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Nepal Earthquake: Facebook To Google, How Tech Is Helping Survivors Reach Out

Posted by samzenpus on from the safe-status-update dept.

An anonymous reader writes: In the aftermath of the earthquake that struck Nepal, many social media sites and mobile applications have come up with features that could help locate friends and loved ones. From the Times of India: "Social networking website Facebook, and Google's Person Finder have helped locate the whereabouts of those stranded in quake-hit areas. For instance, members of one Himmatramka family residing in Birgunj in Nepal marked themselves safe on Facebook. 'Our relatives back in India were worried about our safety. So, we marked ourselves safe to inform them,' said Nitesh Himmatramka.

10 of 39 comments (clear)

  1. Just be prudent although... by ls671 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Just be prudent although, every catastrophe like this one bring along a bunch of people how are just trying to make a buck out of it. Don't get scammed.

    --
    Everything I write is lies, read between the lines.
    1. Re:Just be prudent although... by MightyMartian · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I'm not posting this AC, and will take the karma hit off need be.

      So with that, let me say that I hope you die of some horrible cancer that makes you smell like rancid cat shit, so awful that your own mother hopes you die, but you don't, and just linger on, more foul and corrupted with each passing day, becoming as vile and repugnant on the outside as you are on the inside.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
  2. Where are the robots? by Iamthecheese · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Since Fukushima tens of companies have developed search and rescue robots. This would be the perfect time to deploy them for a field test.

    --
    If video games influenced behavior the Pac Man generation would be eating pills and running away from their problems.
  3. I suppose that helps... by tomhath · · Score: 2

    'Our relatives back in India were worried about our safety. So, we marked ourselves safe to inform them,'

    I would've sent them an email first. I suppose broadcasting on FB in addition to that could be useful but it wouldn't be my primary means of communication

    1. Re:I suppose that helps... by oodaloop · · Score: 3, Insightful

      If you have 2 friends, then emailing all both of them makes sense. When you have hundreds, making one small setting on FB and getting back to important stuff makes a little more sense.

      --
      Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
    2. Re:I suppose that helps... by YrWrstNtmr · · Score: 2

      Very, very few people have 'hundreds' of actual friends. Facebook 'friends', maybe. IOW, people you've never met.

    3. Re:I suppose that helps... by Iamthecheese · · Score: 2

      There are some things about human contact that have lasted the ages. One of them is the need to directly communicate with each-other. Expecting your friends to visit a website on a regular basis if they want communication from you is inconsiderate, and that transcends generational boundaries. Sure it works with "friends" (who used to be known as acquaintances) but if you're trying to tell me the new generation doesn't actually have friends close enough for direct communication I'll call you disconnected from society at large.

      Whether it's "I'll tell the innkeeper if I need you, no need to darken my doorstep" as in days past or "Don't call me, I'll call you" as in pretentious modern Hollywood or "If you want news check my Facebook status" as in your intent, it's not some new wave, it's being too selfish to give the other person a moment's time.

      --
      If video games influenced behavior the Pac Man generation would be eating pills and running away from their problems.
    4. Re:I suppose that helps... by tompaulco · · Score: 2

      You just dated yourself. It is mostly just people that are 30+ that still use email on any sort of a regular basis. It would be sort of like letting everyone know you are safe via telegraph.

      No, texting would be like letting everyone know you are safe via telegraph. Facebook would be like letting everyone know via a billboard that people may not drive by or pay attention to.

      --
      If you are not allowed to question your government then the government has answered your question.
  4. Red Cross by BlueScreenO'Life · · Score: 2

    Red cross has a family links database. I wish Google and Facebook just linked to Red Cross, instead of launching each their own redundant person finder features.

    1. Re:Red Cross by Dutch+Gun · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Honestly, my take is that this feature on Facebook / Google makes a lot of sense. How many people would think to first check the Red Cross website first (or specifically, the site you linked to, which I couldn't seem to find via the main site)? People are much more likely to *first* check Facebook to see if their family or friends have posted an update. These are social networks already in place, so why not use them for an important feature that's obviously "social" in nature?

      The Red Cross feature is fantastic for people who aren't already hooked up with Google or Facebook. But honestly, who wants to do that when they can click a single button on their already-used social network of choice, versus the battery of personal data you have to enter at the Red Cross? Consider the Facebook or Google feature as a first-line system. If a person doesn't mark themselves safe, family members can then register them as a missing person on the Red Cross site.

      --
      Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.