I'm trying to prove to Starkers that MS is just as bad as Google when it comes to data mining and ads.
I need NO proof that MS data mines.... but having NO access to either the MS or Google data banks, it'd be nigh impossible to 'prove' is as bad or worse than the other. My criticism of Google is based on what I saw/see... obnoxious ads on just about every web page... google analytics prying into my surfing habits, etc.
Oh yeah, on the personal data thing,,, my niece did a google search on her estranged father a while back and she tells me it turned up all sorts of things she never knew about him. Hmmm, makes you wonder???
I'm also trying to tell him that Google is not as bad as he thinks.
You'll be trying 'til you're blue in the face.... ain't gonna happen. Google is as bad as I think... probably worse.
I am reminded of Starkers saying that he didn't believe Microsoft data mined because he never saw evidence of it in his personal use
I didn't say that I didn't believe it....
Now I'm not saying that MS/Hotmail don't data mine,
... MS may very well data mine, but I have not been targetted with any key-word generated ads/promos or anything else within my hotmail. Yes, before installing AdBlock Plus, I used to see the generalised web page ads that everyone else got, but those were more likely the result of clients paying for the space than any data mining on me. So my point is not to deny/refute that MS data mines, but rather to state that I believe Google to be more invasive/intrusive/in your face than MS.