FWD Thinking

What's on the mind of the
M Booth & Associates
FirstWord Digital team

FWD is:

Alyssa	Andrea	Andréa
Andrew	Danny	Cynthia
Danielle	Frani	Jen
Josh	Kim	Kristen
LaurenA.	LaurenM.	Maria
Pedro	Rachel	Rashidah
Rebecca	Rob	Sally
Tom

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Fri Aug 20

Your Internet and You

PSFK touches on the longstanding debate on whether the internet makes us smarter or dumber. The ROFL (rolling on the floor) culture, as they call it, filled with time consumers such as LOLcats, YouTube sensations and rickrolling is filling our brains with empty space, right? But if the internet didn’t exist, what would we do with that time? Read the dictionary cover to cover or play Mario Brothers on the Wii?

While the answer to that question probably falls somewhere in the middle, the real question posed in the post is how our engagement on the internet reflects who we are. Can what you tweet, where you check in or what blogs are in your RSS feed define your character? If your answer to that questions is “absolutely,” then you would be in agreement with me.

-Tom

Tags - internet - memes - tom pompei

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Thu Aug 12

1/5 of Americans Don’t Use the Internet

Sometimes it’s hard to fathom that I lived the first eight years of my life without the internet and the first 12 or so without the internet at home. I hardly remember what life was like without it. So it’s pretty shocking that a new Pew study found 21% of Americans say they still don’t use the internet, 16 years after my first encounter with Prodigy in my 3rd grade classroom.

I was trying to think if I know a single person who doesn’t go online these days and I’m drawing a total blank. Even my 60-year-old dad, who doesn’t have an e-mail address and refuses to ever turn on his cell phone, knows how to hunt and peck his way to Google to search for the latest house/boat/car he’s daydreaming about buying.

Over 2/3 (69%) of those who don’t use the internet are senior citizens and possibly don’t see the value since they’ve already lived for so many decades without the web. However, it saddens me that other non-users live in rural areas, have a low income or lack a high school education. I truly believe that the internet is a portal to the rest of the world and can be of huge value to people’s lives, especially if they’re geographically isolated. Heck, in Finland, high-speed internet access is a legal right! The FCC’s Broadband Opportunities for Rural America program aims to remedy this imbalance. Hopefully soon, everyone who wants to use the internet will have the chance.

—Alyssa

Tags - internet - broadband - research - statistics - government - alyssa

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Wed Aug 4

Free Internet with Hilton Loyalty? Sign me up!

Gadling reported today about Hilton’s latest move to attract more loyalty customers by offering free hotel internet to guests based on their Hilton HHonors rewards status.

As business travelers sometimes spend more time using hotel internet than they do their own office’s internet, this is a great way for Hilton to capitalize on biz travelers who at least attempt to keep expense accounts to a minimum. Sometimes the cost of internet for a week can be expensive as spending an extra night at the hotel — absurd!

Kudos, Hilton!

-Sally

Tags - internet - travel - hotels - wifi - sally

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Tue Jul 6

“Erasing All Digital Footprints is ‘Impossible’”

Prince thinks the internet is “completely over” - and though we know what a tech visionary he is, let’s keep blogging as if that weren’t true…

Subscribing to (then promptly unsubscribing from) a mailing list. Ordering the latest trashy beach read from Amazon. Poking your crush on Facebook. Sending that generous Nigerian your bank info so he can get around harsh government regulations and let you earn millions (hello, easy money). Chances are, if you’re reading this blog, you’re already pretty entrenched in the internet. Well, here’s some news for you: YOU’RE NEVER GETTING OUT.

While there are services that can help you hunt down every cookie and megabyte of data that is tied to your identity, they are in no way comprehensive, removing only 80 to 90 percent of personal information from the World Wide Web. You can try to do it yourself…and I don’t know about you, but I barely remember what I ate for lunch last week, much less every single website I’ve visited since my family finally installed AOL 2.0 (dial-up!) some 13 years ago.

But let’s say I’m one of those people who only check out “the Yahoo” mail (hi Mom!) once in a while. Even if I could list out every URL I’ve ever typed or clicked, the company or organization at the other end may be hesitant to help me delete whatever information I’ve left behind on their servers. In their eyes, this data is their asset, helping them create more tailored advertising and marketing strategies.

This doesn’t really bother me, as I never really planned on quitting the internet and I’m pretty used to Big Brother, but I can see how it would concern those with privacy concerns. What about you guys? Do you see yourself paying someone to scrub the interwebz clean of your identity?

Con: That Zuckerberg will probably know more about you than your future spouse.

Pro: Falling victim to the Praetorians may not be so easy now.

- Kelly

Tags - facebook - internet - kelly - privacy

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Wed Jun 23

Mobile Internet Begins at Home

Although most of the messaging about mobile devices these days is about convenience on the go, it turns out that 60% of mobile Web usage actually takes place right at home.

Come on, who doesn’t reach for their cell phone first thing in the morning? According to the study, 30% of smartphone users start their day with mobile Internet. My BlackBerry is my alarm clock, so I kind of have to use my mobile at home (to hit the snooze button, of course). Then I check my Weather.com app so I know what to wear, and if I’m procrastinating about getting out of bed, I might check my e-mail and Twitter, too.

Sometimes I use my phone to access the Internet at home just because I want to avoid opening my laptop. Once I do that, I usually get sucked in and before I know it, an hour has gone by.

—Alyssa

Tags - alyssa - mobile - internet - research - statistics

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Fri Oct 16

Broadband Internet is Now a Legal Right in Finland

Finland, which I realized I know absolutely nothing about, has become the first country to declare that high-speed broadband Internet access is a legal right, just like water or electricity. About 95 percent of Finland’s 5.2 million citizens already have some kind of Internet access, but telecom companies will soon be required to provide everyone with a connection of at least 1 Mbps.

Meanwhile, our country is the only industrialized nation without a national policy to promote high-speed broadband and many Americans in rural areas struggle to get online. About 57% of urban households, 60% of suburban households and only 38% of rural households subscribe to broadband. At this point, I can’t even comprehend how someone could survive in American without Internet access. Maybe those Nordic folk have the right idea.

—Alyssa

Tags - Alyssa - internet - politics

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Mon Aug 24

In response to increased cases of Internet Addiction Disorder in recent years (hey, they call it a CrackBerry for a reason), the Heavensfield Retreat Center has opened the first 45-day recovery program in the U.S. for sufferers of the disorder (similar programs already exist in other countries, like China).
To qualify for admittance to the program, you must show several of the following symptoms:

1. Have a strong desire or impulse to use the internet.
2. Decreasing or stopping of the internet leads to withdrawal symptoms (e.g., general malaise, restlessness, irritability, lack of concentration, dyssomnia); and the above mentioned symptoms may be relieved by similar electronic media (e.g., TV, handheld games, gaming devices).
3. Continually increasing the amount of internet use and the extent of internet involvement to reach sense of satisfaction.
4. Use of internet in spite of its harmful effects; despite knowledge of harmful effects, internet use is hard to stop.
5. Difficulties controlling beginning, and finishing, and the duration of time of internet use; efforts to modify internet use may be attempted multiple times without success.
6. As a result of internet use, interests, recreation or social activities are decreased or abandoned.
7. Internet use is seen as a way to escape problems or to gain relief from negative feelings.
8. The extent of internet use is denied or minimized to teachers, schoolmates, friends or professionals (including actual time and expenditure of internet contact).
9. Everyday life and social function is impaired (e.g., in social, academic and workability.)

Er, I might have to start taking up a collection for the $14,500 program fee.
—Alyssa

In response to increased cases of Internet Addiction Disorder in recent years (hey, they call it a CrackBerry for a reason), the Heavensfield Retreat Center has opened the first 45-day recovery program in the U.S. for sufferers of the disorder (similar programs already exist in other countries, like China).

To qualify for admittance to the program, you must show several of the following symptoms:

1. Have a strong desire or impulse to use the internet.

2. Decreasing or stopping of the internet leads to withdrawal symptoms (e.g., general malaise, restlessness, irritability, lack of concentration, dyssomnia); and the above mentioned symptoms may be relieved by similar electronic media (e.g., TV, handheld games, gaming devices).

3. Continually increasing the amount of internet use and the extent of internet involvement to reach sense of satisfaction.

4. Use of internet in spite of its harmful effects; despite knowledge of harmful effects, internet use is hard to stop.

5. Difficulties controlling beginning, and finishing, and the duration of time of internet use; efforts to modify internet use may be attempted multiple times without success.

6. As a result of internet use, interests, recreation or social activities are decreased or abandoned.

7. Internet use is seen as a way to escape problems or to gain relief from negative feelings.

8. The extent of internet use is denied or minimized to teachers, schoolmates, friends or professionals (including actual time and expenditure of internet contact).

9. Everyday life and social function is impaired (e.g., in social, academic and workability.)

Er, I might have to start taking up a collection for the $14,500 program fee.

—Alyssa

Tags - Alyssa - internet

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Mon Jun 29

The Day the Internet Almost Died

We all know by now that news of Michael Jackson’s death crashed Twitter (though, what doesn’t crash Twitter?), but take a look at what other damage The King of Pop posthumously wreaked on the Web:

On Thursday afternoon, if you went to the Web site of the Los Angeles Times — one of the first mainstream-news organizations to confirm TMZ’s reports of his death — you might have found a blank page.

There was also a rash of sites related to Mr. Jackson that have popped up since yesterday, including ismichaeljacksondead.com (Don’t go there if you’re an MJ fan). Michaeljacksonisdead.com was registered in June 2005, according to Barb Rechterman, executive vice president for domain seller Go Daddy.

AOL called Thursday’s Web traffic a “seminal moment in Internet history.” “We’ve never seen anything like it in terms of scope or depth,” the Internet-service provider said in a statement. A spokesman says its instant messaging, AIM, was down for 40 minutes Thursday afternoon.

-Maria

Tags - celebrities - maria - Twitter - Internet

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Thu Jun 18

Internet Still the Leading Source for News

According to a Zogby Interactive survey, the Internet is the preferred channel of receiving news in the U.S. If given the choice, more than 50% of survey respondents would choose the Internet as a news source, followed by 21% for television and 10% for both newspapers and radio.

-Maria

Tags - internet - maria - news

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Mon Jun 1

There are homeless people with nicer computers than me

It’s true! I have a Dell Inspiron that my father gave me as a high school graduation present - that’s about seven years ago. And, according to this fascinating article in today’s Wall Street Journal, there are people living in vans who have Mac PowerBooks.

The article is great and the commentary is spot-on. The author, Phred Dvorak, aptly notes that at the dawn of the Internet age, people expected the technology would be a wedge between the haves and the have-nots. But the future proved the opposite. The Internet is freely accessible in many public spaces, and computers are so cheap that even some homeless can afford them.

The article is another reason to support citywide wireless programs.

-Tom

Tags - Tom - Internet

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Tue Jan 13

Who’s the handsome man with the bushy eyebrows, you wonder? I’ll tell you. That’s Julius Genachowski — he was Obama’s technology advisor, and is now pegged to take over at the FCC. Throughout the campaign, he supported Web neutrality and government-supported proliferation of affordable broadband services. Genachowski also champions consumer privacy rights and regulated media ownership to ensure diversity. His leadership at FCC should be welcomed by all who enjoy freedom on the Web. (Lets all hope he updates the FCC’s website! It’s a monstrosity.)
-Tom

Who’s the handsome man with the bushy eyebrows, you wonder? I’ll tell you. That’s Julius Genachowski — he was Obama’s technology advisor, and is now pegged to take over at the FCC. Throughout the campaign, he supported Web neutrality and government-supported proliferation of affordable broadband services. Genachowski also champions consumer privacy rights and regulated media ownership to ensure diversity. His leadership at FCC should be welcomed by all who enjoy freedom on the Web. (Lets all hope he updates the FCC’s website! It’s a monstrosity.)

-Tom

Tags - Tom - politics - Internet

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Tue Nov 25

Lunascape - The All in One Browser

Lunascape, a Japanese company, launched a new browser that allows users to toggle between browsers (Internet Explorer, Firefox and Google Chrome).

-Tom

Tags - Tom - technology - Internet

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Fri Oct 31

A new study shows that Google runs over 10 million Web sites, and has a 10% share of all the active sites on the Internet. Google really is taking over the world, and for some reason, I’m sort of fine with that.
—Alyssa

A new study shows that Google runs over 10 million Web sites, and has a 10% share of all the active sites on the Internet. Google really is taking over the world, and for some reason, I’m sort of fine with that.

—Alyssa

Tags - Alyssa - Google - Internet - statistics - research

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Fri Oct 24

Is your dirty laundry being aired out in cyberspace?
Do you ever feel as if the web has access to your personal diary? It’s like the Internet knows all of your secrets. The Web is always sending targeted pop-ups that you might not want to see (like you’re overweight, single, etc…) And now, Facebook is sending them too! Glamour.com recently posted on the topic and so has Yahoo! Shine and the Washington Post. Glamour.com writer Rachel Beckman summed up her experience like this:

Every time I logged in to my home page, Facebook’s ads screamed at me with all the subtlety of a drill sergeant: “MUFFIN TOP.” With the knowledge that I was engaged to be married, the site splashed an ad across the left side of the screen playing into a presumed vulnerability. Do you want to be a fat bride? You’d better go to such-and-such Web site to learn how to lose weight before the big day.”

-Michelle

Is your dirty laundry being aired out in cyberspace?

Do you ever feel as if the web has access to your personal diary? It’s like the Internet knows all of your secrets. The Web is always sending targeted pop-ups that you might not want to see (like you’re overweight, single, etc…) And now, Facebook is sending them too! Glamour.com recently posted on the topic and so has Yahoo! Shine and the Washington Post. Glamour.com writer Rachel Beckman summed up her experience like this:

Every time I logged in to my home page, Facebook’s ads screamed at me with all the subtlety of a drill sergeant: “MUFFIN TOP.” With the knowledge that I was engaged to be married, the site splashed an ad across the left side of the screen playing into a presumed vulnerability. Do you want to be a fat bride? You’d better go to such-and-such Web site to learn how to lose weight before the big day.”

-Michelle

Tags - Michelle - Internet - privacy - Facebook - advertising

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Thu Oct 23

Not quite sure what your friends are talking about when they refer to “Spaghetti Cat” or “Garfield Minus Garfield”? Check out this very cool interactive timeline of Internet memes, so next time you won’t be in the dark!
—Alyssa

Not quite sure what your friends are talking about when they refer to “Spaghetti Cat” or “Garfield Minus Garfield”? Check out this very cool interactive timeline of Internet memes, so next time you won’t be in the dark!

—Alyssa

Tags - Alyssa - Internet - viral - video - memes

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