“We can have democracy in this country or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we cannot have both.“ So the famous US Supreme Court Justice and ‘crusader for social justice’ and breaker-upper of Gilded Age monopolies, Louis D. Brandeis is said to have said, perhaps sometime in the early 1930s. Today, perhaps the best-known neo-Brandeisian anti-trust advocate is Tim Wu, Columbia law professor, ‘father of net neutrality’ and author of a series of books … [Read more...] about SDF Podcast 26: To regulate, or not to regulate, that is the question…
Business
FIR 176: Our 1,000th episode is hefty but good
The February 2019 edition of the Hobson and Holtz Report podcast, aka FIR episode 176, is a show that marks a big milestone for Shel and I. It's the 1,000th episode* of a podcast that we began in January 2005. In addition to recollections of times past and comments from listeners from throughout FIR’s 14-plus-year history, plus special news from Shel about continuity plans, we report on these stories in this episode: Is it no longer acceptable to call people “users”?Five revelations … [Read more...] about FIR 176: Our 1,000th episode is hefty but good
A shout-out to Samsung for great customer service
I'm a big fan of Samsung's products especially their Galaxy series of smartphones. My first Samsung smartphone was a Galaxy S3 in 2012. That was followed by an S4 and then an S6. I'm now on a Galaxy S8. The next one might be an S10 as it looks like I'm an even-number kind of Galaxy user, if I go for another Samsung model again. Which, by the way, is not a guarantee with the likes of Huawei and other emerging manufacturers offering leading-edge tech and compelling user experiences often … [Read more...] about A shout-out to Samsung for great customer service
For Immediate Release 172:
The double-edged sword of a Facebook meme
Suspicion about the consequences and outcomes of the #10YearChallenge meme on Facebook kicked off discussion in the January episode of “The Hobson & Holtz Report”, aka FIR podcast episode 172.
Is it just a harmless meme? Or is it a surveillance nightmare? Shel and Neville weight in.
Here's the line-up of all the topics that caught our attention and prompted lively conversation in this episode:
Lost trust in Facebook led to wariness about a user-generated meme.Adobe is bringing part … [Read more...] about For Immediate Release 172:
The double-edged sword of a Facebook meme
SDF Podcast 24: Reading the runes for 2019
The SmallDataForum celebrated its third Christmas with a highly calorific and somewhat alcoholic Italian lunch, followed by post-prandial musings about high- and low-lights of 2018, and some crystal ball gazing for 2019. Our regular followers / listeners – or just about anybody with any interest in tech and communication – won’t be surprised by a list being topped by Facebook, and then some more Facebook. Followed by GDPR and other regulatory activities, mainly by the EU. And of course we … [Read more...] about SDF Podcast 24: Reading the runes for 2019