Technology catch-all thread

[StrangeSox]

Hey, if it's turning a profit, then it's not obviously a mistake.

 

I didn't say it was a programming mistake.

[southsider2k5]

They're all following the MTV model.

 

Their reality shows are terrible but so are all of their conspiracy shows.

 

I can't quit watching Decoded.

[StrangeSox]

I can't quit watching Decoded.

 

I saw one episode of that last week in the hotel. It was about free masons stealing the corner stone of the white house. Or maybe the Capitol too?! And it might even contain a hidden, alternate Constitution!!!!

 

It's like a lesson in logical fallacies.

[southsider2k5]

I saw one episode of that last week in the hotel. It was about free masons stealing the corner stone of the white house. Or maybe the Capitol too?! And it might even contain a hidden, alternate Constitution!!!!

 

It's like a lesson in logical fallacies.

 

More than anything, they featured a lot of things I had never heard of., which made it interesting

[StrangeSox]

More than anything, they featured a lot of things I had never heard of., which made it interesting

 

I guess to be fair, the episode I saw was the first one of the series. Maybe later ones were less of a wild goose chase.

[Jenksismyhero]

Oh man, the one about the corner stone was brutally bad.

 

Step one: Create conspiracy out of thin air about the corner stone being moved.

 

Step two: Wild goose chase for unfounded theories.

 

Step three: Conclude no conspiracy exists and that the corner stone is actually where it's supposed to be - underground as the corner piece to the White House. Brilliant!

[Jenksismyhero]

I didn't say it was a programming mistake.

 

Yeah, it's certainly making a profit, but it's not good television. And I understand that producing a 5-6 part series about the revolution or the Civil War or whatever is costly, but I feel like they come out with 2-3 documentaries a year, when in reality it should be like 2-3 times a month. Fill the rest of the schedule with the crap reality if you want to (i'm a sucker for Swamp People, just like Deadliest Catch was back in the day), but give me something to look forward to.

[HuskyCaucasian]

I can't quit watching Decoded.

I stopped after like 2 episodes. It was such a load of crap.

[HuskyCaucasian]

Oh man, the one about the corner stone was brutally bad.

 

Step one: Create conspiracy out of thin air about the corner stone being moved.

 

Step two: Wild goose chase for unfounded theories.

 

Step three: Conclude no conspiracy exists and that the corner stone is actually where it's supposed to be - underground as the corner piece to the White House. Brilliant!

The statue of liberty one was equally bad

[mr_genius]

I still don't understand how Instagram could be worth $1B.

 

it's not

[mr_genius]

It infuriates me that these channels have stopped producing actual documentaries and rely almost solely on reality TV. Watching 4 annoying Las Vegas guys in a pawnshop is not an interesting way to learn about the past.

 

90% of TV is now "reality" shows. I have even noticed "reality" shows that are fake, aka actors going off a script but in a "reality" format.

[iamshack]

90% of TV is now "reality" shows. I have even noticed "reality" shows that are fake, aka actors going off a script but in a "reality" format.

You just noticed this, eh? 90% of them are scripted.

[HuskyCaucasian]

I like Google Drive (basically Google Docs with added functionality). 5GB free is a great way to backup vacation photos until I get home!

[Y2HH]

I like Google Drive (basically Google Docs with added functionality). 5GB free is a great way to backup vacation photos until I get home!

 

I prefer DropBox over this service because of Google's forced use of a "one size fits all" user agreement. Until Google fixes said user agreement and makes it less vague than it is, they can f*** off, as more strictly worded alternatives exist at the moment. It's purposefully written to be vague and "open to determination" in that if they make a mistake and leak private/personal data, or purposefully misuse it, there is nothing you can do about it in a legal sense. Especially since their reputation of making mistakes and saying, "oops...our bad", has become their modus operandi of late. Leak (or steal) personal info, say oops...fix, rinse repeat. See Google Buzz or their eavesdropping of WiFi data payloads for reference.

 

Google's Written Policy:

 

Some of our Services allow you to submit content. You retain ownership of any intellectual property rights that you hold in that content. In short, what belongs to you stays yours.

 

^^ I have no issue with this, it's as it should be. But then they follow it with the follow very vaguely worded and open to determination paragraph of nonsense:

 

When you upload or otherwise submit content to our Services, you give Google (and those we work with) a worldwide license to use, host, store, reproduce, modify, create derivative works (such as those resulting from translations, adaptations or other changes we make so that your content works better with our Services), communicate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute such content. The rights you grant in this license are for the limited purpose of operating, promoting, and improving our Services, and to develop new ones. This license continues even if you stop using our Services (for example, for a business listing you have added to Google Maps). Some Services may offer you ways to access and remove content that has been provided to that Service. Also, in some of our Services, there are terms or settings that narrow the scope of our use of the content submitted in those Services. Make sure you have the necessary rights to grant us this license for any content that you submit to our Services.

 

^^ This is an open license to do whatever they want with your data, and while it's understandable that they don't "mean it that way", the fact is, it's written that way.

 

While I know this is mostly harmless, and as you can see the Google defenders are out in full force right now defending their master Google from what they call "TOS Critics" by dismissing he vagueness...I have my reservations of this considering the time in which we exist when there is little privacy law to be spoken of when it comes to the Internet.

 

DropBox, for example, has a much more limited user agreement in place but mostly because they have a single product that it covers.

 

Of the tons of blogger stories and trending stories about this Google TOS, this is the best and fairest one I've read: http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57421406-...e-a-toxic-brew/

 

And to be fair, Apple's TOS for it's iCloud storage is possibly worse.

 

I hope the government steps in sooner rather than later and lays out a solid privacy policy that all US companies must adhere too when it comes to it's citizens personal data, etc. As it stands now, it's mostly based on trust, which is my main issue with Google (and other companies writing vague privacy policies that directly favor them over the end user), but specifically with Google and their recent forced implementation of a one-size-fits-every-product user agreement/privacy policy. Certain terms and conditions simply cannot and do not fit every product, nor should they, but that's what we have right now, and until something is done at a federal level that spells out the law people need to be extra careful with everything they do online, from cloud storage to social media. Just keep in mind, everything you do -- even on Soxtalk, but especially on places like Twitter and Facebook -- will be around for a lonnnnnnng long time, and it can affect your future employment, etc.

 

Personal disclaimer: I host my personal domains on Google's email servers (all the same rights/privlidges and access as a Gmail user, however, it uses my private domain names instead of gmail.com), and I'm also an avid user of iGoogle. That said, I have most of their tracking disabled, I do not have browsing history enabled on any of my accounts, etc.

Edited April 26, 2012 by Y2HH

[Balta1701]

Steve Jobs playing FDR in a 1984-vintage, WWII themed corporate retreat inspiration video.

[mr_genius]

You just noticed this, eh? 90% of them are scripted.

 

i am suing them. messing with my emotions and stuff.

[Stocking]

No excitement for the samsung announcement today? SIII cant wait.

[Y2HH]

No excitement for the samsung announcement today? SIII cant wait.

 

It's hard to get excited about Android releases when a newer/better model is released once every few month. The S2 just came out in the US like 6 months ago. They need to release them here at the same time they release them overseas. The HTC X One just came out, and it's being called the best Android device ever made. And I have to say, the X one actually does look really great.

[IlliniKrush]

I think I'll be the last person in the country without a smart phone. I'm already one of the few without facebook. Yay anti technology.

[ChiliIrishHammock24]

I think I'll be the last person in the country without a smart phone. I'm already one of the few without facebook. Yay anti technology.

 

Ok, let's race then.

[IlliniKrush]

I heard an interesting stat today...in 2012 smart phones are projected to out sell desktop computers.

Edited May 4, 2012 by IlliniKrush

[danman31]

I think I'll be the last person in the country without a smart phone. I'm already one of the few without facebook. Yay anti technology.

I applaud you for facebook, but not having a smart phone is more like masochism than a statement.

[southsider2k5]

I think I'll be the last person in the country without a smart phone. I'm already one of the few without facebook. Yay anti technology.

 

Did you buy that cabin in Montana yet?

[IlliniKrush]

I applaud you for facebook, but not having a smart phone is more like masochism than a statement.

I just can't stand how all anyone does now is play on their phones. Go to hang out with people, on the phone. Out to eat, on the phone. At the game, on the phone. Everyone would rather be doing something else on the internet than what they are currently doing. I think Critic said this somewhere else in a thread, it's the HDG, Head Down Generation. No one can get off their phone, and I don't want to be that guy.

 

I text with my phone, but the only thing I really miss is not having access to sports scores. If I'm with my wife, I'm taken care of...or someone else I'm with usually has it.

 

I just don't think I'd use a smart phone to it's capacity. Maybe I'm wrong. Eventually I'll probably have to get one, I just haven't hit that "I must have this" point yet.

Did you buy that cabin in Montana yet?

Nah, you could pick up a cell phone single there, not worth it.

[Brian]

So you can't sync up your iPhone to iPad to get text messages sent to iPad as well?