[SEL] Re: Google Gmail - Free, But at a price...

[Bill Dickerson]

At the risk of causing more ruckus over OT posts - here's what we found
about some of Google's helpful software, thus leading us to never trust
anything from Google that installs locally:

Google desktop search - it's all the rage. Gets rave reviews in the computer
rags (anything Google does gets rave reviews, however, like Microsoft stuff
gets rave reviews in most computer rags)

Someone in our bureau installed Google desktop search on their computer
because it was FREE (how they got admin rights to their computer was
discusses and dealt with)
How we found out was interesting - the big boys from ITE (the main state
computer spooks) contacted us and said a computer in our area was hitting
the domain controllers and causing a surge in certain types of network
traffic - whatever it was was attempting to gain access to the DC's.
( They guard domain controllers with their life.)
We traced it to a computer in our area, did some sniffing on the net and
discovered the traffic and hits on the servers was non other than the FREE
Google Desk Search thingy.
We killed it and relaxed a LOT of network traffic and made the state spooks
happy because it also removed the hits on their domain controllers.
Hmmm, what was Google desktop search doing attemping access to domain
controllers?
Why all the network traffic? Seems it does MORE than just index what is on
YOUR computer for YOU to search.......
None of this was exposed in the computer magazines, however. 

Sorry, I don't trust Google or any "free search" software, more often than
not, it does more than what it says it will do.

All of this is one reason a friend of mine became his own "ISP" and email
supplier - setting up his own email server and domain and web servers. Less
chance of someone getting to his email............

Bill

-----Original Message-----
From: sel-bounces at lists.stationary-engine.com
[mailto:sel-bounces at lists.stationary-engine.com] On Behalf Of Arnie Fero
Sent: Sunday, April 03, 2005 1:19 PM
To: The SEL email discussion list
Subject: [SEL] Re: Google Gmail - Free, But at a price...

AND as a bonus, Google reads every single one of your emails so that ALL of
the adverts you see are targeted to YOUR needs and interests.  And it keeps
your email forever so that it can learn more about you as time passes.
Isn't that special?  And they assure you that humans never read your email
(no matter how interesting it is) and they never sell any info about you to
advertisers (no matter HOW specific the profile is that they develop from
all of your email).  Its just so wonderful, it makes me all warm and
tingly...  Well, they don't do all of those nasty privacy-invading things
except under "some" circumstances.  But they carefully obscure just exactly
what they are.  Trust them.  They just want to help...  8-))

http://gmail.google.com/gmail/help/about.html#ads
http://gmail.google.com/gmail/help/privacy.html
http://gmail.google.com/gmail/help/about_privacy.html

See ya,  Arnie

PS - The "about privacy" bit is a hoot.
    "The lady doth protest too much, methinks."
    From Hamlet (III, ii, 239)

Arnie Fero
Pittsburgh, PA
fero_ah at city-net.com

On Sun, 3 Apr 2005, Listerdiesel wrote:

> Do you want to try Google Gmail??

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