Category: Digital Life

Facebook Page Spoofing: A Newer Internet Annoyance

Carl Setzer

I’ve received notices from time-to-time from “friends” who I’d already friended. Random and every so often. Today, it was my turn.

It started with a good friend texting me saying he’d just gotten a friend request from me. Well, as we’ve been friends on Facebook for years, it was a tad bit suspicious.

I jumped on to my page, and up pops a message saying it looks like someone is pretending to be me and what do I want to. Actually, the whole process was pretty quick and easy. Ironically, while I was messaging a few other friends who’d let me know, I had a friend request from someone I’ve known for years. And got to report that one.

I’m really not sure the value of this, except for the ability to directly message people and solicit cash. Probably setting up a “I need emergency funds” scam.

Anyway, be duly diligent with new friend requests; especially if you suspect you already are Facebook friends. And, if someone pings you saying they’re in a Mexican jail needing bail money (or some such thing), be suspicious.

Be safe out there!

Auto-Play Emails: My Bane On The Web

Carl Setzer

Reading “With Autoplay On, Turkey Assassination Video Shocks Twitter” reminded me of one of the things I’ve hated on the web for ages: auto-play email.

Now, what I’ve long loathed is the simple nuisance of the videos blaring audio. What’s even better is when a site has multiple-autoplay videos on their site (like a news article and an ad). The noise and caucaphony drives me bats.

Now, though, here’s another, more powerful reason to end this practice. You’re scrolling through your Facebook or Twitter feed and your hit with a murder. There’s nothing more crass or brutal to just stumble upon.

If good taste nor good, thoughtful design won’t get the powers-that-be to end this practice, perhaps getting dinged with PTSD suits will.

End auto-play videos: it’s good for us all.

Thoughts on “That Dragon, Cancer 2016” 

Carl Setzer

That Dragon Cancer, a game changer (please forgive my pun). At least it expands my idea of what video games are, and what they can be.

Games are immersion, bringing you deeper into a narrative than any story or film can bring you. Elements of poetry, art, motion interplay to bring you deeper than you ever could’ve gone .

They won the “Games With Impact” at this year’s “The Game Awards“. Which tells me the gaming industry recognizes the importance and power of such games. I’m pondering what the intersection with VR will bring about. The future holds amazing promise. 

Reflecting on Om Malik’s article “Silicon Valley Has An Empthy Problem”

Carl Setzer

​”Silicon Valley Has An Empthy Problem”

It’s very hard to break free of our focus bubble, seeing the impacts of our technological creations. Whether Uber, Amazon, Bitcoin , or any of a huge number of disruptive changes. People’s lives, and livelihoods are hugely impacted. We lose sight of that at our peril. 

i agree quite heartily with Om here. Tech needs to add empathy into its DNA. A simple elementary possibility: add empathically oriented checks in the project mapping. Ask “who’s hurt by this product”?

It’s a start. An important one. Or, perhaps, a critical one. 

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Rebooting a Samsung S7

Carl Setzer

My phone froze earlier today (black screen, no activity), and several of my default fixes didn’t do diddly-squat.

I googled it and found several options. Most of them didn’t do anything. Don’t know if that was due to some model differences (Verizon vs ATT, for instance), or something else.

Anyway, what finally worked was this simple combination:

  • Press and hold the Power button at the same time as the Volume Down button. You’ll hold them for around 10/12 seconds, so don’t give up too early.

That’s all it took. It booted fine and seems to be happy now.

Some thoughts on “Serious academics take the media seriously”

Carl Setzer

I found this post over at Small Pond Science fascinating. As a fan of science, if not a scientist, and deeply interested in social media’s presence in our society, Terry’s McGlynn’s post is very relevant. Terry calls out an anonymous article over at The Guardian basically dismissing efforts by scientists to engage with their work in the world of Facebook & Twitter.

I, for one, think there’s great value in the public debate. Not everything on social media is fluff. And, if it’s to be taken seriously, we need to encourage more, not less engagement by scholars online.

Bloody Small Screens

Carl Setzer

If you know anything about me, I LOVE the mobile revolution. However, I’m noticing that posting on the small screens increases the rate of small errors. Little autocorrect word substitutions, mainly. Ones small enough, and having enough of the right letters in a similar sequence as the desired word that they go live wrong.

Had such this morning. Posted an update to a Facebook page I manage with “create” in place of “great”. I read the post several times before hitting publish. Ugh!

I take my writing seriously, so even small grammatical errors bother me. So, with that, I have been trying to post more from a computer, something with a monitor. I notice that my erorr rate is much smaller that way. Plus, I feel more focused.

And I need to recognize I’m human and mistakes will happen. But I never intend to like it, and will be satisfied with any mistakes. Ever.

Online Advertising and the Mobile Revolution

Carl Setzer

As I’ve focused the past few years on marketing, I have no issue with web ads. Currently, they’re the way many web personalities and other sites pay their bills. Family feeding is a fun, fantastic feeling.

However, web designers need to build advertising around mobile. Too often advertising either destroys the user experience, or critically hampers it. Pop ups that can’t be cleared are big issues. Several times this week I’ve struggled with sites where the “close” button was off the screen, AND clicking on the ad took you to a new website. (Sidenote: web devs and designers, use the target attribute on anchor tags. Don’t build ads that push your readers away from your site!)

These things make your site unusable on mobile. And, let me reiterate what’s been stated myriad times: the web’s future is mobile. If your mobile experience sucks, you’re are already behind. Perhaps you’re ahead of the curve on being an anachronism. It’s hardly ideal.

Last year’s whole Google mobile-gedon thing should have pivoted sites over, but, well, nope. But then folks still build auto-play videos on their sites. Thought that went out with MySpace. Since I’m simply griping now, let me add popups asking me to subscribe upon page load. Let them learn what you’re about first. I’ve neverr subscribed to a site BEFORE I’VE READ ANYTHING! NEVER!!!! Build the pop-up to launch towards the end, if you must use them at all. I’d put the ask in the post body, personally.

Developers, build sites for positive USER experiences. Delight your readers, inspire them to come back again. Don’t give in to greed or desperation. They’re ugly.

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Friendship in the Digital Age

Carl Setzer

Lately I’ve pondered “connection”. With several hundred Facebook friends, LinkedIn connection, over a thousand Twitter followers….maintaining connection starts to feel easy. Too easy.

I’m noticing that I interact with a smallish group of the same people on those different channels. These are dear friends, but not  even close to the larger group of people I want to maintain relationship with. So many good folks that I keep thinking “why don’t we get together more often?” That bothers me.

I signed up for Plaxo ages ago, and I really haven’t done anything to maintain that list. But I get emails reminding me of birthdays and any other events (anniversaries) that I noted in my contact when I synced. These reminders are nice in that they trigger me to reach out. That’s a start.

So, I’m trying to “up my game”. Going to build a list of those contacts to, well, contact. I would like to start sending notecards out, too. That just seems nice.

Any of you feeling this lament? This disconnect from connection. What are you doing about it?

Life, Death and Social Media

Carl Setzer
Yesterday had one of the surrealer moments in my life. A friend from childhood has been ailing at Stevens hospital (properly, it’s now Swedish Edmonds), and was given a few days/weeks to live. So, last night he posted on Facebook that he had just hours to live and that this was his last post. With his deteriorating health, I fully believed the statement.
There’s much within this, but I’m focused on the newness of this. Since he has a phone, which can be worked pretty easily even when weak and exhausted, this contact was able to be pushed out.  Made me think of the last minute letters sent by rebels, resisters, those executed for political gain. Those letters were far more effort, and would only be readily sharable with a small group of people. Now, with a few strokes of your thumb, messages are sent to out to thousands, potentially millions. The ease of mass communication deeply changes our connection.
As shocking as such a message is, I expect this to become more commonplace. Perhaps we can eliminate the feeling of isolation. And, in the end, perhaps it’s good. Maintaining connection in the most challenging and intimate of times.