ClappingTree’s Web 2.0

THANKS TO A G1:1 MESSAGE FROM YISHAY MOR, a researcher with London Knowledge Lab, I got this special chance to read a very focused and balanced review of one of the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) machines — by SG, a 12-year-old! He wrote like an adult (and many say, better than an adult):

“My expectations for this computer were, I must admit, not very high. But it completely took me by surprise. It was cleverly designed, imaginative, straightforward, easy to understand (I was given no instructions on how to use it. It was just, “Here. Figure it out yourself.”), useful and simple, entertaining, dependable, really a “stick to the basics” kind of computer.

“…unfortunately, the internet is the only fast element of the computer. My main problem with this laptop is how very slow it is. It’s true that I am used to faster computers, but that’s not the problem. It’s just really slow. I had to wait two minutes to get onto one application. That’s just a little longer than I can accept. Also, it got slower and slower and slower the longer I went without rebooting it. I had to reboot it all the time. We’re talking once every two or three hours of use!”

For more details, go to the “Freedom to Tinker” blog.

READING LEGAL ANDREW’S LATEST POST on Facebook has just gotten me worried. He wrote (summarized):

“…have you bothered to read Facebook’s Terms of Service (”TOS”) or Privacy Policy? What legal relationship have you agreed to? Who has access to your data and personal details? I waded through their terms and policies. Here are some things I found.

1. The terms can change any time…. you’re deemed to accept those changes by continuing to use the site. Even if you didn’t know of the change.
2. Personal use only. LinkedIn is all about jobs and business. MySpace is full of profiles for companies and products. But Facebook is supposedly only for personal use.
3. A single, individual user account…. you can’t have two accounts on Facebook.
4. You’re giving up a HUGE license… did you know that posting content gives Facebook a license to do whatever they want with your content?
5. Applications are NOT guaranteed safe… “installer beware.” A malicious application developer could break through Facebook’s security protocols and expose your info… but Facebook wouldn’t have to take the blame.
6. Disputes are arbitrated under Delaware law. You’ve agreed to “final and binding arbitration” for resolving most disputes with Facebook.
7. You surrender all submissions. If you send it to them, it becomes their property.
8. Privacy is NOT guaranteed. Besides, Facebook’s own third-party contractors might misuse your information.

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Afternote 11 Aug 2007: See also: Terms of Use and Privacy Policy on NETCoachAsia.com. Most terms in these statements have stipulated and approved by TrustSg.

MARGE SIMPSON DECIDES TO GOOGLE HERSELF and finds something shocking in the backyard of her house.

Another fun Simpson video:

• After this video ends, choose the fourth video from the left: “World of Warcraft in the Simpsons”.

TEDFOX AND COBALT PALADIN SUGGESTED that we try using map.gov.sg instead of StreetDirectory.com. So, I decided to try looking for “Rochester Park” on map.gov.sg AND StreetDirectory.com and found that:

• I cannot simply enter “Rochester Park”. I must enter a block number. So, I plucked a number from the air: “9″.
• After x seconds of inactivity, map.gov.sg would show a timeout message and then a timeout screen (!) as follows:
  
• As TedFox noted, “[map.gov.sg does] not provide any bus/mrt directions (which can be taken from the sbs website though)”. It also does not provide other useful information such as “Satellite Image”, “What’s nearby”, “Analyse Loc”, “Related Editorials” at the top of the StreetDirectory.com page:
  
• Nor does it provide this useful titbit of information at the bottom of the page:
  

  “Streetdirectory.com Rochester Park is located in Dover, Singapore. The Dover district is a small one filled with schools and tertiary institutions. Private schools such as Anglo Chinese School (Independent), or ACSI, and Anglo Chinese Junior College are located here, as well as public schools such as Fairfield Methodist Secondary School. Many locals study in ITE Dover to obtain technical certificates or go for a diploma education at Singapore Polytechnic. Many expatriates sent their children to United World College Southeast Asia (UWCSEA), one of Singapore’s international schools. These expatriates also enjoy going for a drink at Rochester Park, a popular cluster of restaurants and wine bars in Dover.”

• Finally, the location map itself look like this on Map.gov.sg: Read the rest of this entry »