Rock The Vote
Posted by goodmind on June 17th, 2008
The electoral process is always contentious, and of late, so has the electoral system itself. The Open Voting Consortium hopes to put all the talk of super-delegates named Chad to rest by applying the principles of Open Source to electoral software;
Though the United States has made a wholesale switch to electronic voting machines in the last decade, the software in those machines is all proprietary and closed source…The OVC’s argument is straightforward: democracy benefits from operating in an open, transparent manner – and the best way to ensure that for voting is to make sure that the software used is open source. They’re putting their money where their mouth is, too: they’ve developed a prototype system in Python on Linux that is open source and designed for ease of use, as well as to preserve a paper trail.
Hmmm, aren’t the Russians switching to Linux too…
(via OStatic)
A Little iPhone Buzz
Posted by goodmind on June 9th, 2008
It was a newsworthy event for ambitious developers everywhere when Apple opened up the iPhone API last fall. So maybe this equally ambitious “iWish” list from Portfolio stands a chance after all – if the open source model can defy the laws of physics that is.
Our favorite fantasy feature for the iPhone is probably the iPal concept;
iPal: Most iPhone users are busy people leading hectic lives, and the least Apple can do for $499 is provide you with a friend and confidant. The iPhone’s iPal should know how to comfort you when you’re down (automatically load laughing-baby clips from Youtube?) and be your wingman when you need a drinking buddy. Have you ever seen an iPhone after a few beers? Me neither, but I’d like to.
Nothing like kicking back a few with your iPhone at the local Genius Bar, getting “brick-faced.”
Social Media Resistance Survey
Posted by goodmind on June 6th, 2008
Jacob Morgan wrote a handy post for bub.blicio.us yesterday, summarizing the topline findings from the “Social Media Resistance Survey” (conducted by the USC Marshall School of Business, and the Institute for Communication Technology Management).
We found one of his observations on the wording of a question particularly interesting, partly because the question might actually suggest a larger trend in the way people want to use social media;
Most companies believe that online video, rss feeds, and podcasting are the most valuable tools a company can use in order to enhance a company image or increase productivity. If you’re thinking what I’m thinking then you’re right. Aren’t enhancing a company image and increase productivity 2 separate things? I think so. Business network sites came in 4th place followed closely by social media news releases. (emphasis ours)
Maybe the folks at USC and the CTM are onto something here, since productivity is a meaningful component of company image. After all, outward bound social media applications, such as online video, are an efficient (productive) way to enhance image, create buzz, all that good stuff.
Maybe the small, mid, and large size companies surveyed don’t see image and productivity as totally distinct concepts. How else can you explain the disappointing fourth place finish of business network sites (without acknowledging the personal image benefits)?
Social Networking is for Babies
Posted by goodmind on June 5th, 2008
As if parents needed a platform to brag about their brat, along comes TotSpot. The gist;
TotSpot is a place for parents to publish a page about their kids and share with family and friends. It’s part online babybook, parent journal, and social network.
Now your toddler can experience life as a Jolie-Pitt child! Come to think of it, TotSpot is also sort of like a Facebook for baby Einsteins, already enrolled in elite pre-schools for gifted children. Which is why we think this concept could do very, very well. Parental pride knows no bounds.
(via TechCrunch)
Back in the USSR
Posted by goodmind on June 4th, 2008
We like to think that ten years from now, the incessant stream of mergers, acquisitions, hostile takeovers, new technologies, revolutionary web platforms, and all the other RSS feed effluvia, will be ironed out into the *new* internet. Web 7.113 will be a seamless interface, enhancing productivity, communication, and due diligence, at least in our Utopian prophecy.
Chris Messina has a more political vision of how this future will pan out, described in his post on Facebook, the USSR, communism and train racks. It’s basically about how the borders of social networks will drastically evolve as the landscape of the web continues to change until the Microsoft of web standards emerges.
The key point is that Facebook is perhaps forcing the issue, by trying to make its platform the standard for developers. However, Facebook is not trying to harness the creative benefits of an open source API, they’re trying to keep users, and their valuable data, within the network…much like the Soviets did with their proprietary train track specifications back in the day.
We recommend reading the entire post, as it is quite insightful in addition to being well written. The money quote;
“Look, if Martin Luther had nailed his Ninety-five Theses to the door but had ensconced them in DRM, he would not have been as effective at bringing about the Reformation.”
(via Scobleizer)
Cashing in on Co-rendered Ad Revenue
Posted by goodmind on May 29th, 2008
Traditional print newspapers are basically a form of ad-supported content, suitable for lining birdcages. While many titles have tried to transition to the Web using this same model, they have done so unsuccessfully – the consensus apparently being that online advertisements aren’t worth the investment, because ads just aren’t as effective online. Whether this conclusion is valid or not, is beyond the scope of this post.
On the other hand, Knewsroom may be onto something here, by making online advertisements more valuable to the online audience. Maybe people will put up with ads if they get a cut of the revenue.
Like Digg, Knewsroom is a “community directed news publication,” only
“20% of every dollar we generate in advertising gets split with the people who make the Knews happen: writers, readers, evangelists…anyone looking to turn extra brainwidth into extra cash.”
Issues contain reader suggested topics, as well as both original and syndicated content. A sophisticated matrix algorithm is used to determine the top 5 topics and stories for each issue, based on how readers “invest” (vote) on what they think is the top story of the day.
Knewsroom is run on a currency of “watts,” which are earned by becoming an active member in the community, and can be invested in potentially Knews-worthy items of interest. If say, you were to invest heavily in Entertainment stories, and one of your investments made the top 5, you would get a cut of the ad revenue generated that day, credited to your Knewsroom MasterCard.
Plus, aside from the Superbowl, Knewsroom may be the only context where advertisements are welcome and appreciated by the audience.
(via Springwise)
Take a Byte Out of Crime
Posted by goodmind on May 23rd, 2008
SpotCrime (beta) is the most comprehensive online source of crime information. It is slightly unsettling that a glorified Google crime map is a better resource than say, the National Sex Offender Registry. By the same token, such a state of affairs does speak to the effectiveness and efficiency of co-rendered crime watching and reporting, particularly on a local level.
However, in many ways, the interactive map features of Grand Theft Auto are superior than what SpotCrime offers users. The standard bubbly Web 2.0 iconography is slightly out of place in this instance, and doesn’t quite convey the gravity of the situation (for instance, the theft icon looks like a jaywalker). Plus, there’s no way to report DUI’s, a major oversight in our opinion, especially in the Hollywood/Beverly Hills region.
Website Navigation Revisited
Posted by goodmind on May 20th, 2008
Modernista! has upped the ante of what it means for a company to embrace social media, and the transparency of the web. It’s so clever, we’re almost at a loss for words to describe it. Almost.
Basically, the Boston based advertising agency took their own medicine, and designed their website around Google search…but not in the way you and I optimize our content for search. The website is literally a Google page; ranked results and all.
Not only does the Wikipedia page clearly explain what the agency is about (far better than jargon laden website copy could), the Google algorithm guarantees that up to the minute puff pieces on Modernista! are front and center. It’s news generating move that measures and monitors said buzz, pretty effectively we might add.
We can see more companies taking a similar approach to web design, if only for the simple fact that most of us Google what we want to find, even when we know the full URL. Heck, we’ve Googled “Goodmind” just to get to our own website. Not only has Modernista! tapped into a new website format using Google search conventions, but also an additional application for the conventional Google search.
Is the search engine of the future a centralized navigational system? It wont work very well if the Microsoft-Yahoo-Facebook rumors are true…
A System of Loyalties and Protections
Posted by goodmind on May 19th, 2008
Social networks are largely feud-al societies, in the sense that they facilitate a good deal of communal fighting. BuzzMachine describes the eco-system which backs all this healthy debate as a feudal society of lords, vassals and fiefs;
“So Glam is a content network. But they don’t create all the content. They curate it. So we should curate more as we create less. That’s another way to say what I’ve said other ways: Do what we do best and link to the rest. Also: We need to gather more and produce less, so we also need to encourage others to produce more so we can gather it. That’s a festival of PowerPoint lines there.”
Indeed, a spirited Renaissance festival of PowerPoint lines and Web 2.0 serfdom surfdom. The point is, Glam clearly understands what it takes to succeed in a social (network) order, mostly by doing very little themselves, while “curating” or “gathering” what others produce for mutual benefit.
More importantly, instead of posturing as the sovereign king of the world wide web, Glam functions as a physical estate, or site to be populated. More than mere aggregator reminiscent of a primitive hunter/gatherer society, Glam is a centralized and highly lucrative platform for lords (advertisers) and serfs (bloggers/content creators) alike.
Presenting Ten Tips to Better Video Production
Posted by goodmind on May 13th, 2008
Piggybacking our earlier post on the importance of well-crafted press releases, how about a few helpful hints for maximizing the effectiveness of web videos in the PR process? Our moment of glory at the Business Development Institute Global Communications Conference addressed similar applications of online video, so we thought we’d share the highlights on our blog for those of you who couldn’t attend.
Without further ado, here are our top Ten Tips to Better Video Production, as well as four examples, or “case studies” illustrating how these tips can generate highly effective personal PR.
- If it is on the web, it is global
- Offer value to be valued — educate, inform or entertain
- Surprise us
- Make it ASAP (As Short As Possible)
- Focus on your audience (support with SEO, adwords and seeding)
- Share — participate in the conversation where your video is relevant (nothing will stop a great video from reaching the right person; but reaching out optimizes your chances)
- Use tags (and carefully consider your title)
- Offer a compelling thumbnail
- Measure, but don’t just count
- Build feedback/next steps into your video
Naturally 7
Naturally7 is a Berlin based R&B acapella group originally from New York City, which gained international exposure with their rendition of “In the Air Tonight” by Brit rocker Phil Collins. Filmed on a Paris subway, the video version has found worldwide circulation on the web.
Arnel Pineda
Arnel Pineda has successfully transplanted his singer/songwriter skills from the Zoo (his band in
the Philippines) to American rock band Journey, after being “discovered” online by Journey guitarist Neal Schon.
See the performance that helped Pineda land the gig.
Stevie Snacks
For two dollars a pop, anyone can purchase “tasty riffs” from StevieSnacks.com — as in, brief
instructional guitar videos of various Stevie Ray Vaughn recordings. The lessons are little more than a walkthrough of a song’s solo, or hook, but they get the job done in terms of educating “students,” and
generating a profit for the teacher.
Stevie Snacks are available here.
Gossip Girl
Teen drama Gossip Girl would be indistinguishable from other television sitcom series if it were not for the show’s strict adherence to the rules of web video. Fans are more likely to view, or download episodes online, as well as share and discuss aspects of the show via blogs, or other social networking platforms.
New York Magazine recently featured a great article detailing the online integration of, and interaction between Gossip Girl content and audience members, which we highly recommend reading.
