Scoble And Zuckerberg Discuss New Facebook Features

Robert Scoble, Scobelizer.com (also from Rackspace and  building43) and Mark Zuckerberg discuss Facebook's new Groups, Dowload Your Data, and Platform Apps Dashboard features released to the site over the past day or so. Here is the recorded discussion:

While Groups seems to be the one feature that is attracting the most attention, I'm impressed by Download Your Data and the Platform Apps Dashboard. Not to say that Groups is not a cool feature, but for a company who has had it's share of criticism regarding personal data giving the user the ability to make copies of their data and an easy way to see who is looking at what is a big step towards being open and accountable. If nothing else, it may make users more aware of what they are sharing and just what's out there for others to see.

Quebec Man Ordered To Pay Facebook $873 - million For Spamming The Social Network

A Quebec court has upheld a 2008 California ruling ordering Adam Guerbuez to pay a fine of $100 per spam message sent and another $100 per message in damages to Facebook. Guerbuez's company Atlantis Blue Capital used Facebook to spam users with ads for erectile dysfunction cures a move that has put him and his company in the Guiness Book of World Records for the largest fine ever levied. 

“My client has already filed under the bankruptcy act, so [Facebook becomes] one of his creditors,” said Mr. Guerbuez’s lawyer, Éric Potvin.

“Facebook becomes the biggest one of his creditors,” he added.

Guerbuez had hoped that moving the appeal to his home Province would provide him with some relief from the huge fine, but the court showed no sympathy and upheld the previous ruling. Of course, Facebook doesn't expect to ever receive the full amount of the decision but it certainly has created, at least to some, a deterrent for any such future actions.

Source: The Globe and Mail

Spray On Clothing Demonstrated

I'm a little speechless over this one, it's like technology you'd expect to see in an episode of The Jetson's in a can... you have to see it to believe it.

I wonder how it fairs in the washing machine, or in the rain for that matter?

Microsoft Stock Down Graded By Goldman Sachs

It sounds as if Wall Street is taking a cautious approach when it come to Microsoft stocks these days and according to the Globe and Mail that's due to the software giants failure to play an important role in the mobile market place. While analysts are still recommending the share as a buy the company's share value is down a reported 22% in 2010. It appears as though it's losing it's luster and it will be interesting to see if it can wrestle it's way back to the top of the tech world. Check out this report from The Globe and Mail's Market View:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/markets/markets-blog/market-view-video/giving-up-on-microsoft/article1741460/

I Just Saw The Social Network, As Did Facebook's Many Employees

I have just returned home from watching The Social Network with my family and we all agreed that it was a fine movie, there was even sympathy expressed for Mark Zuckerberg as we discussed the film over dinner. While I suppose we'll never know just how much was truth and what was fiction, those who are much closer to the story, the Facebook employees, were treated by the company to a movie day. Yes, Zuckerberg and company paid for Facebook's HQ employees to see the movie on opening day at a local Palo Alto theater complex.

“To celebrate a period of intense activity at Facebook, we decided to go to the movies,” a spokesman, Larry Yu, wrote. “We thought this particular movie might be amusing.” It's actually quite a testament to the company, in my opinion.

You grow up the day you have your first real laugh, at yourself. ~Ethel Barrymore

Source: NYTimes bits blog