Time Warp
Facebook is savvy about time zones and the fact that its users span the globe. But notice this conversation I had with a friend. He sent it at 12:39am on October 21st. I replied 3 hours earlier. 
Now, if you look at our profiles, Roy and I live in the same time zone. Normally this would never happen. But, I happen to be in the UK when this happened. I think I replied a couple hours after his message, but at you’ll see, it’s essentially impossible to know, given what I see. Read more…
Software Testing, Web Stuff
Facebook, localization, Software Testing
I was just reading “Five Clues That You Are Addicted to Facebook” on cnn.com and it occured to me that Facebook should really be considered in the same light as television. Read more…
News, Rants, Web Stuff
addiction, Facebook, TV
Lots of my friends are filling out the X facts about me. Some are “Write any 25 facts.” Some are “Answer these 100 questions.” Then they go on to tell you all manner of detailed information about themselves. This is really a bad idea for a lot of reasons.
Claire Suddath wrote an interesting article on Time.com about “25 Things I Didn’t Want to Know About You” and the way people are writing all kinds of useless, intimate, and just plain weird things on Facebook. While I like social networking, you won’t see me sharing these kinds of things. I’m still old-school paranoid enough to keep most of this kind of stuff off the net. Here’s why. Read more…
Technical
Facebook, paranoia, privacy, social networking
My friends got me playing WordTwist on Facebook, and I started playing it in “ladder” mode. That’s where you sorta compete against your friends and see if you can get the highest score. Well, one of my friends had a score of 181, which seemed pretty amazing. I’d try and try and get nowhere near it. Of course, I’d frequently only get 12 or 15 words out of 30-odd words. Sometimes I’d have a good round, but it was rare for me to break 100 points in a single round.
Finally I decided I had to cheat and see what the maximum score was. It turns out to be really easy, but I’m not going to reveal it all here and now. Read more…
Fun Stuff, Software Testing, Web Stuff
Facebook, WordTwist