The Joys of Community Enabling Technology
So, I have really been into this whole twitter thing lately. I was turned off by the whole hype surrounding SXSW 07 last year. They went as far as setting up screens all around the conference- streaming conference goers “tweets”.
All these web communication and social networking tools can make a mind dizzy with all the options and hype surrounding them, but when the rubber meets the road, they really can offer value to an individual, community, organizations, etc.
Recent Highlights:
- I was able to make a few new relative contacts using twitter (cschultz of voodoo ventures, allen, aka bigeasy)- tapping into a whole new network of new orleanians.
- A few weeks ago, I made a suggestion through facebook regarding a financial management software I use- Mint.com- and today, facebook notified me that Mint had responded to my feedback!
- Shared an insightful presentation (The Art of Self Branding) through Slideshare.net regarding branding.
- Broadcast my Blockbuster rental history via rss, via Facebook
- Check out an interview opensermo did on me re: my un-educated opinion on the state of universal healthcare:
Defining ****** Media
While doing some research on social media, and whether this term is valid and useful, I came across these diverse opinions on the topic: What is (and should we use) Social Media?
So I am going to polarize this discussion into two playing fields…
Against:
- Anti- Social Media (WARNING, wear your headphones, take his opinion with a grain of salt)
- Social Media? Did I miss the memo?
- What I call the, “academic” and cultural viewpoint.
For:
- Long broad summary on the state of “Social Media” and its usefulness
- Follow-up for the naysayers
- Web strategy guru Jeremy Owyang states the need for a new phrase, hosts a discussion of option
- Scoble weighs in
As an optimist, Brian points out, “Social Media has yet to reveal its true impact among those around the world who have yet to embrace it and participate.” and “Social Media is only a buzzword if certain individuals decide to call it such because they don’t understand what or why it is…..Social Media is more of description in order to frame media in a socialized context rather than hype.”
And finally
I like this comment by a reader, “It’s just the kind of animal we are: We love to sort things into bags and put labels on the bags. We can’t help it. Looking for patterns is part of how our brains are wired.”
Here, There, Everywhere: Web INNNNteroperability
Recently, I the attended SXSW 08′ keynote w/ Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook) and amid the interview fumblings, I got the feeling people were still hip on this “facebook needs to be data portable“.
While updating contacts/twitter/facebook/blog/netvibes/googledocs/etc to include the fine folks I met @ SXSW 08′- I thought that it would be really nice to have:
One public page
One private page
So in other words, a single point of input that would gather all my blog comments, facebook pictures, flickr pictures, calendars, etc, and it would output it to one single page for people to see.
Maybe this is a poor concept, but I really feel facebook fails in that it doesn’t allow you to really put information INTO facebook. For example, what if I wanted people to be updated when I add a new flickr photo? Well, facebook has flickr applications, but they don’t integrate with my main feed.
Bottom line:
What if we not only complained about Facebook letting information OUT but also letting information IN?
Update:
Check out friendfeed- they have a nice facebook app that kind of does what I am talking about. But why can’t facebook integrate this into their core business? It makes sense- especially adsense. (via cschultz)
Social Media is the new Obama: Do’s & Dont’s
Admit it. Like an Obama you-hope-face-2.0-change mashup video- Social Media is everywhere. The blogosphere is forcing it down our collectively intelligent throats.
But WHAT IS SOCIAL MEDIA? The blogosphere forgot to fill us in. Don’t get me wrong, I believe its a useful word. But, sometimes, the web development community gets so caught up in expanding and defining the work that we do, that we forget to formally communicate new ideas and useful “jargon” to others.
Social Media is not a buzzword- its useful jargon.
What’s the difference between “jargon” and “buzzwords”? Kathy Sierra wrote a wonderful piece on this. She states, “buzzwords are used to impress or mislead, jargon is used to communicate more efficiently and interestingly with others who share a similar level of knowledge and skills in a specific area.”
So a few tips to consider BEFORE using the phrase “social media”:
Do:
- Identify new and useful jargon before you start promoting it.
- Educate stakeholders and partners first.
Don’t:
- Jump on the band wagon yourself, before getting understanding
- Don’t jump into implementation before you PLAN, and don’t plan until leadership UNDERSTANDS Social Media.
Hi. I am re-booting.
MySQL database deleted. Backups down = disaster.
dsynthuhsize@gmail.com
