Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for September 13, 2013

“An App For That”or“Analog Vs. Digital”

Bernice is not wearing men’s clothes or really shy but in her own current way she is confused in a Larue from TV series Gidget mode. IE covering up with the super sun lotion. The comparing herself to models mode. Maybe she is trying to channel that inner-thought into helping girls avoid it. Maybe this is her way of getting over Zane. Maybe like TJ she is growing up…

TownSquare… “Make sure everyone knows you’re at that party… and then that one person’s house… and on to their bathroom.. And then that pizza joint uptown… and then your aunt Suzy’s.. And then..” – Woofer… “When you want to tell the whole world… in a lot of bass…” – Spacetook… “the High profile profile keeper”…"Holds all the data you didn’t feel like keeping… or not sharing"….

Reminds me of a T-shirt I once saw: “May your life be as awesome as you pretend it to be on Facebook”…..

That’s why it would seem that they both could learn something from each other… unless it’s like the “Odd Couple”, and they drive each other crazy….

Bernice, Facebook is so NOT the place for VERY private information that is confided during counseling sessions. Geez! SHE’S the one who’s clueless, not Phelps!

Iam: don’t worry too much about the people in charge deleting your posts. You can always past them into your word processor and keep putting them back onto later pages as another oldie for us…Levy runs a lot of repeats and you can too…especially if they get deleted… wow, 3… (4…, 5…)

Levy:You know if they delete your posts after a while, Google has free websites where you can dump them all off a word processor and with a download or link you can have the strip to encourage more discussion where you are the moderator. What more could you want You can even have Luann polls and posts longer than Babys and no can flag you!!!

Evans should have given Levy the job instead of Karen…

Julian Assange was right, Facebook is a spy machine. Now all your personal details are accessible by big brother. Facebook even provide them with a special login interface to access whatever they want, whoever they want.

Opps, looks like I goofed yesterday, Phelps’ measurements aren’t 36-36-36, they are apparently 36-36-40

Yeah, that’s where it seems that today’s strip is going… – But it’s also interesting that both have their own set of “pros” and “cons”. Paper files can survive a computer crash, but take up space and can pose a “fire hazard”, and can get broken into… – Computer files are supposed to come with certain security, and one would have to go through a little more trouble to access them, but can be deleted or lost due to unforeseen occurrence (like storms or systems crashing)…

soon we find a technology that can replace miss Phelps – robot physiologist

Gee whiz Bernie are you there to learn or make childish comments while your mentor is trying to help you learn something. Seems when Miss Phelps says something Bernice has to try and top her or make some sort of sassy comment. Two days ago she suggested Miss Phelps was a control freak…since when are 17 year olds know it all’s. When I was a kid if I said some of these things to a teacher I would have been removed from this mentoring program so a serious student could have my spot. Time to take the cotton out of your ears and stuff it in your mouth Miss B.

Love this strip, it’s one of my favorites.But this is slow moving. Sure not alot going on, except Bernice showinga less than desirable side of herself, here.

Is it just me, or does Bernice not seemlike a “Counselor”? She is usuallydour, grumpy, critical, fault finding etc…Helping others does not seemto be her passion.

:)

Woah, I thought Bernice was smarter and less arrogant than this.

Ah, the student files. Now we have an arc.

You know someone’s gonna take an unauthorized peek. Probably Luann.

Ah, Bernice, do you not see the crucial difference between Facebook and the “old-fashioned” hardcopy files kept by Miss Phelps?We create our own FB information, and it is only as truthful as we choose to make it. The Phelps Files were not created by their subjects but rather by a critical observer and trained evaluator. You have much to learn, padowan….

“But these are accurate,”

Well “Little Ms High-Tech”, if You’ve got ALL Your Personal Data on Facebook then it AIN’T “Confidential” IS it????

Oh By the way, Manny from Pep-Boys called. He WANTS His Friggin’ Glasses BACK!

On the other hand, having had both medical records and credit card records in several systems ‘hacked’, I have a new appreciation for hardcopy files. I am still receiving email and snail mail offering me insurance, credit and other things that I don’t want from the previous doctors. Nothing like that from current doctors.

Or, “File under: Obsolete”!^That is clever! But while there are certainly drawbacks to the older method of record keeping, in my work experience, they are still going strong… one more “pro” I didn’t give at the time, was they are easy to transport when one has to attend meetings that require use of a person’s personnel file (E.g., HR meetings, etc.). Especially when one has to sign a written acknowledgement, which needs to be kept on file, and which though can be done electronically, isn’t viewed the same way as a person’s pen signature….

Unless they block you.

Social media is for total losers with no life and no brains ^While someone who puts their info and every life event out there can be “questioned”, this would seem to be a blanket generalization… For instance, while GoComics is strictly for enjoying and commenting on comics, it can be viewed as a form of social media, so what of us who take the time to read and comment, including yourself?… And the very creator of this strip maintains a Facebook page, and these comics are accessible and in ‘partnership’ with other media, as the option to share it on them is found at the top of the page. – Google, Ask, Metacrawler, and other search engines require you to submit certain information.. even if you don’t use G+, your name is still tied into the other developments that Google has. There has to be something that you use on the computer, whether Youtube or even an IPhone or Android app that you use for your own personal entertainment. When you download an app, you are doing the same thing you hope to avoid, using the others… you allow them access to your information. It’s up to us to read their “privacy policy”, etc. and then weigh all of the risks vs. benefits.

Damn. I never really thought that Bernice would be as snotty as she has been lately. I am sincerely hoping that Greg Evans is planning to have Bernice learn a thing or two about her attitude issue here, her rudeness to Ms. Phelps, and her presumptive know-it-all demeanor.

Welcome to the Computer Age, Miss Phelps!

This is going to be an interesting year-long arc.*1) Ms. Phelps will show Bernice “the rules” of being a high school counselor, and how things have always been done.*2) Bernice will demonstrate that strict adherence to rules is for children, and how things can be done.*By the year’s end, both will learn to moderate their views and techniques.

ts pretty simple: you do not put anything on FB that you wouldn’t say to a casual contact, say, the person in the bus/airplane seat next to you. Telling that person that you’re married, have three kids is kinda useless to anyone unless you’re throwing in your street address and credit card number as well.

If only today’s youth had that kind of discipline. {sigh}

Your “married with children” example reminds me of a visit I had to Seattle, once. There was a store that sold t-shirts, sweat shirts, etc. and would put custom names, etc. on the back of the garment in stick on letters by heat transfer. I wanted some things for my niece/nephew (at the time they were both single digits). But I made the mistake of telling the clerk who the names belonged to.

She refused to do them. Apparently, it was store policy not to do children’s names on clothing for security/safety/abduction reasons. Certainly it makes sense now, but I was totally P’ed at the time.

Wedding party thoughts:*TJ is catering so he cannot be bestman. As a bid for family unity, each party often asks the intended’s sibling to be an attendant. That would mean Jonah for Brad and Luann for Toni. (Toni’s already asked Luann.)*So who will stand up with Brad? Best friend is catering, a future brother-in-law is too flaky to be counted on.

The difference being is Miss Phelps file is closer to the truth and harder to edit

The only way to be sure these days is either get off the internet or have your own security even if the govt forbids it.

As far as files go, I have my own. It’s local, portable, secured and encrypted. And only I know the passwords. If something happens to me pre-maturely, no one will be able to access it.

As for an on-line presence, it’s a Risk/benefit calculation. I’ve had much more benefit being “on-line” (and accepting whatever risk that entails) than not. Frankly, I’d think those that go to great lengths to “stay off” are the ones standing out in the crowd, these days, and are more likely to invite Govt. scrutiny. Just lead a normal “electronic” life, do normal electronic things, and blend in with the crowd. Don’t “stand out” in it.

That reminds me of the “M*A*S*H” episode where Hawkeye is trying to find out what the initials in B. J. Hunnicutt’s name stood for.

“Anything ya want!” ;-PPPP

I actually like Hawkeye’s 1st response… “Belvedere Jehoshaphat”

I think it’s safe to say that many educators, whether they’re really competent or not, take pride in their work. Ms. Phelps, though she’s been portrayed as a clueless, out-of-date hag, is one counselor who really loves and takes pride in what she does, so if she finds out (or even senses) that Bernice and the other kids despise her, she could end up being really hurt. Many people in education, including Phelps, do have their pride and can only be pushed so far.

Is she going to give Bernice access to the students’ files? That seems totally inappropriate to me. She should be doing her internship at a school where she doesn’t know the students.

Levi, your predictability has become mundane. Shame on you for stooping to a pratfall for laughs.______Hear, hear.

Actually, those aren’t the old days. There are still a lot of ‘live’ hardcopy medical records, for example, that no one has scanned into a database. When you move or have to change doctors for any reason, it can be a major chore to get copies of critical test results to take to the new doctor – or send to your insurance agent to support your appeal when they deny a payment. Ditto for old school records that a new employer might want to see. BUT, on the other hand, I don’t have to worry that someone looking to make money at my expense will hack into these records and then notify me that, if I pay ‘X’ amount of dollars, the hacker won’t post the records on someone’s Facebook page.

AND, circling back around to today’s comic and how all this relates — the hardcopy files that should be locked in Ms. Phelp’s files would not be that easily available to either Bernice, or someone who wants to exploit Bernice’s access. On the other hand, whatever Bernice has on her Facebook page can be photoshopped and used to bully her or others.

Congrats Greg Evans. 90,000 subscribers and still counting.

Two things:

Ms. Phelps would NEVER show personal files on students to another student. That’s against protocol and could get her fired.

Bernice may not think Ms. Phelps is a very good counselor, but if her files are in order and she’s up on college info, it means she’s competent in the basics and B. could learn from her.

What madness this all can truly become! – And it’s funny, because whenever I listen to the sports talk station, they “dangle a carrot” in front of people who like them on FB, with the hope of some “sweepstakes” or something.. I go to a restaurant, what do they offer? A premium for liking them on FB… wherever you go, they now advertise that if you “like them on FB”, you’ll get something… in turn, FB gets paid for ad traffic, and somewhere, all of this trading goes on for dollars at whose expense? As NG posted earlier, if anybody should be getting profits from it (actually, no one should be trading our info, at all!), it would seem that we should be the ones to benefit… – Private companies are desperate for likes, the same way FB-aholics also gun for them…. Again, what madness!…

A route of information between TJ and Bernice is kind of a stretch, even for you.

"…well I’m off to the mall now for a couple hours”. My neighbor who is on facebook several hours a day did that and found her house cleaned when she got home … and not by Merry Maids. ^Yes, that’s a clear example! I have seen cases like this, and also cases of people who actually do state what they had for breakfast, lunch and dinner, literally… also there’s the phenomenon of people who dress and pose provocatively for accumulating likes on FB, the cases of stars and athletes who don’t want paparazzi swarming and invading, yet are sometimes paid to tweet random things, because companies know they’d get a lot of likes… and the example you’re saying, which is one of the critcisms of “Foursquare”, etc., that people have to let people know what they’re doing and where they’re going, for the same reason as the others… to show people that they are “in the inner circle, in the know, on the go” as if to prop up their own self-worth….. and like you’ve said, it could lead to unfortunate results….

Big factor is age of the professional; but not only mindset. The digital technology is expensive to instal and also to train your staff. Ten years to retirement is not long enough to make the investment. Others do so and use it (charge us) beyond what they would have done otherwise. My doctor says he does it out of liability concerns; but when asked, he admitted that the finances were a larger issue.

Very true… it is a big expense if you didn’t start out doing it that way. But I wonder how even more expensive it would be in a “disaster recovery” scenario. Suppose the office caught on fire and destroyed all the hard copy documents. I’m thinking that would much more costly than the cost of converting existing records to electronic docs, where backups can be kept safely off site… maybe not for a doc that’s close to retirement, as you say, but for one with at least 15-20 more years ahead, I’d do it, especially as imaging technologies and patient management systems have gotten much better/cheaper over time.

Sorry no over the topish comments..so I removed it. Yes, it is time to update the filing system or the joke of the day.

Shredding isn’t 100% foolproof (did you see ‘Argo’?). Burning is better, whenever possible.

There are different kinds of shredding. I have a “cross cut” shredder that, instead of “lines,” cross cuts it into tiny little bits of confetti. More environmentally friendly than burning. I also have a cross cut shredder that does optical discs in the same way. If someone can reconstruct a document or disc of mine from that, then God Bless.

About bestmen: these days it’s not unheard of to have a female ‘best person’. Great for guys who mainly have female friends.

Perfectly fine… I just don’t know who (in Brad’s case) that might be (other than his father). The Fire Capt. is the only one I know of with whom he has familiarity that’s active in the strip and who might actually do it.

I’ve told them that before, but they don’t believe me.

I’m right with you on the meh towards that phenom…. I got plenty of people to interact with to get real likes, and not artificial, “electric friends”…. and certainly not insincere likes…

I cannot understand Mr. Evans insistence that every article of clothing with buttons always has the top button buttoned. Gunther, Frank, and now Margo. Even if the shirt I wear is loose, I do not like the top button to have to work. Tell these guys to loosen up.

*

Probably that’s the point—all three are uptight characters, i.e., buttoned up. Or, alternatively, it’s easier to draw.

Totally agree with you. I mean who in the world would post on their Facebook profile publicly that his or her parents just divorced or that they are being abused. Facebook is the place where people post their successes or achievements. As a counsellor, you are supposed to be skilled enough to pry out those little secrets they DON’T post on FB.

…….is it really ethical to let a student have access to all the other students’ personal data?

This aged …poorly.