Facebook Privacy - Part 2: Who else has access to your Info?

Last week I wrote a post about being in control of our privacy settings on facebook, which to my estimation shows how facebook views our privacy and the level of control it gives us.

Recently, again, I was browsing facebook and noticed something I have seen hundreds of times before but never really taken much notice of, until I remembered what I had written about earlier and it slapped me in the face - how had I not realised this all along?

What am I talking about? I am talking about Facebook Apps.

Facebook Privacy: Are You In Control?

There has been much talk about how much (or how little) emphasis facebook puts on privacy. Personally, I have always ensured that I checked my privacy settings on facebook every now and then, but I took it for granted that not everyone understands how the facebook privacy settings works and facebook haven't really done much to rectify the problem either.

All the rage at the moment is how much control we have over our privacy and the obvious 'Big Brother' society. So, it is curious to know exactly how much control we have over privacy on such a simple platform as facebook.

Last night, I was undertaking one of my privacy checks on facebook ensuring there were no (visibly) added changes to the system as often occurs and sure enough there were changes. It was seem that facebook has heard and acted on calls for more understandable privacy settings and have provided a "simpler" format (pre-formatted) of options users can choose from.

The features on facebook now, that allow your friends to see your comments on the pictures and status' of another friend's profile (who they are not friends with), is in itself a testament to how much control we have over privacy. Let's just take a look at the facebook privacy settings page.

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg on Lack of Female Leaders (Video)

It is one thing to mention a female leader, and receive raised eyebrows, it is quite another to mention that the female in question is the Chief Operating Officer of the largest  social networking site, facebook. Yeah, we all thought Mark Zuckerberg was a one man army at some point.

The question many people ask is why is there such a great lack of female leaders? If there are, many why are they not given exposure to the world in order to inspire other women into action?

"A nation can rise no higher than it's woman," that is something I was brought up believing, and this does not extend to the workforce it extends to all fields of life and living, from birth right up to careers. James Brown sang the words,"this is a man's world
But it wouldn't be nothing, nothing without a woman or a girl."

I sometimes feel women do not realise their potential, they do not realise their power. The ability to create new life is a profound ability, that sets women on a pedestal higher than men in worth and value. The great men we see in society could not be great if it were not for a caring woman, whether that be a wife, a mother, or both.

So when I logged into the TED website and saw this video I thought it would be inspiring and encouraging for other women trying to get up the ladder.

If she can, you all can.

Have a look at the video here:

http://www.ted.com/talks/sheryl_sandberg_why_we_have_too_few_women_leaders.html

Why Innovative teaching is needed - NOW

The following post is an excerpt from my upcoming ebook “Why Do for Parents” – a short and concise guide, which breaks down the thought processes of young people and helps adults – parents in particular – understand why their children act a particular way and provide them with possible solutions.

I won't hold back with a background story, I'm going to say it as it is.
The educational system needs to become more innovative, more exciting and dynamic. Teachers should be able to express themselves freely within the boundaries of a fully fledged educational system.

Young people respond to energy and unfortunately, lessons are not like the adverts for teachers on tv, they are morbid, depressing political speeches that automatically trigger “get-out clauses” and “emergency shut down” procedures in young people.

[caption id="attachment_328" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Boredom "capturing" the minds of young people in education?"][/caption]

On a typical school/college/university day, on twitter you will find many students tweeting about how boring this teacher is, how unexciting their methods are.

It is not a case of changing the entire system, it is a case of injecting impetus, acknowledging that young people are progressing faster than before.

Why do you as a parent need to know this?

You need to know because as a child, school should be exciting, curiosity inciting and in a sense, profound. Is it not normal that a child comes home with an excited look on their face, chomping at the bit to tell their parents what they learned at school?

Businesses: Building Your Social Profile

This is an excerpt from my four-part ebook series, "SocialBiz - Something for Everyone". The book looks at the four main social networking sites and helps everyone understand how they can be utilised for business purposes. Whether you have a large corporation, a small business or even considering starting a business, EVERYONE can learn a thing or two. The first short yet informative ebook - "TwitterForAll" comes out on 30th December

The key to success for any business, large or small, is understanding that social networking is NOT about selling your product or service.

“You're crazy, That's the whole point of my business!”>

Yes, the aim of your business is to make a profit, however, when you bring your business into the social networking world the ball game changes. Put it this way, your business in its rawest form is like a lion, going in for the kill and taking no names along the way, you sell your product/service - “cheers, mate! Have a nice day!” - but social media is a cunning animal, it is able to either build your reputation or destroy it. So you too, must become cunning. You must become what you are trying to conquer, social.

Student Protests: Now What?

So, the government have voted to raise the tuition fees, let's not act shocked, we already knew it was inevitable and all protests and lobbying were held in vain. I mean come on, let's not kid ourselves,  look how many thousands or people marched in protest against the Iraq war. We all know what happened then. In fact, all those who protested will know what the poor gentlemen who sit outside Parliament every day protesting about various causes feel like by now.

"I'm not perfect" – Disability and young people -What Parents Need to Know

In a society where being “perfect” is praised and imperfect despised, raising disabled children was never going to be easy. It is even harder for the disabled child.



[caption id="attachment_291" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Isolation among disabled people is high"][/caption]

Being hearing impaired myself, I have experienced this first-hand; at times it is a feeling of isolation, of frustration at not having the same faculties as everyone else, even a sense of injustice.

How we may be perceived by others always is a problem for a disabled child, the fear of reprimand and rejection causes them to retreat into solitude, their own personal world where they can feel safe being themselves.

For 10 years, I had a hearing problem without knowing, a series of hearing tests and a diagnostic later, I was fitted with a hearing aid. The self-consciousness that came with it was overwhelming, at first I found it hard to adapt, but after a while I noticed the benefits and embraced it. My mother and the people around me were always supportive and encouraged me to be bold. The first few years were fine, you tend to notice that younger children are less reprimanding than older children, based on their exposure to the world.

Super-Size me? More Like Categorize Me

[caption id="attachment_275" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="We see this all the time, but should are we being focussed on the wrong problem? (Click to enlarge)"][/caption]

Yeah, so you get the point. The country is getting fatter. Yeah. Great, off to the gym we go! Oh wait, but how can we do that when the government is planning to cut back sports in schools? Hm, curious. We'll get to that another time. This time the focus is whether super-sizing children are the problem or if the name-calling and chronic categorization of young people is the problem.

Let me throw some random categorical facts at you:

• In a classroom of 30 students there are 1 to 3 children with ADHD.


• Just under one million 16 to 24 year olds were classified as Neet according to the figures, a rise of almost 100,000 on the same quarter the previous year.


• HSE 2008 report shows that around three in ten boys and girls aged 2 to 15 were classed as either overweight or obese (31% and 29% respectively)

Class divide? Parents, what class is YOUR child?

I've noticed a lot of talk about the "widening gap in classes" in society, you know - "Rich vs Poor", "Upper Class vs Working Class". Yeah, OK, that's all well and good.

When I consider the different classes and reflect on my upbringing, I realise I was not brought up as a working class child, nor was I brought up as middle class, hell, I wasn't even brought up as upper class. However, nowadays, no matter which class I am in the presence of I feel equal to them. But why? Why do I not shy in the presence of those "highly esteemed" human beings but others do?

I believe it boils down to how you are brought up. It is psychologically proven that if you label someone an "idiot" or something along those lines, long enough the person will begin to fulfil the characteristics within the boundaries of an "idiot". My mother did not bring me up with a sense that I was constrained to a particular class, so as far as i was concerned, "mate, I can do whatever I like, be whatever I want to be! And hell, with anyone who tells me otherwise!"

Dear Parents, Teachers and Adults of the World....FEAR HAS GRIPPED YOU!

Now, let us talk about fear. Fear is the greatest impediment to progress, it stops us from making the tough decisions, from doing what we KNOW is right.

It stops us from handing out the due process, from laying down the law firmly, from confiscating the blackberrys and ipods, are you catching my drift?

Yes, dear parents, teachers and adults, you fear your young and this could never be a good thing.

Since when was a direct order, an executive decision from a parent or teacher an opportunity to negotiate? When I was growing up, the word ‘negotiation’ was not a part of my vocabulary, but, somehow, young people have gained more power.

This is, you could say, down to the fact that they have been GIVEN more power, through government policies that exert extreme measures of safety around young people or it could just be down to the fact that parents have let the government do THEIR job.

You see, I’m not convinced your parents would be happy to see that your child has a seat on the decision-making forum in your household, because your parents brought you up to show respect to your elders, have good mannerisms, show empathy to your fellow man/woman. They told you that if you worked hard you would be successful, your father passed on his trade, your mother passed on the traits of a highly respectable woman. Where did it all go wrong?