Daily Bits

Arnold Zafra

MySpace to Unveil New, (Better than Facebook?) User Privacy Settings

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MySpace is not going to take the issues confronted by Facebook with regards to privacy settings just like that. And so, to indirectly add injuries to the many problems faced by Facebook, MySpace has just announced that it will soon roll out a new and simpler privacy settings for MySpace users.

The first few lines of MySpace announcements clearly states what its goals are by this announcement. MySpace tells us:

The last few weeks have been fraught with discussion around user privacy on social networks. We want to take this opportunity to discuss our view of user privacy on MySpace and some of the core features that made MySpace unique from its inception.

It was short of saying, “…discussion around user privacy on Facebook.”

Anyway, according to the announcement, MySpace’s new and simpler privacy settings that will give users greater control over their information. The site is will provide setting options that include public, friends only, or public to anyone 18 or over.  In the coming weeks, MySpace will put the default settings for all users to – “friends only.” Of course, you’ll be free to change this option anytime.

And guess what? MySpace had this planned out for quite some time now.  And admittedly, the only reason why they are rolling these new setting options now is because of the recent issues hauled by media to social networks concerning privacy.

The question here is, will these in any way convince Facebook users who are dissatisfied with how Facebook has been handling privacy issues, to use MySpace for social networking instead? What are your thoughts?

Browsers Leave “Fingerprints” as You Surf the Web

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Common now folks. Is it really possible that as web browse and leave a website, that we might be leaving “fingerprints” behind, enough for hackers to track us as we surf the web? Well, according to the latest research conducted by Electronic Frontiers Foundation, web browsers have digital signatures that create fingerprints that can be used your web browsing habit.

EFF conducted an experiment whereby volunteers were asked to visit the site http://panopticlick.eff.org. This site apparently logged users’ browser configurations and version information anonymously. Information were gathered by the site from user’s OS, browser and browser plug-ins.  EFF’s study revealed that 84% of the configuration combinations were unique and identifiable that leads to the creation of idenfiable browser “fingerprints.”

EFF also found out that there are some browsers which we less likely to contain unique configurations, especially those which blocks JavaScript. Likewise, some browser plug-ins can also be configured to limit the information that your browser shares to the websites you visit.  Unfortunately thought, in general it’s very hard to reconfigure your browser to make your identify less identifiable. EFF suggest that new privacy protections should be built into the browsers themselves.

EFF Senior Staff Technologist Peter Eckersley tells us:

“Browser fingerprinting is a powerful technique, and fingerprints must be considered alongside cookies and IP addresses when we discuss web privacy and user trackability,” said Eckersley. “We hope that browser developers will work to reduce these privacy risks in future versions of their code.”

So, there. Let this serves as a warning for us to be cautious of what browsers we are using and make sure that these offers really offer privacy protection, like what they claim they do.

Wikipedia Sports an Easier to Use and Edit Site Interface

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For a huge website with contents and edited by millions of people, it will definitely take a long time before a site overhaul is implemented. Such was the case for Wikipedia which just rolled out its new design and interface for its website – wikipedia.org. In fact, it took Wikipedia more than a year to redesign its site after a year of usability testing and consultation with everyday Wikipedia users. It was certainly a long and hard work, but if there’s one consolation that the folks at Wikipedia should have, it’s the fact that they’ve done a great job!

So, have you checked out Wikipedia? Did you notice the following enhancements:

  • Look and feel – Wikipedia now sports the “vector” theme which makes it easier to find the site’s essential functionality.
  • Navigation – Tabs at the top of each Wikipedia page clearly identifies whether you are reading or editing a page. A collapsible navigation was included on the left sidebar that you can use to hide items that you are not using.
  • Editing improvements – The editing toolbar is no easier to use. Formating pages is simpler and more intuitive. In addition, a table wizard was introduced to make it easier for you to create tables as well as a new find and replace feature that simplifies page editing.
  • Link wizard: An easy-to-use tool allows you to add links to other pages on Wikipedia, or to pages on external sites.
  • Search improvements – Improved search suggestions that easily gets you to the page you are looking for.
  • Pediapress book creator: – Use the Book Creator from selected Wikipedia articles. This will be saved as a PDF so that you can read it anytime, anywhere.
  • Updated Puzzle globe and wordmark – The Wikipedia globe and wordmark have been enhanced and improved.

    • There you go. What can you say about the new interface of Wikipedia. Will you using the site more now?

    Study: Consumers are Willing to Pay for Content on E-Readers, iPad, Tablets

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    Call it a spark of genius from the part of Apple. But undoubtedly, the  iPad has certainly awaken an otherwise sleeping e-book and tablet market.According to a recent Boston Consulting Group Study which showed that more than half of surveyed consumers plan to buy an iPad, Kindle or similar device in the next three years. More important than that is the findings that these consumers appear willing to pay for content to be consumed on those devices.

    The survey was conduced to nearly 13,000 consumers in 14 countries including India, China, Germany, United Kingdom and the United States. The study found out that 28% of these respondents and 51% of those familiar with this devices plan to purchase them within the next few year. In three years time, 49% of the respondents and 73% of those familiar with them are also planning on a purchase.

    What do these figures tell us? Well, if these numbers are to push through, e-readers and tablets would soon established themselves as another category of consumer products in the likes of  TVs, PCs and mobile phones.

    Another positive impact would be injecting fresh hope to the otherwise dying publishing industry.

    John Rose, the global leader of BCG’s Media Practice said:

    “The survey suggests that e-readers and tablets are not a niche product for early adopters but could become the MP3 players of this decade. Grandmothers will soon be carrying them around.”

    There is one catch though. For e-readers and tablets, such as the Kindle and iPad to succeed in infiltrating the consumer market, a significant price drop should happen. Right now,  the Kindle, iPad and other tablets and e-readers are relatively priced similar to other established consumer electronics products. Considering that their features are limited as compared to a traditional computing machine, price should naturally be cheaper.

    Hopefully, both the Amazon and Apple folks are reading this or would get hold of the BCG Report.

    What’s Taking Facebook too Long to Release an iPad App?

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    It’s been more than a month since iPad was released into the wild. Published reports say that Apple has already sold around 300,000+ iPad units since it first became available. Stocks from Apple Stores are depleting so fast. International release is about to happen on May 28. This means that iPad is slowly getting into the hands of many users. So, in due time and if Apple managed to cope up with the demand, the iPad is on its way to millions of fans, who are most probably Facebook users as well.

    Now, why is it taking too long for Facebook to release a native iPad app? In case the Facebook folks are not aware of, the iPad is meant for content consumption, as they say. And if there’s one social networking site where users can consumer content and information from – it’s in Facebook.

    But of course, you can always say that iPad users can always visit Facebook.com using the Safari browser on their precious iPad. But that’s not the best way to consume content, especially real-time updating contents from Facebook on an iPad. The iPad content consumption is best experienced through the apps.

    Alright, I am blabbering here now. I just want a native Facebook app for iPad. I’m tired of using third-party social lifestreaming apps for iPad that has Facebook as one of the accounts supported. They don’t give justice to the real Facebook experience. I want the official Facebook app for iPad. I’m sure, other iPad users want this as well.

    In case you can’t wait no more and don’t want the Safari browser route, here are some third-party lifestreaming apps that let you access your Facebook account and do several native Facebook activities on your iPad:

    How Do You Like the Redesigned Google Search Results Page So Far?

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    If you’re a regular Google Search user, you may have already noticed something different in the Google Search Results Pages starting this morning. Google has rolled out several enhancements in the user interface of the Search Results Pages including a redesigned  Google logo.

    In case you haven’t seen it here’s how the new Google Search Results Pages look like side by side with the old interface:

    As you can see, the left-side navigation was change drastically with the inclusion of cute icons representing the different search verticals which you may want to check whenever you want to filter results for your searches.  Just below these search verticals are different ways by which you may want to view your search results such as the Wonder Wheel, Google Squared View, Image-less views and more.

    The Official Google Blog tells us:

    The new design refreshes and streamlines the look, feel and functionality of Google, making it easier to pinpoint what you’re looking for. It’s powerful, yet simple. Today’s changes are the latest in our continuing efforts to evolve and improve Google. We’ve been testing these changes with users over the past few months, and what we’re launching today reflects the feedback we’ve received.. We want to ensure that the Google you use today is better than the one you used yesterday, and these latest changes open up many possibilities for future features and enhancements.

    So, do you like the new look and feel of Google’s search results pages? Do you find it useful or you don’t mind at all? Anybody noticed its striking resemblance to Microsoft Bing’s search results pages?

    Incidentally, if you’re using Google Mobile Search, that same interface was also rolled out.