Mobile Internet in China. Chinese Internet and software: about painful issues

China and Wikipedia = a contentious relationship, but authorities are beginning to realize that if they cannot allow access to the site, they will have to create their own equivalent. The leader of the new project says: “Our goal is not to catch up, but to overtake.”

“The Chinese Encyclopedia is not a book, but a Great Wall of culture,” said Yang Muzhi, editor-in-chief of the project and chairman of the China Book and Periodical Distribution Association.

This new online project will be the third edition of the Chinese Encyclopedia and is its largest iteration to date. More than 20,000 authors from universities and research institutes work on more than 300,000 records in 100 disciplines. The finished product is expected to be double more Encyclopedia Brittanica and on par with Chinese Wikipedia, which currently has 938,000 entries.

China's Wikipedia problem poses a paradox for a country that strives to advanced technologies and science, while maintaining control over the information to which its citizens have access. Yang's comment that his encyclopedia will become the Great Wall of culture echoes the Great Firewall, which decides what Chinese users are allowed to view on the Internet and what is banned.

Restrictions on Wikipedia fluctuate in China depending on the current political climate, as well as changes the online resource makes to its own service. In 2015, Wikipedia switched to encrypted HTTPS, making it more difficult for China to block individual pages. Authorities initially blocked versions on Chinese, and then proceeded to all the versions on the site.

Sites like Baidu Baike and Baike.com are private online encyclopedias that accept user-generated content but also strictly censor anything that violates government rules. This has led many Chinese citizens to view these services as just another state media outlet.

It is interesting that the authorities are realizing the need for easy information resource with reliable information. Researchers say the project started in 2011, but Encyclopædia Britannica's decision to stop publishing its print version has raised doubts about the viability of the old-fashioned encyclopedia. This has led to greater openness to 21st century approaches. United States-based history professor Juan Annian, one of the scholars working on the project, insists in a letter to the editor that “old political frameworks” are preventing progress.

As editor-in-chief, Yang will have to apply for a relaxation of censorship and possibly allow contributions from individual authors. Last year, in an interview with a local newspaper, he argued that Wikipedia would be a tough competitor: "Readers consider Wikipedia authoritative and accurate, and it calls itself a 'free encyclopedia that anyone can edit,' and that's what fascinates users."

On this moment Yang points to high quality its team of authors, as the main thing competitive advantage. Wikipedia's management likely won't be too worried about its new rival if the free encyclopedia inspires China to access more open information, then this is quite consistent with their mission.

Public Wi-Fi networks found in hotels and cafes, almost never in restaurants. But on open points the connection is very slow, pages load in minutes, and not always completely. According to reviews from tourists, it is most reliable to use Mobile Internet, most operators offer LTE (4G Internet) and 3G Internet. In some regions, 3G can be faster and more stable than 4G, so if possible, you can buy a local 3G card for some devices, and 4G for others, so you can access the network wherever you are. Use in moderation, packages are usually expensive and have a traffic limit, for example, 500 MB or 2 GB per month.

If you use the Chinese Internet without a VPN, make sure that you set your default search engine to something other than Google or Yandex! At least select Yahoo, otherwise you will not have access to search! You can use Chinese Baidu for maps, but they are in Chinese.

Useful sites for tourists in China

These sites are in Chinese, but they can be easily translated into Russian by the built-in translator. Everything is quite clear, and these resources are used as they are local residents, and many tourists.

How to access familiar services and social networks

Still, it’s more convenient when the usual Google with maps, mail, search, Russian-language forums and blogs is at hand. And also your favorite Instagram, Skype and more. To do this, you need to install at least a free VPN application on your phone or tablet, which replaces your IP address and opens access to all the world's content.

Moreover, during rush hour, Chinese providers often limit the speed for regular users, but those who use a VPN are not affected by this restriction.

08/28/2017, Mon, 16:33, Moscow time, Text: Valeria Shmyrova

On the eve of the 19th Congress of the Communist Party, China has tightened the rules for using the Internet, introducing mandatory registration of real user names with providers. Anonymous posts on forums and other resources will be deleted by Internet censorship.

New rules

China has approved new rules for Internet use aimed at combating anonymous messages that users leave on forums and other platforms. From October 1, 2017, all such messages will be deleted by government internet censorship. Compliance with the norm will be ensured by the Cyberspace Administration of China.

Under the new rules, Internet and service providers are required to request and verify real user names during the registration process. In case the user posts any illegal content, the company must report it to the authorities.

The tightening of rules for using the Internet is due to the fact that the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party is to be held in China in the fall, at which new people are expected to be appointed to some key positions, writes TechCrunch. In this regard, large Chinese Internet companies, including Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent, are now under great pressure from the government.

Let us remind you that in South Korea a system for registering real usernames for sites with an audience of more than 100 thousand people per day was introduced in 2007, and anonymous posts were prohibited in 2009. In 2012, a Korean court declared this system unconstitutional insofar as it guarantees freedom of speech.

What content is considered illegal

Having announced the approval of new regulations, the Cyberspace Administration of China simultaneously reminded what content is considered illegal in the country. According to Article 15 of the Administration Rules information services Internet service providers shall not create, reproduce, publish or distribute content that is contrary to the basic principles of the constitution, endangers national security or harms national honor and interests.

China tightens internet rules ahead of Party Congress

It is also prohibited to post materials that incite national hatred, ethnic discrimination and undermine national unity, or undermine national religious policies and promote cults. In addition, the spread of rumors, disruption of public order and destruction of social stability is prohibited on the Internet, as well as the distribution of pornography, propaganda gambling, violence, murder, terror or incitement to crime. Insulting or slandering other persons and violating their dignity is also prohibited.

Maybe I'm that racist and I hate China? Or do I not know the language? Or am I just a harmful bore?

The Chinese Internet and software worries me quality which includes design, functionality, performance, and attitude towards the user, including his personal data.

Disclaimer:

1. I do not condemn the information content of sites. The content is different from Western content, and it would be incorrect to criticize Chinese video hosting for the absence of Celine Dion and the presence of Jackie Chan, although this is a factor against “replacing” YouTube with Youku.
2. I'm not an information security or UX specialist. But this does not deprive me of the right to criticize holes and bad designs
3. I love China and have a normal attitude towards the Chinese. Read to the end, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

0. Browsers

1. Chrome: 40.89%
2. IE - 27.27%
3. - 6.37%
4. - 4.96% - a miracle browser with two engines simultaneously: Chromium and IE
5. Sogou- 4.54%
6. Firefox -2.09%
7. Others - 13.88%

1. Google blocked in China completely, the majority of the population not only does not know how to bypass blocking, but has never seen Google;
2. Popular browser 360 uses Chrome user agent and I.E.
3. In the Chinese browser ratings, 360 will be ranked first.

If I had a virtual machine at hand, I would put each of these browsers there and show screenshots from them, as well as all the garbage that comes with the kit (“Internet mail.ru” in a cube). And I feel sorry for my home/work machines.

Separately, enjoy the creative approach to logos for 365 and 2345

Mobile era

I’m not an information security specialist, but with each similar case, trust in the Chinese Internet decreases.

2. Attitude towards the user

2.1 Video hosting services

Of course, the content on these sites is much poorer than large international YouTube, and is tied almost exclusively to China, so they still cannot “replace” their older brother.

By the way, enjoy the original Sogou Video logo:

2.2 Permissions in Android

Example: the popular mapping application Amap.

When you first launch it, in addition to accessing GPS (for location) and Storage (for storing an offline cache of maps), it asks for Phone calls permission. Do you know what will happen if you refuse?

And turns off. Compare the number of permits, for example, with maps from Yandex:

For example, the built-in “Gallery” application in Xiaomi smartphones (MIUI system) does exactly the same thing. You can imagine, Why does Gallery need calls? And if you refuse, it won’t start.

I'm not an Android developer, but judging by the forums, this permission is used to identify a user by IMEI. Unfortunately, I am not ready to believe promises that developers will not make calls without my knowledge.

It would seem, why do such applications exist in the market?

2.3 Markets and updates

Moreover, Chinese markets have the sin of stealing .apk files from other sites (Google Play, for example), replacing advertising networks with their own. Another trick is to change the version number in the manifest to a “newer” one so that the applications you already have can be “updated” to their editions.

2.4 Censorship and surveillance

Famous Evernote in 2012 created a separate Chinese division called 印象笔记 (“elephant notebook”).

But it’s not just about the name: all the servers of this new company are located exclusively in China. After the opening, Chinese users were asked to move to the new service, because it worked much faster from China. True, the notebooks were now available for viewing by Chinese security authorities. International Evernote has not been blocked in China, but it works at such a speed that it is virtually impossible to use.

Even last week Apple has caught up and is already building a data center for storing data of Chinese users in China.

Here is a recent example of censorship: last week, messages with the “candle” emoji were deleted from Chinese social networks. Even in this way, it was impossible to honor the memory of the dissident who died the day before, whose name has not appeared in the Chinese media and the Internet for more than ten years. And they even added neural networks that recognize “bad” images in personal chats and delete them before they reach the recipient.

There are a great many examples of surveillance in China in general (100% of Beijing in cameras) and the Internet in particular, just search on Google.

True story: In 2011, I was living in a student dormitory in Shenyang, and I was smart enough to “play” with the censors. I accidentally discovered that if I searched in any search engine, including Yandex, about one Tai Chi sect or events on the square in the late eighties, even in Russian, the Internet would drop out for 10-15 minutes. Now I understand that I was playing with fire, but then it was fun.

Is there a ray of light in the dark kingdom?

What's good about the Chinese Internet?

Finance - Alipay

Finance - WeChat

Mobile messenger WeChat with an active audience of 700+ million people, i.e. Almost all urban population China. The absolute standard in China, has no significant competitors.

There are many functions, as in any Chinese application, but the financial side is one of the key ones. In terms of popularity, mobile payments are slightly ahead of Alipay. It is accepted almost everywhere, if not officially, then to the personal account of the waiter or seller. It also works using QR codes, so it is supported by all devices.

The “red envelope” function, the digital incarnation of a cash gift, is wildly popular. In China, money is given in a red paper envelope. New Year, weddings and other similar events.

The digital envelope has come a long way. This is not just a “surprise money message.” For example, you can send an envelope divided into 10 equal parts to a chat group of 50 people: whoever clicked first gets it. Or you can make 10 parts with a random amount for each to add excitement. Bosses in companies like to play this game for the New Year, sending gifts to employees in group chats. There is a fight for them)

E-commerce - Taobao

In China there is Taobao. The app and website aren't great in terms of performance, but the platform itself is amazing.

I literally haven't been going to stores for the past two years. Clothing, electronics, household goods, groceries, vegetables - I order everything there.

Tao has everything, from left to right: Russian army ration, Suzuki motorcycle, watermelons, Krokan candies, iPhone 7

No fakes, if you turn on the head, reasonable prices, inexpensive delivery. And the choice: there is everything, well, everything, from Baltic sprats, from toilet paper to Australian cream.

Food - Ele.me