information

Facebook has incurred the wrath of privacy groups because of proposed policy changes it announced last week.

The executive directors of the Electronic Privacy Information Center and the Center for Digital Democracy penned a letter (pdf) to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg urging him to withdraw changes that they say would impact the privacy of the social network's 1 billion users and break its previous settlement agreement with the Federal Trade Commission.

The battle began when Facebook announced a proposal to overhaul its system last week, saying that it had outgrown its old model. The two groups say there are … Read more

NEW YORK CITY -- Verizon and Time Warner Cable said today they won't pull the plug on customers accused of piracy through a forthcoming "six strikes" program.

Link Hoewing, Verizon's vice president, and Fernando Laguarda, Time Warner Cable's vice president, said at a forum organized by the Internet Society that after they repeatedly inform customers that that their activities appear to violate copyright law, the companies' obligation is fulfilled -- and no account termination will take place.

That could reduce some of the privacy and due process concerns about the Center for Copyright Information, a … Read more

Iran is notorious for being a foe of the Internet, and the U.S. government has decided to do something about it.

The State Department announced today that it was sanctioning Iran for creating an "electronic curtain" that cuts off its citizens from the rest of the world.

The sanctions are against four individuals and five organizations that have been particularly oppressive when it comes to the freedom of information on the Internet.

According to a statement from State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland, these groups have "engaged in censorship or other activities that prohibit, limit, or penalize … Read more

As much as I'm a fan of Evernote (who isn't?), I've never really liked its companion apps. On my iPhone, for example, I've always found the interface confusing and not especially pretty.

That's about to change. According to the company's blog, Evernote 5 is coming soon for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. And it's looking mighty sharp.

The new Home screen, for example, resembles the top edge of a file drawer, with stacked tabs for things like places, tags, notes, and notebooks. One tap takes you directly to the corresponding screen.

It's … Read more

I've been known to wander the wasteland aisles of the grocery store, seeking out a single elusive item in a futile voyage only slightly shorter than "The Odyssey." If only I had a prototype tactile glove developed by the Helsinki Institute for Information Technology and the Max Planck Institute for Informatics.

The glove works by giving the wearer physical feedback. It vibrates to lead the person to a point in 3D space. The researchers see it being useful for locating items in a supermarket, finding a car in a parking lot, or zeroing in on a book among the stacks of a library.… Read more

It seems the job hunt is in your favor if you qualify for a job in IT. Though the job market is still recovering from the recession, more than half of IT employers said they plan to hire for positions throughout the remainder of the year, according to CareerBuilder's IT midyear job forecast, which is due out tomorrow.

The survey says 55 percent of IT employers said they were planning to hire full-time, permanent staff from July 1 through December 31, according to CareerBuilder. While this is a 1 percent decrease from last year, CareerBuilder said the market is … Read more

Wikipedia shut down for 24 hours, just six months ago, joining a massive Web protest in the U.S. over the proposed anti-piracy laws SOPA and PIPA. Now, it's stepping up again in a major Internet revolt against online censorship in Russia.

According to The Next Web, the Russian government is looking to amend a law called the "Act for Information." The proposed changes to the law could lead to sweeping censorship of the Internet, including the complete closure of Wikipedia in Russia.

Wikipedia posted a statement in Russian on its Web site, which The Next Web … Read more

The iPad was made to move, but even if your iPad never leaves the house, these three apps deliver the world to your tablet.

Tilt your iPad to flatten your 3D satellite view Do you remember the first time you used Google Earth to fly over your favorite world capitals -- or maybe just to get a bird's-eye view of your own back yard?

The novelty of panning and zooming may have worn off, but there's no denying the encyclopedic information Google Earth provides about all four corners of the globe.

The Google Earth iPad app bears a … Read more

Writefit Software Suite offers you four programs combined in one package, but we weren't all that impressed with the individual programs or the overall design. And users should be prepared for quite a bit of data entry to get the suite set up.

The application's initial interface is very plain but easily understood. You're presented with four large buttons, one for each of the programs: Web Address Book, Data Confidential, ChequeWealth, and TimeWatch. There's also a smaller button to help you get started that guides you through each program. Understanding how to use the program shouldn'… Read more