For NFL playbooks and spy novels, such intricacies are the norm. Social networking should not be that way. The trouble is the latter is rapidly descending into a black hole of complexity that you now really do need one of those Missing Manuals to figure out the basics.

With all of the news coming out of Google and Facebook this week, our relationship with social networking sites has entered the dreaded ”it’s complicated” stage. That’s a shame, since it’s simplicity that attracted us in the first place.

Google’s minimalist interface and ability to execute a search exceptionally well is what catapulted it to the forefront. It made us quickly see just how bloated other services like Yahoo had become as they aimed to become portals. Now Google is a complex portal.

Facebook, much the same, rose to prominence because it was just so simple compared to others. Back in 2007, author/pundit Jeff Jarvis praised its “elegant organization” as the nucleus of CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s genius.  Now, however, the interface has grown a lot more complicated. It too is a portal.

Somewhere along the way both Google and Facebook lost sight of keeping things simple

Today Google+ and Facebook are locked in a features arms race the likes of which we haven’t seen since Microsoft Word defeated Wordperfect back in the early 1990s. Both are rapidly adding buttons and gizmos to keep a fickle public in their grasp.

On the one hand, some might see this as a smart move. History has shown us that no single community or social platform has had staying power more than a few years. Users get bored, new platforms emerge and there’s churn. Features encourage tighter connections, more sharing and increase the emotional switching “costs.” It can keep users in their fold – even the disgruntled.

But there’s a balance, and both are starting to go too far

The flip side is that, in social networking, you can go too fast. People already are time starved. Adding new features that cause consumers to have to invest precious mental processing cycles to figure them out may have the opposite effect to what’s intended.

I don’t fault the platforms for innovating. They have to. However, they should consider going a little slower and phase in new advances over time, rather than all at once. Be evolutionary, not revolutionary. Make some features “mandatory,” but allow users to discover the hidden delights.

This is even more pivotal in social networking because of privacy. Already a lot of people fear that Google and Facebook know too much about them. As feature creep becomes the norm, both platforms are encouraging more sharing, not less. The problem is this requires that they add tighter privacy and sharing settings. While welcome, this only creates even more complexity and a vicious cycle ensues. Worse, they’re bucking the trend.

As technology pervades every aspect of our lives, less is the new more

In computing, Apple has remained true to this approach its entire history. Microsoft meanwhile, with its bold new Metro interfaces, is also aiming to make things simpler for users (Microsoft is an Edelman client). In social networking, Tumblr and Instagram are making inroads because  they always keep things simple and elegant. They do a one or two  things really well and they don’t rush. The same is true for mobile platforms like 37 Signals and Instapaper, both of which have eschewed bloat.

Yet they all innovate.

Google and Facebook can learn a few things from these other companies. They should, of course, innovate. However, they must do so carefully. Because if they go too fast, it moves them away from what made them attractive in the first place. And that’s elegance. As they add new features, consumers now must invest more mental energy, not less. This is especially the case when it comes to privacy. It violates what usability expert Jakob Nielsen’s cardinal rule – “Don’t make me think.”

Such bloat over time may have precisely the opposite intended result. It could drive users away rather than keep them closer. And it creates a distinct avenue for disruptive, elegant competitors to come along just as Google and Facebook did in their salad days to gain share.

Steve Rubel is EVP/Global Strategy for Edelman – the world’s largest public relations firm. He tweets @steverubel.

Image courtesy of Flickr user jasminejennyjen.

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Apple Mac refurbished laptops are absolutely nothing but employed Apple Macs that have been carefully serviced and fixed to function as well as new laptops. This leads to the logical question of the intricacies of the refurbishment method. The refurbishment method of an Apple Mac would incorporate qualified hardware diagnostics, inspection of the existing components followed by replacement if needed, detailed software diagnostics and elaborate cleaning. Consequently, as you’ll be able to see, a refurbished Mac is only technically an old product due to the fact it goes through a detailed improvement method. The greatest reason why you could need to choose a Mac refurbished laptop over a brand new windows laptop or computer is the same as you selecting a brand new Mac laptop over a brand new windows laptop or computer. This reason is basically that Apple Mac laptops are much more reliable, consistent, virus no cost and prettier than windows computers. Along with this, the reason why you’ll choose a refurbished Mac laptop over a brand new Mac laptop is that it will be cheaper. Check out this Bluetooth Keyboard article.

The refurbishing method of a laptop consists of a number of issues. You ought to make certain that the laptop was put through a solid hardware diagnosis method by a person who is a qualified technician from Apple itself. This is completed to locate and replace components that may possibly be malfunctioning or not working to their optimum levels. Apart from the component aspect of the laptop, you would also want other smaller aspects for example screen hinges to be checked. This would guarantee that even modest niggles are removed from the laptop. A Mac refurbished laptop really should, ideally, also go through a thorough software diagnostic procedure.

You might believe when buying a Mac refurbished laptop that you’ll not get any post sale service. On the contrary, should you acquire your refurbished Mac laptop from Apple’s online stores or stores approved by Apple then you would obtain a warranty of anything between a month and 1 year. Furthermore, you would also get expert packaging and no cost shipping. Despite what most people believe in terms of compromises with regard to old laptops against new ones, once you acquire an Apple Mac refurbished laptop you’ll not need to make any compromises. You’d get the same kind of services and attributes once you acquire refurbished Mac laptops like you get with new ones. Have you seen this laptop keyboard protector article.

Apple’s Mac refurbished laptops give a great opportunity to own a fantastic Mac laptop for those people who do not have a powerful financial clout. The attributes and services that these men and women will obtain will practically be the same as the package that brand new Apple Mac laptops carry. If you are planning to purchase an Apple Mac refurbished laptop online, then you should make certain that you acquire from a reliable provider which is approved by Apple.

Tattoos are much more common nowadays than they have ever been in the past. As we all know, tattoos are decorative markings in the body, such as symbols, signs, and letters that are applied by puncturing the outer layer of the skin and injecting color. Tattoo guns would be the best instrument to make use of, as they move very fast and are sharp enough to easily penetrate the epidermis.

There are many types of tattoo guns obtainable, some of which use a very sharp needle. There are guns that use more than a needle, although they aren’t ideal for tattoos that need strict lines or designing. Single needle tattoo guns are the best for tattoo tattooing, even though the needles need to be changed after each tattoo. Tattoo needles can be very risky if they aren’t disposed of – possibly leading to serious infection if they are utilized over and over again without being sterilized or disposed of.

There are also tattoos out there known as “jailhouse tattoos”. These types of tattoos are normally found in jails and prisons, using homemade material for tattoo guns. Usually, tattoo artists in jails and prisons will make their personal guns, using batteries and needles for ordinary ink pens. These tattoos aren’t very safe, and normally lead to infection. The body is punctured to inject the ink, even though with jailhouse tattoo guns the needle will literally pull and jerk at the skin, tearing it and normally going very deep with the ink.

If the skin is jerked or ripped, it may end up in the tattoo looking horrible. In most cases, if the ink goes too deep to the skin, it may lead to an infection. Deep ink also appears awful as well, particularly if it penetrates the third layer of skin. For that very factor, jailhouse tattoo applications aren’t advisable and should be avoided in any way.

With any tattoo, colour is very essential. Black and white are probably the most frequently utilized colors, even though you will find other colors used also. Tattoos need to have an equal balance of colour, along with the correct design. When the shapes utilized in your design follow the contours of the body, the tattoo will appear even more amazing. As a result, you should always have your tattoo made by someone with a lot of experience.

From a specialized viewpoint, tattoos involve micro pigment implantation, as they are a form of body modification. Tattoos are a design in ink, normally symbolic or decorative, permanently placed below your epidermis. Tattoos happen to be around for hundreds of years, even though tattoos in the past utilized everyday needles and ink – having a very higher risk of infections. Even though they are very common and very popular, tattoos always have risks. No matter what type of application method is used, there will always be a risk of infection.

Today, electronic tattoo equipments are the best common techniques of tattooing. With electronic tattoo guns, the ink is shot into the skin by a group of needles that are attached to a bar. The electronic gun shifts very fast, going in and out of the skin hundreds of thousand of times per minute. If a skilled tattoo artist uses the gun, the results can be incredible. Skilled tattoo artists are always the best choice, as they have the experience to provide you with the results you want. With the best tattoo artist and the proper application method – you should get a tattoo that you are able to be proud of.

One need only look to the MMORPG genre to see where the PC flight simulator developers have drawn their new inspiration in game design from. Once considered one of the most hardcore and unforgiving gaming genres around, reserved only for the most hardcore Dungeons and Dragons nerd, World of Warcraft and subsequent MMO’s have done a tremendous job of streamlining and simplifying the games to appeal to a much broader audience, and the genre has absolutely exploded as a result. Recent PC flight simulator software took the same approach but with the same results.

Flight Pro Sim is the most notable game that we could easily remember when we focus our mind on this new approach to the genre. On the surface, FPS has all the features that would seem to make it stand right in line with the hardcore PC flight simulator games of the past. There can be dozens of tasks to perform just to get your aircraft in the air, depending on the plane, and once there, dozens of different things to continually monitor, in addition to actual flying the thing. Add in random events which can strike at any time such as high winds or other poor weather conditions, or even random aircraft malfunctions, and you’re looking at a game that would seem to be more hair pulling stress than enjoyable flying through the sky.

And it’s true, for the hardcore players who enjoy the challenge, or are experienced veterans of the PC flight simulator genre, Flight Pro Sim can be played to is full masochistic limits. The options provide leniency for newer players. Every element of the game could be adjusted finely. For instance, you can change the way your plane could be controlled or even the necessary steps to be taken for taking off. You can even set the weather and the random failures that could happen with your plane. With these options in play, gamers can enjoy a stress-free flying experience that places the emphasis on exploration and fun, rather than the genre’s old standby’s of unrelenting realism and stress.

The greater control as to how the game should be played led the PC flight simulator genre into the mainstream with its excellent Flight Pro Sim leading that charge. If you were ever scared of the seeming complexity of past flight simulator games but would like to give the genre a go, now is the perfect time to take your sit in the cockpit.

The JST, Japan’s Science and Technology Agency, announced [JP] the development of M3-neony (pictured above) and M3-synchy today, two advanced baby-like robots. While “neony” (derived from “neonate”) is intentionally designed to look like a newborn, “snychy” just stands for “synchronous communication” (but as you can see, he looks like a baby, too). The M3 stands for “Man-Made Man”.

M3-neony is developed to mimic the behavior of a human baby. The JST says the robot is able to move certain “muscles” randomly, just like a newborn who is learning how to move does. It’s supposed to serve as a research object for scientists who want to explore this process.

Needless to say, M3-neony has the body of a baby, too, as he weighs 3.5kg and is 50cm tall. The robot features 90 touch sensors, 22 motors, two CMOS 3.3MP cameras, two microphones, three acceleration sensors, and two gyro sensors.

M3-synchy (pictured above), on the other hand, is mainly designed to communicate either with other robots (seriously) or with humans. The JST says synchy is supposed to help scienctists understand the intricacies of verbal and non-verbal communication, especially how humans turn their look or look into each other’s eyes when discussing.

The robot stands 30cm tall and weighs 2.5kg. Synchy has a CCD camera with 3.3MP and a wide-angle lens in its head. Other features include 2 microphones, speakers, 15 LEDs (that make the robot’s face blush in certain situations) and a face and voice recognition function for other robots and humans.

Via Sankei Kansai [JP]

In the intricacies of high-level European diplomacy, there’s two things Paris and Berlin can agree on: Conan is better, and you’d better not be using Internet Explorer. A French government agency is now advising citizens of the French Republic not to use Internet Explorer because of security concerns. It’s 2010, and we’re still writing “IE isn’t secure!” stories. Amazing.

The French agency, Certa, has warned against using all versions of Internet Explorer, noting that, even if you activate the highest level of security in the latest version of IE, you’re still at risk from some of the Web’s nastier elements.

Both Certa and Germany’s Federal Office of Information Security didn’t say what other browsers to use in lieu of IE, but you can safely assume they mean the usual suspects: Firefox, Chrome, and Opera. (See, Opera fans, we mentioned your favorite browser!)

But for all the security precautions you could take, the best safeguard against contracting an Internet disease is common sense. Don’t download shady files from 0daycoolwarez.tk, don’t click ads that say “HOT GURLZ IN [TOWN NEARBY] 4 U~!”

Seriously, common sense is worth its weight in gold, which clocked in at $1,647 per ounce yesterday.

The majority of people who are afraid of what will happen when CERN’s large hadron collider is finally put into operation probably have no idea what it really is, or what it’s designed to do. But what better way to educate the masses on the intricacies of the world’s largest science experiment than through an intricately detailed pop-up book? That’s what made me the amateur surgeon I am today!

Voyage To The Heart Of Matter – The Atlas Experiment At CERN was written by Emma Sanders, though it’s probably the paper engineering skills of Anton Radevsky that will make this a must-have Christmas gift for everyone from amateur physicists to the scientists actually working on the ATLAS experiment. But since it won’t be available until the end of November for about $33, it might be cutting it a bit close for the gift giving season.

[ Voyage To The Heart Of Matter - The Atlas Experiment At CERN ] VIA [ Shiny Shiny ]

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