New way to search, convention-watching perch highlight Net Notes
Another new search engine, more on destroying hard drives and a better way to keep tabs on the Democrats during their Denver shindig highlight today's edition of Net Notes.
• Medium social search
You'll never have to surf alone, as this site combines searching with social networking. You can see what the two million-plus Medium members are currently looking at, and even surf with your friends. Signing up for the site takes less than a minute. The process includes an installation of the me.dium.com toolbar in your browser of choice.
Once the toolbar is installed, you're able to invite those on your Facebook friends list to also join Medium. "Search what crowds are surfing," is the catch phrase for the site, meaning sites being surfed by your friends and other Medium users rise to the top of the search results.
I've played with this only a few days, and invite you to do the same. Shoot me an e-mail or head to my Tidbits blog (www.lvrj.com/blogs/onlineguy) to share your thoughts.
• Hard drive destruction
Bob Linden, president of Shred-it Las Vegas (www.shredit.com/lasvegas) let me know that his business is also in the hard drive destruction business. "Shred-it offers on-site computer hard drive destruction service for business," he said via e-mail. "We require the customer to witness the destruction and verify the serial number on each destroyed hard drive."
He added that hard drives are never transported for destruction at another location.
"Taking such a risk with a small item that contains so much information is not a wise decision," he said.
Shred-it is AAA certified by the National Association for Information Destruction.
Reader Marty Weinmann found an easier way to wipe data from a hard drive: "Just hire a patriot who loves the magnetic signs of our flag and 'Support Our Troops' and sticks them on the side of the computer case.
"True Story. It took maybe four days to destroy the hard drives and programs. Why is this computer running so slow?"
Ouch. Painful lesson. Remember to keep all magnets away from your computers.
• Microsoft's Silverlight
The Democratic National Convention comes to Denver Aug. 25-28, and the Silverlight browser plug-in will help make online viewing more dynamic.
The Democratic National Convention (www.demconvention.com) site will be loaded with features designed for Silverlight. These include scroll-over pop-ups with biographical and position information and multiple video windows with zoom-in and zoom-out capability.
Attending the convention virtually has never been easier.
Share your Internet story with me at agibes@reviewjournal.com.
TIP OF THE WEEK Ed Graney at the Olympics Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney is covering the Beijing Olympics with a unique eye. In addition to his daily columns that run in print and online, Graney posts several blog items every day. From reports on getting around China to offbeat observations at press conferences (Sleeping journalists, wake up!), Graney keeps tabs on the athletes, visitors and culture.
