Trust and Internet
Allan D. Francisco
Some people every time they get online or surf the Internet take on a personality drastically and dramatically different from what they really are offline.
Some become mean, others become ultra-sweet and super-nice, and still others become teenagers hoping to lure young people into their webs of deceit and lies.
No wonder then that most Internet users are concerned mainly with online fraud. No sane Internet surfer will willingly reveal personal information. That would be the most logical conclusion, the height of stupidity even.
That is why nobody would know that this middle-aged, slightly balding, Michael Jordan fanatic writer’s social security number is SSN45678910. Nope. I strongly believe divulging such information could be harmful to one’s online presence. Only fools or inexperienced Web newbies would post such personal data online.
Personal Data for Online Trust
An Economic and Social Research Council-funded research, however, revealed that Internet users are willing to disclose personal information online, but only to organizations they believe they can trust. I guess, nobody would be in a rush to unmask their true selves for Web sites named www.senadorsitataygovernorsianak.com.ph or www.salvagekanaminpagdikaumamin.gov.ph. Again, something tells me most Pinoy Netizens would shy away from such Web sites.
On the other hand, people might be more ready to provide personal data to Web sites associated with trusted organizations and individuals, such as the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, Manila Bulletin and former US Vice President Al Gore. I am just not so sure with www.cannotwait2jointhecreator.com.
Internet Infra Needs Billion
While a certain country spends hundreds of billions of its rapidly devaluating currency to wage war, the Internet is struggling to keep up with traffic volume and access demand. And yes, the Net desperately needs at least billion in investments to ensure it could meet demand, which is expected to surge exponentially in the near future. (By the way, this amount covers only the North American section of the Internet.)
According to a study done by the Nemertes Research Group (www.nemertes.com), the Web’s infrastructure needs some serious beefing up. Otherwise, innovation might become extinct and the Internet would probably never see another Google, YouTube, or www.wowbulaga.com.ph again.
AMD Intros Spider PC Platform
Second-largest microprocessor vendor Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., also known as AMD, has unveiled the Spider, the company’s new platform for PC gaming. Promising support for scalable graphics performance, the platform combines AMD’s Phenom quad-core processors, ATI Radeon HD 3800 Series graphics processors with Microsoft DirectX 10.1 support, AMD 7-Series chipsets with CrossFireX and AMD OverDrive software.
Santa’s got my promise to be a good boy for the rest of my life in exchange for my editor assigning me to review the first Spider-powered PC that Technews gets its hands on.
Déjà vu All Over Again for the Nth Time
I am rushing today’s column not because my editor has warned me against being late again, but because another super typhoon is fast approaching my favorite city in all of Bicolandia. Super howler Mina (international codename: Mitag) is less than 24 hours away from (knock on wood) pounding Naga City back to the Stone Age the way super typhoon Milenyo did less than a year ago. I can still recall too clearly for comfort how the city lost power and Internet access for almost a couple of weeks in December 2006.
I hope that this time, being better warned would translate to being better prepared.
This corner says thanks to all parties involved in running the www.typhoon2000.com Web site for the latest updates on the supertyphoon.
That’s all for the meantime, folks. Join me again next time as we keep on watching IT.
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