Posted on July 3rd, 2009 by aribadler
If you’re looking for a good scare, don’t bother going to the bookstore for a Stephen King novel — just start checking around for safety messages prepared by IT security specialists. Within minutes, you’ll be disconnecting your computer from all cables and wireless devices that might bring you into contact with the outside world.
Here are some examples of warnings prepared in the name of safety and security. Make sure you don’t read this with the lights off!
- Think about how a social networking site works; some allow anyone and everyone to view postings.
- Be wary of visiting the blog or web page…
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Posted on July 2nd, 2009 by Jeff Louis
It doesn’t require much imagination to surmise that Microsoft probably employs some of the world’s biggest brains. Although Microsoft is known for its PCs, the Seattle-based company provides the computing strength that runs universities, businesses, governments, and other “unknown” entities.
The amount of human and digital brain matters flying around those offices must be tremendous, and you’d think this would prevent Microsoft from missing the simple things picked up instantly by consumers. But it just doesn’t work that way.
Microsoft’s latest TV spot, promoting Internet Explorer 8 (IE8), centers on projectile vomiting. I, for one, am happy that Microsoft bought a ton of prime time…
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Posted on July 2nd, 2009 by aribadler
One of the most misunderstood and under-utilized parts of Facebook is the privacy settings. It’s no wonder people haven’t figured out how to share certain things with certain people and other things with everyone. Finding the privacy settings, navigating the myriad choices, and trying to decipher what the heck those choices mean have invariably been the part of Facebook that new users contact me about. It’s also one of the fear-mongering IT people’s greatest weapons when they try to scare everyone away from social networking sites.
Now, there is hope. According to an Associated Press article, Facebook plans to make the whole…
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Posted on July 1st, 2009 by Mike Stiles
When America needs to grind out a new smash singing sensation who will take the world by storm for at least six months, it comes up with a TV show called “American Idol.” It’s perfect. The show takes amateurs who are willing to perform for next to nothing because it’s a contest and the contestants are doing it to get discovered.
That’s what William Hung thought when he went to the audition. Instead of kicking into “She Bangs,” he probably should have entered a different, more recent contest.
Netflix has a system to suggest movies for customers based on their past picks,…
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Posted on June 30th, 2009 by Jon Leung
Back in March, when Facebook announced the departure of Chief Financial Officer Gideon Yu, the social network giant stated that it will be seeking a replacement “with public company experience.”
Facebook has hired a man that fits just that profile. The new CFO, David Ebersman, is a former 15-year veteran of Genentech. The bio-technology company was acquired by Roche for $46.8 billion earlier this year.
In a statement, Facebook spokesperson Larry Yu said:
David [Ebersman] worked at one of the most innovative and respected [companies] in the world, so he brings a lot to the table when it comes to our efforts to…
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Posted on June 30th, 2009 by Jeff Louis
So, there I was, following @U2Gigs on Twitter when the U2 crew (or someone in the corporation that has become U2) started tweeting the details of the songs that were being played at the dress rehearsal. No big deal on such a beautiful day, but in this case, it was the entire line-up of songs for the upcoming tour. Spoilers much?
In the long run, it probably doesn’t matter. Getting tickets will most likely be close to impossible. In retrospect, maybe it’s a good thing. I now have the song list, which is kind of like being there. Now all I have to…
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Posted on June 29th, 2009 by aribadler
Sometimes, being the first one on the scene with a cool new idea is great — you establish a way of doing something and then others try to play catch up from that point forward. Two examples: LinkedIn and Twitter.
LinkedIn has been around for a while now and growing exponentially in the business world as a way to connect with colleagues and with the colleagues of colleagues. It’s added to its functionality and now offers a vast array of capabilities that I’ve yet to really tap into. I’ve used recommendations and I’ve tried a few surveys. Still, I’ve never really felt…
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Posted on June 29th, 2009 by Jon Leung
The Pirate Bay team is expected to enter the video streaming arena to compete with the likes of YouTube and Hulu. The new site, named Video Bay, will open up to the public within five years.
The differentiation of Video Bay is that it offers unique video-sharing capabilities so that users won’t have to worry about certain video clips being taken offline due to copyright violations. The background regarding the technology has not yet been publicized.
The Pirate Bay, one of the largest of its kind, is a website that indexes and tracks BitTorrent files. The website has recently been involved in various…
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Posted on June 29th, 2009 by Mike Stiles
I get the feeling it won’t be very long before they change the Miranda rights to say “you have the right to remain silent. Anything you tweet can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
It used to be you just had to be really careful with what you posted, messaged and texted for personal reasons. It could get you in a bad breakup, or into a relationship you didn’t want, or signed up in the Marines.
But what if something you write gets you fined thousands of dollars? Or thrown in jail? This freedom of speech thing…
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Posted on June 26th, 2009 by Jeff Louis
Savvy clients usually require their media buying arm or vendors to provide notification of when and where the clients’ ads will run. Television stations and cable systems have the ability to provide rather exact spot times such as date, time, program, pod (if you require it) and will do their best to keep competitive spots from running back-to-back. Radio is not as exact, but within a 15-minute window.
Print positions are usually negotiated, or placed near content. Manly ads near manly articles, etc.
The outdoor (Out-of-Home) process is a no-brainer. Find location. Determine traffic count. Choose. Negotiate. Buy.
Advertisers and clients should be…
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