NEW RESOURCES

VAntage Blog: Veterans can search free resources through Code of Support’s PATRIOTlink. “Code of Support’s PATRIOTlink® platform is a free online resource database that includes thousands of programs tailored to the military and Veteran community. Through PATRIOTlink, users can search vetted, direct, cost-free services specific to their needs. PATRIOTlink was recently redesigned to make it even easier to use. Now, users can complete searches by entering less information and they can view events and job opportunities in their area through a news feed feature.”

TriCity News: COVID-19: There’s an app for that – thanks to Coquitlam man. “[Curtis] Kim said he programmed the web tool to automatically scrape information from government public health agencies like the BC Centre for Disease Control, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization. But the latest data, said Kim, is more challenging to automate because of the lag in reporting. So Kim cross-references the new data and goes in manually throughout the day to update the page.”

TWEAKS AND UPDATES

TechCrunch: Facebook bans face mask ads to fight coronavirus price gouging. “On Friday, Facebook announced that it would further attempt to limit coronavirus-related chaos on its platform by banning commerce listings and advertisements for medical face masks.”

Publishers Weekly: Is Macmillan Reconsidering Its Library E-book Embargo?. “At the recent ALA Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia, Macmillan CEO John Sargent told librarians that he would come back in March with potential alternatives to the publisher’s controversial library e-book embargo. And this week, Macmillan made good on Sargent’s statement, with an email to a select group of librarians seeking feedback on three proposals that could inform new e-book license terms for public libraries.”

Variety: Read Universal Music Group Chief Archivist’s Update on Damage From 2008 Fire. “The company’s chief archivist, Pat Kraus, sent the company’s staff a memo on Thursday updating progress on the inventory. Among other points, he says that the Times’ assessment may have been flawed due to its use of incomplete records — many of which were also destroyed — and insurance claims made by the company in the months immediately after the fire, which were at times general and based on staffers’ memories. He also provides specific numbers on the inventory, without naming artists.”

AROUND THE SEARCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA WORLD

Washington Post: Facebook has a prescription: More pharmaceutical ads. “Jordan Lemasters keeps seeing ads in his Facebook app for an attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder drug called Vyvanse. When the Chicago-based audio branding consultant recently clicked on the ad’s drop-down menu and selected ‘Why Am I Seeing This Ad,’ a pop-up said it was because of his age range, because he lives in the United States and because he may have visited Vyvanse.com. But Lemasters felt spooked. The 29-year-old had used another ADHD drug, Adderall, but never publicized it.”

Mashable: Baseball card apps bring a classic hobby into the digital age. “Eventually, the digital revolution comes for everything, even our nostalgic hobbies. That revolution now includes one of the most nostalgic hobbies of all — baseball cards — which have seen a resurgence in the past few years thanks to a movement into the digital realm. Baseball cards are bringing in big money, especially for Topps, the industry giant who remains on top after decades in business.”

Palo Alto Online: Anonymous Confessions pages are surging in popularity on high school and college campuses. Why?. “In September, [Sergio] Charles started Cardinal Confessions, a Facebook page for students to anonymously share confessions of all kinds, both light-hearted and serious — stress, insecurities, relationship angst, questions about a course or grades, politics, campus gossip. He wanted to create a positive online community that would open up real-life conversations and create connections on a campus well-known for ‘duck syndrome’ — a metaphor for students, like ducks, acting calm on the surface but paddling furiously to stay afloat (even though ducks are inherently buoyant).”

SECURITY & LEGAL

The Verge: Go read about a law school’s ridiculous battle over YouTube copyright strikes. “Copyright law is two things: a gnostically complex rubric for deciding who can reproduce a work of art, and one of the most powerful legal forces on the internet. But precisely how complex and how powerful? Well, enough that a major law school thought it might lose its YouTube channel in a copyright dispute over a video explaining copyright law.”

CNET: Facebook cracks down on sites that impersonate its services. “Facebook said Thursday that it’s suing Namecheap and Whoisguard for providing website addresses that impersonate the social network and can be used for frauds and scams.”

The Register: Staffer emails compromised and customer details exposed in T-Mobile US’s third security whoopsie in as many years. “T-Mobile US was hacked by miscreants who may have stolen some customer information. The telco did not specify exactly when the intrusion took place (and has yet to respond to questions from The Register) in its Notice Of Data Breach.”

RESEARCH & OPINION

The Sociable: Pentagon plans to digitize the largest repository of disease-related medical data in the world. “The ultimate goal of the Pentagon’s Joint Pathology Center (JPC), part of the Defense Health Agency (DHA), is to create a fully digitized and accessible repository of the ‘approximately 55 million glass slides, 31 million paraffin embedded tissue blocks, and over 500,000 wet tissue samples that have been collected over the last 100+ years,’ according to the JPC recommendations report released on Thursday.” Good morning, Internet…

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