Where has social media gotten us?

I am a prolific of Facebook, have recently joined twitter and have been blogging on and off for 8 years , have a PS3 and am a casual gamer and the other day something just hit me. Social media and the Internet IS really taking over our life. No longer do we have to actually see anyone in person to get things done. For example, no longer do I have to sit next to my friends to play video games. I am a huge Mortal Kombat II fan and downloaded it for PS3. One of my good friends just bought a PS3 and is just as big of a fan of Mortal Kombat and guess what we can play it online. No longer do we have to sit next to each other and play. Granted we call each other on Skype while we are playing, but that is besides the point, we are virtually next to each other. Where will kids social skills be when they grow up?I remember staying up till 3am playing Mortal Kombat with my friends at their house or mine. No longer do we have to do that. Thank god, because I was getting sick of seeing people face to face, which brings me to the next thing, social media. I love social networks, and social media. I study it for a living these days, but  see it replacing normal human interaction way too much lately. A good friend of mine actually had his girlfriend of over a year exit out of their “facebook” relationship before telling him in person. She then blocked him and had all of the mutual friends that she controlled block him. No more tough, awkward phone calls, or even emails. Let the profile tell the story. Is that what society is coming to. It is like putting up the “Will you marry me” billboard, but a little worse. Are we unable to maintain human interaction? I don’t know. People in my age group at least had to see each other to play video games. What will the future hold? Who knows? Complete asynchronous communication is what we are going towards.Excuse me, I have to go change my facebook profile to say “It’s complicated” with this girl I met at the bar a few weeks ago instead of single. All of my friends and their friends and people in my network want to know. 

Technorati Tags: Social

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That iPhone3G is a hot topic… you think?!!

This in from Apple, ““comScore has today released the results of a study into iPhone related searches” during the month of April, reports Davey Winder (itwire.com).The study “reveals that there were 6.9 million searches on related keywords during that period.” Of the 6.9 million searches, 1.5 million of them were for the term “iPhone” and Google delivered 88.4% of the search returns.”

I’m sorry, but please tell me again why a firm shouldn’t look into designing or porting an app to the iPhone platform?  Stranger things have happened I know, but the iPhone isn’t going anywhere anytime soon and with the upcoming 3G launch set to launch in over 70 countries why wouldn’t you investigate the resources to look into this for your product?

Technorati Tags: 3g, Apple, iphone

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Thanks FreshBooks!

A big thanks goes out to Saul Colt of FreshBooks for hosting some of the DC customers at Lauriol Plaza in Washinton DC tonight.  We had a great time meeting some new faces from the DC tech community and a chance to share with Saul some of the things we love about FreshBooks invoicing.Some items/requests we raised were:

• More power through the widget (ability to add a project on the fly)
• Future updates FreshBooks may get into in the future
• Ability to import an address book (vcf)
• Customizable invoicing (design of actual invoice itself)
• And a couple other things I’ll save the PR folks at FreshBooks to cover…
• And a new one I just found out, if you enter the wrong password twice your account gets locked/disabled.  (doh!)

Thanks again Saul and the FreshBooks Team!

Technorati Tags: DC, freshbooks

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We’re all going to remember this image…

There’s always TIME Magazine’s Person of the Year, Top 10 Scientific Breakthroughs of the Year, etc.  They (TechCrunch, Valleywag, etc.) need to introduce image of the year in 2008.  And I think I know which image would win:

Frustrated with the Twitter “twitRIPs” (rest in peace) messages.  Anyone else? 

Technorati Tags: twitrip

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Convergence at its best… mock up of course.

This post on MacRumors.com excites me.  “One final intriguing possibility also described is using the docking/undocking of the iPhone to trigger certain events.

Mock design by ACU

This my friends is convergence at its best.  If Apple were to adopt this model this would be an excellent example of Next Generation Networking (NGN).  Now if only the Android platform would look into doing the same with GoogleTalk… hmm.

Technorati Tags: Android, convergence, iphone, NGN

Posted in Apple, Upcoming, What's Next | No Comments »

GSP East 2008 underway…

In case you’ve missed it - the 2008 Graphing Social Patterns East is under way in Washington D.C. this week.  Stay informed by visiting their updates. Much to learn…

What is GSP?
GSP is the premier conference for developers and marketers building and distributing apps for MySpace, Facebook, OpenSocial and other social networking platforms. Happening June 9-11, 2008 in the Washington, DC area, this event is for both business executives and technical developers who want to learn more about the evolving environment, and how to reach online communities using new and established social networking platforms and applications.  GSP is three days of tutorials, sessions and keynotes exploring social networks from two perspectives.  Discover more about the ongoing event here.

Technorati Tags: DC, GSP, social networks

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Kill the Mouse for a Touch Screen UI? It depends.

Stacey Higginbotham made an interesting point this morning on Gigaom.com, “Look, I know Bill Gates has a vision for touch and speech navigation, and I’ve already admitted that touch is pretty compelling on a mobile phone, but when it comes to the PC, who over the age of five wants to touch the screen? Check out the photo of the little girl gliding her little digits across the new desktop PC. Touch is a cool idea for phones and other devices that aren’t on display or have large screens, but as a UI for a PC, I tend to think we still need something standing between us and the monitor.”

I have to disagree with her last line… I think it depends who you are.  Yesterday, deep down, I was actually hoping Apple would announce the death of the mouse at WWDC - they didn’t (apparently the iPhone3G seems to be hot topic these days).  Implementing a touch UI is something we know is coming, but is anyone else somewhat shocked that Apple is now behind Microsoft and HP with touch screen devices that aren’t a phone?  Despite not being the early adopter on the larger computing devices I think its safe to say that Apple is patiently waiting in the wings to see how well Microsoft & HP’s touch devices sell before Apple itself expands into this realm.

To clarify, I am not suggesting that we remove the mouse completely from our computing platforms, but for many it would be beneficial to have a slightly bigger keyboard by removing the trackpad from our laptops and by removing the additional piece of equipment from our desktops.  Graphic designers and several others will probably scream bloody murder if the mouse was removed and everyone’s Parents across the globe wouldn’t know how to play Solitare without a mouse, but it doesn’t mean we can’t explore the possbility does it?

Technorati Tags: kill the mouse

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Local DC Startup: Distribtive Networks

Though they were founded in 2004 I still think this company is worth highlighting.  They are heavy players in the mobile community and they were recently highlighted in an article on RCRWirelessNews.com.

From their About Us page, “Founded in 2004, Distributive Networks quickly established its reputation as the premier partner for mobile text content. Our portfolio of products and services has expanded along with the needs of our clients to include full-scale mobile marketing enablement (such as mobile coupons, contests and WAP services) and end-to-end technical and customer service support for our partners in media, public relations, consumer products and the political/advocacy arena.”

From the RCR Wireless News article focusing on the recent candidates use of mobile texting, “The [Obama] campaign quickly built on the service, which is powered by SinglePoint, a Seattle-area interactive mobile firm, and a Beltway startup called Distributive Networks: A mobile site was built, offering free ringtones (clips from Obama’s speeches) and wallpapers, and voters can send questions via text message to get policy statements and other information. The mobile site also includes information on how to donate or volunteer, and is promoted through a prominently placed icon on the campaign’s Web site.”

If you’re interested in more of this DC company, check them out @ www.distributivenetworks.com.

Technorati Tags: DC, tech

Posted in DC, Mobile, Start Ups | No Comments »

In-flight WiFi, what about In-airport WiFi?

The airline industry continues to harp the introduction of in-flight WiFi by US airlines. According to the report, WiFi while in flight is going to be offered via satellite in some cases and via ground towers in others depending on the airline. These services will be offered for anywhere from 10-13 dollars a flight according to some industry sources. Unfortunately, WiFi will not become ubiquitous until 2010.

I look forward to wifi being offered on flights, but why hasn’t wifi become more of a commodity in airports?

According to WiFiFreeSpot.com, “Many Airport authorities are adding Free Wi-Fi high speed internet access as an amenity for travelers. Some offer access in the entire airport while others may limit access to specified terminal or waiting areas. In addition, many airline club lounges may have their own free access available.”  Looking for a list?  Follow the link.

Technorati Tags: wifi

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Want to be the best? We need to attract the best.

This is a little dated but I still found it worth noting.  The awards reception for the Washington Business Journal is to be held on June 13, 2008 showcasing the “Top 50 Best Places to Work in Greater Washington.”  After they announced the list at the end of April I didn’t think much of it, until I compared it to the listing of many “DC Tech Companies” missing from the list.  The local DC Tech Community may be growing, but I think this highlights another topic of discussion to focus on: finding an employer worth working for.

And it doesn’t need to be a big tech company.

For example,  Meebo (with the backing of several VCs) was selected to the Bay Area’s “Best Places to Work” by the San Francisco Business Times, Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal, and East Bay Business Times.  “The publication surveyed 200,000 employees and asked them to rate their workplace’s culture, management, benefits, etc. meebo ranked fifth place in the small company category of under 50 employees.”

Where do you think the DC Tech Companies would align if we had a similar ranking?

Technorati Tags: DC, tech

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