Google Health

Written by Moe on May 20, 2008 | No Comments

Google health launched today and could be really big. The new Google product will let you store and manage all of your health information in one central place. I think this is a great step forward for the online medical community. Sites like webmd are very informative but not personal. I can only imagine the amount of data Google will be able to index now. But hey, it’s free.

I hope Google doesn’t drop the ball on the social side, because it could be really helpful to a lot of people. Let users rate and comment on doctors and perhaps even view your friend’s doctors. Let users exchange medical treatments they tried out and give first hand accounts of medications. I’m tired of going to sites that pretend to be informative when, in actuality, are trying to push a certain new medication or treatment process on you.

• Start tracking a medical history and learn about your conditions
• Import your medical records
• View your medical history
• Find out how medications might interact
• Make your health information work for you
• Search for doctors and hospitals

Find out more information here.

Posted in Computer Science, Google, Life Stuff, Technology, Web

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privacy policy or the lack of it

Written by Moe on August 29, 2007 | 3 Comments

A few months ago I signed up for a SharedReviews beta account. The idea behind the site is to get solid reviews of products and pay the community 50/50 on certain revenue. Sounds pretty cool huh? Well it may be but as I was signing up I came across the privacy policy. Usually I just breeze through it but I decided to read this one.

“We protect your privacy with a passion!”

First, I want to say that I think ShareReviews is a cool site and I hope their business model works out. However, the privacy policy was kind of weird. It was actually amusing. Why do sites even have privacy policies? They should just come out and say “Yea, we’ll use your information for whatever we damn well please.” Below are some lines right of the policy.

“For the purposes of this policy, “Personal Information” means any information about you except your business title, address, e-mail address, telephone number or facsimile number. It also does not include your home address and telephone number if these are published in a telephone or other directory, and does not include any Review, content or other materials that you post or submit to use for possible publication. “

Umm….so what else is there? What exactly is private then?

“We do not sell your Personal Information to third parties. We may share some or all of your Personal Information with our third party business partners”

Hmmm ok. I shouldn’t be surprised. It’s a “review” site and to make money they are probably selling data. For that data to be worth anything they have to include user data with it. So why throw in the line about “we protect your privacy with a passion.” Half the business model is actually based upon doing the exact opposite.

Most users caring less is the worst part. We’ll go crazy if a telemarketer calls our house but we don’t blink while registering for a new site. Personally, I’m not against a website data mining to show relevant ads. Let’s take facebook for example. They will look at your profile and use that to display an advertisement. An advertiser will pay more to know that their ad is getting to their target demographic. I’m fine with that. I’m going to see an ad anyway, might as well see one that I might actually like. That’s how Google makes all their money.

What I don’t like is when companies sell information they collect. To me thats like selling hot pictures your ex girlfriend took for you. The ones she would dress up like a tiger and act like she is…ok getting off topic. The pictures were meant for you not the public or your favorite “rate this chick” website. Just because you don’t care about her anymore doesn’t mean you should go and sell something she wouldn’t want sold. However, let’s say you analyze the pictures. After hours of analyzing, and frequent naps, you say to yourself “hey i bet she would really like this lingerie site.” You contact her the usual way you two communicate and let her know that you are an affiliate for an animal lingerie site. Nothing wrong with that, right?

Posted in Business, Life Stuff, Satire, Web

3 Comments

libxml default namespace

Written by Moe on August 25, 2007 | No Comments

Can’t find your nodes? Neither could we. So it turns out that Xpath doesn’t behave well with default namespaces. This is what Corey and I figured out…hope it helps.

Example XML

<Response xmlns=”http://www.badpopcorn.com/solutions”>

<solutions>

<solution>Don’t got any</solution>

<solutions>

</Response>

Although you can load it into a document, you can’t find any nodes without a little hack (using the word little loosely). Ruby example.

    doc = XML:Document.file(’http://badpopcorn.com/file.xml’)

    dn = ‘dn: http://www.badpopcorn.com/solutions’

    doc.find(’//dn:solutions’,dn).each do |node|

        r = node.find(”dn:solution,dn).first.content

Yea, we know how you feel. Way to go Corey.

Posted in Life Stuff

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BlackBerry Pearl and Mac

Written by Ben on May 24, 2007 | No Comments

It’s called tethering, and the two websites you should look at:

1. http://www.taniwha.org.uk/
2. http://www.fibble.org/archives/000508.html

The BlackBerry Modem Scripts found on both sites are essentially the same (diff). I won’t bore you with the details, but just follow those instructions… and you’ll like getting internet wherever you go. I just have two things to iron out: I get disconnected after a few minutes of inactivity, and I get a “Bluetooth Model Resource Busy” error after I’ve uploaded pictures from my phone to the Mac. For the former, I just reconnect; To get around latter, I have to go through the stupid process of repairing my device and setting it all up again.

In fact, I wrote this post over the thether.

Posted in Life Stuff

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Not Being Evil

Written by Ben on May 5, 2007 | 4 Comments

Just a note to everyone: I’ve started a job where I’m not supposed to be Evil– as the motto goes. Anyways, I just finished my first week of orientation up in the Bay Area and am set to head back to their satelite office in Santa Monica. I’m spending my last moments hanging with friends in San Francsisco playing foosball… Yes… Foosball. Don’t laugh, I like playing this game while drinking with friends.

So, I won’t be blogging as much about the tech I work on. I’ll, instead, blog about random life stuff that doesn’t conflict with NDAs.

Peace!

Posted in Life Stuff

4 Comments

This not That

Written by Moe on January 17, 2007 | 2 Comments

Reflection is a task best practiced delicately. The bubble gum and duck tape that holds our lives together can be torn apart over a simple deliberation between dreams and reality. Thus, I took great precaution before sitting down and writing this, whatever “this” is. I didn’t want this to turn into that. Or become one of those that are usually written by them. How I hate them and their ways. I wanted this to be one of these that are written by those who don’t get along with them. How I hate them and their ways. So anyway, I enjoy reading quotes. With good timing and proper regurgitation I can appear intelligent through the expressions of those much smarter and original then I am.

“The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.”

-Socrates

My life isn’t a book but I wish it were. I wish I could put it down when it got boring or took a plot twist I didn’t agree with. I want my dad to write his memoirs but he keeps shooting the idea down. He feels it is a waste of time. “I already know what happened, why waste the time I got left proving it to you.” Although I don’t agree with his logic I can’t knock his style. It would be hilarious if a fifteen year old guy wrote an autobiography. It would be a 500 page book split into 20 chapters. The first two chapters would cover toys, video games and ice cream. The next eighteen would give detailed accounts of how to masturbate. Honestly, the youth these days are spoiled with streaming video. I remember when an obvious faked picture of Kelly Kapowski, loading a little over a minute, would do the trick. Usually a guy could unload before the picture finished loading. Honestly, I can’t remember if Kelly Kapowski had knees. But I can tell you that she is not a natural…

I’m sure you would find it pleasing if I stopped discussing masturbation. So, to please you and not me I will move on to another topic. This is random just as life is. More importantly, this is not that and was certainly not written by them. Don’t waste your time thinking about what you haven’t done or telling stories of things you did a long time ago. Don’t imitate. Don’t let your life be a quote out of the social norm. Say something, break rules and piss someone off.

Or continue to play with yourself from nine to five so you can fall asleep and wake up tired.

Posted in Life Stuff

2 Comments

Aim Conversation I had with a Friend at work

Written by Aaron on December 7, 2006 | 3 Comments

The names have been changed to protect the electronic identities of the innocent, but this is a real conversation.