Balloon Boy: When the Net is full of hot air
You may not have noticed, but several important things happened in the country late last week. I don't know what they were either, because I was too busy following the Balloon Boy saga.
This is the latest example of how 24/7 cable news networks and the Web can conspire to create a laserlike focus on one thing, regardless of its actual importance. And the problem only seems to be getting worse.
[ Check out Eric Knorr's take on the celebrity keyword-fest and the problem with Web publishing, in InfoWorld's Modernizing IT blog. ]
How obsessed were people with Balloon Boy? At one point last Thursday, 18 of the top 20 search terms on Google Trends had something to do with the Heene family and/or runaway helium balloons. Within hours someone had created a snarky (though minimalist) Web site called WhereIsBalloonBoy?, which has now clocked more than 28,000 hits. As I write this, some three days later, "balloon boy" is still a trending topic on Twitter.
A Cringester who works in an international finance firm shared the following online chat session from last Thursday. Though he was not a participant -- he says it was a coworker -- he swears it's completely accurate (however, I did obscure the real name of his colleague to protect his privacy, and I cleaned up some typos).
15:21:09 BLOOMBERG HELP DESK : hello
15:21:51 BLOOMBERG HELP DESK : how can I assist?
15:22:03 JOE USER : any ideas on how we can get this kid out of the hot air balloon over Colorado?
15:22:08 JOE USER : b/c i am totally consumed by this
15:22:22 JOE USER : and no one at my work is offering anything sensible
15:23:07 BLOOMBERG HELP DESK : I wish I knew of a simple solution
15:23:25 JOE USER : I mean is this helium going to slowly leak out?
15:23:36 JOE USER : or should we send the Seals in with some chutes?
15:24:01 JOE USER : and where are the parents in all this. I'm sorry to be venting. I just feel like I don't have anyone to talk to
15:24:38 BLOOMBERG HELP DESK : please talk to me about it
15:24:49 BLOOMBERG HELP DESK : I feel the pain.. I wonder that the kid is thinking up there
15:25:00 JOE USER : this issue is bigger than just kids in hot air balloons
15:25:12 JOE USER : its a lack of parenting in this country, its despicable
15:26:25 BLOOMBERG HELP DESK : I'm sure the parents will never leave the kid alone
Sign up for ITworld's Daily newsletter
Follow ITworld on Twitter @IT_world
On Twitter now
Internet
Powered by TwitterOn Twitter now
Internet
Brian Proffitt
Microsoft/Novell: Breaking Down the Coupon Numbers
Esther Schindler
Drupal's Dries Buytaert on Building the Next Drupal
Tom Henderson
Top Ten General Operating Systems Rants
pasmith
PS3 motion controller delayed; goes up against Project Natal
sjvn
Neolithic Windows security hole alive and well in Windows 7
claird
Perl source code comparison makes for good reading
mikelgan
Cell phones don't create stress or interrupt much
Sandra Henry-Stocker
How to: The Unix Interview
Where Google Chrome security fails: the password
I heard mention that the Chrome OS will have some sort of encryption available a la bitlocker. If it's possible to encrypt personal data using another password or key, then it may have potential for very secure data.... And Ubuntu has an 'encrypt home directory' option, perhaps google should follow suit.
- Dann
Join the conversation here
Quick, practical advice for IT pros. Made fresh daily.
- Ubuntu advances: Why Ubuntu server installations will surge in 2010
- Social media marketing: How to make friends with benefits
- More...
Want to cash in on your IT savvy? Send your tip to tips@itworld.com. If we post it, we'll send you a $25 Amazon e-gift card.






