WWDC 2010
The Apple Worldwide Developers Conference kicks off on the 7th of June. Rumors already circulated that Steve Ballmer would be speaking about Visual Studio and Silverlight, but these were found to be false. All signs point to the new iPhone being officially released after getting leaked all over the blogosphere. The question is, what new features will the new iPhone bring? Android has been making big moves, so Apple is going to have to come hard. I’m sure they have a few tricks up their sleeves.
Quit Facebook Day
Fed up with the way that Facebook has man-handled their privacy, a few brave individuals have committed themselves to quitting Facebook entirely. Currently, there are about 23,107 angry Facebook users who have committed to quitting the popular social networking site on Monday, May 31st. For this group, quitting Facebook isn’t just about privacy:
For a lot of people, quitting Facebook revolves around privacy. This is a legitimate concern, but we also think the privacy issue is just the symptom of a larger set of issues. The cumulative effects of what Facebook does now will not play out well in the future, and we care deeply about the future of the web as an open, safe and human place. We just can’t see Facebook’s current direction being aligned with any positive future for the web, so we’re leaving.
There are a few things to consider here:
- Facebook has millions of users and, while they may act apologetic, losing a few thousand won’t hurt them.
- If you are hesitant to delete your Facebook, you’re already hooked. It’s crack. Quitting will not be easy.
- There are no alternatives, despite what some may say. They are either too obscure or too much of a pain for the average Facebook user to set up.
- I would bet half of the users signed up to quit won’t actually pull the trigger on Monday.
Google Reader Goes Public and Ping.fm Gets Buzz
Not only is Buzz deeply connected to your Gmail, but it also has ties to Google Reader. Up until now, comments on Reader shares were restricted, requiring you to manually choose who could comment. This restriction killed discussion and turned many potential users off. Now, anyone can leave comments on your Reader shares if you so choose. This feature is opt-out, but I doubt we’ll see any user backlash.
Another boost for Buzz is Ping.fm support. This opens up the door for much more activity and discussion on Buzz as more users will opt to participate there. Now, if only Google would give Buzz it’s own domain and get it out of my Gmail.