Let me get this straight. In order to actually USE any of the "Google Now" so-called "services", I need to first give Google permission to know where I am at all times, let them monitor pretty much everything I do, including when and where I am doing those things, and then let them aggregate all that personal activity into new "targeted" adverts to push at me every time I open an email or browser window or anything else they feed ads through?
I never gave them permission to do that to begin with (and can't find any way to turn it off), but now if I browse to a corporate website, that company's product ads are forevermore fed to my subsequent browser screens, ad nauseam.
For example, I once browsed to Audi's website, and now most web pages I visit have Google-driven Audi ads. I checked out a couple of online courses and now get perpetu-ads from those online schools, and so on.
Killing off cookies doesn't help (even though I also tell my browser NOT to keep cookies from 3rd party ad servers). There must be another way they are correlating and aggregating this information.
Google is being evil with my privacy, so it's no "Now" for me, I guess. I'm not about to aggravate an already aggravating condition.
The Location Service now runs non-stop. I had to uninstall. This app is just like the Android version, sucks down battery life and runs services in the background for no reason. Nice!
In all fairness to Google, most of the personal assistant apps use location services non-stop.
Considering Siri and all the third party personal assistants (Donna, EasilyDo, Grokr, Osito (formerly Sherpa), Reqall, Tempo, Winston, etc.) available on iPhone, Google Now isn't a great new addition.
Let me get this straight. In order to actually USE any of the "Google Now" so-called "services", I need to first give Google permission to know where I am at all times, let them monitor pretty much everything I do, including when and where I am doing those things, and then let them aggregate all that personal activity into new "targeted" adverts to push at me every time I open an email or browser window or anything else they feed ads through?
As opposed to non-targeted ads? The whole point is make your device be more personalized. It cannot do that without knowing more about you. Some people embrace that. Some people hate it. It's a personal thing for sure.
Quote:
I never gave them permission to do that to begin with (and can't find any way to turn it off), but now if I browse to a corporate website, that company's product ads are forevermore fed to my subsequent browser screens, ad nauseam.
Yep, like right here on AI. I was looking at used cars for a friend, and now AI is full of used car ads for me. Sometimes I like that, sometimes not. It's hardly a big deal.
More importantly, with support from things like Google ads, AppleInsider gets to stay open, so people can complain about Google for free. Win-win.
As for controlling it, try going to your Google Dashboard and changing / deleting things like your location and web history settings or history. You can even click on Manage Account, and choose "Delete profile and remove related Google+ features.", which supposedly removes everything.
Truthfully this makes Siri and other Apple apps look sort of bad. Core, basic usability, simplified, updated. Google's newer design is beautiful, clean, minimal, more functional, and they are actively doing more to roll out new features for users.
I feel like as time goes on, Apple is realizing they bit off more than they can chew, most of their first party stuff is being done better by the competition. Siri, search, maps, podcasts, stocks, calendar, mail, notes, weather, settings, notifications, the general 'look' of iOS, iCloud.. Why are they so.. boring lately?
And showing the list of upvoters is appropriate why, again? As for his concern, he can take it wherever he wants, and the fact that four people thought his post added to the discussion (even people you personally like to insult) is a sign that his post is more than welcome. If you don't like it, why don't you explain to us troglodytes where he is incorrect on the facts?
Google held back turn by turn to make Android more valuable. It wasn't until Apple released its own Maps app that Google released its own app with turn by turn.
Google did not hold anything back. Apple prevented them from adding both Google Maps and Google Voice to the App Store.
This is the same thing Apple did with Java on the Macs. Around 2005 or so, many developers in my company switched from Windows to Macs because Jobs promised a first class Java experience on the Macs. But Sun did not release Java on Macs. Apple wanted to do it themselves. But they wouldn't update Java and it was stuck (on 1.4) for ages. Also, all the traditional secrecy meant that no one had any idea when the next version of Java would be released. 1.4->1.5 was a huge jump. Worse, when they did release it, it was tied into the next version of the operating system. You couldn't just install Java stand alone. Corporations can plan without a roadmap. Needless to say, everyone switched back to Windows.
Google voice is way better at recognition, and obviously on iOS it will suffer from the lack of OS integration (though, to be fair, I am not sure you can voice launch apps on android devices either maybe someone here knows...)
Some apps. But not all. You can set appointments, listen to music, call a contact, send message (needs a click) etc. Aaah. Just checked. It does work now. So must have added it at some point. I don't believe this was working last year. Now I can start any app by saying "open <appName>"
Let me get this straight. In order to actually USE any of the "Google Now" so-called "services", I need to first give Google permission to know where I am at all times, let them monitor pretty much everything I do, including when and where I am doing those things, and then let them aggregate all that personal activity into new "targeted" adverts to push at me every time I open an email or browser window or anything else they feed ads through?
I never gave them permission to do that to begin with (and can't find any way to turn it off), but now if I browse to a corporate website, that company's product ads are forevermore fed to my subsequent browser screens, ad nauseam.
For example, I once browsed to Audi's website, and now most web pages I visit have Google-driven Audi ads. I checked out a couple of online courses and now get perpetu-ads from those online schools, and so on.
Killing off cookies doesn't help (even though I also tell my browser NOT to keep cookies from 3rd party ad servers). There must be another way they are correlating and aggregating this information.
Google is being evil with my privacy, so it's no "Now" for me, I guess. I'm not about to aggravate an already aggravating condition.
Yes. If that aggravates you, Google Now is definitely not for you. Unless you use it just for voice search. Which you can do I believe by turning off all the cards, but I'm not sure if/how that's possible on the iOS version. The whole point of Google Now, apart from the better search, is to notify you about things pertaining to you. A meeting for which you must leave now based on current traffic conditions. A search that you did on the PC just before leaving the house and need more information about - maybe driving directions. Time (based on traffic) it will take to get to work. Time it will take to get back home. This is why it needs to turn on the location services. It took about 4-5 days for it to "know" where my work was. Home, I think, it got pretty quickly. Possibly because I don't follow set work hours. Scan through your email to let you know about the status of a flight you have booked. Track packages sent to you from fedex and ups. Sports scores. It gets better with time.
Google Now still has a long long way to go. It's not perfect. Has false positives. And occasionally messes things up. But for the most part, it gets things right. I absolutely love it. At the time of the announcement, I spent more time reading about Project Butter rather than Google Now. I didn't realize how totally cool it would turn out to be.
But you may also find it creepy. In which case, turn it off. In the case of iOS, don't install it. Nobody's putting a gun to your head. I never enabled Lattitude and can't stand Google+ (or any other social network) so I haven't signed into that either.
The Location Service now runs non-stop. I had to uninstall. This app is just like the Android version, sucks down battery life and runs services in the background for no reason. Nice!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mario
Yes, they do say that first time you launch the app it will be recording your location all the time, but it's not quite clear if that meant while the app is running only. It turns out they run daemon in the background that always records you location, so it's doing that even when the application itself is not running. That's the reason I will not be using it (plus it's a little creepy). Battery drain is not a price I'm willing to pay for occasional good suggestion from Google.
I uninstalled it as well. Not worth the battery hit.
Some apps. But not all. You can set appointments, listen to music, call a contact, send message (needs a click) etc. Aaah. Just checked. It does work now. So must have added it at some point. I don't believe this was working last year. Now I can start any app by saying "open <appName>"
The Location Service now runs non-stop. I had to uninstall. This app is just like the Android version, sucks down battery life and runs services in the background for no reason. Nice!
If you have problems with location services being on all the time try this: Go in the Google Now app to Settings - Settings - Privacy. There you have the possibility to turn off the location services.
As opposed to non-targeted ads? The whole point is make your device be more personalized. It cannot do that without knowing more about you. Some people embrace that. Some people hate it. It's a personal thing for sure.
Yep, like right here on AI. I was looking at used cars for a friend, and now AI is full of used car ads for me. Sometimes I like that, sometimes not. It's hardly a big deal.
More importantly, with support from things like Google ads, AppleInsider gets to stay open, so people can complain about Google for free. Win-win.
As for controlling it, try going to your Google Dashboard and changing / deleting things like your location and web history settings or history. You can even click on Manage Account, and choose "Delete profile and remove related Google+ features.", which supposedly removes everything.
You're clearly assuming I have a "google dashboard" or make use of Google+… I don't. The less they know about me, the better. Although they seem to have invaded every nook and cranny of my "internet experience", like it or not. Now you're telling me that if I "personalize" with them, and volunteer even more of my personal information I can then "control" some aspects of their invasion into my privacy? Neat...
You're clearly assuming I have a "google dashboard" or make use of Google+… I don't. The less they know about me, the better. Although they seem to have invaded every nook and cranny of my "internet experience", like it or not. Now you're telling me that if I "personalize" with them, and volunteer even more of my personal information I can then "control" some aspects of their invasion into my privacy? Neat...
I understand your point. Any company that would go so far as to help companies deliver ads for products and services that you might be interested in based on your search and/or location history has stepped waaayy over the line and can't be trusted. It's evil I say. It's a good thing that Apple, Facebook, ATT, Verizon, Sprint, Yahoo and hundreds of others don't do that.
EDIT: The EFF has published their annual rankings of which tech companies have your back in protecting your privacy rights when the Government comes a'knocking. Some on the list appear to be more committed than others.
You're clearly assuming I have a "google dashboard" or make use of Google+… I don't.
Ah, okay. You're saying that you have absolutely no Google account whatsoever? No GMail, no YouTube, or anything else? And you never use Google search while signed in?
Then it's hard to claim that "Google is being evil" with your privacy if you never gave them any info.
--
If you're referring to getting car ads because you went to various manufacturer websites, that is something that will happen with or without Google around... as there are plenty of other ad networks that gather and share website visits.
Heck, even deleting cookies or changing IP addresses often won't help these days, because some ad networks (not Google) have banded together to create MAC address databases that identify us by our network hardware.
Seems like about the only way to be anonymous these days is to proxy every request.
The upside and downside of the internet is that most of it is "free", but not really. Many of its sites and services are paid for by ads, just like this forum. Yet here we both are, using it.
By the way, for those that haven't noticed there's a small "gear" icon in the lower right corner of the Google Now screen that lets you customize the app settings as well as enable more "cards". Some people miss it.
Ah, okay. You're saying that you have absolutely no Google account whatsoever? No GMail, no YouTube, or anything else? And you never use Google search while signed in?
Then it's hard to claim that "Google is being evil" with your privacy if you never gave them any info.
--
If you're referring to getting car ads because you went to various manufacturer websites, that is something that will happen with or without Google around... as there are plenty of other ad networks that gather and share website visits.
Heck, even deleting cookies or changing IP addresses often won't help these days, because some ad networks (not Google) have banded together to create MAC address databases that identify us by our network hardware.
Seems like about the only way to be anonymous these days is to proxy every request.
The upside and downside of the internet is that most of it is "free", but not really. Many of its sites and services are paid for by ads, just like this forum. Yet here we both are, using it.
The magic words are "vidalia" and "tor". You can be (almost) completely off the grid, if you prefer.
The magic words are "vidalia" and "tor". You can be (almost) completely off the grid, if you prefer.
A couple I know who use this said it can be a slow connection even on a good day, so it's not for everyone. In addition an FAQ notes that "anonymous" is not the same as secure for those that care about both. It also mentions that apparently a node sniffer at the end can still discover the source.
A couple I know who use this said it can be a slow connection even on a good day, so it's not for everyone. In addition an FAQ notes that "anonymous" is not the same as secure for those that care about both. It also mentions that apparently a node sniffer at the end can still discover the source.
Hence the "almost". (there are also VPN solutions which may be more secure). As for the slowness, I guess if privacy is that important to you, you will take the performance hit...
Comments
Let me get this straight. In order to actually USE any of the "Google Now" so-called "services", I need to first give Google permission to know where I am at all times, let them monitor pretty much everything I do, including when and where I am doing those things, and then let them aggregate all that personal activity into new "targeted" adverts to push at me every time I open an email or browser window or anything else they feed ads through?
I never gave them permission to do that to begin with (and can't find any way to turn it off), but now if I browse to a corporate website, that company's product ads are forevermore fed to my subsequent browser screens, ad nauseam.
For example, I once browsed to Audi's website, and now most web pages I visit have Google-driven Audi ads. I checked out a couple of online courses and now get perpetu-ads from those online schools, and so on.
Killing off cookies doesn't help (even though I also tell my browser NOT to keep cookies from 3rd party ad servers). There must be another way they are correlating and aggregating this information.
Google is being evil with my privacy, so it's no "Now" for me, I guess. I'm not about to aggravate an already aggravating condition.
In all fairness to Google, most of the personal assistant apps use location services non-stop.
Considering Siri and all the third party personal assistants (Donna, EasilyDo, Grokr, Osito (formerly Sherpa), Reqall, Tempo, Winston, etc.) available on iPhone, Google Now isn't a great new addition.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tribalogical
Let me get this straight. In order to actually USE any of the "Google Now" so-called "services", I need to first give Google permission to know where I am at all times, let them monitor pretty much everything I do, including when and where I am doing those things, and then let them aggregate all that personal activity into new "targeted" adverts to push at me every time I open an email or browser window or anything else they feed ads through?
As opposed to non-targeted ads? The whole point is make your device be more personalized. It cannot do that without knowing more about you. Some people embrace that. Some people hate it. It's a personal thing for sure.
Quote:
I never gave them permission to do that to begin with (and can't find any way to turn it off), but now if I browse to a corporate website, that company's product ads are forevermore fed to my subsequent browser screens, ad nauseam.
Yep, like right here on AI. I was looking at used cars for a friend, and now AI is full of used car ads for me. Sometimes I like that, sometimes not. It's hardly a big deal.
More importantly, with support from things like Google ads, AppleInsider gets to stay open, so people can complain about Google for free. Win-win.
As for controlling it, try going to your Google Dashboard and changing / deleting things like your location and web history settings or history. You can even click on Manage Account, and choose "Delete profile and remove related Google+ features.", which supposedly removes everything.
Originally Posted by september11th
Truthfully this makes Siri and other Apple apps look sort of bad. Core, basic usability, simplified, updated. Google's newer design is beautiful, clean, minimal, more functional, and they are actively doing more to roll out new features for users.
I feel like as time goes on, Apple is realizing they bit off more than they can chew, most of their first party stuff is being done better by the competition. Siri, search, maps, podcasts, stocks, calendar, mail, notes, weather, settings, notifications, the general 'look' of iOS, iCloud.. Why are they so.. boring lately?
Take your false concern somewhere else.
Also, like frigging clockwork:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
Take your false concern somewhere else.
Also, like frigging clockwork:
And showing the list of upvoters is appropriate why, again? As for his concern, he can take it wherever he wants, and the fact that four people thought his post added to the discussion (even people you personally like to insult) is a sign that his post is more than welcome. If you don't like it, why don't you explain to us troglodytes where he is incorrect on the facts?
Quote:
Originally Posted by TBell
Google held back turn by turn to make Android more valuable. It wasn't until Apple released its own Maps app that Google released its own app with turn by turn.
Google did not hold anything back. Apple prevented them from adding both Google Maps and Google Voice to the App Store.
This is the same thing Apple did with Java on the Macs. Around 2005 or so, many developers in my company switched from Windows to Macs because Jobs promised a first class Java experience on the Macs. But Sun did not release Java on Macs. Apple wanted to do it themselves. But they wouldn't update Java and it was stuck (on 1.4) for ages. Also, all the traditional secrecy meant that no one had any idea when the next version of Java would be released. 1.4->1.5 was a huge jump. Worse, when they did release it, it was tied into the next version of the operating system. You couldn't just install Java stand alone. Corporations can plan without a roadmap. Needless to say, everyone switched back to Windows.
Quote:
Originally Posted by igriv
Google voice is way better at recognition, and obviously on iOS it will suffer from the lack of OS integration (though, to be fair, I am not sure you can voice launch apps on android devices either maybe someone here knows...)
Some apps. But not all. You can set appointments, listen to music, call a contact, send message (needs a click) etc. Aaah. Just checked. It does work now. So must have added it at some point. I don't believe this was working last year. Now I can start any app by saying "open <appName>"
Quote:
Originally Posted by tribalogical
Let me get this straight. In order to actually USE any of the "Google Now" so-called "services", I need to first give Google permission to know where I am at all times, let them monitor pretty much everything I do, including when and where I am doing those things, and then let them aggregate all that personal activity into new "targeted" adverts to push at me every time I open an email or browser window or anything else they feed ads through?
I never gave them permission to do that to begin with (and can't find any way to turn it off), but now if I browse to a corporate website, that company's product ads are forevermore fed to my subsequent browser screens, ad nauseam.
For example, I once browsed to Audi's website, and now most web pages I visit have Google-driven Audi ads. I checked out a couple of online courses and now get perpetu-ads from those online schools, and so on.
Killing off cookies doesn't help (even though I also tell my browser NOT to keep cookies from 3rd party ad servers). There must be another way they are correlating and aggregating this information.
Google is being evil with my privacy, so it's no "Now" for me, I guess. I'm not about to aggravate an already aggravating condition.
Yes. If that aggravates you, Google Now is definitely not for you. Unless you use it just for voice search. Which you can do I believe by turning off all the cards, but I'm not sure if/how that's possible on the iOS version. The whole point of Google Now, apart from the better search, is to notify you about things pertaining to you. A meeting for which you must leave now based on current traffic conditions. A search that you did on the PC just before leaving the house and need more information about - maybe driving directions. Time (based on traffic) it will take to get to work. Time it will take to get back home. This is why it needs to turn on the location services. It took about 4-5 days for it to "know" where my work was. Home, I think, it got pretty quickly. Possibly because I don't follow set work hours. Scan through your email to let you know about the status of a flight you have booked. Track packages sent to you from fedex and ups. Sports scores. It gets better with time.
Google Now still has a long long way to go. It's not perfect. Has false positives. And occasionally messes things up. But for the most part, it gets things right. I absolutely love it. At the time of the announcement, I spent more time reading about Project Butter rather than Google Now. I didn't realize how totally cool it would turn out to be.
But you may also find it creepy. In which case, turn it off. In the case of iOS, don't install it. Nobody's putting a gun to your head. I never enabled Lattitude and can't stand Google+ (or any other social network) so I haven't signed into that either.
You can always go to the Google Dashboard and turn off all the services you don't want to use. https://www.google.com/dashboard/
Quote:
Originally Posted by steinm88299
The Location Service now runs non-stop. I had to uninstall. This app is just like the Android version, sucks down battery life and runs services in the background for no reason. Nice!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mario
Yes, they do say that first time you launch the app it will be recording your location all the time, but it's not quite clear if that meant while the app is running only. It turns out they run daemon in the background that always records you location, so it's doing that even when the application itself is not running. That's the reason I will not be using it (plus it's a little creepy). Battery drain is not a price I'm willing to pay for occasional good suggestion from Google.
I uninstalled it as well. Not worth the battery hit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by os2baba
Some apps. But not all. You can set appointments, listen to music, call a contact, send message (needs a click) etc. Aaah. Just checked. It does work now. So must have added it at some point. I don't believe this was working last year. Now I can start any app by saying "open <appName>"
Cool, thanks!
Quote:
Originally Posted by steinm88299
The Location Service now runs non-stop. I had to uninstall. This app is just like the Android version, sucks down battery life and runs services in the background for no reason. Nice!
If you have problems with location services being on all the time try this: Go in the Google Now app to Settings - Settings - Privacy. There you have the possibility to turn off the location services.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KDarling
As opposed to non-targeted ads? The whole point is make your device be more personalized. It cannot do that without knowing more about you. Some people embrace that. Some people hate it. It's a personal thing for sure.
Yep, like right here on AI. I was looking at used cars for a friend, and now AI is full of used car ads for me. Sometimes I like that, sometimes not. It's hardly a big deal.
More importantly, with support from things like Google ads, AppleInsider gets to stay open, so people can complain about Google for free. Win-win.
As for controlling it, try going to your Google Dashboard and changing / deleting things like your location and web history settings or history. You can even click on Manage Account, and choose "Delete profile and remove related Google+ features.", which supposedly removes everything.
You're clearly assuming I have a "google dashboard" or make use of Google+… I don't. The less they know about me, the better. Although they seem to have invaded every nook and cranny of my "internet experience", like it or not. Now you're telling me that if I "personalize" with them, and volunteer even more of my personal information I can then "control" some aspects of their invasion into my privacy? Neat...
Quote:
Originally Posted by tribalogical
You're clearly assuming I have a "google dashboard" or make use of Google+… I don't. The less they know about me, the better. Although they seem to have invaded every nook and cranny of my "internet experience", like it or not. Now you're telling me that if I "personalize" with them, and volunteer even more of my personal information I can then "control" some aspects of their invasion into my privacy? Neat...
I understand your point. Any company that would go so far as to help companies deliver ads for products and services that you might be interested in based on your search and/or location history has stepped waaayy over the line and can't be trusted. It's evil I say. It's a good thing that Apple, Facebook, ATT, Verizon, Sprint, Yahoo and hundreds of others don't do that.
EDIT: The EFF has published their annual rankings of which tech companies have your back in protecting your privacy rights when the Government comes a'knocking. Some on the list appear to be more committed than others.
https://www.eff.org/who-has-your-back-2013
Quote:
Originally Posted by tribalogical
You're clearly assuming I have a "google dashboard" or make use of Google+… I don't.
Ah, okay. You're saying that you have absolutely no Google account whatsoever? No GMail, no YouTube, or anything else? And you never use Google search while signed in?
Then it's hard to claim that "Google is being evil" with your privacy if you never gave them any info.
--
If you're referring to getting car ads because you went to various manufacturer websites, that is something that will happen with or without Google around... as there are plenty of other ad networks that gather and share website visits.
Heck, even deleting cookies or changing IP addresses often won't help these days, because some ad networks (not Google) have banded together to create MAC address databases that identify us by our network hardware.
Seems like about the only way to be anonymous these days is to proxy every request.
The upside and downside of the internet is that most of it is "free", but not really. Many of its sites and services are paid for by ads, just like this forum. Yet here we both are, using it.
By the way, for those that haven't noticed there's a small "gear" icon in the lower right corner of the Google Now screen that lets you customize the app settings as well as enable more "cards". Some people miss it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KDarling
Ah, okay. You're saying that you have absolutely no Google account whatsoever? No GMail, no YouTube, or anything else? And you never use Google search while signed in?
Then it's hard to claim that "Google is being evil" with your privacy if you never gave them any info.
--
If you're referring to getting car ads because you went to various manufacturer websites, that is something that will happen with or without Google around... as there are plenty of other ad networks that gather and share website visits.
Heck, even deleting cookies or changing IP addresses often won't help these days, because some ad networks (not Google) have banded together to create MAC address databases that identify us by our network hardware.
Seems like about the only way to be anonymous these days is to proxy every request.
The upside and downside of the internet is that most of it is "free", but not really. Many of its sites and services are paid for by ads, just like this forum. Yet here we both are, using it.
The magic words are "vidalia" and "tor". You can be (almost) completely off the grid, if you prefer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by igriv
The magic words are "vidalia" and "tor". You can be (almost) completely off the grid, if you prefer.
A couple I know who use this said it can be a slow connection even on a good day, so it's not for everyone. In addition an FAQ notes that "anonymous" is not the same as secure for those that care about both. It also mentions that apparently a node sniffer at the end can still discover the source.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy
A couple I know who use this said it can be a slow connection even on a good day, so it's not for everyone. In addition an FAQ notes that "anonymous" is not the same as secure for those that care about both. It also mentions that apparently a node sniffer at the end can still discover the source.
Hence the "almost". (there are also VPN solutions which may be more secure). As for the slowness, I guess if privacy is that important to you, you will take the performance hit...