So I logged into my Gmail account a few minutes ago, and what do I find in the message page, but a bar full of ads. My natural instinct is to zap the div container with Ad Block, so I do. This confuses me, as this is the first time I have ever seen them since I initially zapped them after installing AdBlock. I laugh to myself over my victory and proceed to continue reading my messages. As I open the next message, I am shocked to find another column of ads plaguing my window. So again I adblock the area. For good measure, I reopen the message. Ads. Again!

It seems as if Gmail is randomly naming the div container to prevent AdBlock from blacklisting the ad’s container. This is a low blow, and while genius from a company and coding standpoint, is beyond irritating for me as a user. I will keep trying to de-crap the experience as best as possible, but this is really going to irritate me. Keep it up Google and you just might lose another user.

Oh, and one more thing. In moving to a new server (and actually having blog.mikebruckner.com be blog.mikebruckner.com ) WordPress did not migrate the old users from my old server, so if you are a registered user, you will need to re register for this site. Sorry for the inconvenience!

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So, I’ve been thinking… I’ve got CS4, I go to RIT and am surrounded by graphic artists and other people with epic websites. Yet mine is based off of a template. What’s more, the main focus of my site has been my blog. Well, it’s time for change. I’m working on my brand new site. You can check out the teaser page at http://mikebruckner.com. The best part? Once all is said and done, my site will actually BE mikebruckner.com, and not merely a redirect to some other site!

Just a quick one to let you know that my friend Todd is in the works of creating an awesome new site for Blackberry apps. He is even offering free hosting. Check out his blog post, or the site directly, at otadrop.com.

While the site isn’t up quite yet, be sure to keep an eye out!

Why no iPhone apps? Hmm… must be because Blackberry is superior!

Keep up the awesome work Todd, and I’ll be looking to OTADrop when I can finally get a Blackberry next year!

Enter Digsby, an app written by a couple of RIT graduates (woot! RIT! ). Digsby not only supports a plethora of protocols, it also integrates with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and my email accounts. I get a little message whenever one of these sites or protocols updates, including when I get a new email, or when my friend has a new wall post. Best of all, Digsby has a slick interface, and is streamlined, and acts rather quick. Best of all, it’s free… take that Trillian Pro!

Ironic, just ironic

All was well…. until the company started getting greedy. Now, yes, I understand that they are a company that needs to make money, and generating a profit would be nice too. But, the makers of Digsby are choosing the wrong friggin way to do it. Let’s start with the installer. The previous installer, ironically, used a system similar to NullSoft. The front page displayed an icon promising “no spyware, adware, or viruses.” Ok, cool. Well, now, as part of their efforts to make money, the creators have chosen to now utilize “InstallIQ” to manage Digsby’s installation. Now, sure, you can still get the old installer, but only if you click the microscopic link underneath the obnoxiously obvious download button. Now, if you don’t know, InstallIQ is made by none other than freeze.com. Now, any computer user who isn’t a n00b when it comes to security, or even someone who can google, will know that freeze.com generally means you can kiss your computer goodbye. If spyware and viruses are your thing, cool, enjoy. The InstallIQ, along with Digsby’s site, claim that the “optional” components are not required, and are easily uninstalled. Uh, huh. Ok. Lemme esplane somtin to yu. Crapware that is bundled with apps that is made to piss you off doesn’t say, “HEY! Are you sure you want me to install myself and prompt you with ads non stop??”. Um no, it will just install, plain and simple.

Then there is a second revenue model that Digsby is trying. According to a blog post on Digsby’s site, the application will now, without your knowledge or permission (at least by default), utilize your computer’s idle CPU cycles to perform calculations for whatever they want. Supposedly it will only utilize cycles when the computer is idle, and the computational process is a low priority process that will stop if any app needs resources. Ok, there are several problems here. A, you never tell people that you are using their cycles, or that there is a way to turn them off. B, you aren’t telling us what you are using them for. You are essentially renting our computers and turning them into something that could almost be considered a botnet. Sure a botnet is composed of compromised computers controlled with Trojans, but the principle is the same. Now, this idea is similar to Folding@Home. Folding can be installed on PCs, laptops, Macs, and even PS3s. The idea is the same. Help global research by offering up your computer’s processing power. But here’s the difference. Folding is completely public and open. I can join teams to compete and see who can generate the most results, and more importantly, I can see what projects are being conducted, as well as the processing that my computer has done. For all I know, Digsby could be renting my cycles to some fly-by-night company that wants to come up with a new way to crack passwords. Sure, I would doubt that they would stoop that low, but hey, look how low they’ve sunk already.

And, just to rub it in, Digsby, by default, appends a message to the bottom of your profile that lets everyone know that you use Digsby. While this isn’t a big deal and easily changeable, it is just irritating to have an app that thinks they can just do whatever they want with my profile and my computer.

Being from RIT, I see Digsby stickers littered literally ALL over campus. At first, I thought it was cool, but now, I wonder how many people are aware of the crap that Digsby is pulling without their knowledge.

After ridding myself of Digsby on my laptop (and my desktop), I was redirected to Digsby’s site, where I could provide feedback as to why I uninstalled it. I let them know that I will not stand for such sneaky behavior from a company:

When I first starting using Digsby, I like it; in fact, I thought it was awesome! But then things started to change. You began using sneaky techniques to try and make money. First it started with the freeze.com installer. Anybody who knows freeze, or who executes a simple google query will know that freeze is no good, and it spells disaster in every sense of the word. To make matters worse, I happen to come across a blog post that said that you use my computer’s CPU cycles without my permission and without my knowledge by default. Sure, the blog post said how to “opt-out” of the program, but you don’t tell people during the installation either that you are going to use their cycles or how to turn off this feature. I don’t know what you are using them for, and I cannot check their progress, like I can with Folding@Home. With Folding, I can see exactly what my cycles are used for, and I can be proud to support the projects. With Digsby, I have NO idea what’s going on, and for all I know, it could be something malicious, whether or not that was you intent. This has made me lose all faith in Digsby. How am I supposed to trust you application now? How do I know that you won’t try to sneak in some other money making garbage when I upgrade or reinstall? What a shame. I was so optimistic about using your app. I have struggled to find an app with an interface and feature set that Digsby offers, and have not succeeded. I have had to settle for second best. However, I cannot use an app that I cannot trust.

While I’m still not thrilled about using Pidgin, anything is better than Digsby. I will continue the search for a truly great app that marvels Digsby’s capabilities, but until then, Pidgin reins supreme.

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So, I decided to give Facebook a try. It has far less ads and had a more promising interface and API. However, after learning from my roommate that they had changed their Terms of Service, I have a different opinion of them. According to a post on Consumerist, Facebook now claims that by uploading content to their servers, you are granting them the right to use your content for whatever they want, indefinitely. They don’t need your permission to do so. Here’s the best part: if you close your account, or even if you delete content from your page, they still keep a backup of the content to use whenever they want. This angers me. A lot. So much, in fact, that I may be soon closing my Facebook and demanding that they remove my content from their servers, unless they want a fight.

Why is this an issue for me? Well, besides the obvious fact that Facebook is essentially stealing my intellectual property (stealing, according to Merriam-Webster is “to take surreptitiously or without permission.” Me uploading to your site is NOT giving you the right to backup my content for your own personal use whenever you feel like it!), they are doing it behind users’ backs. According to their privacy policy, if they make changes to their Terms of Service or Privacy Policy, they will either notify users at the top of the Privacy Policy page, via email, or their homepage. Let me tell you, a change like this can’t be contained to a freakin’ tiny line at the top of the Privacy Policy (which, by the way, has an effective date well before the aforementioned changes). If this is the kind of company Facebook is turning into, I want nothing to do with them.

Though I haven’t made a true decision, I am going to be reviewing content on my profile, and if need be, demanding in writing, that the content has been removed. For your own sake, look through your profile for any content that you wouldn’t want Facebook using as if it were their own, and remove it, and write them to make sure that it really is gone. And from now on, make SURE that you really want your content submitted to Facebook before you post it.

Todd, though I might not have agreed with your position on some of the aspects of the new facebook layout, I can see why you are timid of Facebook! Facebook, you are headed down a dark path!

Let’s start with Ruckus. It was a simply concept… give college students free music for them to listen to. Sure, it had DRM on it that restricted you to listening it only on your computer, but it was music none-the-less. Now, I know certain people who will whine about DRM until the end, but I argue that DRMed music that is legally obtained is better than nothing, or need I say, pirated music. Unfortunately, because the service was not generating enough revenue from ads, they were forced to shut down. Great… now where am I going to get my music from?!

Now onto XM. I’ve got mixed feelings on this one. Part of me is sad for them that they might be shutting down. However, after logging in to listen to XM Online, since I’m at college and don’t have a radio in my room, I was presented with a lovely message that in less than a month, online radio would no longer be free! >:| Now comes the job of convincing certain parental units to spend the extra $3 a month so that I can continue to listen to “now near CD quality” music online. Nonetheless, I hope that they can get their affairs in order so that my backup source of music doen’t meet the sam fate as Ruckus.

Otherwise, stay tuned tomorrow to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/default.aspx for your chance to download Windows 7!

Mike Graae has been shooting photography for a few years now, and I can say that he is one heck of a photographer! He shoots with a Nikon D300, among other cameras, compared to my D40 (think his Porsche to my Honda Civic ).

While I will still continue to throw my favorite shots that I have taken up on my site, please take a moment to look at Mike G’s work over at his Picasa site. Send him your comments and thoughts!

Until next time…