Technology – Page 7 – The Daily Opinion

Google Intentionally Collected Private Information From Street View Cars

It seems that Google has again forgotten its own mantra of “Don’t be Evil”, as the search giant has once again found itself in hot water, this time after using unprotected Wi-Fi networks to collect such private data as text messages, emails and names.

A Federal Communications Commission (FCC) report shows that Google knew Street View cars were collecting myriad personal information over two years, despite Google’s claims that it was an accident. The FCC report shows that Street View’s coding engineer not only knew the software could collect “payload data”, but told two colleagues – one of whom was a senior manager – that he had deliberately designed it to do so. However, despite the admission from the engineer, the FCC is still debating whether or not other Street View engineers knew of the collection – although the coding engineer produced a report to the team in 2006 in which he explained payload data would be collected, the team’s defence is that they didn’t read it and thus were entirely ignorant of what was going on, and Google has staunchly stuck to its line that the data collection was “inadvertent”.

The FCC report explains that: “For more than two years, Google’s Street View cars collected names, addresses, telephone numbers, URLs, passwords, email, text messages, medical records, video and audio files, and other information from internet users in the United States.” The FCC is also claiming that Google deliberately withheld the email in which the coding engineer discussed data collection with a senior manager, and has ordered Google to pay a $25,000 fine for obstructing the investigation by not releasing such information.

The report goes on to say that “Google’s supervision of the Wi-Fi data collection project was minimal … indeed, it appears that no one at the company carefully reviewed the substance of Engineer Doe’s software code or the design document.”

Aside from censoring the names of Google employees, the search giant has released the report in full, with a spokesman saying that: “We decided to voluntarily make the entire document available except for the names of individuals. While we disagree with some of the statements made in the document, we agree with the FCC’s conclusion that we did not break the law. We hope that we can now put this matter behind us.”

While the FCC has said Google didn’t break any laws, and Google wants to move on, such privacy advocacy groups as Electronic Privacy Information Center are demanding further investigation. EPIC’s executive director Marc Rotenberg has said that “Google’s rogue engineer scenario collapses in light of the fact that others were aware of the project and did not object.”

It cannot be proven conclusively one way or the other that Google as an entity did or didn’t know about the data collection, but it doesn’t bode well either way for the company – can users trust a company that either collects their personal data willingly, or one that doesn’t know what its own products and services are doing?

A Look at BlackBerry 10

With RIM in dire straits but insisting on forging ahead with its own operating system, BlackBerry 10 has been anticipated for some time, and has now had its first public showing.

So what’s new? From a design perspective, it seems that RIM has pretty much had a look at what’s on the market and made a conglomeration of other operating systems. The grid of widgets (seen below) looks remarkably like Nokia’s MeeGo on the N9 and also Windows Phone, while the notification bar and icons along the bottom look intriguingly like Nokia Belle, its latest update to the Symbian platform (both MeeGo and Belle are also shown below for comparison).

BB10 — The grid looks strikingly similar to MeeGo, while the notification and shortcut bars look very similar to Nokia Belle

n9_multitasking — Nokia N9 running MeeGo

While mentioning comparisons with Nokia, it also has to be noted that the hardware showcased for BB10 had no front-facing buttons, much like the N900 and N9. The PlayBook also lacked buttons on the screen, and it’s good to see this approach to phones continuing.

One of the things shown off at BlackBerry World was BB 10’s “flow”. Unlike the approach of Apple, Microsoft and Google, BB 10 does not pause apps or hang them in a suspended state, but rather leaves them running in real time just as they were on the PlayBook. Without a physical button to bring up the multitasking panel (which is used in iOS, Windows Phone, Symbian and Android), BB 10 implements it by having the user hold their finger down and then slide to the right to see the last few apps that were used.

The benefit to a real-time multitasking ability of course is the opportunity to carry out tasks without missing a beat. Whether you’re composing an email or waiting for a video to load, you can do something else and then go back to it without any lag or needing to start from scratch, just like working on a computer. CEO Thorston Heins said that “Everything you have going on keeps running real time in the background. No other platform can do this.” This isn’t entirely true, however. It could be argued that BB 10 will be the only mainstream OS to offer it, but Heins can’t erase from history the fact that Maemo 5 and MeeGo both did and do offer exactly the same thing, and Symbian, one of the largest operating systems in the world, also offers it. So while it’s a very welcome feature indeed, Heins shouldn’t adopt the Steve Jobs path of claiming everything he did was invented by his company.

Another feature showed off was the new keyboard, which is a departure from BlackBerry’s signature physical QWERTY. While it doesn’t look like anything special, it is apparently a smart keyboard by customising itself to how you use it, recommending words it thinks you are most likely to want to use.

Another neat feature introduced was camera rewind, which basically lets you zoom in to a picture and rewind it in time. This means that the user can fix closed eyes or something else ruining a photo.

So how will it fare? BlackBerry 10 looks promising, bringing the software up to par in some cases, and exceeding the competition in others. While it’s a stretch to say that RIM is the only company to have software that lets users multitask in real time, and the design looks more than a little inspired by Nokia’s offerings, it’s encouraging to see a company stand up and continue that trend, acknowledging that with phones being used increasingly like computers, they should act like it too.

The Art of Losing

I don’t want this to sound like one of those ‘I remember when it was all fields round here’ rants, but I do think our modern society is in danger of losing something precious. There’s nothing wrong with the digital world in itself. There’s nothing wrong with a virtual world for entertainment, escapism or even education. The trouble for me is when it starts to dominate every aspect of life. We are losing the tangible world. Yes, that smelly, dusty, world of touching things. We take our five senses for granted and they don’t have as much fun these days.

Take down a book from a shelf in an old second hand bookshop and open a page. Ah, that glorious smell, equal to any rare orchid. Pull out a vinyl from its sleeve and listen to the click of the needle when you put it in the groove. Move characters round and roll the dice on a shiny new board game.

Ok, so we can store six trillion books or whatever on the Kindle and streaming music is easy and we can select the individual tracks we want and so on. We have gained. Of course we have. But we are losing something too. We have even seen the Borders and HMV chains crash. Almost three in four independent record stores have shut their doors over the previous decade. High streets up and down the land are in decline. They were already competing against out of town retail parks before the internet came along. However, certain independent bookshops and record shops still thrive, probably because they offer something different that the online transaction can’t replicate. Staff get to know their customers and it’s an opportunity for shared interests and experiences. Independent video stores will have to offer that same personal interaction to survive against the onslaught of DVDs by post and movies through streaming.

Now, I must declare my hypocrisy. I shop from Amazon. I buy from iTunes. Hell, I’ve even got my own eBook for sale. I’m just as much to blame for the closure of shops as anyone. I’m just as much to blame for our dislocation from reality. Kids growing up today are totally dependent on what they see on a screen. I’m not advocating some sepia-tinged vision of rosy-cheeked children playing with mud pies all day, but come on. If it isn’t on a screen, it doesn’t exist. Six year olds have mobile phones, their TV in the bedroom stops them from getting to sleep and they’re allowed to play their hand-held games at the dinner table. At the dinner table, don’t you know! Digital versions now exist for classic board games, such as Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit and Cluedo.

What warped sense of reality are we living in that we come home to a virtual fireplace displayed on the TV? Mmmm, feel the cosy warmth from those virtual flames. No time to look after a pet because you’re sitting in front of a computer all day? No sweat; just order a wall mounted virtual aquarium or adopt a virtual version of your pet of choice. Your online dog, cat or turtle is waiting for you to bond with it and have lots of virtual fun!

I see a future. Record shops, bookshops…in fact, any shops are a rarity, like quaint olden days museum pieces preserved for the ‘nerds’. The physical world is the domain of social anthropologists. We don’t touch anything. We don’t have to. We don’t even need keyboards anymore; we just talk to our computers and phones and all our devices to get them to work. We work with our screens, socialise with our screens, shop with our screens and play with our screens. In the comfort of our homes, we virtually warm ourselves in front of our virtual fire and we express our sentimental side by seeing to the needs of our virtual pets. Perhaps we’ll have a virtual partner. We can turn him / her off if they annoy us.

I am in the last bookshop on Earth and I’m clutching the very last copy of a first edition David Copperfield by Charles Dickens. I can smell that heavenly, musty smell. I can feel the pages that a craftsman lovingly put together. I read the words of the world’s greatest storyteller as he intended the words to be read. But the book turns into an electronic reader and it feels cold and hard in my hands. The weight of lost bookshops and libraries weighs heavily on me and I sink to my knees. Later that day, I relax in the comfort of my living room and turn on my wall display. Selecting from the menu, I tell the device to display the virtual bookshop.

Alas, it will come to pass. We can’t put the genie back in the lamp. The American poet, Elizabeth Bishop, wrote, “the art of losing isn’t hard to master”. Oh, yes. We do it so well.

The Sky is the Limit for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner was developed by Boeing Commercial Airplanes and seats between 210 and 290 passengers. Boeing claims that it is the company’s most fuel efficient plane.

The design of the Dreamliner sets it apart from other planes on the market. It features 50% composite materials, 20% aluminium materials, 15% titanium, 10% steel and 5% other materials. The wing and tail edges are made from aluminium whilst titanium is used on the engines.

Added efficiency is contributed with new electrical architecture instead of bleed air and hydraulic power sources. Using electrically powered compressors and pumps means the 787 eliminates pneumatics and hydraulics from engine starters and brakes.

A wing ice protection system has also been introduced. It uses electro-thermal heater mats on the wings instead of hot bleed air thus improving the quality of the aircraft during turbulence.

The Dreamliner is made up of around 32, 000 kg of carbon fibre reinforced plastic which is made with 23 tons of carbon fibre. Carbon fibre has an increased strength-to-weight ratio than materials that are used on traditional aircrafts. This in turn helps make the 787 a much lighter aircraft.

The interior is something that Boeing is proud of. They have tried to ensure as much passenger comfort as possible, and have attempted to improve the experience for passengers. The interior cabin width is about 18 feet, which is 15 inches more than the cabin width of the Airbus A330 and A340.

The interior of the new Boeing Dreamliner 787

People with disabilities are also able to manoeuvere around the aircraft as new features designed by Boeing engineers allow these passengers to access parts of the aircraft easily. The centre wall of the on-board toilets can be adjusted so that the two toilets can become one that is accessible for wheelchair users.

First Class Boeing 787 Dreamliner airliner — First class in the Dreamliner

The cabin windows on the 787 also cover a larger surface area than other cabin windows on other aircrafts. Specialised auto-diming glass is used instead of window shades, which means glare is reduced but passengers are still able to take in the views without having to shut the outside world out. Instead of bulbs, the aircraft uses LEDs in three colours with a combination of 128 colours throughout.

Boeing 787 Dreamliner beds — Beds for the cabin crew

Adding to the comfort for its passengers, the 787 Dreamliner also boasts an internal cabin pressure to the equivalent of 6, 000 feet. This is provided by electrically driven compressors compared to the engine-bleed air used on traditional models which means the need to cool the air before it hits the cabin is eliminated.

A truly stunning aircraft, one that apparently flies very well and ensures the best possible comfort for its passengers.

Google Drive Doesn’t Respect Your Privacy

With DropBox, Apple’s iCloud and Microsoft’s SkyDrive, no one really expected it to be long before Google brought out its own cloud-storage offering – after all, Google does have a history of relentlessly hopping on the bandwagon. Quite why anyone will use Google Drive over the other options is something of a mystery though, for a few reasons. Firstly, at this point, the people who are using cloud services already have an account with one of the others, and Google Drive is unlikely to offer functionality that the others can’t. Secondly, it offers 5GB free storage, which is more than DropBox’s 2GB but far less than the huge 25GB Microsoft offers with SkyDrive. With a DropBox app on Android, even Google’s own customers won’t require a subscription to Google Drive – unless, of course, Google does what it did to Twitter in its search engine and drop it in favour of Google+ for real-time search updates. It’s unlikely though, as that would mean barring the DropBox apps, which could alienate users. Storage capacity and offerings aside, what’s most worrisome about the new service is it showcases that Google still hasn’t adjusted its opinion on owning its users’ content, as PC World has also reported. Below is an image displaying the privacy policy for DropBox, SkyDrive and Google Drive:

With Google up to its usual tricks, will its claim to your data put you off its service in favour of a more established service from a company that acknowledges your content is your content?

Do you need a Twitter-sitter?

It appears that some users on social networking site Twitter really do need somebody to watch over them whilst they tweet away. Recent stories in the media have shown at best a lack of common sense from users and at worst a basic lack of human respect for individuals; it’s probably more a mix of both.

With the recent revelations that users on Twitter revealed the name of a rape victim and then proceeded to abuse her over the social network, it means that either people aren’t thinking before they write online, or Twitter and other social networks have become a platform for the most vile people across the world. The victim had already obtained a court order that prevented her from being named, but that didn’t seem to matter to Twitter users. According to reports, the victim’s name was retweeted and tweeted so many times that it was trending over the weekend, meaning it was one of the most talked about things on Twitter at that time. It’s pretty sickening to be honest. I have never once thought of naming somebody on a social network like that, especially somebody who is a victim of such a heinous crime.

Not content with naming the victim, users then went on to abuse her and degrade her further. In my recent article about cyberbullying, this is exactly the type of example I referred to. These users hide behind their keyboard; they write these vile things and then watch when the media hype around the social network increases tenfold. These bullies aren’t school children. A lot of them are grown adults. Grown adults, who you’d think would know better. Clearly not. It’s obvious that instead of employing babysitters for their own children, they need to employ Twitter-sitters so they don’t overstep the mark when taking to the site to tweet their thoughts. Most of these thoughts aren’t even needed anyway.

What needs to be done? Well, obviously this problem won’t be resolved overnight, no problem can be. It’s important that the correct safeguards are put in place, because prosecuting every user who retweets or tweets something that is offensive and illegal would be a logistical nightmare. Ordinary people need to understand that just because they are writing online, they still have to stick to the same laws as in everyday life. The same rules and laws apply, even though it may be through a social network. It is all about basic human understanding, and the vast majority of us respect and abide by the law so why do some of the same users think they don’t have to when they are tweeting?

It’s not clear why these people tweeted or retweeted what they did over the weekend, but it is clear that the authorities and the government are determined to make examples out of them, and that’s a good thing. Whilst legislation is being drawn up and discussed by the government, I think it is important to shine a light on such cases of illegality on social networks, and to make examples of those users who commit offences so that other users can see real life consequences of what happens when something illegal is published on a social network.