This in from Alley Insider, AOL announces that they are going to be using a new algorithm that finds what is “hot” on the net at the moment and then sends out article assignments to freelancers. After these freelancers complete a piece it will be edited by some of the 500 AOL editors and then posted to the main site. Talk about a terrible plan and catastrophe waiting to happen.

I personally do not like the idea of an algorithm telling the company what needs to be written about and what doesn’t. Isn’t this why we have REAL editorial teams? Don’t they make the “big” bucks to do this type of work? I really don’t think that allowing an algorithm to choose what your top stories for the day or week are going to be is a good, new business model for AOL.

AOL says that they will also be paying upwards of $100 per post yet some may not even be reimbursed for their work. AOL’s payment terms seem to be a bit vague at the time.

Anyways, I can’t see this going to well and I have a feeling that after a few weeks or months this type of content creation strategy will go out the window. Maybe AOL should just find and hire some decent writers that know what the hell they are doing?

CNET is reporting that a UK pub owner is being fined about $13K for someone using his pub’s open wifi network to download some copyrighted material. This may be the first time anything like this has happened in the UK.

I understand that this may be the law in the UK, that no matter who was downloading the content that it is still the wifi hotspots owner’s responsibility for the crime. It sounds to me that the laws need updated for this type of crime.

Some are saying that they should just encrypt the wifi signal. Problem solved, except not at all. Even if you made customers pay for a key to your wifi hotspot, who is to say they will not download illegal content?

The only logical thing to do in this situation is to log who is on the wifi and then when there is some sort of infringement, turn that information over to the authorities.

Is the way that the authorities in the UK are handling this seem odd to anyone else? Is there a better way to handle this copyright infringement?

This week has been a little slow due to the US Thanksgiving Holiday, but at least we didn’t get sucked into a horrible black hole from Cern! Check out some of the top tech stories of the week!

• Roku adds Flickr, Facebook, Pandora, and more video channels via CNET
  • Yet another reason to purchase a Roku, and at $79.99 it really is a steal
• Microsoft Offers To Pay News Corp To “De-List” Itself From Google via Silicon Alley Insider
  • Some people thought that this was a sneaky and unethical move by Microsoft. I don’t say that; I say that it is just dumb. People will find the news however they want to find the news, regardless of who “lists” it.
• Gameloft says it, others reining in Android plans via Reuters
  • I am not sure why they are doing this, especially with the estimated sales of the DROID by the end of the year. The only thing that I can think of is that they are afraid of the Android platform becoming segmented.
• Apple’s Schiller Defends iPhone App Approval Process via BusinessWeek
  • I didn’t know that there was an actual “process” from all the terrible stories coming from developers lately!
• New Apple ads to Verizon: Can Droid do this? via CNET
  • The funny part about this commercial is that they are specifically talking about the iPhone in these ads and the iPhone alone isn’t capable of this, it has to do with AT&T’s network. Verizon’s network cannot handle both data and voice at the same time.
• More Android Users Get Google Maps Navigation via PCWorld
  • Android 1.6 gets Google maps Navigation added to it’s functionality. So, you don’t need a Droid if you want Google Maps Navigation.
• Cern’s Large Hadron Collider makes first collisions via BBC News
  • Well, looks like we have some atoms colliding and none of us have been sucked into a black hole… yet.
• 9/11 tragedy pager intercepts via WikiLeaks
  • I suggest taking a look at this. It is yet another look into this tragic day. Some are arguing that this infringes on people’s privacy, but I think that it just shows a lot of the information and misinformation that was traveling through the airwaves that day.

Passing out the link love!

• LostInTechnology Holday 2009 Gift Ideas via LostInTechnology
  • I took a look through Kyle’s lists and I have to say he has some damn good picks. Check it out.
• Windows 7 Email Options via Castellini On Computers
  • A good discussion over at helpmerick.com about the many alternatives to Windows 7 email options. And considering there isn’t a native email option anymore for Windows, you may want to check out this post.
• 5 Cool Things You Can Do With Google Wave via WillINeedIt.com
  • Matt definitely has a better handle on Google Wave than I do! I really like being able to embed Amazon info to a Wave. Very cool!
• 7 Ways to Watch TV Online for Free via 2.0 Life
  • I have to say that I only knew 3 of these online TV options. If you need to get your free online TV on, then check out David’s post.

This week was filled with some cloud news from Google and the always late-comer Microsoft. Plus, some more news that something may be happening or not with the release date of the Apple tablet that may or may not exist. Rumors Galore!

• Twitter Turns On Location. Not For Twitter.com Just Yet. via TechCrunch
  • This is cool, and of course since it is Twitter every geek thinks it’s amazing. Not so sure about it. I don’t think I really care where people are all the time.
• Introducing the Google Chrome OS via Official Google Blog
  • In my apparent love for Google I am excited to see this OS (or should we just call it web browser?) come to fruition. I am not excited that they are only going to officially support it on “official Google OS” devices. More on this later.
• Apple tablet PC reportedly delayed until 2H10, with OLED model now included via Digitimes
  • It is extremely annoying that they are reporting delays on a device that isn’t even official! Only Apple products can hone in this type of buzz!
• Microsoft: Azure to go live in January, for pay in February via Ars
  • And of course once the cloud computing phase of other companies have already been set in place, Microsoft decides to finally release their solution. It will be interesting to see just how much Azure will cost and if it will be any good.
• The Pirate Bay Tracker Shuts Down For Good via TorrentFreak
  • This headline sort of misleads. The official tracker for the Pirate Bay is shutting down, but they are going to use a new “magnet” protocol. I’m not too hip on what this is, so I will be posting on it coming up.
• Windows Mobile loses nearly a third of market share via ZDNET
  • I mean, is this really a surprise? This is what happens when you don’t innovate, say that app stores aren’t needed, and let others do your UI development (HTC).
• Google book settlement revised, criticized via Ars
  • I think that it is ridiculous that so many authors organizations have problems with putting these “orphan” books online. None of the rights have been claimed and now they want to make sure that they don’t miss their piece of the pie.

Passing around the link love

• What did you learn today? via Castellini on Computers
  • This is a cool post. I like being reminded that even though I think that my day wasn’t that great or productive, there is at least one thing that I can say that I have learned. I REALLY like Rick’s list too, it’s funny!
• 4 Free iPhone Apps to Download and Read eBooks via LostInTechnology
  • Very nice list. I use a couple of these on my iPod Touch and I love them. No need for a Kindle just yet!
• 8 Apps that will rock your Android powered smartphone via WillINeedIt.com
  • Well, I have an Android Powered smartphone. And guess what? These apps did rock it!
• 13 Actually Interesting Business and Finance Blogs via The 2.0 Life
  • I am loving David’s site. This is a little off the Tech meme but a very good list of Blogs about money.

For tech students and professionals, something that may be as important as knowing how to use functions and classes in programming and how to correctly normalize a database table is being geeky and obsessed with technology. In an article by Mitchell Ashley entitled, “CS Degree? Constant Learners and Self-Sysadmins Required” earlier this year, Ashley states how knowing more than what is required for a CS degree is desirable and one of the only things that can set you apart.  It seems that tech learners and even professionals need to diversify.

For what? Someone else can do that.

Ashley’s argument is that if you are a programmer and you want to be a great programmer, understanding networking, hardware, software, operating systems, and even having your own home network is almost mandatory to stick out in the tech industry. With Computer Science, MIS, and other tech degrees valued at so little nowadays, to be a pro you have to make yourself standout with added skills that you have learned yourself.

Knowing how to fix your own PC and how to fix common hardware problems should be considered part of most tech job descriptions. Knowing anything beyond what you are applying for is a definite plus.

How far does this go?

Ashley seems to concentrate on how geeky and enthusiastic about tech that potential programmers and IT people need to be to stand out. What about other things that can be combined with with skills like programming, hardware, software, and general information technology management?

Other skills that you could pick up along your tech journey would be the use of social networking and media, blogging, creating websites, marketing, Photoshop and design, etc. The list is endless; there are many different combinations in the tech industry that need explored. If you want to ONLY program computers or ONLY normalize databases, I will say that there isn’t as much value in that as their is in a hybrid type of specialization and a broader range of interest.

The integration of tech concepts and other topics may never be exhausted and that’s a good thing. That means that anyone in the tech industry can be somewhat unique, have their own niche, and create their own value in the industry. It’s time to get to work.

Suggested readings:

• ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income
• Wireless Home Networking For Dummies
• Socialnomics: How social media transforms the way we live and do business
• Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust

I have made a rather large mistake with my last post and have since pulled it down. I said that Google was re introducing Google Chrome and because of this I was confused. I linked to this post at the Official Google Blog. Well, no wonder I was confused. The post was from July 7th 2009 not November 7th 2009!

I may have made a mistake in going through articles in my Google Reader. I apologize for this mistake and will make sure that things like this don’t happen again.

Anyways, I still think that Google should just concentrate on Android!

This week was DROID week, I got mine and am working on a nice little post about it. But there was more happening in the world of tech, right? Right?

• Midnight Droid Madness in Manhatten via CNET News
  • I was hoping that the release of the DROID would do better but lines don’t really mean anything. Also, a lot of people are waiting it out. My advice. Don’t wait!
• Another DROID commercial, Stealth, and it’s awesome via BGR
  • Stealth fighters? Moto DROID? Do you need anything else?
• Windows 7 Boxed Software Sales Surpass Vista Launch, According to NPD via NPD.com
  • Here is a quote from the article, “Windows 7 software unit sales in the U.S. were 234 percent higher than Vista’s first few days of sales.” People have been waiting for 7. Enough said.
• Transparency, choice, and control – now complete with a Dashboard! via Official Google Blog
  • I don’t know if anyone has checked this out yet, but talk about a walk down memory lane especially if you have been using Google services and products for a while.
• EU offers hope to File-sharers via BBC News
  • Kind of a crappy headline but the EU made some pretty good decisions regarding consumer rights. Now they just need to stop punishing the businesses.
• AT&T sues Verizon over ‘there’s a map for that’ ads via Engadget
  • I am liking the new aggressive, evil Verizon. Now they just need to work on keeping their ETF to $175.
• Sony XPERIA X10 announced, we go hands on via Engadget
  • This thing looks great in videos so far but all reviewers are talking that it is pretty much unusable. We’ll see what happens with it.
• Apple iTunes Pitch: TV for $30 Per Month via All Things D
  • I still don’t know about this. But Apples is great at tricking us!

Passing out the friend love!

• Does Your Blog or Site Design Make You Happy? via EricaSays.com
  • You know what? My design is starting to get there. Erica’s post definitely made me think of it in depth this week.
• Early thoughts on Windows 7 via Castellini on Computers
  • Here Rick points out some really great things going on with Windows 7, and he should know!
• 7 Google services you have never tried via Castellini on Computers
  • I commented that I tried all of these! But, for someone that maybe new to the Google world these could be overlooked.
• Replace Your Office Suite with Google Docs via LostInTechnology
  • Great post. Mostly because I totally agree!
• FeedDemon: The Best Offline Feed Reader via LostInTechnology
  • Still haven’t tried it, but LostInTechnology says it’s the best.
• How To: Download TV Torrents Automatically with uTorrent via WillINeedIt.com
  • Like TV? Like Torrents? Like uTorrent? Well then you may want to check out Brian’s post that incorporates all three.

The Times is reporting that EU leaders agreed to give more rights to internet consumers.  This agreement will help pad consumers from a kind of global DMCA, at least in the EU. This agreement bars certain types of regulations from taking place in the new telecommunications act that France and other countries are looking at or trying to pass. Basically, France was trying to adopt a “three strikes” plan that would bar consumers from the internet after three reports from telephone, ISP, or mobile companies of alleged copyright infringements. The biggest problem with this is that these consumers would not even be able to gain a fair trial; they would be service-less without even being proven guilty of copyright crimes.

The Soapbox

I am glad that the EU has come to their senses and actually listened to consumers and citizens, yet I still believe that there is going to be a problem.  I love how the Times reports this at the end of the article:

National regulators in the European Union will also gain the power to break up dominant telephone companies, which regulators in Italy and Poland are considering. The law also establishes rules for creating an E.U.-wide range of common frequencies for mobile broadband freed up by broadcasters in the transition to digital transmission.

All that ans no mention of how instead of infringing consumers rights, they are going to infringe on “dominant” telephone companies. I am a stern believer of the government staying out of the consumer’s way and granting consumers the right to use the internet in a lawful way just as much as I am a believer of the government staying out of strong business’s ways. This type of shifty wording allows the government to break up any telephone company that they feel is “dominant”.

So, instead of only protecting consumers by not letting businesses govern what’s right and wrong the EU decides to take control of the businesses themselves. I have a feeling that this is only the beginning of the end of consumer and telco business rights in the EU.

In the middle of the summer I finally received my Google Voice invitation.  I have to say that Google Voice is extremely powerful and could change the way that we use our phones as communication devices in the next few years.  There are some core features to Google Voice that I would add to truly make it the killer mobile app.

1. Customized Voicemails

In Google Voice you can add customized greetings for groups of your contacts.  Instead of keeping a whole group of people together in a “group” you could assign just one person to a group and then give that one person a personalized greeting.  What is missing is the ability to add a customized voicemails per contact, time of day, or group of people.  It would be nice to let someone know you are driving at a certain time and will be able to get back to them later; I commute to school every day at a certain time so this voicemails setting could stay the same for months.

2. Mobile Interface (I know they’re working on it)

This one is pretty self explanatory.  Having a mobile interface for Google Voice so that any phone can change and update settings via a mobile browser (dumbed-down or otherwise) is key for Google Voice to truly break into the mainstream market.  The Google Voice team is working on it, I believe mostly to combat the crazy, unbelievable lie-fest from Apple and AT&T.  Hopefully sooner than later.

3. Calling from Google Voice number without software.

I own a Palm Pre and with the Google Voice application I can call out from my Google Voice number.  This means that when my girlfriend sees my number pop up on her phone she wouldn’t see my Sprint number but my Google Voice number.  To have this feature without the software would be great.  The way that I see it working would be when you dial a number the Google Operator asks you if you want to use your Google Voice number or your Sprint number.  You of course could choose in your user preferences if you want this enabled or not, or if you want either number used automatically.  The faster people learn your new GV number the better.

There isn’t that many more features that need added Google Voice; it is robust just the way it is.  There addons would be a benefit and would make GV an excellent tool for anyone that wants more control from their phone.  If there are any other addons that would make Google Voice better than it already is, leave them in the comments below.

Windows 7 is a great modern operating system. Most people have been praising it’s robustness and that it closes the gap on OS’s like Mac OS X while still staying somewhat similar to Vista and XP to not lose any users along the way. Yet according to the Sophos Blog, after a clean install of Windows 7 with the default UAC (User Access Control) settings on, 7 still became infected by 8 our of 10 common bugs/viruses. [A good overview of UAC in Windows 7 can be found here]

Is this really surprising? It doesn’t seem so to me. I have been using the Windows operating system for a long time now and Windows has always had some types of security issues.  Theses issues though are nothing that a little common sense and a decent, lightweight anti-virus program can’t fix.

Something strange here

Something that I have been wondering about for a couple of months now with all of the crazy Windows hoopla is this: since Microsoft has released their own totally free anti-virus suite, Microsoft Security Essentials, why don’t they just include it with Windows 7? You have to go the site here to download and install the software. The only reason that comes to mind to not include MSE with 7 is that they don’t want to completely dominate all markets.  Microsoft is probably a little tired of fighting monopoly battles.

What this means for you

Like I said before, it is not a big surprise that Windows continues to be prone to viruses even though it has a shiny new coating and name.  With OS market share of Windows 7 slowly rising with it’s release on the 10/22/09 more and more people may be put under the guise that “this version is the best and most secure.” That may be true, but when you speak of “most secure” in regards to Vista or XP you are not saying very much.

Case in point: make sure to download some decent, lightweight anti-virus software and don’t open and install files that you don’t recognize.

Some good, free anti-virus suites:

• Microsoft Security Essentials
• AVG
• avast!
• Panda

These are all free and good quality: let Rick tell you why free anti-virus is OK.