<story><title>Richard Stallman calls Ubuntu “spyware” because it tracks searches</title><url>http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2012/12/richard-stallman-calls-ubuntu-spyware-because-it-tracks-searches/</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>droithomme</author><text>Reading what he is talking about, Stallman&apos;s description is absolutely correct. If I am doing a desktop search for local files, it is not be expectation that that search will be transmitted to servers without my consent, and that it does so makes it spyware even if we don&apos;t also take into consideration that it is being done to track my interests for monetary gain in the form of referral links. Good on him for calling attention to this functionality.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>smsm42</author><text>This is also a strange plug - if I&apos;m looking for something in my computer, how much chance any of Amazon shopping would be relevant? If I&apos;m looking for a notes from last week&apos;s budget planning meetings, what would they show me, shopping results for &quot;budget notebooks&quot;? And they expect me to be happy with it? I understand Canonical needs to make money, and with free product it requires some creative thinking, but this one makes little sense to me.</text></comment>
<story><title>Richard Stallman calls Ubuntu “spyware” because it tracks searches</title><url>http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2012/12/richard-stallman-calls-ubuntu-spyware-because-it-tracks-searches/</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>droithomme</author><text>Reading what he is talking about, Stallman&apos;s description is absolutely correct. If I am doing a desktop search for local files, it is not be expectation that that search will be transmitted to servers without my consent, and that it does so makes it spyware even if we don&apos;t also take into consideration that it is being done to track my interests for monetary gain in the form of referral links. Good on him for calling attention to this functionality.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>Irregardless</author><text>&amp;#62; Use Super-A. You can tell Unity exactly what you want to search. And in future you’ll be able to do that from the home lens, too, more easily than the current Lens Bar at the bottom of the Dash.&lt;p&gt;From &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.markshuttleworth.com/archives/1182&quot; rel=&quot;nofollow&quot;&gt;http://www.markshuttleworth.com/archives/1182&lt;/a&gt;&lt;p&gt;It sounds like they&apos;re working to expand the search functionality with users&apos; best interests in mind, not adding advertisements as everyone seems to think.&lt;p&gt;&amp;#62; it is being done to track my interests for monetary gain in the form of referral links&lt;p&gt;They&apos;re just search results, not ads. Read the blog post from Shuttleworth.</text></comment>