Archive for News:

The Transparent World

I’m more and more amazed at the amount of information available to anyone interested in doing even the slightest research. This thought struck me when I was driving recently and a car passed me with a vanity license plate clearly intended to draw attention. I tweeted it (at a stoplight) through my phone (text message — I don’t have a smart phone). Later I realized that the driver of this other car, having never met me or even known I had seen his license plate, could find out about it and even be at my doorstep within 30 minutes.

Here’s how: When I sent my message to Twitter, I mentioned the license plate # (or, word would be more like it). The driver could have set up some software on his phone to alert him whenever a keyword appeared on Twitter — in this case, his license plate. He could look at the source of the tweet, which would lead him to my Twitter page. My Twitter page links to my personal blog. That blog links to this site, where my name’s mentioned. A quick search on Whois.net would reveal my full name and home address (assuming it hasn’t been made private). Absent that, a quick search on Google based on info on this site and other details would end up showing my address. And there you have it.

Interesting to think about. Twitter search could prove to be a gold mine for bounty hunters or intelligence services. Assuming the people they’re after are on Twitter — or tweet-worthy.

The Benefits of Anonymous Blogging

I have a personal blog called Binza, where I talk about things like athletic training, movies, music, books and other things. I get a fair amount of comments — but mainly from family and friends who’ve been on the scene for a while. When I started the blog, in 2001, I kept it strictly anonymous. I didn’t know much of what I was doing and even knowing that it was “my eyes only” I still felt as though I was giving a part of myself up to the public.

A couple years down the road I decided to tell my family about the blog and they’ve been involved ever since — checking in, commenting and sharing their own links. I realize now, however, that in the time that I went from anonymous to public, my approach to the blog and the content has changed. I write with an eye for who will be reading. I edit posts and even re-think before I comment. Not always, of course. But because my name is attached to these things I clearly need to bear in mind the effect certain comments will have. I really prefer not to have something come back to haunt me.

So recently, I started another blog focused mainly on my personal finance goals. I talk about how much debt I’m paying off, what my billable hours were for the day, my fears associated with money, debt, expenses, etc. The fact that this blog is anonymous allows me absolute freedom to share everything on my mind related to each post’s purpose and the goal of the blog. In other words, I’m not out to just rant about things. I’m out to share specific information about my day and my feelings associated with it.

In the week that I’ve been doing this, I actually feel happier. I feel I’m unloading certain fears from my mind as I write things down, and each night I’m tallying up my day’s earnings. This has motivated me to focus on working more. I look forward to posting each night. I don’t have any links on the blog that allow readers to comment. I also have not publicized the blog and don’t plan to. I love the anonymity and feel that this blog is my tiny corner of the world to work towards a specific goal.

Do I still hope for readers? Sure! There’s a lot of validation in growing a following. But I don’t want anything to get in the way of how I write. I don’t want to hold anything back and I believe that sometimes, when you have your name attached to them, you’re forced to consider every post, every word, every comment.

Thierry Henry and the Social Media Tsunami of Hate

Wow. If you want to know how quickly news is traveling these days, and how social media is fueling this wave and shaping public perception, read on.

Not three hours ago, superstar soccer player Thierry Henry of France dealt Ireland a crushing blow when he assisted in the go-ahead goal in their World Cup qualifying match. During the play, Henry employed what appeared to be a blatant handball to set up the assist, and cries to the referees from the Irish team fell on deaf ears. The game eventually ended, the French fans cheered, the Irish players sat crushed — and Henry sat among them, appearing a bit conflicted, and probably wondering if outright celebration might be inappropriate.

Fast forward one hour, and the video of the handball is already up on YouTube. Twitter is aflutter in tweets — with the top trending topics including “Thierry Henry,” “France,” “Irish,” “Ireland,” “Handball,” and “World Cup.” It’s rare to see multiple trending topics that relate back to one news item, but here we have six of them.

On Facebook, not three hours after the match’s conclusion, the following group pages have been established and drawn legions of fans:

• We Irish Hate Thierry Henry the cheat (12,063 fans) *(33,102 as of 12 hours later)
• Thierry Henry Is a Cheating Bastard (5,226) *(15,633 as of 12 hours later…)
• Thierry Henry Should Apologise to Ireland (2,341 fans) *(7,546…)
• La Main de Thierry Henry (”The Hand of Thierry Henry”) (2,433 fans) *(19,878…)
• La Main Gauche de Thierry Henry (”The Left Hand of Thierry Henry”) (2,071 fans) *(10,144…)
• We Hate Thierry Henry (444 fans) (1,539…)

These numbers will have increased by the thousands come morning, when the French and Irish — and Henry — wake to a new day. Also, these above groups don’t take into account dozens of other similarly-named groups that have fans in their hundreds or thousands too.

How else might Henry feel the backlash?

Let’s look at Twitter again. One other topic you’ll find is #boycottgillette, which users believe will hurt Henry where it hurts most: his sponsor. Gillette is well known as one of the superstar’s main sponsors. How will they react to this?

Better yet, how will Henry react?

What will happen tomorrow?

For what it’s worth, Henry didn’t do anything technically wrong — nothing that doesn’t fall out of the confines of the game. You can blame the referring for the no-call(s). But that’s sport. Referees don’t catch everything.

Much worse is the actual extent to which Henry used his arm to control the ball, which brings his character into question. You can forgive a slight reaction sometimes, but Henry’s play may have been more than a slight reaction. There appeared to be a deliberate aim to control the ball.

It’s a shame that it happened.

But as far as entertainment value, I haven’t been this hooked to Twitter in months.

*Stats updated 7:45 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time

ScreenFlow: Desktop Screencasting

I’ve been searching for software to capture video of whatever I have going on on my desktop, and came across ScreenFlow from Telestream. So far, so good. My goal is to create some Google Earth video maps of a triathlon I’m planning, and I want people (athletes, organizers, volunteers, etc.) to be able to get an aerial view of the course. The trickiest part thus far has actually been trying to navigate Google Earth and make the video flow nicely. But as far as capturing the screen itself and other options (text, highlighting, overlays), ScreenFlow seems to work well. It’s $99 for first-time buyers, or $29 for those upgrading.

YourMembership.com Provides Forum for Connection

I just came across a service called YourMembership.com, which is software that allows organizations, businesses, schools, or any group with a lot of people involved (churches too) to create profiles and connect with one another. I wouldn’t call it social media like Facebook or LinkedIn, although it is online and does deal with connecting with others. It’s limited to those who are involved in one organization — though it may be an organization of millions. I learned of it this week since Seoul Foreign School, my high school alma mater, launched the app to allow faculty, graduates and attendees throughout  its 100 years to keep others up-to-date on their whereabouts and life. Yourmembership.com allows members to create a profile that includes:

• Personal Page
• Profile
• Groups
• Networks
• Blogs
• Subscriptions
• Files & Links
• Favorites
• Preferences
• Messages
• Connections
• Photo Gallery
• Resumé/CV
• Career Postings
• Refer a Friend

So yes, this is very much another online networking tool — but it already has a built-in audience of people who are already connected to one another, and who must be invited and then approved. It’s around $6,000/year for organizations to use, which, considering you’re an organization with thousands of people involved, appears reasonable.

The Best (Free) Time Tracking Software

For the last few years I’ve used a software program called TraxTime to track my working hours (as well as non-billable hours). I got the trial version and it had everything I needed so I never upgraded to a full-service account. If you’re on Windows, this is your ticket. Not sure if they still have the free trial available but it is worth every cent of the $39 it’s currently going for.

Unfortunately, TraxTime is not available for Mac, so I’ve been desperate for another good punch-clock widget since I’ve switched platforms. Today I found a few programs and tried them out, and the best one by far was Paymo. Why is it the best? Because its free version offers more features than the other ones I tried. You probably get the idea now that I like free things. On the other hand, if it’s free and I like it, I will tell all my friends about it. I’m sure there’s a return in there somewhere.

Top 100 Skills for Today’s Environment

Elance.com has a new article on the top 100 skills for today’s economic environment. If you’re a graphic designer — great! — you’re on top. If you’re a computer programmer and know a few languages, you’re pretty set too.

Unbelievably, and thankfully, certain forms of writing are very much in demand. I think this is a result of online marketing requirements and the need for new and fresh content to be constantly generated by blogs and Web sites. That isn’t the case for other types of writing though.

Here’s a look at the top 10:

And here’s a look at my areas of interest and/or expertise:

Editing and ghostwriting are down quite a bit from last month, as is technical writing.  Blogs and freelance marketing are up quite a bit.

For the rest of the list, look at Elance’s February hiring trends.

The Techno-Generational Divide

NPR.org has an article talking about the technology divide between younger managers and older employees within companies. The managers find they really need to encourage the older generation to get up to speed with social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and mobile apps like text messaging. Their reasoning? It increases productivity. But there’s not only a tech divide, but a general gap in mindset when it comes to social networking. The older generation comes from an era where face-to-face or phone networking was the order of the day. Today’s generation does it via text, Web or — when necessary — phone. 

There is merit obviously to both mindsets — current technology is excellent for networking and keeping in touch; and face-to-face communication is necessary for building an understanding of one another — a “feel” for one another — that the Web or phone could never do.

Digital Marketing World Expo

The Digital Marketing World Expo is scheduled for April 1. Sign up for free and watch a number of speeches and shows via the Web. Here’s the agenda:

WHY YOU CAN’T MISS IT

Digital Marketing World Spring 2009 will sum up the cutting-edge information and skills you need to master the latest, most successful digital marketing techniques out there. You’ll be amazed by how much you can digest in a six hour period! Some of the concepts brought to you by respected thought leaders and experts in the industry include:

• How to use Facebook to build a community and meet marketing objectives
• What you need to build a successful corporate blog
• How to maximize website ROI and drive real results
• How to create online branded content to accelerate sales
• How to start “The Rave” and get your biggest fans to tell your story
• There are specific ways to garner the few dollars people and businesses are willing to spend when times are tough. We’ll have them all for you—current, tested, updated, and on the cutting edge.

B2C AND B2B MARKETERS…WE’VE GOT YOU COVERED

We know the unique challenges faced by both B2C and B2B marketers…and we’ve got you covered! Throughout the conference, you’ll find dedicated tracks for those B2C marketers among us and for all you B2B-ers. We’ve built individual sessions to break it down and give you only the information you can apply to your jobs and your companies.

Some sessions, including the keynote presentation, will be beneficial for both groups so we’ll all come together (as one big happy family) for those!

Welcome to our site!

Welcome to the launch of blue.0 — our online marketing vehicle designed to showcase our business and what we can do for clients.