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Originally posted by: SagaLore

Duuuuuuh, somebody needs to learn what cookies actually do... they just store information, in a text file, in your cache. That information that gets stored is generally for keeping site settings like options you picked or shopping cart items. There is nothing from that cookie that a site can get that they didn't already get in order to put it into a cookie! They could just as easily track IPs and history on their end, but it's less resource hogging by keeping the "cookies" on our end.

People are so paranoid and misinformed...
Uh, yes there is. Being the only IP address they are going to see from my company is the router, the IP is worthless unless they want to include all 10,000 people who use it. At home I have three computers sharing my routers IP.

If you look at the Google cookie it uses a 64-bit UID to track you. Doubleclick and a ton of other sites do the same thing. They don't need to track me, no matter how benign their intentions are so I disallow their cookies.

pwned!

 

rh71

No Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
52,844
1,049
126
Google Toolbar... hahaha... I knew there was a reason the Yahoo Companion toolbar was better!
 

Rainsford

Lifer
Apr 25, 2001
17,515
0
0
Don't let The Man keep you down. See conspiracies where none exist so that when a real conspiracy comes along, you will be sure not to miss it. Believe everything you read on the internet.

rolleye.gif
 

Sid59

Lifer
Sep 2, 2002
11,879
3
81
1. Google doesn't take my email and sell it

--- GOOGLE IS YOUR FRIEND!

i guess if you dislike google that much, you can have Jeeves serve your inquires.
 

Deeko

Lifer
Jun 16, 2000
30,213
12
81
Why do i care if Google knows what I searched for?

Did you know that every time you visit a website, the server records your IP address, and is capable of reading your browser too?? Better not go to any websites at all! :Q
 

yoda291

Diamond Member
Aug 11, 2001
5,079
0
0
Originally posted by: dwell
Originally posted by: SagaLore

Duuuuuuh, somebody needs to learn what cookies actually do... they just store information, in a text file, in your cache. That information that gets stored is generally for keeping site settings like options you picked or shopping cart items. There is nothing from that cookie that a site can get that they didn't already get in order to put it into a cookie! They could just as easily track IPs and history on their end, but it's less resource hogging by keeping the "cookies" on our end.

People are so paranoid and misinformed...
Uh, yes there is. Being the only IP address they are going to see from my company is the router, the IP is worthless unless they want to include all 10,000 people who use it. At home I have three computers sharing my routers IP.

If you look at the Google cookie it uses a 64-bit UID to track you. Doubleclick and a ton of other sites do the same thing. They don't need to track me, no matter how benign their intentions are so I disallow their cookies.

pwned!

Google uses a UID to track you because it doesn't want to cross you with someone else behind whatever router or switch you may rest behind. If google wanted to track your activities, it certainly does not need a cookie to do so. Your computer isn't generating that 64-bit uid, google is. Your computer didn't arbitrarily decide to put stuff into the cookie, google did. It's almost certainly just a hash of information that your browser has already sent to google. In other words, the second you hit google, your browser has just sent all the information you think you're preventing google from seeing, regardless of whether or not you actually have google's cookie. The only thing that could remotely be called "tracking" is google throwing whatever link you clicked on or whatever term you searched for into that cookie...and if you think that google can't find a way to track its clickthrus without the use of cookies...I've got a great deal on the brooklyn bridge for you.

Fact of the matter is, the whole idea that Big Brother is watching your cookie cache and determining where you've been is bogus. The media has hyped up cookies as the devil's internet...where you are naked and vulnerable before a horde of haxors lining up to view your cookie cache. The truth of the matter is, if google wanted to track where you've gone and what you're doing, they could do so completely on the server side and you would never know. On top of that, there are better ways of data mining than unreliable, easily deleted, relatively hard to access cookies.
 

Jeff7

Lifer
Jan 4, 2001
41,596
20
81
More, MORE, MORE!!! We need MORE conspiracy theories!!!
I'll bet that Anand is personally overseeing this Google thing - just watch, soon the forum search will use Google technology. All knowledge will be assimilated. The end is near!
 

yoda291

Diamond Member
Aug 11, 2001
5,079
0
0
Originally posted by: Jeff7
More, MORE, MORE!!! We need MORE conspiracy theories!!!
I'll bet that Anand is personally overseeing this Google thing - just watch, soon the forum search will use Google technology. All knowledge will be assimilated. The end is near!

We're already using google ads!
 

BDawg

Lifer
Oct 31, 2000
11,631
2
0
Originally posted by: Jeff7
More, MORE, MORE!!! We need MORE conspiracy theories!!!
I'll bet that Anand is personally overseeing this Google thing - just watch, soon the forum search will use Google technology. All knowledge will be assimilated. The end is near!

Each time you type the word "porn" into google, they give $1 to the Palestenians. It's a fact, I read it on the internet.
 

Originally posted by: yoda291
Originally posted by: dwell
Google uses a UID to track you because it doesn't want to cross you with someone else behind whatever router or switch you may rest behind. If google wanted to track your activities, it certainly does not need a cookie to do so. Your computer isn't generating that 64-bit uid, google is. Your computer didn't arbitrarily decide to put stuff into the cookie, google did. It's almost certainly just a hash of information that your browser has already sent to google. In other words, the second you hit google, your browser has just sent all the information you think you're preventing google from seeing, regardless of whether or not you actually have google's cookie. The only thing that could remotely be called "tracking" is google throwing whatever link you clicked on or whatever term you searched for into that cookie...and if you think that google can't find a way to track its clickthrus without the use of cookies...I've got a great deal on the brooklyn bridge for you.
Google cannot differentiated me from the guy sitting next to me at work. We use the same OS, browser, and setup. There is only a handful of information the browser sends to the server about a surfer. This includes the browser, OS, IP address of their router, and perhaps their screen resolution, among other trivial bits of information. It's really not enough to make a unique UID. The only way to keep it unique is to create a UID and plant it in your cookies. As soon as it?s erased they lose all tracking information about you.

I don't know if anyone is saying Google is spying on them, but it's just an invasion of privacy that can be easily remedied by not accepting their cookie. There is no reason for me to accept the cookie. Google works the same with or without it. If they want to attempt to ascertain my individual machine by some other means more power to them.

Google utilizes perhaps the benign form of session tracking. Others companies such as Doubleclick and Sextracker use cookies for deeper mining and tracking.
 

xirtam

Diamond Member
Aug 25, 2001
4,693
0
0
Originally posted by: KingNothing
Originally posted by: xirtam
Why do people go online, a place where millions or billions live, work, play, and do business with each other...

...and then demand absolute privacy, anonymity, and expect awesome public utilities (like Google) to not have some kind of agenda? We live in a capitalistic system. Deal with it or boycott search engines altogether.

I fail to believe that the solution to dealing with infringement of privacy and the widespread "abuse" of technology is to become amish.

Who said anything about becoming Amish?

Well, you and I have so far. I'm against. What about you?
 

ndee

Lifer
Jul 18, 2000
12,680
1
0
so they have a cookie. What if you delete the cookie? Anyway, I don't care, Google pwns you and your mother!
 

halik

Lifer
Oct 10, 2000
25,696
1
81
its beed posted before...all of those are bullsh!t


each time you use google, god kills a kitten!
rolleye.gif
 

xirtam

Diamond Member
Aug 25, 2001
4,693
0
0
Originally posted by: Jeff7
More, MORE, MORE!!! We need MORE conspiracy theories!!!
I'll bet that Anand is personally overseeing this Google thing - just watch, soon the forum search will use Google technology. All knowledge will be assimilated. The end is near!

Resistance is futile?
 

KingNothing

Diamond Member
Apr 6, 2002
7,141
1
0
Originally posted by: xirtam
Originally posted by: Jeff7
More, MORE, MORE!!! We need MORE conspiracy theories!!!
I'll bet that Anand is personally overseeing this Google thing - just watch, soon the forum search will use Google technology. All knowledge will be assimilated. The end is near!

Resistance is futile?

Of course it is. Have you ever tried to forget something? It's futile, I tell ya!

Oh, and for the record, I am against Electric Amish too.