Tag: radio

Dropping off the grid

Can you drop off the grid and hide from Big Data? The results of one lady’s experiment aren’t encouraging.

Just how hard is it to hide from big data? ABC Newcastle’s Carol Duncan and I will be discussing this from 2.40 this afternoon.

Princeton University assistant professor of sociology Janet Vertesi decided she’d find out by trying to conceal her pregnancy from the internet.

She describes her experiences to Think Progress and the lessons are startling on how difficult it is to drop off the Internet and business databases.

While it’s easy to tritely say ‘don’t use the internet’, Janet found that using cash to avoid being picked up by bank databases raises suspicions while not using discount voucher or store cards meant she missed out on valuable savings.

For many people though dropping off the internet is not an option – not having a LinkedIn profile hurts most job hunters’ chances of finding work while if you want to participate in communities, it’s often essential to join the group’s Facebook page.

The amazing part of all is that Janet herself became a Google conscientious objector two years ago after deciding the company’s data collection methods were too intrusive. Yet she still found it hard to keep the news of her baby off the internet.

Ultimately her friends were the greatest risk and she had to beg them not to mention her pregnancy on Facebook and other social media channels lest the algorithms pick that up.

For Janet, it proved possible but it was really hard work;

Experience has shown that it is possible, but it’s really not easy, and it comes with a lot of sacrifices. And it requires some technical skill. So to that end, it’s my concern about the opt-out idea. I don’t actually think it’s feasible for everyone to do this.

So can you drop off the net? Do you know if you’re on it at all. Join us on ABC Newcastle with Carol Duncan from 2.40 to discuss these issues and more.

Filing cabinet image by ralev_com through SXC.HU

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Heartbleed, kettles and design – ABC 702 Mornings

The Heartbleed bug and the connected kettle are the topics of today’s 702 Sydney segment with Linda Mottram

This morning from 10.20am on 702 Sydney I’m talking to Linda Mottram about the Heartbleed bug, connected kettles and dropping off the grid. It’s crowded twenty minutes and I’m not sure how much we’ll cover.

Heartbleed is the main topic of the segment and it’s a big issue that not only exposes a weakness in secure computing but also points out problems with the Internet of Things and the open source model of developing software.

One of the quirky stories of the last few weeks has been the iKettle, a connected kitchen appliance. Do we need one and what happens to your cup of tea if the internet drops out.

3D printing is changing the world of manufacturing but designers are now looking at 4D printing, what is it and how might it change the world of design.

If we get time we’ll also look at the possibilities of dropping off the all seeing grid with the story of a security researcher who tried to hide her pregnancy from the Internet.

We’d love to hear your views so join the conversation with your on-air questions, ideas or comments; phone in on 1300 222 702 or post a question on ABC702 Sydney’s Facebook page.

If you’re a social media users, you can also follow the show through twitter to @paulwallbank and @702Sydney.

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ABC Nightlife Computers – The end of Windows XP

Windows XP, the Privacy Act and an Internet Magna Carta are what we’ll be looking at on Tony Delroy’s Nightlife.

Paul Wallbank joins Tony Delroy on ABC Nightlife across Australia to discuss how technology affects your business and life.

For the March 2014 spot we’ll be looking at the end of Windows XP, Australia’s Privacy Act, the web turning 25 and the call for an Internet Magna Carta.

If you missed the show, you can listen online at the Tony Delroy’s Nightlife homepage.

One of the show’s listeners, Linda, called in about asking for Apple Mac security software; two free products for OsX users are Sophos Home Edition and Avira Free. While Macs are less prone to malware than Windows systems, it’s still a good idea to be protected.

Another listener, Grant, described a problem with his computer which sounds like it’s infected with something. We recommend the free Malwarebytes as the first step to fixing the problem.

The end of Windows XP

After 13 years, Microsoft is retiring Windows XP; what does this mean for those of us still using it, or for our banks who still use it in their ATMs? Some of the questions we’ll cover include;

  • why is Microsoft pulling the pin on Windows XP now?
  • what happens on April 8 when Microsoft stops support?
  • are Windows XP users still protected from viruses?
  • what’s this story about bank ATMs running Windows XP?
  • the web turned 25 last week. Didn’t it turn twenty a year or so back?
  • inventor of the web, Tim Berners-Lee, called for an Internet Magna Carta last week; what does he mean?
  • could such an idea work in today’s globalised world?
  • on similar topic, the new Privacy Act came into effect last week; what does this mean for the average person?

We’d love to hear your views so join the conversation with your on-air questions, ideas or comments; phone in on the night on 1300 800 222 within Australia or +61 2 8333 1000 from outside Australia.

Tune in on your local ABC radio station from 10pm Eastern Summer time or listen online at www.abc.net.au/nightlife.

You can SMS Nightlife’s talkback on 19922702, or through twitter to @paulwallbank using the #abcnightlife hashtag or visit the Nightlife Facebook page.

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ABC Nightlife February 2013

For February’s ABC Nightlife segment Tony Delroy and I are looking at software prices, the new breed of smartphones for seniors and the future of the telco industry

Paul Wallbank joins Tony Delroy on ABC Nightife across Australia to discuss how technology affects your business and life. For February 2013 we’ll be looking at the software rip-off, smartphones for seniors and Telstra’s roadmap for the mobile economy.

The show will be available on all ABC Local stations and streamed online through the Nightlife website.

Some of the topics we’ll discuss include the following;

We’d love to hear your views so join the conversation with your on-air questions, ideas or comments; phone in on the night on 1300 800 222 within Australia or +61 2 8333 1000 from outside Australia.

Tune in on your local ABC radio station or listen online at www.abc.net.au/nightlife.

You can SMS Nightlife’s talkback on 19922702, or through twitter to @paulwallbank using the #abcnightlife hashtag or visit the Nightlife Facebook page.

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2UE Weekend Computers, 5 January 2013

Paul Wallbank stands in for Trevor Long to talk technology, computers and the internet on Radio 2UE Weekends from 3pm this Saturday

This Saturday from 3.10 pm I’ll be discussing tech with John Cadogan on Radio 2UE as the stand in for regular guest Trevor Long who’s in the US for the Consumer Electronics Show.

We’ll be taking calls on the Open Line, 13 13 32 or tweet to @paulwallbank while we’re on air. 2UE can be heard online or on 954 AM in the Sydney region.

Some of the things we’ll be covering include the following which we’ll be covering after John speaks to Trevor Long in Las Vegas.

R18 + video games

An adult’s only rating category for computer games has come into effect across Australia. The new R18+ will make it illegal for people under 18 to hire, buy or view any games given the rating, while it will be illegal for retailers to sell R18+ games without the new markings.

The new laws bring computer games into line with the classification system for films and other material and make Australia more consistent with international standards.

Google is working on an X phone

Google is working with Motorola on a handset code-named ‘X Phone’ that’s aimed at grabbing market share from Apple and Samsung.

Google acquired Motorola in May 2012 for $US 12.5 billion to bolster its portfolio as its Android operating system competes with Apple and Samsung.

It’s believed that the handset will feature an imaging and gesture-recognition software developer. The new handset is due out next year.

The first civil lawsuit against Instagram

A Californian Instagram user has levelled breach of contract and other claims against the company.

The lawsuit, filed by Finkelstein and Krinsk, says that customers who do not agree with Instagrams terms can cancel their profile, but they then forfeit their rights to photos they had previously shared on the service.

Instagram, which allows people to add filters and effects to photos and share them easily on the Internet, was acquired by Facebook earlier this year for $US 715 million.

It announced its revised terms of service last week and also announced its mandatory arbitration clause that forces users to waive their rights to participate in a class action lawsuit except under very limited circumstances.

Easing of restriction on Internet use on flights

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved an application process for airlines to obtain broadband Internet licenses aboard their planes. Previously airlines have been granted permission on an ad-hoc basis.

Airlines need the FCC’s permission to tap into satellite airwaves while in flight so that passengers can connect to the Internet.

They also need permission from the Federal Aviation Administration, which oversees the safety of inflight Internet systems.

The death of Netbooks

Netbooks have been overtaken by tablet computers and vendors are seeking to push more expensive items to their customers.

The Internet’s TCP/IP language celebrates its 30th birthday

Known as ‘flag day’ January 1, 1983 was the first time that the Us Department of Defence-commissioned ‘Arpanet network’ fully switched to use the Internet protocol suite communications system.

It began as a military project in the U.S in the late 1960’s and it paved the way for the arrival of the World Wide Web.

Summer sales of mobile phones are creating e-waste stockpiles

Over a third of Australians have bought or will consider buying a new mobile phone over Christmas and the summer sales.

This is contributing to the 22 million old mobile phones in Australia.

If these 22 million phones were recycled, they would divert nearly 120 tonnes of plastic from landfill.

Four out of 10 Australians have two or more old mobile phones lying around the home father dust.

Mobile Muster is the official recycling scheme of mobile phones.

You can drop your mobile phone off at a Mobile Muster Collection Point or pick up a reply-paid environment at any Australia Post store and post it in.

Your views, comments or questions are welcome so don’t be shy about calling in on 13 13 32 and Trevor Long will be back next week.

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Standing in for Trevor Long – Updates for 2UE listeners

Listeners’ questions answered after standing in for Trevor Long on Radio 2UE

After standing in for Trevor Long on Radio 2UE’s afternoon weekends, there were a couple of callers with problems Seamus and I said we’d get back to.

These included issues with Hotmail, Android smartphones and a potential virus infection.

Internet Explorer home page hacked

Ron thought he might have a virus infection as Internet Explorer opens a junk page when he starts it.

The easiest way to check if a Windows computer is infected is the free Malware Bytes – just download and run it.

It’s also possible the computer hasn’t been infected but that settings have been messed with, Microsoft have details on how to change the opening pages on Internet Explorer.

Problems getting into Hotmail

Another Internet Explorer problem was from Peter who was finding Internet Explorer was freezing when he tries to get into Hotmail, or Outlook.com as it’s currently known.

The best solution for this is to clean out your Windows system using a tool like the free CCleaner and make sure both the computer has the latest security updates.

Strange message on Android smartphone

Sheena had a strange message on her smartphone saying “all sale”. This sounds like someone has changed the wallpaper settings for the phone and Google have the instructions for changing the background on Android phones.

The 2UE segment is a one-off while Trevor Long is away on holidays, if you’d like notice of upcoming programs, subscribe to this site’s newsfeed or put your questions to the IT Queries website.

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Listener’s questions – ABC Nightlife computers

As a follow up to last night’s ABC Nightlife computers here are some of the promised answers to listener’s questions

As a follow up to last night’s ABC Nightlife computer spot where we looked at who owns our online data, there were a few questions which we’d get back to listeners on.

The entire show can be listened to online through the ABC Nightlife with Tony Delroy website and includes some of the issues we’d get back to listeners on, but first an apology.

Bruce Willis never sued Apple

One of the callers Mark mentioned the story of Bruce Willis suing Apple over ownership of iTunes tracks.

It turns out this never happened as Charles Arthur of the Guardian explains.

While Charles can be a cranky bugger, he’s right in this case that the media didn’t a very poor job in regurgitating an untrue story without ever checking its veracity. Luckily it’s not one that I cited in the program.

Protecting your Twitter Account

One of the topics we discussed was the threat of accounts being hijacked and Twitter is one service that is constantly being compromised because of poor policies. An important part of protecting a Twitter account from being taken over is to make sure an extra level of authentication is used by clicking the “Password Reset” option in the Twitter Account settings.

Recording online

Des asked about recording his own message for an audio Christmas card to his friends and relatives.

On Windows computers, Sound Recorder is the long standing built-in app while on the Mac, Garage Band is the built in application.

There is a free third party application available for both PCs and Macs called Audacity which also allows you to record and edit on your system.

US customer service

One interesting thing about the conversation was how many callers criticised the “US mentality” of providing lousy service. This probably isn’t true as most American businesses provide some of the best customer service in the world.

The lousy service from online companies is more a function of the computer engineering and venture capital background of the entrepreneurs setting up cloud computing and social media services, while the majority of these companies are from the US it wouldn’t be fair to brand this as being an American cultural issue.

Our next Nightlife spot is on December 13 at 10pm and we’ll be looking at Windows 8 and what type of computers should people be considering. Hope you can join us.

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