The Generation Gap is Shrinking When it Comes to Digital Privacy

More and more people, across generations, are learning the hard way that the posting of certain kinds of personal information on social networks can be a bad idea.

As we age, do we become more private?  Do we become more protective as we accumulate more things in our lives, like a reputation built over a lifetime, material wealth or opinions we'd rather not share with the world but only with the closest of friends?

If the results from a new report from technology and market research firm Forrester Research, Inc. hold true, then the answer to these questions is "yes."

Credit social media with helping to bridge the generation gap among Baby Boomers, Gen Xers and even Millennials (to some extent, anyway) on at least one important issue -- digital privacy.

It appears that no matter how old we are, we spend some time worrying about social media-related privacy.  And the older we are, the more time we spend worrying about it.

While 18 to 29 year-olds -- aka Millennials -- are the least concerned (as you might expect since the use of social media is in their DNA), even their privacy concerns increased over a year ago, according to the Forrester report.

Baby Boomers, as you might assume, are the most concerned about social media-related privacy --especially the older boomers, aged 54 to 64.  Their privacy concerns jumped from 32% to 50% in a single year.  Younger boomers (44 to 53 years of age...and includes me!) express somewhat less concern and are more closely aligned with the attitudes toward online privacy as Gen Xers (30 - 43).  With that said, privacy concerns for both younger Boomers and Gen X also increased over 2009.

Companies like Google and Facebook are constantly in the news due to digital privacy issues.  Google recently created a privacy-centric fund and donated $8.5M to it largely as a result of the mishandling of its Google Buzz launch last February.  And Facebook, it seems, is forever digging out of the privacy holes it creates for itself.

Social media is evolving and so too are users' attitudes toward it. Backlash against social networks dictating privacy policies to customers is growing stronger. 

Older Gen Xers aren't too far away from the half way point in their lives.  And as Sid Yadav of VentureBeat points out, it would behoove Facebook to "figure out a middle ground on privacy before its first users reach middle age."

Reasons to be Optimistic Heading into a Summer Weekend

Here are a few of the corporate earnings headlines we were treated to over morning coffee, earlier today and yesterday.  

"Microsoft Profit Rebounds by 48%"

"Second Quarter Income Higher at Amazon"

"Optimistic 3M Lifts Guidance For Year"

"Wireless Revenue Drives AT&T Growth"

"Honeywell Outperforms Again"

"AutoNation Profits up 36%"

"CA Exceed Expectation"

"Ford Higher After Strong Q2 Earnings"

"Verizon Posts Wireless Customer Growth"

"UPS Raises Profit Outlook"

"U.S. Manufacturers Continue Streak of Profit Beats"

"Caterpillar Posts Strong Profit and Raises Outlook"
 

These results are reasons to be optimistic about the recovery.

And this too:  "...spending on technology products and services is set to continue growing around the world."

According to a report this week from Forrester Research, spending on IT goods and services in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Easter Europe, the Middle East and Africa will increase this year anywhere from 9.9% (in the U.S.) up to 16.2% (Canada). 

It's true that IT spending in the western and central regions of Europe are forecasted by Forrester to drop by a modest 0.7%.  But the increase in spending throughout the rest of the world is significant enough to offset Western and Central Europe.

A reason for the IT growth spurt?  According to the IDG News Service which viewed the report, "the U.S., and to a lesser extent, other nations, are entering an innovation cycle marked by the adoption of new technologies."

News like this makes for a great summer weekend.

Using NIST Definitions to Clarify the Cloud

The other day, I heard a new term used for cloud computing, "cloud washing."  Apparently this was coined by an analyst at Forrester Research to describe the practice of repackaging existing cloud concepts as something new or unique to a vendor.

This kind of marketing adds to the confusion surrounding the cloud.  In the zeal to be different, companies "repackage" information that is not different at all.  When this happens, companies often unwittingly put up a big caution flag for customers.  When an entire sector of companies employ the same marketing practice, customers simply stop in their tracks.

Fortunately, there is a standard set of definitions for various types of cloud computing. If you are confused by the hype, it might be helpful to rely on definitions put forth last year by the National Institute of Standards and Technlogy (NIST), part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Fortunately, there seems to be a growing consensus around these definitions. Here is a summary of the NIST definitions for Cloud Computing:

Cloud computing is a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction. This cloud model promotes availability and is composed of five essential characteristics, three service models, and four deployment models.

Service Models:
Cloud Software as a Service (SaaS). The capability provided to the consumer is to use the provider's applications running on a cloud infrastructure. The applications are accessible from various client devices through a thin client interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based email). The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, storage, or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exception of limited user-specific application configuration settings.

Cloud Platform as a Service (PaaS). The capability provided to the consumer is to deploy onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created or acquired applications created using programming languages and tools supported by the provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, or storage, but has control over the deployed applications and possibly application hosting environment configurations.

Cloud Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). The capability provided to the consumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and other fundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy and run arbitrary software, which can include operating systems and applications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage, deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networking components (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models:
Private cloud. The cloud infrastructure is operated solely for an organization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party and may exist on premise or off premise.

Community cloud. The cloud infrastructure is shared by several organizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns (e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and compliance considerations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third party and may exist on premise or off premise.

Public cloud. The cloud infrastructure is made available to the general public or a large industry group and is owned by an organization selling cloud services.

Hybrid cloud. The cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or more clouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities but are bound together by standardized or proprietary technology that enables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting for load-balancing between clouds).

We're interested in collecting examples of cloud washing,  If you have one, please post it here.