Google Glass Gets Even Creepier? Bad News Or Good?

Creepy technology not unique to Google.

Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) is coming under fire (again) for the privacy implications of Google Glass.

On the one hand, being able to capture a photo with nothing but a wink is worryingly creepy. As is real-time facial recognition.

On The Other Hand, technology companies from LG to Microsoft to Apple are also raising privacy eyebrows. How can you prevent it happening to your business?

Robin Burks brings worrying news:

Google Glass is on a roll. … The newest update to Glass, however, includes…a photo app that lets you take a photo with just a wink.…
You wink with your right eye and Google Glass takes a photo. … If you’re just trying to flirt with someone…you might end up taking a series of photos of someone without their permission, getting once more into privacy concerns.

 So Brid-Aine Parnell explains further:

Of course, the wink-pics are bound to raise the hackles of privacy warriors, who are already concerned about the abilities of wearable tech to gather info on people without them realising.

If folks can snap images of each other with [a] wink…it becomes that much harder to tell…than if they’re saying, “OK Glass, take a picture” or fingering the side of their specs.

And Andy Greenberg adds another worry:

Since Google Glass first appeared, its potential for facial recognition has been seen either as a privacy nightmare or as one of the headset’s first truly intriguing uses. … Lambda Labs plan to release an unauthorized app for Glass that allows users to collect and catalog images of faces seen through its lens. … Lambda’s app, to be clear, isn’t meant for wide adoption.…
“Facial recognition is only going to get better, and soon you’ll be able to not only look at someone you’ve met once, but people you’ve never met before, and immediately see what you have in common,” says [Lambda's Stephen] Balaban. “You’ll be able to go to a conference and see all the engineers with Android experience or…see all the potential investors.” That’s not a prospect that pleases privacy advocates.

That sounds creepy. Only yesterday, Mike Elgan said Glass is not alone among creepy technology:

Some of the biggest trends in new technology these days are said to be “creepy.” … Opposition to Google Glass is based on the mistaken idea that the camera is recording all the time. … Who knows how your privacy might be violated?…
Too many companies creep customers out by not telling them about it or giving them control over it. Wrong! … You should strongly address both causes of that “creepy” feeling.…
Here are some more eye-opening examples, plus two important lessons for tomorrow’s business.

 Earlier, Mike also recommended that you develop a policy for wearable computing in the workplace:

Don’t look now, but here comes BYOG: “bring your own Glass.”…
It’s easy to dismiss Google Glass as an overpriced geek toy that will never go mainstream. But that would be a mistake. … Glass will never be as ubiquitous as the smartphone, but it will be mainstream. You need to start preparing now for [its] inevitable introduction…into your offices…inside the firewall.…
What are the implications…for the company’s BYOD policies? For regulatory compliance? For reputation management? … The benefits will outweigh the risks for most kinds of companies. But BYOD policies, procedures and management tools will need to be upgraded and augmented.

In fact, Mike foresaw this day, six months ago:

It’s becoming a true, proactive virtual assistant. … Once this capability is further refined and expanded, you can expect subtle nudges and reminders that guide you through your day.…
Although a face recognition feature has been disabled and banned by Google for now, it’s likely that Glass will eventually tell you the name of people you encounter, and remind you about your personal history with that person.…
Start making plans for how your business will communicate with customers who “wear” their computers, rather than carry them.

 Image credit: Sander Veenhof (cc:by) 

Usher Says Justin Bieber Is 'Unequivocally Not A Racist'

Iyana Robertson Posted June 7, 2014

Usher, essentially the man behind Justin Bieber’s music career, has finally given his two cents on the controversial videos that have dropped of the now 21-year-old singer using racial slurs. On his Instagram, Usher posted a throwback photo with Bieber, and included the following caption:

“At my core, I am a person that supports growth and understands without judgement, that growth often comes as a result of pain and continues effort. As I have watched Justin Bieber navigate difficult waters as a young man, I can tell you that he hasn't always chosen the path of his greatest potential, but he is unequivocally not a racist. What he was 5 years ago was a naive child who did not understand the negative power and degradation that comes from playing with racial slurs. What he is now is a young man faced with an opportunity to become his best self, an example to the millions of kids that follow him to not make the same mistakes.”

SEE ALSO: Justin Bieber’s Most Controversial Moments of 2014 (So Far)

In both videos recorded of Bieber about five years ago, he is captured dropping a series of N-bombs while telling racist jokes and playfully singing a “One Less Lonely N-gger” remix to one of his early singles. He has since garnered the support of Floyd Mayweather,Young Money and 50 Cent, who all have attested to the incidents as immature mistakes.

Bieber has also since released an apology.

TAGS Usher, Justin Bieber, justin bieber racist joke

U.S. economy regains all jobs lost in recession

Paul Davidson, USA TODAY



The Labor Department reports Friday that the United States in May added 217,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate remained at 6.3%. Moody's Analytics economist Ben Garber tells TheStreet's Joe Deaux the report came in-line with consensus expectation. Newslook

Employers added 217,000 jobs in May as the labor market reached a milestone with the recovery of all 8.7 million jobs lost in the recession.

The unemployment rate was unchanged at 6.3%, the Labor Department said Friday.

Economists surveyed by Action Economics estimated that 220,000 jobs were added last month.

Employment, at 138.5 million, exceeds its pre-recession level for the first time in the nearly five-year-old recovery. Payrolls fell by 8.7 million from January 2008 through February 2010, but since then non-farm jobs have risen by 8.8 million.

FIRST TAKE: More jobs but no cheer on wage gains

While the milestone is noteworthy, U.S. employment is still below where it should be after taking into account the growth in population and the labor force since the recession.

May's tally also mark the fourth straight month that job gains have topped 200,000 — the first such stretch since October 1999-January 2000.

Businesses added 216,000 jobs, while federal, state and local governments added 1,000 as professional and business services, health care and leisure and hospitality led the additions.

April's job gains of 288,000 were revised down slightly to 282,000.

Despite harsh winter weather that caused the economy to contract in the first quarter for the first time in three years, the labor market has shifted into a higher gear this year, gaining an average 213,000 jobs a month, vs. 194,000 in 2013. Such an increase can create a virtuous cycle, with job growth fueling more consumer and business spending and even stronger payroll gains.

Paul Ballew, chief economist of Dun & Bradstreet, expects monthly job additions to average 235,000 to 240,000 this year.

"Clearly the labor market is picking up some momentum," he says. "At some point that's going to translate into wage increases."

Ballew, however, noted the jobs recovery is uneven, with business services and health care leading and middle-wage sectors such as manufacturing and construction growing but recouping only a fraction of the positions lost in the recession.

In May, education and health services led job gains with 63,000. Professional and business services added 55,000. And leisure and hospitality added 39,000.

Manufacturing, meanwhile, added 10,000 and construction, 6,000.

Some other labor market indicators were encouraging. A broader measure of pain in the job market that includes part-time employees who prefer full-time jobs, Americans who've given up looking for work and the unemployed — dipped to 12.2% from 12.3%.

And the number of Americans out of work at least six months dropped by 78,000 to 3.4 million. The long-term unemployed still make up 34.6% of all the jobless.

The average work week was unchanged at 34.5 hours for the second straight month. Employers often add hours before beefing up staff. Hourly earnings rose 5 cents to $24.38.

Several analysts were optimistic ahead of Friday's employment report, noting that initial jobless claims — a barometer of layoffs — have continued to fall to pre-recession levels recently. And a measure of service-sector employment rose last month.

Others expected the job market to take a breather after April's booming gains. Private payroll processor ADP reported this week that businesses added 179,000 jobs in May, below the 200,000-plus expected.

The economy generally has rebounded recently after shrinking in the first quarter amid cold and snowy weather. Manufacturing activity, business investment and home sales have picked up, but consumer spending has lagged.

Google takes users inside 2014 World Cup stadiums

Can't make it to Brazil for the 2014 World Cup this summer? Google Street View has you covered. The virtual mapping folks at Google have created a World Cup web page that allows users to take a virtual tour of each of the country's 12 World Cup venues.

Users are placed in the center circle of any stadium they click on and, like any Street View interface, can then select many directions to move the vantage point.

The World Cup kicks off June 12 when host country Brazil takes on Croatia in Arena Corinthians in Sao Paulo.

United States soccer fans can check out the stadiums in which the Americans will play in the group stage of the World Cup: Estadio das Dunas in Natal (June 16 vs. Ghana), Arena Amazonia in Manaus (June 22 vs. Portugal) and Arena Pernambuco in Recife (June 26 vs. Germany).

(Photo: Yasuyoshi Chiba/GETTY)

10 Obvious Signs a Guy Is Flirting with You

Ever wonder if that nice guy is flirting with you? There are a few proven ways that can tell you if he is interested in you. While it’s difficult to read body language at times, it’s possible if you know where to start. Here are 10 ways that men unconsciously and even consciously let you know that they like you. Take a look, see what you see and maybe you will find your love right now.

1. Lovely smile

A lovely smile is actually a good sign and, when it comes to flirting, it’s one of the surest signs he is interested in you. If you notice that he is smiling at you, there’s a good chance he likes you and wants to approach you. Maybe he is shy, so why not show him your confidence and courage by approaching him first? Of course, if you like him. After all, there is nothing to be ashamed of if you approach a man first. Just smile back, initiate a conversation with him and don’t try to play hard to get. Playing hard to get is a great boost, but often it’s a big turn off for guys.

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12 iOS 8 features Apple stole from Android

By Chris Smith on Jun 4, 2014 

Apple’s recently unveiled iOS 8 mobile operating system has many interesting features, including some new tricks that have been available on a certain competing platform long before the iPhone maker found a way to implement them. Ars Technica has detailed as many as 12 features that have already been available to Android users long before Apple brought them to iOS 8.

Some of these Android inspirations are more obvious than others, including the new QuickType typing suggestions in iOS 8, Apple’s support for third-party keyboard applications, the “Hey, Siri” hotword for always-on listening features, the limitedWidgets support in the Notification Center, the battery stats shown in iOS 8’s Settings, actionable notifications, and the improved photo backup in iCloud.

Developer-oriented features, like the ability of uploading an app video in the App Store or to offer app beta tests to customers will also sound familiar to Android users.

Others may be less recognizable, such as the app intercommunication feature that lets iOS apps “talk” to one another. Also, the streaming voice recognition that Siri will support – each word of a phrase will be sent to Apple’s servers rather than the whole phrase – and the CloudKit support that will offer various server-related features to app developers may not be as obvious to Android users.

Regardless, Google has had similar Android tools in place for some time.

For a thorough comparison between Google’s Android features that may have inspired Apple to come up with its own alternatives, and the differences between them, check out Ars’ detailed coverage by following the source link below.

Meanwhile, here’s which iOS 8 features a hardcore Android fan wants to see Google steal in its next Android update.

TAGS:

ANDROID, APPLE, IOS 8

SOURCE:

ARS TECHNICA