Your Friend's Privacy (Article Review #7)

Article Title:
When Sites Drag the Unwitting Across the Web

Article Author:
Somini Sengupta

Article Publication Date:
November 13, 2011

URL:
When Sites Drag the Unwitting Across the Web

Article Summary:
Klout is a site that tracks your influence on the web using algorithms to monitors you usage and assigns a score.  The problem being that Klout tracked the activity of your friends and family ,even minors, and created profiles.  After an uproar many of the tracking features have been removed and you can now also deactivate yourself.

Relevance to Class:
Joe Fernandez managed to build a site that tracks your activity on other sites and gauges your influence.  Web architectures connected all 3 aspects, content, context, and the user and benchmarked this information into a very useful tool for marketers.

Key Quote:
Klout, like a host of other influence yardsticks in the digital marketplace, like PeerIndex and Kred, is used by marketers to reach habitual comment makers who are likely to promote their products on social networks. It can be used by employers, teachers, homecoming queen committees — anyone — to gauge someone’s popularity.

Swipe Your Holiday Donation (Article Review #6)

Article Title:
Bell Ringers go Digital this Season
 
Article Author:  
Stephanie Strom and Claire Cain Miller
 
Article Publication Date:
November 15, 2011

URL:
Bell Ringers Go Digital This Season

Article Summary:
The Square has entered the holiday season.  People do not carry cash and the Salvation Army bell ringers are can now swipe your donation.  New technology has been incorporated with a company born in 1852.  Web Architects combined new technology that still maintains the spirit of the Salvation Army.  The technology lowers theft and increases convenience.

Relevance to Class:
The Salvation Army has used new technology and internet based transaction to stay current.  Information Architects have created an application used via portable devices to seamlessly conduct transactions.

Key Quote:
Lucy Bernholz, an expert on the use of technology by nonprofits, said this could have enormous potential. “It’s a no-brainer,” Ms. Bernholz said. “It’s frictionless and will make it so easy to give that if the person ringing the bell can get your attention, there’s no excuse any more because chances are you’ve got a credit card in your pocket.