Charlie
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5 months ago
in Is There No Balance Between New & Old Media? on Social Times
The kindle is fine and all, but it should be able to use for free any text content that I can get for free using my computer. And technical manuals that I download as ordinary pdfs, whether free or purchased, should display on it.
If they do that, I'll probably get one.
If they do that, I'll probably get one.
5 months ago
in New iPhone to Transform the Social Web on Social Times
I'm using brightkite already. They're really taken off in a very short amount of time:
http://mashable.com/2008/05/29/veronica-belmont...
They have a (web based) iphone app already, and it's very usable and ties into twitter. I'm sure their native app will be ready when the app store launches, and since they already have a large network of people using it, they'll likely do very well with that.
http://mashable.com/2008/05/29/veronica-belmont...
They have a (web based) iphone app already, and it's very usable and ties into twitter. I'm sure their native app will be ready when the app store launches, and since they already have a large network of people using it, they'll likely do very well with that.
5 months ago
in Top 5 Things That Need to be More Social. on Social Times
> To be honest politicians aren’t going to be the ones to
> make the leap into the social media world.
...excepting Barack Obama, at least. That's been a major ingredient of his success.
> make the leap into the social media world.
...excepting Barack Obama, at least. That's been a major ingredient of his success.
6 months ago
in Forgive Me for Missing A Story on Social Times
Interesting, I just wrote about basically this. See my post about bloggers who apologize for going offline.
6 months ago
in You All Are Some Stalkers on Social Times
It's not a "stalker tool", I'm sure it's just some shortlist based on some combination of searching, messages and wall posts people have made, photos posted and tagged, and that sort of thing. The point is to let you get to a short group of people more quickly based on your recent activity.
If they really took it down because you posted some 'stalker tool' story, that's both amazing and a shame.
If they really took it down because you posted some 'stalker tool' story, that's both amazing and a shame.
6 months ago
in Google Friend Connect to Launch in Months on Social Times
Hold on, in your last post you just wrote:
"Yes, you heard that right, Facebook is one of the launch partners with Friend Connect. This may be the reason both Facebook and Google decided to use the same name: they’re using the same platform."
Now you write:
"Also of note was that this [Friend Connect] is not related in any way to Facebook Connect."
What gives? I just tweeted that they were using the same platform!
"Yes, you heard that right, Facebook is one of the launch partners with Friend Connect. This may be the reason both Facebook and Google decided to use the same name: they’re using the same platform."
Now you write:
"Also of note was that this [Friend Connect] is not related in any way to Facebook Connect."
What gives? I just tweeted that they were using the same platform!
6 months ago
in Will Brightkite Succeed Where Dodgeball Failed? on Social Times
Nick, what is it about wide-spanning cities that makes them such a problem? For a network growing virally through personal contacts, I would expect to see pockets of people relatively close together using the service. Any dense downtown-type area is great for this.
The expectation, of course, is that it will very soon be commonplace to have phones with gps, and of course that will be supported as much as possible (the native iPhone application already uses the phone's location features). But when getting into this space, it is a smart move to start early with the technology everybody already has in their hands. And that is SMS.
It's also surprisingly easy to do the common tasks once you set up some placemarks for yourself. You send a message like "@work" when you arrive at work, "@park" when you stop by your local park for some frisbee after work, etc.
The expectation, of course, is that it will very soon be commonplace to have phones with gps, and of course that will be supported as much as possible (the native iPhone application already uses the phone's location features). But when getting into this space, it is a smart move to start early with the technology everybody already has in their hands. And that is SMS.
It's also surprisingly easy to do the common tasks once you set up some placemarks for yourself. You send a message like "@work" when you arrive at work, "@park" when you stop by your local park for some frisbee after work, etc.
6 months ago
in Will Brightkite Succeed Where Dodgeball Failed? on Social Times
The reason it's primarily SMS is that anybody can use it, with pretty much any mobile phone. No fancy phone needed, no loyalty to any particular carrier needed.
They have an iPhone app too, which I'm assuming will be available when the iPhone app store launches.
They have an iPhone app too, which I'm assuming will be available when the iPhone app store launches.
7 months ago
in iGoogle Launches OpenSocial Sandbox on Social Times
Sly move by Google last year (November I think?). Making a standard around the Google Gadgets already being used on their homepage.
7 months ago
in The Downfall of Large Social Networks on Social Times
Google's latest developer sandbox for iGoogle is a big deal.
Check out my blog post here:
http://google-code-updates.blogspot.com/2008/04...
Check out my blog post here:
http://google-code-updates.blogspot.com/2008/04...
9 months ago
in Is Social Media Forcing the End of Investigative Journalism? on Social Times
Who knows, maybe some new kind of entity will crop up that we wouldn't recognize as anything quite like a newspaper, specializing in investigative journalism, with a new business model to support itself.
It you're the source of new, important information, that's much more attractive to readers/listeners/viewers than just being part of a vast echo chamber.
It you're the source of new, important information, that's much more attractive to readers/listeners/viewers than just being part of a vast echo chamber.
9 months ago
in Is Social Media A Marketing or PR Tool on Social Times
@Tony
Facebook is cash-positive and has been pretty much from the beginning, and doesn't annoy the user with ads (the annoying ads on facebook have come from third parties). That shows that you don't need to be loud and annoying to run a site profitably.
They succeeded because they started with a distinctly non-commercial, helpful, fun, and community-oriented feel. Same with Google, craigslist, and some of the other really successful internet sites.
There is no reason people seeking to add value to a social network by writing new applications for it can't do the same.
I'm not saying marketing is bad, but some of these marketing people just don't seem to get it. I like the kind of marketing that is strongly influenced by engineers, because engineers seem to have better than average BS detectors, and they like to stay away from being too blaringly self-promotional.
Facebook is cash-positive and has been pretty much from the beginning, and doesn't annoy the user with ads (the annoying ads on facebook have come from third parties). That shows that you don't need to be loud and annoying to run a site profitably.
They succeeded because they started with a distinctly non-commercial, helpful, fun, and community-oriented feel. Same with Google, craigslist, and some of the other really successful internet sites.
There is no reason people seeking to add value to a social network by writing new applications for it can't do the same.
I'm not saying marketing is bad, but some of these marketing people just don't seem to get it. I like the kind of marketing that is strongly influenced by engineers, because engineers seem to have better than average BS detectors, and they like to stay away from being too blaringly self-promotional.
9 months ago
in Is Social Media A Marketing or PR Tool on Social Times
You're both wrong. Social sites are, as facebook claims on its front page, utilities for helping people better connect with their friends, family and acquaintances.
Marketing and PR types, being the vultures and parasites that they are, and sensed new opportunities on these sites and rushed in to try and make a quick buck. This has gummed up the works, hurt the signal/noise ratio and annoyed everyone else. You can see it in the comment spam that pervades myspace and the application spam that pervades facebook.
I'll concede that the social networks themselves have been complicit. You can see that in the loud, annoying ads on every page myspace serves up and in beacon, facebook's foray into "social advertising".
The rest of us would prefer applications that are useful and interesting first, and ad delivery vehicles only to the extent that the ads are tastefully presented and relevant to the user.
Marketing and PR types, being the vultures and parasites that they are, and sensed new opportunities on these sites and rushed in to try and make a quick buck. This has gummed up the works, hurt the signal/noise ratio and annoyed everyone else. You can see it in the comment spam that pervades myspace and the application spam that pervades facebook.
I'll concede that the social networks themselves have been complicit. You can see that in the loud, annoying ads on every page myspace serves up and in beacon, facebook's foray into "social advertising".
The rest of us would prefer applications that are useful and interesting first, and ad delivery vehicles only to the extent that the ads are tastefully presented and relevant to the user.
10 months ago
in Big Think: An Inspirational Social Network on Social Times
Just calling 'em like I see 'em :-)
10 months ago
in Big Think: An Inspirational Social Network on Social Times
Woah, hold on there. I've watched most of the TED videos, and though I'd never hear of that movie, "The Secret" before, it just so happens that I saw it yesterday.
Most of the TED videos are great. Some are inspirational, some extremely interesting, some deal with very important issues.
"The Secret" is a huge steaming pile of crap, from some of the same people that brought us "What the Bleep do we know". Uninspirational, smug, condescending and insulting, pseudoscientific crap.
Most of the TED videos are great. Some are inspirational, some extremely interesting, some deal with very important issues.
"The Secret" is a huge steaming pile of crap, from some of the same people that brought us "What the Bleep do we know". Uninspirational, smug, condescending and insulting, pseudoscientific crap.