All My Best Friends are Metalheads, 2

 

It turns out there’s someone in the world that likes going to shows and taking pictures. That “person” would be Spin.com.

 Here are my latest two AMBFM’s, goofily called, “It Happened Last Night” on the Spin website:

 The Clientele, Mohawk Place, Buffalo, NY

The Eagles of Death Metal, Showplace Theatre, Buffalo, NY

 Have a look, and I’ll post more of the photo-tastic outtakes here later.

 -EPP

Facebook gets too personal

Facebook launched a redesign today, one that creeps out almost everyone I know.

Instead of simply filling out your profile and putting it up for all to see, facebook now gives you a feed on all your added friends – so you know not only when Kevin joined the “Mothafucking Snakes on a Plane” group or Rachel added pictures, but you also are now updated that Brett is now single or that Evan declined to go to “Steve’s Move In Party.”

I know that none of that information is particularly private, considering the community wide nature of Facebook, but the fact that there is a running RSS-type feed of all your Facebook activities is disconcerting – sure, Brett might now be single, but in changing his personal status on the website, Brett has now inadvertently notified his 500 “Friends” that Karen dumped his ass. It’s not cool.

Anyway, my big complaint isn’t that Facebook has this new system – it’s got its plusses – but the way they implemented it. They simply put everyone’s changes up, from roughly the beginning of August to the present before anyone had a choice, and the News feed posted all of that activity. They changed the privacy options to control what goes on the feed, however the system was implemented before A) anyone could enact the privacy options and B) anyone was actually aware of the privacy options. Everytime you accept a “poke,” an invitation, or change anything in your profile, the news feed picks it up.

That results in situations like this:

FriendofErrantRemark (1:13:26 AM): ahhh this is so weird
errantremark (1:13:56 AM): I don’t like it – you can’t really control what goes up there
FriendofErrantRemark (1:14:03 AM): that is so humiliating for her
errantremark (1:14:10 AM): like, if you get invited to something, you can’t quietly say no
errantremark (1:14:16 AM): really?
FriendofErrantRemark (1:14:24 AM): you cant even quietly break up
FriendofErrantRemark (1:14:28 AM): jesus christ
FriendofErrantRemark (1:14:45 AM): my friends paul and nancy split
errantremark (1:15:01 AM): yeah, I know
Here’s a pic, so you can see what I mean:

See what I mean? It’s not so much an invasion of privacy, just a bit creepy. Facebook should be about networking friends and keeping in touch – it’s greatest trick is that when people are out of school, they can still check in on what friends might be up to. It’s a phone book, not a bullhorn.

I’ve already deactivated my account – it’s a shame Facebook’s feed doesn’t show that on its updates, because I have a feeling it would be one of the most regular updates ever.

UPDATE: Here’s the canned response Facebook reps send to complaints:

From: Christina from Facebook <info@facebook.com>
Date: Sep 5, 2006 9:28 PM
Subject: [rt.facebook.com #730517] Facebook Suggestion
To: jgburton@buffalo.edu

Hey,

We understand that some people are unhappy or concerned about the recent changes to
Facebook. Your feedback is welcome and appreciated because our goal is to make a website
that is in line with our users’ expectations. As we consider future changes and modifications,
we will certainly keep everyone’s opinions in mind. We think, however, that once you become
familiar with the new layout and features, you will find these changes just as useful as past
improvements such as Photos, Groups, and the Wall.

We introduced News Feed and Mini-Feed because we wanted to make it easier than ever
before to see interesting, relevant pieces of information from the world around you. News
Feed automatically generates the most recent news stories about your friends so that you
have a resource available to guide your movement throughout the site. Mini-Feed allows you
to quickly and easily see the latest developments in the lives of people whose profiles you
choose to visit.

What is important to remember with all of these features is that we are not allowing anyone
to see anything that they wouldn’t normally be allowed to see. For example, if you join a
secret group, any friends that are not members will not receive a News Feed story about this
action. Similarly, when they look at your Mini-Feed, they will not be able to see a story about
you joining the group. The settings that are established on the My Privacy page and the
settings that apply to Photo albums, Notes, Groups, Events, etc. dictate the stories that are
displayed in News Feed and Mini-Feed. Although there is no option to completely turn off
Mini-Feed, all users have the option to hide individual stories. If you select the ‘X’ button to
the right of any of your own stories, that content will no longer be visible to anyone viewing
your Mini-Feed. Facebook prides itself in giving users complete control over the information
that they share with others. Let us know if you have any questions about the privacy settings
that we offer.

Thanks for using Facebook!

–
Christina
Customer Service Representative
Facebook

THANKS FOR BEING AN ARROGANT JERK XTINA.

Crickey!

Steve Irwin, the famed Crocodile Hunter, died this morning after a stingray barb punctured his chest. He was 44.

There are going to be some people who are going to say that Irwin deserved what he had coming to him – case in point:

FriendofErrantRemark (12:18:48 PM): the devil rays should totally redo their logo with it killing steve irwin

ErrantRemark (12:19:13 PM): don’t disrespect the croc hunter dude
FriendofErrantRemark (12:19:30 PM): im not disrespecting.. im just saying, its not like we couldnt see this coming..
FriendofErrantRemark (12:19:43 PM): like, i feel bad for his family, but its surprising the guy didnt die years ago
ErrantRemark (12:20:03 PM): yeah, I know what you mean
ErrantRemark (12:20:17 PM): I have a feeling everyone was waiting for that call
FriendofErrantRemark (12:20:39 PM): most people get stung by rays on the foot and its whatever.. he was probably trying to fuck it in the ass or something to that extent

And that’s the fallacy – people always assume Steve Irwin was in some way harming the animals. It’s true he took unnecessary risks, but it was always to his own life, never the animals. Irwin was a pioneer in conservation and education – he dearly loved the animals he studied, and while his antics may have struck some people as Jackass-level foolishness, it’s undeniable he cast a big spotlight on these endangered species and may have done a lot to save them.

All My Best Friends Are Metalheads – Tesla

This is the long-delayed first post of what I hope will be a regular feature here at Errant Remark. I went to the Tesla concert at North Tonawanda’s Gateway Park last week. I did a review for the Buffalo News, but I also interviewed interesting people and took their pictures. Here’s the full photoset.

Just so no one gets the wrong idea, I didn’t take these pictures to make fun of people – these are simply the most interesting people I found at the concert, and they were nice enough to talk to me and let me take their picture. I do not wish to make fun of these people, and I’m not attempting a sarcastic knock on any of them – they represent the best of everyone you know.