Facebook and your data
A few days ago, I wrote this post about the amount of data that people give to Facebook, and asked whether those that do so had really thought about the implications of what they are doing. The post was prompted by the story about Robert Scoble being banned for scraping data from the site.
In the comments for that post, brightfeather asked:
(1) When you say “trimmed” I take that to mean that you removed some information. What did you remove? (2) And what would you recommend as the bare minimum amount of information to post on Facebook?
I was going to reply in the comments for that post, but thought that this was worth a post by itself.
To answer the first part, I removed photos, school history, employment history (but not current employer), all of the “About Me” type information like interests, favourite movies, etc as well as hometown, country, political views, religious views, groups and all my contact details other than websites that I’m associated with.
I also took the opportunity to remove all those annoying applications that Facebook is infested with these days, even though I didn’t have that many on my profile.
The information that I left is already in the public domain; my employer, for example, is known to anyone that reads any of my blogs. I also left my profile picture, as it’s the same picture I use everywhere.
I didn’t delete the account entirely because I use Facebook to stay in easy contact with people; if you lose their email address you can still send them a message via Facebook. And it’s also a good way to get back in touch with people that you’ve not heard from for a long time. However, my account remains restricted so even though there’s no longer much information up there, only my friends can see it all; everyone else just gets a potted version.
The rest of Facebook (all those stupid applications and how many varieties of ‘Wall’ that just get filled with the same four or five allegedly funny items) just doesn’t appeal to me - but then, it’s not really aimed at my demographic.
To answer the second part is harder and will, I imagine, be different for each individual because it comes down to how comfortable you are with disclosing personal information. The first problem is that Facebook don’t seem to have users interests at heart when it comes to spreading data around (see the recent press about Beacon) because data is valuable - they can sell it to advertisers for big bucks. The second problem is that, as Robert Scoble demonstrated, Facebook can be scraped. What this means is that you’ve got a repository of information about in excess of 50 million people (at least that’s the most recent user figure I’ve heard) which is not too hard for someone with the right software to access. And data is valuable to them too; for opening bank accounts in your name, getting credit cards or scamming you directly.
So you have to ask yourself what you’re happy about people knowing, but remember that identity theft does not require much information (see this story about Jeremy Clarkson if you’re in any doubt), so the more information you put up the more at risk you could be.
For instance, let’s say that you’re a young married man with a family. So your profile shows who you’re married, and your friends list may include your brothers and sisters, and your Mum and Dad. You put up where you went to school, where you work, pictures of your darling children (and their names and ages), pictures of your car and your house. You tell people your hometown and when you’re going away on holiday. You make status updates about how you hate your Bank - and you tell people which Bank it is so they can avoid it. All in one session at the computer.
Now you can call me paranoid if you want, but with all of the data losses that have been going on in the UK recently do you really want to give any more away? Do you really want to take the risk?
Not a fan of Windows : An update
[See this post for the background]
The generic driver that I’ve been using seems like it may not be the problem. I’m running AVG and that may be having an effect when it tries to do an update, so I’ve disabled that for the moment. Also, the network (which is peer-to-peer not server / client) doesn’t seem to like it when any of the machines are turned off, so that may have also have been cocking things up. Anyway, I’ve left it going overnight tonight and we’ll see what happens.
I’ve now tried this transfer several times, in several different combinations of methods and machines, and there’s been a problem somewhere along the line with each one. (Admittedly, the machine that the files are coming from is the same in each combination). Each time I re-start the transfer, though, I have to re-start from the beginning because of the limitations of 98; if the folder already exists, it asks if you want to overwrite it. If you say “yes”, because you didn’t finish copying all the files last time, then it re-copies all the files. If you say “no”, in the hope that it will then ask you the question for each subsequent file, it just doesn’t transfer anything. Which doesn’t make this task any damn easier.
So I make my plea once more for anyone out there that’s using a Western Digital Black Passport Drive with Windows 98SE - how did you do it?
57 channels and nothing on
My friend Skimmer has a blog entry about the current drive in the UK to get people switched over from analogue to digital television equipment, ready for when the analogue signal is switched off for good in 2012. He makes a good point that the UK public are being pressured into updating their equipment when they may not actually need to.
But what it got me thinking about is the state of television programming at the moment. I’ve just taken a look at tonight’s schedules for the four channels that I’m currently able to receive, and there is absolutely nothing on that I would make an effort to watch, and most of what is being shown I’d turn off if it came on while I was in the room. The plethora of new channels - and all those “+1″ type channels in particular - has had a really bad impact on the quality of programming.
For me, the golden age of television was in the 70’s and early 80’s, back when I was still a kid and maybe my view of television then is tinged by nostalgia. But I seem to remember that each of the three channels (yep, only three back in those days - how did we ever cope?) had serious news reporting, quality drama, funny comedy and light-hearted afternoon programmes, as well as a selection of the biggest films. The channels didn’t run 24 hours a day, there were less repeats and on Sundays you got a good helping of religious programmes whether you wanted them or not!
Now what do we get? Soaps (God knows how many there are now, but they seem to be on everyday and repeated on Sundays), “Reality” shows that are anything but real, X Pop Factor Idol-type “talent” shows, gardening, cookery - far too much cookery, by the way - and “news” programmes where it’s not the fact that we’re at war that’s important, but whether the female presenter can walk and read the news at the same time. And this, apparently, is what the consumer wants.
I’m sorry but it’s not what this consumer wants, and that’s why I haven’t rushed out to get satellite TV. And why I’m not that bothered about being able to access the free-to-air digital channels available through Freeview. And why I don’t really care about the big switchover. And why I object to the BBC continuing to be funded by an outmoded license fee arrangement.
Judge said “What you got in your defence, son?”
“57 channels and nothin’ on”
I can see by your eyes friend you’re just about gone
57 channels and nothin’ on…
Plug-ins for Wordpress.org
Part of “Going self-hosted with Wordpress : A Wolfie Guide” [PDF]
In previous installments of the Guide, I’ve talked about how to transfer your existing Wordpress.com blog to a self-hosted Wordpress.org installation, including uploading a theme, and about the blogroll and widgets. Those two posts, hopefully, got you started and your blog looks pretty much how you want it to.
But looking at your Dashboard you’ll see that there are some things that are missing because they don’t come as standard with the Wordpress.org software. So this post is going to look at plug-ins that you can use to add extra functionality and improve your Wordpress.org experience.
What is a plug-in and where do I find them?
At its simplest explanation, a plug-in is a file or group of files that - when uploaded to your Wordpress installation - give it instructions for carrying out extra tasks. Plug-ins exist for all sorts of functions, some really useful, some less so, and they can be installed with ease.
You can find them everywhere on the Net, but one of the places to start is at the Wordpress plug-ins directory.
How do I install plug-ins?
Sorry, but you’re going to have to FTP again, like you did to upload your theme. But you’re OK with that now arent’t you? As I said before, if you can’t handle a bit of FTP action then you’re probably better off sticking with Wordpress.com.
Most plug-ins are supplied in compressed files, so the first thing to do is uncompress them, using your favourite utility (or the built-in ability of your operating system). Then you’ll either be presented with a folder, or just a couple of files. Whichever you get, there should be a file that gives installation instructions, but in general you just need to upload the folder or the files into the wp-content/plug-ins folder on your server. You should make a note, though, of any special instructions for your plug-in; most are very simple, but some can be complicated; if you don’t think you can manage it, don’t install the plug-in.
Once you’ve uploaded a plug-in, it will need to be activated. This is done from the Dashboard > Plug-ins screen. Just click the “Activate” button next to the plug-in that you’ve just uploaded. If there are no special instructions you need to carry out for the plug-in, then that’s it!
Which plug-ins do I need?
Well, I suppose you don’t really need any of them, but there are some that you might want. Particularly if you’re coming from Wordpress.com. These are the ones that I’ve tried out so far and found useful (I’ve tried a bunch of others that I haven’t found useful, but I’ll leave those out). It should be noted that there are many, many plug-ins out there and you’ll probably find others that do the same job as the ones listed here; this list is not a recommendation of these plug-ins over any others, it’s just a list of ones that I’ve found useful and use on The New Wolfs Howl. If you find any that do the same job but better, let me know.
Wordpress.com Stats
You’ll have noticed that your Dashboard doesn’t have a link for Blog Stats; this is the plug-in that will restore that functionality for you. This isn’t an ideal plug-in because it requires a Wordpress.com API key (a string of letters and numbers that you’ll find on your Wordpress.com Dashboard at Users > Your Profile). The reason this isn’t ideal is because it creates unnecessary confusion between .com and .org blogs, as well as meaning that you won’t be able to get rid of your .com account.
Once you’ve activated the plug-in, you’ll get a message telling you that you need to enter an API key. Enter it at Dashboard > Plug-ins > Wordpress.com Stats. After that, the Stats function just like they do on Wordpress.com
Defensio Anti-Spam
Your Wordpress.com account comes with Akismet Anti-Spam, and your .org installation also includes it - although it is not activated. If you want to use that, then you’ll need your API Key again. But, Akisment comes in a for a lot of stick, being accused of creating many false positives (blocking comments that are not spam) and also being criticised by people who are not fans of those that run it.
An excellent alternative, which gives you more control over the functionality, is Defensio. This also requires an API Key, but you have to sign up for a (free) account with Defensio. If you don’t want yet another online account, stick with Akismet but if you want good quality spam filtering, this is the one to go with.
Contact Form 7
On Wordpress.com, if you want to add a contact form to a page or post, you just enter one line of code. This plug-in allows you to do just the same thing with a .org installation, but with flexibility over the way the form looks, how many different forms you can have, etc.
Wordpress Admin Bar
One of the biggest things that’s missing from a .org installation is the blue admin bar at the top of the screen, that allows you to get to your Dashboard, your Stats, etc. This plug-in will give you back the blue admin bar, but with greatly increased funcitonality. When viewing your blog (it will only be shown when viewing your own blog, not on every .org blog), it will give you dropdown menus for every item on your Dashboard menu. It is probably the most useful plug-in I have so far found.
Subscribe to Comments
This is great piece of extra functionality that is sorely missing from Wordpress.com. What it does is add a “Subscribe” option to the comments form on each post, which allows your commenters to stay updated by email of when anyone else makes a comment.
Brian’s Threaded Comments
This one isn’t available from Wordpress.org, you’ll need to download it from the developer. You’ll have seen on many blogs that specific comments can be replied to and the reply will be indented, or linked in some way to the comment it is in response to. This is called ‘threading’ and it’s what this plug-in does for you. Some people love threaded comments, some hate them, but at least now you have a choice.
Absolute Comments
One thing that really bugs me about comments on Wordpress.com is that if I want to reply to them I either have to edit the comment and aaadd my reply to it, or go to the post concerned and add my comment there. I don’t like the first option because I prefer not to mess about with comments at all and the second option is a drag. Which is where this plug-in comes in, as it allows you to reply to comments directly from the Dashboard - and also allows you to thread them or not.
Popularity Contest
One of the widgets that you’ll notice is missing is Top Posts. I’m not sure why this isn’t included as it’s one of the most useful, but there you go. This plug-in will takes over the role, but also gives you much more information about what’s popular as well as allowing you to alter the ‘weighting’ for each element (permalink views, archive views, etc).
Be aware, though, that this plug-in doesn’t automatically display any of these results on your blog. You can put them wherever you like, but you will need to enter some code yourself. The easiest way is add a widget to your sidebar; if you want to do that, though, you’ll need the next plug-in as well.
Daiko’s Text Widget
You’re familiar, I’m sure, with sidebar text widgets. They can be useful for displaying all sorts of things like links, pictures, and so on. But they are limited; you can’t, for instance, enter PHP code (the code that your Wordpress.org installation is built on) in them. But with Daiko’s you can. That way, following the instructions from Popularity Contest, you can add a widget to display your Top Posts.
So there you go. Some information about plug-ins and how to use them, as well as ones that I’d recommend. Happy plugging.
It’s the song, not the singer
At one time or another, a lot of us have been in bands. And we’d probably rather forget some of first musical foot-steps. Luckily, for most people that isn’t too difficult especially all you really did was just goof off in your mate’s garage.
Some of us, though, have documentary evidence that comes back to haunt us. I was going through some old tapes a little while ago, converting them to mp3, when I came across some gems (?) from my youth. Listening to them again, I was reminded how bad they really are but I can finally listen to them without too much embarrassment.
I don’t remember quite how it came about, but back in ‘85 (when I’d just left secondary school) a friend and I got together and started to do covers of Dire Straits tunes. As a guitarist, Ian was much influenced by Mark Knopfler and the year before he’d got me into the group. So when he said he was looking for a singer, I said I’d have a go.
I don’t know why I volunteered, but I suppose it’s that thing that makes all those complete no-hopes on X Factor think that they can be the next Kylie or Robbie or Elvis. We’d get together at weekends and run through stuff in Ian’s lounge (where he had the largest set of speakers I’d ever seen for a home stereo), practicising - supposedly - for some fabled time when we’d get up in a school concert and do a couple of numbers.
In the summer holidays, the music teacher from the school that we’d just left suggested that we use the recording equipment at the school to “lay down some tracks”. By this stage, it was clear that for one reason or another the intended public performance was never going to happen so the three of us (me, Ian and our producer - the music teacher who’d suggested it) got together and recorded two tracks - Sultans of Swing and Expresso Love - as a document of what we’d been trying to do.
Listening back to them as I write this, it’s a good thing we never got the chance to perform publicly - I was really paralysed by nerves just singing in front of two people and it made my voice even worse that was before, and Ian’s guitar playing was probably not as good as he’d have liked it to have been. But it was a fun thing to do and I’m actually glad that I’ve got those two tracks to remember that time by.
If you really feel that you want to put yourself through the torture, you can listen to Sultans of Swing - but I take no responsibility!
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