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Wednesday, February 20, 2013

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Carrier IQ gives its remote smartphone diagnosing tool a global release

Carrier IQ has let customer service reps diagnose smartphones from afar with its IQ Care software for a while, but now the solution has been given a worldwide release. By wielding IQ Care (and asking a phone owner's permission, we're assured), technicians can see device-specific stats such as a battery's drain rate, percentage of app failures, frequency of dropped calls and more. The outfit hopes that its software will make support calls shorter and ensure that fewer fully-functioning devices aren't misdiagnosed and returned needlessly. As of now, however, there isn't any word on which networks or hardware manufacturers will join the metric-hungry flock.

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Carrier iQ Reinvents Customer Care with iQ Care[TM]

Leading Mobile Intelligence Provider Brings Proven Device-Centric Big Data Customer Care Solution to the Global Telecommunications Market

Mobile World Congress 2013
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Carrier iQ, a pioneer in mobile intelligence, today announced the worldwide availability of its iQ Care[TM] device-side care solution designed to reduce customer care costs, increase subscriber satisfaction, and reduce churn.

With the market for connected mobile devices accelerating, and smartphones and tablets continuing their market penetration, support costs are sharply increasing, fueled by a combination of factors, including uncertified applications, new interfaces, complexity of devices, fragmentation of operating systems, and the frequency of updates.

Mobile operators typically have access to a wealth of data from their networks and some user-generated information, but they have little insight on what is happening on the device itself. Only device-sourced metrics can give operators a true representation of the performance of a device to help resolve device support issues and improve the consumer experience.

"To truly create a differentiated experience across the customer lifecycle, mobile operators have to see the world from the customer's view - the mobile device," said Sheryl Kingstone, Yankee Group Research Director. "Operators are constantly striving to increase service quality and customer satisfaction to improve the overall customer experience. There is a great need to focus on improved care, particularly from the consumer's perspective."

iQ Care[TM] is a customer care solution aimed at reducing the duration of customer support calls, decreasing the number of no-fault-found device returns, and improving the consumer experience. Built upon Carrier iQ's unique, big data Mobile Service Intelligence Platform[TM] (MSIP), iQ Care[TM] utilizes iQ Agent[TM] on-device software to analyze relevant user experience metrics from the device. With explicit permission from the end user, and without tangible impact on battery drain rates, data plan usage or user experience, iQ Agent[TM] gathers system information on the performance and usage of the device and delivers this information to the MSIP. Device-sourced information and actionable insights are presented to the care agents, enabling them to diagnose and resolve the consumer's problem quickly and efficiently.

"iQ Care is a proven solution with the most recent deployment now handling eight million simultaneously reporting devices. We are charting a path forward for operators, device manufacturers and other service providers to leverage device-side insights, first for reactive care, then for proactive care and, ultimately, for self-care. This approach delivers a quick and substantial ROI while dramatically improving customer experience. iQ Care is another step in our vision to become the provider of choice for mobile intelligence to the smartphone industry and to the roaring growth of mobile-connected devices," said Larry Lenhart, CEO of Carrier iQ.

iQ Care[TM] provides mobile operators and mobile device manufacturers with:

Reduced handling time on support calls

Higher first call resolution (FCR) scores
Ability to dramatically reduce unnecessary device returns (no-fault-found returns)
Robust privacy features that can be seamlessly customized to comply with customer privacy policies and applicable legislations
Actionable big data analytics about the device, its operation, and actual consumer experience
Ability to measure a device by comparing its performance to millions of other devices

iQ Care[TM] will be showcased at Mobile World Congress[TM] in Barcelona, Spain, February 25- 28 at the Carrier iQ booth (5H34, Hall 5), as well as at Carrier iQ partner booths.

Filed under: Mobile

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Source: Carrier IQ

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/p9Vt8-twk9o/

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Israeli sniper posts photo of child in crosshairs

JERUSALEM - A photo posted online by an Israeli soldier showing a child in the crosshairs of a rifle scope has created a firestorm on the internet, drawing widespread criticism.

The photo was reportedly posted on Jan. 25 by Mor Ostrovski, 20, a member of an Israeli sniper unit. It shows crosshairs zeroed in on the back of the head of what appears to be a Palestinian boy in a village. The photo has since been taken down and Ostrovski's account has been deactivated.

"There are no other images to suggest that the photographer actually fired at the person in the image in this case," wrote Palestinian activist Ali Abuminah who runs the site Electronic Intifada and drew much of the attention to the photo. "The image is simply tasteless and dehumanizing. It embodies the idea that Palestinian children are targets."

Before the account was taken down, Abuminah posted other photos from Ostrovski's account that showed him in his olive green uniform holding a variety of weapons, including a sniper rifle.

Eytan Buchman, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces, told ABC News that Ostrovski told his commander on Saturday that he had not taken the photo himself but that he'd taken it off the internet. No disciplinary action will be taken.

"The picture in question does not coincide with IDF's values or code of ethics," the spokesman added in an e-mailed statement.

The uproar over the photo follows another posted by an Israeli infantryman on Facebook around a week ago. In it, he mocked the four Palestinian prisoners he was guarding by posing bound and blindfolded next to them. He was sentenced to 14 days detention after the brigade's commanders discovered the photo and ordered it taken down.

"Before the investigation began, it was discovered that the soldier was already judged by his commanders," Buchman said in a statement. "Since the documented offense isn't criminal and since the legal procedure conducted by the soldier's commanding officer was found appropriate, a disciplinary action was decided to be sufficient."

The IDF is active on social networking, disseminating statements on Twitter and Facebook and photos on Flickr and Instagram. But individual soldiers using social media have a history of getting the Israeli military into trouble.

In November, the head of the IDF spokesperson's social media unit landed in hot water after he posted a photo on Facebook with mud on his face, captioned "Obama style." In 2010, a reservist named Eden Abergil sparked outrage after posting pictures with blindfolded Palestinian prisoners. She told Israeli Army radio she didn't understood what she did wrong, but the IDF called the photos "shameful behavior."

Should You Buy a Facebook Girlfriend?

Become the forbidden fruit.

"Truth is, life is complicated. Sometimes having a fake internet girlfriend helps make it a lot less complicated."

I imagine that coming from a?throaty, deliberate?voice like that of Sam Elliott?over a beer commercial.

But no, it's the copy that the site?Fake Internet Girlfriend?uses to pitch their service -- in response to a rhetorical "Why rent an online girlfriend?" Said service involves a quasi-fraudulent Facebook account that will declare itself "In a relationship" with you. It will also post syrupy missives on your wall, and send you messages at times apropos of your?proclivities. All for?a minimum three-month $750 commitment.

Intimate as that sounds, the relationship is never anything but online. The operator of said Facebook account is indeed a real woman (supposedly) who knows real things about her patron, but nary the twain shall meet.

The company says that some people hire fake girlfriends for purposes of invoking jealousy in exes; others for reasons related to their jobs. Most troubling, they also suggest using the service to deflect suspicion of homosexuality:

Sometimes people want to keep certain aspects of their personal life, well personal and private. The one way to do this is to hire a fake Internet girlfriend for appearances sake. It avoids all the pesky little questions about why you've never been seen dating a girl before.

Suppress your sexuality by paying to construct an elaborate system of lies. Make life "less" complicated.

***

This and other services for fake Facebook relationships have been almost entirely marketed to men. Beyond quirky misogyny,?that also carries the implication that we men occupy the lion's share of the market for consumption of moral depravity.?For all other sexes and genders and preferences excluded by these sites, though: give it time. As?Cosmopolitan?posited:

Certainly, having a girlfriend can make a guy seem more desirable, and we totally understand why a dude might be tempted to use the service after a breakup to make an ex jealous. (Hey, in some of our lower, post-relationship moments we'd probably even consider using it, too, if there was a ladies' version.)

Some day women, too, might go to lengths to make their partners jealous. Maybe, some day.

In 1992's Wayne's World, Wayne's ex-girlfriend Stacy did conspicuously make out with other men to get under his skin, to no avail.

***

Is using this sort of service ever, ever advisable?

No. But these businesses have been seeing "incredible success." A co-founder of the site Cloud Girlfriend told the BBC, "We received 85,000 emails in [the first] three weeks from people who wanted to learn more."?I suppose, desperate?times and measures, all being fair in love, etc.?We are nothing if not pi?atas of emotion, and sometimes it's the really big kid's turn to hit us. Eventually we break, usually at the neck or midsection, and stuff comes out.?

For someone at that sort of nadir, the Brazilian site Namaro Fake definitely makes the fake Facebook girlfriend process look simple and appealing. Even if you don't speak one?palavra of Portuguese:?
Psychology Central?offers questions of self-reflection that we might use when evaluating the appropriateness of any relationship. I've adapted them to apply to fake Facebook girlfriends.

Most of the time, do I feel stronger or weaker when I think about having a fake Facebook girlfriend? Mentally, physically, and emotionally, does the idea of a fake Facebook girlfriend mostly strengthen me, or mostly deplete me??
Most of the time, would I feel trapped or strengthened by sharing my virtual space with a fake Facebook girlfriend? How would I feel when I got a notification that my fake Facebook girlfriend had posted on my wall??
What if my fake Facebook girlfriend messaged me that she was walking up the steps to my home? Knowing that I musn't violate the terms of service -- that we are?"100% never"?to meet -- would I answer the door? Would that rule make her all the more alluring? The possibility of a Pretty Woman romance completely off the table, might I be opening myself to even more heartache, longing for this woman who shows me so much affection, yet whom I can never truly know?

***

While these services do not invite every moral dilemma involved in hiring a real-life escort to accompany you to a gala -- it is a lie, but it never?leads to sex?-- it is against some rules. Specifically, Facebook's rules. Being dishonest to your friends is one thing; crossing Zuckerburg is another.

The site Cloud Girlfriend made news offering a similar fake girlfriend service in 2011, but the concept was quickly killed by Facebook over terms of service violations. Fake accounts are not allowed. So people who wish to run fake Facebook girlfriend escort services are being driven underground. It's probably only a matter of time before Fake Internet Girlfriend gets shuttered as well.?

Meanwhile women who work as fake Facebook girlfriends are relegated to hawking their services on forums and auction sites, covertly, in the shadows. In places where they could trick or be tricked, cover could be blown, and people could get embarrassed.

In light of those risks, men can be driven to create these girlfriends themselves. Josh Gondelman wrote at The Cut about an experimental foray into?creating a fake internet girlfriend:

I even started a Twitter account for a fake girlfriend from New Hampshire. I fired off a few decoy tweets -- "I totes need a pumpkin latte today," "Happy hour with my besties. Can't. Wait." -- before tweeting, "@joshgondelman Uv got a great dick, chief." So the account wouldn't seem fake, I also made her follow Ke$ha and Fareed Zakaria.

As bad as the idea of buying fake Facebook girlfriends is, creating them ourselves, and having dialogues with ourselves, is worse. The fake girlfriend phenomenon is one we cannot stop. But while we can't condone it,?neither should we drive it underground, into an even darker place. This?sort of thing is best kept in the open, where it can be safely regulated and taxed.?

***

If you'd like to be one of those professionals, Fake Internet Girlfriend is -- for the time being, at least -- still thriving and hiring new fake girlfriends.

The job pays $10 per hour. Not glorious, but, a job.?

"Truth is, life is complicated."

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/theatlantic/TZRn/~3/AAVsoz_sOM4/story01.htm

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Iceland Latest Country To Move Towards Internet Porn Ban ...

Censored

It?s common knowledge that the Internet is primarily a method of delivering pornography to consumers at unheard of speeds, but that may not be the case much longer in Iceland. Lawmakers there are the latest working to put in place a firewall that would block citizens from viewing pornography online. Iceland isn?t the first Western nation to take a swing at 86ing Internet porn ? the United Kingdom has flirted with the idea in the past ? but a growing call among lawmakers suggests it might be the first nation that has an actual shot at passing legislation to make the Internet measurably less naughty.

According to poiltical advisor Halla Gunnarsdottir, the method by which Iceland would ban porn hasn?t been decided on yet, though several options, including a ?Great Firewall of China? inspired firewall have been floated, and legislators are confident they could find ways to keep porn off

?At the moment, we are looking at the best technical ways to achieve this. But surely if we can send a man to the moon, we must be able to tackle porn on the Internet.?

First of all, I think you might be underestimating how much porn your dealing with here ? about ?One Internet? full, by recent estimates. And for future reference, maybe let?s not compare one of mankind?s greatest technological achievements to preventing people from looking at boobs online. You?re not really in the same ballpark there, and honestly, you?re not even playing the same sport.

Still, the move isn?t surprising coming from Iceland, which has a standing ban on printed pornography, and as of a few years ago, outlawed strip clubs, which they said violated the right of women who work in them.

While the move ? and the momentum it?s gaining ? aren?t shockers, political watchers in the tiny, remote nation say it?s still unlikely that the move will find enough traction to be passed into law, so Icelandic perverts and the legions of digital fleshmongers who cater to them look like they?ll likely be free to carry on their business for now. But with legislators in the U.K. already calling on their own nation to look on Iceland?s proposals as an example of how to handle Internet porn, don?t expect this to be the last word on the subject.

(via CNN)

Relevant to your interests

Source: http://www.geekosystem.com/iceland-internet-porn-ban/

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