SXSW Interactive Community Blog

When you surf the web it is possible to learn information about you even when you don’t want to advertise who you are. This is true even if your system contains no virus or malware software. Specifically information that is easily available online includes your IP address, your country (and often more location information based on IP address), what computer system you are on, what browser you use, your browser history, and other information.  It gets worse.  People can get your computer’s name and even find out your name if your machine supports programs like finger or identd. Also, cookies can track your habits as you move from machine to machine.

How do people get this basic information about you?

When you visit another web site, information about you can be retrieved.  Basically, information is intercepted and used by others to track your Internet activities.

How do you stop this from happening?

First of all, it is possible to surf the web anonymously and thereby stop leaving a trail for others to find. Note that this is not fool-proof, but it makes it much harder for people to know who you are. There are products called anonymous vpn service that help protect you.  The anonymous vpn replaces your Internet address for its own.  This has the effect of change your IP address and making it much harder for people to track you.

How do I get an anonymous vpn?

There are many vendors who sell anonymous vpn service. There are also free proxy servers available to you. Two such products are vpnprivacy.com and Vpn Privacy.  VPN Privacy (http://vpnprivacy.com) offers pptp vpn service for anonymous and secure access to the web.  It provide anonymous surfing at their site for low cost price. There are many others, but here are two that are frequently used.

Another interesting product, given the recent news about the Google search engine filtering its findings for the Chinese government, is Anonymizer (http://www.anonymizer.com). This company, among others, recently (Feb 1st, 2006) pressed that it “is developing a new anti-censorship solution that will enable Chinese citizens to safely access the entire Internet filter-free” (http://www.anonymizer.com/consumer/media/press_releases/02012006.html).

Does an anonymous vpn make you 100% safe?

No.  Still, you are much better off if you use such technology.

What other things should I be concerned about when trying to keep my private information private?
Three other items come to mind when trying to keep your information private. First, you can use an encrypted connection to hide your surfing. This article does not go into detail on this, but search the web and you will find a lot of information on this.  Secondly, delete cookies after each session.  Third, you can configure your browser to remove JavaScript, Java, and active content. This actually leads to limitations, so you need to think about the cost/benefit of this course of action.

Anything else?

Wishing you happy and safe surfing!

I know that IMDB is a great resource for certain things. Say, for example, that I want to know Horatio Sanz’s birthday. Yeah, they’d have that, along with every film he’s been in and every time he’s been on TV during his lifetime. OK, neat information, but it definitely loses something of the human touch.

I’ve started following a tv and film blog more closely to connect with other film and TV addicts and get their take on things. That’s what the entertainment experience is really all about, right? It’s connecting with other people and watching them through situations that you can actually relate to. So, don’t get me wrong… I love IMDB and probably use it on a daily basis, if not every other day, but it’s just missing something, right?

The downside of the blog format is that you’re at the writer’s mercy as to when you get to read some more. I know the same could be said of regular sitcoms and the like, but they carry the advantage of being, well, regular. Unless the writers are on strike, I can catch my Office episodes every Thursday.

But, again, on the upside, I can get information from a trusted source (whether I agree with the author or not, I can discover where they stand and how compatible our likes and dislikes are), but one that is also dynamic. For example, I’m no expert on Asian cinema or maybe have not had any previous experience with it, but I can find out more about it after I’m done reading an interesting article on Scrubs.

So there you go, different sources give different angles. I think to get the most out of your online experience in discovering the world of film and TV, you just have to know how to balance your input.

I’m such a ham when it comes to online video. It’s worse than TV, honestly. Think about it, you get access to unlimited videos and, when using a service like YouTube, you’re getting video after video of related material… AND no commercials!

The rise in popularity and accessibility  to these videos has opened a whole new world of possibilities for people to just grab the best collection of funny videos they can find and then throw them all in a single place. These sites have opened my eyes to all kinds of videos I never would have seen. Sometimes, you don’t think to search for ‘evolution of dance’ (unless instructed by a friend, obviously). But when you get on these video collaboration sites, you have the quasi-expertise of video crawlers who really do go out and find the most random collection of videos that will get you laughing out loud (and not just in a fake ‘LOL’ way, but, seriously, laughing out loud).

Some quick advice to get the most out of your video viewing experience. Often, these are funniest when it’s late at night or in groups of people. A little sugar high doesn’t hurt either, so maybe throw down some Twinkies before watching.  So sit back, relax, fire up the broadband (I do miss the sound of a modem connecting), and laugh your end off with some great video collaboration sites.

So if you are interested in skiing in Ireland then you should really check out www.skiing.ie where is there are some great articles for people looking for information about skiing. Every year the number of people skiing and snowboarding is increasing more than any other sport. People are discovering how much fun aprés ski is and how great it is to learn how to do a new sport. European skiing is getting more and more popular, countries of special interest include Bulgaria , which has recently joined the EU. If you have not got skiing yet, then you should think of going for next season.

Here is a picture of a friend skiing in the French Alps recently !

OK, so I’ve just recently been to a real, honest to goodness, stylist for the first time in my life. Up until now, it’s always just been a short, simple cut. I never really liked it, but I never really hated it either, so no biggie…

Then I got a real haircut. It was great. I’ve never liked my hair as much as I do now. Even though the novelty of it all has worn off, I still appreciate the job well done when walking by a mirror.

One effect that the haircut has had on me is that I now view haircuts everywhere thinking, “hmmm, I wonder if I’d prefer that one…” or “maybe that would work with my hair type.” For example, I liked the hair on the actor in August Rush (not Freddie Highmore, but the guy that looks like Joaquin Phoenix….). And I thought, “man, I should really consider that style - but then, it’s really short, so if I don’t like it, I’m stuck…” It just makes you really consider hair more often. What else could I do? Something military-esque? Go for some emo hair styles? Maybe attempt a more trendy style? The possibilities seem endless now.

So the warning stands: if you’re happy with your hair, it’s probably best just to keep it that way. You may love your new do but you’ll never look at hair styles the same way again.

For those of you who want to get your “learn-on” in-between SXSW sets,  Una Johnston, manager of SXSW UK & Ireland, will be speaking about how SXSW reduces their carbon footprint.  The event will be held at Austin City Hall on March 12th with a happy hour/mixer to kick it off at 5pm.   Other speakers include Zoe Riddel from the Carbon Disclosure Project, and various environmental markets experts.  Details can be found at http://cleantx.org/?page_id=44   See you there!