Single in Saint Louis: Computers and Internet

Discretion

Sun, 13 Apr 2008 15:43:20 GMT

Some people may notice that I have taken down several entries. There is a good reason for this. First, the internet is a public forum and when I was writing on MSN before I was very careful to cater my entries to not reveal my personal identity, where I was at any given time, and for subject matter. Since I have started writing again, I have noticed that I have been a little freer with my freedom of speech, and as it is my right to freely write what I please, it is also my right to refrain from speech as I please.

I have had some legitimate concerns about restarting the blog just because I have been out of habit in my discretion and because the last thing I want is something that I have probably exaggerated or might be completely fiction on a blog to haunt me, and I know it can.   People take these blog things very seriously, and even good fiction these days is often misconstrued as reality. It is hard to tell in this medium if stuff is for real or not. We do not have a fiction section for blogs. Therefore, if it isn't about a fictional character that just happens to be a plant, people assume it is true.

Therefore, I am deciding to take the opportunity to reiterate some internet safety tips for everyone, myself included.

1. Do not post personal information on the internet. Make sure your age is false, your name is false, and any connection to you is limited. That being said, protect your friends too. Give them false names and keep their info hidden.   A good way to check is to google yourself every once in awhile to see what comes up. If there is something you don't want to be connected with contact the owner of the site where your profile is listed and have them either remove your profile or hide it.

2. Do not talk about where you are going to go. Nobody really needs to know where you are going to go. Where you have been is plenty enough, and the story is always better once you've been there, than before you've gone. Ditto for your friends you write about.

3. Do not give specifics about where you work, people you work with, and especially do not write overly negative things about where you work or the people you work with if you have to write about them at all.   It is best to leave work, work, and personal, personal.   Do not connect the two. If you feel you need to vent about your life do it in a personal handwritten journal. Review it after a few days when you have chilled out, and then decide if you really want to post it.

4. Take anything a stranger tells you with a grain of salt. You do not know who someone is when you meet them online. That being said, if someone tells you they are a friend do not believe them unless you know them personally in your personal REAL life. Also, If someone (a friend or otherwise) gives you a nasty comment, or decides to call into question your integrity online you can delete them. It is a pro to this online game. However, if you are receiving a lot of these comments, you might consider going offline for awhile. You might be in a situation where someone is harassing you, stalking you, or plotting to hurt you. THEN let someone know it was going on. It might be a parent, a friend, a teacher, or you might even email the online administrator. Just let someone know. If anything is to happen, they would know where to start looking.

5. If you are a teenager or kid, let your parents review what you are posting. I know that you probably don't want them to read everything you write. It sucks, but trust me, it sucks a lot less than getting yourself in a bad situation. If you are afraid for your parents to read or see what you post, you probably shouldn't post it.   Again, the internet is a public forum and mom, dad, bad people, and police can eventually find you. Not to mention, if you wouldn't want your parents to see it, you probably shouldn't be doing it.

6. If you must talk about your deepest darkest thoughts they are probably better suited for a pen and paper. Write in a real offline journal. If you write something you want to post you can always retype it from what you have written later on. It will give you a chance to sit back and see how the stuff you are writing comes across and if it is really something you want everyone in the world reading, and if the way you have written it is the best way for you to talk about it online. Sometimes people just have a moment of emotion about one thing or another and if all you post is those moments then you may be giving the wrong impression of yourself. It is easy to just sit and type, far easier than handwriting, but careful thought is always needed when writing to a broad audience of people.   It might be best to handwrite it first.

7. Be constantly wary. Be wary of people, be wary of postings, be wary of information, be wary that someone might read what you write and take it the wrong way. Always reread what you post every few weeks to make sure that what you are posting is indicative of your personal traits, your values, and your views of the world. Even if you are writing from a fictional standpoint, these things come across in writing. Delete, Delete, Delete, if you feel uncomfortable about anything you have posted.   Edit freely. You have just as much a right to not speak as to speak.

That being said, I am upping the ante on my discretion back to the level it was in the days when the blog was featured on MSN.

In an attempt to be lazy

Wed, 13 Dec 2006 21:27:21 GMT

I am going to start posting some stuff on here again. Not that I don't love my own website! I do, very much. I just kind of miss immediate comments and writing random blurbs. So, I am posting here as well as on my own website. So, here comes the slew of entries I have made since August!

A brand new Webpage!!!!

Sun, 06 Aug 2006 20:53:13 GMT

Single in Saint Louis is officially moving!!!! I have my own little page on the web now!! It is more than just a blog. It has been so hard to leave MSN. There are things I am going to miss, like getting to see comments immediately, and not having to upload and reload the page every time I update. But Single is a big girl now. She is off to do it on her own. Change your favorites, hyperlinks, and etc. (there is still a link to this blog on the new blog, and after a long discussion with Michael the Aloe, he has decided to stay with MSNSpaces, and I have added a link to his blog from the new site.) I am so excited! This webpage is more than I ever thought it would be! Here are 10 things about the new page: 1) It is more than just a blog, and has been both fun and a pain in my rear! 2)There are links to some of my favorite St. Louis places! 3) There is a whole list of some of my favorite recipes that will grow each week by one! 4) There are links to fun quizzes! 5) It is pink and pretty! 6) There is a bunch of free clipart!!! Thanks Microsoft!!! 7) There is a hidden link (sort of) to a dream journal!! 8) The new site has shiny objects! Fun toys! and everything else you could imagine!!! 9) I now have 9 statistics pages and I only understand one of them partway!!! 10) You can email me from the main page or any of the blog entries with comments!!! Every Saturday I am posting an entry with everyone's comments from all the entries before! Don't worry! I won't post email addresses or names unless you want me to, and I will gladly post blog addresses and pen names for people who comment! Soon you will be able to reach the new site by either www.singleinstlouis.net (can reach it now from there) and from www.singleinstlouis.com (I am adding it to my list). There is a link to the left on this blog to the new page! I look forward to showing you all my new place! It has been great! Thank you for everything MSNSpaces! You have been good to me! I appreciate all that you have done! I would never have understood all this webstuff without you!

Simon and Samone

Sun, 19 Mar 2006 20:56:30 GMT

Yesterday, Samone (my computer) was blessed with a little brother, Simon. Simon is a Macintosh and has a very different attitude than Samone. I was afraid the two of them wouldn't get along. Especially since Samone is quite the self centered PC. Unfortunately, as with any new addition to a family, I have a lot of learning to do. I think samone sometimes resents the time I spend with Simon. This is why she refused to start this morning when I pressed her power button. All it really took was a little reassurance that both she and Simon are important to me, and she was whirring and ready to go. All that being said. If anyone has any advice for using Macs, I would appreciate it. I am new to this whole Mac thing. Thanks! Single

Computer Maintenance with Mom and Dad and Gertie

Thu, 29 Dec 2005 14:33:42 GMT

I would like to apologize for waiting so long to post the last four entries. Who would've known that defragmenting a hard drive could take two days? Currently, at Mom and Dad's there is one computer with internet which is nearly ancient at this point and is in need of major maintenance. Since, I am their personal computer technician (or so they think), It seems every time I am home I end up doing basic computer maintenance for them.

Yes, they have windows, but are still somewhat afraid of their computer. Their computer I have hence named Gertrude, merely because that is an awful name and I am tired of trying to make Gertrude work. I took to typing these blogs on Samone, who with all her computer problems doesn't hold a candlestick to ole Gertie, and uploaded them onto the internet via CDROM. Sorry for the delay. Back to defragging.