Jumat, 13 Agustus 2010

Mashable: Latest 23 News Updates - including “5 Tips for Dealing with Complaints on Twitter”

Mashable: Latest 23 News Updates - including “5 Tips for Dealing with Complaints on Twitter”

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5 Tips for Dealing with Complaints on Twitter

Posted: 13 Aug 2010 04:00 AM PDT


Megan Berry is Marketing Manager for Klout, the standard for online influence. She also blogs at The Huffington Post and Brazen Careerist. You can follow her on Twitter at @meganberry.

Every business, blogger, and the rest of us on social media have experienced it: someone just called you out on Twitter or in a blog. It's all too easy to get frustrated and respond with something that will just make the situation worse ("I'll give you a refund right away… oh wait, you didn't actually pay for this!") or to take it personally and get upset.

While there is no magic formula for dealing with complaints in social media, I do have a few tips that have helped me.

1. A Quick Response Goes a Long Way

I can't tell you how many complaints I've seen turned around with a quick reply. If someone has an issue with your product or misunderstood your point of view, reach out and explain it to them. Most of the time when they realize that you're actually paying attention and care, that makes all the difference (for the rest of the time, see number five).

Of course, this assumes you are actually paying attention. So if you're not, you might want to look into ways to monitor your brand on social media.

2. You May Have To Respond As You, Not Your Company

When someone has a legitimate complaint, I've found one of the most effective things to do is reach out from your personal account. In my experience, when they realize they're dealing with a real person who's trying to help, people are more open and willing to listen. This shouldn't be done for every complaint, as some people will never be turned around, but I've found when there's a real, resolvable issue this method often works much better.

3. Give Yourself More Than 140 Characters To Respond

At times, it's just impossible to help someone in 140 characters. Or it's possible, but you would have to be really terse — which is definitely not going to make you seem understanding. Instead, ask them how to connect off Twitter (shocking, I know). Shoot the complainant an e-mail or even give them a call and you'll be surprised how far a little outreach goes.

4. Let Someone Else Respond For You

If there's no way you can respond in a helpful way — e.g., if it would make you seem self-serving or maybe you've already tried and failed — it can be helpful to have someone else speak up for you.

If you have haters, you probably also have fans, and they're probably very willing to spring to your defense. Maybe they've even already done, in which case, their response might be much more effective than yours and you can just leave well enough along.

If they haven't already responded, consider bringing the issue to the attention of a few of your fans. Do so carefully and cautiously. Only do it with people you have actual relationships with and only in a lightweight, non-pushy way. I find the best way is actually just to privately ask for feedback on a complaint — maybe it has merit and you don't realize it or maybe they can help you understand what's going on.

5. Know When To Let It Go

The truth is, you simply won't be able to turn everyone around. The trick (I'm still working on it) is to not let it get to you. No business or person is going to make it without having a few haters — so if you have some, you might just be doing something right. Just don't take that line of thinking too far!

Bottom line, the complainers won't go away, but you can choose how you deal with them. Some of them will be legitimate complaints from reasonable people that will be touched when you reach out quickly and earnestly to help them. Others… well you know what they say: "Haters gonna hate.”

More Twitter Resources from Mashable:

- 5 Terrific Twitter Mapping Tools
- 5 Fab Twitter Follower Visualization Tools
- 10 Free and Fun Twitter Bird Icons for your Website
- 5 Free Ways to Never Miss a Twitter @Reply
- The Origin of Twitter's "Fail Whale"

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, swilmor

Reviews: Twitter, iStockphoto

More About: business, cusomter complaints, haters, respond, twitter

For more Social Media coverage:

HOW TO: Use Tweet Buttons as a Blogger or Site Owner

Posted: 13 Aug 2010 01:32 AM PDT


The official Tweet Button has arrived; and while it’s as simple as a single click to use for the vast majority of end users, it brings scores of questions for casual and professional bloggers and other publishers.

How can I put a tweet button on my WordPress.com blog posts? How can I check the stats for my tweet button links? How do these buttons work with Blogger?

Here are a few quick pointers for how to use the official Tweet Buttons for fun and profit. If you have questions about how to integrate the buttons with a specific platform, be sure to let us know in the comments; the Mashable staff and community would love to help you out!

The Basic Code

First of all, Tweet Buttons work with a little bit of HTML and a little bit of JavaScript. If you go to Twitter’s page on the buttons, you’ll get an auto-generated snippet of code to pop into your site’s HTML wherever you’d like the button to appear. Alternatively, you can use an iFrame, remembering to use query string parameters to customize the button's behavior. You can choose one of three design styles, as well.

If you’re relatively code-savvy and you feel like getting fancy, you can also build your own dang Tweet Button using this link (that’s twitter.com/share) and customizing the styling and behavior of the button itself any way you choose. Alternatively, if you’re not terribly code savvy or you’re using a platform that won’t let you edit too much of the code yourself, you can always use the same URL to create a text link that mimics the behavior of a Tweet Button:

Integrating With Your CMS

The cut-and-paste JavaScript method should work just fine for many mini-blog platforms. On Tumblr, just navigate to the customization interface, select the Theme tag, and edit the HTML, inserting Twitter’s code in any block where you want the Tweet Button to appear.

If you use Posterous, head to the Look and Feel section of your dashboard, click the Edit Theme button, then click the Advanced tab. From there, you should be able to click the link that reads “Enable advanced theming.” This will open up a different interface that will allow you to edit the code for your blog; again, just past the Tweet Button code anywhere you’d like the button to appear.

However, if you run a blog on WordPress.com, you probably already know that JavaScript doesn’t play very nicely with your content management system, and you might not be interested in building your own button from scratch. We’re happy to report that there’s a simple, built-in way to add Tweet Buttons to all your posts automatically. Simply open your Appearances menu, click Extras, and select the option that reads “Show a Twitter Tweet Button on my posts.” Many thanks to The Next Web for passing on this handy tip!

If your blog is on the Blogger platform, there’s a different little trick for you to try. Once you login to your Blogger Dashboard, you’ll need to navigate to the Design section, then select the option Edit HTML. Then, check the box reading “Expand Widget Templates.” Once you’re there, you’ll be able to paste in a code snippet, which will put a Tweet Button on all your blog posts. To grab the code and get details on how to edit some of the button’s parameters, head over to Blogger Plugins.

Extras: Browser Plugin and Stats

And if you’d like to have a Tweet Button with you at all times as you browse the web for great content from your fellow bloggers, here’s a handy Chrome extension that just might become a favorite. It functions just like Twitter’s official Tweet Button, being built on the same code, and it shows you the tweet count for each page as you navigate around the Internet.

Sadly, for the time being, there’s no real way to check the stats on tweets for your posts — not yet, anyhow. At Chirp, Twitter’s developer conference earlier this year, execs hinted that some interesting analytics packages were in the works. We’re speculating that taking control of retweets is a first step toward competing with companies like Bit.ly in offering stats and metrics on Twitter sharing of posts and pages. Perhaps there will be a free or inexpensive stats package for casual bloggers, small businesses and others who want more than just a tweet count, too.

Any Other Tips?

What have your experiences with the Tweet Button been so far as a content publisher? Have you run into — or better yet, have you worked around — any bugs with various CMSes? Let us know any tips or tricks you have in the comments, and if you have any lingering questions, be sure to post them here, as well.

Reviews: Chirp Blu, Internet, Mashable, Posterous, Twitter, WordPress, blogger

More About: blog, blogger, bloggers, posterous, publishers, tumblr, tweet button, twitter, Wordpress

For more Social Media coverage:

15 of the Funniest Facebook Questions [PICS]

Posted: 13 Aug 2010 01:02 AM PDT


Since the launch of Facebook’s new “Questions” feature which lets you crowdsource answers from your social circle, we’ve been dying to see just what is being asked.

As we suspected, Facebook Questions turns out to be a pretty good source of humor, and during our browsing we came across some funny questions, or questions which could receive funny answers. Of course, we thought we’d share our favorites with you.

Have a look through our light-hearted Q&A gallery and let us know any humorous Facebook Questions you’ve spotted in the comments box below.


1.




There are these four elephants, yeah? And they are standing on the back of a giant turtle... wait, where are you going? Next!


2.




E-mailing, mostly. Next!


3.




You'd have to be not concentrating pretty darn hard to be force-fed a bogey. Make him wear gloves and see how the nose-mining goes then. Next!


4.




You'll never need to do any real math beyond what you learned in grade school in the real world, and if you do, that's what accountants are for, duh. Oh, and you'll NEVER have any use for a parabola. Trust us. Next!


5.




The ASPCA comes. Next!


6.




Oh noes! You've worked out Zuckerberg's Top Secret plan! Watch your back... Next!


7.




Yeah, sure buddy! We've a ton of 'em just lying around. Let us know your mailing address and we'll get a couple over to you. Next!


8.




Unfortunately you can't. You'll have to either find a time machine and propel yourself a day into the future (without the phone, of course) or wait until there's two leap years in a row, which will mean you'll finally be in the same time zone as your phone. Next!


9.




It means you're the guinea-pig for a company with no budget or time to launch a fully-fledged product. In the case of Google it means pretty much nothing.


10.




We're sorry, the Fashion Police have issued Facebook with a removal notice for this question. Next!


11.




Yeah, kids can be really hard work until you break their spirit... Next!


12.




The sky. Next!


13.




Why, Chuck Norris, obviously. Next!


14.




Not especially. But we know a kid who does. Next!


15.




We think the more pressing question here is why?

More Facebook resources from Mashable

- 10 Fascinating Facebook Facts
- 10 Cool Facebook Status Tips and Tricks
- 9 Fantastic Facebook Pages for Fashion
- HOW TO: Build Your Personal Brand on Facebook
- Facebook Pages vs Facebook Groups: What’s the Difference?
- Killer Facebook Pages: 5 Inspiring Case Studies
- How Charities are #FindingTheGood With Facebook Pages

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, pearleye

Reviews: iStockphoto

More About: crowdsourcing, facebook, Facebook Questions, gallery, List, Lists, social networking

For more Social Media coverage:

Romeo for iPad: MySpace Has Made a Pandora for Music Videos

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 09:40 PM PDT


MySpace has launched Music Romeo, an iPad app that makes it simple to play, discover and save music videos in a way that’s strikingly similar to Pandora Radio.

The free application uses a very simple discovery mechanism to deliver MySpace’s vast catalog of music videos to the iPad. First, you choose the type of music you want to hear (e.g. Jazz, Rock, Pop, Blues), then you pick your mood (e.g. Happy, Sad, Naughty, Partying).

After that, all you have to do is sit back and let MySpace choose music videos for you.  Once a video is done, Romeo chooses a new song it think you’ll enjoy.  The app has built-in controls to pause, skip, share and “Love” different videos.

If there’s anything that defines this app though, it’s the love theme, hence the name Romeo?  The “Love” button lets you bookmark your favorite videos.  While you can’t watch the videos you love directly, there is an option to play more music videos like the ones you “Love.”  Romeo takes those “Loves” into account as it delivers new music videos to your doorstep. 

MySpace Music Video screams Pandora.  The parallels are definitely not by accident; this app is designed to be a customizable station for music videos, and on that criterion, it delivers beautifully.  It’s simple, it’s elegant and it has more than enough music videos to keep you occupied for hours at a time.

The app is also dynamic.  Utilizing algorithmic technology from We Are Hunted, Romeo scans social networks and blogs to see what music is currently trending in order to deliver the most hip and up-to-date music experience possible.  The result is an app that takes into account what you like and what’s hot on the web.

Romeo for iPad generates revenue through iTunes sales and the occasional commercial.  We have say: we’re more than willing to deal with the occasional Skittles commercial for this app.  We’re pleasantly surprised.

If you try out the app, post your impressions in the comments.

Reviews: MySpace, Pandora, love

More About: ipad, myspace, myspace music, MySpace Music Romeo, pandora, Romeo

Oracle Sues Google Over Android

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 07:14 PM PDT


Claiming egregious IP infringement, Oracle has filed suit against Google over its ever-more-popular mobile operating system, Android.

In a statement released today, an Oracle rep stated, “In developing Android, Google knowingly, directly and repeatedly infringed Oracle’s Java-related intellectual property. This lawsuit seeks appropriate remedies for their infringement.”

Last year, Oracle acquired Sun Microsystems and, along with it, Java. In its formal complaint, Oracle calls the Java platform “one of the most important technologies Oracle acquired with Sun.” And no one can argue that the platform isn’t ubiquitous and very important in the technology industries.

Claiming that Android competes with Java as “an operating system software platform for cellular telephones and other mobile devices” and that the Android stack employs Java apps running on a Java-based framework, Oracle says that Android and the Android SDK infringe on its patents, and it wants to see some cash for its unwitting involvement in the mobile OS’s success.

Oracle also says Google has known about these patents since the middle of the decade when the latter company hired several Sun Java engineers.

In addition to patent violations, Oracle is also claiming copyright infringement; Java’s code is copyrighted, and Oracle believes Google has used it without any kind of license.

And remember that Android is open-source software and that a lot of manufacturers and developers are involved in making the Android platform what it is. The kicker in this lawsuit is Oracle’s assertion that Google has “induced, caused and materially contributed to the infringing acts of others by encouraging… others to use, copy and distribute” what could be called derivative works.

In addition to requesting monetary compensation, Oracle is also asking that all copies of Java-related work be “impounded and destroyed or otherwise reasonably disposed of.” Does this mean Oracle wants to bring a complete end to Android as it stands if, in fact, the OS uses Java code?

Only time (and a bunch of lawyers, a jury and a judge) will tell what becomes of this lawsuit.

Interested parties can check out the documents Oracle filed, which have been posted on VentureBeat.

What’s your opinion: Guilty or not guilty? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Reviews: Android, Google

More About: android, Google, lawsuit, oracle, trending

For more Tech coverage:

Internet Explorer 9 Beta Launches on September 15

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 06:18 PM PDT


Microsoft will be launching the completely revamped Internet Explorer 9 at an event in San Francisco on September 15, but will it be enough to turn the tide in the war for web browser supremacy?

The September event will mark the first time the world will have the chance to play with the beta for the entirely overhauled browser. The first details surrounding IE9 were revealed back in November. Since then, Microsoft has launched four platform previews detailing IE9’s adherence to web standards.

More importantly though, the platform previews tout the browser’s hardware acceleration capability, which we have to say is nothing short of impressive — check out the video below to see what we mean.

Microsoft is serious about its position in the web browser market. While Internet Explorer remains the world’s most popular browser, it has experienced a steady decline since 2004. Recently though, Microsoft’s browser has been staging a comeback, slowly regaining market one percentage point at a time.

We’ll see if Microsoft can really deliver on its promise to “beautify the web” next month.

More About: Firefox, google chrome, IE9, Internet Explorer 9, microsoft

For more Tech coverage:

“Paypal for Groups” Startup WePay Raises $7.5M Series B

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 05:31 PM PDT


WePay can most quickly be described as a sort of Paypal for groups. It allows users to collect, manage and send money as a group online.

Hypothetically, it works well for clubs, small organizations, roommates and other groups and could become a household name — at any rate, the VCs at Highland Capital certainly think so. They’ve led a $7.5 million Series B for the startup, which was joined by August Capital. The latter firm also led the startup’s Series A eight months ago. Dave McClure and Ron Conway were also early investors.

WePay began as a Y Combinator startup and has recently added Rasmus Lerdorf, the creator of PHP, as a lead developer on the company’s APIs.

If you’re a brilliant hacker and you think you’d might like to work with Lerdorf and the rest of the WePay team, you’re in luck; the latest round of funding will partly be used to beef up the company’s engineering staff. Co-founder and CEO Bill Clerico said in a release today, "After several months of both steady growth and exceptional user engagement, this latest round of financing will allow us to substantially expand our operations and engineering team, dramatically increase marketing efforts and continue to build our user base."

This type of deal is consistent with the ever-popular trend of funding startups that have built-in revenue mechanisms. Although signup, group creation, joining a group and making payments are all free on WePay, the site charges a flat fee or percentage for all incoming transactions. The company’s also listed a healthy roster of charges for its prepaid Visa cards.

With that kind of revenue stream baked into the service, what is a 50-cents-here, 3.5%-there trickle at the outset can turn into a billion-dollar tsunami at scale, a fact which no investor could overlook.

What do you think: Does WePay’s service have you seeing dollar signs?

[img credit: donbuciak]

Reviews: PHP

More About: funding, series b, vc, venture capital, wepay, y combinator

For more Business coverage:

Hilarious “Twitter Movie Trailer” Parody Hits YouTube

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 04:07 PM PDT


We’ve seen a lovely little flock of The Social Network-inspired mock-trailers lately.

The trailer for the upcoming Facebook movie has caused quite a stir on the tubes, so we should have expected this string of parodies. So far, we’ve seen some funny entries based on YouTube and MySpace; the “Twitter movie trailer,” however, is definitely laugh-out-loud material.

Based not at all on the true story of Twitter cofounders Jack Dorsey, Ev Williams and Biz Stone, the trailer is mostly a tongue-in-cheek send-up of the original The Social Network trailer.

The mock-trailer for the fake movie, dubbed The Twit Network, pokes fun at the inanity of some tweets’ content, our collective self-absorption, our obsession with celebrities and the painful convention of affixing “tw-” to beginning of any word related to social media.

As silly as it is, the spoof highlights how much we’ve dramatized something as technical and complex as creating a web startup. Do you think the Hollywood treatment looks good on Silicon Valley? Do you plan to see the Facebook movie when it’s released?

[hat tip: @matzner]

Reviews: Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, YouTube

More About: movie, the social network, trailer, twitter, video

For more Web Video coverage:

Find Out What’s Trending on Facebook

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 02:46 PM PDT


This post is part of Mashable's Spark of Genius series, which highlights a unique feature of startups. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark.. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Booshaka

Quick Pitch: Booshaka shows you what’s trending on Facebook — right now. Booshaka aims to show the freshest, most relevant posts across the social web.

Genius Idea: With 500 million members, Facebook is the largest social network in the world and one of the primary places on the web where memes get started and hot topics are shared and discussed. Booshaka is a trend engine that works to surface publicly shared Facebook content and identify network-wide trends in real time.

Just as is the case with real-time Twitter search engines, users can use Booshaka to search what people on Facebook are saying about any given keyword. Those interested in a more general, hot topic search can select from pre-determined categories — think News, Deals, Brands and Gossip — to dive into Facebook chatter and view what’s trending.

Whether users define their own searches or opt for the category route, they can filter results for Trending Now, Most Popular, Most Buzz and Most Recent. Booshaka returns Facebook status updates as results and details total Likes, comments and buzz percentile. Users can then share individual results on Twitter or Facebook.

As a Facebook search engine, Booshaka is one of the first services to offer instant access to the public status updates resonating with Facebook users. For marketers, it could prove to be a useful utility in identifying the pulse of the people on Facebook, and for members it could serve as tool to catch up on the hot topics, news and gossip of the day.

Sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark

BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

Reviews: Facebook, Twitter, news

More About: booshaka, facebook, trends

For more Social Media coverage:

What You Need To Know About Data Portability

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 01:55 PM PDT


Elias Bizannes is the chairperson and executive director of the DataPortability Project. He is also the founder of the StartupBus, the Silicon Beach community, and works at search engine startup Vast.com, Inc.

Data Portability can be loosely described as the free flow of people's personal information across the Internet, within their control. It has now become a standard term in the Internet industry in the context of cloud computing, open standards and privacy.

Examples of data portability include:

  • Being able to import all your social network connections, media and other data to another service with the click of a button.
  • The ability to reuse your health records when visiting different doctors and jurisdictions.
  • Not having to re-enter your credit card information when a service you use changes payment gateways.

Why Does it Matter for People?

Your data is exactly that: It’s yours. It should be your right to be able to control what you and others do with it. If you upload your photos to Facebook, why can't you access them in the community-sharing website Flickr, or edit those same photos without re-uploading them with the online version of Photoshop? No company online should own you. No company offline owns humans, so why can't you do what you want with your data online?

We are at a point in the Internet’s evolution where there are thousands of services that can reuse the same data. The storage of data is now a separate value function from the processing or output of it. We can now build a world where we have privacy-respecting interoperability and unlock value, in the same way trade agreements between countries have brought a higher standard of living to populations that suffer a comparative disadvantage.

To use another analogy, consider how money is a standard value exchange in all economies. Sophisticated financial systems have been developed that allow money stored in one bank to be transferred to another bank or organization (for instance, when you pay a restaurant with a debit card). This free flow of money in a regulated system has given us more freedom, security, and utility with regard to personal finance. In turn, this has enabled greater economic opportunities in many parts of the world.

So why can't our personal information work the same way? Why can't anything connected to the Internet adhere to interoperability standards so that –- with your full control -– data can flow to another system with no extra effort? The answer is that it can, but companies have not yet realized the full benefits of opening their platforms up. Furthermore, it’s clear that consumers want data portability, but they have no way to channel their demand, and as such, companies have not made it a priority.

Why Does it Matter for Companies?

Data, such as people’s personal information, can lose value over time. For example, a social network that keeps historical data of your occupation, relationships, or city of residence may be inaccurate today if they’ve focused on hoarding your data rather than building a relationship with you that makes you want to keep it up-to-date. Companies that wish to monetize your data or create value (like using your social graph to personalize an experience), will benefit not from owning your data — as so-called “walled gardens” of the past have tried to — but rather by cultivating a relationship with you — one in which they have persistant access to you. The consequences of this way of thinking are profound. Instead of the hostility that comes when users are locked in, it encourages innovation and superior service to ensure that the flow of data doesn’t close off.

Companies can also get a bigger piece of the data pie when embracing portability. If web services could assemble as a “federation” based on trusted data exchanges, they could get access to more timely and relevant data than they otherwise would on their own. The pie is bigger and everyone benefits.

What is a Data Portability Policy?

The technology to enable data portability does exist. What we lack in business however, is a cultural acceptance that opening up your data to competing services is beneficial.

What we also lack is broader consumer awareness, or rather, the ability to channel our requests in a way that is understood by service providers. It's hard to imagine why we needed the Internet before we had it, but now that we do, it has become so crucial to commerce, education and journalism that governments are legislating access to it as a legal right. When it comes to data portability, we as consumers lack a common language for this kind of targeted advocacy.

This is where the concept of the “portability policy” comes in. Whereas a privacy policy discloses what a company can do with your data, a portability policy discloses how a user can access and transfer their own data once it’s stored with that company.

Websites, for the most part, are doing great things for their users, but there isn’t a standard way of communicating what rights they provide. Instituting a uniform portability policy allows us to compare websites side-by-side. It’s a form of disclosure to discharge accountability to a website’s stakeholders, in the same way that capital markets require companies to discharge their accountability through financial reporting.

The incentive for a company to have a portability policy is simple: It builds trust. By disclosing the policy in common terms, you are opening a communication channel with your users and will be able to better manage expectations.

What Should Be Included In a Data Portability Policy?

At a minimum, a Portability Policy should answer the questions on the Portability Policy questionnaire created by my organization. (A free tool has also been released that can assist you with this with a proforma.) Not all the questions need an answer; for some industries they may not have relevance.

Take the opportunity to answer the questions and explain why your company has approached the issues of data portability in the way that you have. For example, you might want to explain why you support a specific type of open standard to the detriment of another when answering the question about APIs and documented data formats (e.g., “We support the ATOM protocol but not other RSS standards, because we believe ATOM is technically superior to alternatives.”), or you can give an insight into your future plans (e.g., “We currently allow you to use your existing identities, such as Facebook, Yahoo, and Google, to login into our service. We also support the OpenID standard because we believe in advancing this open effort. However, we do not support authenticating with your Twitter identity because we believe the costs of supporting this authentication outweighs the benefit – few of our users seem to have Twitter accounts. With that said, we are open to changing our policy if demand warrants it.”).

Several companies have already launched Portability Policies. Examples include the .tel registrar, location startup Topguest and media company Tubefilter. As you will notice, each has answered the same set of questions very differently, based on the circumstances of their markets.

The Portability Policy initiative is still in its infant stages and will grow as awareness increases, with more specific questions emerging when issues are identified. In the meantime, you can help by asking companies a simple question: Where's your portability policy?

More Data Resources from Mashable:

- How Data Will Impact the Way We Do Business
- How Online Retailers Can Leverage Facebook's Open Graph
- Why You Need to Monitor and Measure Your Brand on Social Media
- How Open Data Applications are Improving Government
- 5 Ways To Turn Your Traffic Into Valuable User Data

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Yakobchuk

[img credit: Anne Helmond]

Reviews: Adobe Photoshop, Facebook, Flickr, Google, Internet, Twitter, iStockphoto

More About: business, data, data portability, information, internet, portability, privacy, small business, transfer

For more Business coverage:

Track Social Media Campaigns from Inside Microsoft Excel

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 01:08 PM PDT


Social media monitoring company RowFeeder has launched an analytics solution that gives marketers and brands the ability to monitor and measure social media data from inside Microsoft Excel.

The product is built on Excel, so instead of simply exporting data, RowFeeder generates native Excel files with pre-populated charts, visualizations and pivot tables all based around a company’s raw social media data. The idea behind the service is to bring sophisticated social media data crunching to marketers in a format that they’re familiar with.

RowFeeder tracks and aggregates data around any word, phrase, hashtag or username on Facebook and Twitter. Automated report types include velocity analysis to chart keyword activity on social sites, location analysis to find out where conversations are happening, and influencer and people analysis.

The reports are designed to appeal to marketers managing and tracking multiple campaigns. From the looks of it, the charts and graphs are also boss-friendly tools employees can use to highlight ROI on social media activity.

RowFeeder is a freemium service with paid plans starting at $5 per month for professionals and $250 per month for enterprise businesses. The service also integrates with Google Docs and Klout for influence analytics.

[img credit: kasprzol]

Reviews: Facebook, Google Docs, Twitter

More About: analytics, Excel, facebook, MARKETING, microsoft excel, rowfeeder, social media analytics, social media monitoring, twitter

For more Social Media coverage:

Facebook Adds the Open Graph to iOS Developer Toolkit

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 12:53 PM PDT


Facebook is continuing its push to spread Open Graph to every corner of the web (including mobile) with a new version of the Facebook SDK for iOS.

The new SDK (software development kit) gives iPhone, iPad and iPod touch developers easier access to Facebook’s massively ambitious Open Graph API. Launched at Facebook’s F8 conference earlier this year, the Open Graph protocol makes it easier for third-party websites to integrate Facebook functions onto their webpages, most prominently the now-ubiquitous “Like” button.

The new devkit comes with a second major addition: support for Facebook OAuth 2.0. It replaces Facebook Connect, which is being phased out in favor of the OAuth open standard.

The Facebook SDK for iOS brings that functionality to millions of iOS devices, but the SDK is really for the iPhone and iPad apps that want to beef up their social functionality. Three months ago, the social network launched the Facebook SDK for Android, which brought the same features to Android app developers.

Reviews: Android, Facebook, iPhone

More About: apple, development, facebook, facebook mobile, iOS, Mobile 2.0, SDK

For more Dev & Design coverage:

12 Beginner Tutorials for Getting Started With Photoshop

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 11:50 AM PDT


This series is supported by Ben & Jerry’s Joe, Ben & Jerry’s new line-up of Fair Trade and frozen iced coffee drinks. Learn more about it here.

Adobe Photoshop, the ubiquitous and industry standard graphics software for photographers, designers, digital artists, as well as casual enthusiasts, can be a baffling application to understand the first time you fire it up. Luckily, littered across the vast space of the web are tutorials in all shapes and sizes that will help you get up and running in no time.

In this post, I’ve pieced together 12 excellent Photoshop tutorials geared toward beginners. If you’re a complete novice or a casual user of this software, you’ve stopped by the right place.

Because this is specifically for beginners — and because Photoshop’s robust set of features is near-bottomless — I’ve skipped intermediate and advanced topics such as drawing with the Pen tool and working with 3D effects.

If you have tips for aspiring Photoshoppers, share them in the comments below.

1. Getting Started with Photoshop

This tutorial on SitePoint, a popular site for web professionals, will guide you through the Photoshop fundamentals and the basic tools available at your disposal. It’s an excellent jump-off point that will give you an understanding of what you’re up against.

The tutorial starts with a bird’s-eye view of Photoshop’s workspace to get the reader familiarized with the lay of the land. Then it goes on to cover essential concepts such as saving files (and the various popular formats for the web), an introduction to shortcuts that all Photoshoppers should know, how to choose colors, and much more.

2. Photoshop’s Toolbox

If you’re just starting out with Photoshop, you will no doubt be spending plenty of your time using the Tools panel, which contains various tools for working with type, painting, drawing, moving objects, and so forth.

In this Photoshop tutorial, you will get a beginner’s overview of the various tools contained within the Tools panel. From the selection tools to the retouching tools, you’ll learn all about them and their uses.

3. Photoshop For Beginners: The Power of Layers

The most important concept you should understand about Photoshop is its layering system. Layers allow you to stack different objects and images to keep your work separated, ordered, and easily editable.

This guide will walk you through the utility of layers using a hands-on, step-by-step approach (so fire up Photoshop and get ready to get your hands dirty before diving in).

4. Photoshop’s Filters

In photography, filters are camera accessories that you place on your lens to capture photos that will have fascinating effects. This concept is digitally incorporated into Photoshop and is a convenient way of editing your images quickly. Filters can be functional (such as the Sharpen filters to help you correct blurry photos) or stylistic (such as the Texture filters that give your images unique texture effects).

By reading through this tutorial, you will uncover the power of filters in Photoshop.

5. Layer Styles in Photoshop

Layer styles are one or more effects that alter a layer. For example, if you wanted to make a layer semitransparent or if you wanted to give your text one of those slick "Web 2.0" gradient effects, you can do so by applying and adjusting layer styles.

Adding layer styles, using layer style presets that come with Photoshop, what the various layer effects do, and more are covered in this tutorial.

6. Photoshop 101 – Adjustment Layers

Adjustment layers are Photoshop layers that affect all other layers beneath them (unless you use an adjustment layer as a clipping mask — but that’s an advanced topic for another day). It’s typically used to enhance a graphic, such as if you want to adjust the colors of an image (which you can do with the Color Balance adjustment layer).

This crash course in adjustment layers shows you what you can do with them in Photoshop.

7. Retouch and Healing Tools

For most casual Photoshop users, the most enticing and important utility is the software’s ability to correct, digitally enhance, and fix photos.

This Photoshop tutorial covers the various tools and commands that you can use to retouch and enhance your image, including a run-down of the Patch tool, sharpening tools, and more.

8. A Comprehensive Introduction to the Type Tool

Whether you want to add a text caption on a photograph, lay out a brochure’s copy, or create your typographical poster masterpiece, the tool that will help you get the work accomplished is the humble, but powerful, Type tool.

Creating text layers, resizing and modifying text, and adjusting text characteristics, such as tracking and line-height, are a few of the topics covered in this tutorial.

9. Photoshop 101: How To Use The Free Transform Tool

The Free Transform command is going to be your go-to tool for resizing, rotating, and modifying your graphics. This Photoshop tutorial will show you just how handy Free Transform is in your image editing workflow.

10. Master Photoshops Selection Tools in Under 30 Minutes

Maybe you want to remove the background from a photo, or select just a certain object in an image and use it in another Photoshop document. Whatever the case, selecting things inside your canvas is a task you should expect to do plenty of times in your ’shopping career.

Set aside 30 minutes, follow this Photoshop tutorial, and you’ll know all there is to know about the assorted tools and techniques for selecting areas in your work.

11. Installing And Managing Brushes And Other Presets

If you’d like to speed up your workflow and extend Photoshop, it’s best to understand how to manage presets. This tutorial specifically covers installing and managing Photoshop brushes, but will also get you started into exploring various other presets such as patterns, custom shapes, and so forth.

12. Photoshop Actions

Do you find yourself repeating certain tasks in Photoshop over and over again? Maybe you’re constantly resizing your images manually to a certain width and then saving them as a JPEG for use on your blog. Or maybe you’ve unearthed the perfect combination and sequence of filters and layer styles, and would like a way to automatically apply it to a batch of images. Check out Photoshop actions, a feature that enables you to record and save a sequence of actions.

In this 6-part tutorial, you will learn about the built-in Photoshop actions as well as how to record and save an action.

These 12 tutorials will have you on your way to Photoshop mastery. If you’ve had success with other tutorials not on this list, let us know about them in the comments below.

Series supported by Ben & Jerry’s Joe

This series is supported by Ben & Jerry’s Joe, Ben & Jerry’s new line-up of Fair Trade and frozen iced coffee drinks. Learn more about it here.

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Image courtesy of iStockphoto, izusek

Reviews: Adobe Photoshop, iStockphoto

More About: beginner, getting started, List, Lists, Photoshop, tips, tutorials, web design series

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Behind the Scenes of MTV’s Twitter Jockey Competition [VIDEO]

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 11:22 AM PDT

Earlier this week, MTV selected its first-ever TJ (Twitter Jockey) via a live finale filmed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Although some may look askance at the idea of a “TJ,” the phenomenon marks a truly interesting milestone in the life of the microblogging service: total and complete mainstream immersion. Mashable attended the event, where we talked with finalists, winners and MTV employees about the idea of the TJ, as well as where Twitter is headed in the coming years.

Last month, MTV began the search for the first TJ, selecting 18 young trendsetting Twitterers from the Internet ethers. The network then called upon users to select two more. On August 8, Gabi Gregg, a 23-year-old plus-size fashion blogger from Detroit, assumed the mantle of official MTV TJ after competing in a series of challenges both off-air and during the live finale — everything from interviewing emo boy banders The Ready Set via her follower’s suggestions to planning an impromptu fashion show on the Brooklyn Bridge.

Gregg, who tweets as @gabifresh and now as @mtvtj, will now be moving to New York City, where she will be assuming her one-year $100,000 contract.

Upon hearing about this contest, we here over at Mashable started wondering what such a position means for the future of Twitter — and MTV. The micro-blogging service has undoubtedly gained some serious cache over the last few years, with everyone from U.S. President Barack Obama to President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela hiring folks to run their Twitter accounts.

In addition, the service has been used extensively in the storytelling realm — from Shakespeare to Home Alone. And now, a network with a vast history of taste-making (less so in the music realm of late, sadly), has added the micro-blogging service to its stable of brand advocates.

Reviews: Internet, Mashable, Twitter

More About: mtv, music, pop culture, television, tj, twitter, video

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Zagat Jumps on Group Buying Trend with Site for Restaurant Deals

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 11:01 AM PDT


Zagat Survey — the taste-setting restaurant and city review guide — will soon release Zagat Exclusives, its group buying initiative for deep discounts at Zagat-Rated restaurants in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The product will be powered by DealOn, a Groupon competitor offering deals in cities across the United States. Zagat Exclusives will cater to foodies and restaurateurs with deals at restaurants ranging in style from casual to special occasion.

The program will offer a slight twist to the current group buying trend and offer limited quantities on the exclusives for a fixed sale period. The price point will decrease as more people purchase the deal during the allotted window. The lowest price at the end of the sale is the price each buyer will pay.

Zagat now joins the likes of Yelp and OpenTable in tacking group buying on to its core product offerings. For Zagat, the “Exclusives” product seems to align perfectly with its brand, which is becoming increasingly more social and web-friendly in nature (it’s currently the most followed brand on Foursquare), and gives the company its own platform for capitalizing on an ever-growing trend. The foodie consumer now has a myriad of choices for pre-buying discount meals on the web, but the allure of saving at a Zagat-Rated restaurant is an offer that is sure to stand out.

Zagat Exclusives will launch in September in New York, but interested parties in 11 different cities can sign-up for e-mail notifications.

[img credit: ZagatBuzz]

Reviews: Yelp

More About: group buying, groupon, zagat

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Google Launches “Chrome to Phone”

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 10:38 AM PDT


Google has released “Chrome to Phone” for Android (currently only Android 2.2), a tool for instantly pushing websites you’re reading on the desktop to your Android phone.

Here at a press event at Google’s offices in San Francisco, Google engineer Dave Burke is demonstrating the product that he built “in his spare time.” The feature is relatively simple to use; just click the new mobile icon on your Chrome browser for any website that you want to bring up on your phone, and it will automatically push it to your phone.

The feature does more than just push websites, though — it can also push driving directions and even phone numbers. If you have driving directions up on Google Maps and then push it to your phone, the driving directions will immediately appear. Highlight a phone number and click the mobile icon and that phone number will be sent directly to your phone ready to dial.

The feature doesn’t go both ways, though — Phone to Chrome is a highly requested feature, but it isn’t implemented in Android quite yet. The company is also looking into bringing Chrome to Phone to the iPhone.

Chrome to Phone is available now as both an Android app and a Google Chrome extension.

Reviews: Android, Chrome, Google, Google Chrome, Google Maps

More About: android, Google, Google Android

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How Mobile is Affecting the Way We E-mail

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 10:20 AM PDT


This series is brought to you by the new BlackBerry Torch, the touch screen BlackBerry complete with social feeds, improved internet browsing, and much more.

As smartphone and mobile web usage continues to soar, users are spending more and more time on social networks like Facebook and Twitter. But how is the mobile web impacting the oldest form of Internet communication, e-mail?

For desktop Internet users, e-mail may be playing second-fiddle to the likes of Facebook and social games like FarmVille, but on mobile devices, e-mail is still number one.

In fact, new research from The Nielsen Company suggests that e-mail represents 41.6% of mobile Internet time for users in the United States.

Putting that in perspective, if all mobile Internet time was condensed into one hour of usage, e-mail would represent 25 minutes of time spent.

In fact, mobile e-mail usage continues to grow, even as social media continues to become a bigger and bigger part of the mobile experience. Last fall, ExactTarget commissioned a study on smartphone Internet usage and found that the rise in social media adoption has lead to an increase in how much we e-mail from our mobile devices, and not the decrease many analysts were predicting.

Mobile E-mail is NOT Just for Business

It’s easy to conflate mobile e-mail with business users, after all, this was the demographic that first fully embraced the ability to send and receive messages from their mobile devices.

Over the years, however, e-mail usage on mobile devices has become less about business and more about staying in touch with personal contacts. According to ExactTarget’s research, 71% of business professionals with smartphones said that they send more personal e-mails than work-related missives from their mobile devices.

Don’t let the business suit fool you — next time you see a smartly dressed corporate type tapping away on their phone, chances are, they are probably e-mailing with friends.

Part of the reason we’re seeing an increase in personal e-mail communication devices is because of the nature of mobile. Users are always connected to their inbox and thus, can always receive a message.

E-Mail for Breakfast and After Sex

As we noted earlier this summer, more than 50% of U.S. online users check their e-mail before doing anything else online.

When you consider that peak Internet usage often takes place around 7 a.m., it’s not a stretch to say that many of us check our e-mail on our mobile phones before, well, stretching and getting out of bed.

It’s not just when we wake up that we check e-mail; studies indicate that more and more individuals check e-mail in the middle of the night and even after sex.

Again, the always-connected nature and location-ambivalence of mobile devices makes it easier for users to check their message or jot off a quick note, whether it’s the most appropriate time or not. I think we’ve all seen “that guy” at a solemn event like a funeral desperately trying to refrain from checking his BlackBerry during the service. Heck, some of us may even be that guy.

Is Social Media Eroding E-mail Usage?

Last year, Nielsen looked into what impact social media is having on e-mail usage. The results showed that there is a strong correlation between those who are frequent e-mail users and users that are also active across social media.

In fact, the study basically showed that social media makes users consume more e-mail, not less. Part of this is an effect of the e-mail nature of many social networks. Facebook, for instance, sends you an e-mail when you get a new wall post or someone sends you a message. Likewise, Twitter and Foursquare send you follower updates, and Twitter sends out direct message notifications.

Many blog comment systems can notify users when someone has responded to an article online, and services like Google Buzz bring commenting on social statuses or shared Google Reader items to the inbox.

We should note, however, that more and more users are starting to treat services like Facebook as replacements for an e-mail inbox. E-mail is still more versatile, but for users that have a heavily populated social graph, sometimes social networking services can offer a more convenient messaging experience.

Have your e-mail habits changed since buying a smartphone? Let us know in the comments!

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Discover the new BlackBerry Torch. With a touch screen, a slide out keyboard, and the new BlackBerry 6 OS — not to mention BlackBerry Messenger, integrated social feeds and improved web browsing — the BlackBerry Torch helps you do what you love. Join the BlackBerry Facebook Community and stay up-to-date with all the latest BlackBerry news.

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Image courtesy of iStockphoto, graphixel

Reviews: Facebook, Foursquare, Google Buzz, Google Reader, Internet, Twitter, iStockphoto

More About: e-mail, mobile web, stats, web usage

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Google Launches Voice Actions for Android [LIVE]

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 10:19 AM PDT


Google is launching two new mobile products today; the first of these two features is “Voice Actions,” the company’s take on voice commands for the Android OS.

We are here at Google’s San Francisco offices listening to Hugo Barra, director of product management at Google discuss the company’s involvement in mobile computing. The company is discussing “the next evolutionary steps” of Android. It’s part of the company’s push to integrate your phone with the cloud.

Here are my live notes:

Live: Google’s Mobile Press Conference


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10:10 a.m.: “The impossible has become possible,” Barra told the press. He was referring to the rapid advancement of mobile computing and how we can do so much more with our mobile devices (“mobile supecomputers” as he calls them). Part of the reason they’re more powerful today is because they have faster access to the cloud through 3G and 4G networks.

10:11 a.m.: Barra is talking about some of the cloud computing mobile products that Navigation, Google Goggles, Translate, and Voice Recognition.

10:14 a.m. Nifty demo of Voice Recognition in four languages: Spanish, French, Japanese and Italian.

10:17 a.m.: First announcement: Voice Action. Google Voice Recognition in Android allows you to now send texts and do other things via voice commands.

10:20 a.m.: Now Google is demoing some of the potential uses for Voice Actions. The first was sending a text. Example: “Send a text to Jon Stewart: Let’s get lunch at 2:00.” This will prepare and write your text so you can send.

10:21 a.m.: Voice Actions can play your music.

10:22 a.m.: Voice Actions can send emails. “Send Email to Hugo Barra: I just booked a scuba diving trip to the turks and caicos for September!” You can even add onto the message after it’s been written. Saying “smiley face” also inserts the smiley emoticon.

10:23 a.m.: You can go to popular websites with Voice Actions. “Go to Wikipedia” was demonstrated. You can also do map searches.

10:25 a.m.: New feature: “Note to Self” The command will let you email a message to yourself. Oh, there’s also a function in this interface where, if it thinks there are alternate words for what it recognized, it’ll highlight those words in blue and let you change them quickly.

10:26 a.m.: There are about 10 actions as part of Voice Actions for Android. It’s available starting today on Android 2.2 devices, including the new Droid 2 (it’s pre-installed).

Reviews: Android, Google, Wikipedia

More About: android, breaking, Google, live, Mobile 2.0

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Delta Starts Selling Flights on Facebook

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 09:47 AM PDT


Delta Air Lines has launched The Delta Ticket Window, a Facebook application that lets members find, book and share flights via the “Book a Trip” tab on the airline’s Facebook Page.

Delta aims to reach travelers with Facebook-happy trigger fingers when it comes to travel booking. The application was built to keep the user on Delta’s Facebook Page for the duration of the booking process, as well as give them the opportunity to share their booked flight with friends.

The company believes it can capitalize on a captive audience given that Facebook is the most trafficked website on its inflight Wi-Fi service. Delta’s Ticket Window, powered by Alvenda, is the first to isolate the entire booking process inside Facebook. European budget airline easyJet began experimenting with selling flights on Facebook earlier in the year, but users are redirected to easyJet’s website to book their flight. Eventually Delta Ticket Window will evolve outside of Facebook and become integrated into banner ads too.

Delta Ticket Window is likely to get heavy traction from Facebook users curious about the application (it already appears to be having a bit of trouble managing the load). Once the newness of the application fades, it should be interesting to see if would-be travelers find the service relevant to their lifestyles. Delta may have streamlined the flight-booking process inside the world’s largest social network, but with a myriad of travel deal sites that aggregate prices from multiple airlines offering lower fares, consumers will probably still often find better values elsewhere.

[img credit: gtmcknight]

Reviews: Facebook

More About: delta, delta ticket window, facebook, flights, MARKETING, travel

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Twitter’s Official Tweet Button Has Arrived

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 08:36 AM PDT


Twitter has just launched the "Tweet Button," an official option for web publishers to count retweets and let their readers easily share content.

As Mashable was first to report earlier this week, the new buttons let readers quickly share stories and follow relevant users, such as the website or author that posted it. While several large publishers are already live with the button at launch, some simple copy and paste code is available for others to start implementing immediately.

As we postulated in our earlier reporting, the current de facto Twitter sharing service (with some 750 million daily retweet button impressions), TweetMeme, hasn't been left out in the cold here. In a blog post, Twitter writes that, "We're pleased to be working closely with the good folks at TweetMeme and, from here on out, they will be pointing to the Twitter Tweet Button."

On its blog, Tweetmeme writes that, “We will be assisting Twitter with the technical challenges involved with the button and secondly we will be working even more closely in the future on delivering real-time curation of the Twitter Firehose. This will manifest itself in the launch of a number of new products and the first of these is being unveiled today.”

Twitter details the features of the new Tweet Button in the video below:

Reviews: Tweetmeme, Twitter

More About: trending, tweet button, tweetmeme, twitter

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“Bridezillas” Explores What’s Possible with TV Show Checkins

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 07:59 AM PDT


Cable network WE tv has partnered with entertainment checkin service Miso to create a branded campaign around the show Bridezillas. The partnership plans to reward Miso fans who checkin to the show with extra content such as show-themed badges, exclusive photos and access to video clips.

Miso — which lets users check in to television shows and movies via iPad, iPhone and the web — landed a similar deal back in June with TNT. Both deals tap into Miso’s partner-backed “Fan Club” structure, which elevates members to Fan Club status once they check in to a show enough times.

The Bridezillas Fan Club features will go live with new badges and content on Sunday when the next episode airs. The badges exemplify the notorious high-strung personalities of the brides featured on the show and have names like “Cake Smasher” and “Veil Thrasher.”

In a previous interview, Bazaar Labs Founder and CEO Somrat Niyogi detailed to Mashable that Miso has big plans around the notion of fan status. In the future, fans will be presented with opportunities like in-show scavenger hunts and challenges to prove that they’re a bigger fan than other views. Those features are non-existent at the moment, but Miso’s Bridzellas Fan Club is a next step in that direction and will help to create and define the show’s community.

“Networks are using Miso as a marketing vehicle to drive tune in, awareness and continuity through an entire season,” says Niyogi, and that’s clearly the idea behind the WE tv campaign.

For an introduction to Miso’s Fan Club concept, check out the video below made following Miso’s deal with TNT.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, foment

Reviews: Mashable, iStockphoto

More About: checkins, entertainment, miso, tv, wetv

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Morning Brief: “Wizard of Oz” Google Doodle, Dell Thunder, Galaxy S Epic 4G

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 06:55 AM PDT

This series is brought to you by HTC EVO 4G, America’s first 4G phone. Only from Sprint. The “First to Know” series keeps you in the know on what’s happening now in the world of social media and technology.


Welcome to this morning’s edition of “First To Know,” a series in which we keep you in the know on what’s happening in the digital world. We’re keeping our eyes on three particular stories of interest today:

The Wizard of Oz Gets an Anniversary Google Doodle

Seventy-one years ago today, The Wizard of Oz had its premiere screening. Google is honoring one of the most beloved films of all time with a special Google Doodle that mixes the “Google” lettering amongst the landscape of the Emerald City. Over at The Guardian, the writers have compiled 71 facts about Oz for its 71st birthday.

Dell Thunder Prototype Photos and Video Leak

Earlier this week, pricing and availability details for the Dell Streak were released to the public. Today, Engadget has posted some exclusive photos and videos of another Dell mobile device, the Dell Thunder. The Thunder is less tablet and more bonafide smartphone, but it sports a 4.1-inch OLED display and a knockout industrial design.

Sprint Epic 4G Hits Stores August 31

Samsung is bringing variations of its Galaxy S handset to all four major U.S. wireless carriers. The Captivate from AT&T and the Vibrant from T-Mobile are already in store and now it looks like Sprint will be the next carrier to launch a Galaxy S phone.

The Sprint Epic 4G will be released on August 31 and will be priced at $250 after $100 mail-in rebate. The device has the same internals as the other Galaxy S devices, but also has support for Sprint’s 4G network and a modified form factor. The Epic 4G will also be the only device in the Galaxy S family with a slide-out keyboard. The Epic 4G also adds an LED flash to the 5-megapixel camera, something other variations of the Galaxy S lack. The Epic 4G is available for pre-order beginning August 13, 2010 [disclosure: Sprint is a sponsor of the Morning Brief series]

Further News

  • Rumors suggest that Sony Ericsson is working on a new PlayStation-branded gaming phone, powered by Android 3.0 and styled like the PSP.
  • The next Apple TV might be renamed iTV and include support for iOS apps and streaming iTunes content. It might also be limited to 720p playback.
  • The Old Spice Guy is headed for the big screen in a major role in Tyler Perry’s next Madea film.
Series supported by HTC EVO 4G

This series is brought to you by HTC EVO 4G, America’s first 4G phone. Only from Sprint. The “First to Know” series keeps you in the know on what’s happening now in the world of social media and technology.

Reviews: Android, Google

More About: dell thunder, epic 4g, first to know series, galaxy s, google doodle, wizard of oz

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On SCVNGR the Checkin Game Is What You Make It

Posted: 12 Aug 2010 06:54 AM PDT


Foursquare challenger and real-world game layer app SCVNGR has released a new version of its mobile application that lets users create their own challenges.

The SCVNGR update comes just weeks after the company released a sophisticated rewards program where businesses (for example, The Boston Globe and the Minnesota Vikings) can create challenges and define the rewards for points earned at their venue. The new version opens up the challenge creation process to all users of the app.

The idea behind user-generated challenges is to allow game players to define the game for themselves. SCVNGR players could already select from a few seeded challenges such as snapping a photo or completing a social checkin; now they can easily create their own via the mobile app.

SCVNGR also updated the application with intelligent friend suggestions based on a user’s Facebook and Twitter connections as well as prior social checkin behavior. Photo captions and improved nearby place suggestions were added in this update as well.

Given that SCVNGR is incapable of creating the perfect challenge for every venue, handing challenge creation over to patrons — who can better concoct challenges that capture the essence of a restaurant, bar, stadium or any other locale — is a smart strategy that should help motivate engagement.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, nuno

Reviews: Facebook, Twitter, iStockphoto

More About: checkins, location sharing, Mobile 2.0, scvngr

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Monitor Your House or Business From an iPhone

Posted: 11 Aug 2010 08:59 PM PDT


This post is part of Mashable's Spark of Genius series, which highlights a unique feature of startups. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark.. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Dropcam

Quick Pitch: Dropcam is a wireless Wi-Fi web cam offering 24/7 live a/v streaming, DVR, motion capture, mobile remote access and more.

Genius Idea: By providing support for the iPhone and iPad, plus the ability to record and store days or weeks worth of footage, Dropcam adds an innovative twist to the low-cost surveillance camera market.

Dropcam is a package that consists of a web camera — you can get one with or without sound — and access to a special web app that will let you set-up and monitor your camera’s live feed from any computer with Internet access or from an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad.

Having a wireless web camera that can transmit to a streaming video server is great, but what makes Dropcam unique is that you have the option of recording and archiving your footage. For $8.95 per month, users can record seven days worth of activity that can then be played back like a DVR, downloaded for permanent archiving and used to capture screenshots.

Users can also set-up e-mail and mobile alerts based on motion capture, time of day and more. For $24.95 a month, users can access a rolling 30-day archive of their content on Dropcam’s website, plus still have the ability to download footage for archival purposes.

Dropcam also offers a free iPhone and iPad app [iTunes link] so that you can tune into your cameras on your mobile device. The service also supports multiple cameras on the same account, so if you want to monitor multiple angles of a location or have a camera in different rooms, the system supports that.

Dropcam also makes it easy to share your video stream with others, if you choose to do so.

Do you monitor your house or business online using a web cam? Tell us about your experiences in the comments!

Sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark

BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

Reviews: Internet

More About: dropcam, ipad apps, iphone apps, surveillance video, web cams

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