TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 1, 2015
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QB GOLFER GOING PRO
FAMILY ENJOYS FREE VACATION
Fundraiser at Pheasant Glen to get Brayden Eriksen started
Read about Tigh-Na-Mara Seaside Resort’s first Vacay It Forward recipients
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SOCIAL MEDIA
Fighting Facebook Local man part of firm that is focussing on privacy AUREN RUVINSKY writer@pqbnews.com
A former Parksville city councillor is taking on Facebook. Peter Morrison is working with brothers Michael and Ian Reid to build a better social network called Kube. Describing themselves as the “not evil Facebook,” they formed Red Scotch Software less than two years ago and are almost ready for their public unveiling. Based in Nanaimo, the brothers started the company to figure out what to do with webbased technology they’d been developing in their previous company. “We’d developed a piece of software that was able to build social networks really, really fast,” said software developer Ian. “We weren’t initially totally clear on what to do with that.” But privacy quickly became their main goal and before they knew it they were developing what they believe is a unique “private decentralized encrypted social network,” very different from existing networks. “Most Internet companies don’t treat users as customers, they treat them as the product,” said CEO Michael. He explained that while people can choose what to share with their friends on existing social networks, the companies themselves own the data. “The part we have a problem with is how the information’s being used on the back end by these companies,” Ian said. On Kube, people will still be able to share whatever information they want, but “the information contained should be that user’s information, the user owns the information, it’s their information, not our information,” he said of the fundamental difference. See KUBE SAYS PRIVACY, page A4
CANDACE WU PHOTO
DIRTY RAT: Errington’s Ron Roach shows off his 1946 Chevrolet rat rod, which he claims is “the rattiest of them all,” Saturday morning at the fifth annual Ocean Idlers car show at the Qualicum Beach Golf Course.
QUALICUM BEACH LABOUR DISPUTE
Lockout could be over this a.m. Union members accepted mediator’s plan; it’s now up to town council AUREN RUVINSKY writer@pqbnews.com
The union has voted to accept a proposal and Qualicum Beach town council is voting behind closed doors this morning. “We have to make sure we have all the elements we’ve agreed to in the language,” said Mayor Teunis Westbroek, but “if it passes we want the
employees back to work Wednesday morning.” He said chief administrative officer Daniel Sailland is recommending council accept the proposal but council has to review the language details. “We laid out the conditions and elements that would help us, allow staff to be more efficient and deal with weekend and shift work and so on,” Westbroek told The NEWS Monday morning. Though he wouldn’t disclose the terms of the proposal he said, “We were asked under what conditions we
would accept to move to two per cent a year.” A union request for a two per cent annual increase was the main stumbling block over the month-long labour dispute which saw union members locked out by council. A news release from CUPE Local 401 confirmed members accepted the mediator’s recommendations in a vote Friday afternoon. For the most up-to-date information on this story, including a possible deal being reached later today, visit www. pqbnews.com.
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