What device should you buy? Which makes the most sense for residents of Israel? Which is the best buy, and can I buy it at Best Buy when I travel to the States? So many questions, so little space. Fortunately, I covered the e-book reader scene not long ago (check out the article here), but what good is an e-book reader without content to read? And until recently, content was a problem – which led me to suggest the iPad as the most practical e-reader for Israelis (albeit the most expensive).

Only the iPad’s iBook library gave you the ability to download content directly to your device, as Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes and Noble’s Nook (the two major players in the e-reader market) did not allow you to access content from their bookstores in Israel. Apple doesn’t let you use an Israeli credit card at its bookstore either, but you can buy gift cards for the iTunes store and use that credit to buy content for your iPhone or iPad, including at the iBook store (you can even buy the cards online here in Israel.

That was then – but a new development at Amazon threatens to change the value for money balance significantly in their favor. You can now download content from Amazon directly to your PC or your Kindle right here in Israel, using your Israeli credit card. No more blocked content because your IP address is in the “wrong neighborhood,” and no more nudging your friends who had American credit cards to download content for you.

Unfortunately, the Kindle itself is not (yet) available in Israel, but now that the content is available, it would seem to be just a matter of time until the device is sold here, as it is in some 100 countries (the holdup may be in Amazon’s trying to make a deal with a cellphone service provider for a 3G connection). On the other hand, the Kindle isn’t readily available anywhere as of this writing, because Amazon was inundated with orders after cutting the price of some of the devices (the iPad is hard to get, as well). iPads are not yet being officially sold in Israel either, but that is likely to change at some point in the future, as well.

For now, users who want a device but don’t want to go to the States (or send someone there) to buy one can use a service like Mustop to order either device and have it hand-delivered to their address in Israel.

The Nook’s content is only available in North America right now, as is the device itself, and B&N has no immediate plans to begin distributing worldwide, as Apple and Amazon have been doing for awhile. Now that book content is no longer a problem for either device, the question of which one to buy – iPad or Kindle – depends on whether you want to use your device just for reading books, in which case you’d get a Kindle. If you want a device that can do other things as well, like video, web searching, presentations, and much more, you’d go with an iPad. Like they say in the commercials, “there’s an app for that” – whatever it is, and that’s a claim only the iPad can make at this point.

Note that you can also download a Kindle app for the iPad, allowing you to access the Amazon bookstore and download e-versions of the half million or so books available there. The app, which is free, turns the iPad into a virtual Kindle. There is also a Kindle app for iPhone, Android, and even Blackberry devices. Don’t count Kindle out of the app game yet, either. Amazon offers developers a kit they can use to develop apps for the Kindle. While it will probably take Amazon a while (a long while!) to build an app store that iPad and iPhone users would be willing to take seriously, the Kindle’s sub-$200 price (compared to more than double for the cheapest iPad) will definitely sway some customers in these recessionary times.

We’re talking here about content, and content really does dictate buying choices for e-book readers. Maybe you’re more adventurous, and are willing to spend money on a non-Apple or Amazon product, or maybe someone gave you an eGriver Touch as a gift. Can you get content for it? Where would you download books compatible with your off-the-beaten-path device? As it turns out, there are plenty of other e-readers on the market, and some of them may be better deals (ie, have better features, etc.) than any of the “big three.”

But the big three are just that for a good reason – they have the content. If only there were a way to convert e-book content between formats, enabling Nook users to buy Amazon e-books, or iPad users to get deals meant for Nook users. That would be a great hi-tech miracle, wouldn’t it? Well, miracles do sometimes happen, as we will find out in part 2 of the e-book content story, next time!

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In this, Israel is not unique; any American (even the ones that voted for Barack Obama) will tell you that the private sector is more efficient than the public sector. But Israel’s government inefficiency hasn’t just been a drag on economy; over the past several weeks, the government’s difficulties in explaining its case on the Gaza flotilla has cost us big-time.

Note that I said “difficulty,” not “failure,” as many others have claimed. There are those who just hate Israel (and Jews; Helen Thomas proves they go together), and nothing we can say will make them unhate us. But there are many people who are willing to give us a fair hearing – and unfortunately, these are the people we failed in the first days after the incident. It took at least 24 hours for word to get out about the violent attack on Israeli soldiers by the “terror activists,” and only three days later did Israel’s story get mainstream publicity.

Of course, hasbara has to take a back seat to real security, and sometimes you have few options; like with the Gaza flotilla’s Mavi Marmara – where IDF soldiers had no choice but to use real bullets to save the lives of their comrades, who were savagely attacked by knife and club wielding “peace activists” – you’re damned if you do or don’t. But if we know our story is right, and we’re convinced of it, why do we seem to have such trouble selling it properly – and convincingly?

Maybe what we need is a little private-sector ingenuity for our hasbara efforts. Look at the saga of the “We Con the World” video; as you’ve probably heard by now, the video, produced by Latma, which is edited by our own Caroline Glick, was pulled from Youtube, most likely because of complaints by anti-Israel viewers who were appalled that their story – of how big bad Israel attacked the innocent “activists” – was hijacked, with the world seeing the truth of the intentions of the passengers on the Marmara, because of a parody, of all things!

Of course, Youtube claimed that the reason for the video’s ban was that it was in violation of “a copyright claim by Warner/ Chappell Music, Inc.” the owners of the rights to the original USA for Africa “We Are the World” song and video, produced in the 1980s to raise money for hunger in Africa. But that can’t be right, because U.S. copyright law provides for “fair use,” meaning that existing works of art can be freely used for parody or education purposes. Just ask Lenny Solomon and “Weird Al” Yankovic, who for decades have been rewriting top pop songs for education (Solomon) and parody (Al) purposes!

The point of the story, though, is why Youtube was moved to remove the video – because it was making an impact, thanks to the 3 million plus hits it generated in barely a week. Now the genie is out of the bottle; “We Con the World” has spread too far and too wide, and is now available on all sorts of sites. In fact, doing a search for “We Con the World” at Youtube yields dozens of copies, now dubbed in all sorts of languages!

As many have said, “We Con the World” was one of the best pro-Israel hasbara pieces to emerge in a long time – and the government had nothing to do with it! The truth is, though, the marketing people at many  Israeli companies – startups and veterans – are just as talented as the people at Latma. Why not come out with a parody a week – or some other effective video, audio, or web campaign, that can tell Israel’s side of the story in a surprising, interesting – and successful – manner?

That’s exactly the question that came up when I recently interviewed an Israeli “captain of industry” (he remains anonymous for this story, in order not to mix politics and business). We met just a day after the flotilla story took over the media. By that time, the headlines worldwide castigated the IDF for boarding the Marmara and five other ships, with the resulting nine deaths. Meanwhile, nearly no one was paying attention to Israel’s side of the story.

Commenting on the seeming lack of ability of Israel to get its point across, I told this executive that it appeared that the tepid efforts by hasbara officials to explain Israel’s position was possibly the result of the game of “musical chairs” played by politicians in this country. You have the same people running different ministries and departments in various governments, while the actual day to day work is done by the bureaucrats who remain on the job, no matter who the boss is. “The minister spends years just learning the issues, while the bureaucrats have no incentive to change their ways. While that system may be acceptable for deciding on where to build a sewage treatment plant, it just doesn’t work in day to day hasbara,” we both agreed.

Then we brainstormed an idea; why not “outsource” hasbara? I don’t mean officially; no bureaucrats will be hurt in the execution of this plan. But if every successful hi-tech company, if every successful PR firm, non-profit marketing department, university information bureau, were to donate, say, an hour a week to a specific hasbara project, imagine how well Israel’s story would be told! The executive agreed; working on such projects, utilizing the amazing talent we have in this country, could be the solution we have long sought to the problem of getting the world’s attention. If “We Con the World” proves anything, it’s that good people around the world are indeed willing to give us a fair hearing. We just need to come up with something good for them to hear! The executive’s on board; how about you?

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That’s the part that concerns us today. For many people, the weather is the most important part of the news; notice how TV stations, even here in Israel, build a cult of celebrity around their weather presenters. The weather person is expected to have a bubbly personality, an ability to josh and banter, a nice, big smile – and the capacity to completely ignore the rest of the news, no matter how bad it is.

In other words, the weather exists in its own little bubble – unaffected by politics or world events. The same rule should apply on the internet, too – but unfortunately, someone forgot to tell the folks at Yahoo that you’re supposed to keep politics out of the weather forecast! And while we wouldn’t venture to argue with professional weather forecasters about troughs, inversions, and cold fronts, we do have some thoughts on the inappropriateness of dividing Jerusalem – not just the city, but the weather forecast! And, to add insult to Yahoo’s injury, even the part of Jerusalem that one would expect to be part of Israel – isn’t!

Hard to believe, but true. If you search for Jerusalem on the Yahoo weather pages, you get two choices – “Jerusalem, Yerushalayim” and “Jerusalem, West Bank.” Not a word about “Israel,” where the city, of course, is really located! That this differentiation is strictly political is evident from the contents of the pages. The weather forecast for both Jerusalems are identical – as one would expect. Meaning that there’s no reason – other than making a political statement – to have two separate pages. I can understand making a political statement, but via the weather? Two words come to mind – “petty” and “ridiculous.”

To be fair, I should point out that the “Jerusalem, Yerushalayim” entry is listed under “IL,” the international abbreviation for Israel. And where is “Jerusalem, West Bank” located? In PS, which one assumes to be the international abbreviation for “Palestine,” an entity that does not legally exist. Whether one likes it or not, the only legal entity in the areas beyond the green line are the IDF and the Palestinian Authority, as stipulated in the Oslo Accords.

Strangely, Yahoo isn’t even consistent with its politics. Both Jerusalem pages list the nearest weather station as being in “Jerusalem, Israel!” Wait, I’m confused; I thought it was “Jerusalem, Yerushalayim.” Does this mean there’s a third Jerusalem, the one with the weather station located in Israel? And those so inclined should not rejoice that Yahoo’s “PS” seems to be a tacit recognition of “Palestine,” a political entity that, for now at least, does not exist at all; according to the category menu, “Jerusalem, West Bank” is located in the “Palestinian Occupied Territories” – another legal fiction, and certainly a step down from “PS!” The inconsistencies just makes Yahoo look all the more foolish.

Unfortunately, the problem goes beyond Yahoo; it turns out that Yahoo’s politicized weather is the default forecast application for iPhones and iPod Touch devices (although I haven’t had the opportunity to check, on iPads, I would imagine that the same application is used). So, if you use an iPhone, as so many people do, you’re stuck with Yahoo’s silly, artificial – and foolishly inconsistent (they can’t even make up their minds!) weather pages.

Perhaps even more interestingly, the professional weather service that provides Yahoo with the forecasts – The Weather Channel – knows better than to play politics. On their site, and on their cellphone applications, Jerusalem – one, single united city – shows up in Israel; there are no political choices here. The Weather Channel itself is actually somewhat right-wing in its weather views, but not “radically” so; you can get the weather for Ariel, Israel, as well as Ramallah, West Bank. At least it makes sense! So it’s clear at whom the finger of blame points for the two Jerusalems; at Yahoo, and Yahoo alone.

Most other weather sites give readers what they came for, without any political baggage. Accuweather lists Jerusalem, Israel (no Ariel, though); so does AOL Weather, and Weather.org, home of the “Weather Underground.” Even the BBC – a news organization we might expect to take as left a view of the Middle East conflict as possible – avoids this problem, by eliminating country names altogether, for many places, not just in Israel, either (I couldn’t figure out the pattern, but it doesn’t appear to be political). So Jerusalem is just that – a stateless city, but a single stateless city. I suppose it’s the best we could expect from them.

Which brings us back to Yahoo. Out of all the major weather sites, Yahoo – and it’s adopted son, the iPhone – is the only one that makes political hay out of the weather forecast. Clearly, the staff at Yahoo needs to be re-educated on a couple of points; the political situation in the Middle East, the legal status of the entities in question, the meaning of the word “consistency” – and the inappropriateness of ruining the one part of the news everyone can enjoy without the headaches of politics butting in, Perhaps a few well-placed letters to the Yahoo folks to help them realize the error of their ways may help?

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“It’s like the Biblical ‘end of days,’” Ben-Zur says. “Computing power will be such that you’ll be able to have all the resources you need in one place. Transportation will be streamlined and things like power and food will be available for the same amount of money anywhere in the world. The result will be that there will be no need for countries to covet the possessions or resources of others – since there will be plenty for everyone, and there will be no need for anyone to invade the space of others. Thus, ‘nation shall not lift sword against nation.’”

It sounds fantastic, the naive vision of a facile optimist. But as chairman of a company that works with Israel’s largest software, hardware, internet, telecommunication, and software companies, Ben-Zur knows first-hand of the marvelous inventions and developments on the drawing boards, and in the workshops of hi-tech companies. And last week, Ben-Zur and Bynet treated thousands of visitors to the annual Bynet Expo, which gathers dozens of Israel’s largest tech companies under one roof to show off their wares and innovations. For those who worked in the computer industry abroad and wistfully remember the computer shows of old – with floor shows, T-shirts, keychains, “drop your business card in the box to win a laptop” contests, and a free lunch, Bynet Expo is as close as you’re going to get in Israel!

But of course, the main attraction at the show was the technology – of which there was much to see, too much for the day allocated to it. While there were numerous lectures and discussions on innovations in many areas of the computer industry, the main attraction, as it always is at such shows, were the booths set up by the biggest tech companies in Israel as well as many from abroad, including Cisco, IBM, Polycom, Audiocodes, Radware, etc.

Among the many things coming to a computer store near you is a better, faster way to do videoconferencing – in 3D! Thanks to a new generation of video transmission perfected by Radvision (a member of the RAD group, along with Bynet), called scalable video coding (SVC), which helps correct video transmission errors and enables superior forward error correction (ie anticipating when there is going to be packet loss and preparing for it) and faster transmission, with fewer bottlenecks. The transmission, coupled with superior 3D rendering software, enables users to have as realistic a video communications experience as possible, even from halfway across the world. And of course, no glasses are necessary.

According to Moshe Machline of Radvision, the system is good enough for the company that it was able to save nearly a million and a half dollars last year by enabling conferees to “meet” by video, instead of flying to meetings. “Eye contact is very important at meetings – you miss a lot the nuances on the screen, and that is one major thing that has held up adoption of videoconferencing. But with 3D videoconferencing, you can get a much better ‘read’ on everyone in the room, just as if you were actually there,” he says. The Radvision solution is sold by Bynet as part of a full videoconferencing solution.

Or take security – an area that unfortunately, in this period when the “end of days” has not quite yet arrived. Along with advances in video surveillance, Bynet partners have developed various technologies that enables the company to offer a unique solution for border patrols, police, and other law enforcement agents: a communication system capable of transmitting live, real-time video, data and voice communications via a single broadband connection, using a fast, secure, private network.

The key to the system is the high-speed wireless network, which allows fast transmission of high-resolution video and audio without any effort required on the part of the driver; the vehicle continues on its rounds or pursues a suspect, and the camera focuses, with an individual in the control center able to enhance the picture to see inside a vehicle even hundreds of meters away. Again, SVC and video correction and enhancement techniques are used, so observers get a full, uninterrupted view of the action. The network enables full transmission of the data with no bottlenecks.

And although the deployment of these technologies would seem to have little to do with the good and bountiful future Ben-Zur sees, the technologies that are being built today for prosaic and workaday needs will be the technology that supplies the future change, he says. “We’re coming into a period where there are going to be unlimited digital resources,” he says. “The bottlenecks that have prevented us from doing what we want are being eliminated, just as the problems of storage and standards were eliminated in earlier periods.

Once we get used to working with these resources, new uses for them will be developed – all of them making life easier,” Ben-Zur says. And the standardization and unlimited bandwidth that are coming won’t be used just for a faster Facebook connection; it will be used for things that really count, like delivering energy to far flung parts of the world, cheaply and safely. When that happens, he says, you’ll be able to stay where you are, and you won’t need to conquer the resources of others to fuel your economy. “When everything is available to everyone for a reasonable price and computers are doing most of the work – you have the building blocks for universal peace,” Ben-Zur says. It’s a vision even the most computer-phobic can embrace.

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Don’t the authorities know how we will react when we’re told we can’t have something? Of course they do – and it could be we’re the ones being played! By inciting a snowball effect of demand when they ban a product, they inadvertently set off a black market, where people smuggle in the product in question, often “smearing” the palms of officials in charge of customs. And when all is said and done and the product becomes “legal,” people have already become conditioned, and are ready to pay even twice what it’s worth.

Did I mention this is a column about the iPad – and why Israeli authorities are banning it?

Now don’t get me wrong – the above discussion was theoretical. Only the paranoid would say that politics (as in “we don’t want the people to have access to this product for some reason”) is the reason customs authorities have announced that anyone caught smuggling (a heavy but accurate description of what you have to do if you want an iPad in Israel these days) these devices into the country will have them confiscated. And certainly we wouldn’t go so far as to think that there’s some financial shenanigans going on here – that a certain interested party leaned on the government to ban the things in order to realize a financial windfall at some later date. You’d have to be a conspiracy theory nut to believe that!

Maybe we should just take the government – represented in this case by the Communications Ministry – at its word. According to the Ministry, iPads are out because of a “standards” issue – as in, Israel’s standards are higher than the ones Apple adopted for the iPad, and in order to avoid problems (security, health, or otherwise) resulting from its use, the iPad must not be used in Israel, at least in its present form, and/or until “further studies” of the thing can be made.

In the words of the Ministry, which released an official statement on the matter, “the iPad, sold today strictly in the United States, uses a wifi modem that is compatible with American standards. Israel’s standards are similar to those in use in Europe, which are different from American standards, which allows broadcasts at lower power levels. The broadcast levels of the device prevent approving its use in Israel,” the statement says. Maybe we should take this as the reason for the iPad ban. But we can’t – because it turns out that the chip that provides the “incompatible low power wifi” for the iPad is present in at least two other Apple products already being sold in Israel!

What caught my attention in this story was that bit about “European” versus “American” standards.. Not that I’d call myself a world traveler, but I have gotten around enough to know that everyone – in the U.S., Europe, and even in Papua New Guinea – uses the same Wifi equipment. While the world is still divided along an electrical fault (110v vs. 220v), the standards used in computing, which are drawn up by committees – in this case, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 WLAN standards. The iPad, complying with these standards, utilizes for its wifi power the Broadcom BCM4329  Low-Power 802.11n with Bluetooth® 2.1 + EDR and FM (Tx and Rx) chip (we’ll just call it “the Broadcom chip” for short) – and that happens to be the same chip being used in the latest editions of the iPod Touch and iPhone 3GS!

So just what are these  “different standards” of broadcast?  A helpful reader of a blog post I put up on this subject pointed out that some countries regulate the transmitting power (apparently Israel does), and the upper broadcast limit for the U.S. is higher than that for Israel.  And indeed, the Broadcom chip is capable of broadcasting wifi in the 5 ghz band, which is out of range for Israel. But once again, the fact that Apple’s rep in Israel, iDigital, is happily selling iPod Touch and iPhone 3GS devices directly from the “mother ship” here in Israel put the kibosh on that theory – especially since we can assume that Apple is not making special editions of its devices for use in Israel, as opposed to most of Europe and the rest of the world (where, in fact, higher wifi broadcast ranges, according to the list quoted above, seem to be permissible).

And as far as I know, this is the first time a consumer wifi product has been officially banned from Israel for this reason; you see American-made and imported wifi routers and other devices all over the stores here. The only consumer product we hear (or rather, have in the past heard) about as causing havoc with Israeli airwaves are 900 mhz cordless phones. Other theories, like the range of Bluetooth broadcast, didn’t pan out either, at least on paper.

So, I decided to take the problem to its roots – the Apple Israel people, and the Communications Ministry itself. The former were no help at all, with the spokesperson telling me tersely that “iDigital policies are in line with those of Apple’s.” The Ministry, on the other hand, was a different story. I spoke to the (only) individual at the Ministry authorized to field iPad questions, and asked him about this chip discrepancy – how it was that the Broadcom chip was not harmful when used in iPad Touch devices and iPhone 3GS devices, but were dangerous enough to warrant confiscation at the airport when found in iPads.

His answer? “I don’t know.” What don’t you know, I asked – whether the Broadcom chip is in the other Apple devices, whether it’s configured differently in iPads, or whether there is some other “broadcast issue” that is problematic? Well, he did know that the only issue was with the Broadcom chip – but as far as what exactly the problem was, or why said chip was “kosher” in other devices, he couldn’t say. When would he “know?” When Ministry engineers do more research.

Thanks to the power of social networking, the iPad ban has made the Ministry very famous – or infamous, to be more accurate (the Ministry isn’t interested in headlines, the spokesperson told me). It’s possible the engineers are hard at work on figuring out why they don’t like the iPad, but do like the other Apple products, and perhaps by the time you read this, the ban will be rescinded.

But I highly doubt it. Assuming that the problem is not technical – again, there are plenty of devices already in Israel using the Broadcom chip – we can assume that there are interests other than science and public security at work. What interests? I’ll never tell, but I do suggest re-reading the first two paragraphs of this article for a hint. Regardless,  I have no doubt that the iPad will eventually become legal, but IMHO, it will only be when those with vested interests in banning the things will decide that it is now in the interest to allow them in.

Meanwhile, I think there is one solid lesson to be learned from this whole tragic affair, which is especially relevant around Yom Ha’atzmaut time. One of the ways Israel strives to protect its good name is via better Hasbara, explaining our position vis a vis the major issues facing the country. Note to Ministry spokesperson: “I don’t know” is not a the Hasbara-type answer we yearn to hear from the only person in the government authorized to speak about the iPad!

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So why the cookies? Since the images recorded using the system are likely to be saved and recorded in a facial recognition database, it’s probably a good idea to pre-empt being given the wrong label and get on the cops’ “good side.”

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The Carmiel CCTV system is part of a nationwide effort called “City Without Violence” that is being implemented in cities around the country. Modeled on similar programs in the U.S. and Europe (Britain is considered the current “world champion” in CCTV use), the cameras will enable security officers to keep an eye on crowds, sensitive installations, and high-crime areas and situations, allowing police to dispatch officers.

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The program was actually first implemented in Israel several years ago, but it was deployed in cities in the north and south near the borders, as well as in several high-crime areas. Now the program is set to expand, and will include cameras, sensors, and other technology to be installed in cities in the center of the country – covering schools, public institutions, parks, and even residential neighborhoods. According to the Public Security Ministry, which came up with the idea, the program will make it easier for law enforcement authorities to catch troublemakers, as well as allow authorities “to collect information and real-time evidence needed to prevent violence, criminal activity, and public disorder,” the Ministry said in a statement.

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Well, nobody likes violence or criminal activity (I’m kind of fond of public disorder, though). And I know there are many people who, after reading this, are murmuring the words “police state.” But I’m betting that many of those people haven’t lived in high crime neighborhoods – where the residents are more than happy to have as many police and cameras as they can get. Only criminals would be opposed to figuring out better ways to stop crime, right? Besides, we have precedents; Britain has had surveillance cameras for years, and no one could accuse merry old England of being a police state!

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But there are apparently other problems with the British security surveillance system: According to this article, it doesn’t work. In some areas with lots of cameras, crime solving and prevention is lower than in other areas where there are relatively few cameras. Meaning that there are other factors involved, perhaps such as the skills of the police forces in those areas. Studies of other surveillance systems also show that surveillance systems don’t do a good job of stopping crime.

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Why? Perhaps, the bad guys in those neighborhoods came across sites like “How to Vanish ,” which supplies readers with tips on how to stay out of Big Brother’s way when sending e-mail, uploading or downloading files, keeping your money away from the government’s grasp, etc. – and keeping out of view of public security camera systems, as described here . It’s also possible that London has (or will have) a website like iSee , where you can map out a route that lets you avoid cameras. And, don’t underestimate the power of the cookie; if the good guys can get on the cops’ good side, why can’t the bad guys? Might buy them some time! Note, by the way, that all this information is readily available on-line, so it’s not like I’m giving away any secrets.

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And even though we (hope we can) trust police to use their powers only for truth and justice, using high technology for political purposes is not unheard of. The folks in the cited article are often involved in violent riots, so one could say that although their cause is political, their actions are criminal, so they deserve what they get – but it’s not too hard to imagine a scenario where police use technology to thwart non-violent sit-ins and marches, because “there is a potential for violence.”

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So besides being bad for democracy, camera surveillance systems aren’t very effective as crime-stoppers – or terror stoppers, either, since there’s no reason to believe the system will be any more effective for that kind of wrongdoing than it is for crime. Does that mean we’re fated to be sitting ducks? Not at all; there are all sorts of hi-tech ideas out there that are being developed by companies around the world (not a few of them in Israel) that use advanced technology to snuff out terrorists and criminals, while leaving the rest of us to live our lives unmolested.

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One such company is Israeli startup Genesis EW, which has developed a system to catch malefactors through their communication activity. The company makes an application that checks the profile of cellphone users, comparing it to activities terrorists and criminals typically engage in: for example, calling known criminals/terrorists, making many frequent short phone calls, or suspects moving outside their usual geographic area. If mobile communication activity fits the profile, law enforcement know they need to keep an eye on the subject (who can be located using cellphone or GPS technology).

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“Usually, authorities need to know the phone number of the suspect and/or be able to recognize him or her,” says Pini Birman, one of the founders of Genesis EW. “That often makes trailing suspects difficult. But our system examines a user’s communication profile,” Birman says, meaning that it will continue working even if a suspect removes and replaces a phone’s SIM card, a favorite tactic of crooks and terrorists. “The criminal or terrorist will be unable to confuse the system,” he says, adding that the closer the suspect’s behavior to the profile, the more likely an attack or a criminal act – but if the user veers away from the profile, the system realizes that it was mistaken, and takes the subject off the watch list.

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All of which means that only those truly worthy of security forces’ attention are observed – and that scarce security resources can be used more effectively. Like we said, we’re happy the police are keeping us safe – but, as the old saying goes, “respect them and suspect them.” If there is a better, more effective way to protect us without the use of intrusive cameras, why not use that?

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NOTE: The video below, in Hebrew, shows a violent attack in Ramle recorded by CCTV cameras there. According to the report, police arrived on the scene minutes after the attack and arrested the attackers.

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Funny – we consumers are being squeezed all around, too! And if companies don’t have a grush (that’s an old-fashioned Israeli penny, for those who don’t know) to spare, we consumers are doing far worse – we’re in overdraft!

In one sense, the modern relationship between consumers and service suppliers (or even manufacturers) has become a see-saw. Companies are anxious to attract customers, so they offer rock-bottom prices for their products or services. But prices can only be cut so much; there are expenses that have to be covered, and somehow, companies have to make that money back.

For example: When a supermarket offers a “loss-leader,” they know that hordes of people will descend on the store for the on-sale product. But they’re also counting on those customers to buy the higher-priced items, to make up for the expense of the sale items. Airlines also provide an object lesson in this: Fares are historically low, but with crowded planes and iffy (if non-existent) service, flying is hell!

You’re always compromising something – either quality or service – when you buy cheap. But it’s not just the bargain providers who are stinting on service these days; full-price stores and service providers, encouraged by the example of how consumers sheepishly accept second-class as the norm, figure that they can save money on quality and service, too. The result: The whole concept of quality and service has been mortally wounded, with consumers expecting to get the proverbial “finger” at every turn.

Of course, you can always pay “premium” for “extra” quality or service – at a level that just a few years ago would have been considered “standard” (re commercial air travel). And while I could perhaps sympathize with the bottom-feeders for stinting on quality and service – I think consumers know what to expect when they buy at too-good-to-be-true prices these days – I have nothing but contempt for companies that are charging top shekel for their goods and services, but act like bargain sellers.

Take, for example, an internet service provider I work with, one of the six largest ISPs in Israel. They’re not a fly-by-night company – they’ve been doing ISP for over a decade, and usually my only relationship with them is paying the connection charges, since I am pretty self-sufficient when it comes to computer setup, installation, etc. For the first time in a long time, though, I needed their help with something – something that would have required the imparting of about five minutes of advice (which, it turned out, was readily available on the internet). But knowledge is power – and they weren’t about to part with that knowledge without a hefty payment!

Here are the details (don’t worry, we won’t get too technical!) Due to circumstances beyond my control, I’ve been using an internet router provided by Bezeq, the phone company, which I won in a lottery (or somehow other got for free). The first time I plugged in the router, I ran for cover, because it had far too many features for a home setup. Then when I recovered, I unplugged it and put it on a shelf – where it stayed until my “normal” router died, and out of desperation I decided to give the router, made by Asus (the infamous Asus 604g, for those who have had the pleasure) a try.

It actually works just fine, and is more or less self-managing – except for one issue. In order to work on several websites, I need to access port 2082, for an online application called Cpanel. Unfortunately, there is something in the guts of the Asus router that prevents accessing that port (very strange, because at this moment, a certain torrent program is downloading a certain file on an even more obscure port, 45601!).

After much effort configuring and reconfiguring, I figured I’d give my ISP a call. I’m a good customer – I pay my bills on time and don’t bother them too much with silly questions. Now, though, I had a serious issue; perhaps, having worked with this router extensively, they could give me some advice on what to do. I mean, it’s not like they’d be doing it for free; according to http://www.kamaze.co.il/, the NIS 75.90 I pay these people each month puts them at the “upper crust” (ie, second most expensive) of ISPs in Israel.

But no, said a pleasant fellow on the other end of the line (we’ll call him “Oren”). That information is classified – available only to “preferred” customers. One of which I could be if I was willing to shell out a subscription to their “network services,” at a cost of NIS 13.90/month, minimum six months. Wait a second, I told Oren. You’re saying that it’s going to cost me nearly a hundred shekels for five minutes of time with your ‘experts’ to get this working? Yup, said Oren. “How about this,” I said. “What if I ’subscribed’ now, got the information, and then cancelled my subscription after a month?” Nothing doing, Oren said – you “make a commitment to pay,” you pay. After much negotiating, Oren gave me his best offer: NIS 30 for a one-time conversation with the tech staff, who would guide me on what to do.

Well, of course I refused. And after a lengthy conversation, he suggested I call Bezeq, which supplied me with the router in the first place. In fact, he said, check out the Bezeq support pages – there just happens to be a PDF discussing exactly what I was trying to do! Wasting no more time, I did just that, and configured things according to the Bezeq site’s document. Alas, still to no avail. Even though I had done everything right, I still couldn’t get it to work.

It was time for a call to Bezeq, which I pay an internet connection fee to each month – surely they would support what they provided? But I should have gotten an idea of what to expect from the ads they kept pitching during the long (very long) minutes I was on hold; “networking” services for ten shekels a month, anti-virus protection for thirteen shekels a month, and other varied and sundry “products.” And of course, when “Yaron,” the Bezeq service rep, got on the phone, he quickly disabused me of my idea. The sought-after conversation could be had if I subscribed to Bezeq’s “expert” service, for more money, of course.

As it turned out, I got my answer for free – after a little more Googling. But the whole incident left a bad taste in my mouth, and in my wallet. In the old country, they used to call this kind of behavior “nickel and diming” – where a business tries to milk a customer for whatever it can. But it’s usually associated with “clip joints” on the Lower East Side, or other such less than savory shopping districts; you’d expect a respectable company you’ve done business with for years to want to prevent alienating customers. For example: Since the ISP in question was not the cheapest around, I told Oren, it’s an indication that price is not necessarily the main motivation for customers to remain with their service. Why not just charge an extra five shekels across the board and provide tech help to all who need it? That would surely cover the costs entailed in a more generous approach to helping customers, and enhance the experience for customers, who will feel more like humans and less like milk cows?

To this Oren had no clear answer – and as a junior employee in a big conglomerate, he’s the wrong person to ask. But if my ISP – or any other business or service provider, for that matter – prefers to think that price is the main (or perhaps only) motivation for my using their products or services, does that mean I am a “frier” for not automatically going for the cheapest option automatically? At least there, I won’t feel I’m overpaying when I don’t need “special services” – unlike the case now.

At which point, faced with a plethora of choices, you may just find yourself wishing that now-defunct monopoly back in existence!

Israeli trust-busters have been having a field day in recent years, legislating corporate diversity among cell phone service providers, long distance phone companies, TV and radio broadcasters – and now, local home and business phone service, wresting control of the fixed line phone business from Bezeq. Now, anyone with a license (which you get from the Ministry of Communications) can offer competing fixed line phone service, using the same phone infrastructure installed by Bezeq (but paid for by our tax shekels!). In other words, you use the Bezeq phone line, but you don’t pay Bezeq a shekel (or maybe you do, depending on whom you ask).

Long-time Israeli residents who remember the nose-up-in-the-air elitist attitude of the “old” quasi-governmental hyper-bureaucratic Bezeq jumped for joy when competitors started entering the home phone market in 2006, after the Knesset amended the Telecommunications Law (http://tinyurl.com/pp775z) to allow the licensing of fixed-line phone service providers – and to enable customers to keep their phone numbers when signing up with a new service provider (a provision which came into effect in 2007). Finally – a chance for the consumer to tell those Bezeq so-and-so’s where to go with their smug and condescending attitudes! On to the brave new world of freedom of telephone choice! Yeah!

Well, it certainly is a new world of home phone communications out there – and make no mistake, you need to be brave in order to take it on. For most home phone subscribers, there’s Bezeq, the known quantity, on this side of the technological abyss. Bezeq service works pretty much as it always has; you plug your phone into the wall, pick up the receiver, hear a dial tone, press the numbers on the phone pad, and talk. You get your bill at the end of the month and pay. Then you do it all over again next month. No surprises, and the service is usually pretty reliable; the only times you don’t get that dial tone are usually the result of cataclysmic events, like a war (when the lines may be jammed with worried callers or diverted for defense purposes), after a major storm when phone lines may be down, in the event of a strike – or, when you forgot to pay your bill.

But in this high-speed trust-busting freedom of choice era, variety is the spice of life, and you can now avail yourself of no fewer than five other choices for your local phone needs. Besides Bezeq, local phone service is now provided by 013 Netvision, 012 Smile, Hot (the cable TV service provider), Orange (the cellphone service provider), and Bezeq International (separate from Bezeq, known heretofore only as a long distance company).

As a good consumer (and thanks to a suggestion by a loyal reader), I decided to check out the phone field in order to determine whether I could save a few shekels by leaving Bezeq. So, can Bezeq customers save money by moving to another service provider? Short answer: Yes – but (there always has to be a “but!”)

The first question that people new to the concept of alternative phone companies ask is whether or not they can keep their current phone numbers. The answer is yes – thanks to the amendments to the telecommunications law mentioned earlier, your number is yours as long as you want to keep it, regardless of where you send your payments. You even get to keep your area code (if you sign up for a new line with any of the new service providers, they will give you the area code assigned to the company – for example, new accounts with 012Smile that were not transferred from Bezeq get an area code of 072).

All the competitors to Bezeq use broadband to connect your calls to the local and international phone network, so you have to be an ADSL customer with some level of high-speed internet in order to take advantage of their deals (unless you’re a customer of HOT, the cable company, which uses its own infrastructure to offer phone service).

All of the service providers offer what appear to be very attractive prices. Speaking at length to Ilan, a rep from 013Netvision, for example, I was offered a deal that would let me surf the internet (at a speed of 5MB/s) AND make 3,000 minutes of calls to landlines in Israel for NIS 55 a month. That sum does not include calls to cell phones, but for an extra NIS 7.90 a month, I could reduce the cost of calls to cell lines from the 33 agurot per minute they usually charge to “less” (depending on how much I called, times of day, etc.). In addition, Ilan told me (after somehow ascertaining that I was observant) that his company’s service was “approved by the Great Rabbis,” and that since calls to other 013Netvision customers were free, I could hear the various Torah-on-the-phone lectures that the company hosts for free, for as long as I wanted to listen. That sounded like a good deal – maybe a little too good, as we will see below.

I also checked out Orange, with whom I have a cellphone account. While Orange may not have the best price, it does have very advanced services, especially for Orange cellphone customers; for example, you can forward a call to your home or cell phone to the other device when one of them rings, you can hold as many as three conversations at once, and you pay one price to all phone numbers – including cell numbers (everyone else charges the same rate as Bezeq for calls to cellphones). I figured I could save about NIS 60 a month if I switched to Orange’s phone and internet service provider plan (you can find a helpful calculator here which will show you how much you can expect to pay, based on how much you surf and talk).

The story was the same everywhere else; Bezeq, it turns out, is more expensive than all the other providers (the one with the cheapest rates was Bezeq International). So of course I called Bezeq in order to see if they could be bargained with.

Apparently many others have done the same in recent months, because as soon as I said “013Netvision” and “Orange home phone,” they transferred me to a fellow who was clearly trained to deal with calls like mine. Of course, he said, you realize you won’t get the same quality with “the others,” since you’re using your ADSL line for talking and surfing at the same time. “I have had so many customers come back after they left to try out the others, complaining about how their calls drop when they download a movie or other heavy item,” said Matan, the rep. In addition, he said, all these companies were still obligated to pay Bezeq a line fee for use of the ADSL line, which added about NIS 25 to all the alternative providers, including (he said specifically) 013Netvision, a claim that both they and Orange denied, claiming it was already included in their monthly fees. In addition, Matan from Bezeq said, you have to pay an installation fee to switch services, and there is definitely a negative impact on phone service when you surf the net.

Installation does indeed cost money, with all the Bezeq alternatives – mostly in the area of NIS 200 or so. However, many of the companies seem willing to waive the installation fee if you are willing to commit to a period of service, like a year (both Orange and 013Netvision said I could drop the phone service any time, although they both wanted a year commitment on the internet service).

The latter claim is easy to check out too: If you’ve ever used a service like Vonage (or even Skype) on your home ADSL line, you’ll be ready for the worst-case scenario with the alternative phone companies. Just how much broadband “juice” does an Internet phone call use? I found a few interesting discussions on the internet (see http://tinyurl.com/qd4cfh, http://tinyurl.com/qu5yts, and http://tinyurl.com/okjx8g), but of course, those rates are dependent on many local factors that may or may not be relevant here in Israel.

And that, really, is where the dream of “punishing” Bezeq for all the injustices Israelis have suffered at the company’s hands over the years fell apart, at least for me. Because while in theory a 5MB/s connection sounds like it should be able to cover both serious surfing and internet phone calls, the sad truth is that you’re probably getting far less speed than you think you are (that’s a story for another day, but meanwhile check out the Hebrew article on the subject at here). Bezeq, of course, will say that the reason your bandwidth speed is up to 40% less than what you’re paying for is because of your home network, devices that are using the bandwidth, etc.

Which could very well be true – but currently, 5MB/s is the most cost effective speed for Bezeq ADSL (the price jumps significantly at 8MB, the maximum offered to home users, unless you live in an area served by its next generation network, which you probably don’t). Unfortunately, based on my experience, I’m not ready to trust my home phone service to the graces of my current ADSL setup – and as a result, Bezeq gets to keep its monopoly at our place, at least a little while longer.

Various ideas have been proposed throughout the generations in order to “westernize” Hebrew; for example, dropping the right to left Hebrew alphabet and writing “Hebrew” in latin letters. While most Israelis will tell you they are proud of their heritage – and their language – many will also tick off stories about how Hebrew has made doing businesses or briding cultural gaps more difficult.

What Israelis don’t realize is that the use of a “backwater” language, spoken by no one but themselves and a few million Jews outside the country, has been a boon – and has saved them from one of the great banes of modern western life, the plague known as “outsourcing.” This is mostly an American issue, but a recent face to face (or rather, phone voice to phone voice) encounter with the outsourcing monster on a recent trip to the U.S. made me realize just how lucky we are, conducting most business on the phone in Hebrew, with people who have likely faced the same things you have, and who understand what it means when the service you rely on is broken.

On my visit, I dealt with two separate instances of what I call “outsourcing telephone tag” – calling an 800 number (a free U.S. call) for service, only to be connected to service people in faraway places like India, Mexico, and even Ireland. Unless you’ve had to deal with a major service crisis – like in the case of the situation my hosts found themselves in of having a “broken internet” – you don’t realize just how service standards have fallen, ever since the jobs involving helping people fix things over the phone have moved abroad. Yes, it saves companies money, but it’s hell on the customers.

“So what,” you may ask. The people on the phone are just order takers who are reading a script, and they’re limited in what they can help you with (in one case, trying to restore a broken internet connection from Verizon, that help was mostly limited to “did you unplug the modem and wait 30 seconds”). Back in the days when 800 number phone service people were natives, they were also reading scripts. Is there any difference? Yes; the whole tone of the conversation, the agility with which the service person recommends solutions, and the willingness to help are far different when you are dealing with someone who can identify with you, as opposed to someone who cannot.

Not that I don’t think Indians, Mexicans, or the Irish can be empathetic, sympathetic, or willing to help. But especially in the case of countries like India and Mexico, it’s hard to expect the service people to understand what you’re going through, when they have their own problems – far more serious ones. When you have a problem that needs fixing, you expect that the “voice on the phone” to have a modicum of empathy for your situation. The likelihood of that happening is far lower when the person you’re speaking to lives in a tougher, less economically successful society.

It’s difficult enough to get your countrymen, who have “been there” and realize what’s at stake, to understand just how important a service issue is to you. How much more difficult – if not impossible – is it to get a resident of India or Mexico to understand your angst, when they earn maybe a tenth of what you do and has much more important things to worry about than whether you’re going to be able to connect to your online video chat?

As a “computer expert” (whatever that is), my parents, with whom I recently spent some time, asked me to help them fix their DSL connection, which had mysteriously gone down a couple of days before I showed up. Since I was relying on that connection to do some work while abroad, I, too, was very interested in getting it to work. After 15 minutes of checking, it was clear to me that the problem was the DSL service provider’s (Verizon). And of course I called the service number – day after day – with each person giving me the same advice, even though I made it clear that I had already taken all those steps before calling for the first time.

The calls to the 800 number all wound up in India (I asked), and when they couldn’t help, I was transferred to the “technical department” (in Mexico, also confirmed by the service person). Here I got at least some sympathy (because Mexico is closer to the U.S.?), but no help. Only after copious amounts of yelling, screaming, wheedling, begging, and crying, was I transferred (after six days of calls!) to a U.S. service center – at which point the problem was solved within 12 hours of their taking the case. Why? Because the person I spoke to at the U.S. center knew whom to call and what strings to pull to finally get the local office to fix the problem (G-d bless you Sheila from Verizon, wherever you are!). The second problem (also involving lots of wasted time and Indian 800 number phone answerers)  is another tale of phone tag woe, too detailed to go into. Suffice to say I do not recommend using Tracfone if you are in need of a pay as you go phone while visiting the U.S.

Like I said, this can’t happen in Israel. Yes, we may have surly service people and grumpy operators, but at least you can get through to them. And despite all the surliness and grumpiness, I have never had to go a week without an internet connection here. Bezeq, I will never complain about your service again!

I think it might be a good idea to have Zboray chat with MK Meir Sheetrit, the driving force behind Israel’s “Biometric Law.” Originally conceived as a means of preventing use of false identification cards and passports, the law has morphed into a test of civil liberties that many activists and citizens’ rights groups believe will make Israel a far less free society.

According to the law, all Israeli citizens will be required to submit their fingerprints and facial profiles to Interior Ministry agents or private organizations working on the Ministry’s behalf. The identification information will be recorded on a special chip in documents such as passport and identity cards. If an individual gets stopped at the airport, for example, the information on the card can be used to check the true ID of its bearer (ie, if the fingerprint on the card doesn’t match the fingerprint on the finger, there may be a problem). Everyone must join the program, and those who don’t could be tossed into jail.

While it sounds a bit draconian, it should be noted that there are many countries using biometric passports and ID cards. What makes Israel’s law different is what happens to the data once it’s collected; instead of remaining just on the card, the information will be transmitted to an Interior Ministry database, where it will be stored, the better to “check up” on miscreants and criminals. Along with the biometric information, the “usual” Interior Ministry information will be stored as well – making it very clear to whomever checks that you are X, with Y kids, who has entered and exited the country Z times, earns D amount annually, etc. While various safeguards are being built into the system, such as “extra strong encryption” and requiring a court order for access to the data, police will have access to the database under some circumstances.

For example, during a discussion of a Knesset committee convened to discuss the law (chaired by Sheetrit, himself a former Interior Minister), the question came up on how to identify individuals who aren’t carrying their documents. Thanks to the database, the answer is easy – just check their fingerprint or face profile against the records, and you know everything you need about the person. But should police have legal access to the database under such circumstances? Yes indeed, attorneys for the police said. Sheetrit suggested using the database as a last resort, requiring them to use “other reasonable means” to identify individuals before resorting to the database. That, said police attorneys, would require keeping the individuals detained for hours, creating a huge inconvenience for those who have nothing to hide; besides, defining what those “reasonable means” might be could be a hassle. In the end, reports of the session said, Sheetrit decided not to pursue the issue, because he was convinced that police had no nefarious intentions in wanting to access the database.

In a perfect world, where we trusted those who have power in society, the existence of the database itself probably wouldn’t matter too much. But we live in an all too imperfect world, says the No2Bio group, which warns that the database could eventually fall into the wrong hands, and be used for the wrong reasons. “Even in the explanatory notes to the bill being promoted by the Interior Ministry that would establish the database, experts warn that the existence of such a database could damage civil liberties, because any leaks could be used by criminals or hostile individuals against citizens,” the group says, adding that ensuring sufficient security would send the cost of the project skyrocketing, costing the state many millions of shekels it just doesn’t have.

In addition, the group says, the information in the database could be used even by authorized parties in the wrong manner, according to the current proposal. “The police will be able to, under court order, request information from the database for investigations into civil violations, as well as criminal ones.” That would include, for example, using the information to identify and prosecute individuals who joined a right wing (or left wing) protest, on charges of “disturbing the peace.” This applies not only to protesters, but also to dog walkers “who do not leash or muzzle their animals properly.” In other words, if the cops are out to get you, they’ll get you! And it’s not just the cops; outside organizations working on behalf of the Interior Ministry will be allowed to collect data, the group says – with your details eventually making their way to your bank, insurance company, employer, etc.

The law passed on its first reading last October, and is now being evaluated for its second and third reading. Much of the opposition to the law in the Knesset is being led by MK Michael Eitan, chairman of the Knesset Constitutional Committee, who feels that government is moving far too quickly on approving this law; indeed, in other places in the world where such databases are being implemented or contemplated – like Britain – the debate on the access limitations by authorities to their planned database has been going on for years.

While many Israelis are extremely upset about the law, others are less concerned – primarily because the government knows so much about us already. Income? Most salaried Israelis electronically transfer their salaries into their bank accounts anyway, so hiding income is pretty much out of the question. Health? Any Israeli who has gone through the army or national service (and that includes immigrants who applied but were exempted) can rest assured that their medical information is available to whatever hospital or health fund needs it.

Identity theft? Well, that is one of the things Sheetrit is very concerned about – he says that there are over 350,000 phony ID cards floating around – but chances are little will change, database or not; computers and card readers can run amok, and police are more likely to rely on their usual “profiling” techniques in order to determine whether the swarthy fellow standing before them really answers to the name “Gottenshtein.” I don’t mean to sound racist, but security is a way of life in Israel – out of necessity. Not that I’m happy that the Interior Ministry is collecting data about me for their collection, but we can’t deny the reality around us. And we have to remember – the people doing the collecting and analyzing are our brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, and landsmen.

Is that enough? Maybe, maybe not. But as security expert Zboray says, Israel’s big advantage over places like India and China is its people. While those countries are training thousands of computer engineers, says Zboray, they’re not quite ready to compete with Israeli innovation. “The cultural component fosters a lot of innovation and creativity in Israel, and that cultural component – the people, the Type A personalities with their drive, the fact that they are sensitive to issues like security – is a barrier to competition from India and Eastern Europe, where there is a high quality of talent.” We hope – and trust – that we can rely on Israelis’ good sense and the “strong cultural component” (ie, that we’re all Israelis and/or Jews, facing the same dangers, etc.) to push them to keep our information safe.

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