Another example of Big Brother

[Roger Feeley]

I commented on a thread yesterday describing my solution for locating the flip stop on my chop saw station.
I mentioned that I used a Morton Quill stop in a thread about using a DRO for a station.
I probably haven't mentioned either a DRO or my quill stop for years.

Today, I saw this ad.

411270

[John K Jordan]

Today, I saw this ad.


That seems annoying. Maybe you need my built-in universal ad blocker. I've never seen an ad on my computer, phone, or in my snail-mail box.

Well, I'm sure I've gotten untold ads but they are just background noise to me - I've never read or even looked directly at one so I have no idea if any are targeted. I'm sure advertisers everywhere would hate people like me if they knew. Oops, now they know.

[Jacob Reverb]

Wait until they start pushing ads upon you for things you discuss only on the telephone.

[John K Jordan]

Wait until they start pushing ads upon you for things you discuss only on the telephone.

A friend said she got a targeted ad after her digital "assistant" listened to a conversation and reported back to Amazon. Apparently when idling those things are listening for more than the trigger word.

[Roger Feeley]

A friend said she got a targeted ad after her digital "assistant" listened to a conversation and reported back to Amazon. Apparently when idling those things are listening for more than the trigger word.

Ok, all. Here's a challenge. Everyone with Alexa or Siri listening. Just say a couple of times a day, "I want a crowbar". Let's see how many crowbar ads show up.
I don't have anything that is voice activated. I do have an Amazon Tap but you have to press a button to get it to listen (hmmmm.....).

[Jim Koepke]

Maybe you need my built-in universal ad blocker. I've never seen an ad on my computer...

My ad blocker was deactivated due to comments from folks about how ad blockers are depleting the revenue here at SMC.

On an interesting note, some of the banners ads say "Google Sponsor" in the frame above the ad.

Maybe SMC should have a "click on ads" day. Encourage members to click on the various ads and leave the ad window open for a minute or two. Maybe the "click throughs" would encourage the advertisers to stay and support SMC.

One thing the "targeted ads" do is to give me a heads up on what my wife has been looking at with a mind to buy.

jtk

[Patrick Walsh]

Weird I never get any of this stuff.

Maybe It’s because I use all apple products but nothing.

These conversations I have been hearing about our devices listening to us then sending us info based on what we are “talking” about not typing about frankly makes me want to throw all the devices in the trash take my hand tools to the woods and go live off the grid.

If it’s true we best all stand up do something. What do they say freedom is lost a little bit at. Time without the masses even knowing. And that this is how dictatorships are born..

Something smells fishy to me unless this is all conspiracy theory garbage with no real basis in reality.

I’m not sure cuz I don’t experience the above.

[Rob Damon]

On the other hand if you have one of these in-home spying devices you could make sure you say " sawmillcreek - great place" everytime you walk post it....

[John K Jordan]

Maybe you need my built-in universal ad blocker. I've never seen an ad on my computer...
...Maybe SMC should have a "click on ads" day. Encourage members to click on the various ads and leave the ad window open for a minute or two. Maybe the "click throughs" would encourage the advertisers to stay and support SMC.


Yikes. Imagine what existing and potential advertisers would think of SMC if they caught wind of a campaign to artificially inflate click counts.


Maybe you need my built-in universal ad blocker. I've never seen an ad on my computer...
Since this snippet is taken out of context: I get plenty of ads. My point was my brain is apparently not wired to read or respond.

The ads that frequently pop up on apps and web pages are simply a mild annoyance - I've never clicked on one on purpose and I rarely even notice them anymore. I also don't watch TV and don't browse stores/catalogs/Amazon looking for advertised specials or sales for something I didn't know I wanted.

I can't think of anything I've bought or even considered based on an ad -- in fact, direct exposure to an ad is likely to turn me away from the product. I am, however, strongly influenced by reputation, observation, trusted recommendations, experiences real users describe here and elsewhere, and of course, a bit of research.

I don't know the answer to the forum advertising support dilemma but I do know advertising dollars are wasted on some of us, except indirectaly. I should probably turn in my Conspicuous Consumer card. :)

JKJ

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

First, I have no Alexa or Siri, however, A friend had a very small business and had to fire an employee. He came over and i ghost wrote the discharge letter to the employee for him. Four days later, my facebook feed showed a picture of the fired employee saying "People you may know" The SOB"s are mining your personal off-line business as well.

[Brian Tymchak]

I do have an Amazon Tap but you have to press a button to get it to listen (hmmmm.....).

...are you sure about that?...

[Stephen Tashiro]

I think most modern smart phones can use voice recognition technology to allow people to compose text messages. Without composing a text message, try talking aloud about some topic such as "hose bib" and then use the phone's keypad and search function to search for "ho..." and see if the auto-completion function gives you "hose bib".

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I read the book "1984" in 1970. We are getting there!

[John K Jordan]

...are you sure about that?...

Has anyone ever taken one apart? If the microphone is accessible it might be easy to wire in an enable/disable switch.

[Chuck Wintle]

I read the book "1984" in 1970. We are getting there!

I keep hearing about facial recognition software and cameras being installed in airports and other places. Have they really started to do this yet? To me that is extreme big brother at work as now one can be easily tracked.

[Jim Koepke]

Yikes. Imagine what existing and potential advertisers would think of SMC if they caught wind of a campaign to artificially inflate click counts.

This has been a bane of advertisers already. There are "click mines" that have banks of devices to direct "trends" in internet activity.

Need 10,000 likes real fast? It is available for a fee.

jtk

[Mike Null]

The only thing in my house that's voice activated is me.:)

[Ken Fitzgerald]

The only thing in my house that's voice activated is me.:)

In my household too. When I hear my wife's voice, I get busy!:D

[Jim Koepke]

I get plenty of ads. My point was my brain is apparently not wired to read or respond.

The ads that frequently pop up on apps and web pages are simply a mild annoyance - I've never clicked on one on purpose and I rarely even notice them anymore.

One well known news site has one ad that flashes at a very high rate. It is most distracting which is one reason my reading seldom involves that particular site. If there is a story they are running that isn't on other sites, the window size is readjusted to block out all but the text.

Thanks be to all the web designers who long ago realized people do not like the distraction of ads flashing like so many neon signs on the Las Vegas strip.

jtk

[Kev Williams]

As per the OP's post, here's one I made in Oct 2016, see if it sounds familiar-?
https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?247860-Now-THIS-is-un-nerving-Beware-of-what-you-type&highlight=deburring

--and note, the ad didn't come up within SMC, it was EMAILED to me--

And smart phones are starting it *iss me off- twice that I've witnessed myself; once while we're standing in the kitchen conversing, I said something to the effect of "I need to get an 'off-the-wall-item' for the boat". Not 5 seconds later, the wife's Iphone, which was on but 'dormant', received a text message: SALE ON ALL 'OFF-THE-WALL-ITEMS' FOR YOUR BOAT! -- Now, that her OFF phone was listening and found an ad within 5 seconds is spooky as hell. Even worse, is that it was listening, period!! Same thing happened about a week later while we were in the living room, just different subject matter. My BIL says his Iphone does that all the time. The wife has since disabled the 'always listening' function.

It's ridiculous that 'we're going to listen' is the default and the user has to disable it. Should be the other way 'round. I'm sure it's in the TOS somewhere, but that section should be in
BIG HUGE LETTERS
since 'default' listening is an affront to our privacy rights :mad: http://www.engraver1.com/gifs/thumbdown.gif http://www.engraver1.com/gifs/orelse.gif

--in my opinion, of course ;)

[Jim Koepke]

Go to your favorite search engine and enter > bluetooth customer tracking <. Drop the word customer and you will get ads for the device that tracks and suggests.

It is getting rather difficult to "get off the grid" these days.

jtk

[Curt Harms]

I keep hearing about facial recognition software and cameras being installed in airports and other places. Have they really started to do this yet? To me that is extreme big brother at work as now one can be easily tracked.

What I've read about facial recognition is that it's pretty unreliable, hit rates in the single digits or something. Give it time though.

[Jim Koepke]

What I've read about facial recognition is that it's pretty unreliable, hit rates in the single digits or something. Give it time though.

There are problems with facial recognition as it is currently configured. There are a large numbers of businesses big and small working on improving its reliability. It will be a big payday for anyone who develops the break throughs in this field.

From the NY Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/09/technology/facial-recognition-race-artificial-intelligence.html):


Facial recognition technology is improving by leaps and bounds. Some commercial software can now tell the gender of a person in a photograph.

When the person in the photo is a white man, the software is right 99 percent of the time.

The bugs are being worked on as this is being typed.

BTW, the NY Times article is over a year old. That is a long time in the world of advancing technology.

jtk