Futurelawyer

Facebook Says It Is Fixing Privacy Tools - Too Little, Too Late?

CEO Mark Zuckerberg says Facebook fixing privacy tools - USATODAY.com.  I suppose I could have titled this post "Would you buy a used car from this man?" After a long series of disclosures that show the disdain of Facebook's founder for his users, should you trust the claims that Facebook is going to make it easy to keep Facebook information private? Users who overshare have nobody to blame but themselves, we are told. But, who among us hasn't said something that we wished we could take back the minute it came out of our mouths? A lawyer's view on this problem is that making it easier to keep stuff private won't have a big impact. In fact, everything that is posted would probably be discoverable in ediscovery if it could be shown to be relevant to a legal dispute, or calculated to lead to the discovery of relevant evidence. Broad standards, as any litigator will tell you. Perhaps we are asking the wrong person to keep data private. Each of us needs to be careful what we say online or to a computer. Even if Facebook gives users the tools to make data private, the perceived privacy may be illusory.

Is Skype In Your Firm's Future?

Skype's Growth Strategy - Forbes.com. As Skype positions itself for providing businesses with corporate phone service in October, it has been reported that more than a third of of the newly independent company's calls in the last year were business related. Business adoption depends upon high call quality and dependable high speed Internet connections, and Skype has been steadily improving call quality for some time now. It isn't time to abandon the phone companies totally; but, you should be following the progress of Skype, and testing it for yourself. How much is your firm paying for phone service?

I Didn't Unfriend You Bro! A Hacker Did It!

Security flaw lets hackers delete Facebook friends.  I no longer have to worry about Facebook "friends" getting upset with me because I unfriend them, since I am no longer active on Facebook. If you, howuever, are addicted and can't quit, save this article. It will come in handy when you have to explain to your mother-in-law why she can't reach you anymore. The hackers made me do it ranks right up there with the dog ate my homework.

Get Your Tech On!

Since the demise of Tech TV several years ago, I realized that tech video shows that dealt with down and dirty computer tech were not a mainstream money maker for TV. Now, however, as video moves to the web, there are many websites that are taking advantage of the inexpensive distribution opportunities provided by the Internet. (Legal publishers, are you listening?). Former TechTV alumnus, Patrick Norton, is doing a really interesting show for Revision3, called Tekzilla. Here is a current episode for your viewing pleasure:

Still Another Use For An Extra Droid

Okay, I am weird for having both the Droid and the Incredible. However, the second smart phone is proving very useful, as a GPS for the car, and a back up cell phone, and a portable media device. However, I found a really handy use for it when I realized I had a desktop dock from Motorola. It has a cool desktop application that turns it into a digital desktop clock, with active local weather, and the ability to play video and TV on the desktop. Right now, as I post this, I am watching TWIT Live, which is online tech video which comes as a weekly podcast. I can also watch law related podcasts while I am working, and my Incredible is available for phone calls and everything else the wonderful Android OS permits. 

Droid Upgrade To Android 2.2 In June - Beep, Beep!

Droid users: Upgrade to Froyo (Android 2.2) in June.  I am probably one of the only people on the planet with both a Droid AND an Incredible. However, I had to have the Incredible, and I had a year and a half to go on my Droid contract; so, what to do? In fact, it has been handy to have the Droid available as a backup phone, and to use as an in-car GPS navigator. Now, it appears that Verizon and Google will be bringing Android 2.2 to the Droid next month, which will allow me to have a dedicated Internet video device (with Flash 10.1), and a dedicated GPS navigation device, and a WiFi Hotspot device, and so on. Actually, with the Verizon family plan, you can add phones to your contract (up to 5) for $9.99 a month, and the unlimited data plan is only $29.99 a month. Since you will be using the same number of cell minutes (unless you can conduct two phone calls simultaneously out of both ears), this is a small price to pay for being the guy with TWO smartphones. While the Incredible is super fast, the word is that Version 2.2 is 4 to 5 times faster. These are RoadRunner speeds (the cartoon character, not the Cable company).

Have You Upgraded To Windows 7 Yet?

Over 78 Percent of Lifehacker Readers Say Windows 7 Completely Makes Up for Vista.  As my regular readers know, I hated Vista, and refused to upgrade from XP to it. In fact, I had resigned myself to many more years with the outdated, but stable, XP. Then, Microsoft, which turns like a battleship, finally got it right. Windows 7 is everything that Vista wasn't, and that is a good thing. I upgraded all my machines last fall, and haven't looked back. If you haven't tried 7, you need to take a long, hard look. The easiest way, of course, is to buy a new computer, which nowadays will have Windows 7 pre-installed. It takes some getting used to; but, the thing I love the most is that most problems solve themselves. Just click the button that says fix the problem, and 7 goes through a magical exercise that, more often than not, fixes the problem. This is really handy for network and Internet connection problems. As much as I hated Vista, I LOVE this operating system. I didn't even mind paying Microsoft for it. 

Perform Reverse Phone Number Lookups with Google Maps

Perform Reverse Phone Number Lookups with Google Maps.  Lawyers and other professionals are always getting phone calls from strangers, be they vendors, prospective clients, persons who want something, you know the drill. Now that most of us have smart phones, we take a lot of calls on the go. Often, when I got a phone call from an unrecognized number, I wouldn't return the call until I ran it in reverse number search on Anywho.com. Now, a Lifehacker reader has come up with a way to search the number in Google Maps. Just type the number in Google Maps, and, voila, you are searching every listed phone number in the database. You still can't find unlisted or cell numbers. But, what a cool tool.

Speedy Android 2.2 hits with tethering, push framework, more

Speedy Android 2.2 hits with tethering, push framework, more.  At Google I/O yesterday, the next version of Android was announced, and it is speedy and has some very cool features. You can use your phone as a portable wifi hotspot, while you are tethered to your notebook. No word yet on when it will be pushed to existing phones. I can't wait. While HTC Android already permits tethering, Verizon Wireless charges  $25 a month for the privilege. It remains to be seen whether the wireless carriers charge extra for the wifi sharing option. I am posting this while using the Verizon and Android tethering option from my hotel in Orlando, where I am attending a Convention, and it works fine. It saves me the nightly $10 charge for WiFi, which is spotty anyway. Check out the article for all of the new features. BTW, you may  start seeing a lot of frozen yogurt images on the web. Android 2.2 has been designated Froyo by its makers, and they are going to be having some fun with it.

Success Has A Thousand Fathers

Facebook CEO%u2019s latest woe: accusations of securities fraud | VentureBeat.  Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg thought the litigation from his former dorm mates was behind him, with the $65 million settlement in which he acquired their venture, Connectu. Apparently, they now claim they were tricked into the settlement by fraudulent conduct by Facebook's agents and officers. This is either a valid claim or an extreme case of sour grapes. But, with each side being multi-millionaires, I suppose that a few lawyers are going to get wealthy litigating it.