FIRST

Facebook to court: Likes are protected by First Amendment

When you "like" something on Facebook, that expression is indeed covered by the First Amendment, Facebook is arguing in a new court document.

The friend-of-the-court brief, filed last night, also urges an appeals court to vacate a recent ruling by a judge in Virginia that Facebook "likes" are not protected speech.

In that ruling in the spring, U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson had said, essentially, that just clicking a Facebook button differs materially from the kinds of statements traditionally protected by the First Amendment. As a result, the judge dismissed a claim by six employees … Read more

D.C. chief allows citizens to record and photograph police

Cell phone videos and photos have increasingly brought law enforcement activities to the public eye, such as the killing of Oscar Grant in Oakland, Calif., and crowd control tactics during the Occupy Wall Street protests. But this has also meant that police are more wary of camera-toting citizens.

However, Washington D.C.'s police chief, Cathy Lanier, recently announced that cops are going to have to learn to live with people recording and snapping photos of them, according to DCist. In a six-page General Order, Lanier outlines specific do's and don'ts that her staff must adhere to when … Read more

Verizon Wireless wants to 'edit' your Internet access

What if your wireless provider gave you Internet access and search results according to what it decided was a "priority"?

As a Verizon Wireless customer, I'm furious at the idea that it would "pick favorites" over what I was actually looking for -- especially if it was an emergency.

But that's just what Verizon is fighting in court to do right now. Verizon has filed a brief (Verizon vs. FCC) with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit for the "freedom" to edit your Internet, dear customer.

If … Read more

Learn first aid from the Red Cross on your smartphone

Can't live without your smartphone? It just might help save your life or someone else's, one day. The American Red Cross first aid app, available on Android and iOS, has advice on administering first aid and preparing for emergencies.

When you first launch the app, you'll see a large notice asking you to tap on the Emergency tab, if you're facing an emergency situation. Once you tap on the Emergency tab, you'll see a list of emergencies like allergies, choking, and poisoning. Some of the emergency situations will provide a quick list of advice and … Read more

Apple's original iPad with two dock connectors found on eBay

A mythical first-generation iPad surfaced on eBay this past week confirming rumors that the device may have originally intended to have two dock connectors, according to MacRumors.

"This is one of a VERY small amount of apple prototype devices and you rarely see these on eBay," the listing says. "This iPad has 16GBs of capacity, and is incredibly unique. For starters, it has 2 dock connectors."

When the iPad was first introduced in 2010, it came with one dock connector in portrait, or vertical, mode. But rumors floated that the device would have another dock connector in landscape, … Read more

Proposed NY ban on anonymous posts comes under fire

In an attempt to combat cyberbullying, some New York state legislators want people who post mean-spirited personal attacks online to be prepared to identify themselves.

A resulting bill, known as the Internet Protection Act (IPA), wouldn't stop with cyberbullying. If it became law, the legislation would also prevent people from posting anonymous criticism of local businesses or making "baseless political attacks," wrote James Conte, a member of New York's state assembly and one of the bill's sponsors.

"With more and more people relying on social media and the Internet to communicate and gather information,&… Read more

Bunch of Windows 8 devices coming from Dell

Dell is preparing a raft of tablets, hybrids, and ultrabooks for the Windows 8 launch later this year.

"The addition of capacitive touch capability into Windows 8, we think, will be a welcome addition...and will have a full complement of products at time of launch," Michael Dell said today during the company's first-quarter 2013 earnings conference call, in response to an analyst's question.

"We're totally lined up with Windows 8. You'll see us introduce tablets," he added.

And he suggests that Windows 8 touch-centric interface means that current PCs will not … Read more

Google report says search results protected by First Amendment

Do Google and other search engines have a constitutional right to control their own search results?

The answer is yes, at least in the opinion of UCLA law professor and First Amendment scholar Eugene Volokh.

In a report commissioned by the search giant (PDF), Volokh asserts that search results are a type of "opinion" based on what information the search engines believe would be most relevant to their users, according to news site PaidContent. Therefore, the results are protected by the First Amendment.

"Google, Microsoft's Bing, Yahoo Search and other search engine companies are rightly seen … Read more

AT&T CEO blames Google for delayed smartphone updates

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson recently made some public statements about Google that the Web giant says don't really pan out, according to 9to5Google.

During a panel discussion put on by the Milken Institute last week, an audience member asked Stephenson why there's such a delay in updating Google's operating system on devices carried by AT&T. Basically Stephenson blamed Google for delayed updates.

"Google determines what platform gets the newest releases and when," Stephenson replied. "Oftentimes, that's a negotiated arrangement and that's something we work at hard. We know … Read more