The Things We Read

Not tech savvy but need a pie chart for your article?

2011-10-25T20:37:00.001-07:00

Trust me, for the uber tech savvy this is no big feat. However, if you need a pie chart for your article there really isn't much of an easier way to get one. All you need is a label and a number. In other other Joe - 5, Mike - 7, Mary - 4 ... and you can have a 3D pie chart image to use in your blog, article, presentation - whatever.

Go ahead and have fun with it.

Amplify’d from icobb.com

Free royalty free graphs and charts to use on any site, article, email.
Read more at icobb.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1fop9

Putting a link in Twitter? Beginning, middle or end

2011-10-25T15:21:00.001-07:00

So where in your Tweets is the best place to put your links? I bet if you guess you'd say ______.

Well, Dan Zarrella knows. Or at least has a good idea. Further, he's going to share it with you.

Give me a whole new idea for a Twitter app ...

Amplify’d from danzarrella.com

New Twitter Data: Optimal Link Placement for Clicks

One of the questions that I’ve been asked the most in the years I’ve been doing Twitter data analysis is where in a Tweet is the best position (beginning, middle or end) to include a link to get the most clicks. I had always assumed the end was the best, so I never thought much about the question.

See more at danzarrella.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1fo62

Spark up your comment counter!

2011-10-23T13:52:00.001-07:00

Holidays are often a little slow around the holidays for big clients and a great time for small businesses to get some really slick custom development for their sites and pages. Here's just one thing you can get into that really makes your site pop out from the crowd.

You can probably think of ideas that never crossed my mind - fundraisers, membership drives, event participation, clicks on links ... let your mind run! May help decrease bounce rate and increase time on page - studies not yet conducted.

Amplify’d from icobb.com

Create-A-Meter

Use this form to create a meter with your title and your data. You can choose a size up to 400 pixels and any number from 0 to 99.

See more at icobb.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1fj3f

Samsung vs. Apple: Corporate Warfare the Sequel

2011-10-05T13:04:00.001-07:00

Isn't it amazing how times change and so do the contestants on the battlefield for your consumer dollar changes? For that matter as the products change we see small players explode onto the scene and challenge companies who, only months before, would have bought them and gutted them just to shut them up.

Well, that's not what's happening here - this is more bloody that that!

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

Samsung seeks to ban iPhone 4S amid patent row

The Korean phone giant said it would file suit against the iPhone 4S in France and Italy, in a bid to ban the phones less than a day after it was announced, adding fuel to the fire in the intensifying row.
Read more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1e5ds

Facebook: Still run by children, not likely to grow up

2011-10-04T18:37:00.001-07:00

I have again and again challenged Facebook on their childish approach to running their multi-billion dollar industry satisfactorily. One of my guests, a college friend of the Facebook founder, became quite animated and offended when I accused Facebook of being operated like a child's game of checkers where the rules change daily in favor of the board owner.

Let's face it, Facebook is a great tool but so very immature in so very many ways.

(Don't shoot Ken, he's only the messenger.) Or if you do shoot you can expect him to fire back.

Amplify’d from www.insidefacebook.com

Facebook Struggles to Explain Its Web-Tracking Practices

October 4th, 2011

Facebook’s business is built on trust, but that trust has been shaken over the past few weeks by criticism and speculation regarding how it uses browser cookies to get data about users.

Since the launch of social plugins and before, Facebook has left cookies on the browsers of people who sign up for accounts as well as anyone else who visits Facebook.com. These cookies are used to protect the site against hacking attempts and to show logged in users what their friends have Liked on third-party sites, the company has repeatedly said.

The fact that Facebook had to comment directly on three blog posts in an attempt to debunk speculation shows there is a lack of clear documentation explaining its use of cookies. By publishing its responses as governing documents and making them easy to find, Facebook could address users’ questions before they draw their own, sometimes-negative conclusions about the company’s intentions.
Read more at www.insidefacebook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1e3wf

You mean the interest rate affects loan qualification?

2011-10-04T08:20:00.001-07:00

Yes! Now you're getting it. With lower interest rates you can qualify for more home - especially with prices as low as they are today.

Take 3 minutes and read this very short article on how and why a higher interest rate can keep you from qualify for the same home you qualify for at lower rates.

Amplify’d from kennycook.com

For people who need to purchase a new home in the Atlanta area the numbers do line up well for the buying opportunity. The oversupply of available home listings, fixed 30 year interest rates at or near four percent, and underwriting guidelines trending toward “reasonable” it certainly is time to consider the move. Now here is some really good news: lowest interest rates results in lower monthly payments which changes the buyer’s debt-to-income ration resulting in the ability to buy more home for less money.

Debt To Income Ratio (DTI)

It becomes quickly obvious that as interest rates rise the buyer qualifies for less home. This is the primary reason today is a very good time to buy because rates are incredibly low (and will not stay that way) and home values are “in the tank” (and will not stay that way).

How the Lowest Interest Rates Affect Your Ability to Buy
Read more at kennycook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1e36j

Alibaba Buying Yahoo?

2011-10-02T08:01:00.001-07:00

In case you aren't familiar with Alibaba they are the Hong Kong based company who made history in 2007 with the second largest internet based IPO of, I believe it was $1.7billion, only surpassed by Google's IPO at the time.

That said, Jack Ma's amazing vision is now, realistically, positioned well to consummate just such a purchase.

Amplify’d from www.bloomberg.com

Alibaba’s Ma ‘Very Interested’ in Buying Yahoo

Ma said he’s had discussions with Yahoo, as well as other
potential buyers, without identifying them. The executive, whose
company is 40 percent owned by Yahoo, spoke at an event at
Stanford University near Palo Alto, California.

Enlarge image

Alibaba Chairman Jack Ma

David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

Jack Ma, chairman of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.

Jack Ma, chairman of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

Read more at www.bloomberg.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1e09y

I Told You So

2011-09-30T14:16:00.001-07:00

Let me repeat myself at the risk of sounding crude, "I told you so."

No Federal program is ever going to rescue the economy or people's futures from their failed pasts. Never. It is inherently, sociologically impossible. This is just another failed social program created for one purpose only: to buy votes. Only this time it failed before the deal could be consummated.

Amplify’d from www.nytimes.com

U.S. Mortgage-Aid Program Is Shutting Down, With Up to $500 Million Unspent

“They dragged and dragged their feet,” Mr. Frank said in an interview. “I believe it was not one of their priorities.”

The combination of these rules, housing counselors said, disqualified a large number of people who had gone through their savings and fallen behind on mortgage payments. Nor have all of the applicants who met the qualifications been approved for the loan.
Read more at www.nytimes.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1dzdc

Google is not a demigod. Or not.

2011-09-21T13:46:00.001-07:00

When called to "testify" in front of Congress it's not like being asked, "Did you wash your hands? Did you use soap?" by your mommy. How does Google *not* "cook the search results" would be a more accurate question and elicit better honesty. Like my mom used to ask, "Which soap did you use when you washed your hands?" No getting around that one, if that bar of soap was not wet ... you just got busted.

So, Google, which soap did you use?

Amplify’d from thenextweb.com

Schmidt denies Google ‘cooks’ search results, says it serves the users

As Google’s Eric Schmidt testifies before a Senate committee inquiring into the company’s search practices, he is facing many questions about the way that its search product works.

To this, Schmidt replied:

First, we built search for users, not websites, and no matter what we do, there will always be some websites unhappy with where they rank. Search is subjective, and there‟s no “correct” set of search results. Our scientific process is designed to provide the answers that consumers will find most

useful.

To this end, Schmidt was saying that certain answers, like stock results and maps, would simply be delivered straight to the consumer instead of being delivered as a result that led to another site. Schmidt said that this was in order to serve the consumer faster with the information that they required.
Read more at thenextweb.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1d8qf

Yahoo without Bartz - hope for recovery?Or "who cares"!

2011-09-07T11:41:00.001-07:00

Frankly I don't care. Yahoo has gone so far to the "hate big business support socialism" side of the map I'm hoping they will just go ahead and sell what's left. Could I have done better? Absolutely - because I know how to sell, know how to develop a team that's excited to perform for me and I don't cuss you during pep rallies.

Adios Bartz. You've just been fired: over the phone.

If you guys at Yahoo are ready for a CEO who believes in fostering an atmosphere of power and growth I'm available. Maybe not for you but I'm available.

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

Yahoo's Bartz era: The non-stop drama in her own words

Carol Bartz joined Yahoo as CEO with high hopes, a few F-bombs and a no-nonsense style. But Bartz was ultimately sunk by a drama-go-round that never ended. Yahoo never quite got its act together even though Bartz made some solid moves to set the company on better footing.

I am very sad to tell you that I’ve just been fired over the phone by Yahoo’s Chairman of the Board. It has been my pleasure to work with all of you and I wish you only the best going forward.

See more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1ck9u

I would call this an act of war

2011-08-29T19:35:00.001-07:00

When a government of one nation possesses the power to affect the citizens of another nation and they use it - that's an act of war. Or in my opinion it is. Just because the act took place in digital space makes it no less interruptive to the flow of business or the privacy of the citizens of the nation affected.

Amplify’d from www.computerworld.com

Hackers acquire Google certificate, could hijack Gmail accounts

Repeat of Comodo affair last March; foreign government may be behind theft, says researcher

Computerworld - Hackers have obtained a digital certificate good for any Google website from a Dutch certificate provider, a security researcher said today.
Read more at www.computerworld.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1c59y

Short Sale Fraud, really?

2011-08-29T12:32:00.001-07:00

This may sound like I'm throwing real estate agents under the bus but I am. Just not the ones who are my friends or want to be my friend ...

Amplify’d from www.nationalmortgagenews.com

Freddie, Realtors Look to Stop Short-Sale Fraud

Freddie Mac's fraud investigation unit is reaching out to Realtor associations and real estate agents to educate them about how to prevent fraudulent short-sale activities from taking place.

“By concealing the higher offer, short-sale fraud worsens losses to home sellers, Freddie Mac and taxpayers,” the Freddie Mac employees said. “It also throws another wrench into the housing recovery by undermining the trust and transparency at the core of any real estate transaction.”
Read more at www.nationalmortgagenews.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1c42y

Patch up your patchy Apache

2011-08-24T12:25:00.001-07:00

Apache isn't new to vulnerability exploitations. But when a major announcement goes out you had better pay attention. Follow the links to see if you are affected and what to do then come say hi. Looking for technical, communications and marketing guest bloggers at the fairly high traffic http://thekencook.com and http://socialmediaedge.com

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

'Kill tool' released for unpatched Apache server vulnerability

The open-source Apache Foundation has warned that attack tool has been released for a serious vulnerability in the Apache HTTPD Web Server.

See more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1bs5x

Sprint to the Apple?

2011-08-23T13:23:00.001-07:00

Interesting development. Does this mean I get to do an actual nuts to nuts comparison?

Amplify’d from www.wallstreetjournal.com

Sprint to Get iPhone 5

Sprint Nextel Corp. will begin selling the iPhone 5 in mid-October, people familiar with the matter said, closing a huge hole in the No. 3 U.S. carrier's lineup and giving Apple Inc. another channel for selling its popular phone.
Read more at www.wallstreetjournal.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1br8j

I laugh - the Apples think HP signals end of competition

2011-08-22T09:21:00.001-07:00

Let's face it, HP has great success in the document world - floundering in the computer hardware world from beginning to present. Apple is indeed vicious in their attack and trying to dominate the sphere through force. That just means they know the prize is valuable and makes some start-up out there think of the way to succeed in spite of the constant assault of litigation.

If I were funding a start-up in the mobile technology world I'd suggest something Apple never has seemed to get right: listen to your fans as well as your critics. Don't be so grovish.

Amplify’d from content.usatoday.com

TouchPad fire sale sets off flurry of purchases

HP sent crowds of geeks to queue in front of retailers over the weekend after it abandoned the TouchPad, a tablet computer, and retailers were forced to sell them for $99 -- a $300 discount and well below cost.

Then, word came overnight that stores, namely Best Buy, would have some inventory this morning. Who can turn down a $99 tablet? Not me.
Read more at content.usatoday.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1bpi6

HubSpot buys Laura Fitton's OneForty.com

2011-08-19T09:48:00.001-07:00

Hey Laura, can I borrow a few quid?

Amplify’d from oneforty.com

Almost exactly 32 months ago today a crazy thought — Twitter needs an appstore! — flashed through my head. Despite my strong instincts to run like hell in the other direction, oneforty managed to tumble its way into an incredibly fortunate existence (a long story, very well told here and here). Thanks to the labor and investments of dozens, the support of thousands and the participation of millions, that little flash grew up to become the oneforty.com you now know and love.
Read more at oneforty.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1bkae

SkyNet is your friend ...

2011-08-15T07:36:00.001-07:00

A reference to Terminator for those not familiar, SkyNet is the great mechanical collective making war on the human race. I really don't equate Google with SkyNet but for their competition it may, at time, seem that way.

Google versus Apple and RIM. That's what this war is. Apple just won a suit against HTC for patent infringement but that won't matter to Google because they didn't gobble up HTC, they gobbled up (shall we soon change that to googled up?) Motorola Mobility.

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

Google's Motorola acquisition: Nail in the Android patent coffin?

Google on Monday announced plans to acquire handset maker Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion in cash.

Google is to become a mobile manufacturer — competing with Apple and Research in Motion directly.

Putting these together, Google is paying a huge price for the handset manufacturer — to build dedicated Google handsets for the Android operating system.
Read more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1b5bs

Droidmobile causes havoc

2011-08-05T09:57:00.001-07:00

Well, not exactly. I just thought to use a little sensationalism on a hot and humid Atlanta Friday afternoon. I reality, though, the Google car did collide with another Prius. The article is worth reading because of why they thought the Google Prius may have kissed into another Prius.

Amplify’d from jalopnik.com

This is Google’s first self-driving car crash

Yet Google has never answered the question of who's ultimately responsible for any accidents that happen while the software controls the vehicle. There's a driver in all of Google's tests who can take control, and probably gets the ticket in this case — but Google imagines these vehicles spreading far beyond its corporate campus. Google can't be hoping to have its software legally blamed for a slice of the traffic crashes that cost more than $160 billion a year in this country. Yet if the operators of Google's self-driving cars retain all legal responsibility, simply turning the system on would be seen in court as a sign they weren't paying attention.
Read more at jalopnik.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1aasl

Video goes viral, sales still suck

2011-08-04T09:38:00.001-07:00

It would be difficult for me to say with any verifiable accuracy how many people have asked me if I could make their product go viral. Likewise it would be difficult to number the times I have seen an advertisement for someone who will make my product go viral.

Now that we have viral experience (I created ViralRealEstate.com in 2006 and it did not by the way) we can begin to look at experience instead of theory. What is viral really worth?

Amplify’d from adage.com

Old Spice Is Killing It on YouTube Again, but Sales Are Down Double-Digits

But to echo the question in the comments section of nearly any story about Mr. Mustafa: Has he really sold much Old Spice?

Read more at adage.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1a9ga

63 Percent of Americans Oppose Debt Limit Increase

2011-08-01T06:57:00.001-07:00

Join object of attack (John McCain's attack) Sharron Angle and fellow Joe Miller. Both friendlies of the Tea Party Caucus. Live at 8PM tonight to answer the questions - "WTH is wrong with Washington DC" and "just how deadly is this deal to the American future?"

The only way to get there is here:

http://hobbits.eventbrite.com/

http://facebook.com/PatriotHobbits

Amplify’d from www.cbsnews.com

Poll: Most Americans oppose raising debt limit

Despite Obama administration warnings that failing to do so would devastate the economy, a clear majority of Americans say they oppose raising the debt limit, a new CBS News/New York Times poll shows.

Just 27 percent of Americans support raising the debt limit, while 63 percent oppose raising it.
Read more at www.cbsnews.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a1a45k

PayPal targeted for attack by hacker groups

2011-07-27T06:52:00.001-07:00

I want to say a lot - most of it would be negative so formulate your own opinions.

I will say this: full force and authority of the law with swift justice. Or shoot to kill, whichever.

Amplify’d from www.abmuku.com

Hacker Groups Anonymous and LulzSec Target PayPal, ‘Operation PayPal’ (#OpPayPal) Launched

#OpPayPal (Operation PayPal) has been launched by the Anonymous and LulzSec hacker groups in the name of AntiSec (Anti Security Movement). In order to payback the “corrupt corporation”, @AnonymousIRC and @LulzSec (Lulz Security)announced their direct, legal action against the world’s largest online payment company on Twitter, where #OpPayPal is now a trending topic. According to AntiSec, PayPal withheld payments from being delivered to WikiLeaks and now they are up in digital arms. Read the first statement from Anonymous below:
Read more at www.abmuku.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a19ous

Sour Apples

2011-07-18T10:35:00.001-07:00

I'm all for protecting patents, trademarks and copyrights. Except people who say God inspired them. Maybe it works for people who say LSD inspired them, too, Mr. Jobs.

Either way Apple still sucks in my experience and I love my Evo and Xoom for hundreds of reasons. I once drank the Apple koolaid and it upset my tummy - very badly. I only use an Apple product by absolute force these days.

This finding, however, if it's accurate should go through. If HTC did violate Apple's patents then they should pay. Period. Gag, cough, hack. There, I said it. Apple may deserve to win this one.

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

Apple deals massive patent blow to HTC, Android in serious trouble

Just how serious is this ruling for HTC? Very serious. The worst-case scenario is that the ITC imposes an US import ban against all of HTC’s Android products. That’s how serious this is for HTC.
Read more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a18fga

Is Google+ Destroying Facebook's Dreams?

2011-07-13T11:33:00.001-07:00

I am not a fan of either the methodology of Facebook or their PR style. That said I am interested in the War of the Behemoths ...

Amplify’d from www.businessinsider.com

Google Plus Is DESTROYING Facebook's Dreams, And Facebook Isn't Playing Fair

What's so interesting about this is that Facebook is handling the attack in precisely the WRONG way. It's alienating users, rather than being a gentleman.

One program simply collects your friends list, but Facebook allegedly found that unacceptable.
Read more at www.businessinsider.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a17sph

Netflix trending because of a price increase

2011-07-13T10:38:00.001-07:00

If you've missed it you have not spent much time in the social space: Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and probably LinkedIn and even My[___] if it still exists.

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

Netflix's pricing backlash: Follow the money, churn rates

Netflix’s pricing move is all about the money. By unbundling DVD and streaming services, Netflix is reflecting its costs better. Unfortunately for customers a bundled plan is now 60 percent higher. What’s galling to customers is that they can even get a bundle discount from the cable giants—you know the companies Netflix was going to unseat.
Read more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a17sk6

Beef - It's what's for dinner! - ad

2011-07-01T06:54:00.001-07:00

Like Beef? Check out great 4th of July steak recipes

Group contributed blogs. Good, bad and ugly.

2011-07-01T06:52:00.001-07:00

I have done this successfully and participated in blogs that were done both successfully and not so. Here are some tips, most of these points I agree with, about running a blog (or any type of community site) where multiple people will be contributing.

I can tell you this - you cannot MAKE people post a certain number of times per week, month or even year. If you want to do that, pay them. You spend a bit of time massaging egos and people post - you try to pressure them to post they say "buzz off" and leave.

Amplify’d from www.johnpaulaguiar.com

Running Multi-Authors Blog – The Good and Bad

Hesham runs a Thesis site ThesisAwesome.com and very popular multi author blog and we have had a couple chats on the good and bad of blogging this way. So I thought this would be a great post for bloggers to see what it REALLY takes to run a multi author blog.

Clear your mind, and get ready, you are about to discover how I’ve managed to run a multi-author blog and you will judge by yourself whither blogging is meant to be a single player game or not.
Read more at www.johnpaulaguiar.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a16crk

You can't say God at a funeral in Houston?

2011-06-30T12:13:00.001-07:00

You can't make this stuff up, people. It seems Obama's National Cemetery policy, at least in Houston, Texas, does not allow family members or anyone attending a funeral to use the word God or the name Jesus, or to bring a Bible, to the cemetery without direct consent of the direct, Arleen Ocasio.

Where's the ACLU now? Bet you don't find them defending this one!

Amplify’d from www.jersey-texan.com

God Bless Our Military! Just not at the Houston National Cemetery.

As I sat today and listened to the Michael Berry Show today, I overheard a story that has left me disgusted. Seems the Houston National Cemetery Director is requiring grieving families they cannot use the words "God" or "Jesus" at any funeral ceremony without her approval.

Thanks to the Berry Brigade, here is how YOU can help STOP this disrespectful and unacceptable "requirement" put forth by the Houston National Cemetery Director Arleen Ocasio. How dare she require families to submit their prayers to her in writing for approval?! Oh. And there's more. And no bibles. And no chapel. Oh wait. The chapel was closed. Read on.
Read more at www.jersey-texan.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a16bvz

Government spies on medical professionals?

2011-06-30T09:48:00.001-07:00

I'm not sure what you call this, I know what I call it, when a government employee calls a medical service provider "pretending" to be an actual customer when they aren't.

If this is okay with you then please move to a more suitable European nation, preferably Italy or Spain. Goodbye.

Amplify’d from spectator.org

Obama's Medical Mystery Shoppers

On Tuesday evening, after being

outed by the New York
Times, the Obama
Administration abandoned
plans to have "mystery shoppers" call primary care physicians
to determine how easy or difficult it is to get a doctor's
appointment and whether being part of a government health insurance
program impacted that ease or difficulty.

As the Times noted, "the decision [to abandon the
"mystery shopper" plan], after criticism from doctors and
politicians, represents an abrupt turnabout. On Sunday night,
officials at the health department and the White House staunchly
defended the survey as a way to measure access to primary care, and
insisted that it posed no threat to privacy."
Read more at spectator.org

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a16bn5

Consumer confidence heads for shelter, in the basement

2011-06-23T12:42:00.001-07:00

There are a lot of storms this year. Tornadoes have ravaged parts of the country where they are rarely spotted. Floods have covered the plains states and there seems to be no sign of slowing.

What did we expect from the economy with the storm brewing in DC? The jobless rate is astronomical, gas prices - holy cats! Food prices up, up and up. And now home sales down yet another 2%.

Here's your change. Hope it's what you expected ...

Amplify’d from www.bloomberg.com

U.S. Consumer Sentiment Unexpectedly Falls to Six-Month Low on Job Outlook

Consumer sentiment unexpectedly
decreased in May to the lowest level in six months as Americans
grew concerned over the outlook for jobs and the economy, while
a measure of home prices dropped to a nine-year low.
Read more at www.bloomberg.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a15s22

Apple wins wide ranging patent suit

2011-06-22T13:27:00.001-07:00

Apple owns the patent to the mobile touch screen...

If you want to dance with the devil sue the bugger. Or at least as close as you can get. Nokia and Samsung have been sparring in court with no-holds-barred Apple over various technology patents for the last several months and one by one they are coming before the judge.

In technology and art it's not who actually did something first it's who patented or otherwise protected it first. In a few of these cases it appears apple may have been the first to submit the paperwork. Unlike a business name or trade-name patents go by date filed not the date first used in commerce. (I'm not a lawyer, I'm a multiple lawsuit winner

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

In wireless lawsuit fray, Apple snags mobile touchscreen patent

As computer maker Apple battles several patent-related lawsuits with Nokia, Samsung and other competitors related to the wireless functionality of its popular iPhone, iPod and iPad products, the company was awarded a patent on Tuesday involving how a user interacts with a mobile device’s touchscreen display.
Read more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a15qge

Facebook "fatigue"? That's a new one.

2011-06-21T18:31:00.001-07:00

Has Facebook reached the natural cap for users? This article seems to assert that possibility. Then again maybe all of Roger Ebert's fan(s) quit.

Speaking of which, what about his page being deleted then re-opened? Think the kids at FB thumbed him because they didn't know he had clout with a couple of people? Or how did he get turned back on so quickly?

Amplify’d from news.sky.com

Decline In Users Hints At 'Facebook Fatigue'

Facebook is said to have suffered a second successive slump in users in America and Britain, leading some to suggest people are tiring of the ubiquitous social media site.

Roughly half the UK population has signed up
Read more at news.sky.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a15nzf

Advice: Think mobile

2011-06-20T11:54:00.001-07:00

Get yourself prepared for the switch to mobile. Video and audio will become vastly more important in your strategy and operations. I am also still amazed to see how many people do not have mobile ready web sites and blogs. Save yourself embarrassment and missed opportunity. 877-700-0536

Amplify’d from www.marketingcharts.com

Smartphone Data Usage Grows Rapidly

Smartphone owners, especially those with iPhones and Android devices, are consuming more data than ever before on a per-user basis, according to monthly cellphone data collected by the Nielsen Company. In just the last 12 months, the amount of data the average smartphone user consumes per month has grown by 89%, from 230 Megabytes (MB) in Q1 2010 to 435 MB in Q1 2011.

Read more at www.marketingcharts.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a15kwk

Successful Social Selling

2011-06-07T14:00:00.001-07:00

When I ask people to raise their hands if they think they spend too much time online for the value they get in return it is never a surprise when as many as 50% of the people raise their hands.

The goal of this workshop is to cure that for those who attend. Quite literally these presenters are some of the very best in the industry and have actually proven they know what they are talking about. This is not theory or some sales weasel trying to get you to buy a system or even a book (books are good, don't take that wrong).

How about eBay's top female seller? How about the man who wrote the first book on Twitter? This is only a sample and the early bird gets much more than worms - save 35% by registering early. It will be available for replay but only to the paid registrants!

Amplify’d from www.eventbrite.com

Successful Social Selling

Using the talent of some of the best known names in online engagement this 3.5 hour session includes many time proven techniques in the psychology of selling and how to translate those to both offline and online social settings. With the recent explosion of online social tools such as Facebook and Twitter and less than 4% of the small businesses in America taking advantage of these opportunities this is a very unique opportunity to learn from the best.

Every presenter has proven their skills in the industry and is known for what they can bring to the conversation.

GOAL OF THIS WORKSHOP:

To help the user who already has a social media presence take it to the next level and start seeing more transactional results from their online presence. There is a science to successful online selling and to omit it from the process may result in a less than satisfactory return on the time and resources invested into social media with the intent of meeting prospects and leading those relationships to sale.

Learn how to:

Establish a real, achievable social media plan and implement it

Gather, access, understand and use social metrics to measure your success

Tie all of your social media together with accurate branding

Write content that sells and gets others to sell for you

Create a Facebook ad campaign that yields results

Actually use SEO and SEM techniques and not just hear those words

Create eye-catching titles that get people to click your link and open your email without misleading

Use graphics and fonts to create more sales motivating content

Use audio and video to share the word even with mobile surfers

Prepare for the future with upcoming changes and how to "surf on top of the wave"

Much more!

The lineup:

Irene Koehler

@IreneKoehler Bay Area, California

How can I help you use social media for your business or career? Speaker, consultant, all-around nice person. Part of @SMC_SV team, Official Blogger for LeWeb10

http://bit.ly/8Aav4F

Warren Whitlock

@WarrenWhitlock Las Vegas, NV

Author of 1st book on Twitter, Publisher, Blogger and Social Media Radio Show Host

http://BestSellerBookExpert.com

Stacy Kinney

@StacyKinney Hollywood, FL

Social Media Marketing & Personal Branding, Real Estate Investor & Eco Friendly Gal. Driven to succeed & help others. Wine lover. Attitude of gratitude!

http://www.StacyKinney.com

Caroline Barry

@TweetCaroline Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Confirmed genius, crazy redhead, single mom being raised by 3 amazing children. Social Media / PR Director for @GeauxChevy

http://bit.ly/carolinebarry

James Ball

@NotEasyToForget Georgia

Digital Marketing Director & Corporate Social Strategist at AroundAbout Local Media, Inc. The views here and on my personal blog (linked) are my own.

http://noteasytoforget.com

Paul Chaney

@pchaney Lafayette, LA

Internet marketing and social media consultant, speaker and author of The Digital Handshake. The Social Media Handyman. http://facebook.com/paulchaney

http://www.thesocialmediahandyman.com

Hosted by:

Ken Cook

@thekencook Marietta, Georgia

Not a guru or a big deal. I'm on safari. Host and founder of http://SocialMediaEdge.com radio since 2008. New Media lead for mortgage/real estate enterprise.

http://about.me/kencook

THIS IS AN ONLINE EVENT ONLY

Access to a computer with speakers or a computer and telephone is required to participate. Slides may be used by the presenters as necessary to complete their presentation.
Read more at www.eventbrite.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a14qgu

With the Groupon IPO the hot topic of the day - what happened to the first $1Billion?

2011-06-02T13:36:00.001-07:00

If you were going to lend your cousin $100 wouldn't you want to know what he did with the $50 he just got a few minutes ago?

I'm not interested in Groupon for myself. If I had the power to get in big then get out quickly, perhaps within hours, maybe I'd go in. Maybe Groupon can outbest the competition but everybody has a freakin' Groupon knockoff today. I know 7 people personally who run one fairly successfully and I just developed one scratch for a company with a really nice looking plan to dominate a huge sector of the market.

Amplify’d from allthingsd.com

Where Did Groupon’s Billion Dollars Go?

In January, Groupon raised $950 million. By the end of March, it had $209 million in cash.

What happened to all that money?
Read more at allthingsd.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a14e8p

We’re on the verge of a great, great depression. The [Federal Reserve] knows it.

2011-06-02T11:22:00.001-07:00

Interesting words. Not mine. But I definitely agree. What I called "smoke and mirrors" under the Clinton administration was held in check throughout the second Bush's administration in part because nothing really changed.

And the cause is a massive 2 year build up of debt and increase in the size and scope of the federal government.

The unprecedented debt load under which we have been shoved by Congress and the White House over the last 2 years has broken the back of the US economy. This is clear evidence socialism never works. Those of you who are not aware of my political bent or who are afraid to face the facts need to really take a close look at what you have been supporting.

What a slight majority, mostly un-informed and un-educated, voted for in 2008 is coming home to roost. Redistribution of wealth means everyone is poor and the nation suffers greatly because of it. Poor people are not generally smart enough, organized enough or driven enough to create and manage wealth.

Amplify’d from www.cnbc.com

Wall Street Baffled by Slowing Economy, Low Yields: Trader

"What we’ve got right now is almost near panic going on with money managers and people who are responsible for money," he said. "They can not find a yield and you just don’t want to be putting your money into commodities or things that are punts that might work out or they might not depending on what happens with the economy.

"Interest rates are amazingly low and that, thanks to Ben Bernanke, is driving everything," Yastrow said. "We’re on the verge of a great, great depression. The [Federal Reserve] knows it.
Read more at www.cnbc.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a14dx3

How to miss a free chance to reach 13% of American adults

2011-06-02T11:10:00.001-07:00

This only requires 1 simple step: Don't "get" Twitter.

How many people have said, "I don't get Twitter" or "Twitter is a time suck"?

Amplify’d from pewinternet.org

13% of online adults use the status update service Twitter, which represents a significant increase from the 8% of online adults who identified themselves as Twitter users in November 2010. 95% of Twitter users own a mobile phone, and half of these users access the service on their handheld device.

See more at pewinternet.org

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a14dvx

Worst kept secret in Silicon Valley revealed

2011-05-31T08:01:00.001-07:00

And the funny thing is I personally don't care about this secret except for the fact that 4.7% of the people who access my data use an Apple product of some sort and I do care about them. Welcome to the cloud Mr. Jobs.

Amplify’d from www.wired.com

worst kept secret in Silicon Valley

Apple Announces iCloud, Steve Jobs WWDC Keynote

Apple has confirmed maybe the worst kept secret in Silicon Valley: it’s been working on a cloud service, and will announce it at the June 6 Worldwide Developers Conference.

See more at www.wired.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a145oa

HTC to serve up unlocked bootloaders

2011-05-27T13:51:00.001-07:00

I know. I'm a total propeller head. Then that's no secret. What can I do with an unlocked bootloader that I can't do now? Muhwahahahaha!

Here's the Facebook thread:

https://www.facebook.com/HTC/posts/10150307320018084

Amplify’d from www.bgr.com

“There has been overwhelmingly customer feedback that people want access to open bootloaders on HTC phones. I want you to know that we’ve listened. Today, I’m confirming we will no longer be locking the bootloaders on our devices. Thanks for your passion, support and patience,” Peter Chou, CEO of HTC
Read more at www.bgr.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a13zlr

Macy's doing social marketing right? And why you should care ...

2011-05-10T08:06:00.001-07:00

There has been so much deep conversation lately as "social media grows up" about who is doing what right and wrong. There was the Burger King fiasco last summer.

Jonathan Salem Baskin recently wrote in AdAge, "Burger King has grilled through a couple of CMOs and fired agency Crispin Porter & Bogusky after producing Facebook campaigns and viral videos that got lots of attention while the business witnessed six consecutive quarters of declining sales."

That discussion quickly turned to BK failing outside of social media by not adapting the healthier lifestyle embraced by fast food chains who are making the turn to black numbers. So was it failed social media use or just bad menu selections?

Pepsi flunked, too. But did they flunk because of a bad Facebook campaign or just a bad decision to ditch traditional media (I mean we are talking Superbowl ads here after all) which resulted in their slide to a distant third behind Diet Coke in the continuing multi-billion dollar cola wars?

Moreover, and most importantly for my readers and friends, what does any of this have to do with how you as independent contractors and small business operators increase your net revenue? Let's talk about it - http://socialmediaedge.com listens to your voice, too.

Amplify’d from www.clickz.com

Is Facebook Marketing Behind Macy's Online Sales Jump?

Perhaps Macy's new online sales numbers are proof that Facebook "likes" do generate revenue.

Macy's Facebook page has picked up a whopping 800,000 "likes" in 2011 so far thanks to a handful of initiatives. It now has an audience of almost 1.8 million on the social site.

A Mother's Day gift guide button has been prominently placed within the Facebook app page, and people clicking through are taken to a dedicated Macys.com landing page.
Read more at www.clickz.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a125n0

What is "Red Day"?

2011-05-09T13:03:00.001-07:00

Glad you asked. Here's the answer:

Amplify’d from www.kw.com

What is Red Day?

RED Day (Renew, Energize and Donate) is an initiative dedicated to celebrating Keller Williams Realty’s year-round commitment to improving our local communities. Each year, on the second Thursday in May, tens of thousands of associates from across the United States and Canada participate in a wide range of projects, devoting their time to renewing and energizing aspects of the neighborhoods in which they serve.
Read more at www.kw.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/a11ybk

The science of selecting keywords

2011-04-27T21:23:00.001-07:00

You can just write and hope - affectionately known in a former life as "spray and pray" or you can know what to do, how do to it and what to expect. More importantly you can know what to do if what you expect does not occur.

It's "just SEO" ...

Amplify’d from activerain.com

The science and reward of selecting the right keywords

"I am number one on Google", she proclaimed proudly.

"For which keywords are you number one?" I had to know.

Of course we all know what is coming, "For my name!"

Which is? "Alavedia Vaazteroves."

Sure, that's a silly intro yet it does paint the picture. Unless our very fictitious Alavedia has some celebrity chances are Alavedia Vaazteroves skews very low in Google search results. Which, for the purpose of this very short article, is our only concern.

Read more at activerain.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/b10odw

Silver lining in real estate recovery?

2011-04-25T19:22:00.001-07:00

We've all talked about the bottom. We have asked, "is this the bottom?" Sometimes we have even been overheard to say, "this has got to be the bottom!"

The graph shows the dramatic decline in new home sales. Recent activity has been just as unstable as the graph portrays.

So, are we at the bottom? Was February the end of the (obviously) largest dip in new home sales since data collection began?

Amplify’d from money.cnn.com

New home sales hover near all-time low

The Census Bureau reported an annual sales rate of 300,000 new homes in March. While that was an 11% increase from February's all-time low of 270,000, new home sales remained near the lowest levels recorded since the government started tracking the data in 1963.
Read more at money.cnn.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/b106y3

A serious competitor to iPad in Nook?

2011-04-25T13:36:00.001-07:00

Barnes and Noble sure hopes so. With Android 2.2 it has plenty of computing experience to get the job done. And with Barnes & Noble pushing it the user base just may jump precipitously!

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

Nook Color gets official update to make it a real Android tablet

There has been quite an active community around the Nook Color and hacking it to get full Android 2.2 on it with support for the Android Market. It actually has gotten to the point that this process was quick and easy with an option to even run Android right from a microSD card. However, it was never a fully authorized solution so it is great to finally see Barnes & Noble release the official update for Android 2.2 and applications.

See more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/b1066q

How do you know when you are succeeding?

2011-04-25T09:26:00.001-07:00

Funny. I can tell you how to find out when you are succeeding but only you can tell when you are truly succeeding. We read and hear so much theory we forget to rely on what really matters: achieving goals.

Amplify’d from thekencook.com

Quantifying success: Only you truly know when you are succeeding

A few days ago there was a post by Yet Another Social Media Guru who was giving a formula for success via social media marketing. His list included a few “dos” and “don’ts” but it never really dealt with the heart of the matter: what are your goals?

In his short and elementary post he included a “do not” that many do and from which they enjoy a great amount of success. In his encounter with this author away from the post he did not quite admit his goal was to “get more comments and likes” but certainly alluded to that result. So this poses the question which begs to be answered: what are your goals and how do you measure them?
Read more at thekencook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/b105jm

Awaiting sentencing for $3 billion fraud

2011-04-21T07:14:00.001-07:00

Having been in the mortgage banking industry for years we used to wonder, "how in the world can (insert other company name here) close this loan?" We would with great regularity deny a loan only to have the agent or borrower let us know later they closed at this broker or that broker or some other lender. From looking at the files we knew there was no way they were good loans.

What's that old saying, what goes around comes around? Farkas is not the only actor he's just one who has been caught and prosecuted. You can ask almost any loan officer in any city who they think was "crooked" back during the boom and if they all say the same names you may want to start sniffing.

I'm still totally blown away there hasn't been similar news about a certain country wide lender which was huge during the boom.

Well, Virginia, now we know how they were closing all those loans we would not approve. In reality they were not doable loans which we passed on. Amazingly, at the time, we were the bad guys for turning them down.

Amplify’d from www.ocala.com

After the verdict: What's next in the Farkas case

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- It took only a day for a jury to return guilty verdicts against Lee Farkas. Now the former Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp. chairman must wait considerably longer to find out his sentence.

Farkas, 58, will find out July 1. He faces a possible life term behind bars if given the maximum penalty for what prosecutors said was a $2.9 billion fraud scheme that toppled major financial institutions.

See more at www.ocala.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bzwc3

Managing online reputation

2011-04-19T08:38:00.001-07:00

This article was originally directed at medical professionals, primarily doctors, but has some very good directives. The bullet points, with the exception of discussing in the stream with (patients) customers, is excellent advice for everyone.

It's worth the 3 minute read.

Amplify’d from www.boston.com

MDs online: Navigating soci

al medi

MDs online: Navigating social media

Google yourself: Conduct regular audits to find out what patients can see. Do your political contributions or old photos from college pop up? Are rating sites publishing your name and office address, and is it correct? What are others saying about you? Who shares your name, and what impact could their information have on how people (mistakenly) view you?

Manage your image: Control the message by creating your own content, including a professional biography that patients can find through a search.
Read more at www.boston.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bzlfy

WordPress.com hacked (again)

2011-04-14T20:39:00.001-07:00

Look - nothing is 100% secure. One of the biggest reasons to host your own WordPress installation (http://relt.us/host) is because when WordPress.com gets hacked the entire site gets hacked - your site becomes vulnerable.

Chances are the hackers won't care too much about your WP install on your self-hosted account. Not to mention you have total control over what your WP can do - as in you can install your own plugins and you're not just limited to what Automattic allows you to access.

Amplify’d from threatpost.com

WordPress Hacked, Source Code Stolen

Servers belonging to Automattic, which makes the popular Wordpress blogging software, say that their servers were hacked and that the company's source code is believed to have been "exposed and copied," according to a company blog post Wednesday.
Read more at threatpost.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bz4n2

More interesting Facebook: Is it peaked?

2011-04-12T18:15:00.001-07:00

Earlier today I wrote about some interesting Facebook talk from over at Tech Crunch where the storyline seemed to imply Facebook is toast. http://ht.ly/4yNKd

Now here is this infographic from Ignite data posted in a Mashable article about winners and losers. Guess which column defines Facebook?

Weigh in at http://ht.ly/4yNKd for the quick, one question reader poll.

Amplify’d from mashable.com

The Winners & Losers of Social Networking [INFOGRAPHIC]

The course of social media never did run smooth — not for long, anyhow. And for some Web 2.0 companies, it’s running less smoothly than ever.

It goes without saying that Facebook is the network du jour, but even though the reigning champion’s user stats keep soaring, social networking as a whole might be leveling off. Nevertheless, there are still scores of other highly competitive social sites that are waxing and waning; and different networks and apps are more popular in specific geographic areas, with certain genders or age groups and even among various social classes.
Read more at mashable.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/byw2j

The economy of the mortgaged family

2011-04-11T11:29:00.001-07:00

These numbers really are not too surprising. They bring out facts you may not have already know and lead to some clues about how long it will be until the US housing market recovers or at least begins to look more positive.

For people to sell one home and buy another today is a challenge born out in these statistics: If you have to bring money to the closing when you sell just to cover the difference between payoff and sales price you may not have enough to purchase a new home. If you do a short sale you damage your credit for at least 2 years or longer depending on your situation.

Read this full article for some good insights from the statistics channel.

Amplify’d from www.marketingcharts.com

Mortgage Difficulty Rates High, But Decreasing

A new Harris Poll finds that fully 22% of people with mortgages are having difficulty meeting their mortgage payments, including 7% who are having “a great deal of difficulty”. Furthermore, 21% of those with mortgages are “underwater” in that they think their homes are worth less than the amounts that they owe.

Middle Class Most Likely to Be Underwater

Looking at income demographics among homeowners who say they are underwater, the highest percentage (27%) is found among what could be considered lower middle class homeowners with an annual household income of $35,000 to $49,999. The next-highest percentage (24%) is found among middle class homeowners one income level higher (24%).
Read more at www.marketingcharts.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bytpc

Is Google really ready for Facebook war?

2011-04-10T12:52:00.001-07:00

We know Google wants to be Skynet and what anarcho-capitalist wouldn't? The question is are they really ready for the war? Facebook is an unconventional giant. They prove regularly the petulance of youth, even if that is an exaggeration, as they make decisions with seeming disregard for their users. The question is does Facebook know how to fight conventionally or will a war with Google mean a new giant called Foogle where Larry Page ends up as nothing more than a face-puppet for the new, dominant force?

Amplify’d from www.computerworld.com

Google CEO Page homes in on social networking

Memo to Google workers is said to tie employee bonuses to social success

Facebook, with more than 500 million users, is the largest social networking site in the world. That alone is a threat to Google, which wants users to spend their time on Google sites.
Read more at www.computerworld.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bypg2

YouTube to broadcast the Superbowl?

2011-04-08T08:45:00.001-07:00

http://thekencook.com - not beyond gimmicks so visit and subscribe to win stuff!

Not likely to see big time pro sporting events on YouTube any time soon but is this a step in the direction that puts players like YouTube, Hulu and Netflix in the top spots where NBC, ABC and CBS dominated throughout the 20th century?

The better question, and please share the answer if you have one, is "how can citizen journalists monetize their efforts by producing and publishing content?"

Amplify’d from news.yahoo.com

$100M Revamp Will Make YouTube a TV Competitor

"We're entering a new phase in the evolution of television. Phase one was broadcast. Phase two was cable, and now this third phase is 'connected TV,'" Sterling said. "Netflix, Hulu and YouTube, possibly, are the aspiring CBS, NBC and ABC of this new connected-TV era."

YouTube also rolled out what it's calling YouTube Next. The new team will take on the task of driving content development and helping YouTube content partners grow and monetize their broadcasts.
Read more at news.yahoo.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/byeku

Housing prices to continue falling?

2011-04-05T14:48:00.001-07:00

And how much wealth has been lost on paper due to values declining? We'll never know exactly. Even if we did I am not certain I would appreciate hearing.

What does this mean for the real estate industry? The mortgage industry? The building industry? What about the economy as a whole?

Amplify’d from www.cnbc.com

No Spring Break in Housing: Prices Likely to Keep Falling

Housing prices will not get a Spring bounce and will actually fall during the industry’s historically best season as buyers continue to wait for that elusive “housing bottom,” according to surveys and analysis by two top Wall Street firms.
Photo by:Seven_Null7
Reduced Price
Read more at www.cnbc.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bxu7c

Cloud storage for free

2011-04-03T18:24:00.000-07:00

Cloud storage for free

Can’t decide how much memory to get on your pad or slate computer? Wonder no more, here’s 5 GB for free …

Amazon Cloud Drive

You have probably heard of DropBox. In fact I have pushed it for a long time as a favorite and I have the 50 gig account (which is completely full). Now at the same time I have had an Amazon S3 account since December 30, 2007 where I have stored massive amounts of data for about $5 per month – First 1 TB / month of storage used $0.140 per GB. In my case that’s about 35 GB.

If I switched to reduced redundancy the price goes down even more – First 1 TB / month of storage used $0.093 per GB so about $5 per month for 50 GB. Compared to DropBox that’s about 1/2 price … sort of.

If I ran Facebook: 7 changes I would consider

2011-03-27T09:46:00.000-07:00

We all see the complaints. Facebook makes changes without warning then suffers the brutality of the social network it supports. This event is generally followed by backtracking and scrambling to “fix what they broke”. Let children run a company, nation or social behemoth and that’s what you’re going to get: unilateral decisions that don’t work the way their inexperience believes it will followed by backtracking for one reason – saving face. It happens in politics, too.

Granted I’ve made mistakes and I am fully capable of making more. Inexperience has given way to crotchetiness (is that a word?) and low blood-sugar powered decisions. When faced with a larger scale decision than where to eat, however, I have enough experience that says, “get counsel, listen to other people, measure twice – cut once”.

If I ran Facebook it probably...

If I ran Facebook: 7 changes I would consider

Hayden Panettiere and Clint Eastwood at my house for Earth Hour on Twitpic

2011-03-26T19:31:00.000-07:00

Hayden Panettiere and Clint Eastwood at my house for Earth Hour on Twitpic

Are you optimized for the mobile web?

2011-03-25T11:34:00.000-07:00

Are you optimized for the mobile web?

You have heard it, you’ve read about it, people who appear to know stuff have told you: the digital revolution is unwired and if you don’t feed it what it needs to exist it will move on without you. When is this going to happen? It’s already, almost, so last year.

We cannot imagine the resistance Alexander Bell experienced. I remember hearing old people talking about it back int he 60′s saying they thought the phone would be a huge invasion and some called it “the devil’s box”. Why do we always credit “the devil” with innovation? But I digress. Let’s look at communications changes over the last few thousand years ...

38% of quitters say Twitter "pointless"

2011-03-23T13:40:00.001-07:00

We talk on http://socialmediaedge.com (BlogTalkRadio podcast since 2008) about why people say they "don't get" Twitter. This entire article really sheds some light. Do you think Twitter has peaked and the "new" is wearing off?

Amplify’d from www.marketingcharts.com

Pointlessness Leading Reason to Abandon Twitter

Fifty-two percent of formerly active Twitter users who no longer use their account say they left because it is pointless. Thirty-eight percent said it got boring, and 23% said it got too chaotic (more than one answer permitted).
Read more at www.marketingcharts.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bw6p4

HiDef video intro (lead-in) for $5

2011-03-05T15:56:00.001-08:00

Ever wish you had a nice lead-in to brand your videos for YouTube, Vimeo, Photobucket, etc? Normally this could cost $30 or more - right now only $5. Yes, FIVE BUCKS. And it includes theme music, licensed to you so no lawsuits, your image(s) and your title text.

Amplify’d from www.youtube.com

Video Production: Intro clip for your video for $5

http://relt.us/video - yes, it's true. I will create an HD and web quality 10 second intro like this one for you for $5. You ever heard of fiverr.com? That's what inspired me. You send me 1 image, three bits of text and tell me if you want, rock, metal, country, jazz, orchestra, or club (techno) music. I will do the text, your image and create custom music for you. 10 second leaders that fade in and fade out that can be used with Windows Movie Maker or any other video editing software. This is the hi-def version. 1.16 gigabytes. You will also get a web quality version - for this same clip about 1.7 megabytes.

Read more at www.youtube.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bt1sr

I ignored your email because of the 100s of worthless ones you sent ...

2011-02-21T08:17:00.001-08:00

It may sound cold but it's a hard fact: senseless forwarding of irrelevant, "cute", "moving", or otherwise "inspirational" email messages will eventually cause the reader to block, mark as spam or otherwise ignore what possibly could be a valuable and time sensitive message.

THINK before you hit the "FORWARD" button ...

Amplify’d from thekencook.com

Email abuse! How do you manage your inbox?

No, I did not see your email

A few weeks ago I received an important email from a connection of mine. They had asked me to contact a prospect, a small business needing a website that “does stuff”. The email message included the important note that the owners were anxious, had already done some shopping and had their budget ready and available.

It was the developer’s dream. They had graphics, had cash, were ready to add their own content, and needed it all in a reasonable time period for the person who could start by the beginning of February. I missed the message.
Read more at thekencook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/br4tm

Resveratrol - Sponsored Post

2011-02-06T12:18:00.001-08:00

Researching more on my new diet and lifestyle I found pureandhealthy.com offers 98% pure micronized #Resveratrol

Untitled

2011-01-29T09:36:00.001-08:00

Amplify’d from thekencook.com

There’s a plugin for that – why WordPress is cheap and easy

WordPress is designed to make it as simple to manage a website as it is to send an email. And it works. The continual updates and upgrades to the WordPress core continue daily through the community of WP developers and contributors who each contribute their own corrections and enhancements to be approved by the community for inclusion in future upgrades. This keeps the application growing and advancing to keep up pace with changing technology and needs.

The cost to upgrade? The same as the cost to purchase WordPress … ZERO. It is open source, a word highly offensive to companies especially like Apple and Microsoft. What is missing from WordPress that companies like that would provide if they owned the rights? Fees, snotty service and miscomprehended service manuals.
Read more at thekencook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/any2e

It's not just gas prices - look at FOOD prices

2011-01-12T13:04:00.001-08:00

Seriously, you think things are "okay"? You think the economy is stabilized and "acceptable"? For those of us who remember the run-up under the Carter administration after the housing bubble popped and mortgage interest rates soared to 20% we know this looks and feels very similar.

Gas was about 50-60 cents a gallon before the crash and skyrocketed to $1.20 or more during Carter's "reign". Of course it never went back down after the crisis was over.

Gas prices may be headed to $4 a gallon under lord Obama but that's not the dangerous part. Food prices are up double percentage points just since Obama took office and there is no sign they are slowing down ... "costs will necessarily skyrocket" Obama said of his Cap and Trade plan before he was elected.

Amplify’d from www.walletpop.com

Soaring Food Prices:Compare Cost Increases

You're paying as much as 69% more over the past two years for common kitchen staples, like eggs, bread, milk, chicken and more. Take a look at over 20 items to see how much prices have risen over 24 months.(Figures are based on the U.S. city average as of Jun. 30, 2008, from the Department of Labor's CPI.)
Read more at www.walletpop.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/blou1

Internet ID Cards issued to US citizens?

2011-01-10T12:50:00.001-08:00

Under the quise of "making it simpler" just how far will the Department of Homeland Security go with this one? Watch their words. It's rarely what they say it will be. Don't forget, Napolitano reportedly now wants TSA type security checkpoints at malls and Walmart.

Amplify’d from www.cbsnews.com

Obama Eyeing Internet ID for Americans

STANFORD, Calif.--President Obama is planning to hand the U.S. Commerce Department authority over a forthcoming cybersecurity effort to create an Internet ID for Americans, a White House official said here today.
Read more at www.cbsnews.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/bl914

Here's a little Rocket Fuel for your WordPress

2011-01-03T13:40:00.001-08:00

Some themes have everything you want. Some have everything you need but not everything you want. If you're doesn't have author avatars on post titles here's a simple way to make that happen.

If you want it and you can't figure it out call me - I'll hook you up for a fair fee. 877-7000-KEN

Amplify’d from thekencook.com

Display author avatar with post title – WordPress tweaks

So you’ve found the theme you like but it’s missing that one cool element you loved so much … the author’s image along with the post title. As with anything there are a dozen work-arounds and if you have another please share it here. This is the old fashioned hacker, down and dirty way of getting that image on the title line of individual posts.
Read more at thekencook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/kej3

Why you are wasting your time on Twitter

2010-12-29T11:07:00.001-08:00

Of course not everyone is. You may be ... I'm certainly not. Some of my closest connections certainly are not. Is it time to rethink the old "chatroom fellowship" method of network building? Perhaps it is simply time to take a re-look at your expectations ...

Amplify’d from activerain.com

Never having been accused of being the quiet type it has been a lifetime challenge to keep my opinion to myself. Yet when I hear people say or read people's writing talking about the waste of time Twitter is it piques my interest. Listen, I'm the first to admit anchovy pizza isn't for everyone but if 25% of my prospective relationships like anchovy pizza it's worth a try. Learning how to talk about the anchovies, knowing what compliments their flavor, other intricate details about anchovies - that is my duty if I intend to serve.

So you're on Twitter and it's a waste of time. Well, let's look at what you do on Twitter. Here are three ways almost guaranteed to lead to failure:

Why you are wasting your time on Twitter
Read more at activerain.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jzj4

Free Chick-fil-A spicey chicken biscuit

2010-12-27T09:06:00.001-08:00

Not much more to it than that. You make a reservation, pick up your biscuit during your reservation hour and eat it. Limited numbers are available from each store so get yours quick!

Amplify’d from www.getspicychicken.com

Make your reservation for an EXCLUSIVE premiere tasting of the Spicy Chicken Biscuit. From January 3 to 8, 2011, Chick-fil-A^® is giving a limited number of FREE Spicy Chicken Biscuits to customers who make a reservation. It will not be added to the menu until January 10, 2011.

See more at www.getspicychicken.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jmgy

Great addition from @LizStrauss in Gens Prosperum

2010-12-26T20:18:00.001-08:00

Every night my Paper.li called "Gens Prosperum" (people who add value to the stream http://paper.li/thekencook/gensprosperum) is published. This is great installment from Liz Strauss.

Amplify’d from paper.li

Do you have what it takes to be free?

successful-blog.com - December 26, 2010
molly wrote this at 3:00 am
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
“Every human has four endowments- self awareness, conscience, indepe...
Read more at paper.li

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jka6

ZDnet: Dump the iPad?

2010-12-21T09:11:00.001-08:00

It's no secret I'm not a fan of Apple, Mac or iPhone/Pad/Pod - not to mention Steve Jobs. Although I did register the name iCobb for my business back in 1998 so i"stuff" is cool.

Why is this ZDnet author dumping the iPad for the Android powered Samsung Galaxy?

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

10 reasons why I'm dumping the iPad for Samsung's Galaxy Tab

But I’ve had a love/hate relationship with the iPad from the beginning. I love the form factor and the ease of connecting to a network and setting up my Exchange email account. But I hate the lack of storage expansion, its frustrating inability to display Flash-based Web sites, and the difficulty of entering text on its keyboard. And it’s still just a tad heavier and bulkier than I’d really prefer for the uses to which I put it. Most of all, I hate Apple’s ironclad control over what apps I can install.
Read more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/j2ck

Free support? What

2010-12-19T09:35:00.001-08:00

Amplify’d from support.icobb.com

Free support from community experts and other users who may have faced the same issues? What a concept! If you have questions about anything relevent to blogging, search optimization, WordPress, Facebook (pages), Twitter, any social media or online business questions we probably have a user or expert who knows the answer or can find the answer quickly.
Read more at support.icobb.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/ivqa

Yahoo Buzz, Delicious and AltaVista ... hasta la vista

2010-12-16T21:44:00.001-08:00

Gone. Out. Over. Kaput. Audi. Sionara. Later gator.

Kind of sad. AltaVista was huge when I had aspirations of being a search engine giant. Interesting how I fancied myself as a competitor of theirs. Then came Google ... the rest is history.

And now, so it appears, these things are going to be history, too.

Amplify’d from searchengineland.com

Confirmed: Yahoo Closing Buzz, Traffic APIs – Maybe Delicious & AltaVista

News is traveling fast about a leaked slide from a Yahoo “all hands” meeting earlier this week that listed several products — including Delicous and AltaVista — to be “sunsetted.” Yahoo confirms that Yahoo Buzz will be closed, as will the Traffic APIs. Delicious seems likely to go, too.
Read more at searchengineland.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/im76

Yes, Facebook was down again today

2010-12-16T19:41:00.001-08:00

What did that down time expose? Hmmm .... previews of secrets? You decide ...

Amplify’d from mashable.com

New Facebook Features Exposed in Accidental Update

" width="225" height="225" />Facebook accidentally went live with a handful of prototype features earlier today, including a site-wide yet short-lived overhaul of Pages.

Roughly 45 minutes after the mistaken update, Facebook disabled the site, reverted back to its previous state and then tweeted apologetically about the downtime. But that brief span of time was enough for Facebook members and Page admins to get a sneak peak at new features in the works.

Facebook admitted to pushing features before their time. “Also, some internal prototypes were exposed to people and resulted in us disabling the site briefly. It’s now back to normal,” read a tweet from Facebook.
Read more at mashable.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/ilk1

Twitter bird catches the worm (attack that is)

2010-12-13T07:43:00.001-08:00

Thanks to the continual ingenuity and subversive mindset of the Scumball Hackers International Team Working Against Democracy and Security (you do the acronym yourself) Twitter can now bring you yet another manually spread infection: The Acai Berry Worm

Amplify’d from mashable.com

WARNING: Acai Berry Twitter Attack Spreading Like Wildfire [UPDATED]

A new Twitter attack advertising acai berries has hijacked thousands of Twitter accounts and turned them into spammers.

The attack is spreading at a rapid pace — within a minute, more than 10,000 tweets related to the attack have popped up on the microblogging service. These tweets link to domains containing “acainews.” We recommend that you don’t click these links.
Read more at mashable.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/iawa

TweetBig Twitter Rocket Fuel! - Sponsored Post

2010-12-09T10:05:00.001-08:00

Looking for 1,000's of new quality targeted Twitter followers every month? Not spammy - real connections. I like it!

Juicy Couture Sale - Sponsored Post

2010-12-08T11:07:00.001-08:00

Daily deals helped save Christmas! -> Juicy Couture Sale. Saved 50-75% but it ends today

Google Wave now in the capable hands of the Apache community

2010-12-06T19:02:00.001-08:00

I actually liked the concept behind Wave. A few of you even joined me in a couple of projects connected on Wave. My biggest hopes for Wave were to use it to collaborate with The American Liberty Alliance, a conservative information group, to collaborate on Social Media Edge radio with the regulars and co-host, and to confer with other organizers of Social Media Breakfast in other towns.

The best it did getting close to a sizzle was a not very warm steam. Thinks have changed ...

Amplify’d from mashable.com

I actually liked the concept behind Wave. A few of you even joined me in a couple of projects connected on Wave. My biggest hopes for Wave were to use it to collaborate with The American Liberty Alliance, a conservative information group, to collaborate on Social Media Edge radio with the regulars and co-host, and to confer with other organizers of Social Media Breakfast in other towns.

The best it did getting close to a sizzle was a not very warm steam. Thinks have changed ...

A couple weeks ago, Google made a proposal to the Apache Software Foundation to take the reins on Wave. Wave, which only launched to the public in 2009, saw lackluster adoption; Google officially halted development in August and open-sourced the code in September.

See more at mashable.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/hshc

Untitled

2010-12-06T18:34:00.001-08:00

Amplify’d from mashable.com

Google Wave Is Now an Apache Project

A couple weeks ago, Google made a proposal to the Apache Software Foundation to take the reins on Wave. Wave, which only launched to the public in 2009, saw lackluster adoption; Google officially halted development in August and open-sourced the code in September.

See more at mashable.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/hsd4

Stop websites from tracking you by opting out?

2010-12-02T19:50:00.001-08:00

Interesting concept ... highly not likely to work but certainly a starting point for conversations. The fact is browser coders can easily fix this and any user can interact with the simple fix. Anyone who has ever coded the most basic of web browsers or plugins already knows this.

We don't need the government messing around with any more of the internet. Of course if the lawyers have their way the government will get involved. It's candy jar money for the attorneys when the government gets involved. My attorney and attorney friends are nothing like those guys of course.

Amplify’d from blogs.discovermagazine.com

“Do Not Track?” FTC Proposes an Opt-Out for Internet Users

Rather than submitting their names on a centrally maintained list, consumers would use a tool on their Web browsers to signal that they do not wish to be tracked or to receive targeted advertising. Leibowitz said Google, Microsoft and Mozilla have all experimented with do-not-track technology on their browsers. [Washington Post]

Currently, millions of Internet users who want to opt out of behavioral tracking have to navigate their browser privacy controls, download plug-ins or opt out by clicking on an icon near an ad that is part of the industry self-regulatory program. The report recommends that companies adopt simpler, more transparent and streamlined ways of presenting consumers with their options rather than the “long, incomprehensible privacy policies that consumers typically do not read, let alone understand.” [Washington Post]
Read more at blogs.discovermagazine.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/h8tf

Gowalla integrating with Foursquare? Not so fast ...

2010-12-02T14:23:00.001-08:00

More like a parasite/host relationship, perhaps, than an integration Gowalla catches a ride on competitor Foursquare. Sort of. Read the full article at Mashable for the juice.

Amplify’d from mashable.com

Gowalla Turns the Tables, Integrates With Foursquare

Gowalla did not work with Foursquare on this integration; it was all done through the API. That leaves the real possibility that Foursquare could throw a big wrench into Gowalla’s plans by blocking its rival’s use of the API. The threat posed by Gowalla 3 is real; that alone could force Foursquare’s hand in the name of competition. It would also create a firestorm of controversy.
Read more at mashable.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/h78h

Facebook worm exposing you to chaos

2010-11-29T13:24:00.001-08:00

Okay, chaos is a bit strong. Still the worm is gaining strength. How do you sop it? Simple - don't engage it.

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

Facebook infested with new worm; More proof site is insecure?

Facebook is littered with a worm, seemingly the same one under different names, created by randomly generated developers, which is spreading links all over the site.

Applications like S22BZ5 created by randomly assigned pseudonym ‘Jackson Lasseter’ has nearly 300 people under the grips of the worm. Others, such as replicated application B5DA8G, 9IHJ35 and AU0ZVE have just under 1,000 people inadvertently spreading the worm.

Just in the last 24 hours, I have seen my own friends’ list infiltrated by these worm applications which set status messages via the application without the knowledge of the profile owner, through a shortened link service with an infected GIF file.
Read more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/grgd

Weaponized virus has already done its job?

2010-11-29T07:16:00.001-08:00

You may have heard of weaponized virus programs. The great fear is that one will somehow escape the laboratory or storage and be unleashed on the people of the world. What you may not have heard of is that one has already been released and has been carefully controlled. It has also already performed its duty and succeeded marvelously. Think this has anything to do with the 70+ "copyright violating" websites seized by the Department of Homeland Security? (Read about that activity here - http://ht.ly/3gQAb)

Wait, what does that question have to do with a virus? Because this is a particularly powerful computer virus. Read on ...

Amplify’d from www.foxnews.com

Simply put, Stuxnet is an incredibly advanced, undetectable computer worm that took years to construct and was designed to jump from computer to computer until it found the specific, protected control system that it aimed to destroy: Iran’s nuclear enrichment program.

The construction of the worm was so advanced, it was “like the arrival of an F-35 into a World War I battlefield,” says Ralph Langner, the computer expert who was the first to sound the alarm about Stuxnet. Others have called it the first “weaponized” computer virus.

ut that

But that didn’t happen, because within minutes all the alert sites came under attack and were inoperative for 24 hours.

“I had to use e-mail to send notices but I couldn’t reach everyone. Whoever made the worm had a full day to eliminate all traces of the worm that might lead us them,” Eric Byers, a computer security expert who has examined the Stuxnet. “No hacker could have done that.”

Mystery Surrounds Cyber Missile That Crippled Iran's Nuclear Weapons Ambitions
Read more at www.foxnews.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/gqj2

No Due Process = Revolution

2010-11-28T19:31:00.001-08:00

Look. I really don't care about your viewpoint if you disagree: the DHS under Janet Napolitano is completely out of control. If this story is true that there was no due process, no service on the owners, and these sites were "confiscated" the resounding impact from the general public must be swift and overwhelming. Just as it has been over the treatment of good citizens wanting nothing more than to fly without having their genitals photographed or fondled.

Then again I'm all for common sense - which is in question about Ms. Napolitano. Read the story for yourself ...

Amplify’d from mashable.com

Homeland Security Seizes 70+ Websites for Copyright and Trademark Violations

The U.S. government’s crackdown on file sharing and counterfeiting has taken a new and disturbing turn.

Yesterday, we reported that the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement office had seized Torrent-Finder.com, a site that linked to other sites that hosted and shared torrent files of copyrighted material. The news itself was not too unusual; what struck us as out of order was that the site had been shut down without the owner being notified and without a court conviction or, to our knowledge, any other legal proceedings.
Read more at mashable.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/gohx

Leslie Nielsen is gone.

2010-11-28T19:19:00.001-08:00

Ya know, the older you get the more people you have known (of) for many years check out. 4 high school friends, 1 church friend and 2 ActiveRain friends gone this year. Not to be a bummer - we celebrate their memory.

Guess I'll watch Airplane soon.

Amplify’d from www.people.com

Leslie Nielsen Dies

Leslie Nielsen, who made audiences laugh with his ridiculous seriousness and deadpan deliveries in the absurd scenes of comedy films like Airplane! and The Naked Gun has died. He was 84.
Read more at www.people.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/gogf

How to choose Twitter follows

2010-11-24T22:23:00.001-08:00

Actually the article explains I don't say it that way. What this short post does is tell a little about how I choose whom to follow. Keep in mind you are not me and your needs, wants and desires are likely unlike mine. How's that for specific direction?

Amplify’d from thekencook.com

Whom do I follow and why?

If I were as arrogant as some of the people I do not follow, but may relegate to some obsequious list, I would instead say, “Who you should follow and why”. But I don’t follow those people because they are arrogant. Then again…

Here’s the drill from my point of view: You can do whatever you want. You can follow as many as you want or as few as you want. What I do encourage you to do if you have not is to evaluate your purpose from being on Twitter. For my purposes there are five reasons to be on Twitter. I’m sure you can create a chart with a dozen more or 100 more but these are the major categories as I see them:
Read more at thekencook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/getc

Clickable, hot spot links in images

2010-11-24T08:06:00.001-08:00

I admit it took me a second to think of what to type other than "image mapping tool". For those of you who are familiar with image maps but did not know there was an online tool you'll love this. For those of you who always wondered how people put different links inside of one image you'll be blown away.

Thanks to my friend and regular contributor to REtechRadio.com, Dean Oullette @deanoullette, for sharing this free, online resource with us.

Amplify’d from www.image-maps.com

Basic Online Image Mapping Tool

Basic online html image mapping tool. No software to download. Use images from the web or your PC. Load the image, map out your links and get the code! The Best and most Simple online image mapper and free.

Now outputting CSS style image maps with HTML image maps.

Welcome to http://www.image-maps.com. An Image map is a graphic image designed in a way that allows different areas of the main image to be click-able by users.
These click-able areas then link to different destinations that usually relate to the part of the image the user has clicked on. Aside from being very useful in
web development, image maps are also very useful for images and banners being used on social networking sites such as facebook, twitter and myspace.

Read more at www.image-maps.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/g7dg

A Foursquare badge for your "package"

2010-11-23T17:03:00.001-08:00

From time to time something comes along that unites the left, right and anarchist. Well thank you Janet Napolitano and the TSA for feeling up little children, old men and pretty girls. Now you can get a Foursquare badge for the humility of it all.

I think if they want to feel me I'll just drop trou and let everyone have a good look. Either that coat myself with peanut butter so the feel around for a really long time wondering what that gooey, sticky mess is. Actually that's all tongue very firmly in cheek. I am highly opposed to the way Napolitano and the TSA have handled passenger checks from day one. Fire her, prosecute them, get someone with some actual intelligence and common sense to handle the process.

Oh, you want to know how to get the badge ...

Amplify’d from thekencook.com

Baggage handler badge on Foursquare

Have you seen it? Now you have! I was surprised when I checked in at Hartsfield International Airport (still in protest of them adding the Jackson to it so I omit it by design) and thanked the TSA for taking the time to “grope my package”. Although I was not personally assaulted I thought it would be a smart-ass thing to say. Then I got a badge!
Read more at thekencook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/fz3e

Big changes in computer memory?

2010-11-22T07:08:00.001-08:00

I get excited watching technology advance. Which pretty much means I stay excited. This particular change is very interesting to me because I have wondered, instead of correcting the issue, why computer architects have not started replacing hard-drives with flash type memory.

Other than the price tag and the equal or slower writing speed this seems like a better solution. Of course if you're the type who enjoyed hearing your modem dial into Compuserve and who likes to hear the whir of your spinning disk drive you may think this move is an infringement on your ability to hear your computer grinding through electrons ...

Amplify’d from news.cnet.com

Fusion-io tries rewiring computer memory

Fusion-io builds flash memory onto PCI Express cards that plug into server expansion slots, letting customers move beyond hard drives' physical enclosures and SATA interface. That means data can be written and read faster overall, in part because SATA has worse overhead--in other words, bandwidth that must be used to run the communication protocol rather than for the actual data being read or written.

The current third-generation version of SATA has a maximum bandwidth of 6 gigabits per second, though that's reduced by the overhead. Fusion-io's lower-end ioDrive matches that rate, it's ioDrive Duo doubles it with 12Gb/sec, and its newest product, the ioDrive Octal, is eight times higher, at about 50Gb/sec. (Note, though, that those are speeds for reading data; writing data is anywhere from the same speed to two-thirds the speed, depending on the model and how much memory it has.)

The ioDrive is modest in scope, with capacities of 160GB, 320GB, and 640GB. The Duo reaches 1.28TB, and the Octal--which is twice as wide--comes in 2.56TB and 5.12TB sizes.
Read more at news.cnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/fukv

Great gift idea: $25 restaurant certificates for $2 each!

2010-11-20T09:32:00.001-08:00

I first discovered these about 4 or 5 years ago and since then @myracook and I have personally used a couple dozen of these and we have given dozens away as closing gifts, door prizes and personal gifts to friends and families.

Since they just introduced the gift "card" instead of gift certificate I just order 50 of them for $3 each and I'm really looking forward to including them in some Christmas cards and gift baskets. (Hint: the best restaurants sell out first so don't wait too long

Amplify’d from myracook.com

Great Holiday gift opportunity: $25 Restaurant Gift Cards for $3 each

Good at thousands of restaurants nationwide!

Pardon me for the “spammy” interruption but I think you’ll find the “meat” is in this deal. Myra and I buy and use gift certificates from this group all of the time. This is something new in that it is a gift card – not a certificate. But here’s some really great news: the gift certificates are available for $2 each (for $25 certificates).
Read more at myracook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/fq0n

How many Facebook accounts belong to the dead?

2010-11-19T21:49:00.001-08:00

Interestingly enough I said goodbye this year to 3 friends and one "acquaintance" on Facebook. Two high school friends passed away; one suddenly and one after weeks in a coma. One wonderful church friend passed after a short week with pneumonia and one acquaintance from the real estate world passed after losing a battle with brain cancer.

Now I understand I am getting older and chances are I will be saying goodbye to an increasing number of friends over the years. The truth, however, is if it had not been for Facebook I would not even have known of the passing of Stick Norwood or Kim Riggs, two friends from high school and I may or may not have known of the illness and passing of Joe Ferrara from my Real Estate world. In fact I would likely only have known of the passing of Sylvia Rhoden, my golden voiced friend of many decades.

What is the common denominator? They all left behind Facebook accounts that are still active. In fact, people still post to them. People includes me.

Amplify’d from 1000memories.com

The rise of the dead: How many ghosts are on Facebook?

What is the fastest growing group on Facebook? One of the most surprising phenomena of 2010 is the encroachment of death onto Facebook. Just like Toy Story 3, the blissful youth of Facebook is suddenly faced with the passing of time and the first inklings of mortality. However, beyond the anecdote of an awkward experience, surprisingly few facts exist about the prevalence of death on social media. Is this an occasional curiosity or a looming tidal wave for which existing social media sites are unprepared?

We decided to do the math and estimate how many of these “social media ghosts” are living on long beyond their real-life equivalents.
Read more at 1000memories.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/foui

TweetBig Twitter Rocket Fuel! - Sponsored Post

2010-11-19T21:04:00.001-08:00

Get 1,000's of new quality targeted Twitter followers every month with these amazing tools.

10 blog topics to spike your traffic

2010-11-18T18:51:00.001-08:00

It's a favored question at events where new users and seekers can be found: what should I blog about? Without stopping at anything here are some top ranking questions. Keep in mind if you get 10 visits a day a "spike" in traffic could be a day with 14 visits. These topic won't raise your blog to notoriety by their selves but they can definitely help.

Amplify’d from thekencook.com

10 topics to blog about

If you have ever been to one TweetUp, Barcamp, or any type of social media event where a lot of entry level bloggers gather you have heard this question, “What should I write about?” The ubiquitous answer, of course, is “whatever you like – whatever you enjoy”.

Agreeably that is the correct answer in most cases. If you like to snow ski write about it. If you like to knit write about it.

The next question is, “how often should I blog”? That answer is almost always, “it doesn’t matter so long as it is regularly”. Again, I agree. In fact those are my answers. With this short post we can take it to the next step with a few questions a little research says are important to the average American family that you can blog about right now and increase your traffic.

To increase your traffic write you blog then come back here and put the link in a comment – it’s one of the few times you can get away with linking in comments! And now, without further adieu, are 10 topics to help make your general purpose blog zing:
Read more at thekencook.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/fkmv

Share every click - automatically?

2010-11-18T10:19:00.001-08:00

Of course it's manageable ... or is it? What if it shares *every* click? What if it shares more ... then again, what if it makes you the next @scobleizer or @guykawasaki?

Amplify’d from mashable.com

Automatically Share What You Browse with Friends [INVITES]

Quick Pitch: Share your click stream with friends in real time and increase your influence score by discovering good content first.

Using a browser add-on, you can choose to either select certain sites that you want your friends to see or, if you set the service to automatic, to block from view what you want to keep to yourself (whose Facebook () profile you’re visiting 12 times a day, for instance).
Read more at mashable.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/fif3

Seems to be a theme this week, eh @bnix?

2010-11-16T12:21:00.001-08:00

My friend Brad Nix put his toes in the Mac pool last week. I used to swim in the Mac pool but several years ago left, never to return. My leaving was more of a reflection on the Steve Jobs attitude toward life than a complete disdain of the overpriced, under-served product. On fact one of the main reasons I left was because of the cost of feature/results per feature/results software available for Mac vs PC. When I found out most professional video studios preferred PC to Mac that was good enough for me so I donated the last of my Macs and never looked back.

It doesn't mean *wouldn't* own a Mac, it just means I have no intention of every *purchasing* a Mac and seriously consider using it for any real purpose. The features that made Brad write a check are not important to me but they may be important to you so here is Brad's article:

http://bradnix.com/i-bought-a-mac-but-i-didnt-go-mac/?utm_source=kencook+amplify

And here's the ZDnet article below:

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

I'm switching to a Mac. Here's how (and why)

It’s true. I’m switching to a Mac. Of course, I’ll be switching back to a PC shortly after, and then switching back to the Mac sometime later, and then back and forth - switching from Mac to PC and vice versa - for the foreseeable future.

See more at www.zdnet.com

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Final Social Media Breakfast Atlanta of 2010

2010-11-15T13:39:00.001-08:00

This Thursday join us for the final Social Media Breakfast Atlanta of 2010 - RSVP for FREE! Nominate for the PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD for Social Media Breakfast 2010.

RSVP from:

http://smbatl11-2010.eventbrite.com/

Amplify’d from smbatl11-2010.eventbrite.com

Diana Adams of Adams Consulting!

Sometimes people are so excited about what they do you simply cannot resist getting excited just watching them. Diana is another one of those people we want to know! Much like our past presenters who simply make you Want To Listen she has that ... BAM factor and I am very excited to hear what she brings to us this month.

My first exposure to Diana was through her writing at http://www.bitrebels.com/ where her wide variety of topics are tackled with all the excitement and glee of a winning sports team who has that confidence they are going to win regardless of circumstances.

From an interview on http://askaaronlee.com

"Her true understanding of social media using twitter is remarkable. Behind the great smile is a great person who’s heart is gold helping people when in need. Diana is one of those people I consider knows how to use twitter to the fullest. No wonder she is one of the top most retweeted person under the category of Tech having nearly 60,000 retweets according to Chirrps. I recommend you follow her if you have not already."

"In social media everything is amplified. Since all we have is text, and we don’t have the benefit of hearing someone’s voice or making eye contact, you really have to remember to give people the benefit of the doubt in certain situations. Always remain humble." - Diana Adams from that interview

Join us on THURSDAY November 18th at 8:00 AM for yet another fantastic guest and your opportunity to nominate "The People's Favorite" of 2010 to be announced at our first event in 2011.

Let me take this moment and thank you all for making 2010 a great year of growing and getting to know each other more and more. In 2011 I'm hoping for even more opportunity to learn HOW to use social media, WHAT to do to get more from social media and WHY to be a part of the biggest movement in the digital age.

Focused Charity

This month is Homelessness Awareness Month and my friend Katheryn Preston is the long time director of The Georgia Alliance to End Homelessness http://www.gahomeless.org/ and your donation of $10,000 is greatly appreciated just as your donation of $5 in a check made payable to Georgia Alliance to End Homelessness, Inc.

I know the work these people do and have had the wonderful pleasure of knowing them, seeing them function and watching their results since 1999.

Sometimes people are so excited about what they do you simply cannot resist getting excited just watching them. Diana is another one of those people we want to know! Much like our past presenters who simply make you Want To Listen she has that ... BAM factor and I am very excited to hear what she brings to us this month.

My first exposure to Diana was through her writing at http://www.bitrebels.com/ where her wide variety of topics are tackled with all the excitement and glee of a winning sports team who has that confidence they are going to win regardless of circumstances.

From an interview on http://askaaronlee.com

"Her true understanding of social media using twitter is remarkable. Behind the great smile is a great person who’s heart is gold helping people when in need. Diana is one of those people I consider knows how to use twitter to the fullest. No wonder she is one of the top most retweeted person under the category of Tech having nearly 60,000 retweets according to Chirrps. I recommend you follow her if you have not already."
Read more at smbatl11-2010.eventbrite.com

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Drugstore.com $20 Gift Card for $10 - today only - Sponsored Post

2010-11-09T20:40:00.001-08:00

$20 Drugstore.com Gift Card for $10 at TaDa - limited quantity daily (got mine!)

Eat Twinkies, lose weight?

2010-11-09T20:13:00.001-08:00

Well, I'm the walking testimony of the potato chip and Vienna sausage diet.

Amplify’d from www.cnn.com

Twinkie diet helps nutrition professor lose 27 pounds

For 10 weeks, Mark Haub, a professor of human nutrition at Kansas State University, ate one of these sugary cakelets every three hours, instead of meals. To add variety in his steady stream of Hostess and Little Debbie snacks, Haub munched on Doritos chips, sugary cereals and Oreos, too.

His premise: That in weight loss, pure calorie counting is what matters most -- not the nutritional value of the food.
Read more at www.cnn.com

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URGENT: Missing Daughter (Evansville)

2010-11-09T19:10:00.001-08:00

Please help find this girl. Your information could be crucial in the search.

Amplify’d from thekencook.com

URGENT: Missing Daughter (Evansville)

This is from a Facebook connection who is desperately seeking your assistance. Evansville Indiana.

The text:

PLEASE CROSSPOST…URGENT! My daughter, Jackie Buyher, has been missing from the northwest side of Evansville, IN since Wednesday, Nov. 3rd. She is 16 years old, about 5′ 6″ tall, sandy brown hair (straight, shoulder length), hazel eyes, and weighs approximately 120 lbs. Friends that I am in contact with, as well as school officials, have not seen her since that day. A missing person’s report has been filed with the Evansville Police Dept., and recently has expanded to a nation-wide alert. If anyone has seen her, or think they may know her whereabouts, please dial 911 and report any information you may have to the Evansville PD.
Read more at thekencook.com

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iPhone, Android, Blackberry: your next phone?

2010-11-09T13:17:00.001-08:00

Actually there is something a little skewed and interesting about this chart that I'm confident will change over the next few months or even weeks. What do you think that may be? Looking forward to having @briancauble on http://socialmediaedge.com in the near future to discuss.

Amplify’d from www.marketingcharts.com

iPhone, Android Most Under Consideration

Data from “Going Mobile” indicates 49% of mobile phone users are considering an iPhone for their next phone. The only other mobile phone platform approaching the iPhone in popularity was Android (40%).

Blackberry followed at 22%. Only 8% of respondents are considering a Windows smartphone, meaning it has the same popularity as a standard cell phone. A tiny fraction of respondents (1%) are considering an HP/Palm-based smartphone.

See more at www.marketingcharts.com

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That photo you just tweeted may lead directly to your home

2010-11-06T16:06:00.001-07:00

Really I'll let these guys explain - after all, they created icanstalkyou.com in an effort to educate people about the dangers of geotagged images posting to the open web.

While they are not the only people onto this and it's certainly not "news" they did take the time to create a website with an eye-catching name. In fact here is another, older site, with good info about image geotagging:

http://gdgtgrl.net/2009/07/13/is-your-gps-enabled-camera-phone-sharing-private-info/

Amplify’d from www.icanstalku.com

I Can Stalk U

Raising awareness about inadvertent information sharing

Did you know that a lot of smart phones encode the location of where pictures are taken? Anyone who has a copy can access this information.

Mayhemic Labs is an independent security research team whose primary goal is "to do cool stuff." Among their specialties are
vulnerability and malware research, penetration testing, reverse engineering, breaking fault tolerant systems, cloud security, static software analysis,
code development, surveillance and counter-surveillance, and business logic attacks. More about their projects can be found at
mayhemiclabs.com
Read more at www.icanstalku.com

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Mobile is not "next" it's now - Nielsen numbers

2010-11-02T10:57:00.001-07:00

We talk about it regularly on http://socialmediaedge.com the podcast: if you're not developing for and marketing to mobile users you're missing on a hug market segment. The number of people going "mobile only" is growing and the number of "first searches on mobile" is growing very quickly.

If you want to know how to make sure you're reaching these people call me 877-7000-KEN (877-700-0536) or get me on Twitter http://twitter.com/thekencook

Amplify’d from www.marketingcharts.com

3 in 10 Mobile Subscribers Have Smartphones

Twenty-eight percent of US mobile subscribers have smartphones as of Q3 2010, according to data from The Nielsen Company.

In addition, 41% of recent mobile phone acquirers have smartphones.

See more at www.marketingcharts.com

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Grab LinkedIn by the horns on Social Media Edge radio 11/2

2010-10-29T16:51:00.001-07:00

Look, I'm no guru of anything. But with LinkedIn I'm even sub-non-guru (is that the name of a band?)

Amplify’d from socialmediaedge.com

Viveka von Rosen @LinkedInExpert November 2, 2010

Admittedly the entire staff, with the exception of Mike Mueller, has a tendency to treat LinkedIn.com as a long lost cousin. We were excited to meet then the interest waned.

But that’s about to change …

Join us on Tuesday, November 2, 2010 for our special guest Viveka von Rosen who will change our relationship with LinkedIn forever. Or until Wednesday! No, seriously this is one you don’t want to miss if you have any hope of building an online community or joining an online community of business professionals.

See more at socialmediaedge.com

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