Are You the Customer... or the Product?

   I regularly speak with people about Internet/Online Safety.  One message I frequently give about free online services is:

You're not the Customer... You're the Product.

   We often see people upset about changes in social networks like Facebook.  Folks complain about "customer service", not realizing that they are not the customer!  It's often the advertisers, or other backers, who are the real customers.  And what those customers want is information... about the users of the service.

   I'm a big fan of free online services, but it's important that people realize what's going on.  It starts with the privacy policy, which explains how an online service intends to use your data and information about you.

   But I want to talk about cloud storage services.  These services allow you to backup files, sync files between systems and devices, and have files available from anywhere.  How are your files protected?

To Freeze or Not to Freeze, That is the Question

   As I make a cup of coffee this morning, I'm thinking about a recent change I made.  I'm getting my coffee out of the cupboard rather than out of the freezer.

   When I was a kid, I always remember my parents keeping their ground coffee in the freezer.  Typically that was perk (coarse) ground.  The thinking was that keeping the coffee in the freezer would keep it fresh longer.

   So, when I got older and had my own freezer, I did the same.  Typically I would either have drip (fine) ground coffee or whole beans.  For many years I never thought about whether or not that made any sense.