Google and GPS Tracking
August 13, 2018
You will want to chase down the full text of “Google Tracks Your Movements, Like It or Not.” I read the AP story in Chron. Note that I try not to quote from AP stories because I have zero desire to get involved in a fair use hassle with a large entity like the AP.
The main point of the story, which I assume is accurate, is that Google tracks where its customers go. The location data functions of a mobile phone provide the stream of data. The story asserts that Google collects these data even if the user has made changes to the default settings in the mobile device to disable tracking.
My understanding of the news report is that Google says a user can disable tracking. The AP story asserts that Google is not telling the truth. Thus, the AP asserts, Google possess location data on more than one billion users.
The AP story reports that Google says it is following the white lines set forth in its configuration tools exposed to the user.
Beyond Search finds the assertions interesting. The sources cited in the article include a university researcher from Yale and a graduate student at University of California-Berkeley.
Geolocation functions are “baked in” to most mobile devices. Numerous companies make use of these data. Some companies assert that they can derive location data by cross correlating a range of user generated data inputs. Microsoft invested in Hyas, a firm which allegedly has such capabilities. Our research suggests that Amazon has a similar capability for certain customer applications as part of its streaming data marketplace platform.
Many mobile devices make it possible to obtain location data even when the device is turned off and software settings are configured to disable location information. Specialist firms can disable the GPS circuitry to create “dark phones.” One rumored device with these capabilities is produced in the Middle East. If one has a mobile with a removable battery, the device goes “dead” when power is cut off. Also, Faraday bags make it difficult for monitoring and receiving devices to capture a mobile device’s location. (One option is the Blackout Faraday Shield, and there are bags which cost as little as US$10.)
Net net: The AP story seems to be more about Google doing something in an underhanded way than about GPS data widely used by law enforcement and intelligence professionals.
Beyond Search thinks the story would be more interesting if workarounds like the Faraday bag option were explained. Informed consumers can easily protect their location if and when desired. The singular focus on Google is less useful than a broader, more informed look at GPS usage.
When you read the original AP full text story, you can decide if the write up has an anti Google bias. In Harrod’s Creek, use of GPS data is routine. Google is continuing its personalization methods which have been part of the firm’s systems and methods for many years.
Finding fault with successful online companies may be the new blood sport for traditional news and publishing enterprises anchor4ed in the world of print.
Stephen E Arnold, August 12, 2018
Code Search Capability Offers New Options
August 13, 2018
The days of sifting through code like a panhandler looking for a sparkly gold nugget are over. Innovative technologies and groundbreaking partnerships are making the infinite numbers of binary code just as searchable as any word combo in Google. One such pairing recently came across our desk in a blog post from Elastic, “Welcome Insight.io to the Elastic Team.”
According to the report:
”Code search capability also aligns with our vision for solutions-based offerings: by using and combining components of the Elastic Stack in a very precise way, we can deliver focused and intuitive experiences that solve specific pain points, with little to no overhead for the user. This enables delightful user experiences right out-of-the-box, with the initial hurdles and optimizations already taken care of.”
These two will make for a powerful partnership thanks to code search, but they are far from the only ballgame in town. In fact, some familiar names are popping up in this realm, including Bing, who has been dying for an angle to beat out Google for years. Jumping into code search early might just be that niche, which would be a shocking turnabout for the red headed step child of search. Worth a watch.
Patrick Roland, August 13, 2018
Elsevier and German Academics At Odds
August 13, 2018
A post shared by the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK) reports, “DEAL and Elsevier Negotiations: Elsevier Demands Unacceptable for the Academic Community.” The DEAL project has been an effort to enact licensing agreements between Elsevier and institutions throughout Germany for all e-journals put out by major academic publishers in 2017. The HRK is an association of German universities, so its members are vested in the outcome here. However, once again it looks as though Elsevier is not playing nice, demanding concessions that would defeat the original purpose. DEAL’s spokesperson Horst Hippler stated:
“As far as we’re concerned, the aim of the ongoing negotiations with the three biggest academic publishers is to develop a future-oriented model for the publishing and reading of scientific literature. What we want is to bring an end to the pricing trend for academic journals that has the potential to prove disastrous for libraries as it stands. We are also working to promote open access, with a view to essentially making the results of publicly funded research freely accessible. The publishers should play a crucial role in achieving this. We have our sights set on a sustainable publish and read model, which means fair payment for publication and unrestricted availability for readers afterwards. Elsevier, however, is still not willing to offer a deal in the form of a nationwide agreement in Germany that responds to the needs of the academic community in line with the principles of open access and that is financially sustainable.”
This disappointing result follows months of negotiations. Academics have been making their displeasure with Elsevier known, with about 200 scientific institutions purposely letting their licensing agreements expire and several prominent researchers resigning their Elsevier-related editorships. Now DEAL is playing defense, taking “necessary precautions” should Elsevier cut access to those organizations that let their licenses lapse. What those precautions entail is not specified.
Cynthia Murrell, August 13, 2018
Internet Platforms Are Something New. But What Does “New” Mean?
August 12, 2018
“New” is an interesting concept. A new car suggests a vehicle that emits the mix of polyvinyls, warm electronics, and snake oil. “New” in a camp in Yemen means a T shirt abandoned by a person and claimed by another. “New” in a temple in Kyoto means repairs made a century ago.
But I learned in “Platforms Are Not Publishers”:
Google, Facebook, Twitter, and the internet are not media. They are something new we do not yet fully understand.
Would it be helpful to have the context and intended connotation of “new” defined?
Nah, after the Internet revolution, everyone knows the meaning of the word.
The problems generated when flows of data rip across the digital landscape is that these bits and bytes erode. The impact is more rapid but less easy to detect than the impact of a flash flood gushing through the streets of a Rio hillside slum.
The notion that commercial enterprises are the context. The platforms emerged from the characteristics of digital technology; that is, concentration, velocity, disintermediation, etc.
The large platforms are like beavers. Put a beaver in the observation deck of the Chrysler Building in Manhattan and the beavers are going to do what beavers do. They may die, but their beaverness makes them behave in a way that to some degree is predictable.
I like the idea that individuals in the “media”—another term which warrants defining—have to shoulder some of the blame. Better hurry. I am no longer sure how long the real media and the real journalists will survive.
Their future will be finding a way to exploit the digital flows.
In short, Internet platforms today are not much different from the BRS, DataStar, Dialog, and Lexis type systems before the Internet.
What’s different is the scope, scale, and speed of today’s digital flows. In the context of the information environment (what I continue to call the datasphere) is unchanged.
The problem is that today’s digital experts have a limited perception of “new” and the context of online systems and services.
In short, too late folks. Russia, Turkey, Iran, and other countries have figured out that the shortest distance between A and B is censorship.
Censorship is now a content fashion trend. That’s “new” as in governments are punching the “off” button. The action may be futile, but it is a reminder that old school methods may deliver because responsible commercial organizations ignore what may be their “duty.” Publishing? What’s that?
Stephen E Arnold, August 12, 2018
Wake Up Time: IBM Watson and Real Journalists
August 11, 2018
I read “IBM Has a Watson Dilemma.” I am not sure the word “dilemma” embraces the mindless hyperbole about Vivisimo, home brew code, and open source search technology. The WSJ ran the Watson ads which presented this Lego collection of code parts one with a happy face. You can check out the Watson Dilemma in your dead tree edition of the WSJ on page B1 or pay for online access to the story at www.wsj.com.
The needle point of the story is that IBM Watson’s push to cure cancer ran into the mushy wall composed of cancerous cells. In short, the system did not deliver. In fact, the system created some exciting moments for those trying to handcraft rules to make Dr. Watson work like the TV show and its post production procedures. Why not put patients in jeopardy? That sounds like a great idea. Put experts in a room, write rules, gather training data, and keep it update. No problem, or so the received wisdom chants.
The WSJ reports in a “real” news way:
…Watson’s recommendations can be wrong.
Yep, hitting 85 percent accuracy may be wide of the mark for some cognitive applications.
From a practical standpoint, numerical recipes can perform some tasks to spin money. Google ads work this magic without too much human fiddling. (No, I won’t say how much is “too much.”)
But IBM believed librarians, uninformed consultants who get their expertise via a Gerson Lehrman phone session, and from search engine optimization wizards. IBM management did not look at what search centric systems can deliver in terms of revenue.
Over the last 10 years, I have pointed out case examples of spectacular search flops. Yet somehow IBM was going to be different.
Sorry, search is more difficult to convert to sustainable revenues than many people believe. I wonder if those firms which have pumped significant dollars into the next best things in information access look at the Watson case and ask themselves, “Do you think we will get our money back?”
My hunch is that the answer is, “No.”
For me, I will stick to humanoid doctors. Asking Watson for advice is not something I want to do.
But if you have cancer, why not give IBM Watson a whirl. Let me know how that works out.
Stephen E Arnold, August 11, 2018
Google and Really, Like Cool Expert Search
August 10, 2018
To say I was surprised by Google’s celebrity search comes close to the truth. I am not sure. I think I will ask a celebrity if I were surprised or just anchored in the past. Don’t know about the really, like cool approach to getting information online? Navigate to “ Google’s New Celebrity Video App Is Basically AMA for Search.” I learned:
…The search giant [that would be China bound Google, of course] released a new app called Cameos, which lets celebs record vertical full-screen video answers to commonly searched-for questions about them.
Public figures include athletes, pop stars, and (I assume) technical superstars like Messrs. Brin and Page.
The celebrities can choose what questions to answer, record those answers, and make them available to a person who asks a question about the global Gan-Gross-Prasad conjecture. Tough luck if a movie star does not know the answer. I mean like who cares? Google can have Wei Zhang record an answer for the users of this new service.
From my point of view, I would like to enter a Boolean query with date limiters and get a results list with the “Date last indexed” displayed. I would like to have access to urls for PDFs. I would like, in short, to have a search system which returned sort of relevant results.
I assume I can ask Taylor Swift type people to help me out here. Celebrity is expertise it seems.
Stephen E Arnold, August 10, 2018
IBM Embraces Blockchain. Watson Watches
August 10, 2018
IBM recently announced the creation of LedgerConnect, a Blockchain powered banking service. This is an interesting move for a company that previously seemed to waver on whether it wanted to associate with this technology most famous for its links to cryptocurrency. However, the pairing actually makes sense, as we discovered in a recent IT Pro Portal story, “IBM Reveals Support Blockchain App Store.”
According to an IBM official:
“On LedgerConnect financial institutions will be able to access services in areas such as, but not limited to, know your customer processes, sanctions screening, collateral management, derivatives post-trade processing and reconciliation and market data. By hosting these services on a single, enterprise-grade network, organizations can focus on business objectives rather than application development, enabling them to realize operational efficiencies and cost savings across asset classes.”
This, in addition, to recent news that some of the biggest banks on the planet are already using Blockchain for a variety of needs. This includes the story that the Agricultural Bank of China has started issuing large loans using the technology. In fact, out of the 26 publicly owned banks in China, nearly half are using Blockchain. IBM looks conservative when you think of it like that, which is just where IBM likes to be. Watson, we believe, is watching, able to answer questions about the database du jour.
Patrick Roland, August 10, 2018
Elastic Teams With Startup Insight.io for Semantic Search
August 10, 2018
We’ve learned that a Search company we’ve been following with some interest, Elastic, is pairing with a Palo Alto-based startup to develop and integrate semantic search tools. Computer Weekly shares some details in, “Elastic Puts ‘Semantic Code Search’ Into Stack With Insight.io.” Writer Adrian Bridgwater tells us:
“Known for its Elasticsearch and Elastic Stack products, Elastic insists that Insight.io’s technology is ‘highly complementary’ to other Elastic use cases and solutions—indeed, Insight.io is built on the Elastic Stack. Insight.io provides an interface to search and navigate the source code that is said to ‘go beyond’ simple free text search. Current programming language support includes C/C++, Java, Scala, Ruby, Python, and PHP. This ‘beyond text search’ function gives developers the ability to search for code pertaining to specific application functionality and dependencies. Essentially it provides IDE-like code intelligence features such as cross-reference, class hierarchy and semantic understanding. The impact of such functionality should stretch beyond exploratory question-and-answer utility, for example, enabling more efficient onboarding for new team members and reducing duplication of work for existing teams as they scale.”
According to Elastic’s CEO, integration of the technology will be familiar to anyone who observed how they did it with past acquisitions, like Opbeat and Prelert. We’re also assured that all of Insight.io’s workers are being welcomed into Elastic’s development fold. Bridgwater notes that, with the startup’s Beiging-based engineering team, Elastic now has its first “formal” dev team located in China. Founded in 2012, Elastic is now based in Mountain View, California.
Cynthia Murrell, August 10, 2018
Applique Logic: Alex Jones and Turbo Charging Magnetism
August 9, 2018
I am not sure I have read an Alex Jones’ essay or watched an Alex Jones’ video. In fact, he was one of the individuals of whom I was aware, but he was not on my knowledge radar. Now he is difficult to ignore.
Today’s New York Times corrected my knowledge gap. I noted in my dead tree edition today (August 9, 2018) these stories:
- Facebook’s Worst Demons Have Come Home to Roost, page B1
- Infowars App Is Trending As Platforms Ban Content, B6
- The Internet Trolls Have Won. Get Used to It, B7
I want to mention “Rules Won’t Save Twitter. Values Will” at this online location.
From my vantage point in rural Kentucky, each of the writes up contributes to the logic quilt for censoring the real Alex Jones.
Taken together, the information in the write ups provide a helpful example of what I call “appliqué logic.”
Applique means, according to Google which helpfully points to Wikipedia, another information source which may be questionable to some, is:
Appliqué is ornamental needlework in which pieces of fabric in different shapes and patterns are sewn or stuck onto a larger piece to form a picture or pattern. It it commonly used as decoration, especially on garments. The technique is accomplished either by hand or machine. Appliqué is commonly practiced with textiles, but the term may be applied to similar techniques used on different materials.
Applique logic is reasoning stuck on to something else. In this case, the “something else” are the online monopolies which control access to certain types of information.
The logic is that the monopolies are technology, which is assumed to be neutral. I won’t drag you through my Eagleton Award lecture from a quarter century ago to remind you that the assumption may not be correct.
The way to fix challenges like “Alex Jones” is to stick a solution on the monopoly. This is similar to customizing a vehicle like this one:
Notice how the school bus (a mundane vehicle) has been enhanced with what are appliqués. The result does not change the functioning of the school bus, but it now has some sizzle. I suppose the appliqué logician could write a paper and submit the essay to an open access publisher to explain the needed improvements the horns add.
With the oddly synchronized actions against the Alex Jones content, we have the equivalent of a group of automobile customizers finding ways to “enhance” their system.
The result is to convert what no one notices into something that would make a Silicon Valley PR person delighted to promote. I assume that a presentation at a zippy new conference would be easy for the appliqué team to book.
The apparent censorship of Alex Jones is now drawing a crowd. Here I am in Harrods Creek writing about a person to whom I previously directed zero attention. The New York Times coverage is doing a better job than I could with a single write up in a personal blog. In the land of “free speech” the Alex Jones affair may become an Amazon Prime or Netflix original program. Maybe a movie is in the works?
Back to appliqué logic. When it comes to digital content, sticking on a solution may not have the desired outcome. The sticker wants one thing. The stickee is motivated to solve the problem; for example, the earthquake watcher Dutch Sinse has jumped from YouTube to Twitch to avoid censorship. He offered an explanation about this action and referenced the Washington Post. I don’t follow Dutch Sinse so I don’t know what he is referencing, and I don’t care to be honest.
But the more interesting outcome of these Alex Jones related actions is that the appliqué logic has to embrace the “stickoids.” These are the people who now have a rallying point. My hunch is that whatever information Alex Jones provides, he is in a position to ride a pretty frisky pony at least for a a moment in Internet time.
Why won’t appliqué logic work when trying to address the challenges companies like Facebook, Google, et al face?
- Stick ons increase complexity. Complexity creates security issues which, until it is too late, remain unknown
- Alex Jones type actions rally the troops. I am not a troop, but here I am writing about this individual. Imagine the motivation for those who care about Mr. Jones’ messages
- Opportunities for misinformation, disinformation, and reformation multiply. In short, the filtering and other appliqué solutions will increase computational cost, legal costs, and administrative costs. Facebook and Google type companies are not keen on increased costs in my opinion.
- Alex Jones type actions attack legal eagles.
What’s the fix? There is a spectrum of options available. On one end, believe that the experts running the monopolies will do the right thing. Hope is useful, maybe even in this case. At the other end, the Putin approach may be needed. Censorship, fines, jail time, and more extreme measures if the online systems don’t snap a crisp salute.
Applique solutions are what’s available. I await the final creation. I assume there will be something more eye catching than green paint, white flame decoration, and (I don’t want to forget) the big green horns.
For Alex Jones, censorship may have turbocharged his messaging capability. What can one stick on him now? What will the stickoids do? Protest marches, Dark Web collections of his content, encrypted chat among fans?
I know one thing: Pundits and real journalists will come up with more appliqué fixes. Easy, fast, and cheap. Reasoning from the aisles of Hobby Lobby or Michael’s is better than other types of analytic thought.
Stephen E Arnold, August 9, 2018
Europe Creates a Potential Target for Bad Actors
August 9, 2018
The goal, most agree, is to keep sensitive information out of the hands of hackers and crooks, right? European officials might be planning to fly directly in the face of that logic, after we read a recent article in The Register, “Think Tank Calls for Post-Brexit National ID Cards: The Kids Have Phones, So What’s The Difference?”
Things got dicey here:
“The government intends to assign EU citizens unique numbers based on either a passport or national ID card number…he system will be accessed via GOV.UK or a smartphone app, and the report praised the security and privacy credentials promised for the database of citizen numbers…The data will be kept on Home Office servers in a tier 3 data centre, with individual pieces of information stored and encrypted separately.”
So, let’s get this straight? All of Europe will have its personal information on file in one location and they are just publicly telling the bad guys where to find it? What could go wrong? Google seems to be rolling out a program to warn governments when they are being hacked, which makes Google more “useful” to certain authorities.
But bad actors gravitate to data collections which have significant value. The ID card repository may become a high profile target.
Patrick Roland, August 9, 2018
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