Big Brother is Watching You (your evidence please)

[NewcastleFalcon]

The random hand of the FCF Archives February Ferret has moved and selected this thread.

New contributions to mark the occasion welcome.

Since the inception of the thread Chez falcon does now have a smart phone, but still retains a couple of refreshingly dumb cars. I'm sure the smart phone will no doubt provide plenty of data harvesting and tracking opportunities and as we all know they have become embedded in the modern world.

A small anecdote.

Data unharvested at the Coffee Shop!

One of our go to places for a decent coffee is Cullercoats Coffee, coffee roasters and from small beginnings have expanded at their original premises, and opened up new locations https://www.cullercoatscoffee.com/cullercoats

Tried their new outlet Cafe 19 at Whitley Bay the other day, On the table was a QRcode with the table number on.
Now we are in the very embryonic stages of smart phone operation. The server came over and said they were using a new ordering system where you just scanned the code....and no doubt its like falling off a log to the smart phone savvy...you could select your choices and without relying on the memory of the server or the use of a notepad and pencil, the order would be beamed to the engine room and the server would bring it to the table when it was ready.
No doubt before all that payment could be taken at the same time by some sort of phone payment app too.

This is when the dinosaur in me informed the server that I didn't even have a mobile phone never mind one that could scan QR codes, so we did it in the time ordered fashion of human to human face to face communication, told him what we wanted and he relayed that to the kitchen. Of course we did have the technology to comply as it happened but chose not to, and the Chez Falcon smart phone remained in the Chez Falcon handbag.

Neil

[mickthemaverick]

I met Bob for lunch last Friday and we went to our usual haunt, The Royal Oak in Farnham Common, where we enjoyed our usual couple of hours catch up over the usual lunch. However when we went to the bar we were told the pub is now cashless and we must pay by card. Normally one of us pays the whole bill by card while the other hands over appropriate cash between us. Thus we did not have a problem but the point is: now you have no choice so your visit will be automatically recorded!! BB strikes into the very heart of our social lives!!!

[GiveMeABreak]

This is when the dinosaur in me informed the server that I didn't even have a mobile phone never mind one that could scan QR codes, so we did it in the time ordered fashion of human to human face to face communication, told him what we wanted and he relayed that to the kitchen. Of course we did have the technology to comply as it happened but chose not to, and the Chez Falcon smart phone remained in the Chez Falcon handbag.

Neil

That's the problem with it - people like me go to places like that because I want a coffee the way I like it. I'm not talking abut your 'GrandeFrapocinoCapocinoLattelDeluxeMochaCocoa' either, I just want a large non-frothy black coffee with a little cold semi-skimmed milk on the top, not stirred. I mean they charge enough for it, so you expect to have it the way you want it and an App can't cope with anything not pre-programmed on the menu.

It's like Starbucks - If we're taking my mother out and want a tea for her, we have to tell them to put 2 tea bags in the cup, otherwise it's like dishwater, and I doubt they'd have a 'Not like dishwater please' option!

For the majority who want standard items it may work, but to be honest we avoid these places now as I can't abide having to queue up whilst they do all the 'Frapacino Faffing' about and making nice designs on the froth of the coffee for the Von Trapp family in front of me, whilst I've got a throat like Ghandi's flip flops.

[myglaren]

I have noticed that the Google tracking of my phone is becoming increasingly less accurate.
I take diversions to see how it performs and it shows me taking completely different roads.
The worst example is it shows me driving from my son's to my house, through the village centre and it's bus only link, whereas I always take the correct rout that is three times as long.

[NewcastleFalcon]

That's the problem with it - people like me go to places like that because I want a coffee the way I like it. I'm not talking abut your 'GrandeFrapocinoCapocinoLattelDeluxeMochaCocoa' either, I just want a large non-frothy black coffee with a little cold semi-skimmed milk on the top, not stirred. I mean they charge enough for it, so you expect to have it the way you want it and an App can't cope with anything not pre-programmed on the menu.

It's like Starbucks - If we're taking my mother out and want a tea for her, we have to tell them to put 2 tea bags in the cup, otherwise it's like dishwater, and I doubt they'd have a 'Not like dishwater please' option!

For the majority who want standard items it may work, but to be honest we avoid these places now as I can't abide having to queue up whilst they do all the 'Frapacino Faffing' about and making nice designs on the froth of the coffee for the Von Trapp family in front of me, whilst I've got a throat like Ghandi's flip flops.

Some excellent new contributions but that's Post of the day so far Marc!

Regards Neil

[bobins]

I have noticed that the Google tracking of my phone is becoming increasingly less accurate.
I take diversions to see how it performs and it shows me taking completely different roads.
The worst example is it shows me driving from my son's to my house, through the village centre and it's bus only link, whereas I always take the correct rout that is three times as long.

I think that's just Google's way of indicating that it's displeased with your decision making and isn't happy that you don't match it's algorithm. If you continue to make individual decisions like that then, come the revolution, it'll ensure that you're one of the first people with their backs against the wall

[myglaren]

It used to be very accurate though, same journeys.

[NewcastleFalcon]

You can of course act as big brother yourself with the endless stream of things you can do with your smartphone and its connectivity with other "smart" enabled things.

I was regaled a tale the other day about a young couple who have a dog which has a tendency to bark if left home alone. This is the gist I gathered. They were both out of the house at separate locations, and both had access to live video of the dog at their home. One of the couple decided that they would have to return home as the dog was agitated and barking. When they got home they found that the other half of the couple had been remotely from his phone, "over the air" flinging treats to the dog to "calm it down".

Yes we have only just got a smart phone, and won't be entering the world of pet apps and associated equipment any time soon and "App Controlled Dog Doors" remain a development we have never had the need for in all our years of having dogs.

https://www.oodlelife.com/best-app-controlled-dog-door/

Just as the name suggests, app-controlled dog doors allow you to control the door’s movement with the help of apps on your smartphone. Along with it, they also let you customize other things for your flexibility and comfort.

For example, whenever you’re watching your favourite Netflix show, and your dog wants to go out for their potty time, you might have to get up and open the door for them. Now, this can get very inconvenient, especially if you had a tiring day. You can use the remote to open or close the dog door while sitting on the couch and relaxing in such a situation. There is no longer a need to get up from sitting to let your dog in or out.

Neil

[mickthemaverick]

You can of course act as big brother yourself with the endless stream of things you can do with your smartphone and its connectivity with other "smart" enabled things.


Yes we have only just got a smart phone, and won't be entering the world of pet apps and associated equipment any time soon and "App Controlled Dog Doors" remain a development we have never had the need for in all our years of having dogs.

Neil

I was at a friend's house the other day sorting an issue with their PC in the kitchen. As I was working my friend wanted to know if her daughter was getting ready for the evening out. As she was upstairs in her bedroom I expected her to walk out to the bottom of the stairs and call up. But no, as I worked on I heard these words from just behind me:
"Alexa, broadcast are you getting dressed "name"" Followed by an announcement on the house speaker system " "name" are you getting dressed!
A moment or two later my friends iphone buzzed with a message "yes, be down in a few minutes!"

This apparently is the modern way of communicating around the home, which does of course mean that 'Alexa' (a****n I believe?) knows everything that goes on in the place!!

I call it a plan for total laziness which happens to fit that household very well!!

[GiveMeABreak]

I have to admit I just got an Apple Homepod Mini a few weeks ago, but don't get me started on setting that up - I shall reserve that for one of my Blog rants. Anyway, it's also got the intercom facility - so great for shouting into my iPhone "fancy a cup of tea"? for broadcast to the lounge. Whatever are things coming to?

[mickthemaverick]

If such devices never cross the threshold of my dwelling I shall die a happy Man!!

[GiveMeABreak]

I should of said that I have unconsciously wandered into the realm of home automation. I only started off with a 'smart' LED ceiling bulb to replace my old LED bulb in my mancave and thought, I may as well have an Apple Homekit compatible one so I can change the colours and switch it on and off easily enough. That soon changed more recently into 'Smart' plugs, This was intended to switch off all the devices and save the electricity consumed in standby mode.

As I have a fair amount of kit in multiple rooms like TVs, Home Theatre, a recent Denon AV Amp, Shaver Station, Toothbrush chargers, Cooling fans etc. etc. I realised there's probably a fair bit of consumption when not being used.

So I bought a 4 pack and have these selectively plugged into extension that control the relevant devices. So if we're going out or at night I can just yell at the Homepod "I'm Leaving Home" and it will switch everything off - or I can individually tell it to switch certain points on and off as needed.

It's really weird how you suddenly become climatised to talking to Siri and issuing orders! I haven't calculated specifics as I really don't have the time, but know that not having all this kit in standby for 9 hours in a 24 hour period has to be saving a bit of juice.

Oh and to keep this on topic, Siri is the only thing that sends anything out and mostly doesn't do anything until it hears the trigger words. An Except from Apple on this:

https://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2018/0 ... ays-apple/

[myglaren]

I have an Alexa Dot Echo, currently unplugged as it has started making random odd noises.
I used to have it playing music from my Amazon library.
Whenever he cam in my son would just unplug it as he refused to talk to a machine and say "Alexa stop"! or "Alexa pause"!
I saw that I could say to my phone "Google, take me home" but have yet to do that. I usually know my way home.

But things may get worse with the new chatbots emerging, as described by Tom Scott.

[bobins]

There was a bit on the radio yestetrday - can't remember exactly where but it was probably Radio 4 - where the guy they were interviewing said something along the lines of "You can turn off the phone charger when you're not using it if you want, but it'll only save about £1 a year"

[Paul-R]

Unplug or turn off your phone charger in order to prolong its life surely? Electronics do not appreciate the constant heating that results from being permanently on.