By John Crockford
More on Government Information Accessibility
Last month (https://fresnoalliance.com/?p=8110), this column began to explore accessibility to public information through government Web sites. Technology has certainly changed how we communicate with each other, but government agencies seem to be slow in adopting user-friendly programs that facilitate the exchange of information with the public. Baltimore recently became an “open law” city with the introduction of a Web site called “Baltimore Decoded” that “makes the city’s charter and codes more accessible to the public.” The full story about “open law” governments can be found at http://bit.ly/1dGPq56.
Compare Baltimore Decoded (http://baltimorecode.org/) with the municipal/county code Web sites for the City of Fresno (http://bit.ly/17t1lWu), the City of Clovis (http://bit.ly/14uoss2) and the County of Fresno (http://bit.ly/19qNdxW).
More on Internet Privacy
Reading about spying and Internet privacy issues can be numbing so a good picture that gets the information to you is definitely “worth a thousand words.” “9 Tips for Keeping Your Internet Usage Private” is just that and can be found online at http://bit.ly/1ethKs1.
It is common for folks to use alternate e-mail addresses for different things. One for family and friends, one for business and so on. Mask Me (http://abine.com/maskme/) is a new service that promises to keep your e-mail addresses, phone numbers and credit card numbers private. This service could make the challenge of juggling several different e-mail addresses a thing of the past and increase your online security as well.
Probably one of the best places for news and analysis of security and privacy issues is the Web site for the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) at https://www.eff.org/.
And if you are using Tor (https://www.torproject.org/) for your online security, make sure that you are utilizing the latest browser bundle on your computer.
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John Crockford, a self-described “geek with Luddite sympathies,” is an independent Web site designer and consultant. Contact him at info@johncrockford.com or follow the Crockford Files (@crockfordfiles) with Twitter (https://twitter.com/crockfordfiles).
