Forget losing weight or finding the perfect life partner: All we want to do is make 2010 the biggest geek-out year ever. The ReadWriteWeb crew have collectively planned to take over the world next year by honing our nerd super-powers. From programming in Python to building AI houses, we’ve resolved to be smarter, more curious, more technical and way geekier than we were last year. Read our resolutions, and definitely let us know what you plan to do to be the best geek you can be in 2010. Sponsor The editor-in-chief himself, Mr. Richard MacManus , is known for his fascination with machine-to-machine communication via the Internet of Things . This year promises to be an interesting one at the MacManus residence if Richard’s resolutions hold true. “One of my goals for 2010,” he said, “is to experiment with Internet of Things in my own house and life, using tools like Pachube and sensors. We’ll see how that goes…” We wish you lots of luck, boss! If all goes well, you’ll be a prime candidate for the first episode of Geek Cribs, and we’ll all be very, very jealous. Our own ReadWriteStart warrior, Dana Oshiro , is going to be a busy bee this year. “I’m finding that the coolest ideas come out of academic institutions and enthusiast groups before they’re ever thought of as business-related products. In 2010 I plan on attending more hackathons,

Originally posted here:
2010 New Year’s Resolutions from the RWW Geeks & Friends

It was the okay-est of times, it was the meh-est of times. From the election of the first American social media president… to a nod to social media from the mainstreamiest of mainstream media ( Oxford Dictionary, for god’s sake! )… it’s been a big, tumultuous sprawling toddler of a year, prone to tantrums and potty accidents but adorable nonetheless. Here, then, is 2009 the way it was meant to be remembered… in doodles. Sponsor More Noise to Signal. Discuss

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2009 In Social Media: A Cartoon Review

It may soon be easier for foreign startup entrepreneurs to set up shop in the United States thanks to immigration reform which would create a specialized startup visa program. The proposed program would make more visas available to entrepreneurs who have at least $250,000 in funding from a U.S.-based venture capital firm, or $100,000 in angel funding. The startup must also have plans to either create five new jobs every two years, raise at least $1 million every two years, or generate at least $1 million in revenue. Sponsor The current system grants 10,000 visas each year primarily to investors that have financed over $1 million with plans to create at least 10 full-time positions. It also allows lower benchmarks for investors in less wealthy countries. However, the new requirements – which are part of a bill proposed by Colorado Congressman Jared Polis (above) – would fall far beneath the current benchmarks, making it easier for smaller companies and those from underprivileged countries to create jobs in America. The idea is the brainchild of programmer, essayist and Y Combinator partner Paul Graham who first wrote of what he called “the founder visa” in April of 2009. In some cases, inspired entrepreneurs enter the U.S., but after their ideas flourish and their visas run out they are in danger of being forced to go home to start their businesses. Investor, entrepreneur and co-founder of Foundry Group , Brad Feld experienced this first-hand at the TechStars program in Boulder, Colorado this summer as two of the ten groups had foreign founders. “Over the summer we struggled to figure out ways to get them Visas – all of the proposed approaches were expensive, risky, and tiresome,” Feld says. “Both companies are still trying, but each are now seriously considering returning to their home countries to build their businesses.” Along with other entrepreneurs, start-up advisors and venture capital investors, Feld has co-founded StartupVisa.com , a homepage Feld says has been a resource for the movement inspired by Paul Graham’s vision. “In the next few months, we’ll be expanding it aggressively to incorporate grass roots support and feedback,” he told ReadWriteWeb. One of StartupVisa’s contributors, Manu Kumar, helps spread the word about visa reform by recounting his own struggles. “There were multiple points at which I came very close to having to leave the United States because of the visa issues,” says Kumar. As the country attempts to pull itself out of one of the largest recessions in history, it only seems logical to make it as easy as possible for foreign entrepreneurs to enter the country and create jobs for Americans. “I think this would have such a visible effect on the economy that it would make the legislator who introduced the bill famous,” says Graham. “The only way to know for sure would be to try it, and that would cost practically nothing. Discuss

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Attracting Foreign Startups: Access To U.S. Could Get Easier

Any business can benefit from email advertising, but only when they do it properly. You need to make sure that you take the time to check out all of the different options that you have so that you can market your business effectively. If email marketing is in your plans, you will need to avoid being lumped with the thousands of junk emails that people get on a regular basis.

Marketing through email is not as effective as it once was, and many businesses are using other methods to get their message out there. It’s only one tool that you have, and since anyone can send out a spam email these days, it is starting to dwindle in popularity.

If you use it well, email advertising can still be an effective means of getting your point across. You should take the time to check out email campaigns and see which ones best suit your marketing needs. Another tip is to use headlines and titles that are catchy so that people can see your messages and not erase them.

If you’re struggling on your own, consider working with a professional marketing company. You will get better results because you’re working with people who have experience. It doesn’t matter what business you’re in, because marketing services help everyone.

You can use email advertising to connect on a more personal level and talk to people about what matters most. You can tell them whatever you want, and do it in a one-on-one format that allows people to feel more appreciated and important to your business. Make sure that you use this tool well to get the most from it.

Take full advantage of email marketing. You have to be certain that your message is clear, your purpose is direct, and that your demeanor and approach are friendly. People aren’t looking for another sales pitch when they sign up for emails. They’re looking for someone that they can trust to tell them what they need to know.

Your visibility and website traffic depend on your marketing. The only way that you can become successful is by getting out there where people can see you. With millions of other sites to compete with, you have to make an impact any way that you can, including email advertising if it works for you.

To learn more about email advertising or to find your business marketing solutions, visit www.Majon.com today.

Over the last week we ran a series of posts outlining the five biggest Internet trends of this year: Structured Data , Real-Time Web , Personalization , Mobile Web / Augmented Reality , Internet of Things . Effectively this was ReadWriteWeb’s State of the Web 2009 . We’ve now compiled the main points into a single presentation, available on Slideshare and embedded below. You can view the presentation in full screen by clicking the “full” button at the bottom of the presentation. You can also download the presentation as a Powerpoint file. All of the links in the presentation are clickable, should you wish to explore a certain topic more. Sponsor Editor’s note: This story is part of a series we call Redux, where we’ll re-publish some of our best posts of 2009. As we look back at the year – and ahead to what next year holds – we think these are the stories that deserve a second glance. It’s not just a best-of list, it’s also a collection of posts that examine the fundamental issues that continue to shape the Web. We hope you enjoy reading them again and we look forward to bringing you more Web products and trends analysis in 2010. Happy holidays from Team ReadWriteWeb! Structured Data The Real-Time Web Personalization Mobile Web & Augmented Reality Internet of Things Discuss

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ReadWriteWeb’s Top 5 Web Trends of 2009

If you ever thought startup life would be about champagne toasts and million dollar term sheets then you need to get back in your time machine and set the dial for the nineties. If there’s one thing we learned in the latter half of this decade, it’s discipline. To say that it was a tough year, would be an understatement. But those of us who stayed lean will be back for 2010. While the below concepts weren’t invented this year, they certainly hit their stride in 2009. Sponsor 1. Outsourced Labor : Rather than hiring onsite staff, more companies flocked to services like Mechanical Turk and Crowdflower to fulfill simple tasks. Companies listed their jobs and thankfully, a temporary workforce was there to get it done. 2. Cloud Scalability : Rather than paying for a slew of dedicated servers, startups took advantage of elastic workload tools like Amazon Web Services and Heroku . These services kept our site running during huge traffic spikes, but they ensured we weren’t burning cash in the downtime. 3. Web-Based Project Services : Google Apps made huge headway in 2009 as companies migrated from Microsoft to the cloud. Many startups began using real-time cloud collaboration tools to organize their projects, while others looked to customer service sites like Get Satisfaction and Zendesk to manage complaints. 4. Monetization : While consumers will settle for free products, premium services demand a certain level of competence. According to 37signals CEO Jason Fried, “the most intimate transaction between people is money”. In other words, if you put a price on your product and users paid it, you got your feedback. From paid iPhone apps to subscription music services, businesses in 2009 got the feedback they needed to find out if their products made the cut with consumers. 5. The New PR : From soft-spoken Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh and his Twitter empire to fast talking Windell H. Oskay , Optical Illusion Discuss

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5 Trends in 2009′s Startups

A study released earlier this year by Anderson Analytics looked into the demographics and psychographics of social networking users on Facebook , MySpace , Twitter , and LinkedIn with a goal of providing marketers with information about users’ interests and buying habits as related to their network of choice. The end result is a detailed look at the profiles and habits of social networking users on the web today. Some of the study’s findings echo things we’ve already heard. For example, Facebook users tend to be old, white, and rich. MySpace users are young…and fleeing. Other info is new: Twitterers are more likely to have a part-time job, LinkedIn users like to exercise and own more gadgets. Sponsor Editor’s note: This story is part of a series we call Redux, where we’ll re-publish some of our best posts of 2009. As we look back at the year – and ahead to what next year holds – we think these are the stories that deserve a second glance. It’s not just a best-of list, it’s also a collection of posts that examine the fundamental issues that continue to shape the Web. We hope you enjoy reading them again and we look forward to bringing you more Web products and trends analysis in 2010. Happy holidays from Team ReadWriteWeb! The Anderson study sampled over 11,000 GreenfieldOnline panelists (an online survey community) over an 11 month period to understand social networking services’ (SNS) reach and overlap among the U.S. Online Population. In May, the company surveyed an additional 5,000 panelists of which over 1,250 participated in an in-depth attitude and usage survey. They then grouped the participants into two categories: those who use social networks and those who don’t. To be considered a social network user, the participant had to use one of the sites in question in the past 30 days. Of course, not everyone is devoted to one social network alone. The study found that there is some overlap between sites, as shown in the chart below. Social Networkers, in General Out of the 110 million Americans (or 60% of the online population) who use social networks, the average social networking user logs on to these sites quite a bit. They go to social networking sites 5 days per week and check in 4 times a day for a total of an hour per day. Nine percent of that group stay logged in all day long and are “constantly checking what’s new.” Interacting with Brands When it comes to brands online, the study found that: 52% of social networkers had friended or become a fan of at least one brand, 17% felt positive when seeing a brand on a social network, 19% felt negative when seeing a brand on a social network, 64% were neutral or didn’t care about brands on social networks, 20% would like to see more communication from brands online, 35% would not like to see more communication, 45% were neutral or didn’t care. Social Networking Myths Shot Down A couple of interesting things that came out of the study included the debunking of some social networking myths. Social networkers are not as interested in friending strangers or creating “fake” friends to boost their ego. Out of the group, 45% connect only to family and friends and another 18% will connect only to people they’ve met in person. In other words, two-thirds are connecting to people they actually know. Only 10% of those surveyed said they will friend anyone. Also interesting is that only 15% of social networkers say they log on at work, thus debunking another myth about how prevalent social network use is at the workplace. Non-Social Networkers The study revealed the reasons why some online users aren’t into social networks. Surprisingly, it’s not because they hate technology – they spent just as much time on the web as the networkers do. Instead, they don’t use social media because either they don’t have the time, they don’t think it’s secure, or they think it’s stupid. Yet even out of the time-starved group, 22% report they’ll start using social media in 3 months and 27% said they’ll start using it in a year. Continue to Part 2 for details on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Discuss

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Who Uses Social Networks and What Are They Like? (Part 1)