Five things worth sharing from the last week or so, brought to you by a different member of the Browser Media team every Friday.
This week’s My Five is by Libby.
1. Goodbye Google Glass (as we know it)
Although Google state they will still be launching their eyewear as consumer products, they will no longer be producing Google Glass in its current form, favouring the design of future versions instead.
Where did it all go wrong? Well, this was just to be an experiment aimed at software developers and not the mass market. They were pretty expensive at £990, there were questions about battery life (or lack of) and they didn’t exactly look cool, did they?
2. Social Media doesn’t cause stress
In a study by the Pew Research centre, it was found that Facebook and Twitter users do not experience more stress than those who do not use the social networking services.
Apparently though, social media users are more aware of their online friends’ stress – known as the “cost of caring”.
The social aspect of these technologies makes people more aware of stressful events in others’ lives. Learning about and being reminded of undesirable events in other people’s lives makes people feel more stress themselves. This finding about the cost of caring adds to the evidence that stress can be contagious. – Prof Keith Hampton, Rutgers University
3. If there’s one thing we all know it’s that everything gets slated online!
Last night I watched “Cyberbully” on C4. It was chilling, creepy and weird all at once. If you didn’t see it, I won’t spoil it, but basically teenager Casey Jacobs (played by Maisie Williams of Game Of Thrones) is targeted by an anonymous hacker, who takes over her computer as well as her social media profiles, whilst watching her through her webcam and forcing her to listen to Led Zeppelin.
Aside from being a fairly decent bit of drama, the message was an interesting one that sparked discussion around how harmless internet “banter” really is – compelling in light of the fact that social media isn’t supposed to cause stress!
You can watch it for yourself on 4OD
4. New, grool iOS game
Loads of cool stuff happened in 2004: Mark Zuckerberg gave birth to a beautiful baby Facebook, Britney Spears got married twice, Janet Jackson had that “wardrobe malfunction”… and Mean Girls became a thing.
If you’re not familiar with the lives of Cadey Heron and Regina George, I feel bad for you. For those of us that are, you’ll be pleased to find that North Shore High is once again under threat, this time from a new band of Plastics. In this new game developed by So Much Drama, you and your clique defeat your opponents as they attempt to to piece together the Spring Fling Tiara. Guess what? You can invite your Facebook friends to play with you too – So Fetch!
5. Britain’s outrage at changes to Easter Eggs, despite it being January
Not only are fans of the Cadbury’s Creme Egg reeling at the revelation that the shell is no longer made with Cadbury’s Dairy Milk Chocolate, but they are being asked to accept the fact that eggs are now sold in packs of 5 not 6. You might say they’ve been left… shellshocked?
Sorry.
According to a spokeswoman for the company, “The fundamentals of the Cadbury Creme Egg remain exactly the same – delicious milk chocolate and the unique creme centre that consumers love.”
Of course, people have taken to social media:
This lady is particularly distraught:
And, of course, good ‘ol @Jimllpaintit really summed it up (not for the faint-hearted).
