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This article is about internet users in China that are having trouble and difficulties using Google last Friday. Most of them tried to use Google Search and Gmail, but got declined from using them. However, they switched to alternative services, such as Hotmail and Yahoo.  This whole problem about the connection were affecting a week-long meeting of the Chinese Communist Party. China has been known to block internet access for its citizens during politically sensitive times. One example was the protests at Tiananmen Square.

*Disclaimer: Article above contains profane/vulgar language This article details the findings of the blog 'Jezebel', who compiled a series of racist, anti-Obama tweets following the U.S election, and 'Floating Sheep' who trended those tweets and imposed them over a map of the United States. Using the knowledge of geo-coded tweets and the Twitter search bar, Floating Sheep was able to trend racist anti-Obama tweets from November 1-7. They used an 'LQ' algorithm which compared a state's ratio of racist to normal tweets to the entire country's ratio of racist to normal tweets. States with an LQ score of 1 were on par with the country, while those 1 had more racist tweets on average. After trending the reassuringly low 395 tweets, the study found (unsurprisingly) that higher LQ scores came from South-Eastern states, with Alabama at 8.1 and Mississipi at 7.4. This relates to Privacy and Security because Floating Sheep used geo-coding to find out where the cruel tweets originated from. This relates to eLifestyle because the internet harbours some of the most ignorant/hateful people who make callous remarks without realizing everything that you do can be and often is tracked. This relates to ICS20 because we promote a positive online environment and we frown upon things like racism and vulgar language; the very opposite of what these people mentioned in the article are portraying. If there is a silver lining to this study, it is that in this technological era, we are able to publicize ignorance and judge/analyze those who advocate awful messages.

This post is about making videos viral. Currently, people have to work hard, be creative or create something different in order for it to be noticed on the internet. This parody predicts that it will no longer be the case in the future. The video promotes the company "Buyral" that can ensure that your video has a huge amount of views, (goes viral) without you even trying to make a good video. It seems ridiculous, but as Brian Barrett points out: like all good satire, it is perilously close to becoming a reality. Many times, a viral video goes viral because it is a great video. Can you imagine if anyone could just as easily give up a few bucks and have an internet smash? Some companies are already promoting videos on Youtube and other websites, buy you can clearly read the caption that says "Promoted." If this parody were a reality, you would have no way of knowing if it truly earned those views, or if somebody with no imagination paid a website to get his or her video views. I believe that this defeats the whole purpose of a video becoming viral, and it relates to eLifestyle because it would definately influence our daily lives. When people go on youtube and click on the "most viewed" section, they are expecting to find something that is worth their time. Furthermore, if someone is searching for a video, for instance, on making apple pie, the first video that will come up is the one with the most views. Instead of getting a video that earned the views, people will likely get an advertisement from a company that makes apple pies or such, that paid an amount of money to obtain those views.

Google's strategy to free itself from Apple and Microsoft using their search engine, android for mobile, aspiring glass experiment, and now the Chromebook.  The Chromebook was well thought out and was constructed just as well as any laptop on the market. $1,400 may be a high asking price, yet majority of people would rather purchase a Windows PC or Mac over a high priced Chromebook

Google has recently implemented a feature known as "Inactive Account Manager" which will allow users to control what will happen to their data after inactivity for a predetermined amount of time. The option gives users the option of deleting their data, or sending the account information such as passwords to another user or email address. Besides the use of this feature for alive users that just wish to remove their information if they don't use the services after a certain amount of time, Inactive Account Manager is one of the first mainstream Google features that will allow people to control what happens to their information after they're six feet under. With the way technology has become more and more involved in our every day lives, this new implementation is not surprising to me at all. What surprises me is that it took this long for there to be a service such as this. A quick Google search shows that on Facebook alone, there is over 30 million accounts of dead users still on the Facebook servers. It won't be long until other social websites implement such features, and it wouldn't be surprising if some even allow you to write a message or status update after their untimely doom. Imagine that, "John Smith is now dea! Like or Comment"

CISPA (cyber intelligence sharing and protection act) is back into congress and threatens to internet privacy if passed. The bill allows the government, private security agencies, and private companies to access about a "cyber threat". These cyber threats are defined by any attack on government systems and networks, and the "Theft or misappropriation of private or government information, intellectual property, or personally identifiable information." This can mean things such as music, programs, games, etc. With this bill, the government and companies can anonymously take your information without any legal consequences. Your information can then be shared or sold. This is a direct violation of the 4th amendment, as it is similar to a search without a warrant. In summary, this bill grants the government and companies access to your information without any cost or legal risk.

This article mentions the fact that Twitter now plans to update its mobile applications to introduce filters for photos allowing people to share altered images without having to use another source such as Instagram. Since most phones come with high-resolution cameras and many of the Twitter users use their phones this will be an easy way for people to edit and upload their photos. Especially with people or famous celebrities that use Instagram then share them on Twitter where more people follow them it will be easier and faster to just use Twitter for it all. This new idea has been hastened when Facebook bought Instagram. Twitter was thinking of buying a different photo service or application but when weighing out the cost they decided to just build their own filters. Twitter is also exploring the ability to upload and edit videos without using a third-party application like YouTube. This article has a lot to do with economics and the battle between two companies trying to get people to use their site and apps and not the other. In this case Twitter is really trying to become the most popular and important social networking site where people will be able to do anything on and it will be instant. They are changing what they once were to try to morph into Facebook because of the increasing popularity of Instagram and the fact that Facebook bought it.  I think personally that Twitter is making a good decision about the filter but i don't think twitter should add their own video player because it would change twitter and its purpose of being instant statements and pictures. YouTube is good at what they do and twitter should stay out of it. However with the whole idea of adding filters to Twitter you get the benefits of Instagram with the benefits of Twitter which might just keep them on top of Instagram.

Following Facebook's purchase of Instagram for almost $1 Billion in April 2012, it seems appropriate that Twitter would integrate something similar into their users' experience. 'Inside sources' say that Twitter is working on a photo-filter system that will be integrated directly in the site and mobile apps that hopes to bypass third-party services (such as Instagram.) While Instagram is a social network that focuses on social images with limited text, Twitter is renowned for its 140 character text-based updates with occasional images. An advantage of Twitter's supposed photo filtering system would be that there would most likely be a website equivalent to the mobile app, a problem that has plagued Instagram users who want a PC experience. As of now, there have been no official confirmations by Twitter, but the idea of a Twitter-exclusive photo sharing system seems interesting; although the market is currently saturated by Instagram, which can export images to other social networks, including Twitter. Legally, Facebook and Instagram may be able to take action against Twitter, depending on how similar their filtering system will be. This relates to eLifestyle and ICS20 because as social network users, we are always searching for ways to monetize our networks to one cohesive experience; another photo-sharing application seems arbitrary when there is already a capable system (Instagram.)

Apparently around 650,000 mac computers were infected with Trojan horse virus called "Flashback" This trojan is hijacking people's search engines in result of their web browsers it pretty much damages the inside of the computer, it also steals banking or log in credential.  Cyber criminals could send new malware to their systems that cause bigger problems. This flashback was designed to conduct a click fraud scam.  Apple released a security patch for Java  that prevents Flashback Trojan from infecting your computer/mac.  

This is all about the followup release of PS Vita's v1.65 firmware update. This new Version 1.66 brings with it a few UI tweaks, including tidbits such as the addition of a progress bar during app installs, notification alerts now only popping up for three seconds, plus the option to tap Retry / Cancel when running into troubles during location search. Games like Unit 13 and Gravity daze will also see "functional improvements", while the near apps is getting a direct link to the  PlayStation Store to make it easier and faster to update or to download.

This article, "10 Apps for Finding Apps" may be appealing to one because it is convenient for someone who has difficulty finding a specific app. When I am trying to find an app for my phone it's usually difficult for me to come up with a certain name that that one app might be under. This new technology allows you to find apps that are relevant to you, which makes it easier for one to find. This is also helpful because you will not waste any time having to search to find the app that fits your need at that moment. 

this amazing app allows you to actual do a google search with a picture!  This can be used in dozens of situations of the top of my head, such as at a museum a tour or even just something cool you saw on the ride to school.  This allows us to see the world in a different way allowing us to appreciate the history and culture behind things we would ignore on a daily basis

The new LG smart series come with a cool feature called voice control. You can use it to search for things anywhere like the internet. All you have to do is talk into the remote and this amazing technology will do everything for you. There would be less work involved because you wouldn't have to go on your laptop or computer to search something up. All you would have to do is turn on your t.v. and talk into the remote and your answer would come up. This new feature on the LG tv is very convient for many people and i'm sure it's going to be popular in the near future.

Everyone who has Google Chrome must of seen this coming. If you were to type in "let it snow" in the search box, the search results page will begin to fill up with frost and snow. Oh, but i'm not done yet. Once your screen is starting to fill up with snow, you can draw on it, IT'S JUST LIKE MAKING A SNOW ANGEL BUT ON THE COMPUTER! And when you want to clear the frost away, you can click the "defrost" button. If you want more easter eggs from Google, you can type in "DO A BARREL ROLE" (FROM STAR FOX) causing your screen to spin. Also check out "TILT" "ASCII ART" AND "RECURSION"

This article is relevant to many people because now on an android phone with the Google Chrome app installed. One does not have to type in the URL in the top bar. You now are able to just search whatever topic you want in that same bar you type the URL in. This in my opinion is much more convenient because you are not wasting pages while browsing on your android. Also, you are able to open more tabs which will help you work faster. 

This article is about web sites you can go on your computer while working which relieves stress. The websites are Youtube time Machine, YouSwear, Unsuck It, Unhear it, and the things you would have said. These sites are also for entertainment if you are bored. Youtube time machine takes you back to the popular videos that were played during a specific year. YouSwear is a site where you can search up swear words in different languages since you are not allowed to swear during work. Unsuck it is a site which defines some of the business terms that you might not understand. Unhear it is a site that plays a bunch of random songs to help you get an annoying song in your head, and the things you would have said is a site that lets you express what you wished you have said to someone.

This article is about google coming out with their own version of an app like siri called Google "assistant". I'm sure many companies are trying to find a way to compete with apple. Siri was just the next big thing that helped apple stay on top. Now companies like google are trying to compete and bring out their own version of this most loved app. Google says that unlike  siri, this app is more about accomplishing real-life goals, and less about returning search results. Google says 2012 is the year of "assistant".

i chose to talk about Siri because i think Siri is a very useful tool. Siri helps me personally and makes not just me but my parent's lives easier to, for example when my parents are driving and the law is you can't use your phone and drive at the same time, Siri helps making a phone call with no hands. Siri also helps you get information more easily, all you have to do is tell Siri what you need and it will search and find the info for you. i also think Siri is good because you can take notes and save contacts more easily for example you tell Siri to make a note it will record what you say and add it to to your notes. This is why i think Siri is a great creation and it makes peoples lives way easier.

In this article we learn about the level of processor you may want.it tells us how for people who just use their computer for searching the web checking emails and other basic stuff an average processor is more than enough because your average processor is powerful enough to handle basic task such as those with ease. Although for people doing more complex things with their computer such as video editing, Photoshop, gaming etc. a more powerful processor is needed to effectively do these types of tasks.

This article talks about how hackers have been scamming netflix users into believing that there is a problem with there netflix account. when the user calls the 'tech support line" (which is also fake) they are transferred to a scammer who will prompt you to download a program that allows them to search your computer for any valuable information. These scammers have also charged these innocent people with a fake bill of $400. So do not fall for these tricks or else you'll be dealing with your information stolen and $400 down the drain. This article reminds us how careful we have to be while enjoying our computers.

Google is improving the security of their email application. Gmail is switching to https, and is looking at a more private future for its users. Sending messages over a secure https connection ensures no one can come in contact with a message. This now has become the default in all gmail practices. It is no longer an option like in 2010. In addition, emails sent will be encrypted, along with communication. This is the news that I actually liked hearing from google, most of the time it's them trying to steal our identities through google search and targeting ads towards us w/out permission.