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Seesmic Desktop v0.2 launched

And the details/features of it are:

• Add your Facebook account (since v0.2-rc2)
  
• Aggregated timelines for Twitter and Facebook accounts (since v0.2-rc2)
  
• Now supporting Twitgoo and Posterous in addition to Twitpic to share images on Twitter
  
• Cleaner column look and feel
  
• Optimized use of space to display more tweets
  
• More tooltips on buttons
  
• Improved error handling (especially for connection problems)
  
• Improved pre-selection of "SHARED as" account to reply or retweet from
  
• Remembering your preferred image sharing and short URL service across restarts
  
• Auto-updating the timestamps in timelines
  
• Sidebar can be scrolled when there is more content than available space
  

• Bug fixes
  
• Issues with webcam dialog - solved
  
• Userlists and searches could get lost under certain circumstances - solved
  
• Empty error message when trying to lookup a protected Twitter user

Download Seesmic here

Webby Winners- Social Networking Class - Reviewed

This contest spans nations and industries, awarding the best use of digital to the deserving. Under the section of 'Social Networking' the following winners have been announced:

SOCIAL NETWORKING

Webby Award Winner	Agency/Credited Organization
Digg http://www.digg.com/	Digg
People's Voice Winner
Digg http://www.digg.com/	Digg
Nominees
BakeSpace.com http://www.bakespace.com/	BakeSpace Inc
Birdpost http://www.birdpost.com/	Birdpost
Digg http://www.digg.com/	Digg
Flock http://www.flock.com/
Unigo http://www.unigo.com/	Unigo / Deepend New York / GotCoders

Digg - No introductions needed for this. Kevin Rose and co GET social bookmarking. Started as an experiment in 2004 and now has 27million unique users. not sure why it has won this year? Possibly in recognition of its newly released 'Digg Bar'.

Bakespace - What it says on the URL- a hub for recipies and general food conversation. Includes a 'mentors' feature for advice as well as the usual forums, blogs and other web 2.0 stuff.

Birdpost - I'm going to tell my dad about this one. He's a twitcher, and I don't mean that with any dis-respect. This is one of those rare things- a website derived from a real need/demand. Bird watchers can utilse Goggle Maps to geotag sightings as well as to search for other user's sightings. It allows users to create online lists and share - all thats good about social networking, sharing shared interests.

Also available as an i-phone app. Which is good.

Flock - The social web browser. Powered by Mozilla Firefox, this browser allows you to aggregate your online friends in one neat place. sounds like a great idea but I downloaded this last year and found that I never really used it. Maybe I just didn't get it...otherwise it wouldn't have been nominated for a Webby this and won one last year (2008)?

Unigo - College Reviews By College Students. In America. So gets a big fat 'n/a'. Looks good though for when it does eventually cross the pond.

social media blog

5 OTHER Social Networks

Facebook? Meh. Twitter? Ok doing well at the moment. Linked In?


But what about the other social networks out there? Sure anyone can start a social network by using Ning but there are some alternatives out there that you may want to consider. They tend to cater for niche users but hey, Facebook was a just meant to be a niche network for US college students!


There are so many out there but the following five are of particular note...

Sagazone www.sagazone.co.uk/

Social networking for the over 50's.

Sagazone is a social network for those of a more experienced age, created by Saga. The site is very easy to use and instructions and site information are provided in a simple yet non-patronising way. Anyway, simple is as usability does.

The network provides forums, media sharing, instant chat, blogs and 'clubs' allowing silver surfers to connect online.

Tangle www.tangle.com/

Half Youtube (was formerly called Godtube), half Facebook this social network is centered around video and photo uploads yet has a community feel. The site seems to have the balance just right in combining a sense of fun with more serious, religious undertones. This 'God' side of things is factored in through the 'Prayer Wall' and the 'Virtual Bible'. The virtual bible in particular allows users to even select which version of the bible they want to read and search for verses, titles or particular passages. I'm not hugely religious but if I were then i'd be straight on this site!

Petstreet www.petstreet.co.uk/

Now this is social networking for fans of animals (well of the pet variety). Sign up and get involved in forum discussions, view pets or you can even enter your pet in to 'Pet Idol'! There is a section hosted by a Vet called Catherine with downloadable advice sheets. A handy events section allows for pet owners to view upcoming courses, shows and competitions.


A lot of the information on Petstreet is available to non-members. They may do better to make some of this info member only to improve uptake and retention.

May Contain Nuts www.maycontainnuts.com/

Awesome dude! Bodacious! And other such 90's pseudo surf phrases....
This, liek the other sites has its own, very specific niche target user group or extreme sports enthusiasts. If you consider the number of viral videos that go round featuring extreme stunts then you can appreciate how there is a demand for a dedicated social network.


Users tag their profiles depending on the sports they are interested in making it it easy to find fellow enthusiasts. The site has an inherently young feel to it as you would expect for this subject matter with a lot of UK users.

Wiser Earth www.wiserearth.org/

Wiser Earth is a project of the Natural Capital Institute and aims to create a community connecting the people, nonprofits and businesses working toward a just and sustainable world". It allows people to share ideas, form groups and promote their own smaller projects for saving the earth.

So there you go, its not all about Facebook, Twitter and Myspace etc. There are a huge number of really useful social networks out there.

social media blog

A Day Out At Internet World

Sorry if this post rambles a bit but stick with it, it will save you valuable time in the long run...


After being an exhibitor at Internet World last year I was looking forward to seeing it this year from a visitors perspective. Before going I had optimistically circled the seminars that I wanted to go to, and arrived with plenty of time to have a look around the exhibition before the first event.

Well the automated badge machines and the lovely lady that greeted and helped me with it made for good first impressions. I made straight away for the Web 2.0 theatre so that I knew where to go when my first seminar began in 1 hours time.


After 30 mins salesman dodging I returned with a colleague to the Web 2.0 theatre to discover a large crowd pressing against the entrance. 'At least i'm here early for my Buzz Montitoring seminar' I smugly thought to myself. These wallies should have got here earlier if they wanted a seat for 'Web 2.0 - The Legal Aspects'! After being threated by security several times for loitering with intent in the aisles (er, intent to...visit a seminar?) I moved around the corner to await my lecture. It was as I was leaning against the thin wall of the Web 2.0 theatre that I started to hear word like 'Buzz' and 'measuring socail media'. I checked my watch and it said 11:45 so couldn't possibly be my show whish started at 12. Then I heard more words, 'influence' and 'conversation' and realised that this was my seminar! By this time I had luckily been shoved to the front of the crowd of wallies (that I realised I was one of). After 15 mins of craning my neck to hear what was being said the security woman must have felt sorry for us few at the front. We were ordered to a space on the back wall.


Once this finished I had a another look around the stands. Red Ant and Punky Duck stood out. Once I had finished my £6.95 Jacket potato and beans I rushed back to the theatre as I most certainly did not want to miss the talk from Mark Watts-Jones of Orange. I arrived (30mins early) to a queue reminiscent of the toilet queues for the London marathon.




It streched for miles! Twisting round the theatre all the way back the length of Earls Court. I was dissapointed to say the least. (I did manage to get in, but am not proud to say that I had to queue jump). Well Mark's (@MWJ ) 30 min presentation was thoroughly engaging and would have been worth an hours wait. He covered how Orange uses social media to their advantage. The key point (I think) was that they take their brand to where their customers already are, rather than trying to entice customer s to visti them. A large precense on Facebook and Bebo as well as the website and related microsites (Orange Film Club for their 'Orange Wednesdays' promotion).


Immediatly after this, there was a lecture on 'Engaging users through online video'. Great! I thought, got my seat so i'll sit back and enjoy. Nope. I was ordered out of the theatre and told I had to join the back of the queue. This was a queue that would reach to the moon and back if laid out in a straight line.


B***cks to this I thought and set off home.


So please Internet World. I only went really for the seminars. Is there anyway that I can prebook my space now in the Web 2.0 (3.0?) theatre for next year? Otherwise I won't be going again.

Social media blog

Facebook Desktop

So Twitter has Tweetdeck, Twhirl, Seesmic et al, which are all made by third party developers and provide Twitter updates straight to your desktop.

Well Facebook has taken note and launched Facebook Deskop. This uses the Adobe Air platform and is very, very reminiscent of a basic Tweetdeck. It only shows you friends most recent updates and allows you to update your own status. There is currently no further functionality. It doesn't even notify you of new status updates.

After downloading it to review it I will now be removing it as it offers no added value to Tweetdeck's Facebook option.

Download it here

social media blog

MS Vine - Microsofts first success in Social Media?

"Hyperlocal, personalized message and alert system"

Ok so what this actually is, is every teenagers nightmare. An application that incorporates feeds from local and broader news sources, as well as serious weather warnings and social networking updates. Its intended use though is for times of emergency - keeping family and close friends connected. Users can geotag their location so keeping those closest to them up to date with their whereabouts.

The app is still in beta but soon to be added features include updates feeds from Twitter and other social networks. Facebook updates are already available.

Microsoft Vine was the brainchild of Tammy Savage, general manager of Microsoft’s Public Safety initiatives following Hurricane Katrina four and a half years ago. Therefore this is an app that has been developed after being identified as a real need and one that will certainly find itself being downloaded by parents and guardians.

It is interesting that Microsoft has chosen to keep this to itself and this is vaguely admirable in a time when . Though could this not be taken a step further with the use of Google Latitude? Could parents auto tweet their kids after a certain time period. Geotagging only works if users undertake the action of updating their location. Most smartphones have GPS functionality and so could provide this data automatically.

Read the full details below:

Techcrunch

Econsultancy

Tech.Blorge

social media blog