The group also said that the Dashboard, though useful, is not easy to find.
“If they want people to use this, why isn’t there a direct link from the home page?” asked Simpson. “In other contexts Google likes to say competition is one click away. They’ve buried the Dashboard. The extra password verification is a good security measure, but why can’t you get there with one click from a Dashboard link on the home page?”
The google dashboard is cleverly "buried" at google.com/dashboard
Navigating to it requires the user to select the "Settings => Google Account settings" dropdown at the top right of the page when you're logged in. Maybe I've been around computers for more than a few minutes and that gives me an advantage, but that felt like a pretty natural way to find this.
I agree that Google needs to take more steps to make user behavior anonymous, but at least they're honest about that and have a means for providing dashboard feedback.
Good thing they left out the ethidium bromide. And I'm glad to see they used agarose instead of acrylamide, because inevitably some younger sibling out there will decide to eat the sequencing kit.
Actually, Graham's Voter Verification Act requires openly available software. from the pdf of the proposed legislation:
Sec. 4:
(C) SOFTWARE AND MODEMS.
(i) No voting system shall at any time contain or use undisclosed software. Any voting system containing or using software shall disclose the source code of that software to the Commission, and the Commission shall make that source code available for inspection upon request to any citizen.
Offtopic, but there are some really stupid patents out there. Comparatively, the "Computer Noise Insulation Case" is a masterpiece of ingenuity. For example:
US5,443,036 - Method of exercising a cat
"A method for inducing cats to exercise consists of directing a beam of invisible light produced by a hand-held laser apparatus onto the floor or wall or other opaque surface in the vicinity of the cat, then moving the laser so as to cause the bright pattern of light to move in an irregular way fascinating to cats, and to any other animal with a chase instinct."
The rest of this is funnier, or more depressing, depending on your outlook.
Slashdot Mirror
The article criticizing the dashboard has already been slashdotted but (oh irony) it was in my chrome cache.
The google dashboard is cleverly "buried" at google.com/dashboard
Navigating to it requires the user to select the "Settings => Google Account settings" dropdown at the top right of the page when you're logged in. Maybe I've been around computers for more than a few minutes and that gives me an advantage, but that felt like a pretty natural way to find this.
I agree that Google needs to take more steps to make user behavior anonymous, but at least they're honest about that and have a means for providing dashboard feedback.
And FWIW I don't see anything in the Microsoft Online Privacy Statement about giving users a way to control their data. Nor in the Yahoo Privacy Center.
Maybe it's just too hard to find.
"...made of highly polished solid 24ct gold. Weighing about 2600 grams...."
That's about double the 1.36 kg of the stock MacBook Air.
Good thing they left out the ethidium bromide. And I'm glad to see they used agarose instead of acrylamide, because inevitably some younger sibling out there will decide to eat the sequencing kit.
Actually, Graham's Voter Verification Act requires openly available software. from the pdf of the proposed legislation:
Sec. 4:
(C) SOFTWARE AND MODEMS.
(i) No voting system shall at any time contain or use undisclosed software. Any voting system containing or using software shall disclose the source code of that software to the Commission, and the Commission shall make that source code available for inspection upon request to any citizen.
...will no doubt provide a Silbo Gomero language interface soon.
It'll become the most irritating search known to man. Excepting - maybe - MSN.
Offtopic, but there are some really stupid patents out there. Comparatively, the "Computer Noise Insulation Case" is a masterpiece of ingenuity. For example:
US5,443,036 - Method of exercising a cat
"A method for inducing cats to exercise consists of directing a beam of
invisible light produced by a hand-held laser apparatus onto the floor
or wall or other opaque surface in the vicinity of the cat, then
moving the laser so as to cause the bright pattern of light to move in
an irregular way fascinating to cats, and to any other animal with a
chase instinct."
The rest of this is funnier, or more depressing, depending on your outlook.