licence to Hug a stranger, but so what?

Give it a go.
Hug someone and see what happens.
If nothing else, you and the other person will not be alone for a moment.