New York State works to clean up fake online reviews

New York’s attorney general, trying to take a bite out of the fake online review business, has signed agreements with 19 sources of bogus reviews on sites like Yelp and CitySearch.

These groups, which include search-engine-optimization firms and individual businesses, must now pay fines ranging from $2500 to just under $100,000, and must discontinue the practice of posting fake reviews. The total penalties come to more than $350,000, Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced Monday.

Schneiderman’s office had been investigating the fake online review business for a year, including some undercover work. The office posed as a yogurt shop in Brooklyn, and discovered that it could purchase fake reviews for anywhere from $1 to $10 per post. SEO firms would outsource the reviewing work to freelancers in foreign countries such as the Philippines and Bangladesh.

In the past, users could look for signs that a review was faked, such as the review history of someone who posted effusive praise for a product or service. But as the investigation shows, fake reviews have come more sophisticated, working around automated filters as well as users’ own sniff tests.

One SEO company, for instance, required its Yelp reviewers to have accounts that were at least three months old, with more than 15 reviews and 10 Yelp friends. Reviewers would post across multiple Websites, and used IP spoofing to mask their identities.

In some cases, businesses would even enlist regular customers in the deceit. For example, US Coachways, a national bus charter company, offered $50 gift certificates to customers in exchange for positive reviews, with no disclosure of the gift required. Laser Cosmetica, a laser hair-removal service, also offered discounts to its customers in exchange for online reviews. (The same sketchy practices have been exposed on Amazon as well.)

Even if users have a knack for spotting some fake reviews, the net effect of review scores could still influence buying decisions. Shneiderman’s office cites a pair of studies that found when ratings increase by one star, restaurants enjoy a 5 percent to 9 percent revenue increase, and hotels can get an 11 percent boost in room rates.

Cracking down on a handful of companies isn’t going to bring an end to fake reviews—especially when there’s so much incentive to beat the system—but the more deterrents there are, the better.

In addition to the crackdown by Schneiderman, Yelp has launched a name-and-shame program for fake reviews, and universityresearchers have developed algorithms that tech companies can use to recognize bogus write-ups.

Users, meanwhile, can look to reviews by “verified” or “elite” reviewers on sites like Amazon or Yelp, or give less credence to the most positive and negative reviews on a site, to get a better sense of where to spend their money.

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State dumping IBM after IT project runs 42 months late, $60 million over budget

The state of Pennsylvania will not renew its services contract with IBM regarding the development of a modernized unemployment compensation system, after the project reportedly has gone 42 months behind schedule and $60 million over budget.

In August, state officials commissioned a study from Carnegie Mellon University’s Software Engineering Institute, seeking “to determine the best course of action moving forward,” according to a statement released this week by Department of Labor and Industry Secretary Julia Hearthway’s office.

“The bottom line is that the problems we’ve identified cannot be solved and we will not renew our contract with IBM,” Hearthway said in the statement. “The level of risk, combined with the critical nature of the system, demands that the Department of Labor & Industry has a system that produces timely decisions reliably and accurately.”

IBM landed the contract in June 2006. The project was originally budgeted at $106.9 million but the state has so far “dedicated funds approaching $170M,” according to the Carnegie Mellon study.

By early 2011, “a number of program risks and issues were identified” but the project had already experienced significant cost overruns “without any measurable solutions,” Hearthway’s office said.

“We are surprised by today’s announcement,” IBM spokesman Scott Cook said via email Thursday. “This decision is based on a third-party report that we had not seen at the time of the Commonwealth’s announcement, despite repeated requests to the Department of Labor and Industry to review it together.”

“In complex information technology implementations, there is accountability on both sides for system performance and service delivery,” Cook added.

Indeed, the Carnegie Mellon study singled out state officials for criticism on a number of fronts. For example, the original solicitation for the project had “major weaknesses,” including a “lack of detailed and object source selection criteria” and “unprioritized and often ambiguous requirements,” according to the study.

State officials also failed to delegate project roles, leading to a situation “in which no one in [the Department of Labor and Industry] was accountable and responsible for the administration of the program.”

There may be political overtones to the situation. Hearthway’s announcement noted that she took office in April 2011 and her office “began to aggressively manage the system and work with IBM to take corrective actions.”

The Carnegie Mellon report also praises DLI’s current senior leadership for taking a “hands-on and aggressive” approach to managing the project.

Meanwhile, IBM contributed to the project’s problems as well, according to the report. “Another concern has been instability in [IBM’s] workforce,” it states.

After some design documents were finished in 2008, IBM took a large number of business analysts that had become the “memory” of the state’s business requirements, off of the project: “This decision created a significant knowledge gap as the program entered the critical application design and development phases.

Staffing changes weren’t confined to the business analysts. In fact, since the project’s start 638 IBM contractors have worked on it, “with the majority of the workforce having less than one year on the project and 75 percent having less than two years,” the report states.

Carnegie Mellon’s study recommends that state officials build an improved governance structure for the project, and also that work on the third release of the software be halted in favor of stabilizing previous releases.

Chris Kanaracus covers enterprise software and general technology breaking news for the IDG News Service.
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The state of the Windows Store: How useful are those 100,000 apps?

More than nine months into the great revamping known as Windows 8, a clear vision of its core is finally starting to emerge. The baked-in apps have been streamlined and Windows 8.1 looms, ready to polish the numerous rough edges found in the original release of the operating system. But Microsoft alone can’t improve what is truly the beating heart of Windows 8: The Windows Store.

Windows 8 revolves around the Windows Store. Every Live Tile that glimmers on the modern-style Start screen is the iconic representation of a Windows 8 app—and you can only snag Windows 8 apps in Microsoft’s own Windows Store. As the Windows Store goes, so goes the Windows 8 experience.

A recent Flurry study shows that mobile users spend 80 percent of their time in apps, rather than in a browser.

How, exactly, is the Windows Store doing? The obvious indicators are mixed. Windows RT devices can run only modern-style apps, not desktop apps, and they’re tanking hard. But app submissions picked up steam around the time of Microsoft’s Build conference, culminating in the shattering of the 100,000-app barrier in early July, and they’re still going (relatively) strong.

That’s a great milestone for Microsoft, but it’s still paltry compared to the approximately 1 million apps in Google Play and 900,000 apps in Apple’s App Store. So it’s a good time to take the pulse of the Windows Store again: Is 100,000 apps enough to keep a body happy? As I did last February, I spent days scouring the Windows Store and taking notes in five major categories: games, music apps, video apps, social apps, and a catch-all “other” category—to see how well Microsoft covered each. Here’s how they all measured up.

In my original Windows Store evaluation, I noted that the game selection was an early highlight—and it has only gotten stronger since February. The number of available apps has tripled in that time. While the roughly 13,500 available games don’t hold a candle to the vast Android and iOS libraries, there is more than enough to keep you distracted for months to come. A lot of them are ports from other platforms, but, hey, they play just as nicely on Windows.

In fact, they play so nicely that we’ve had two separate roundups of killer Windows 8 games, with very little overlap. If you open the Games tab in the Windows Store and sort by "noteworthy," you’ll find dozens and dozens of high-quality titles. (I’ve been playing Royal Revolt nonstop recently.) Microsoft Studios in particular has released a bevy of bodacious games like Pinball FX2, Hydro Thunder Hurricane, and The Gunstringer.

Halo: Spartan Assault is awesome.

Speaking of which, two games from Microsoft Studios—Skulls of the Shogun and Halo: Spartan Assault—aren’t just a blast—they’re also far-reaching, letting you play with gamers on Windows Phone and Xbox Live as well as with fellow Windows Store shoppers. That sort of cross-platform experience is an exciting tease of the potential of Windows 8 gaming in a One Microsoft kind of world. Here’s hoping it continues.

That’s not to say that all is well in Winny’s world, however. As mentioned, while the Windows Store game selection is impressive, it can’t compare to the selections for iOS or Android—you won’t find any mobile Walking Dead games or Grand Theft Auto ports here.

You mean this game’s not legit? (Click to enlarge.)

More troubling, the Games section, like much of the Windows Store, is filling with rip-off apps designed to trick you into thinking they’re the real deal—such as Sonic’s Ring Challenge - Bomb Dodger and Pac Pac Man. Microsoft actually highlights that last app as one of the top free apps in its Spotlight section. The official Pac-Man Championship Edition DX, a $10 app, is not featured.

Pac Pac Man, right next to Twitter, Skype, Vevo, Google Search, and Adobe Photoshop Express in the Spotlight section’s Top Free apps.

Still, if you’re mindful of what you’re downloading, you’ll find a lot to like in the Windows Store’s Games section. (And to be honest, Pac Pac Man is pretty decent.)

The same general theme applies to the Windows Store’s selection of video apps: It’s not anywhere near as comprehensive as iOS’s or Android’s, but most people will find all they need within Microsoft’s modern-styled walls.

Netflix and Hulu Plus were two of the earliest entries in the Windows Store, where they were joined by Vimeo, Dailymotion, Flixster, TED Talks, and a handful of apps from individual television stations like Nick and Discovery Channel. (Note that as an app, Hulu Plus requires a subscription to use; you’ll need to dive into your browser if you want to catch free flicks.)

Beyond those stalwarts, only a handful of notable streaming-video apps have been added since February, though the additions have been of fairly high quality. Vevo’s music-video service landed on Windows 8 recently, as did Sony’s Crackle, which freely streams many older movies and TV shows. Sports buffs can now tune in to baseball games via the MLB.tv app.

Sony’s Crackle app for Windows 8.

Amazon Instant Video and YouTube are still glaring in their absence, but there’s a cheat for that: Internet Explorer 10’s streamlined interface is superb for streaming video. A plethora of third-party YouTube watchers are also available, and some of them function even better than the official YouTube apps. (I personally prefer Hyper for YouTube; YouTube Touch or YouTube+ are also solid options.)

The Windows 8 Plex app is a superb Plex client. (Click to enlarge.)

Don’t dig subscriptions? Apps for Plex and PowerDVD will scratch your personal-video-collection itch, while the baked-in Video app offers both local playback options and premium digital video downloads (its interface is kind of meh, though). I also have high hopes for the VLC media player app slated to land in the Windows Store soon. If it’s anywhere near as terrific as the desktop version, life will be good for Windows tablet owners. Until then, be wary of rip-off apps designed to look like VLC or Windows Media Player.

The "little extras" are the major stumbling block for the Windows Store. A handy-dandy Redbox app just turned up, but you still won’t find apps for, say, HBO Go, Comcast, Verizon, or the dozens of other niche services out there. If you use them, you’ll miss them, but if you stick mostly to major apps, the Windows Store gets two thumbs-up—especially if you don’t mind resorting to IE10 to fill in the blanks.

Brad Chacos spends the days jamming to Spotify, digging through desktop PCs and covering everything from BYOD tablets to DIY tesla coils.
More by Brad Chacos

View the original article here

The state of the Windows Store: How useful are those 100,000 apps?

More than nine months into the great revamping known as Windows 8, a clear vision of its core is finally starting to emerge. The baked-in apps have been streamlined and Windows 8.1 looms, ready to polish the numerous rough edges found in the original release of the operating system. But Microsoft alone can’t improve what is truly the beating heart of Windows 8: The Windows Store.

Windows 8 revolves around the Windows Store. Every Live Tile that glimmers on the modern-style Start screen is the iconic representation of a Windows 8 app—and you can only snag Windows 8 apps in Microsoft’s own Windows Store. As the Windows Store goes, so goes the Windows 8 experience.

A recent Flurry study shows that mobile users spend 80 percent of their time in apps, rather than in a browser.

How, exactly, is the Windows Store doing? The obvious indicators are mixed. Windows RT devices can run only modern-style apps, not desktop apps, and they’re tanking hard. But app submissions picked up steam around the time of Microsoft’s Build conference, culminating in the shattering of the 100,000-app barrier in early July, and they’re still going (relatively) strong.

That’s a great milestone for Microsoft, but it’s still paltry compared to the approximately 1 million apps in Google Play and 900,000 apps in Apple’s App Store. So it’s a good time to take the pulse of the Windows Store again: Is 100,000 apps enough to keep a body happy? As I did last February, I spent days scouring the Windows Store and taking notes in five major categories: games, music apps, video apps, social apps, and a catch-all “other” category—to see how well Microsoft covered each. Here’s how they all measured up.

In my original Windows Store evaluation, I noted that the game selection was an early highlight—and it has only gotten stronger since February. The number of available apps has tripled in that time. While the roughly 13,500 available games don’t hold a candle to the vast Android and iOS libraries, there is more than enough to keep you distracted for months to come. A lot of them are ports from other platforms, but, hey, they play just as nicely on Windows.

In fact, they play so nicely that we’ve had two separate roundups of killer Windows 8 games, with very little overlap. If you open the Games tab in the Windows Store and sort by "noteworthy," you’ll find dozens and dozens of high-quality titles. (I’ve been playing Royal Revolt nonstop recently.) Microsoft Studios in particular has released a bevy of bodacious games like Pinball FX2, Hydro Thunder Hurricane, and The Gunstringer.

Halo: Spartan Assault is awesome.

Speaking of which, two games from Microsoft Studios—Skulls of the Shogun and Halo: Spartan Assault—aren’t just a blast—they’re also far-reaching, letting you play with gamers on Windows Phone and Xbox Live as well as with fellow Windows Store shoppers. That sort of cross-platform experience is an exciting tease of the potential of Windows 8 gaming in a One Microsoft kind of world. Here’s hoping it continues.

That’s not to say that all is well in Winny’s world, however. As mentioned, while the Windows Store game selection is impressive, it can’t compare to the selections for iOS or Android—you won’t find any mobile Walking Dead games or Grand Theft Auto ports here.

You mean this game’s not legit? (Click to enlarge.)

More troubling, the Games section, like much of the Windows Store, is filling with rip-off apps designed to trick you into thinking they’re the real deal—such as Sonic’s Ring Challenge - Bomb Dodger and Pac Pac Man. Microsoft actually highlights that last app as one of the top free apps in its Spotlight section. The official Pac-Man Championship Edition DX, a $10 app, is not featured.

Pac Pac Man, right next to Twitter, Skype, Vevo, Google Search, and Adobe Photoshop Express in the Spotlight section’s Top Free apps.

Still, if you’re mindful of what you’re downloading, you’ll find a lot to like in the Windows Store’s Games section. (And to be honest, Pac Pac Man is pretty decent.)

The same general theme applies to the Windows Store’s selection of video apps: It’s not anywhere near as comprehensive as iOS’s or Android’s, but most people will find all they need within Microsoft’s modern-styled walls.

Netflix and Hulu Plus were two of the earliest entries in the Windows Store, where they were joined by Vimeo, Dailymotion, Flixster, TED Talks, and a handful of apps from individual television stations like Nick and Discovery Channel. (Note that as an app, Hulu Plus requires a subscription to use; you’ll need to dive into your browser if you want to catch free flicks.)

Beyond those stalwarts, only a handful of notable streaming-video apps have been added since February, though the additions have been of fairly high quality. Vevo’s music-video service landed on Windows 8 recently, as did Sony’s Crackle, which freely streams many older movies and TV shows. Sports buffs can now tune in to baseball games via the MLB.tv app.

Sony’s Crackle app for Windows 8.

Amazon Instant Video and YouTube are still glaring in their absence, but there’s a cheat for that: Internet Explorer 10’s streamlined interface is superb for streaming video. A plethora of third-party YouTube watchers are also available, and some of them function even better than the official YouTube apps. (I personally prefer Hyper for YouTube; YouTube Touch or YouTube+ are also solid options.)

The Windows 8 Plex app is a superb Plex client. (Click to enlarge.)

Don’t dig subscriptions? Apps for Plex and PowerDVD will scratch your personal-video-collection itch, while the baked-in Video app offers both local playback options and premium digital video downloads (its interface is kind of meh, though). I also have high hopes for the VLC media player app slated to land in the Windows Store soon. If it’s anywhere near as terrific as the desktop version, life will be good for Windows tablet owners. Until then, be wary of rip-off apps designed to look like VLC or Windows Media Player.

The "little extras" are the major stumbling block for the Windows Store. A handy-dandy Redbox app just turned up, but you still won’t find apps for, say, HBO Go, Comcast, Verizon, or the dozens of other niche services out there. If you use them, you’ll miss them, but if you stick mostly to major apps, the Windows Store gets two thumbs-up—especially if you don’t mind resorting to IE10 to fill in the blanks.

Brad Chacos spends the days jamming to Spotify, digging through desktop PCs and covering everything from BYOD tablets to DIY tesla coils.
More by Brad Chacos

View the original article here