The National Security Agency has a guide for how to use Internet searches in ways that you may not have considered. The guide was just released through the Freedom of Information Act and the NSA has posted a copy here. For anyone who loves thinking through how search engines actually work, it’s a fascinating read. As a tech instructor, I also am intrigued by how some of the best spies in the U.S. search for information.
Archive for the ‘Google’ category
Search the Internet like an NSA agent
May 8th, 2013Voice-to-text may be just as dangerous as visual texting
April 23rd, 2013A recent study at Texas A & M suggests that using voice commands to dictate a text message while driving may be just as dangerous as looking at the phone to do it. There are two factors involved. First, the driver’s brain is still distracted, especially if the voice recognition software is not recognizing voice. Second, drivers sometimes have more of a false sense of security when they use voice-to-text, leading them to not be as cautious.
I’ll be curious to see how Google Glass impacts this. (Another factor then would be distracted pedestrians in crosswalks.)
Seeing Google as a BBS is making me nostalgic
April 8th, 2013Yes, Google was after the BBS era, but it’s still fun hearing that modem successfully connect. The image search with an ASCII preview is even funnier.
Now to play a MUD…
Google is accepting applications for Google Glass testers
February 20th, 2013Wearable technology has been a fascination of mine since I first saw a Scientific American story about Steve Mann‘s attempt to be a cyborg.
Now Google Glass is looking to make some of that technology available to consumers and they need people to test out the devices. You can find out more details about the application by clicking here.
Here’s the catch:
Explorers will each need to pre-order a Glass Explorer Edition for $1500 plus tax and attend a special pick-up experience, in person, in New York, San Francisco or Los Angeles.
Yowza.
Google’s 2012 Review
December 31st, 2012Google has been putting out some great videos at the end of each year to summarize the major news events and search trends. The 2012 one is no different. Have fun reflecting on the past year and see if you can name all of the big events.
Google’s 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon
September 13th, 2012Have you seen Google’s new Bacon Number search tool? Type Bacon Number and then a celebrity’s name. Check it out.
Google Drive
April 25th, 2012Google Drive promises to be like Dropbox as a place to synchronize files across your devices. The added bonus is that you can set up your files to be shared amongst specific Google users. The downside is now Google, supercomputing powerhouse that it is, would now have access to those files. If I were a comic book supervillain, I wouldn’t take over a building. I would subtly take over Google.
Adding a weather forecast to your Google calendar
April 3rd, 2012
In your main Google calendar’s general settings (accessible from the gear icon), there are fields to fill in about your calendar. If you put in your zip code and then check the weather forecast button, it will add a little weather forecast graphic to your calendar. I think it’s useful, if only for the month of April in Arizona. Soon the forecast will be redundant: a slight chance of melting.
GMail Tap
April 1st, 2012Google always has great April Fool’s Day jokes. Some were pretty far-fetched, like the mind control features of Google Docs, but this GMail keyboard is pretty convincing:
News Flash: The lost city of Atlantis is lost.
February 7th, 2012I had always chuckled when I saw the lost city of Atlantis marked in Google Earth, hoping that users would check the validity of the information versus other sources. The “Atlantis” tag on the map over some shadowy areas of the ocean has now been removed.
