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Facebook Adds Zap-a-Spammer Button

cgseo — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 20:20:34 +0000

Eric Eldon at InsideFacebook reports that the social network has begun experimenting with a new option for users to report the senders of friend requests as someone they don't actually know. The prompt appears after you click to ignore a friend request. Actually knowing a person isn't a requirement to be their friend on Facebook (unlike LinkedIn, for example), so this is an odd choice of words, but presumably the vast majority of the site's users do only want to be friends with people they've met. Facebook has strict limits on the number of messages and friend requests a person can send, but apparently that hasn't worked well enough. Sponsor Two years ago MySpace added a requirement that any friend requests sent had to be verified as human using a CAPTCHA. That cut spam friend requests on MySpace down dramatically. There is no such requirement on Facebook. Dealing with information overload and spam are key steps in creating and maintaining a user experience that keeps people coming back to non-essential websites like social networks - as opposed to email, which you'll keep using anyway because you have to. According to Eldon, Facebook hasn't determined yet what it will do with these reports when filed. We regularly hear about people claiming abuse by the Facebook anti-spam team but every time we call Facebook about one of those complaints, the company's response seems quite reasonable. People do a lot of obnoxious things on Facebook. I don't know any of those people, though, and plan on clicking a button that says so when the opportunity arises. Discuss

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Facebook Adds Zap-a-Spammer Button

TVs, Cars, AR – Oh My! Hot Tech Trends For Entrepreneurs At CES

cgseo — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 22:18:00 +0000

Today marks the official start to the 2010 Consumer Electronics Showcase in Las Vegas where all of the biggest electronics manufacturers show off their coolest and newest products. While CES is mainly a gadget show, entrepreneurs looking for the next big thing should pay close attention to the innovative ideas being pushed into the consumer market. The big show is just getting underway, but we are already seeing some trends emerge that could point to new opportunities for startups in 2010. Sponsor Televisions On everyone's CES prediction list this year are new TV technologies, including 3D viewing and the apparent rebirth of Web TV . Recently, various set-top boxes have brought web apps into our living rooms, including the Roku player , and BluRay players with Netflix , YouTube and Pandora integration. As we reported earlier this week, Skype has partnered with LG and Panasonic to integrate their service with new Internet-connected HDTVs. In addition, Internet media aggregator Boxee is marketing their brand new Boxee Box set-top device, and Yahoo! announced plans today to expand its presence in the living room. As more media and applications migrate onto televisions, startups will have the opportunity to find new niches and provided services on these new products. Automobiles Another trend is the implementation of new technologies into automobiles, and as we mentioned yesterday , Ford's new MyFord Touch is leading the way. By placing LCD touch screens in the dashboard and turning the car into a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot, Ford is opening doors for new platforms in the automobile. Current companies are already taking advantage of the the growing auto-tech industry. Streaming music service Pandora recently announced a partnership with Pioneer to bring Internet radio to your dashboard - albeit for a hefty $1,200 price tag. When the day comes that everyone has a connected car that can sync and share data, startups will be needed for services that organize and make use of these new forms of information. Augmented Reality And finally, while we may not see a plethora of new gadgets in this space at CES, augmented reality looks to make a huge splash in the consumer electronics market in 2010. Right now, most AR experiences are on cell phones or desktop computers, but fans of augmented reality expect to see some Head Mounted Displays (HMDs) or new transparent LCD screens in the near future. The potential for augmented reality has been flying under the radar for years, and only in recent days have improvements in technology allowed for it to begin to flourish. AR is a quickly expanding field with many opportunities for innovation, and is a field in which startups could quickly find a foothold. Discuss

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TVs, Cars, AR - Oh My! Hot Tech Trends For Entrepreneurs At CES

TechStars Boston Hosts Invite-Only Mini-Camp on Jan. 5

admin — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:22:00 +0000

Startups in the Boston area considering applying for TechStars Boston 2010 should bite the bullet and fill out that application today in order to receive an invitation to tomorrow's special meet and greet with TechStars mentors. The event, dubbed TechStars For A Day , will be held in Cambridge, Mass. and will provide startups with the opportunity to find out more about the TechStars program while getting some early networking under their belts. Sponsor While it isn't possible to make a definitive correlation between TechStars' events and nation's VC funding climate, the cities TechStars is based in - Boston, Boulder and Seattle - is were the money is flowing. In December, the Wall Street Journal reported that six out of the eight venture-backed companies that went public in 2009 were from outside of the Valley - two of which were from Massachusetts, one of which was from Seattle. In attendance will be Shawn Broderick , the executive director of TechStars Boston and founder/CEO of TrustPlus , TechStars founder and CEO David Cohen , as well as many other Boston mentors . The deadline for startups to apply for TechStars Boston 2010 is midnight, Jan. 11. Discuss

Augmented Reality: Passive Consumers versus Creative Contributors

admin — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 01:44:23 +0000

While 2009 has been the year of the API, it's the codeless creative experiences that drive mainstream adoption. Every December ReadWriteWeb's writers collect up their thoughts from 2009 and make predictions for the year ahead. My

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Augmented Reality: Passive Consumers versus Creative Contributors

Will the Word-Blocking Patent Extend Beyond Microsoft?

admin — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:17:00 +0000

As of today a federal appeals court is upholding the judgement to bar Microsoft from selling current versions of Word and Office. The question is, what does the patent actually entail? The original patent can be summarized as covering a "method and system for manipulating the architecture and the content of a document separately from each other." With this broad an abstract, it appears that the patent could affect a lot more than simple word processing. But, as with all patents, the devil is in the details. Sponsor As of January 11, 2010, the Redmond Microsoft will no longer sell its flagship word processing products in their current format. In August a Texas jury filed in favor of i4i Inc. finding that Word infringes on the Canadian company's software patent. Microsoft announced that it is already taking steps to remove the "little-used" infringing software feature from Microsoft Word 2007 and Microsoft Office 2007. The removal would make these versions of Word unable to open XML files for editing. An addiitonal workaround may already be planned. In early August ZDNet UK's Rupert Goodwins covered Microsoft's patent for an SML Schema Document - a way of creating rich XML files so that word-processing applications recognize the file as a native document. Microsoft is also taking this opportunity to direct users to the beta versions of Word and Office 2010. It'll be interesting to see if this patent resurfaces to block additional consumer products or if the Word trial will be an isolated incident. Discuss

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Will the Word-Blocking Patent Extend Beyond Microsoft?

If Apple Acquires Lala: 3 Models for Service Integration

cgseo — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 22:30:00 +0000

If the rumors are true, then something is afoot in the Apple music camp. According to a recent article in Bloomberg , Apple is in talks to acquire online music service Lala . If a sale is finalized between the two companies, a number of new music monetization models can emerge and with Apple holding the supply chain from devices to players to downloads, a streaming music component may prove devastating to others. Sponsor Tiered Pricing : With a Lala purchase, Apple could easily employ a tiered pricing model for a streaming service. Users would continue to purchase streams on a per-song basis while also having the option to download songs through the iTunes store. Full Subscription : In contrast to this model, Apple could also follow MOG's lead and launch a full subscription service with links to purchase Apple downloads. Full Subscription with Download Limit : And finally, different still, there's the opportunity to employ Microsoft's Zune Pass model. The company could offer a $15 dollar per month subscription streaming music service with the option for users to download their ten favorite songs per month to keep. If Apple decided on this route, downloads would still prove lucrative as users in excess of their download limits would be driven to iTunes for additional sales. Discuss

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If Apple Acquires Lala: 3 Models for Service Integration

SAP to Launch Google Wave Competitor

admin — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 21:21:07 +0000

SAP is preparing to launch a potential rival to Google Wave . The application, code-named Constellation, is described as a "virtual war room" where co-workers can collaborate in real-time with information aggregated from different data sources. The cloud-based tool is now in private beta with the code name 12Sprints . The application is being developed by SAP's Business Objects division. Sponsor Constellation demonstrates once again how much effort is being placed on cloud-based collaboration platforms that pull in disparate data sources, stitched together into one lightweight environment. What's unique is how these environments are almost separate from the legacy IT infrastructure that at times looks almost antiquated compared to its web-based counterparts in the cloud. That's the opportunity Google sees with Google Wave, as do other competitors such as PBWorks , MindTouch and a number of other companies looking to bask in the shiny lights of the collaborative universe. According to IDG , which received a demo of the technology, Constellation works best with five to thirty users. There will be the capability to publish to a wider audience through wikis, Sharepoint and other platforms. SAP is also working on an on-premise application, but the initial focus is definitely on the cloud. Users will be able to access their enterprise data by tunneling into the app. For example, buying decisions can be more collaborative as purchasing data can be viewed by a group who can then discuss and make decisions. Applications like what we see with Constellation illustrate how important it is becoming for the enterprise to become more transparent with its information. Email is a data trap. But voice calls can be the same way. Platforms like Constellation open information to a far larger community.

Video-Game HR Recruiting a Near Reality

admin — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:00:34 +0000

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Video-Game HR Recruiting a Near Reality

Sponsor Post: LeapFish Draws on Power of Social Media for Worthy Cause

cgseo — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:00:55 +0000

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Sponsor Post: LeapFish Draws on Power of Social Media for Worthy Cause

Sponsor Post: Build a Better Personal Brand With Your Own Domain

admin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:00:57 +0000

Editor's note: we offer our long-term sponsors the opportunity to write 'Sponsor Posts' and tell their story. These posts are clearly marked as written by sponsors, but we also want them to be useful and interesting to our readers. We hope you like the posts and we encourage you to support our sponsors by trying out their products. The concept of personal branding online has become a part of many conversations about social media and social networking recently. The popularity of social sites such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and various smaller niche sites has continued to skyrocket, offering individuals a chance to create a more robust online presence. The age of anonymity online has all but ended , and individuals should seek to gain further control of their online identities. Sponsor A great deal has been written about how to engage in social media to establish a name for yourself online, but a commonly overlooked piece of the puzzle is also one of the simplest: owning your own domain name. A domain name complements the rest of your online presence through branding, using yourname.com or a similar variation. Some Personal Branding Background Personal branding is inherently somewhat egotistical, but not necessarily more so than networking at a conference or sharing business cards. The influence that personal branding online can have has continued to grow as people change the way they seek and consume information. Just over a decade ago, social circles were limited to face-to-face interactions and numbers in a phone book. Now, you can have a much larger reach and audience online. Think of personal branding simply as conducting some marketing as the president of Brand You. The key to successfully branding yourself online is sharing. This could include contributing valuable information to an online conversation, creating original content, passing along great content from others or sharing knowledge from your experiences. Whatever your interests, social networking provides the opportunity to connect with others who share those same interests and want to hear what you have to say. The tools you can use are nearly infinite, but some of the larger social sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and Facebook are great places to start if you're not already there. Where a Domain Fits With Personal Branding Whether you're just starting out online or you're a social media power user who has more social profiles than you can keep track of, a domain is an essential part of owning your brand online. Domains were around long before social networking sites, but many people have never owned one, and they're more relevant now than ever. Owning a domain is very affordable, at under $10 per year, and well worth the cost as long as you put it to use. If you don't already own yourname.com, do a domain search to see if it's available. If yourname.com is already taken, the .net or .me extensions are also great options for a personal site. If all else fails, you can use a middle initial, nickname or other variation. Once you've found the perfect domain, consider registering other extensions (.net, .org, .tel, etc.) as well and redirect them to your primary domain. Once you own your domain, you might wonder how best to use it. The option that comes to mind for many people is to build a website. If you have some knowledge of HTML or a website-building program, then creating a basic website is relatively simple. Content management systems like WordPress and Joomla are increasingly popular among people who want to build personal websites or blogs without learning HTML or Web coding. Here are just a few ideas of what you can do with a personal website: Showcase your work in an online personal portfolio . Build an online resume that highlights your strengths and creativity. Make a website that features your hobbies and interests. Create a hub that links to all of your social networking profiles. Start a blog about a professional field or subject that you have expertise in. If you don't want to create a website or blog with your own domain, there are still many other uses for it: Brand yourself with custom email (you@yourname.com). You can even hook up services like Gmail to your domain using MX records, if you don't want to use separate email hosting . If you already have a blog set up with a service like Blogger, Posterous or WordPress.com, use URL forwarding to direct visitors to that blog when they type in your domain. Forward your domain to your Facebook, Twitter or other primary social networking profile. Regardless of what you use the domain for, connecting your name to your online presence is important. When you connect with someone in your everyday life, you can share your domain name rather than having them search for you on Facebook. Use your domain on business cards, resume and other professional materials. Whatever the purpose, your domain can be an essential part of your online identity, without you having to rely on numerous online profiles. As Marshall Kirkpatrick puts it, "I'm in charge here at Marshallk.com and that's the way I like it." Why Create a Personal Brand Online? Personal branding has a great number of applications, particularly in the professional world. If you're searching for a job, having a well-rounded online presence is an increasingly important factor that many companies consider. Businesses often take more than a peek at what comes up in Google search results for candidates, whether you think they should or not, so use your domain name to rank well in Google to put the content that you want potential employers to see front and center. Similarly, use your domain and social media profiles to network on a professional or personal level with others who share the same interests and goals. If you have consistently useful knowledge and content to contribute online, you can come to be known as an influencer and thought leader in your field. If you aim to start your own business or new project, having an established presence and network of online connections that trusts you can make a huge difference in your ability to succeed. Regardless of the direction you take with personal branding, a domain name is a great place to start and can serve as the backbone of your online presence. Have another innovative use for your domain? Please share it in the comments. Discuss

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Sponsor Post: Build a Better Personal Brand With Your Own Domain