AlterNation: Everything You Thought You Knew Is Wrong!

About gaming, that is. Welcome to AlterNation Episode 2! This week we talk online social games, location-based services and the dangers invovled with them (oh my!), and look at a case of schools using webcams to spy on students, big brother style.

For show notes, click more.

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Social Games stats: PopCap Games commissioned a survey to determine who is playing games online, among other things. The results are very interesting, often contrary to common beliefs. Here's a sample:

●The average social gamer is a 43-year-old woman.
●55% of social gamers are female and 45% are male.
●38% of female social gamers, and 29% of male social gamers, play social games several times a day.
●95% of social gamers play multiple times per week; and nearly two-thirds (64%) play at least once a day.
●53% of social gamers say they've earned and/or spent virtual currency in a social game, but only 28% have purchased virtual currency with real-world money.
●Facebook is the most popular destination for online games, with 83% of respondents saying they have played games there.

Read the Full Study.

Are we asking to be robbed? "PleaseRobMe.com" thinks so. The site pulls information from Twitter searches, and posts updates when people mention leaving home, or checking in to other places. According to the site: “The danger is publicly telling people where you are. This is because it leaves one place you’re definitely not… home. So here we are; on one end we’re leaving lights on when we’re going on a holiday, and on the other we’re telling everybody on the Internet we’re not home." As we discuss though, the same danger is there if people know you will be gone at work during the day. More on Mashable

Webcam Spying: There is a class action suit against the Lower Merion School Disctrict of Pennsylvania at the moment. Why you ask? The school issued laptops have remote-access software on them, and the school has used this to access at least one of the laptop's webcam. Blake Robbins, the plaintiff of the case was brought to the school office for discipline due to "improper behavior in the home". The principal showed Blake a picture taken from his laptop as evidence. Read more

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