You are currently browsing the archives for February, 2009.
I usually try to host an Oscar party. But, I am out of town this year so the party is only in my head (nothing new there!). The most fun before the party is figuring out the menu as I try to relate it to the nominations. Here is my virtual menu this year:
Tropic Thunder Fruit Salad
Slum (hot)Dogs
Frost(ed)/Nixon Flakes
We would drink a Curious Case of beer
and have Milk(shakes) for dessert
and to drink: Milk (maybe Milkshakes)
So, today when I logged into FB, I saw this:
The pressure mounting from within and without Facebook was too much. After reading the Facebook blog, I don’t know if they caved or just clarified. According to Zuckerman (Facebook CEO), they never said they “owned” the content. Odd, I wonder what removing this phrase means to them?
“You may remove your User Content from the Site at any time. If you
choose to remove your User Content, the license granted above will
automatically expire, however you acknowledge that the Company may
retain archived copies of your User Content.”
Sounds like they got to keep the license you granted them even if you remove the content. I’m glad they changed the TOS back. I was starting to rethink my use of FB. I still will continue to rethinking it. And, I will probably use it differently from now own since I had my eyes opened a little bit more about being “open” on the web.
So, Facebook made some changes to their Terms of Service (TOS) and it caused a major uproar in the blogosphere, on the Twitterosphere (is that a word? Twitterspace? Twitterverse – I think that is what I have seen before.
Anyhoo – at first, I was like, all, Wha? They can just use my stuff? But, then I realized that I just put up exactly that….stuff. Silly photos, comments, and the occasional link or trivia game. Nothing that would awful to lose.
But, I will caution folks who use Facebook for marketing (and I have a talk on that this week to a PR group – time to edit my remarks!). And, I will think twice about what I am putting up there – as we all should.
I thought the comment from Adam Ostrow on Mashable was spot on – it probably won’t change the way we do stuff. But, we do need to remember that nothing on the internet is ever “totally gone”…nothing.
So, if you plan to run for President. Be careful and use an alias on Facebook!
Facebook Responds to Concerns Over Terms of Service
Chances are Facebook won’t abuse the privileges they are granted under their TOS. The backlash over doing something insane like using member photos without permission would be enormous and Facebook is smart enough not to do it. But as a user, it’s another reminder that what you do on the Internet is probably permanent, and much of it, probably outside your control.
So, it is Feb 12. The 200th anniversary of the birth of both Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin.
I recently went to the Smithsonian Museum of American History where they are mounting a year-long celebration of Lincoln and his life. The current exhibit did a nice job of tracing his life history. I read a biography of Lincoln when I was a kid and was a bit fascinated with the story of his assassination (due to a Scholastic Reader book that I got in junior high).
The most telling thing to me in the exhibit was along the wall as you exited. It was lined with portraits of Lincoln during his political career. The change in his face was more than just age. The last few portraits that were taken as he was presiding over a country at war were so stunning in how much physical toll that stress took on him.
He was a man who was ahead of the common thought of the time. He pushed a country to accept a change that many did not want. I admire his dedication, his communication skills and his leadership ability as he had to bring very different factions together in a very real and timely way.
Charles Darwin was also a man ahead of the thinking of the day. He took on the challenge of stating his scientific theory and then proceeding to support it with research and evidence. I must admit that my knowledge of Darwin’s life is limited to the mentions in my textbooks from high school. I should probably go find out more.
But, these two men do demonstrate beliefs and actions to me that I hope to carry on in my life:
I will try to keep that in mind as I explore new technologies in the world around me and think about how they can both help and disrupt our lives. As I try to push envelopes in a Darwin way, I will try to keep the Lincoln approach to bringing people together for a common goal and purpose. Both seem noble to me.
Have a great February 12.
Yes, it took me a year to figure out the use of Twitter but I use it almost everyday for work and personal learning, news, entertainment, and more. Kinda cool to see everybody all together.
