onfocus

Leonard has a great summary of the Apple security problem: "Either Apple’s security was so incompetent or negligent that they have not been aware of what was going on, or they knew, but actively ignored the issue and decided that it was not worth fixing."

Maciej is correct. Again. "Perhaps they didn't feel they had a say in the matter. Maybe the economic interests promoting car culture were too strong. Maybe they thought this was the inevitable price of progress."

"To the engineers, I say this: we built the internet, and some of us have helped to subvert it. Now, those of us who love liberty have to fix it."

Social media monetization pains. I figured the Instagram acquisition was about driving traffic and content to Facebook, not serving ads. Seems short-sighted.

Mat Honan is experiencing a nightmare cascade failure of interconnected services. This is a good reminder to back things up and make sure your passwords are unique for each service.

Not only words, but it's important to think about all of the digital artifacts of living. They're all moving toward the domain of companies in the name of convenience. This conversation explains some of the problems with that. [via waxy]

Vint Cerf on Google: "...we couldn't run our system if everything in it were encrypted because then we wouldn't know which ads to show you. So this is a system that was designed around a particular business model."

"Sears used to sell houses by mail." Someone please put old catalog pictures side by side with modern pictures of those houses still in use.

"From now on, when I want to visit Facebook, I’ll be using the private browser setting in whatever browser I’m using." This is my new strategy too. What a hassle.

ok, this is worth getting upset over. Update (9/28): Facebook Fixes and Explains.

"If you’re into experimentation, manual focus lenses, or just enjoy 'vintage' gear, at around $50 it is a bargain..." Nice review of an old 50mm Soviet lens. eBay, activate!

Why "Love it or leave it!" isn't a valid response to criticism of social networks.

Interesting look at "password padding" to create memorable AND secure passwords. [via Ask MeFi]

"We’re not going to have a jobless recovery. We’re going to have a jobless future." Painful post to read but it makes sense. Now what?

"When people say there are no easy solutions to our problems, I don’t think they are thinking hard or creatively enough. If our problem is that we don’t have enough technically trained Americans, why are we not focused like lasers on educating people?"

"The kind of naming policy that Facebook and Google Plus have is actually a radical departure from the way identity and speech interact in the real world."

"A Swedish man who was arrested after trying to split atoms in his kitchen said Wednesday he was only doing it as a hobby." A hobby? Oh, that's ok then. ... WHAT?

"The people who most heavily rely on pseudonyms in online spaces are those who are most marginalized by systems of power. 'Real names' policies aren't empowering; they’re an authoritarian assertion of power over vulnerable people."