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Microblog Memes @lemmy.world

The Picard Maneuver @lemmy.world

10mo ago

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93 comments

Who is amber ? And why does him going missing warrant an alert ?
- She was Amber Rene Hagerman:
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amber_alert#Namesake
  
  TIL it's not a color designation
  
  Ugh.. it makes me nauseous when I find out they didn't catch the guy.
- I think in the US there are alerts (called amber alerts) for when people go missing in the hopes of increasing the chance of finding the person by raising awareness.
  
  Amber alerts are for missing children. Silver alerts are for missing seniors. Here is an article outline other types as well:
  https://www.caller.com/story/news/2021/07/07/do-you-know-all-missing-person-alerts-here-your-guide-six-different-alerts/7890829002/
  
  It's specifically for missing children afaik. And it may only be used when it's an abduction, not just a missing child, but don't quote me on that. That's just the ones I've seen.
  
  And you can't opt out ??? Weird
- Amber is an acronym named after a real girl.
  AMBER stands for America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response and was created as a legacy to 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was kidnapped while riding her bicycle in Arlington, TX, and then brutally murdered.
  
  That would be a "backronym"
  
  America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response
  Strange name for a child.

I feel old... It never occurred to me that not everyone in America knows what an Amber Alert is and where the name comes from.
- It never dawned on me that it wasn't a thing elsewhere until I moved and stopped having my phone screech like a banshee on occasion.
  
  You can turn them off...I'm a monster
- Plus not everyone here is American. I'm so thankful that here in Germany these notifications only get used for catastrophic events (which is never) or the yeary test that got postponed 3 times in a row, lol.
- What's the origin story?
  
  It was named after a child that went missing and was later found murdered in 1996.

I don’t get amber alerts. They make my phone scream like the world is ending, and any interaction with device removes the message forever. So I can either stare calmly at the obnoxious noise box or stop the sound and never know what the issue was.
- Yeah it's a terrible implementation. Shouldn't have software designed by politicians. "We need it to make a huge siren sound and makes sure people have to look at it before the siren will stop! Think of the children!"
  I think an SMS message would be far more effective. If I get an Amber alert in the middle of the night, I'm not reading it, I'm just shutting it off as quickly so I can to get back to sleep. It's not like I'm going to be going out in the middle of the night to try to find a kid that went missing a hundred miles away. An SMS wouldn't wake me up, I'll actually read when I get up in the morning, and there's a chance I might be able to help because the information will still be there when I'm actually outside.
  
  Had to look it up (my county doesn't have them), and two things seem weird to me:
  Why is it text only? Wouldn't adding a picture of the abducted child make it much more effective?
  Since it can take several hours for the alert to be issued, it doesn't really require any immediate action from the people who receive it - it makes no sense to use a special emergency protocol to distribute it.

I disabled these alerts permenantly on my android phone. Best 15 minutes I ever spent.
- But now you can't receive useful alerts like "gry Toyt" (was a real alert that went out).
  
  As Lord Maximus Farquaad magnanimously declared, "Some of you may die, but it is a sacrifice I am willing to make."
  
  Abbreviation for "grey Toyota"?
- Lol right, who do you think I am? Fuckin batman?
  
  What do you think I have? Eyes and some minor consideration for children or their family?

I don't think you can opt out from a specific notification, but you can opt out. If you do you won't get any emergency broadcast notifications, at least that's how I think it works.
- Not true for all devices. Samsung at least I can disable amber alerts while keeping emergency alerts on. Which I did after being woken up at 3am telling me to be on the lookout for a white SUV, as if I could see that from my bed.
  
  Yeah iPhone as well can independently enable Amber, Emergency, and Public Safety Announcements.
- I don't want to opt out, I just want "let us know if you see a grey Buick" to not use the same alert sound as "nuclear attack incoming".
- Pixel 8 Pro here I can specifically opt out by alert.

93 comments