Archive for the Social Media Category

Brilliant

Posted in Photography, Social Media with tags , , , , on July 13, 2008 by kidblogster

What can you do when the cursor is blinking on the blank page and you have nothing to say?

Writer’s block, creative blanks, brain freezes.  They happens sometimes and the creative vibe just halts.  It is annoying and can last seconds or days, delaying productivity, flow and passion production.  I bet this will help.  Getty Images has just launched Moodstream, and the most articulate thing I can come up with right now is very very cool. Even if you don’t have need inspiration, this little buddy will surely make the day brighter, mellower, warmer, more aggressive than it was before.  The idea seems to be passed loosely on Pandora, but combines the idea of the music genome and musical grouping with an individual’s preferences and mood.  But wait, there’s more!  Along with the music comes a streaming line of imagery from Getty’s immense video and still image catalogue.  You tell Moodstream how you are feeling (or even how you would want to be feeling I suppose) and it chooses a soundtrack and image reel to stimulate your senses.  The stream can be as interactive and constantly shifting as you wish…or it can just roll.  I have been an avid supporter of Pandora for a few years, but this seems better for the everyday – times when I don’t necessarily need to know what is playing, I just want a specific type of sound.  For a creative type like me, this tool seems so obvious.  I look forward to enjoying many future streams.

Can you dig it?

Posted in Social Media with tags , , on July 8, 2008 by kidblogster

Why didn’t I learn about this in graduate school?

Ok, fine. Perhaps that question could be expanded into an entire blog on its own, but let’s get to the gist of my current train of thought.  Do you know what BricaBox is?  I didn’t either, until I spent some time browsing Nate Westheimer’s blog.  To my best basic understanding, BricaBox allows anyone with an ounce of online savvy to create their own social content application and customize it to his own creative specifications.  I can create my own wiki, my own version of Yelp that includes only places that serve cheese plates, hell even my own guide to the best stores in DC to buy very tight jeans.  In short, I can take the brilliant interactive concept that someone else has already come up with, started and distributed to the masses, and make it my own in my own virtual universe!  Brilliant!

But wait.  In my own moment of Web-angst (which happens alot when I find out about things too late), I have just discovered that ye olde web-ster extraordinaire Westheimer plans to shut down BricaBox!  In a blog post dated June 19th, 2008, Westheimer gives a laundry list of well-explained, yet all-the-while disheartening reasons why BricaBox has not worked out as he had hoped.  As of this post, the site is still in working order, but for how long??  Nate! Do I have time to craft my wiki of all things early to late 90’s alternative rock?  What about my vision for a labored, yet beloved list of the best waffle cones on the Eastern Seaboard?  So many ideas, Nate, so little time, as the BricaBox time bomb ticks away.  If only I had known sooner…

Sometimes the Web Makes me Proud

Posted in Social Media with tags , , , , on July 3, 2008 by kidblogster

How can I use social media beyond connecting with my friends?

I think alot of new Web 2.0sters think that ’social media’ can only be used for piecing together last night’s drunken escapades through Facebook pictures.  Not true!  Just take a look at this nifty idea brought to you by the smart, smart folks at PBS Engage and NewsTrust.  The idea is called NewsHunt and connects web users to journalists to generate high quality news coverage of the 2008 Presidential election.  The site seems clunky and text heavy, but simple enough.  All you have to do is review news articles on the site, rating them on quality.  It seems, then, that the users decide which articles report what the general population (at least the web-using ones that frequent this site) deem to be excellence in journalism.  Another feature allows you to submit your own stories (unclear, as of now, if that means stories I can write myself, as a citizen journalist, or other stories I find on the web from reputable sources).  I like this idea not only because I think the mainstream media needs to take responsibility in producing high quality, informative news concerning the election, but I am a huge advocate of citizen journalism.

P0pulist

Posted in Social Media on June 30, 2008 by kidblogster

Will P0pulist stick?

I have been on the new site P0pulist for a few weeks now, but I just can’t seem to get into it. The concept is simple: make a list of things you like, right now. Change them when you change your mind and keep a running list of your interests. Share with others and build a community based on agreed likes. I have no problem listing things I like (peanut butter, live music, grapefruit juice, rock climbing). My list changes frequently, too. P0pulist should be perfect for me. I just don’t really see the point. So I predict it won’t ’stick’ (you read it hear first!). I have tried, I really have. I have given it a few weeks – tried to update regularly and build a community of shared interests- but I force myself to work on it each day. What is the problem? I am not sure (definitive, I know). It just ain’t working for me. How about you?