Monday, July 30, 2012
SARCOM, Inc. - IT Solutions and Services
SARCOM, Inc., is an industry leading, value added reseller of technology products and services. Providing clients with complete IT Solutions since 1983, SARCOM's long partnerships with the world's leading IT product manufacturers empowers SARCOM to continuously develop and deploy technology solutions which have significant impact on our clients' businesses
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Is mobile device virtualization the answer to BYOD?
Linda Tucci, News Director Published: 17 Jul 2012
Who wouldn't be intrigued? Mobile Device Virtualization promises the benefit that made server virtualization such a big hit in the enterprise: being able to run multiple operating systems on a single piece of hardware. Whereas cost savings on hardware was the primary driving force behind the adoption of server virtualization, the allure of mobile device virtualization is being able to provision dual personas on the same device -- one for work and one for personal computing.
More on virtualization
A return to the Garden of IT with Mobile Device Virtualization?Virtulization Capacity Management: The right tools rule
Taffet and Porozni discovered, however, that the approach is very new, the market is very unsettled and the mobile device world is changing very rapidly. So -- for the time being anyway -- they are steering clear of putting virtual machines on mobile devices. After all, the Type 2 hypervisor approach taken by VMware Inc., arguably the world's leader in enterprise virtualization, to date works only on Android devices, they noted.
For Porozni, security was also a concern, specifically with the device's Type 2 hypervisor technology that relies on the underlying operating system to work. "How do you know there isn't something they can't download on the personal side that can't impact the phone?" he asked. A guest OS also takes more power from the base system, raising the possibility of performance problems. For now, he's going with "good enough." He opted for a mobile device management (MDM) product from Fiberlink Inc., a Mobility-as-a-Service provider based in Blue Bell, Penn.
U.S. Gas & Electric's Taffet is testing a piece of software from Bitzer Mobile Inc., which provides its own business-encapsulated secure environment on the mobile device. Everything from the business runs in the Bitzer mobile app container, he said. "They take the pain of making it run on all the appropriate devices, so that I only need to set it up once. I can push and pull and manage and wipe -- at my control versus the user's -- on the business side. Whatever happens on their side of the computer doesn't affect my side," he added. "I'm beginning to feel comfortable with the level of security they provide."
Mobile device virtualization a silver bullet or a bust?
Analysts we interviewed agreed that at least until mobile device virtualization is device agnostic and becomes "ubiquitous," many CIOs will choose the "good enough" capabilities offered by mobile device management (MDM) vendors for managing, monitoring and securing mobile devices, "But they are not giving IT the full breadth of control," Nemertes' Clarke said.Christian Kane, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc. in Cambridge, Mass., who follows MDM closely, agreed. "Most MDM technologies leverage the native APIs of the mobile device, so they can't get the same data and application controls that enterprise clients are looking for," he said. The monitoring problem will only worsen with the proliferation of mobile devices and versions in the enterprise.
Moreover, IT ends up "owning the device" with MDM, whether the device is provisioned by the company or owned by the employee, noted Chris Ward, solutions architect at systems integrator GreenPages Technology Solutions in Kittery, Maine. "There is always an agent or some software on the device. If something breaks, where does IT step in? Drawing those lines of responsibility is key," he said.If you can't control what gets installed on the device, then the best way to protect your data and assets is to make sure you can control the work environment they are deployed in.
Christian Kane,
analyst, Forrester Research Inc.
In theory, so-called dual persona technology helps sort out responsibilities. Notes Forrester's Kane: "If you can't control what gets installed on the device, then the best way to protect your data and assets is to make sure you can control the work environment they are deployed in." Of course, the dual persona approach comes with its own challenges, starting with the variety of products being floated and the uncertainty of which ones will prevail, said these analysts, who expect the market to shake out over the next six months to a year.
Forrester's Kane lumps the products into two bins: the "true virtualization" offerings from VMware (Horizon Mobile, a Type 2 Hypervisor and from Open Kernel Labs (which makes a Type 1 hypervisor, essentially firmware on the phone), and the offerings from vendors that take a "more containerized application approach," such as Enterproid Inc., OpenPeak Inc. and Good Technology Inc.
"From a user perspective, there is not much difference, because they will still be seeing two environments," Kane said.
Meanwhile the two "pure play" mobile device virtualization offerings are still up against Apple Inc., which thus far has shown little interest in allowing mobile virtualization vendors access to the hooks required for dual persona phones. Getting on the mobile Windows phone will not be a problem, but the iOS is another matter, GreenPages' Ward said. "If VMware can't crack that code on the iOS side, I don't think you'll see Horizon Mobile go very far," he said.
Even on the Android, a Type 2 hypervisor approach might fall short, as can happen on laptops, in Ward's view. "When you're running a virtual machine on top of that piece of hardware, you're not necessarily able to use 100% of the native abilities of the physical laptop. You run into the same challenges on mobile devices," he said.
VMware moved from a Type 1 to a Type 2 hypervisor after finding that adding a Type 1 hypervisor to the physical phone added to the already long development cycle for these devices. That presented a problem because these consumer devices are short-lived in the marketplace. As TRF's Porozni notes, "That's their reason for doing it. I want a secure solution, not the one that comes to market faster." (Open Kernel Labs claims it has gotten around that problem by shipping chipsets that are virtualization-ready. "We're spending a lot of time with manufacturers to do that," said Carl Nerup, the company's vice president of business development.)
One more caveat: Some proponents of BYOD aren't sold on the dual persona approach, arguing that in a world where work and personal have become so intertwined, separating the two undermines the user experience. Moreover, toggling back and forth between segments -- even on the same device -- is not that different from carrying two devices, said Forrester's Kane, who added, "No one wants to go back to that."
Monday, June 25, 2012
As Microsoft retools, Ballmer has chance to rewrite his CEO legacy
With Windows Phone 8 and the Surface tablet, Microsoft hopes to beat Apple and Google at their own game. Steve Ballmer's future may hinge on the outcome.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at CES 2012 in Las Vegas (Credit: James Martin/CNET)
(Credit: Steve Ballmer) It was time to give someone else a chance, Einhorn, the president of Greenlight Capital, told an investor conference. "His [Ballmer's] continued presence is the biggest overhang on Microsoft's stock."
Microsoft had long been milking its installed base and enterprise business for profits -- Windows still accounts for more than 90 percent of the desktop market -- while rivals swept into tech's hot growth areas. The stock was going nowhere, at the time trading just above $24 per share, not much higher than where it finished in late 2000. Even though the company continues to grow by billions of dollars each quarter -- $5.1 billion in net income on $17.4 billion during the three months ended March -- critics still label the company as hopelessly old guard.
But the one constant in the technology world is change, and with the company's latest announcements, Ballmer has a chance to convince the critics they were wrong. Last Monday, Microsoft surprised the tech world when it unveiled a couple of sleek Windows 8 tablets. Two days later came the official debut of the Windows Phone 8, the operating system that will ship in next-gen Windows Phones. That news was expected, though the existence of a bevy of rumored cool new features -- including a complete mobile payment system was a surprise. So much for technology laggard. (Take that, Apple.)
For the 56-year-old Ballmer, this was a moment to relish. The early buzz on Surface was mostly positive, although there are still unanswered questions, such as price, battery life and apps that will be available for the device. Windows Phone 8, introduced last week, will be technically competitive with Apple's iOS and Google's Android but still lacks apps and carriers, such as Verizon. However, the research firm IDC predicts that Windows Phone will catch up to Apple's iPhone, attaining 19.2 percent market share in 2016, growing from 5.2 percent this year.
(Credit: IDC) "Certainly, you think of Steve in a different light than you did a week ago," says Brad Silverberg, a former senior Microsoft exec and now a partner with the investment firm Ignition Partners. "This shows some real product leadership. It also shows vision, desire, and a willingness to take risks. I can imagine that HP, Dell, and Samsung aren't all that happy. But when you're willing to take those kinds of risks, people admire it. It shows guts and courage and they're at a fork in the road. There's really no going back."
Not that Ballmer would ever want to. Whatever their rhetorical excess, Einhorn and other investors are understandably upset at the return on their Microsoft stock. Someone who bought $100,000 worth of Microsoft stock 10 years ago would now be left with holdings roughly worth $69,000. Shareholders, who blame this on Ballmer, who took over from Bill Gates as CEO in 2000, offer a ready bill of particulars. Chief among their complaints:
- Microsoft fell behind early to Google in search and never caught up.
- It's still a non-factor in social.
- The Zune MP3 player was a flop.
- The likes of Google, Apple, and Facebook pioneered the social and mobile revolution across the globe. And Microsoft? It remained a wallflower.
- Windows Vista goes into the record books as an expensive failure. (In a candid moment, Ballmer acknowledged that it was "not our finest hour.)
- Microsoft misfired or has been missing in action in computer hardware's two hottest growth markets: smartphones and tablets.
Jobs' posthumous assessment was even harsher: He told his biographer Walter Isaacson, "They've become mostly irrelevant," talking about Microsoft. "Apple was lucky, and it rebounded. But I don't think anything will change at Microsoft as long as Ballmer is running it."
Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff wasn't giving Ballmer any kudos for the Surface or Windows 8.
"Our world has become mobile, social, cloud, and local -- not led by Microsoft -- but by an exciting new breed of entrepreneurs who are rewriting the playing rules for the industry away from Windows -- there has never been a more exciting time in our industry," he told CNET regarding Microsoft's recent announcements.
Benioff has a history of taunting Microsoft, which competes with Salesforce.com in selling cloud-based customer-relationship management solutions.
"I think Microsoft is still a dinosaur. More than ever, it tries to hold onto its monopolistic position around technology that they hold, whether it's SQL Server, whether it's NT, whether it's Windows, whether it's Office -- these are their cash cows they don't want slaughtered," Benioff said in 2008.
Microsoft may not be a dinosaur on the desktop or datacenters, but the world is moving to mobile and social, led by Apple, Google and Facebook. Ballmer's team is in last place at this juncture, but the game is not over.
Source: Netmarketshare May 2012
"You tell me if I lack energy or conviction, or we're not driving all the change we need to drive," Ballmer told the Seattle Rotary Club soon after.
People say that Microsoft always does its best work when catching up and the stakes really high, said Silverberg, who was the executive Microsoft turned to when Bill Gates needed someone to help catch up to Netscape. "They know they have to get their act together if they have a future. And the future is in mobile devices -- and Ballmer's taking full advantage of that," he said.
Wall Street seems to like what it's seeing of late. The company's stock finished Thursday at $30.14, not far off its 52-week high of $32.95, a sign of growing confidence that Microsoft seems to have its head back in the game for the first time in a long time.
Philip Winslow, an analyst with Credit Suisse, suggests that the potential importance of this week's news was under appreciated. He said that "a more tablet-friendly UI" as well as the improved power consumption, Instant-On, and other capabilities was a harbinger that Windows 8 tablets would "have a more meaningful position in tablets than the market appreciates (particularly in the business user segment), which we expect to serve as a catalyst for the stock."
So what's Microsoft doing right? Let's take a closer look.
Smartphones
Though it's a lifetime in tech, it was only three years ago that Windows Mobile was the cornerstone of Microsoft's mobile strategy. And what a befuddlement Windows Mobile was. The user interface was confusing (ugh, that Start button), you never knew where to find anything, and it could be painfully slow. The problem, of course, was that Microsoft took an existing PC OS and shrunk it down to fit a smaller screen. It made no attempt to go the other way around. Yet, even those problems didn't stop Windows Mobile from playing a big role in the fledgling smartphone space. Its market share didn't reflect Microsoft's total dominance of the computer sector -- instead it had to share the roost with Palm, RIM, and Symbian -- but the OS was responsible for putting smartphones in the hands of more people.
For a minute, though, let's reminisce. Remember the Motorola Q? In many ways, it was the classic heartbreak Windows Mobile device. Though it showed a sleek new design -- 2006 was the height of the thin phone craze -- the Windows Mobile 5 OS still defined the user experience. You weren't plonking away at tiny icons with a stylus, but no touch-screen meant that you had to use navigation buttons. Such a smartphone would be laughable today, but back then it generated a lot of hype.
Colorful tiles replaced icons, swiping and tapping replaced the stylus, and the handsets had large touch-screens with a cohesive and tightly integrated user experience. Promises were big, and plenty of skeptics scoffed, but when the first phones landed eight months later it was clear that Microsoft was on to something. Windows Phone 7 delivered an attractive, clean, and modern interface on handsets that were fast and incredibly user-friendly. Most importantly, it was light years beyond Windows Mobile.
But Microsoft still has a big selling job ahead of it. "There's nothing yet on Windows 8 that says, 'Wow, it's a great mobile phone system," according to Roger McNamee, a co-founder of Elevation Partners. "If you want a great system, you get the iPhone. I don't think much of the market for Windows as Windows in the mobile market. They've tried it over and over again -- which is the definition of insanity."
Related posts
Yet, Microsoft didn't give up. With Windows 8 Phone Microsoft it is making another, though less violent, course correction. The new announcements show that the company isn't discouraged that its latest smartphone foray hasn't been wildly successful so far. It's not pulling out of mobile, but instead is doubling down on Windows Phone with loads of new features (including filling the gaps described above), new phones and an enhanced interface and by strongly wooing developers. Users will rightfully grumble that existing phones won't be able to upgrade -- that is pretty maddening -- but even that move shows that Microsoft is pushing relentlessly forward. The story of a successful operating system, after all, is that they're a continued evolution. You don't get everything at once, but piece-by-piece new features and improvements arrive. That's the case with iOS, Android, and now Windows Mobile. You're left always wanting more, but in the meantime you get to savor what you have.
Tablets
This was Ballmer's big call and it was a gutsy one: Microsoft is willing to blow up decades-long relationship, if that's what it will take to make it in the tablet world. In announcing its own vertically integrated Surface tablets, Microsoft is also competing against longtime hardware partners. That's a first. Acer's Stan Shih has since been quoted as saying this is only a temporary ploy to incent OEMs to get with the program. Perhaps, though once you cross the Rubicon, you don't go back -- especially if it's a success. And Microsoft is betting everything on Windows 8 and the Metro interface.
Unfortunately, we're still in the dark about how much the tablets will cost or when they will ship. Microsoft promises that they will be priced competitively. The key will be apps. So far MS claims the Windows Phone Marketplace has 100,000 apps.
Xbox
Near the end of the lifespan of the second generation of Xbox game consoles, Microsoft can call the Xbox 360 a success years in the making. From a second-place finish in the previous game console generation to devastating hardware problems early in the production run, the path forward was not always clear, but Microsoft's current game console stands alone as a unifying living room set top box, combining video games, on-demand video, streaming live television, social media sharing, and advanced voice and motion controls.
The PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii both overlap with many of those features, but neither has had the relentless focus on crossing the bridge to mainstream, non-gaming audiences the way the Xbox 360 has. In hindsight, it's surprising that Sony wasn't able to make more of its film, music, and home theater corporate connections -- much of the early betting was on the PlayStation 3, with its then-rare Blu-ray drive, to be the lead gaming console of this generation.
The trouble for Microsoft started soon after the 2005 release of the Xbox 360. There were wide reports of hardware failures, and the infamous Red Ring of Death error ended up affecting many more consumers than the usual 3 percent to 5 percent failure rate for consumer electronics. Estimates ranged from 14 percent to more than 50 percent of first-gen Xbox 360 consoles had to be repaired or replaced, and Microsoft was forced to offer a no-questions-asked warranty extension, which cost the company a reported $1.15 billion.
From that inauspicious start, more than 67 million Xbox 360 consoles have been sold worldwide, and a sizable minority are not used primarily as gaming machines, but instead as streaming hubs for Netflix and Microsoft's own video sales and rentals. Recent additions of streaming live TV through certain cable providers, plus HBO Go and ESPN (access is dependent on your local internet access provider and/or cable company) make the Xbox 360 a poster child for cable cutters. Or at least for the freedom to avoid renting a second cable box for whatever television your Xbox 360 is hooked up to.
Additional video content partners like Amazon Instant Video have added even more features previously relegated to set-top boxes like Roku.
Time is not on Microsoft's side
More than ever before in its three decades-plus history, Microsoft is racing the clock: When it comes to smartphones and tablets, the company is very late to those markets, relative to current market leadership. And it's not as if these are markets looking for someone to take the lead.
"The rules of the game are already established and the first rule of the game is that these are consumer products, not the enterprise," said Elevation Partners' McNamee. "That's a huge issue for Microsoft because Windows is an enterprise product; the only consumer product Microsoft sells is Xbox."
But as Apple proved, you don't necessarily need to be first into a category to win. You need to be better. What's more, the burden of proof is on Ballmer to tame Microsoft's own worst instincts. Can Microsoft stay nimble and focused enough to compete in this brave new world? Can it consistently ship products on time? And can it turn out the kind of software that makes peoples' heads turn?
And as it proved with the Xbox, Microsoft doesn't suffer from an absence of creativity. The temptation is that may continue looking through the lens of what they've already done, rather than what consumers want, said McNamee.
"They've got four to five more years where they can milk Windows but you know how to tell whether Windows is dead? Ask kids under 21," he said. "Ninety percent will ask for iPhones or iPads. Windows' days are numbered. It's been a great ride but they need to milk it and move on."
Ballmer's response to McNamee's critique would likely be the same one he gave when writing to the Microsoft troops about competing with Google in the search arena in July 2008. "This is a long-term battle for our company -- and it's one we'll continue to fight with persistence and tenacity," he wrote.
Microsoft has fought hard over the last four years, but Google still rules search. In July 2008, Google's share of search in the U.S. was around 63 percent, and is at 66.7 percent as of May 2012, according to ComScore. Microsoft's Bing went from 9.2 percent July 2008 to 15.4 percent in May 2012.
Ballmer will once again have to muster all his persistence and tenacity to get the wind behind Microsoft's sails in the battle to win the hearts, minds and money of the mobile masses.
Additional reporting was contributed by CNET's Kent German, Dan Ackerman, and Scott Stein.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Apple's next iPhone expected to consume 70% of high-res LTPS screen supply
By Sam Oliver
Published: 08:05 AM EST (05:05 AM PST)  |
Production of the next iPhone is expected to begin at the end of the second quarter or the start of the third quarter of calendar 2012, according to Taiwanese supply chain sources who spoke with DigiTimes. The next iPhone's display is expected to feature in-cell touch panels that will make the high-resolution Retina display even thinner.
In order to achieve a screen resolution of 326 pixels-per-inch, the next iPhone will reportedly use LTPS technology. The in-cell panels are expected to be built by LG Display, Japan Display and Sharp.
Those same three suppliers were identified earlier this month in a handful of reports that claimed Apple is purchasing 4-inch displays for its next iPhone. Until now, all iPhone models have featured a smaller 3.5-inch touchscreen.
Collectively, LG Display, Japan Display and Sharp have a quarterly production capacity of 95 million LTPS panels. With a current yield rate of 75 percent, the companies can produce as many as 72 million panels at the moment.
That puts Apple and its next iPhone in a position to take up as much as 70 percent of the output of LTPS panels in 2012 and 2013, tech supply chain sources reportedly said. That situation could put smartphone makers other than Apple in a difficult position for components.
Industry insiders expect that Apple will produce more than 40 million iPhone units in the third quarter of calendar 2012, growing to 45 million units in the fourth quarter of the year. Apple's current quarterly record for iPhone sales came in the holiday quarter of 2011, during which the iPhone 4S launch drove the company to sales of 37 million iPhones.
Friday, April 27, 2012
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Mobile Device Management (MDM) and Microsoft Windows Intune?
Posted April 12th, 2012 by Joe Panettieri
Windows Intune, Microsoft’s cloud-based PC management and security tool, is designed to remotely maintain Windows PCs and notebooks. But I’m starting to wonder if Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) will gradually extend Windows Intune to support mobile device management (MDM) across Windows 8 tablets — and yes, perhaps even Apple iPad (iOS) and Google Android devices.Publicly, Microsoft has always stated that Windows Intune is a Windows-centric management platform. But privately, I know Microsoft has contemplated extending Windows Intune to support non-Windows devices.
Microsoft Management Summit
We could get more clues during next week’s Microsoft Management Conference 2012 (April 16-20, Las Vegas). At that event, Microsoft Corporate VP Brad Anderson is expected to give two keynotes. One of them will focus on “a world of connected devices.” The session description is as follows:“Clouds and cloud-connected devices are changing the world of work and our daily interactions. Tech-savvy and always-connected, people want faster, more intuitive technology, uninterrupted services, and the freedom to work anywhere, anytime, on a variety of devices. Join Brad Anderson, Corporate Vice President of the Management and Security Division at Microsoft to learn how System Center 2012 and Windows Intune can help IT embrace this new reality today, and in the future, by making the right intelligent infrastructure investments.”That keynote will arrive one week after Gartner’s latest tablet sales forecast, which covers 2012 through 2016. Gartners’ prediction for 2016: Apple’s iPad will continue to lead the market, Google Android will close the sales gap and gain ground on Apple, and Windows 8 tablets will be a distant number three in the tablet market.
That’s not exactly a “scientific” prediction. The entire tablet market share mix could change based on an awesome product from one company, and a bad release from another company.
But either way MSPs should be reaching the following conclusion: The mobile world, similar to the corporate IT world, increasingly involves a mix of platforms — and many of those platforms are not Windows. As a result, mobile device management (MDM) platforms — whether standalone or tied into a broader IT management system — need to go cross platform.
Windows Intune will continue to appeal to a segment of the IT market (Windows-centric shops). But such a narrow focus also limits Windows Intune’s appeal amid the mobile revolution.
At the Microsoft Management Summit, it’s safe to say Anderson will offer clues about where Windows Intune will head next. I wonder if he’ll broaden the message beyond Windows 8…
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Win 8 inludes features like updated Win Explorer, Task Manager, better multi-monitor support & ability to switch languages on the fly http://ow.ly/akdIv
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Pathways to Cloud 2012 Event
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Thursday, February 23, 2012
9 Reasons to Switch from Facebook to Google+
Can Google+ steal users from Facebook? Yep. There are good reasons to switch from Facebook to Google+, ranging from ease-of-use to respect for data privacy.
When people ask “can Google+ beat Facebook?” they’re misstating the question. It’s not about one site versus another site. Google+ is bigger than that. The reason Google calls it the “Google+ Project” is that Google+ will become a central part of Google’s whole identity. It will reshape the company. So the real question is “can Google beat Facebook?” Put that way, the contest seems a lot more even.Facebook, of course, has a huge head start, but there are good reasons for people to seriously consider dumping Facebook for Google+. [See our Hands-on Review]
1. Integration with Google Services
The biggest wedge Google has for driving people toward using Google+ is integration. That is, Google will build Google+ social networking features and tools into almost all of its existing online services from Search to Documents to Video (YouTube). Google+ is already integrated into the navigation bar at the top right of almost all Google products; this lets you monitor all Google+ events (updates, messages, etc.) as well as share content with friends without ever leaving the Google service you happen to be using. Millions and millions of people use Google's free services (Gmail, Docs, Search, etc.), and with Google+ bound so tightly to them it may start to seem silly to jump out to some other site (Facebook) to do your social networking.2. Better Friend Management
Google is right that the “Circles” concept is more in line with the way we make friends in real life. We have many different kinds of friends, and we interact with them and communicate with them in very different ways. Facebook’s Groups feature lets you form ad hoc groups of friends, but compared to the way its done in Google+ it seems cumbersome. After all, Facebook’s Groups feature is pretty new; it was “built on”, while friend "circles" are the bedrock of the Google+ platform.3. Better Mobile App
If you're an Android user, you may find that getting content from your phone to your social platform is easier, cleaner more functional with the Google+ mobile app. The app is already great, but Google will seek more and more ways to make your Android phone a seemless appendage of your Google+ social platform. Google hopes to use its huge Android user base as a wedge against Facebook, whose mobile app, while nice-looking, is a little clunky to use.4. Easier to Find Stuff to Share
Google+'s Sparks feature is another important differentiator from Facebook. Spark is Google leveraging its search engine to do something Facebook can’t do—give users an instant wellspring of relevant information to share with friends. Because Facebook has no search engine, its users must leave the site to find shareable data or wait for their friends the share it with them. The question "how do I find stuff to share" is immediately answered with Sparks.Related Slideshow: Google+ vs. Facebook: See How They Compare
5. You Can Get Your Data Back
Facebook is notorious for its poor stewardship of personal data. You are forced to make certain parts of your personal data "public" for example, and It is very hard to permanently delete your Facebook profile. Google, on the other hand, makes it possible for you to pick up all the data you’ve banked at Google+ and walk away. This is done through a Google+ tool called “Data Liberation.” With just a few clicks you can download data from your Picasa Web Albums, Google profile, Google+ stream, Buzz and contacts.6. Better Photo Tagging
When viewing photos in Google+ you can “tag” the people in them similar to the way you do in Facebook. You draw a little square around a person's face, then type in their name in the box below it (or choose one of the names Google+ guesses). But there’s a big difference in the way Google handles the privacy aspect of photo tagging. When you tag someone, you see this note: “Adding this tag will notify the person you have tagged. They will be able to view the photo and the related album.” Facebook, on the other hand, does not make an effort to warn people the they’ve been tagged (possibly in an unflattering or compromising photo) and give them an immediate chance to remove the tag.Also, Google has wisely decided to shy away from using facial recognition software, which Facebook now uses to automatically identify people in photos uploaded to user albums.
7. Strong Group Chat Features
Google+ has Facebook beat in the area of chat. Forming ad hoc group video chats using the Hangouts feature in Google+ is easy, and forming ad hoc groups for a little chat seems like a natural and fun thing to do in a social networking setting. Similarly, the new Huddle mobile app makes it easy for mobile (Android) users to start up group text chats. Facebook simply doesn't offer these tools.8. Safer Content Sharing
Privacy advocates have long called for social networking sites to let users assign a privacy level to each piece of content they share, instead of using a pre-set list privacy settings to govern all shares. Google obviously heard those calls, and built the capability into Google+. For instance, when I share an article or upload a camera image, Google+ gives me choices of which friend circles I’d like to share that content with. Advantage Google+.9. Google Is a Better Steward of Your Personal Data
Running a social network is all about responsible stewardship of users' personal information. Facebook is a young, fast moving company that has proved itself to be cavalier in its movements, lacking in respect for user data privacy, and accident prone. Google on the other hand, is a far more mature company that is, I would argue, seen as more trustworthy than Facebook. For the most part, Google has lived up to its “Don’t Be Evil” slogan. Which company would you rather have as the steward of your personally identifiable information?
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About Me
- Bobby
- Certified problem solver. Wannabe food fanatic. Passionate web ninja. Explorer. Lifelong reader.