Some Breaking News

I've run across three different posts recently that I thought that I should bring to your attention.


Mashable has reported that Facebook has banned the application Secret Crush. The was because it was discovered that the application installed Zango spyware on the users that installed it. This does bring some credibility to the initial fear that Facebook applications could become a breeding ground for spyware, malware, and etc when they opened up the application platform. Facebook acted relatively quickly to remove the application after reports surfaced at Mashable. I wonder about their ability to discover other applications that are less than honorable as there will be more and more attempts to do this in the future. So don't be so quick to install the next Facebook application time you're invited to install.

Also from the Facebook front (again reported by Mashable) is Clean Profile application. After installing the application, you can see unplugged versions of friends' profiles that also have the application installed as well. To use it you use a special log in page, so you can still use the normal Facebook log in page to see all the stuff on your friends' profiles if you want. When viewing a friend's profile that has Clean Profile installed you'll see their profile picture, mutual friends, photo albums, basic other information, and you'll have access to their "wall". It looks like the "mini-feed" is planned to be shown later, but at the moment it is empty. While this doesn't uninstall any applications that you don't want or really clean up your profile, it is nice to have.

Zen Habits has announced that all of their content is now Public Domain and can be used freely and without restrictions. Of course Leo Babauta has said that he would like to be credited and he would like to see a share from any proceeds. This has generated a lot of buzz and as I write this he has received 145 Diggs. It will be interesting to see what develops and what Leo comes up with next.

Don't forget that January is National Mentor month in the U.S. You can really make a difference in someone's life.