Add a Modicum or More of Value to Your Facebook Time with Detox
October 15, 2015
The article on Life Hacker titled Detox For Facebook Replaces Your Feed with Actual News begs the question: why search when you can graze like a millennial info ruminant? The idea of Detox is that Facebook wastes time. It is difficult to argue with that, especially as someone who has, on more than one occasion, closed a tab opened to Facebook only to be confronted with another tab, also open to Facebook, and perhaps even another. It is this mindless arena of continuous distraction. The article says,
“If you can relate, consider Detox: it replaces your Facebook feed with an actual news feed.
The browser extension is from previously mentioned news feed Panda. You simply download the extension, turn it on via Facebook, and it will replace your feed with content from sites available at Panda: Product Hunt, Hacker News, and Designer News to name a few. You can also use Detox’s “Auto Activation” and schedule specific days and times you want the extension to work.”
Perhaps you are someone immune to the onslaught of trite and meaningless status updates. But most of us are coping with a level of addiction that we really have no means of overcoming unless we “gasp” sign off entirely. If you aren’t quite ready for that, but hope to make your Facebook feed at least somewhat worth your perusal, this might be a nice compromise.
Chelsea Kerwin, October 15, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
The State Department Delves into Social Media
October 13, 2015
People and companies that want to increase a form of communication between people create social media platforms. Facebook was invented to take advantage of the digital real-time environment to keep people in contact and form a web of contacts. Twitter was founded for a more quick and instantaneous form of communication based on short one hundred forty character blurbs. Instagram shares pictures and Pinterest connects ideas via pictures and related topics. Using analytics, the social media companies and other organizations collect data on users and use that information to sell products and services as well as understanding the types of users on each platform.
Social media contains a variety of data that can benefit not only private companies, but the government agencies as well. According to GCN, the “State Starts Development On Social Media And Analytics Platform” to collaborate and contribute in real-time to schedule and publish across many social media platforms and it will also be mobile-enabled. The platform will also be used to track analytics on social media:
“For analytics, the system will analyze sentiment, track trending social media topics, aggregate location and demographic information, rank of top multimedia content, identify influencers on social media and produce automated and customizable reports.”
The platform will support twenty users and track thirty million mentions each year. The purpose behind the social media and analytics platform is still vague, but the federal government has proven to be behind in understanding and development of modern technology. This appears to be a step forward to upgrade itself, so it does not get left behind. But a social media platform that analyzes data should have been implemented years ago at the start of this big data phenomenon.
Whitney Grace, October 13, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Facebook on Top of App Sales
October 7, 2015
While Facebook is a common social media tool and it does not make headlines as much as it used to, except when it added the new GIF function and angers users by rearranging its options, it now has something even more exciting to shout about. Business Insider reported that, “Facebook’s WhatsApp Hits Another Major Milestone” with a messaging app that it bought back in 2014.
Facebook bought WhatsApp for $19 billion and since its purchase its growth has exploded. There are now nine hundred million active users and it could jump to one billion by the end of the year. Compared to its competitors Viber and WeChat, however, is not bringing in much profit. Zuckerberg has plans for WhatsApp and has asked his investors to be patience. He wants WhatsApp to be a “natural place for people to communicate with businesses.”
” ‘The long-term bet is that by enabling people to have good organic interactions with businesses, that will end up being a massive multiplier on the value of the monetization down the road, when we really work on that, and really focus on that in a bigger way,’ Zuckerberg said.”
Zuckerberg knows what he is doing. He is setting up a messenger platform that people trust, enjoy, and is popular. When you have access to nine hundred million active users and want to grow it to one billion, there are definitely plans to monetize it. We just have to wait.
Whitney Grace, October 7, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Share by from StoryCloud Reigns in Control of Online Content by Content Creator
October 1, 2015
The article titled Permission Based Publishing Lets Users Keep Control of Content on Beta News describes an innovative approach to allowing online content publishers a tighter grip on how their content is disbursed. StoryCloud, the permission-based publishing provider of Share By, explains the myriad potential uses for their platform, from teachers measuring a class’s understanding of the homework assignment to a musical group sharing a song with specific subscribers. The article explains how the platform functions,
“By using permission-based technology that is tightly integrated with social networking, analytics and ecommerce, Share By allows content providers to easily determine who sees their content, when, and from what location. Other permissions include duration, view or download limits and scheduling time periods for sharing and the devices that are permitted. Once content providers upload content to StoryCloud and determine permissions, they receive a unique URL which can be shared with any online audience, including Facebook and Twitter.”
Beyond the privacy and control aspects of Share By, there is also the ability to graphically analyze the content they have released online. For most individuals, this might just mean checking in on who really spent time consuming the content, but for companies it means monetization. They can charge per viewing and offer subscriptions without worrying about people getting the content without consent.
Chelsea Kerwin, October 01, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Reddit’s Extended Family
October 1, 2015
I have a problem. I have a Reddit addiction. My addiction is so bad that I once meant to spend five minutes on the news site, when I ended up spending five hours. To control my compulsions, I only allow myself to read the first hundred posts and if I have finished my work, the first two hundred. I am currently in the process to kick the Reddit habit, so I will be a more productive person. But then I came across this article on Chi-Nese: “20 Great Reddit Alternatives You Should Know.”
Just as I thought I did not have enough Web sites on my RSS feed, now I have these lovely alternatives. Here is the scoop:
“Reddit is the most popular social bookmarking site celebrating 10-year anniversary of existence nowadays. Reddit has accumulated over 16 billion up-votes, over 1 billion comments and over 190 million posts, which are – compared to other Reddit alternatives – enormous numbers. Despite the fact that Reddit is a website with a massive number of users and posts, below is a list of international Reddit alternatives that have great potential, and are definitely worth a try!”
Most of these Reddit alternatives are in a foreign language (not English), but some of ones to make the list are Hubski, PushedUp, Qetzl, Voat.co, and 3tags.
I am surprised that Fark did not make the list. Fark is the “original” Reddit, but it focuses on aggregating outlandish news content. There goes my productivity!
Whitney Grace, October 1, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Politwoops Window Now Blackened
September 17, 2015
Why is Twitter helping politician around the world cover their tracks? The Bangkok Post reports, “Website that Saves Politicians’ Deleted Tweets Suspended.” Founded by the Open State Foundation as tool for transparency, Politwoops had made an agreement with Twitter in 2012 to use its API to post tweets that politicians (or their advisors) thought better of in retrospect. While Twitter reasons that any of their users should be able to take back tweets, the Open Foundation director asserts that public statements by public officials should remain part of the public record. The article states:
“Since being formed at a so-called hackathon five years ago, the website that is a useful tool for journalists and a frequent source of embarrassment for politicians, has spread to 30 countries from Egypt to the Vatican, as well as the European Parliament. It started operating in the US in 2012 thanks to the Sunlight Foundation, which fights for transparency in politics. Diplotwoops which screens deleted messages by diplomats and embassies around the world was set up in 2014. Twitter was not immediately available for comment, but the Open Foundation said it was told the social media giant decided to suspend access to Politwoops ‘following thoughtful internal deliberation and close consideration of a number of factors that doesn’t distinguish between users.’”
Um, except that one user is not like another. The public has a vested interest in knowing where elected officials stand, and it is tough to search when the content is no longer available. I wonder just what prompted Twitter’s “thoughtful internal deliberation.”
Cynthia Murrell, September 17, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Search and Find Love but Maybe Not
September 13, 2015
My trusty alert service delivered me this search gem: “13 Apps 17 Dates 30 Days: I Tried 13 Dating Apps in 30 Days in Search of Love.” Shadows of Ashley Madison could not obscure this clickable topic.
Here’s what I learned:
- There are sites with interesting names with which I was not familiar. Here are two examples Jack’D and Scruff.
- Dating apps can be used to deliver ads. Love for someone I assume.
- Finding love takes “time and energy.” Yep, just like my notions for information access.
- Some love search apps ask users to involve their Twitter followers. Now that’s a great idea for some folks.
Main point of the write up: Love apps don’t work. Wow, revelation.
Stephen E Arnold, September 13, 2015
A Fun Japanese Elasticsearch Promotion Video
September 10, 2015
Elasticsearch is one of the top open source search engines and is employed by many companies including Netflix, Wikipedia, GitHub, and Facebook. Elasticsearch wants to get a foothold into the Japanese technology market. We can assume, because Japan is one of the world’s top producers of advanced technology and has a huge consumer base. Once a technology is adopted in Japan, you can bet that it will have an even bigger adoption rate.
The company has launched a Japanese promotional campaign and a uploaded video entitled “Elasticsearch Product Video” to its YouTube channel. The video comes with Japanese subtitles with appearances by CEO Steven Schuurman, VP of Engineering Kevin Kluge, Elasticsearch creator Shay Bannon, and VP of Sales Justin Hoffman. The video showcases how Elasticsearch is open source software, how it has been integrated into many companies’ frameworks, its worldwide reach, product improvement, as well as the good it can do.
Justin Hoffman said that, “I think the concept of an open source company bringing a commercial product to market is very important to our company. Because the customers want to know on one hand that you have the open source community and its evolution and development at the top of your priority list. On the other hand, they appreciate that you’re innovating and bringing products to market that solve real problems.”
It is a neat video that runs down what Elasticsearch is capable of, the only complaint is that bland music in the background. They could benefit from licensing the Jive Aces “Bring Me Sunshine” it relates the proper mood.
Whitney Grace, September 10, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Yammer Improvements and Changes on the Horizon
August 27, 2015
A few years ago, Yammer was an integral part of SharePoint’s marketing campaign as they sought to persuade users that they were moving toward a focus on social. With the upcoming release of SharePoint 2016, social is still important, although it feels less forced and more natural this time around. There will be changes to Yammer and Redmond Magazine covers it in their article, “Microsoft Announces Yammer Improvements To Come While Deprecating Some Yammer SharePoint Apps.”
The article says:
“Microsoft announced this week that it is working on a more team-oriented Yammer, and it will be bringing along some mobile app improvements, too. Yammer is Microsoft’s enterprise-grade social networking application that’s part of some Office 365 subscription plans. Yammer can be used as a standalone service, but it’s also used with SharePoint Server products and SharePoint Online implementations.”
To stay current on what else may change with the release of SharePoint Server 2016, stay tuned to ArnoldIT.com. Stephen E. Arnold is an expert on search and the enterprise. His dedicated SharePoint feed is a great way to stay up to date on the latest new surrounding SharePoint.
Emily Rae Aldridge, August 27, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Google Does the Tweet Thing
August 22, 2015
I read “Google Integrates Twitter into Its Desktop Search Results.” Meaty stuff.
But, dear, struggling Twitter. You keep trying. Users in hot spots like Sillycon Valley and public relations outfits in New York love the tweeter. Messages about the next big thing, a sleek baby unicorn, and the antics of a media star lubricate the modern world.
Here in Harrod’s Creek, where the failed middle school teachers work at the filling station and where failed webmasters moonlight as fry cooks at the eatery on the Ohio River, the tweeter is not such a big deal.
Consider me: Old, wheezing, and staring at a limited horizon. When I run a query for predictive analytics or dumps about philanderers, I just want an objective list of search results. Links to research papers and presentations about LaPlacian methods applied to mundane data problems are what I need to fry squirrel, kick back, snack, and read.
Now my results will be peppered with information from the tweeter thing. Is this an advance?
I suppose for those who ego surf like certain media stars with lots of children and ad sales reps gathering data to prove their campaigns’ value, the blend of search results and twitter peeps is a thrilling prospect.
The new Google is enchanted with the value of the tweeters’ toots. I understand the Twitter thing. It is the new Google that puzzles me.
Ah, back to revenue. Maybe? Maybe not. More relevant search results. Maybe not.
Stephen E Arnold, August 22, 2015
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