I was recently lucky enough to stumble across a copy of a book by prolific blogger and all around social media expert Tamar Weinberg. The back of the book claims to help you “understand how social web technologies work, and learn the most practical and effective ways to reach people who frequent these sites.”
When first picking up the book it is a lot thicker than you would normally expect for a non-technical text. Weighing in at a healthy 346 pages, it is a weighty tome – the reason for this seems to be that the book is designed and written to cater for the majority of different potential users. Rather than just devote the text to those already working in the field, looking to brush up on their knowledge – the book assumes that you have no prior knowledge of the social web technologies discussed and holds your hand through the very basic right up to explaining the more detailed reasons why you might engage with users in a particular way, through to methods for quantifying success and setting targets. Although most of this introductory text was not directly applicable to me – I did use some of the information to help me explain the benefits of the various technologies to other people – and this is where the book really comes into its own. If you work within digital marketing already, but sometimes have a hard time explaining the reasons behind your recommendations or persuading clients to commit to digital marketing campaigns then this book will become a very useful part of your arsenal.
The book covers all the current major players in social web technology; Blogging, Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn and others – all in good detail to the point that if you had never used any of these services before, it would not be too long before you had the knowledge (and to an extent the confidence) to go ahead and start marketing yourself, your business or your products simply and effectively.
In addition to explaining each of the technologies, additional chapters include information on how to work with social bookmarking, building an overall social marketing campaign, etiquette for social marketing and setting goals.
All in all I felt that although I was not really the target audience for this book, I found it very useful. Anyone working in marketing in a sales or account management role would be well advised to give this book a thorough look over – it will really help you engage your clients and back up your assumptions that social marketing is a growing trend that can succeed. Without knowing the basics it will be impossible to sell these services (if you are agency side) or make use of the social networks to your best advantage (client side). There is also something to be had from the book if you are looking to build your own personal brand and promote yourself as an expert in your particular field.
So in summary, if you want to know about social marketing online and you want to know it now. This is the book for you – it is currently available on Amazon UK for £12.00 – bargain!
The New Community Rules: Marketing on the Social Web by Tamar Weinberg. Published by O’Reilly 2009 (www.oreilly.com) ISBN: 978-0-596-15681-7
This new backup storage solution looks set to revolutionise the way that creative professionals and small businesses organise their backups. Drobo is unique as the system completely manages itself and checks the health of all the drives in the system.
Drobo S connects to Windows, Mac and Linux systems and supports NTFS, HFS Plus, EXT3, and FAT32 file formats. Regardless of operating system, everyone can take advantage of simple, powerful, complete Drobo data protection.
The Drobo website also points out another one of the fantastic new features available as you can now “enable the dual-drive redundancy option to protect your data from failure of up to TWO hard drives. It’s all done with a single click, and without ever losing access to your data. Running out of space? Switch back to single-drive redundancy. Unlike moving between traditional RAID 5 and RAID 6, there’s no need to reformat or migrate data off of Drobo, potentially saving you hours or days.” This is an excellent option for small businesses as mission critical data can be preserved without the loss of flexibility that come with more rigid backup solutions – and certainly without the extra cost!
The Drobo S now has 5 storage bays and with the current 2TB SATA drives that are available it can be configured up to 10TB – with connectivity available via eSATA, Firewire 800 or USB 2.0 the new Drobo S has just been moved to the top of my want list.
For more information on the Drobo S please see the Drobo Website
Posted 2 months, 3 weeks ago at 8:05 pm. 0 comments
Intro video for the new Google Chrome OS, seems like a nice idea – but will users really be happy letting go of local data and trusting everything to the Google controlled cloud? Check out the video and decide for yourself.
Further information about the Developer aspects of the new Chrome OS, and the potential to get involved with the open access aspects of the new project can be found via this post on the Google Blog or here on the Chromium Blog.
Posted 2 months, 3 weeks ago at 3:32 pm. 0 comments
This week I have been reading Mobile Design and Development by Brian Fling. A book that describes itself as being full of “practical techniques for creating mobile sites and web apps”. This is indeed the case as this excellent book covers all the basics that you will need to know in order to produce excellent websites and apps for mobile devices. It is important to mention that this book is not solely focused on the iPhone (unlike many other books of this ilk), but instead covers all of the main smartphone technologies available today.
The book covers topics from understanding the mobile eco-system, the differences between mobile and traditional design, putting mobile work into context, pros and cons of native application development versus mobile web apps, usability, testing and justifying the choice to work for mobile. All in all this book provides an excellent introduction to designing for mobile – something which is becoming increasingly more important in the current climate. With the convergence of various technologies it seems as though many of us are now carrying around small multimedia computers in our pockets, not just phones. These permanently connected devices provide so many opportunities for the budding mobile designer and content provider, and understand what makes these platforms different in vital to the success of any project.
The book is divided in half, with the first section serving as an introduction to mobile technologies and giving details on two basic principles; the need to know the different facets of the mobile medium, and the need to know how to leverage mobile technologies to address context. The second half of the book is all about how to leverage the right mobile technology for your particular need. This is key as although there are many, many ways to achieve a particular goal (when working in mobile), the most important factor for many projects will be choosing the right approach. In order to do this it is important to understand all the pros and cons prior to beginning development – as changing tact midway through a project can be costly in terms of development time and budgets!
Those looking for a technical manual telling them exactly how to master a particular mobile approach should stay away, this book is so much more than that. Mastering the technologies is merely a simple google search away, this book is about learning the underlying principles and making solid decisions throughout the development of a project. The book can be read and understood by Project Managers and Developers alike, and I fully intend to recommend clients read certain chapters of this book as well. Refreshingly honest and cleverly written, the book is not afraid to point out weaknesses within the technology and provides sound advice for those looking to make their first steps into the world of mobile design and development.
Although not an instructional technical manual as such, there are excellent examples of best practice code within the pages, and these are surrounded by explanatory text detailing the reasons for the approach, as well as any situations where it would not be used. Illustrations and diagrams are used throughout, helping to explain points in more detail, and these are of a high quality as well.
In summary, Mobile Design and Development is an excellent read for those looking to develop their knowledge of the mobile space. I thoroughly recommend it for Project / Account Managers looking to understand the approaches required for developing for mobile, and for developers looking to check any mobile specific knowledge required for making decisions regarding the correct techniques for a specific project.
Mobile Design and Development by Brian Fling. Published by O’Reilly 2009 (www.oreilly.com) ISBN: 978-0-596-15544-5
Posted 2 months, 3 weeks ago at 9:09 pm. 0 comments
Google describes it as “an online tool for real-time communication and collaboration. A wave can be both a conversation and a document where people can discuss and work together using richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more.” Any individual wave can be part conversation and part document – which makes for an interesting way to collaborate, improve productivity and reduce duplicated data. Each wave is stored centrally on a Google server (although eventually the way that Wave works will be able to be duplicated by other providers – similar to the way in which email servers work) and can be updated by multiple users in real-time. In addition to updating the core document, messages and annotations can be exchanged and anyone with access to the wave can view the changes happening as they occur.
So, although Wave started out as a way of “fixing” email – it doesn’t appear that it will be limited to this alone – even though the preview of Wave is in the early stages many developers are getting involved and ensuring that the initial vision of the project will be far exceeded by the final outcome. Already innovative projects involving applications for Project Management, translation, app convergence and many others are available for testing.
Check out the Google Wave introduction video:
At the moment Wave is a preview only, you can request an invitation here.
Posted 2 months, 3 weeks ago at 6:53 pm. 0 comments
Friday 20th November is the date for one of the biggest charity events in the UK, BBC Children in Need. This year the BBC have really embraced digital and social marketing as a method of gaining interest in this most noble of causes and ensuring that any potential donors who have cut down their TV watching time in favour of online services will still be exposed to the Children in Need brand and be given every incentive to donate.
“In 2008 the BBC Children in Need Appeal raised over £38 million and for every penny you gave the charity, a penny will go towards projects helping disadvantaged children in the UK. We are able to make this promise because the charity uses its investment income and Gift Aid to cover all running costs. Every year, thanks to public donations and the amazing efforts of fundraisers, schools, businesses and our corporate partners, we are able to provide support to thousands of youngsters aged 18 and under.”
This year the BBC Campaign is being covered across Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, BEBO, MySpace and all of the BBC Websites. Of all of this activity it is perhaps the Twitter and Myspace efforts that are the most interesting.
On twitter you can follow Pudsey who describes himself as “one of the UK’s most loveable bears and the mascot for BBC Children in Need.” He can be found on twitter chatting and answering questions @pudseybear. This is an interesting idea as other fictional characters, such as Alexsandr the Meerkat, have shown that Twitter can be used successfully to promote a brand with a solid and unifying voice. This is important as rather than being a cold info only twitter feed the content becomes more personal and engaging and the tone more consistent.
MySpace is also interesting as you are able to get involved “If you’ve got the voice of an angel or fancy yourself as a bit of a songwriter, then join the oodles of talented supporters across the UK who make a single or album to raise money for BBC Children in Need each year”. This effectively allows anyone to produce their own charity single which is a great idea for a viral campaign to raise even further funds.
Finally there is an interesting tactic being undertaken in order to generate donations online in micro-transaction format. The Digital Bandana campaign encourages you to “Get with the Bear by Pudseyfying all your pictures with a Pudsey bandana! You’ll look cool donning the hottest accessory around and at the same time will be donating £1 to the BBC Children in Need Appeal.” This is a nice addition to the campaign that charges a small fee to add a digital version of the Pudsey bandana to your profile or avatar picture. Go to pudseybandana.co.uk to get involved with this one.
This varied and wide ranging campaign is sure to be very successful and when combined with the various activities across the more traditional BBC media outlets it looks set to ensure another successful year for Children in Need, even in the current tough economic climate. For more information on all of the above or to make a donation to the campaign please visit the Children in Need Website today.
Posted 2 months, 3 weeks ago at 5:44 pm. 0 comments
Yesterday saw the announcement of the new dedicated channel for BBC iPlayer on the wii. Designed to make the most of the services available on the wii, with an easy to use interface and feedback via the innovative wii remotes the service is sure to continue to grow in popularity. The wii is the easiest and quickest way to get iPlayer onto your TV today, and with the brand new Black wii available for only £164.99 in the UK it has never been a better time to put one of these versatile little boxes under your TV. I am looking to pick one up in the next few weeks to do a long term test on the new wii fit plus and will post my findings of the new iPlayer service as well.
MacHeist … The virtual software bargain hunt for your Mac.
MacHeist is a series of challenges that when successfully completed reward you with free or seriously reduced software for your Mac. As more people complete each challenge more rewards are unlocked from the vaults. This will I participated in the challenge and wanted to draw attention to two of the free apps that I received and thought were great.
The first of these apps is DaisyDisk, a great tool for visualising your HDD usage on the Mac. DaisyDisk produces simple to understand and attractive representations of the storage space attached to your Mac, shows any big files or folders that are hogging all the space – and above all it looks great. Good little free piece of software and well worth checking out.
See my DaisyDisk for my MacBook Pro:
In addition to DaisyDisk I also received the excellent WriteRoom. WriteRoom is a great yet simple piece of software ideal for anyone who finds their Mac a distraction while trying to work. In simple terms WriteRoom is a text editor but the real genius comes in the way that it totally covers the rest of your Mac screen in black and hides all your other active applications. This ensures that you focus on the task in hand and not on twitter, adium or email applications that might be running in the background and alerting you to their every move!
Although DaisyDisk is nice, it is a bit of a novelty. I can see myself using WriteRoom every single day from here on in. It is rapidly fast to open, simple to use and a pleasure to work with. Thanks MacHeist for the free software!
Congratulations to Apple, who recently reached the landmark total of 100,000 apps in the iPhone App Store. Even though there are many critics of the iPhone app approval process and the situation regarding the submission of apps – something must be going right and there are certainly quite a few apps getting through! The app store is a great resource to back up an already excellent handset design. This hardware and software combination has proved to be a winner for Apple, and as they continue to expand into new markets around the world and to diversify onto new networks things can only get better for them. So well done Apple, here’s to the next 100,000.
Today saw the launch of the beautiful new handset from HTC, the HD2. Following on from the moderate success of the massive-screened Touch HD, the HD2 really is a beautiful handset. It is thin, well built and has a monster screen running at an excellent resolution – surely then, this will be the best smartphone in the world? Unfortunately for HTC this is not the case – this fantastic hardware is crippled by the lackluster Windows Mobile 6.5, a slightly updated version of a phone OS that was out of date before it was even released. Windows Mobile is truly awful and the new version isn’t a lot better than before. Please HTC, release the HD2 with Android … you know it makes sense!
In addition to DaisyDisk I also received the excellent WriteRoom. 
