Technology journalists and bloggers are up in arms about Facebook’s latest spate of privacy infringement misshaps – to the point where 31 May has been declared “Leave Facebook Day” and many people will be deleting their facebook profiles.

However, the average facebook user continues to use facebook, unaware of the potential dangers. In today’s post, I’d like to explain what the fuss is all about so that you can make your own decision as to whether or not you will continue to use this popular social networking site.  I promise not to get too technical.

When facebook launched 6 years ago, things were relatively simple. You created a profile and you would share your information only with those who were accepted as your “friends” – pure simple privacy. Then after a number of different releases as new services and third party applications were added, the privacy settings gradually became more and more complicated.  You could share your Farmville escapades with your friends but have private instant messages with only one friend, for example.

As the months passed, people realised that their privacy settings were not as expected.  Facebook would launch opt out services (where you are automatically saying “yes” unless you specifically say “no” to the service), which meant that suddenly all your information was available for public viewing.  Additional slips happened where strangers could read private messages between you and your friends.  These bugs have been fixed but in some cases, serious damage had already been done.

When you use twitter, you KNOW that all the information you post will be broadcast to the public Internet.  However, on facebook, you don’t want your Mom or boss to see photo’s of what you were getting up to on the weekend, so facebook started implementing different levels of privacy.  Now it seems that their security issues have made their users so nervous that they are being more careful with what they post to their facebook profiles.  I would seriously recommend that you take the same approach until they can assure you that all is working well again.  If you don’t mind the fact that what you are posting to facebook MIGHT end up in the public domain, don’t post it!

The good news is that facebook aims to make their privacy settings simpler.  According to this GREAT infographic by New York Times, facebook currently has 50 settings with more than 170 options! No wonder the users are confused!

On 31 May I will not be one of those who are leaving facebook. I have used facebook in my private capacity and to talk to Cellfhelp’s friends and fans.  I still believe it is an awesome social network.  I do however; warn facebook users to be AWARE of the problems and to take care.

The notes on the right hand side of the infographic (informational diagram) show where your privacy could be at risk… please click on the image to see a larger version.

Click to view larger image

Mobile gaming has hit an all time high…

As more phones are available with big screens, faster processors and better graphics, mobile gaming has really taken off.  Small game devices such as Gameboy and Nintendo DS have to really get creative if they wish to compete in this space.  On 19 April, Vodacom launched a new role playing game called Legends of Echo.  The ratings and reviews have been so positive that I wanted to let you know about this great game.  Please note that even though it was launched by Vodacom, it is available on any network.  Simply visit http://legendsofecho.mobi on your mobile phone to download the application.

LoE mobile site

For more information, I refer to the article and interview below:

News 24.com carried this story on 19 April 2010:

T0day, Vodacom launch their massively multiplayer online game for mobile (MMOM), called Legends of Echo. Nic Haralambous, cool dude and project leader for LoE, tells you everything you need about the free-to-join RPG in an exciting interview with News24 Games.

Nic Haralambous

Describe how Legends of Echo (LoE) works, as simply as you can.

Legends of Echo uses Vodacom’s location based services to locate users in the real world and place them in a fantasy world. Once in the Echo players can drop their home bases, find allies, locate enemies, build weapons, trade items and build up their legend points through battles and other activities in the Echo.  All of this is done through the users mobile phones.

Tell us a bit more about the story. Why are these okes battling each other?

The battles take place in a fantasy world called Echo. This world is only accessible through your mobile phone and is a world that exists on top of the map of South Africa.  There are five bloodlines in LoE; Water, Fire, Earth, Air and Industry. Players choose one of the bloodlines and out of the remaining four, two are your allies and two are your enemies. Each bloodline has its own currency called Elements and each bloodline requires Elements from other bloodlines to do certain things in the Echo. You then move through the Echo and create relationships with other players to benefit your game.  They are battling, in the end, to become a legend of Echo.

Player vs. Player battles are turn-based. Older gamers may be reminded of the Heroes of Might & Magic combat system

LoE incorporates real-world locations. What does that add to a fantasy gaming experience?

I think this makes the game more tangible. Players can visit real-world locations that they are familiar with and see them as they’ve never seen them before. It also allows players to communicate with one another more effectively using the locations they are in, or their friends are in or near.

Do you have levels and loot, like most other RPGs? And trading?

There are levels in LoE, however these are mostly used to allow other players to see how long and hard you’ve been playing LoE. Everyone enters the game on Level 6. The more you do (trade, battle, chat, build weapons etc) the better you get and move closer towards a level 1 player. There is definitely a focus on loot or items in LoE. The more Elements (currency) that a player has, the easier it is to do various activities in the Echo. Trading and bartering is a big part of LoE. Players can choose to barter and trade their items and weapons with other players in the hope of building up alliances and gaining better weapons or more Elements.

Here’s the big one: what are we paying to play this?

There is no subscription fee required to play or download LoE. Standard data rates do apply when playing the game but other than that as a cost there is no point in the game where you will be forced to pay for anything. There is a currency model built in to the game that allows players to spend airtime in the Echo Marketplace. Here they can buy Elements, weapons and items if they choose to.

Life at the top can be monotonous. How will you keep the game interesting in the long term, for players who stick around and level up all the way?

There is a reward system that we have built in to the game and we will be rewarding players for various achievements throughout the game from day 1 in the Echo. We will also be rewarding players for activity, if they play often but don’t necessarily win very often we’ll still provide them with incentives to keep playing.

The world itself is also quite dynamic. We have created an in-game newspaper, The Echo Enquirer. The newspaper will allow us to provide players with updates about the Echo, which bloodlines are taking over which areas in the Echo and who is at the top of the rankings throughout the game.

There is also an interesting cross-section between a player’s individual need to succeed and the bloodline that a player has chose. The domination map illustrates to players which bloodlines dominate which provinces in South Africa.

LoE has several built-in social networking features, including chat and personal message boards.

We have to ask: why is Vodacom doing a mobile MMO?

With The Grid going from strength to strength right now we looked at the available technology and wanted to create a commercially viable and extremely innovative product off the back of that technology. The key for us is innovation and pushing the boundaries of the mobile medium, social networking and gaming and coming up with the most innovative product we could. The product we emerged with is Legends of Echo.

Any tips for new adventurers? And who should our readers look for if they want to battle you?

It might be a mistake for me to give away my LoE nickname, I’d never get any sleep! In the way of tips I’d say exploration is imperative, scan near you and see what you can find. Be sure to read the Echo Enquirer everyday and be sure to build relationships with other players in the game, you’ll need them down the line.

The game is going live today (Monday, 19 April, 2010). Are you nervous? What kind of reception would you consider a success?

No, I wouldn’t say that I am nervous. There is a nervous excitement present and an anticipation after so many months of work, but no nerves and very little fear. It’s difficult to predict the success of a product but our goal is to have users download the game, get in to their roles and play as often as they can. I’d consider that a success.

Press release:

Flycell Grows International Presence by Bringing the Largest Online Catalog of Mobile Content to South Africa

JOHANNESBURG and NEW YORK – APRIL 28, 2010 – Flycell, Inc. (www.flycell.com), a leading mobile and online entertainment content company, today announced availability of a new edition of its portal created especially for the South African market. South Africa is the tenth country to gain its own version of the award-winning mobile content service.  The website, now live at www.flycell.co.za, features some of the best and most exciting mobile entertainment content.

South Africans love their mobile phones.  A March 2010 study by the research firm Synovate found that 84 percent of South Africans “cannot live without their cell phones.”  The study also found that 71 percent of South African mobile phone users play mobile games and 66 percent listen to music on their phones.  These statistics are particularly significant since less than 10 percent of South Africans use landlines whereas nearly 80 percent use mobile phones.  These conditions make South Africa a perfect market for the mobile entertainment and content provided by Flycell.

Flycell now brings South African consumers today’s hottest ringtones as well as exciting new wallpapers, games, applications and other mobile media from today’s most popular mobile publishers.  The new Flycell website serves as a one-stop-shop for South Africa’s mobile subscribers, offering them everything they need to personalize their cell phones with the latest in mobile media and entertainment, all in one easy-to-use online portal.  Flycell’s service works on virtually every mobile phone and with every carrier throughout South Africa.

Flycell delivers mobile entertainment and personalization on the fly to customers all across the globe.  Whether it is ringtones, wallpapers, applications or games, everything people in South Africa need for their personalized mobile lifestyle is available on the Flycell website, www.flycell.co.za.

About Flycell
Flycell, Inc. is a leading mobile and online media and entertainment destination. Flycell lets people from all walks of life personalize their phones with the mobile content that reflects their own unique tastes in entertainment, sports, games and more. The company partners with media companies and mobile network operators globally that utilize Flycell’s cutting edge multimedia applications and services. Headquartered in New York, N.Y. and launched in 2004, Flycell is a wholly-owned subsidiary of wireless services company Acotel Group (MIL: ACO).

Flycell.co.za

Last week I did a post about Skype on the BlackBerry using iSkoot. Well this time, I’d like to tell you about Nimbuzz.  I have been a Nimbuzz user for about 3 years now and it is truly a great application.

If, like me, you enjoy IM (instant messaging), you are probably familiar with the most popular IM programs such as MSN, Skype, GTalk, etc.   Since some of your friends use one program and others use a different one, you probably have to log into more than one application to be available to chat to all your buddies. Nimbuzz makes life much easier for you by aggregating all your IM programs into one. So you only have to use one program but will see ALL your buddies!

Nimbuzz is quickly becoming one of the best IM programs available, because it is FREE, easy to use and offers versions for Windows PC, Apple Mac and mobile phones.  Nimbuzz for iPhone is available via iTunes and for all other devices, you can go here…

To download Nimbuzz for your PC or laptop please visit http://www.nimbuzz.com

Great application!

Facebook has become such a big part of many people’s lives and is currently the largest social networking site in the world with millions of users.  Here are some cute cartoons I found today… enjoy!

And my personal favourite….

for these and more visit: http://www.chethstudios.net/2010/04/40-hilarious-facebook-comic-strips.html

If you haven’t already used twitter, you’re probably wondering what the fuss is all about.  However, if you have used twitter, you’re probably wondering how you lived without this simple, yet fun social media service.  You can find it at www.twitter.com .  Signing up is FREE and simple.

Twitter is what is known as a micro-blogging service. It allows you to send out short messages of 140 characters (similar to a text message on your mobile phone) called “tweets”.

There are different permission settings but the default is that you can choose who you would like to follow.  If you are following someone, you will see all their “tweets”.  If someone is following you, they will see all your tweets. At any time you can view your followers and who is following you.

Twitter started a status update service where you told your followers “What you are doing now” and could see what they were doing too.  The airwaves were filled with tweets such as “I’m off to work” or “I’m about to watch Aviator!” etc. Today twitter has evolved into a dynamic service where you can get breaking news as it happens, stay in touch with friends or read arbitrary tweets from all over the world.  You can search on specific topics or send private messages to friends and much more.

Your experience on twitter all depends on the people you follow and how much you interact and engage with your followers.  I follow comedians, journalists, friends and interesting people from all over the world. When I open twitter I know I’m in for some great entertainment.

I use twitter on the Internet (see http://twitter.com/cellfhelp), on my mobile phone and I also use software to send my tweets.  Please feel free to visit my twitter page and follow me!

To help you on your way, here is the blonde’s understanding of twitter jargon:

@ = All twitter “handles” (your name on twitter) start with @. So mine is @Cellfhelp.  If you want to send a message to someone (for example Cellfhelp), and you don’t mind other people seeing it, you would start the message with @Cellfhelp.

DM = Direct Message. You can send and receive direct messages to anyone who is following you.  These messages are not shown on the public Internet and are kept private between you and the recipient.

RT = Re-Tweet. If you see a tweet from a friend and you would like to share it with your followers, you can re-tweet it.  This is a wonderful way to give credit to your friends for their humour, intelligence or stupidity…

#= hash tag. This hash is put in front of subjects.  If you want to find tweets on mobile you can search on #mobile and find out what people are saying about mobile at that moment.  For this reason you should include hash tags in your tweets so that people can find your comments and opinions on the subject.  You can search twitter at http://search.twitter.com

How to get started:

Simply go to http://twitter.com and sign up for a new account.  The service is entirely FREE and all you need is access to the Internet.

Other ways to use twitter:

There are some GREAT twitter applications that give you more functionality.  If you’re interested, check out www.digsby.com; www.feedalizr.com or www.tweetdeck.com.  For twitter on your mobile phone, visit the application store or go to m.twitter.com on your mobile.

Twitter for business

Many companies are using twitter to engage with customers. They can see what people are saying about their brand and respond immediately.

Twitter is so much more than just a texting alternative.  Why not give it a try so that you can see what the fuss is all about?  Don’t you want to also be a twit?

In all the reports on mobile usage last year it was clear that facebook is the number ONE mobile site and most popular mobile phone application for fun and social activity on your phone.  Facebook has been very forward thinking in allowing developers to access their service and with Facebook Connect, you can sign into other web sites or services using your facebook details. Thanks to that, the growth of applications has been astronomical!

Most new phones are coming with the facebook application already installed and you will notice that the features you can access are awesome!  Status updates, instant message chats, wall posts and photos are available for most mobile phones.  The “smarter” your phone,  the more facebook services you can access.  If you don’t already facebook for your phone, you can get it here: http://www.facebook.com/mobile/

If you still have an old phone that doesn’t give you a great website service or allow you to download applications, then don’t worry.  Facebook launched “Facebook Zero” this year, which is a text-based version of their site and allows you limited facebook features on any phone.  It gives you the popular functionality of staying in touch with your friends via chat and status updates.  Facebook Zero is being launched through the mobile network operators and is basically the ability for the for them to provide you with a scaled down version of facebook web experience on your phone.

Facebook zero is going to be a very big headache to other instant messaging services such as MXiT, Mobile MSN, Skype and Nimbuzz because the text only version will compete directly with these services; and due to the popularity of the brand, may start to see users moving to facebook instead.

This is still a BRAND new service and is not supported by all the mobile networks yet so – watch this space! (zero.facebook.com)

In the meantime you can visit m.facebook.com on your mobile phone.