Now every time we use Google’e search box it tries to second guess what we are about to type.  You may also have noticed that the suggestions are usually pretty close to what we are looking for.  In fact these searches process on the page asynchronously i.e. updating the search page results as we are typing our search terms.

All this mind blowing wizardry is made possible by Google’s sophisticated algorithms and indexing sytems.  But there is another intrinsic element in the personalisation algorithm that we often overlook, and that is US – our past choices, location, the browser we use etc etc.

But how much information is Google secreting away from our own online browsing habits?

According to  Rene Pickard there may be a whole gambit of ‘signals’ (50+) Google is discreetly storing and then asynchronously returning back to our browsers when we search.

This might not be just confined to our online Google searching.  More that a quarter of us are now using Google Chrome as our preferred browser, probably because of the way it seemlessly combines searching and web URLs in the same address bar space. So Google’s ‘personalisation’ has become part and parcel of our overall browsing experience.

It certainly appears to make life easier when it comes to navigating around the web –  especially when page URLs are not easy to remember and when searching by a word is much quicker and easier to do.

Bui it does raise some quite important questions in terms of user subjectivity and Google’s own objectivity:

• How ‘personalised’ is the Google predicting/interpreting the algorithmic process?
• Does Google reserve a covert commercial stake  in the way it prioritises its results ?

Before we get too paranoid about the Google Zeitgeist it might be worth a quick refresher on how search engines operate.

To try and illustrate (and running the risk of massive over simplification) Google’s original probablility algorithm has the browser’s actions at its heart of the calculation (see wikipedia article).e., it tries to predict ahead the liklihood of what you and me  browsers on the web are likely to look at and in what sequence.

Over the years by increasingly fine tuning the algorithm Google has maintained its competitveness as the number one search engine market leader. The holy grail  has been (or as we would hope) to return ‘clean’ search results faster than anyone else.

Undoubtedly the latest algorithms reflect this sophistication to the nth degree and to the point we have arrived at now i.e.,  personalisation (rather than from an assumption of user randomness – see original algorithm),.

But has the central philosophy changed?  And have the lines between ‘clean searches’ and  monetisation of results blurred beyond recognition?

I was recently discussing differences in search results based largely on another Google’s search innovation, Localisation – i.e. when we type in a product or service  Google switches into commercial mode- paid listings are the top three results on the first page. Local businesses may well feature on the first page results, and these results will differ depending where we are located.

I have got used to discounting the top 3 paid listings in Google although I inadvertently counted these in recently because they are now almost indistinguishable from the unpaid listings (following  a recent colour scheme change on Google’s search pages.) How much of this was a deliberate  blurring of  the distinction between paid (monetized or referred to as sponsored by Google) and unpaid (actual objective search results*) remains another of Google’s trade secrets.

(*objectiveness is also debabtable when we take into account optimisation methods by website owners)

Over recent years Google as the undisputed Search engine King does seem to have a adopted a carte blanche approach to collect and process vast amounts of our data world wide. The key to success has been monetising this information through the efficiency and speed of its algorithimic process, i.e. providing search results to you and me – the quicker this happens on the page the more likely we are to continue using Google services. It follows that if Google can turn more of this process into profit, the better its chances in staying ahead in an increasingly search orientated online environment.

Maybe we are happy to overlook and  accept the subtlteties of the switch into ‘commercial mode’ when we are looking to buy online, but we may not be so comfortable with the concept of manipulating search results based on what Google predicts for us.

We all would like to think  of a search engine as  a service is free in every sense of the word  i.e. searches clearly distinct from its advertising revenue stream, but as with everything else on the web perhaps we have become too accepting and trusting in the seemingly innocuous search engine, and to start to rethink of ourselves- our online relationships, conversations, wherabouts etc etc  as central in the stored repository of online search data. There is no doubting thefact that the the web user has always been at the centre of the search algorithm. Only now perhaps the focus is increasingly on me rather than us.

And maybe we should not be expecting Google to sit on its ethical laurels while trying to hold on to its market position as the dominant search engine.

Further Info:

http://www.further.co.uk/blog/Google-uses-57-signals-to-personalise-search-when-you-re-logged-out-332

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2011/072911-how-cloud-computing-will-change.html?hpg1=bn

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/jul/04/youtube.google

http://www.rene-pickhardt.de/google-uses-57-signals-to-filter/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/7310084/Google-could-face-2.4bn-fine-in-EU-anti-trust-case.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10278068

(OPINION)

‘Yes, I need life to be simple again. I am fed up of virtual life.’

I came across this  ’throwaway’ comment on a Youtube vid clip and though it was really poignant.

There are probably millions (of us) who now live are lives like this to a greater or lesser extent.  We live and breathe most of our lives in  a virtual world and the daily commute of living and working in an online environment has now become the norm for the vast majority.

Our work environment has probably been gradually shifting to this paradigm for the last quarter of a century. We’ve climbed the learning curve of technology and peered into a software based world via our screen portal.  We’ve honed our fingertip skills on the keypad and mouse, and touched the screens of the latest smart tech-toys.

Gaming and now Social Media have usurped our real world time even more.  We’re absorbed for hours on end, vacantly screen gazing, occasionally interspersed with a cursory glance out of the window to acknowledge the real world is still out there and doing OK. We walk and talk to ourselves in a ‘device bubble’ semi-detached from everyone and everything  around.

Technology now is so interwoven into our lifestyles now we hardly notice it.  And when  the next Tech revolution comes along no doubt we will again weave this seamlessly into our daily virtual attire.

Has there been  a social impact? Most certainly in the way we work, shop and play.  We only need to look outside at our own streets and  towns.  Maybe we’ve neglected the real world face to face communications that sustain communities? And are we hiding ourselves behind our screens  just a little bit too much?

Its easy to turn cynical and be caught up  in  the sentiments and nostalgia – and maybe all the social ‘connections’ are still as vibrant as they ever were.  After all its a whole new generation using different methods and means.

The song I was listening to on Youtube? – Scott Mackenzie and ‘San Francisco’. Admittedly I was engrossed by the images and clips of the era – its easy to be caught up in reminiscing and revitalising the free ‘spirit’ of this decade.  How people communicated in real-time and skin to skin (no avatars) and the absence of smart phones was so absorbing to watch – and cheesily refreshing.

Rose tinted glasses maybe. Lets face it, most of the flower-power generation were in a dope virtual space for much of the 60′s communicating through their own technicolor weed clouds.

I wonder if we have really changed at all?  The hypocracy in all this is I that watched the clip on YouTube and wrote this on my blog.  But still its good to reflect on gains and losses made along the way.

Which world would we rather be in? – last word goes to ’SuperStonedWeed’:

‘Yeah I’d give it all up. The only one I have now is the internet’

No going back I suppose. (BTW anyone spot the Scott Mackenzie lyric?)

But the real meaning of what THE CLOUD is and does has for most of us been pretty much analogous  to the big white fluffy thing that floats around and keeps changing shape – which is about as close to any clear definition many of us have at the moment.

So I will continue to stretch the analogy and say that as with all ecological changes in the web landscape the actual form and definition of what the Cloud is (or what it might become ) is still taking shape, and will no doubt continue to change as consumers and infrastructure adapt to what will become this new modus operendii.

Bill Gates the Prophet (not the profit)

I remember listening to Bill Gates several years back saying that the Future of computing is in The Cloud i.e. all information will no longer be held locally on your our own PC  or devices – instead there will be massive remote array of interconnected servers doing all the stuff that we currently rely on our own trusty hard drives to store (and to protect to a greater or lesser degree)  That includes all our own data property private files, media and software stuff we have accumulated over the the years.

Maybe its due to the impracticalities of trying to store all this private data on ageing hardware, as well as having to update Operating Systems and software which has made us relax our grip on our locally stored stuff.  Storage of data after all takes up increasing amounts of drive space, is difficult to access when we are out and about unless we have set up secure VPNs and/or network access – which for most people is impractical.

The explosion in social networking also has perhaps unconsciously wrought a massive shift to a new era of personal data sharing – from a few tweets to youtube videos and through to the more intimate stuff that we perhaps we  now wish we hadn’t been quite so carefree about putting out there.

Along with the increase in connection reliability and speed we all are starting to feel that bit more confident about communing in a broad sense via the Cloud – which has subsequently responded by technologically stepping up to the plate.

What it is not…

I think one thing we need to get our heads around first of all is that the cloud is not simply data storage  - its a whole range of potential benefits where we no longer have to do the techie type stuff – from updating software, setting up networks, backing up our data etc etc.  An example to illustrate this might be Google Docs . Xref the old method of writing a Memo or article in Word and the saving to your local hard drive.  Who can access it apart from you? Before anyone else can acces it you have to email or share it on the network – or change into a compatible format etc etc for somebody else just to open it.

Google Docs changes this by offering a web based App(lication), so no installing from disks and no need to update to the latest version.  You just do the typing and then share.  In fact this can be dome in real time also so that another person working on the same document can  see the changes as they happen.

The above  example just illustrates the massive potential of cloud computing – and that includes increased security, data back up, reliability and potentially global networking without the overheads or hassles.

Yes it does seem to make a lot of sense.  The massive uptake of  ’mobile’ device and Apps and the impact of sales of iPads on conventioanl PC sales perhaps is indicative already to a consumer shift to doing things in the Cloud.

Predicting the future of Cloud computing very much depends on a number of factors, not least of which is the roll out of faster and more reliable web connection infrastucture. However our early adoption does not seem to be the issue as device vendors and consumers are chomping at the bit to rollout the latest techno toys and Apps – no longer is our own concern for data privacy the barrier to any  growth – in fact quite the opposite.

Cloud Vectors and Vendors

Surprisingly perhaps its Apple  who are taking the more cautious approach with iCloud- which may be partly down to a protection of their own revenues and their knack of interpreting (and creating) current market demand, despite their boldness with the iPad – now arguably the flagship of all cool cloud devices. They seem to be adopting a more centralised Hub approach (and no prizes for guessing in which direction the revenue streams will be flowing)

Meanwhile Google in the oppposite corner are very much ahead of the game with their roll out of ‘Cloudware’  (Open Source Android OS ,Google Apps etc ad infinitum) .  They still optimistically see the cloud as the ultimate liberation from local storage and control and are confidently pressing ahead with their vision of the Cloud as The Locus of control.

Whatever the definition as always it will be the consumer who will determine what is happening in the Cloud. As with all things on the Web, personally I see it developing way beyond expectations, current technologies and constraints – it will be what we want it to be -a bit like looking at a cloud really.

Oh, and I got through all that and didn’t mention viruses once.  Well just the once at the end then.

Useful free ‘Cloud’ stuff:

Google Docs:

Well worth watching the video clip of this

http://bit.ly/aOzRxy

DropBox:

https://www.dropbox.com/

Useful file sharing Web App – synchronises mobiles, laptops  and PC. A bit like having a desktop on the web so you can share files with friends and colleagues easily.

Webcam sharing:

http://www.ispyconnect.com

Arguably not strictly a cloud App ‘per se’  but  nevertheless a great web app which makes synchronising lots of different video cameras(security and otherwise) really easy.

Google’s Social networking offering looking really useful when its rolled out with  lots of easy web sharing tools and  more privacy control than Facebook:

http://www.google.com/+/demo/

MS Office 365 is a web based version of Word,Excel,Outlookwith website editing and collaboration tools (subscription based)

http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/office365/what-is-office365.aspx

(I’ll add more when i get a mo but feel free to suggest any and I’ll have a look and maybe add them in.)

Yes we know you can’t  trust rumours but like the iPhone 4 its only a matter of time before the next incarnation  is unveiled – rumoured to be in the next few months.
But whether it will generate as much excitement as the previous launch remains to be seen.
No doubt many were slightly disappointed when they discovered there was nowhere to plug in their USB pen or  SD camera card  - (why? so you can buy an Apple peripheral of course).

One of the rumours is that this will be corrected in the next incarnation although there won’t be much else to shout about – apart from maybe being 1 mm thinner and having an anti-reflective screen.
Sounds like its more likely to be more like an iPad 1.1 rather than a full 2, and more of an upgrade than having anything innovative on board to get excited about
No doubt Apple’s canny marketing machine will again get the checkouts bleeping, and perhaps if they squeeze in those all important ports along its very thin edge will convince those who held off splashing out the first time round.

In any other public space we would intuitively be much more guarded about who had access to our personal and financial information.  Perhaps we get a false sense of security from the privacy we  feel in our own ‘personal browsing space’, or through simply not being  aware of the potential dangers.

Whatever the reason the volume of malicious software (Malware) circulating continues to escalate massively.  Their insidious nature and design means that most go largely unnoticed on our PCs or mobile devices collecting and reporting details about our browsing activity.

What is Malware?

Collectively known as Malware, viruses, spyware, netbots etc  are a group of malicious hidden programs designed to corrupt, collect and/or hijack data from our online devices – usually for financial gain or some other form of malicious intent-  although occasionally just for the notoriety. Viruses as the name implies are designed not only to damage and compromise our own equipment, but have an inbuilt ability to spread and then replicate on other machines via a network connection, plug-in devices, email etc etc.

Spyware in contrast  covertly gathers and reports back any browsing activity and personal info from your machine or mobile device via the web.  The functionality of both is by no means mutually exclusive, and there are countless malicious variants being created – one every second last year (Sophos 2011 Threat Report).

Infection rates have massively increased largely due to the number of mobile devices connected to the web as well as the boom in Social Networking. This has been made much easier also by our   ‘always connected’ broadband; and as speeds increase so will the proliferation of attacks – and the lesser liklihood we will notice anything is actually going on in the background.

Why Attack?

Simple answer is money. Harvesting our private data is a lucrative business, especially in large quantities- the value of which  increases exponentially where it contains account information (access to credit card details, usernames, passwords).

There has been a massive increase in the demand for politically sensitive  or classified technical data as well as a rise in hacking online advertising campaigns  and online survey revenues from sites.

The 2011 Sophos Threats Report makes for some very sobering reading and hopefully will prompt us to take our online security much more seriously.

The number of unique malware pieces(viruses,spyware and botnets) detected by Sophos doubled in 2010.

The demand for illegally ‘harvested’ data such as  email addresses has continued to rise as well as data collected via keylogging, botnets (undetected but active malware linking together individual machines via the web) etc etc.

This huge increase was largely attributed to attacks which capitalised on the huge growth of  the smart technology market (mobile devices to browse the web) along with our massively increased use of Social Media.

And these attacks are getting ever more subtle:

• Fake anti-virus alerts – a virus alert warning appears on the screen often mimicking your anti-virus software.
• Clickjacking, a pseudo link behind a normal link which triggers a malicious attack  (e.g. by clicking on the Like button in Facebook)
• Social media vulnerabilities – e.g. Facebook Applications that have gone unvetted and unchecked- the user installs a game or downloads an update that has been infected.

Businesses have also seen infection rates rise largely attributed to the increased use of Social Networks at work with many companies  banning their use entirely. As most viruses are designed to spread through networks without being detected,  it has been essential to lock down the Social Networking  security loopholes.

Transmission

If  we haven’t taken the risks of Malware infection seriously so far  then the following is perhaps a good enough reason to reflect again:

One particular virus, STUXNET is so sophisticated that it can (and has) infected Nuclear program computers (in Iran) and altered the control process. Yet this type of infection can be transmitted through something as simple as plugging in a USB pen.

Although there has been a shift in emphasis for attacks: emails are still a major source of transmission. The cute animal pictures, and now increasingly more shocking links in emails, are frequently a disguise for something more sinister.
As always extreme caution has to be exercised when clicking on attachments and links, particularly from jokes or pictures circulated between colleagues and friends.

Prevention

Having an understanding of how Malware  is transmitted is half the battle to preventing attacks and  just as importantly prevent us passing them on to others.
And if you still are not quite sure about the other half  here are a few safeguard reminders :

• Having up to date anti virus/anti-spyware software properly installed – preferably configured so that it can detect atacks from all possible sources immmediately (e.g. timed virus scans may not pick up any recent ‘keylogging’ between scans).  Remember to scan  storage/plugin devices and media also
• Activating a Firewalls – can be deployed via Hardware (router) or software(Operating System)will block attacks trying to gain access by the ‘back door’
• Adopting a much more cautious approach to Social Networking -  particularly activities on Facebook and where individual user actions might compromise others or network security
• Clearing All browsing History regularly (daily if necessary) (cookies, saved pages etc etc- and  not just the last few days)  from ALL web browsers we use.  We may lose some quick access info but well worth the extra protection
• Uninstalling not needed browser toolbars  and Add-ons (appear at the top of the browsing window).  They are most likely relaying your browsing habits to an external agency unless you have configured them otherwise
• Take the possiblility of a virus attack seriously – if you make the assumption that you have been attacked then this may force a more cautious approach to online browsing (e.g. change passwords regularly)

One final tip (if you do not already do this).  Next time you click on  a download (possibly free), make sure you do a few checks checks before installing:

• is the company name in the address bar and the download site address reputable?
• scan the software before you install it (available usually if you hover over the download and right clicking)

2011 Future Threats

Its likely that the rapid growth and use of mobile browsing technology and Social Networking will increasingly be the soft ‘underbelly’ for malicious attacks.  Smartphones are likely to continue to be high on the agenda, particulalry where software has been compromised (jailbreaking iPhones, downloading unvetted apps)

If we are to protect ourselves in the future then having an awareness of how attacks can occur in the first places should make us much more cautious and vigilent.

Adopting a regular regime of good ‘PC  Hygeine ‘  will all help us steer clear of many potential threats and be in a better position to recognize them despite their many disguises.

Its official - Apple has now taken the lead in ‘cool’ consumer smart technology. Proclaimed an outright winner by the quick consumer test on the BBC technology website when pitted against the Archos and Dell Streak, the iPad could now become yet another iconic gadget from the ever expanding Apple empire who clearly have the pulse of the business and  consumer market.

A trio of slick new devices has now seen Apple overtake Microsoft as the Global leader – On Wednesday, Apple’s capitalisation closed at $222bn compared to Microsoft’s $219bn.

Other manufacturers are not giving up the fight however, with Archos tablet and Dell streak also performing admirably using Google’s much acclaimed Android OS.

Its fair to say also that there has always been a degree of scepticism around the launch of Apple’s  Smart tech hybrid – maybe their  risky ‘toe in the water’  approach to re-launching a tablet format device has allowed others to profit in the wake of their trail-blazing.

Apple have shown themselves to be adept in translating what is ‘cool’ and ‘hot’   into a ‘must have’- which is why they have become the clear market leaders.  But perhaps it wasn’t such a risky venture?  They do seem to have impeccable timing for getting it right.

I remember Bill Gates declaring a few years back that there would be a wholesale change in the future  in the way we work – from local applications where the computing power and data is localised towards what is now loosely termed Cloud computing.  - but this would also need wholesale changes in thinking and attitude to the way we work (and play!).  And as  our Global internet usage accelerates astronomically it was was only a matter of getting the product launch timing right.   Apple have shown that they can do this with consummate ease.

Gathering Clouds

But lets rewind for a minute and explore the ‘cloud topography’.  Currently  Blogs, social media and the like are ‘remote’  media applications we can access through a browser.

These applications  are essentially about quick communications but now include a range of media tools  for photos, music and video.  An opportunity was looming large to link all of this activity up to mobile devices – at the same time there has been a seismic shift from users to browsers, from the PC work station mentality to mobile connectivity.

Apple foresaw this and stepped up to the plate by providing the complete package –  slick  mobile devices + the apps to go with them .  Almost  at the same time Google adopted a more more open source philosophy by  releasing the Android operating system which could be run on a range of devices and thus liberating users from the shackles of Apple’s cash cow.

But will it stop there? Why not have all our applications and data outsourced ,i.e. in the cloud, rather than have everything reside inertly on our PC or laptop or smart device? After all, the cost of the hardware as well updating applications is tedious.  If its all taken care of  ’in the cloud’ for us we’re left free to get on with the things we should be doing.

This is no longer a vision for the future but a reality for many businesses who now see outsourcing all their networking and IT administration requirements as the way forward rather than employ in-house expertise.

But maybe we’re all not comfortable with this concept just yet . I for one am still sceptical about uploading all my stuff to a remote centralised location with very little knowledge of where my bit of the cloud happens to be at any one time. Perhaps  we are rightly still  suspicious about the ‘cloud’ and view it as  a metaphor for ‘we really don’t know exactly where stuff  is or who can access it ‘.

Will this mindset change? I think it has to. Having recently emerged from a what was a almost a viral meltdown on my own home network, I now have to confess to a  false sense of security with all my data residing on my home and business PC network.

We have become so connected that perhaps we forget that we have now become  irrevocably interconnected.

So maybe its time to start handing over the reigns to the experts in the cloud…or maybe not just  yet.

As the hordes of those now web savvy get older and older  its a foregone conclusion that the proportion of wrinklies twittering and posting on Youtube will be doing this from a comfortable armchair armed only with a cup of tea and a hob nob.
Yet there still are and always will be , those who adamantly refuse to ‘get connected’ (hate that phrase).
Their loss really, and it also means we can blog and twitter to our hearts content about them because they will never read it anyway.

Lets face it, much of the innovation and technology it is no longer new; and as we all grow older we are becoming wiser anyway if not a bit doo-lally judging from the facebook comments I get.

There are still attempts to censure free speech – what we proudly call ours as a right in any democratic society. China’s filtering of Google searches and Pakistan’s banning of Youtube. But this only illustrates how  the internet has irrevocably engaged both Politics and Global Socialization

I am actually attempting to make a serious point about all of this, that is there is a paradigm change – not just in business which has been snowballing for a long time, but in all our social involvements.

A recent report showed that we are now spending 65% more time online than we did three years ago. The driving force in this change has been social networking perhaps unsurprisingly -and the more familiar we get the less scarry it becomes and  the more we seem to be embracing it.

There is the other extreme  - take a look at sites like Chatroulette (or perhaps you shouldn’t) where webcam communication is randomly selected (via your IP) and peer to peer. Perhaps the lack of control is a bit scarry ( the only rules are to keep your clothes on – as if!).

Sites like these will have their place – and when they don’t they will quickly fold.  Its all part of our libertarian society and we do bang on about freedom of speech don’t we?

The web has always been said to mirror society closely- and the more sophisticated it becomes  the more inclusive it will become for us all.  John Lennon’s vision for a truly people powered global society coming of age  perhaps?