Twitter ? Get a life !

I have always been someone who embraces new technology. I use the SatNav on my phone, I own more than one MP3 player (but not an iPod), I have a good AV system at home, love the internet, own more than one computer, I can network my music around my home (using ethernet cabling which is installed under the floor of my house), I have owned a Spectrum, a Commodore 64, Atari ST, Commodore Amiga, NES, SNES, GameCube, DS, Wii, Xbox and Xbox 360. Oh, and I also had a first generation Gameboy. Yes, in general I'd make the point that I am tech savvy and like gadgets and gizmos.

So why do I not see the point in Twitter ?

It seems that bloggers are mad about Twitter but as far as I can tell from people's feeds on their blogs all Twitter tells me about is where they have been, what they have done, who they spoke to and, in general, I find these things about as interesting as paint drying.

I am sure there are some interesting feeds from some celebrities IF you have the time and inclination to follow them. However, I am at a loss as to why following an MP or a political blogger would be in any way interesting or worthy of my valuable time. And time is the most important aspect here.

For many years I have known Norman Lamb well. Since long before he was MP for North Norfolk I have been slightly in awe of the effort he puts in to North Norfolk and it has been a pleasure to know him. But do I want to follow him on Twitter ? Do I want to know who he has met, where he has been, which debate he engages in ? No. Why ? Because if I wanted to know I would call him or look it up on the internet. Now if I am not that interested in an interesting person in a high profile job who is a friend of mine, why should I have the time to follow someone else who does not meet any of those criteria ?

I have a life, quite a busy one, which involves my family, working, some entertainment (if I can fit this in) and generally trying to fit everything in to 17 hours a day and then get 7 hours sleep. As it is I find it hard to fit in the time to blog regularly.

The very fact that people spare the time to read my blog in the first place is something that amazes me, but at least, I hope, that because I am writing in some depth those who read this will find out more about me views and opinions as I seek to explain them. But could this happen on Twitter where you are limited to writing no more than a single sentence ? I think not.

So I simply don't get Twitter because I have enough to do in 24 hours without spending/wasting my time reading about the triviality of someone's bowel movements are who they bumped in to. For me Twitter is this year's Facebook, and whilst I can understand how the networking elements of Facebook make sense, even if Facebook itself serves no real purpose, then I fail to see how my life will be enriched or made anything other than trivial by learning about the trivialities of someone else's life.

Finally, a purpose for Facebook !

At long last, after being registered on Facebook for two years, I have found something that Facebook is actually useful for !

Hat Tip to : Things and Stuff

I'm getting bored of Facebook - So true

I know I am not the only person who feels like this.

A very odd Facebook Group "join" request

I seem to get requests to join various Facebook groups almost every day, but this one caught my eye.

It is for a group called "Help support out (sic) troops in Iraq". Yes, that is right, "Out" troops.

I have to say I am all for supporting our troops whether they are "out" or not, but I have to say hats off to the army if they have moved to be so up to date with the times that they are now that open about having "out" troops.

What is actually "fun" about your Facebook "Fun Wall" or Facebook for that matter ?

I have been registered with Facebook longer than anyone I know, and to begin with it seemed like harmless unobtrusive fun, but as soon as everyone I knew got registered on it I have found it to be an utter pain in the arse.

Everyday I receive pointless and never ending e-mail stelling me someone has done something on my "fun wall", only to find that my fun wall is about as much fun as cholera. Every other day I receive a request to join some group to save someone from deportation or to get someone recognised for something they may or may not have done.

In short, I am fed up with Facebook.

I do have a Norfolk Blogger Facebook group, should you wish to join (I don't think I have turned anyone down yet), but I maintain this only because I am sure eventually I will find a legitimate and useful application for Facebook, but until then, I guess I will have to tolerate it.

Tory student chief rapped over homophobic comments

The Conservative Future Chairman at the University of Central Lancashire has been thrown out of the Tory Party and been suspended by the University for being listed as an officer on a homophobic Facebook group and for making homophobic remarks to that group.

The Conservatives, to their credit, have thrown him out of the party.

It is interesting to note that the government are considering changing laws to make this sort of treatment of homosexuals equal with that of being racist or offending someone else's religion. Fergus Bowman, the Tory in question, was reading politics and religion (no surprise there), and might consider himself very lucky that these new laws are not yet in place or he could have spent some time at Her Majesty's pleasure.

You can read more about it on the BBC website HERE.

1332 members, and counting. The Cameron effect works its magic

Yesterday David Cameron claimed that only 370 people had joined a group on Facebook which is for people that hate him. That number is now 1332 people.

It makes his statement seem a little daft now and does prove the old adage of not tempting fate.

The Cameron effect

David Cameron apparently made reference to a Facebook group called "Am I the only person to hate David Cameron", and claimed it had only 370 members.

It is interesting to note that since he said that just a few hours ago, the membership of this group has more than doubled, and is shooting up by the hour.

That's the Cameron effect in action.

The Norman lamb scammer is using Facebook again - Beware

A number of people ahve in recent days been contacted by someone calling themselves James Becks, urging them to become Facebook "friends" and to join his Facebook Group about Norman Lamb.

Can I urge anyone who cares about decency in politics and political life NOT to have anything to do with him.

This person's IP address was traced by Mark Pack at Lib Dem Voice to be the person who sent false information in e-mails whilst pretending to be Norman Lamb, he put false and malicious information on to Wikipedia which told lies about Norman Lamb and he set up a false Facebook group which gave free publicity to the Tories.

Avoid this person at all costs.

Flushing out the Fake Norman Lamb Facebook Scammer

You will have read last week on this blog and others about the Facebook scammer who set up a fake Norman Lamb profile with false and malicious information about Norman posted on it so as to make it seem legitimate and true. The scammer has also set up a series of false e-mail addresses which he or she is posting from in an attempt to pass themselves off as Norman.

Mark Pack at Lib Dem Voice and others have been working hard on trying to track the person down, but we need your help too.

If you receive an e-mail from someone involved in Norfolk politics and want to find out if they are the scammer (you might have suspicions or been told by someone), then contact me or Duncan Borrowman privately by e-mail, and in particular look out for the IP address 82.118.116.193 as the Lib Dems have traced the false e-mail addresses to that IP.

Apparently, according to the Bloggerheads blog, that IP address is a static IP, meaning the address will not change. This should and could make it very easy for the police to track who has this address should there be a need to refer this to a police investigation. However, we also know that this IP is for customers of a company called KeConnect, who as bloggerheads point out, are the company responsible for the creation and design of the Suffolk Conservative Councillors website.

We note despite that the Tories have not been quick to condemn whoever has done this to Norman Lamb, indeed some Tories have made quite ridiculous claims that it was the Lib Dems who did it. Quite why the Lib Dems would themselves put out faalse and misleading information about a senior MP on to Facebook is a mystery to any sane person, but that is the Tories for you. However, if the Tories are not involved they will, I am sure want to assist in flushing the individual out who is responsible for this fraud.

So I say quite clearly to the Tories, if they have received any e-mails from the person they think did it, forward the e-mail on to me or Duncan Borrowman or to Mark Pack at Lib Dem Voice, and we will do what we can to track the person down. The finger or guilt is pointing strongly at the Tories at the moment. If they have nothing to hide, if they really have got othing to do with this then I am sure they will help.

It is in everyone's interests that whoever is behind this is exposed.

Be careful what you put your name to on Facebook

Dizzy points out this morning the rather amusing tale of at least two Tory MP's who have signed up on Facebook to support a fictional character to be next Conservative MP for a place that does not exist.

It could be that they are in on the joke or it could simply be that in Facebook people are constantly sending out requests to join this, that or the other and these Tory MP's have not had the sense to check out what they are signing up to.

A warning for all us Facebook users there.

Lib Dems top of the list for MP's using Facebook

Apparently more Lib Dem MP's have a Facebook presence than any other party's MP's.

Now if only we could find a use for Facebook that would be brilliant.

Will the Lib Dems have a Second Life presence ?

Jeremy Hargreaves wrote an interesting piece on his great blog (which I have to apologise to him for because it was not on the list of blogs I was sent to judge), which highlights the German Green Party now having some presence on the online Role Playing Game "Second Life".

With Ming Campbell said to be ahead of the game on Facebook and the Lib Dems having a growing presence on YouTube and the web as a whole, is Second Life where we will pick up the few votes needed to win over some of the marginals next time ?

Probably not, but the role that the internet is playing in politics is growing by the month (just see how seriously the Democrats have take the Daily Kos conference in America). A growing number of young people and those disinterested in politics are using computers more and more, and that includes playing games like Second Life.

Perhaps we should have a presence. Some will say it serves no political purpose, but then again I think people said that about the internet 15 years ago.

Ads pulled from Facebook after appearing on BNP group pages

The has been a lot of coverage this week on TV about advertisers losing control of where their ads are placed on the internet. Earlier this week Panorama asked why a number of UK companies like Virgin, O2, various banks and other high street names were allowing their adverts to be placed alongside images of appalling violence on websites such as YouTube. Now it appears that Vodafone and First Direct have been caught out too.

Ads placed on Facebook by Vodafone and First Direct have now been pulled after these companies were informed that their adverts were appearing on group pages for the British National Party.

Of course, its not these companies who are at fault, but it does again highlight that internet advertising has got to become more focused. There is a lot of nasty stuff out there on the internet and advertisers have been too willing to lose control of where their ads go and this is something they will have to get a grip on or before too long a company is going to find its ad on a site showing abuse, pornography or murder.

Do people actually check that their Facebook contacts are actually who they think they are ?

I joined Facebook a few weeks ago, but didn't actually do anything about it. I then recently set up a group for this blog (the link is in the sidebar) and I stated looking up people I know. Then, upon checking my contacts I noticed that I sent out a friends request to someone who wasn't the correct person (same name, wrong face) and bizarrely she responded by claiming to be the person who I thought she was, even though she was someone else (Confused ?).

What I am trying to say is how many people just click on the "Confirm" box without actually checking that the people who contact them actually are friends and acquaintances ?