Will Google Take the Internet Over the Cliff? - by Jeffrey Chester

[cousinlucky]

http://www.alternet.org/story/42988/

[Alex Stan]

I'll be happy if that happends. Google gave us some quality products and I don't think there is a problem if they continue this way.

[Roxoff]

I get the feeling that Google are taking a different approach to everyone else here. The tie ups of the ISP/carriers and various media corporations makes the next phase for the Internet potentially scary for the average Joe in the street. I remember stories from a while ago how Google were buying up unused 'dark cables' - unused fibre-optic cables put in place as backups and for reserve capacity by carries which look to be unneeded now. The threat seems to be a clampdown on the freedom of the internet, and it looks like Google could be the only ones to stop this happening - if the Internet is closed off to non-subscribers (i.e. those who can pay for it) then Google will be in position to launch Internet II with plenty of freedoms back in place. That's quite a bargaining chip.

[smolloy]

The only problem I have with google taking over the world is their huge user information database. The full search history of any one who uses gmail is now recorded (most people won't have turned it off), and, although this can be looked at as useful, it is scary that my internet browsing habits are being recorded -- including my gmail, google earth searches, driving directions, etc...

Combine this with the news of ~6 months ago that google search records are now being subpoaened (spelling?) by the US government, and this starts to get scary.

Google are not a friendly, charitable group who have set out to right the world's wrongs. They are a multi-billion dollar corporation who are there to make money (which I have no problem with). It would serve us well to remember that.

[Alex Stan]

Maybe but as long as you don't odd stuff it won't really matter. And I'm a Canadian anyway.

At least Google shows it, don't you think MSN or Yahoo doesn't do the same thing?

[zba78]

With regards to google I must say tend to agree with the author of this article:

http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/wlg/4707

[Roxoff]

Maybe but as long as you don't odd stuff it won't really matter. And I'm a Canadian anyway.

At least Google shows it, don't you think MSN or Yahoo doesn't do the same thing?

That's a pretty lame argument; you're saying: "as long as you do nothing illegal, what have you got to fear from the lawmakers?"

You're Canadian - a citizen of one of the worlds senior sovereign nations. What right, then, do the US government have to go reading through your personal email and onlne history? None whatsoever.

Dont think that because you've done nothing illegal, it doesn't mean you cant have information used against you by the most corrupt regieme in the world.

For the record, though, I'd expect that if either AOL or MSN wanted to do stuff like this, it'd be in the background and completely hidden. Google are the only ones out of this lot that would even suggest publicly they had the power to do use information this way.

[devils casper]

The only problem I have with google taking over the world is their huge user information database. The full search history of any one who uses gmail is now recorded (most people won't have turned it off), and, although this can be looked at as useful, it is scary that my internet browsing habits are being recorded -- including my gmail, google earth searches, driving directions, etc...

thats really a very huge problem. last week i sent an email to local vendor for FC6 DVD from Gmail account. i received 3 emails from different websites offering me FC6 DVD. they know i am from india and i want .iso image of DVD.

how the hell they know ? its GOOGLE.......




casper

[easuter]

i've always seen Google as the organization that stood up agains MSN, Yahoo and other monopolistic corporations, but as time goes by, i see google adopting harsher tactics toward the market and its users.
Google practicaly built its empire on the back of OpenSource software and more and more i see programs and apps made by google that are closed source, and even incompatible with *nix systems (eg: picasa, google earth - very late release in comparison to windows, google talk, and video downloads from google video - which require a proprietary media player to open the files that only works on Mac or Win!)

[gtmtnbiker98]

Dont think that because you've done nothing illegal, it doesn't mean you cant have information used against you by the most corrupt regieme in the world.

Corrupt regime? Is this a political thread or one about Google? Just curious, wouldn't want this to be a political debate.