Poll: Young people say online meanness pervasive
By CONNIE CASS and STACY A. ANDERSON WASHINGTON (AP) – Catherine Devine had her first brush with an online bully in seventh grade, before she’d even ventured onto the Internet. Someone set up the screen name “devinegirl” and, posing as Catherine, sent her classmates instant messages full of trashy talk and lies. “They were making … Read more
Chomsky: 9/11 – was there an alternative?
Al Jazeera – English By Noam Chomsky We are approaching the 10th anniversary of the horrendous atrocities of September 11, 2001, which, it is commonly held, changed the world. On May 1, the presumed mastermind of the crime, Osama bin Laden, was assassinated in Pakistan by a team of elite US commandos, Navy SEALs, after he … Read more
Facebook policies tricky for employers, workers
By SAM HANANEL WASHINGTON (AP) – In the age of instant tweets and impulsive Facebook posts, some companies are still trying to figure out how they can limit what their employees say about work online without running afoul of the law. Confusion about what workers can or can’t post has led to a surge of … Read more
A Web Tool That Lets You Automate the Internet
The New York Times By JENNA WORTHAM The phrase “if this, then that” is a bit of programming-speak: you tell the computer that if this happens, it should perform this action. Now, a simple new Web service called ifttt — pronounced like “lift” without the l — aims to take that concept to the mainstream. … Read more
I’m out of the office, so please read this spam
By PETER SVENSSON NEW YORK (AP) – If you’re prone to mistyping email addresses, here’s a new thing to worry about: you could be a target for spammers trying to sell you a dream vacation or a diet product by pretending to be one of your friends or colleagues. In a clever twist on spam, … Read more
America: Land of the Slow
The New York Times By VERNE G. KOPYTOFF Internet speeds in the United States have long trailed those in other countries like South Korea. Downloading videos, games and other big files often takes far longer for Americans than their counterparts across the globe. In the latest global rankings, the United States remained a slow-poke, placing … Read more
Google+ Opens Up to All Comers
The New York Times By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER Google on Tuesday opened its invitation-only social network, Google+, to anyone who wants to join at google.com/+. Google+ emphasizes privacy — like easily sharing with select groups of siblings or colleagues — and features like a video chat service called Hangouts. For Google, it is a way … Read more
Facebook to Offer Path to Media
The New York Times By BEN SISARIO For cloud-based digital music services like Spotify and Rhapsody, which stream millions of songs but have struggled to sign up large numbers of paying users, being friended by Facebook could prove to be a mixed blessing. This week, according to numerous media and technology executives, Facebook will unveil … Read more
Latest Move Gets Netflix More Wrath
The New York Times By JENNA WORTHAM and BRIAN STELTER Netflix, the company that changed the way tens of millions of people watch films and television shows, is quickly discovering that there’s a downside to having cultivated a passionate fan base. After Reed Hastings, the company’s co-founder and chief executive, announced a plan — in … Read more
Court reinstates $675,000 damages for downloading
By DENISE LAVOIE BOSTON (AP) – An appeals court reinstated a $675,000 verdict against a Boston University student who illegally downloaded 30 songs and shared them on the Internet, but left the door open for the trial judge to reduce the award again. Joel Tenenbaum, of Providence, Rhode Island, was sued by the Recording Industry … Read more
