Some Facebook users have lost access to their fb accounts, due to a phishing scam which has been making the rounds. The scam, which spoofs Facebook, “lures users to enter their information at a site FBAction.net which displays a false Facebook login page”.

Within a short amount of time, users that enter their email and password find that their password has been switched and all of their friends have been emailed from the account.

According to reports- yesterday afternoon, Facebook users began receiving emails appearing to be from Facebook carrying an invitation from a friend. Clicking on the link takes you to the pseudo Facebook site, where you are asked to enter your account credentials.

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Pseudo Facebook login page at fbaction.net

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Millions of accouts have since been compromised, and according to Webpronews reports;

“Facebook says it has blocked the domain from being shared on the site, removing referring content, and resetting passwords of senders so attackers can no longer access Facebook accounts. In addition the company says they’ve asked Markmonitor to blacklist the domain and they’ve reached out to ISPs for information to file a civil suit or criminal case. ”

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Okay, I have seen (and heard) a lot of weird stuff lately, but this definitely tops the list….. completely hilarious! Twitter seems to be at the top of the web agenda lately, and even the celebrities are Twittering away. But ever wondered what “Twittering in real life” would be like?

Apparently someone has, and he decided to put it to the test. Watch Dan take his Tweets to the streets….. Sweet!!

Enjoy;

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I have often pondered over this, as I’m sure many other SEOs out there have too.  According to Google’s Matt Cutts, the short answer is ….. NO!! Well (as he puts it), “at least not right now”. Matt did however point out an obvious fact though-

If a site takes so long to load that Googlebot can’t get a copy of it, then that would have an effect on your site, because your site is essentially timing out.

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Matt’s comments towards the latter part of this video however express an opinion which  I personally share- Whilst focusing on your site’s rankings, it is extremely easy to forget the main reason why you put it up in the first place- The User!

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User Experience

Your site’s visitors should be your topmost priority. I mean, where’s the sense in ranking 1st for all your target Keywords, if a visitor comes to your site, only for them to leave the next second, wishing they never did?

Matt was precise with his latter comments, and I totally agree. I mean,  Google will always be there, but your visitors….. well, you would have to decide whether or not they will.

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The Tramigo T22- a Personal Asset Tracking Device is set for its official launch in Ghana later today. Tramigo T22 is “the world’s first truly plug and play portable tracking device available for all the GSM markets”.

Tramigo T22 can be used for hundreds of different purposes and in as many ways; when ever you need to know where your loved ones or your assets are and what is their current status.

According to Mr. High K. Aryee, Chief Executive Officer of Proffworld Link Consult (PLC)- local partners of Tramigo 22;

Tramigo T22, the best selling GSM/GPS tracker in the world, would assist security agencies, corporate bodies and individuals in protecting their life and property.

The T22 can be used with text messaging, and has inbuilt map of your area with thousands of landmarks- allowing you to add your own landmarks such as home, office and friends. You can simply check the location of your important assets and loved ones with user-friendly SMS commands.

How It Works

Tramigo T22 car tracking device combines the GPS (Global Positioning System), GSM (mobile network) and geographical information (TLD Tramigo Landmark Data) into one device.

Furthermore, Tramigo T22 needs only a normal SIM card (prepaid or postpaid) of any operator and is ready for use, there are NO other charges than the text messages sent or calls made from Tramigo T22 to your phones.::

It uses the GPS satellites to position itself getting very accurate positioning, then it finds the closest TLD landmark to that point from its internal memory and sends the information across to any authorized mobile phone as a text message using the GSM network.

Tramigo is commanded with simple text message commands; sending word Find or letter F to your Tramigo T22 you will get the actual location of your Tramigo tracking device back to your phone as a message. Simple, intelligent and very secure.

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Tramigo Landmark Data (TLD)

TLD includes commonly known local landmarks that are carefully selected and updated to provide best possible local understanding for T22 use.

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T22 TLD Landmarks- Image from Tramigo.net

It includes: All cities, towns and villages + plenty of information-rich points of interest data, such as hotels, schools, hospitals, post offices, churches, shopping malls, passenger terminals, major interchanges, gasoline stations, government services, tourist attractions, toll gates, sport arenas, etc.

T22 user can also add own landmarks, up to 500 points, to complete TLD for best possible personal and community usage.

The introduction of the T22 into the Ghanaian market is expected to curb the crime rate and reduce the spate of accidents in the country. “At this time when crime has become so sophisticated and the increase of accidents on our roads, the introduction of the Tramigo T22 therefore into the Ghanaian market is timely,” Mr Aryee added.

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Web applications or web-based software systems generally require a web browser to render them executable.  As a web developer, you were previously restricted to creating applications which only run from within a web browser.

Not any more! New technology developed by Adobe® changes  all that, offering a platform that provides a new environment for creating powerful Web software that can run without a browser.

The Adobe® AIR™ runtime, introduced last year, lets developers use proven web technologies to build rich Internet applications that run outside the browser on multiple operating systems. Adobe AIR offers an exciting new way to engage customers with innovative, branded applications, without requiring changes to existing technology, people, or processes.

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How AIR Works

You are most likely already familiar with Adobe Flash- the browser plug-in responsible for powering much of the Internet’s multimedia content–from YouTube videos and Flickr slideshows to addictive Web-based video games. Flash applications are however limited by the fact that they require a host application, most often a web browser.

AIR covers for this limitation, creating “stand-alone” applications that run from your desktop just like any other application. AIR apps are developed in much the same way that Flash applications are, providing developers with a new environment for creating powerful Web software that can run without a browser.

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Business Benefits

With the Adobe® AIR™ runtime, you can deliver branded rich Internet applications outside the browser that give you a closer connection to your customer.

Adobe AIR uses the same proven, cost-effective technologies used to build web applications, so development and deployment is rapid and low risk. You can use your existing web development resources to create engaging, branded applications that run on all major desktop operating systems.

With Adobe AIR, you can:

• Establish a more persistent connection with existing customers
• Deliver fully branded experiences with desktop functionality
• Leverage existing personnel, processes, and infrastructure
• Develop and deliver RIAs efficiently using proven Adobe technology
• Increase the ROI of your web investments

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As an AJAX developer myself, you can only imagine my excitement.  AIR applications run across operating systems on the WebKit HTML engine and are easily delivered using a single installer file. With Adobe AIR, Ajax developers can “use their existing skills and code to build responsive, highly engaging applications that combine the power of local resources and data with the reach of the web”.

I just downloaded and installed the latest version of AIR, and SDK (Software Development Kit), and am already impressed with the capabilities so far.

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In what is probably the “biggest” news in the month of April, Facebook has officially opened up its activity stream to developers through the launch of the new
Facebook Open Stream API.

So what’s the big deal?

Apparently, the new API would allow developers build applications which would enable users “read and interact with their stream”. According to Ethan Beard, Facebook’s director of platform marketing, “the entire feed will be available through a single API call”- meaning a developer could recreate the entire Facebook home page if he wanted to or take parts of the feed and remix it to make something more interesting.

The move is in line with Facebook’s  “steps toward greater openness” as it looks to bolster its efforts in this regards. In a post on the Facebook developers blog, it said- “we believe users must have full control and choice and that’s exactly how we’ve designed Facebook Platform and the Open Stream API”.

One can only imagine the numerous possibilities this platform provides- quite endless really. But of course, there are certain limitations. According to Erick Schonfeld, Facebook still only allows developers to cache data for 24 hours, so an application such as a search engine for instance would only be able to return search results for a day.

I however felt uncomfortable with one particular statement in the post covering this new development on the Facebook blog;

“…With these new methods, you can access the stream on behalf of a user and then filter, remix, and display the stream back to that user however you choose, wherever you choose, in the manner most relevant for the user experience.”

Maybe I don’t get the full import of this statement, but shouldn’t this raise some security (not to mention privacy) concerns. Whatever be the case, this surely provides the network a perfect opportunity to provide a richer user experience for its 200 million users.

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