Friends or colleagues?

Hands up who’s heard of Facebook? Hands up who’s heard of My Space? And hands up who’s heard of  Bebo? Chances are (unless you’ve been living life like a recluse hermit in a deep, dark cave somewhere in Outer Mongolia…) that you’ll have heard of at least one of these social-networking sites, if not all three.

Yes, it seems that social-networking is now a phenomenon that simply cannot be escaped. Users can chat with friends, post photos and videos, and even buy other users a pint (well, who wouldn’t want a pint of cold cyber Carlsberg?), all with the click of a button. And if the user’s settings aren’t set to private, their online actions are visible to every other user, of which there are 35 million on Facebook in Europe alone.

But when it comes to privacy settings and choosing who and isn’t your online friend, should there be a safety cut-off point?

Causing controversy around the world, social-networking sites have seen many an office worker and naughty student rapped over their very public displays of anti-social behaviour. There are even stories of employers vetting potential employees using the sites, looking for tell-tale signs of mischievous misdemeanour and tomfoolery before hiring someone.

So then, hands up who’s heard of LinkedIn? Well now fans of Facebook who don’t want the whole of the office knowing, and laughing, about their weekend escapades can register with the site and enjoy an entirely new social-networking experience, one that’s tailor-made for colleagues and business associates.

The site, already with over a million users, has claimed 47% of the UK’s web users are mixing their social and professional lives by accepting networking invitations from “frolleagues” - colleagues who send friendship requests. And apparently, this should I/shouldn’t I “frolleague” dilemma is becoming so common that the Oxford English Dictionary is considering adding the term.

Do I think it’s a good idea to separate business and pleasure? Sure, especially if your endeavours are that crazy that they need to be ‘censored’. Having your entire Outlook address book knowing that you went wild with tequila last Thursday and spewed all over the floor doesn’t look very professional does it?

But what you publish online is really just a matter of common sense. I don’t think I’d go shouting from the roof top (or in this case lap top) about what I did last Saturday night. Probably because, quite pitifully, it was staying in and watching X-Factor…

So, “frolleagues”, a yes or a no? I say, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em… And if you don’t want to join ‘em, register with LinkedIn.

 Genuine Pace

Morrissey would of course counter that headline with a dismissive ‘it makes none’, but his best days are behind him and (as far as I’m aware) he knows very little of the telecoms market. In fact, a more accurate response would perhaps be ‘it makes some, but not as much as you think’.

The fibre-optic driven broadband network capable of supporting 100Mbps speeds that BT have declared to deliver by 2012, would bring the UK broadband infrastructure bang into line with those of such broadband powerhouses as Japan and Korea. That means bang into line with download speeds enjoyed by Japan and Korea in 2008 however; by 2012 it’s highly anticipated many parts of the world will be revelling in 1000Mbps connections.

Will the UK be among this heavenly throng? Highly unlikely, although it’s worth noting Japanese broadband users suffer in much the same way UK users do in relation to broadband advertising. Up to 100Mbps broadband speeds in Japanese ads rarely means you’ll get a consistent 100Mbps connection. Speeds usually fluctuate between the 55 and 95Mbps mark.

Fast forward to 2012. The Smiths have reformed with Slash on lead guitar, Animal from the Muppets on drums and a visibly ‘heavier’ Morrissey finding that troublesome middle eight in ‘William, it was really nothing’ even more testing than usual. On a pertinent note, what will your broadband connection enable you to do?

Well, first and foremost, all the online essentials (emails, media downloads, Facebook housekeeping, shopping, paying bills etc.) should take ten times faster to complete in theory. Obviously a 100Mbps broadband connection isn’t going to make you type faster, but it will make data transfer (particularly involving hefty files) tangibly quicker.

The problem is applications such as Facebook, MySpace and YouTube are optimised for 3 to 6Mbps connections, so the actual impact a 100Mbps connection will have on these apps could be negligible or, at worse, destructive. It’s the equivalent of trying to swat a fly with a rocket launcher.

100Mbps connections to the home should see Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) finally become established after years of dithering on the sidelines. Triple-play bundles will be significantly shaken up and redesigned come 2012, with the old phone-TV-broadband model replaced by Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), IPTV and broadband. A 100Mbps connection should be able to support 3 HDTV channels running simultaneously, and still leave enough room for a little messenger action on the side.

The big winner will be video conferencing and holographic video capabilities. 100Mbps connections could allow us communication tools only previously fantasised in 60s sci-fi movies; I’m talking interactive holographic video, handheld high-res devices, streaming HD video and real-time mobile video interaction with pause and rewind functionality.

Although everyone wants faster speeds from their broadband connection, the conversion to fibre and 100Mbps speeds could be a bumpy one. Are UK broadband users ready for 4G capabilities? Can they handle 100Mbps? When will they be able to use super-fast broadband to its full potential?

In the future when all’s well, as a certain bequiffed Mancunian might say.