photo credit: Texting During Disasters

Phone call restrictions in Japan leave more people texting. After the earthquake in Japan earlier this month, cell phone providers as well as landline phone service was restricted or at best, heavily congested. Many found the only way to reassure friends and family was through texting. CNET reported that in addition to texting, people were using “social networks like Twitter, Facebook, and Mixi” to stay in touch. The phone carriers were “limiting voice calls on congested networks, with NTT DoCoMo restricting up to 80 percent of voice calls, especially in Tokyo and in northeast Japan, where 30-foot tsunami waves caused extensive damage.” Even after restrictions were relaxed, coverage was spotty. For many, texting was the answer.

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photo credit: Facebook Phone

In late January, FoxNews.com/Gadgets reported there would be a new HTC Facebook phone launched this month. FoxNews obviously didn’t do their homework. Not only did they announce that the new Facebook phone would be launched this month in Barcelona, but the photo they shared was a mock-up of an iPhone rather than the HTC phone they reported would be launched. (See photo.) After doing some more thorough research, FoxNews posted another story the very next day stating the Facebook phone rumors were false. (Guess they had a bit of egg on their face…) Read the rest of this entry »

photo credit: Internet Dark in Egypt

First the Egyptian government blocked social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Now rumors have it that the Egyptian government has blocked Internet connections countrywide. According to an article by Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols, ZDNet, his sources (Renesys, an Internet analytics firm) confirmed that Egypt has really blocked the vast majority of its Internet connections. Essentially, this has cut off the Egyptian people from the Internet. Read the rest of this entry »

photo credit: Facebook Privacy Issues

Once again Facebook is making headlines. This isn’t necessarily a good thing. This time, Facebook has allowed third party developers access to your street address and cell phone information. This information was made public on January 14th. As of the 18th, Facebook rescinded permission for app developers to have access. Isn’t this like closing the barn door after the horse is gone? Read the rest of this entry »

photo credit: Technology 2000-2010

We are at the end of a significant decade for technology. Probably more than any previous decade, technology has shaped our society and culture. Wolfgang Gruener, Tomshardware.com, has listed what he thinks are the top 10 technologies that have most affected us since 2000. I am not sure I agree totally with his list, but here’s the list from Gruener. Read the rest of this entry »

photo credit: Cyberbullying

Is technology responsible for cyberbullying? Does cyberbullying even exist? Yes, unfortunately, cyberbullying is a real phenomenon. Cyberbullying is the new term for online bullying, i.e. writing nasty comments about someone on the various social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace. It has received a lot of press lately with some high profile teen suicides being blamed on cyberbullying. But the issue of whether or not technology is responsible is murky. The problem doesn’t lie with technology but instead with the cruelty of people using online methods of taunting and harassing others.

Does Cyberbullying Exist?

Is it illegal to taunt someone online? Different states have different laws or regulations about cyberbullying. Massachusetts passed legislation in May and 44 other states have some sort of legislation pending, even if only to discourage bullying at school. There is concern among lawmakers that even if passed, there will be legal challenges concerning the right to free speech.

High profile teen suicides have made big splashes in the media. Tyler Clementi, a student at Rutgers University, committed suicide when his roommate posted some very personal info on the web about Tyler. The two fellow students involved have been charged with invasion of privacy that could result in 5 years in prison. Megan Meier, a 13 year who committed suicide, was taunted by an adult neighbor, Lori Drew, who posed as a teenage boy on MySpace. Ms. Drew was convicted, but the conviction was overthrown because the laws are so vague.

Many teens live in a naïve world. They don’t realize that what may have started out as a joke or a flirt could end up hurting their entrance into some colleges or even their careers later on down the line. Imagine how surprised and hurt that teen will be when the photo they sent over their phone to their current sweetheart ends up on the web after a breakup. James Lipton, Inside the Actor’s Studio on HBO, has been instrumental in a campaign about sexting, a term coined from sex and texting. See my blog, Sexting: Give It a Ponder before you text.

What is the solution? Do you think we need laws with stiff penalties to stop this new trend of cyberbullying? Is public awareness through the press, as well as campaigns at schools against bullying the answer? Clearly something needs to happen to protect the young people. Will it take more teen suicides to make this a top priority with lawmakers? But will the laws even be effective? What’s your take? Give us a shout about your feelings.

photo credit: Smartphones

New comScore data reports that Facebook and Twitter use on mobile devices is growing exponentially while MySpace use is declining. Facebook now sees 25.1 million mobile users as of January 2010, more than double the users in January 2009. Twitter grew to 4.7 million, which is 4-times what it was last year. MySpace has lost 7% of its users in that same time period. Read the rest of this entry »

photo credit: Stalker Note

The new Android app, Recognizr, would allow you to use your cell phone camera to snoop out someone’s identity. You could take a photo of someone’s face, and then know that person’s name, schedule, profile, and latest tweets. Created by the Swedish development company, The Astonishing Tribe, the new app in development would bring a whole new level to the lack of privacy. It uses a 3D modeling and facial recognition software. James Bond has come to the real world. Read the rest of this entry »

photo credit: New Motoblur

Motorola is shipping Motoblur pre-loaded on the Cliq, Backflip and several other coming Smartphones. It is noticeably missing from the Droid phones however. Hmmm… wonder why? Is there a problem we aren’t aware you yet? Read the rest of this entry »