PUPs and Street View
While running a malware scan on my computer, I encountered a new term: PUP. So I needed to learn what this is. According to SearchSecurity.com: "A PUP (potentially unwanted program) is a program that may be unwanted, despite the possibility that users consented to download it. PUPs include spyware, adware, anddialer s, and are often downloaded in conjunction with a program that the user wants.
I know I'm the last one to learn about these things, but have you seen Google's Street View?
Says Google: "With Street View, you can virtually explore city neighborhoods by viewing and navigating within 360-degree scenes of street-level imagery. It feels as if you're walking down the street!"
By clicking on an active map, you can zoom down to, literally, street level, where you can see people, cars, store fronts, etc. from a street-level view. Once at street level, you can zoom, pan, move forward and back - you can literally "tour" a street as if walking down it.
Street View has been launched for San Francisco, New York, Las Vegas, Miami, and Denver thus far.
The first question that comes up is: how old are the images I'm looking at in Street View? We know from Google's info pages that "Google Maps uses the same satellite data as Google Earth. Google Earth acquires the best imagery available, most of which is approximately one to three years old."
However, ReadWriteWeb.com tells us: "The Street View maps are developed in partnership with Immersive Media
, which according to the O'Reilly Radar blog is "a company that has an eleven lens camera capable of taking full, high-res video while driving along city streets." What that means is that these Street View maps, because they are extracted from video shot while driving, are not just static images at random points around the city. They can be advanced fluidly down the street."
Wikipedia gives us more info: "On May 25, 2007, Google released Street View, a new feature of Google Maps which provides 360° panoramic street-level views... This feature has raised some privacy concerns, with views found to show men leaving strip clubs, protesters at an abortion clinic, sunbathers in bikinis, and other activities. Google maintains that the photos were taken from public property. Before launching the service, Google removed photos of domestic violence shelters, and allows users to flag inappropriate or sensitive imagery for Google to review and remove."
We even learn that "Wired has started a contest on the most interesting photos found using the new Google Tool that now includes sunbathing coeds, alleged drug deals, and the google van itself." (From Slashdot.com)
Intensive searching for an answer to the "How old?" question has finally led me to believe the answer is: nobody is sure. Says one savant on Google Groups: "You can judge the street view by the things you see in it. For example, I have seen a clock with a calendar in view, which dates the image as being just 2 months old. But, each area is different."
To learn more, check out the YouTube movie explaining Street View.
While running a malware scan on my computer, I encountered a new term: PUP. So I needed to learn what this is. According to SearchSecurity.com: "A PUP (potentially unwanted program) is a program that may be unwanted, despite the possibility that users consented to download it. PUPs include spyware, adware, and
The term was created by McAfee, the Internet Security company, because marketing firms objected to having their products called "spyware": in the view of such firms, all the information necessary for informed consent is included in the download agreement. It is widely recognized, however, that many if not most users fail to read a download agreement in sufficient detail to understand exactly what they are downloading.
McAfee differentiates PUPs from other types of malware, such as viruses, Trojans, and worms, which can be safely assumed to be unwanted by the user."
As far as I'm concerned, that's a pretty friendly name for a pretty obnoxious piece of software.I know I'm the last one to learn about these things, but have you seen Google's Street View?
Says Google: "With Street View, you can virtually explore city neighborhoods by viewing and navigating within 360-degree scenes of street-level imagery. It feels as if you're walking down the street!"
By clicking on an active map, you can zoom down to, literally, street level, where you can see people, cars, store fronts, etc. from a street-level view. Once at street level, you can zoom, pan, move forward and back - you can literally "tour" a street as if walking down it.
Street View has been launched for San Francisco, New York, Las Vegas, Miami, and Denver thus far.
The first question that comes up is: how old are the images I'm looking at in Street View? We know from Google's info pages that "Google Maps uses the same satellite data as Google Earth. Google Earth acquires the best imagery available, most of which is approximately one to three years old."
However, ReadWriteWeb.com tells us: "The Street View maps are developed in partnership with Immersive Media
, which according to the O'Reilly Radar blog is "a company that has an eleven lens camera capable of taking full, high-res video while driving along city streets." What that means is that these Street View maps, because they are extracted from video shot while driving, are not just static images at random points around the city. They can be advanced fluidly down the street."Wikipedia gives us more info: "On May 25, 2007, Google released Street View, a new feature of Google Maps which provides 360° panoramic street-level views... This feature has raised some privacy concerns, with views found to show men leaving strip clubs, protesters at an abortion clinic, sunbathers in bikinis, and other activities. Google maintains that the photos were taken from public property. Before launching the service, Google removed photos of domestic violence shelters, and allows users to flag inappropriate or sensitive imagery for Google to review and remove."
We even learn that "Wired has started a contest on the most interesting photos found using the new Google Tool that now includes sunbathing coeds, alleged drug deals, and the google van itself." (From Slashdot.com)
Intensive searching for an answer to the "How old?" question has finally led me to believe the answer is: nobody is sure. Says one savant on Google Groups: "You can judge the street view by the things you see in it. For example, I have seen a clock with a calendar in view, which dates the image as being just 2 months old. But, each area is different."
To learn more, check out the YouTube movie explaining Street View.
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