“The key to understanding why reputable studies are so starkly divided on the question of what Facebook does to our emotional state may be in simply looking at what people actually do when they’re on Facebook. “What makes it complicated is that Facebook is for lots of different things—and different people use it for different subsets of those things. Not only that, but they are also changing things, because of people themselves changing,” said Gosling. A 2010 study from Carnegie Mellon found that, when people engaged in direct interaction with others—that is, posting on walls, messaging, or “liking” something—their feelings of bonding and general social capital increased, while their sense of loneliness decreased. But when participants simply consumed a lot of content passively, Facebook had the opposite effect, lowering their feelings of connection and increasing their sense of loneliness.…….
…….In other words, the world of constant connectivity and media, as embodied by Facebook, is the social network’s worst enemy: in every study that distinguished the two types of Facebook experiences—active versus passive—people spent, on average, far more time passively scrolling through newsfeeds than they did actively engaging with content. This may be why general studies of overall Facebook use, like Kross’s of Ann Arbor residents, so often show deleterious effects on our emotional state. Demands on our attention lead us to use Facebook more passively than actively, and passive experiences, no matter the medium, translate to feelings of disconnection and boredom.”
Adobe has updated its Adobe Reader software (used to view PDF files) and Acrobat software for Windows and Macintosh to “address vulnerabilities that could cause a crash and potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system”.
Such vulnerabilities in Adobe Reader (and Acrobat) before September 10 2013 could allow for execution of unwanted code (typically installing malware or viruses/worms on your PC), without your consent just by opening a PDF.
The affected versions are:
Adobe Reader XI (11.0.03) and earlier 11.x versions for Windows and Macintosh
Adobe Reader X (10.1.7) and earlier 10.x versions for Windows and Macintosh
Adobe Acrobat XI (11.0.03) and earlier 11.x versions for Windows and Macintosh
Adobe Acrobat X (10.1.7) and earlier 10.x versions for Windows and Macintosh
for download links to update your Adobe Reader and Acrobat programs
but the vulnerabilities in versions of Adobe Flash before September 10 2013 could allow for execution of unwanted code (typically malware), without your consent just by visiting a website
Adobe Flash Player 11.8.800.94 and earlier versions for Windows and Macintosh,
Adobe Flash Player 11.2.202.297 and earlier versions for Linux
Adobe Flash Player 11.1.115.69 and earlier versions for Android 4.x, and
Adobe Flash Player 11.1.111.64 and earlier versions for Android 3.x and 2.x
to ” address vulnerabilities that could cause a crash and potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system.”
You can read the Adobe Security Bulletin at http://www.adobe.com/support/security/bulletins/apsb13-21.html but the vulnerabilities in versions of Adobe Flash before September 10 2013 could allow for execution of unwanted code (typically malware), without your consent just by visiting a website with malicious Flash applications or video (SWF). Therefore, you should update your Adobe Flash Player to the latest version to close this loophole.
To determine what version of the Adobe Flash player you have on your Windows, Macintosh or Linux system, visit http://www.adobe.com/software/flash/about/
To verify the version of Adobe Flash Player for Android, go to Settings > Applications > Manage Applications > Adobe Flash Player x.x.
To download the latest version of Adobe Flash Player, visit http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer/distribution3.html
Windows users should note that the Flash Player in v9 and earlier versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer v9 and the one in web browsers like Opera, Mozilla Firefox and Safari are separate installs. You should install and update both versions of Adobe Flash.
Internet Explorer v10 (for users for Windows 7 Service Pack 1 and Windows 8) has Adobe Flash Player built-in and users should update to the latest Internet Explorer 10 browser version.
Google Chrome browser users has Adobe Flash Player built-in and users should update the Google Chrome browser to the latest version. See http://www.google.com/support/chrome/bin/answer.py?answer=95414 on how to do so.
“It has always been our mission to make designing and experimenting with electronics accessible to as many people as possible. With circuits.io we already made a big leap in this direction. But for people getting started with electronics, schematics and layout are often still daunting. Over the summer we partnered up with Autodesk to fix this.
We are proud to announce the new version of circuits.io making it even easier and more intuitive to design electronics: 123D Circuits.io. Here are some of the most important new features:
virtual breadboard based design, allowing to build and experiment with circuits just as you would in real life
you can add an Arduino to your design, and edit the code right in your browser
real-time and interactive simulation of both your Arduino code and the circuit attached to it
full collaborative editing (think of Google Docs for electronics)
powerful yet easy component editor, making it super easy to add new components to the shared library
ability to embed your design, including simulation on your blog or in an instructable
123D Circuits.io enables beginners to easily get started with electronics. Instead of blowing up a component, you can now experiment freely in the live simulated virtual breadboard environment together with friends without being afraid of breaking something. 123D Circuits.io even allows you to simulate Arduino code along with your electronics to control it all or to learn about programming and Arduino. Let’s admit it, even pros could make good use of such a tool.”
iOS 7 the operating system for Apple mobile platforms which will be available for free on September 18 2013 for iPhone 4 and later, iPad 2 and later, iPad mini and iPod touch (5th generation)
The iWork mobile suite of productivity apps (Keynote, Pages, Numbers) to create presentations, documents, spreadsheets respectively and creativity applications such as iPhoto and iMovie would be available free of charge for new iOS devices.
The Minister of Finance and the Economy, Honourable Senator Larry Howai presented the 2014 Budget Statement in the Trinidad and Tobago Parliament on September 9 2013.
Over several blog posts, I’ll provide the ICT related aspects of the various 2014 budget documents. This post will focus on the key ICT related aspects of the “Public Sector Investment Programme 2014“
ICT related aspects of the “Public Sector Investment Programme 2014”
“Strategic Priority – Economic Growth, Job Creation, Competitiveness and Innovation”, under “Review of the Public Sector Investment Programme 2013”
Page 32 under Science, Research and Development
CARIRI Centre for Enterprise Development
7. In Fiscal 2013, the Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (CARIRI) completed
and launched its Centre for Enterprise Development (CED), which was established at a
cost of $23.23 million. The purpose of this Centre is to build capacity and capability for
enterprise creation, consistent with Government’s strategic priorities of Economic
Growth, Job Creation, Competitiveness and Innovation. The CED provides both
accommodation and technical business advisory support services to individuals and
enterprises with innovative ideas/projects wishing to take these through the incubation
process to commercialisation. CED comprises an innovation incubator facility, a business
incubator facility, a technology incubator facility and an ICT centre.
Page 34, under Investment Promotion
86. During Fiscal 2013, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Investment as part of the establishment of the Single Electronic Window for business and trade facilitation, continued its roll out of e-services on TTBizLink. TTBizLink now offers twenty-one (21)
different e-government services with interconnectivity to more than a dozen Government departments and as at 31 August 2013, over one thousand (1000) businesses and individuals were active users of TTBizLinK.
Services provided on the continued roll out of the initiative included:
In April 2013 e-Export Health Certificatesfor Dairy and Dairy Products and Meat and Poultry issued by the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Food Production went live.
In July 2, 2013 Employers and Employees were now also able to apply online via
TTBizLinK for their NI 1 (Employer) and NI 4 (Employee) registration numbers from the National Insurance Board (NIB) of the Ministry of Finance and the Economy.
Pages 53-55, under “Information Technology and Infrastructure”
150. Improvements to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) have
continued in fiscal 2013 with an expenditure of $105.566 million under the Public Sector
Reform Computerisation Programme. Activities carried out for fiscal 2013 included:
At the Police Service: server room upgrades at the San Fernando Office,
expansion of the network at Riverside Plaza. Distribution of GPS Units to
Tobago , and the Southern and South Western Divisions for the implementation of the mobile GPS Project. Three hundred (300) computer systems and seventy eight (78) printers were purchased, the Versadex Database has been upgraded and the software for the Firearms Database has been purchased.
At the Ministry of Justice for the Forensic Science Centre: Upgrade of
electrical and cooling systems in the Server Room were completed. Installation of servers and networking equipment, switches and re-cabling of network infrastructure in main building have commenced. For the Legal Aid and Advisory Authority, network cabling has been completed and computers have been purchased and installed at the San Fernando and Scarborough Offices.
At the Ministry of the People and Social Development: Dell Storage Area Network was installed and the datacentre relocated, all electrical and cooling works were completed, and preparatory works commenced on the Integrated Social Enterprise Management System.
At the Ministry of Sport: works continued on the upgrade of the data-centre electrical infrastructure, the migration and design of Infrastructure of the Network for Head Office, design and installation of data voice networking infrastructure, the setup of video conferencing facilities and the installation of an IP-PBX phone and building intercom system.
151. The computerisation programme in Tobago continued with an expenditure of $3.8
million on the Secondary School Computerisation Programme, networking of the THA
Divisions and the computerisation and networking of the Ministry of Tobago Affairs.
152. In fiscal 2013, the Ministry of Science and Technology completed the development of smarTT – the National ICT Plan 2014-2018. SmarTT was developed following extensive Government and national consultations which highlighted the need to better utilised resources to achieve sustainable development. The Plan was developed using a 5-stage approach, Plan–Discover–Design–Report–Consult and its formulation builds on the programmes initiated under Fast Forward – the National ICT Plan 2003-2008, and the projects and initiatives implemented post fastforward.
153. The core of smarTT features five (5) thematic areas as follows:
Innovation and Human Capital Development;
Access and Digital Inclusion;
e-Business and ICT Sector Development;
Infrastructure Development, and
e-Government
154. Significant progress was also made on the implementation of Phase I for the establishment of six (6) Community-based ICT Access Centres by September 30, 2013. It is proposed that two (2) of the proposed centres in the Penal/Siparia/Debe and Toco/Cumana regions will be operational by September 2013.
155. The publication of Tender Notices has been implemented on the ttconnect portal.
This service provides a central, easy-to-use environment where all of GoRTT Tender
Notices will be published and made available online. Additionally, the Ministry of
Science and Technology commenced the procurement and implementation of its
Managed Services and High Availability Solutions for ttconnect.
156. In fiscal 2013, a review of GovNeTT was conducted by the Infocomm Development Authority International of Singapore (IDAi) which yielded a gap analysis for the current network and recommendations on enhancing the current investment meet the growing demands of GoRTT. Additionally, five (5) IT Manager’s Consultations were held in Trinidad and Tobago to collaborate on developing the specifications for the technical Terms of Reference for the envisioned GovNeTT 3.0.
157. The IDB assisted E-Government and Knowledge Brokering Programme continued in fiscal 2013 on the procurement of consultancy and services on over thirty (30) projects including:
at the Ministry of Health Mobilization has commenced for the Reengineering of the Ministry of Health
at the Service Commissions Department, evaluation has been completed for the Design of an Electronic Document Management System
at the Parliament discussions have been initiated on the transitioning of
Parliament to an E – Parliament and a draft plan has been developed.
Under PUBLIC SECTOR INVESTMENT PROGRAMME 2014
Pages 126-127, under “Information Technology and Infrastructure”
72. The improvement of the information technology infrastructure of the Public
Service will continue with the allocation of $138.1 million to the Public Sector Reform
Computerisation Programme. Activities scheduled to continue include:
the acquisition of hardware by the Police Service, upgrade of network infrastructure at the Police Headquarters, server rooms, Digital Finger Print Capture System, interrogator system, Firearms Management System, Versadex upgrade, network security upgrade, purchase of 600 computers and the expansion of the police network
the Ministry of Finance and the Economy upgrade of ASYCUDA to ASYCUDA World at the Customs and Excise Division will continue, as well as its integration with the Single Electronic Window
the Ministry of Justice upgrades to the network of the Forensic Science Centre as well as the procurement of a Laboratory Integrated Management System, upgrade of cabling infrastructure for the Port of Spain Legal Aid and Advisory Office, installation and configuration of centralized, management IT Systems for the Prison Service and the establishment of an Electronic Monitoring Programme.
network upgrades at the Ministry of the People and Social Development, hardware and software acquisition for the continued implementation of a storage area network and the continued implementation of an Integrated Social Enterprise Management System
373. An allocation of $3.8 million for the Computerization Programme Tobago will allow for the continuation of the Secondary School Computerization Programme, the networking of the divisions of Finance, Planning, Education, Youth Affairs and Sports
and the computerisation and networking of the Ministry of Tobago Development.
374. The Ministry of Science and Technology will continue several ICT initiatives including:
the STAR.TT Community-based ICT Access Centre initiative, targeted at
reducing the Digital Divide through the implementation of fit-for-purpose
equipped ICT facilities. It is envisaged that as many as eighteen (18)
additional Centres will be made available in underserved communities
throughout Trinidad and Tobago in fiscal 2014.
the rollout of further key enhancements to the ttconnect technology platform such as the ttconnect Foundation Services Infrastructure (FSi), whereby Ministries and Government Agencies will be able to re-use common services to rapidly develop, deploy and operate their e-Services more efficiently and the ttconnect Business Continuity Management Initiative which will establish a disaster recovery capability of the enterprise Portal Solution
the implementation of Phase III of the Government Wide Area Network, GovNeTT 3.0. GovNeTT provides secure high-speed connections among Government Ministries and Agencies as well as the means to work more collaboratively and efficiently to deliver enhanced and seamless services to the public.
Page 127, Under “Communication”
376. In fiscal 2014, funding will be provided for the upgrade of the communication system of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS). In 2009, approval was given for the migration of the communication system of the TTPS from analogue to digital while ensuring full nationwide compatibility with other national security agencies. A contract was signed at value of $198.72 million of which eighty five per cent (85%) will be funded by an ExIMBank direct loan. To achieve full operation the project will be executed for a duration of 28 months and will provide:
increased microwave capacity for various types of data transfer
increased coverage for Tobago
integrated Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) with mapping and Automatic
Vehicle Location (AVL)
integration of TTPS inter-operability capability with Military Tactical Radio
Systems and other civilian agencies
an integrated CAD with E911 logging and recorder systems for public safety and protection
The Minister of Finance and the Economy, Honourable Senator Larry Howai presented the 2014 Budget Statement in the Trinidad and Tobago Parliament on September 9 2013.
Over several blog posts, I’ll provide the ICT related aspects of the various 2014 budget documents. This post will focus on the key ICT related aspects of the “Public Sector Investment Programme (Tobago) 2014“
ICT related aspects of the “Public Sector Investment Programme (Tobago) 2014”
Pages 16-17, under “Strategic Priority – Economic Growth, Job Creation, Competiveness and Innovation”
Information Technology and Infrastructure
46. An allocation of approximately $4.5 million was expended on the improvement of
Information Technology Infrastructure on the island of Tobago. Under the Computerisation of Tobago Programme, $3.8 million was expended on activities including
continuation of the Establishment of a Management of Information System Unit.
establishment of an Integrated Financial Management System.
continuation of the Roll out of Project IHRIS.
implementation of a THA Wide Area Network and Data Centre
continuation of the upgrade of the Divisions of the THA.
47. An amount of $0.7 million was utilised on the establishment of an Information and
Communication Technology Unit, and the continuation of the Information Communication
Technology Programme.
Communication
48. The allocation of $1 million was utilised by the Ministry of Tobago Development for the
continuation of improvement of the network, the purchase of new hardware and the acquisition of new software.
