By Omar Gallaga

Leave it to the Internet to make light of a crisis.

On the Web site doihavepigflu.com, the answer to the question of whether one is infected with the H1N1 virus is, simply:

The tiny text says, "(Well maybe, but statistically speaking you probably don't so chill out and eat some bacon)." It links to an Amazon.com page where flu masks are sold in sets of 20.

They're currently sold out.

By Eyder Peralta

It looked totally legit.

Ken sent you a message.
Subject: Look at this!
"fbstarter.com"

I clicked because friends send strange links all the time.

Turns out, I'd been phished. TechCrunch reports that a phishing attack is affecting a bunch of Facebook users and every time someone signs in and tries to log into their "facebook" account, the site steals your credentials and sends all your friends similar messages.

This isn't unlike what happens on MySpace all the time; it's not unlike the busty women that appear on your profile wall. But phishing exercises are usually easy to spot; they're fairly obvious and you can dismiss them quickly.

That's why this one took me by surprise: that I fell for it, that the rouse was so well disguised I didn't think twice before I clicked.

It kind of reminded me of the ad placements on The Biggest Loser. I remember watching an episode where the contestants were all drinking milk. For a second I thought, "How nice, they keep healthy by drinking milk." Then one of the trainers went into a soliloquy about the virtues of milk and it became pretty obvious, I had become the victim of product placement.

And it kind of makes you lose a bit of trust in the world, because it's not easy to see something as innocent as milk and something as private as messaging between friends being hacked.

By Wright Bryan

Technology is all about gadgets, isn't it? They keep changing, advancing, shrinking, wowing us with their ever-increasing sophistication. We're not really sure how they do what they do, with microchips running code that looks like gibberish connected to silicon-embedded sensors of all sorts. Today's high-tech world is all about electrons and inscrutable code with names like PHP, AJAX and C++ .

Or is it?

We think that what makes the tech world really interesting is how people interact with technology. Technology opens up new creative possibilities and makes old tasks easier. But it also makes life more complicated. That's where our focus will be: on the human side of the technology equation.

That's not to say we won't geek out from time to time or display an unnatural fascination with electronic gee-jaws. Just don't expect us to always be on the bleeding edge of the technology front.

Return here regularly for updates on the intersection of man and machine -- from the need for broadband speed in the home to the quest for private/public balance in a world linked together by social networks. We'll share with you what we're seeing on this new frontier, and we'll be listening to the stories you share with us.

And don't forget to listen to the "All Tech Considered" segment on All Things Considered every Monday. You can find archived versions of the on-air stories here.

What is the 'All Tech Considered' blog?
It's a companion to the weekly All Things Considered radio feature of the same name. You can turn to All Tech on air and on the Web for a guided tour of how technology is shaping our lives, making the world more interesting and creating some fresh problems we didn't see coming.

Who will be posting here?
All Tech's on-air expert Omar Gallaga will contribute regularly. He also writes the Digital Savant blog for The Austin-American Statesman newspaper. Joining Omar on the blog will be a plethora of NPR journalists, including staff from All Things Considered and NPR.org.

When can I hear 'All Tech Considered' on the radio?
You can listen to the All Tech Considered segment every Monday on All Things Considered. An archive of the on-air stories is available online.

Seriously, what can I expect to find here?
What you'll find here, more often than not, is a human perspective on technology. This is not the place where you'll find every last drop of the latest news from the bleeding edge. We'll be following trends and looking at new technology in the light of every day life.

Can I comment on what I see here?
Yes, but please be sure to read our discussion rules first.

Can I contact you?
Yes. We want to hear from you, so we read every last comment. Or if you rather communicate with us privately e-mail us at tech [at] npr [dot ]org