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It's been happening for years. A few last straws lately? Google did a lot to gain the trust of it's users over a decade ago. What it did and said as an organiz

It's been happening for years. A few last straws lately? Google did a lot to gain the trust of it's users over a decade ago. What it did and said as an organization was that they were the good guys and could be trusted, and that everyone else was evil. Google were the stewards of the internet. Maybe it was after they took the company public but it slowly started to ratchet in the other direction. Products became increasingly and heavily monetized or shut down entirely. More and more attempts at lock-in and data control. That's fine for a business but in the case of Google, because of their earlier approach and saying the exact opposite, it was a total bait-and-switch.

open-source-ux 8y ago
"...they were the good guys and could be trusted" I've said this before but Google is neither the 'good guy' or the 'bad guy'. They aren't there to look out for your best interests and we'd all be much better if we stop ascribing human qualities to gigantic corporations. And they have never been 'stewards of the internet'. As for the recent uproar, well better late than never. The attitude of the tech community is incredibly hypocritical on matters of privacy. Google has always tracked users on an industrial scale. That tracking now extends to schools where ChromeOS is in widespread use. Tracking school kids online behaviour even if that data is detached from individual accounts and aggregated in some way is simply indefensible in my view. The amount of pupil data stored on Google's servers must be simply staggering. But barely a peep from developers on this issue. Next time developers rush to Google's defence, they should ask themselves: does a gigantic multi-billion corporation that tracks people on an industrial scale need to be defended?
- rXoX 8y ago
  " if we stop ascribing human qualities to gigantic corporations. " I guess we'll stop ascribing those qualities when they stop claiming them - as an effort at branding themselves.
- alexgmcm 8y ago
  Why is it indefensible? Surely what matters is what they do with the data - if it's being used to improve their products and services then why is it bad? Are there concrete examples of where they have abused this data?

open-source-ux 8y ago

"...they were the good guys and could be trusted" I've said this before but Google is neither the 'good guy' or the 'bad guy'. They aren't there to look out for your best interests and we'd all be much better if we stop ascribing human qualities to gigantic corporations. And they have never been 'stewards of the internet'. As for the recent uproar, well better late than never. The attitude of the tech community is incredibly hypocritical on matters of privacy. Google has always tracked users on an industrial scale. That tracking now extends to schools where ChromeOS is in widespread use. Tracking school kids online behaviour even if that data is detached from individual accounts and aggregated in some way is simply indefensible in my view. The amount of pupil data stored on Google's servers must be simply staggering. But barely a peep from developers on this issue. Next time developers rush to Google's defence, they should ask themselves: does a gigantic multi-billion corporation that tracks people on an industrial scale need to be defended?

rXoX 8y ago
" if we stop ascribing human qualities to gigantic corporations. " I guess we'll stop ascribing those qualities when they stop claiming them - as an effort at branding themselves.
alexgmcm 8y ago
Why is it indefensible? Surely what matters is what they do with the data - if it's being used to improve their products and services then why is it bad? Are there concrete examples of where they have abused this data?