Category: Web 2.0
Samaritans suspends controversial “Samaritans Radar” app
6pm on a Friday is a great time to bury bad news - which is why Samaritans has finally said announced that it is pulling its controversial Radar app "for further consideration". Here's the statement in full. Joe Ferns, Executive Director of Policy, Research & Development said: Following the broad range of feedback and advice…
Samaritans still isn’t saying much about the “Samaritans Radar” fiasco
The Samaritans Radar has been running for over a week now, and despite it upsetting a lot of people, and all of the (ahem) insightful analysis on what it all means... the organisation has been rather quiet. Samaritans has still not offered a substantive response to any of the specific complaints - such as how…
Facebook steps in to help fight Ebola
Facebook has announced plans to help fight ebola - both by soliciting donations from around the world, and by offering advice directly to people in the area who may be affected. First off, Facebook has updated the news feed so that if you're in one of the impacted places in West Africa, you might be…
The Samaritans Radar app is a reminder that we have no control over how our data is used
It has been almost a week since Samaritans launched its "Radar" web app - and almost a week since the backlash began. Astonishingly, the charity is sticking to its guns - and this should remind us that once our data is out there, we can't control what happens with it. On the surface the app…
Astronaut Chris Hadfield’s Space Oddity is back online – hurrah!
Good news for fans of awe-inspiring music videos. Commander Hadfield's Bowie cover is BACK! Remember Canadian Astronaut Commander Chris Hadfield, who wowed us all last year with his music video shot aboard the International Space Station? The cover of David Bowie's Space Oddity was pulled from YouTube after a year because of an agreement over…
Wifi will now work at 150 Tube stations
Good news for London commuters this morning as Virgin Media has announced it has installed wifi in its 150th London Underground station. The news comes as Wimbledon, Richmond, Morden, East Ham, Barking and Upminster are all brought online, providing travellers with blessed relief from the horror or having to stare vacantly at other people. Apparently…
YouTube rolls out 60fps support
Good news for anyone who likes watching gaming footage on YouTube: The site now supports videos uploaded at 60 frames per second. This means that video will look smooth as butter - perfect for high-speed shoot-outs and the like. If you can't imagine it, check out the below videos - be sure to choose "1080p60"…
Backlash against “invasive” Samaritans Radar web app
Samaritans new web has received criticism on social media today for being "invasive", and essentially misconceived in its attempt to flag up friends at risk. You may have read in The Digest this morning about the new app aimed at helping those in need. It sounds pretty clever: Essentially you sign in with your Twitter…
OK Google, tell me about a trip to a Google-centric universe
Last week an invite arrived in my inbox from Google to see a new... thing... the company had put together. It wasn't hugely specific, so I was intrigued - just what is Google doing in London? Today, I found out. At one o'clock I joined a tour of assembled hacks as we took a trip…
Borough Market opens a REAL Apple Store
Borough Market in London is currently celebrating its 1000th birthday (!), and one of the events to celebrate was yesterday the 'opening' of a 'Real' Apple Store. According to SE1 (which also took the photos), the 'store' showcased over 1000 types of Apple - in the style of Cupertino's phones and tablets. And we were…
