Daily Bits

Facebook Groups to Give Us More Control?

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Facebook and its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, have been under a lot of fire for sucky privacy features.  Zuckerberg is quite excited about a new feature that they have released: Facebook Groups.  You might be asking, “Groups? Hasn’t this been around for a while?”

Well, they have a NEW feature called Groups that is different from whatever you think.  The important thing about this new application is that users can have more control over their privacy.  Think about it as  being able to put your friends into – literally – groups and then being able to choose what information you want to share with them.

The new Facebook Groups aims to mimic human behavior in real life. If you think about it, you actually categorize people in your life.  You have friends that you drink with, but you may not necessarily share private information with them.  You have friends that you run to when you have problems, and they probably know everything about you.  With this new Facebook feature, you can basically do the same thing online.  It will make selective disclosure of information (including photos, status messages, etc.) easier for Facebook users.

Despite the excitement of Mark Zuckerberg over Groups, critics are already making their  voices heard.  Larry Magrid, co-director of ConnectSafely.org, says:

“The only worry I have is that friends can add people to the group, so if you create a group and are in a group you have to be aware of not only who you add but who others add.  As long as you are aware of who is in the group it can be a great privacy tool. If it gets out of hand it could give you a sense of false security.”

Personally, I am neither excited nor skeptical about the development.  My rule of thumb: don’t put anything on Facebook that you don’t want others to see or know.  Simple enough, isn’t it?

Google Car Will Save Lives

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At least that’s what Google is claiming.  It seems that the software giant is not content with its current status – it now wants to dabble in the “real” world.  With its new software that is supposed to control cars, Google just might be able to do that.

They have recently announced their “super secret” project, which is artificial intelligence software, that will allow cars to drive themselves without the need for a human driver.  The idea behind the software is simple enough – the system scans the surroundings and adjusts the car’s behavior accordingly.  Needless to say, the implementation is probably hell.

If tests are to be believed, though, Google’s project works!  In their announcement, Google mentioned that they have tested the software on six Toyota Priuses and one Audi TT.  Their engineers have reportedly gone 140,000 miles in test drives, and so far, only one accident has been reported.  It is important to highlight that this accident was caused by a “normal” car driving into the back of a Google car. (So I guess that doesn’t count.)

The implications for motorists are tremendous!  What Google is claiming – that the system can save lives – just might be true! Speaking for myself, I know that I would finally be able to park a car without having to worry about hitting the other vehicles around me.  For those whose minds wander while driving, this development is also a boon!

Google spokesperson, Sebastian Thrun, is quick to say, however, that at the end of the day, it is still the driver that is responsible for everything.  Also, the system is not expected to be available to the general public till at least several years from now.  I think I can wait until then.  In the meantime, I shall rely on the driving skills and generosity of spirit of other people – oh, and the cab drivers as well.

Beware of Scareware!

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I’ve heard of malware, but scareware?  Apparently, scammers are now playing on the fears of Windows users – fear of viruses and other malware.  In order to make money, they dupe people into thinking that their system is suffering from a relentless malware attack, hence the term scareware.  As the scammers prey upon those fears, they prompt users to download security updates that can “keep users safe.”

Obviously, they will charge for these updates.  The problem is that, one, the threat is almost always fake; and two, the security updates are just as fake.  The user who falls for this trick will end up being at least $50 poorer, without having anything to show for it!

This tactic was exposed earlier this week by Parveen Vashishtha from Symantec.  In a blog post, he outlined the modus operandi of this new breed of scammers. The trick is in knowing that browsers DO NOT ask you to download security updates via malware threat warnings.  If you do see something like the image below, chances are you are the target of a scareware scam.

If you’re thinking that people who are dumb enough to fall for this trick deserve it, think again.  The truth of the matter is that the trick seems to work so well – even some experienced users fall for it.  In fact, the scareware business has already made more than $100 million, according to the FBI.  Don’t laugh just yet.

Your safest bet is NOT to click the download button, obviously.  Of course, you also ought to make sure that your OS, security software, and browser/s are updated on a regular basis.

Home Entertainment May Never Be the Same Again with WHDI

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When was the last time that you actually went to the movie theater to watch a film on the big screen?  I know a LOT of people (that includes me) who would rather watch movies at home.  For varying reasons, this option appeals to some, and quite understandably.  Movie theaters charge an arm and a leg these days, and going out to battle the traffic and the crowds is something that is totally depressing.  More so, with technological developments, watching a movie at home can actually rival the movie house experience.

With the pending release of Amimon’s WHDI dongle, I will not be surprised if the number of people opting to stay home to watch movies skyrocket.  The WHDI stick that is supposed to be released in 2011 (hopefully) is being touted as THE gadget that will revolutionize how we watch movies at home.  The basic idea is that you plug the dongle into any compatible device, and it will transmit your videos wirelessly to your kick-butt flat screen TV.

The device has an HDMI male port – so playback devices such as a camera, phone, or computer with an HDMI port will work – as well as a USB cable (for power).  So you plug this into your gadget that contains the video/movie you want to watch.  At the other end of the system, you need your high-def TV (duh) which should have a receiver.  The result?  Wireless video streaming with minimal lag.

Systems like this one are already in existence – why is there much excitement over the release of WHDI?

  1. Less than 1 ms of latency
  2. Ability to tolerate obstacles
  3. Ability to transmit 1080p/60-Hz video data

Can’t wait till 2011 now, can you?

Photo credit: Dong Ngo/CNET

Who’s Suing Whom?

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Lawsuits are so common these days that no one pays attention to them anymore. But, did you have an idea about the extent of pending lawsuits in the mobile industry? We hear about one company suing another for patent infringement all the time, but I doubt that we actually spend much time on thinking about these things.

Just recently, tech blogs and new sites exploded with reports on how Microsoft is suing Motorola over the latter’s line of Android phones. The lawsuit involves several cases of Motorola supposedly violating certain patents belonging to Microsoft. This is not the sole case, though. There are lots of others that have been on in this sector.

Here’s an interesting – amusing, actually – visual representation of what’s going on in that world, courtesy of The Guardian.

I don’t know about you, but one look at that, and I was exclaiming “What heck is wrong with these people?” I guess if it’s millions of money involved, then people take on a different perspective. In any case, the average consumer – you and I – will not have to worry about these lawsuits as they do tend to get settled. We just keep on going with our every day lives and buying whatever catches our fancy.

Turn Your iPod Touch into a Phone with Line2

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An iPod Touch is an iPhone without the phone. Yeah, I know – that explanation is crystal clear, isn’t it? But, you have to admit that it is what the iPod Touch is! It can do practically what the iPhone can do, except for the “real” phone line part. The best thing about the Touch is that it burns a much smaller hole in your pocket than its mobile phone counterpart!

For people who justify their iPhone purchase with the line “I need a real phone,” they might just have reason to regret burning so much cash on it. (I highly doubt that this will stop hardcore Apple fans, though.) So anyway, there’s this new app for iPod Touch which will turn the mp3 player into a full blown mobile phone.

For as little as $1, you can get the application called Line 2 and pretend that your iPod Touch is an iPhone use your iPod Touch as an iPhone. The app is developed by Toktumi and is actually an iPhone app but of course will work on the iPod Touch. Line2 is practically a duplicate of the calling interface of the iPhone, making the whole experience more realistic.

The original idea behind it is to provide a second line (hence the name, duh) for the iPhone, making some serious savings for the user. It works both via 3G and Wi-Fi – you can see the huge potential for this. As you are probably thinking now, Apple is not going to be very happy with Toktumi anytime soon. I bet users will be ecstatic though.