Every Monday morning at 7:10 am, I am on air at CHOM 97.7 FM radio out of Montreal (home base). It’s not a long segment – about 10 minutes every week – about everything that is happening in the world of technology, digital media and culture. The good folks at CHOM 97.7 FM are posting these segments weekly on i Heart Radio, if you’re interested in hearing more of me blathering on about what’s happening in the digital world. I’m really excited about these weekly hits, because this is the radio station that I grew up listening to, and it really is a fun treat to be invited to the Mornings Rock with Terry DiMonte morning show. The segment is called, CTRL ALT Delete with Mitch Joel.

This week we discussed:

• Here’s an interesting idea to make sure that people are following the rules of social distancing and self-isolation: “An app that tracks where you have been and who you have crossed paths with—and then shares this personal data with other users in a privacy-preserving way—could help curb the spread of Covid 19, says Ramesh Raskar at the MIT Media Lab, who leads the team behind it. Called Private Kit: Safe Paths, the free and open-source app was developed by people at MIT and Harvard, as well as software engineers at companies such as Facebook and Uber, who worked on it in their free time.” The idea? The new app would say if you’ve crossed paths with someone who is infected by using the already-existing tracking technology is all mobile device. Smart? Privacy issues? The right thing to do when people aren’t following the rules and laws? Source: MIT Technology Review – A new app would say if you’ve crossed paths with someone who is infected. 
• Do you work from home, but are used to working in an office and being around people? Work you prefer to not work alone? Leave it to bestselling author, Seth Godin, to have a great idea. He launched Akimbo Virtual Coworking. It’s a virtual coworking space for people who would prefer to not work alone. It includes many features like a community discussion board, a constant Zoom video feed/conference, so that you can see others working as well, live conversation and Q&A with Seth, speed connecting opportunities, resources and more. So smart for those who need to be around people to get things done.
• Sounds like something out of a spy thriller movie or one about corrupt companies. “From 9/11 to coronavirus, big emergencies call for big responses – like how some firms move to secret empty offices in undisclosed locations to stay safe.” I always wondered about those big office buildings with no signs that seem so out of place in random suburbs. Maybe they are all “ghost offices”? Source: BBC – WorkLife – How firms move to secret offices amid Covid 19.
• App of the Week: Houseparty.

You can also listen in via I Heart Radio.