Viviane Reding, the European Commissioner responsible for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, has given a cracking speech that highlights what I believe could serve as a manifesto for guarding privacy in today's world.

In talking about EU plans to revise its data protection rules to better protect citizens, Reding said: "Internet users must have effective control of what they put online and be able to correct, withdraw or delete it at will. In the recent public consultation on the review of the data protection rules, we were told that there should be 'a right to be forgotten'. We need to look more closely at this idea."

I like this phrase, the right to be forgotten. It sounds wishful and old-fashioned at the same time, but is spot on in how I would like my personal information to be treated by business.

The speech was given to the American Chamber of Commerce to the EU in Brussels last week. This was by design, as the EU is currently working out how to regulate the release of EU banking data to the US in investigating terrorism financing.

Reding, a former journalist, rightly goes back to first principles. As she says, the internet's full potential will only be realised if it is seen as a trusted and open platform. The EU has had rules protecting personal data since 1995, but now these need to be changed with the advent of the cloud and social networking. It is not only an issue of personal data in the traditional sense (name, age, phone number), but also of intellectual property, the images and writing we have done for years using a particular service provider.

"More control also means being able to move your data from one place to another, and to have it properly removed from the first location in the process," she said. "If I have my precious photos stored somewhere in the cloud, what happens if I want to change to another provider?"

So far, Bermuda has not implemented any specific data protection legislation under its Electronic Transactions Act 1999 or through a separate piece of legislation. It has been debated too long, with the argument that it would put too much costs on business. While the EU's situation, with 27 different countries attempting to harmonise their laws to provide a more unified single market, is different, why doesn't Bermuda get with it and provide a "right to be forgotten"?

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The Samsung N230 netbook is an amazing breakthrough, for batteries. Samsung claims the N230 can run for 13.8 hours on its battery. However you must pay extra for the 'optional long-life battery'. The regular battery will last for seven hours. Part of the extra life comes from better battery technology, part from a more efficient LED screen. Other than that major achievement, it is a basic netbook, although it tries to look stylish. It sells for about $400, without the optional battery. Since its introduction, the iPad has started cutting into netbook sales. Many people are more willing to plunk out the extra $400 or so to jump up to a superior machine. But until electricial plugs become more standard at airports and airlines, business people might be more interested in being able to use their computer for longer. China anyone?

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It always amazes me how much we can now do on a mobile phone - or platform as they are being called now, partly to reflect that a phone is more than a phone. For example if you are a web designer you can practically conduct business on your mobile using what TechRadar.com has called the 20 best mobile apps for web designers. Here is the list from the bottom up of free and not-free apps for all you designers and developers who are constantly on the move: WhatTheFont (new.myfonts.com); PHP Cheat Sheet (concentricsky.com/products/palm); Convertbot (tapbots.com/software/convertbot); ConnectBot (code.google.com/p/connectbot); Sherpa (wiredthing.com/sherpa.html); Creative Whack Pack (creativethink.com); View Web Source (jimmithy.tumblr.com); Reeder (reederapp.com); Dolphin Browser (sites.google.com/a/mgeek.mobi/browser); Hipstamatic (hipstamaticapp.com); SketchBook Pro (itunes.apple.com/gb/app/sketchbook-pro); AndFTP (lysesoft.com/products/andftp); Opera Mini (opera.com/mobile); Color Expert (code-line.com/software/colorexpert); WordPress (android.wordpress.org, blackberry.wordpress.org, iphone.wordpress.org); Adobe Ideas (itunes.apple.com/gb/app/adobe-ideas-1-0-foripad); Things (culturedcode.com/things); FTP On The Go (ftponthego.com); Dropbox (dropbox.com); and at number 1, Evernote (evernote.com).

I can vouch for Dropbox and Evernote, which are useful to a much wider range of people. Dropbox is a way of syncing the data stored on various computers so you are always working on the most current, useful if you are constantly moving between them during the day.

Evernote allows users to collect, store and access data - for example web pages and photos - and collect them from another computer.

Send any comments to Ahmed at elamin.ahmed@gmail.com