Mental Graffiti

Everyone Should (Still) Be Concerned About Proposed Legislation (SOPA and PIPA)

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:17:55 PST

Image source: http://goo.gl/un3nB

With SOPA [Stop Online Piracy Act] (H.R.3261) and the PROTECT IP Act [Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act of 2011] (S.968), free and open communication via the Internet may be severely severed. The power to censor could be in the hands of the entertainment industry and from within our government if this legislation eventually passes. The proposed legislation gives the government the power to shut down unauthorized Web sites used for piracy even though most of these Web sites are outside U.S. jurisdiction. Going further, Web sites like Wikipedia, YouTube, Facebook and any others with user-generated and shared content could be flagged and caught in this bill. This should be important to everyone especially if you value your intellectual freedom.

On January 18, 2012 Wikipedia and others will protest SOPA and the PROTECT IP Act by blacking out their Web sites. People visiting libraries that day will approach the reference desk asking why some of their favorite Web sites are gone and I think Librarians should be ready to provide unbiased information/commentary on this proposed legislation, so that our users can make wise decisions and realize that this is very important – not just for today, but well into o future.

Although piracy is clearly wrong, this proposed legislation will not stop people from doing it. Simply adding an IP address into a browser’s address field will allow pirates to still download materials illegally while legitimate links/commentary etc. may be considered copyright infringement and subsequently blocked while our freedom of expression dissolves into the ether!

Technically, it is illegal to share Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech in any format and if SOPA, for example, passed then links to this amazing speech would be removed automatically. No one would be able to experience the speech unless they purchased it. EMI on behalf of The King Center has enforced their copyright and ordered its removal from YouTube. Their Web site says that they will sell you or your school a copy for $10 or you can buy the DVD at Amazon.com. Although there are current ways for corporations to take infringed copyright content down (e.g., Digital Millenium Copyright Act, PRO-IP Act, Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement), the passing of bills like SOPA and PROTECT IP would undermine the basic structure of the Internet while it’s open/sharing/collaborative aspect would diminish and this is very unfortunate.

The White House recently said that it wouldn’t support any bill that would “inhibit innovation” and they vowed to protect “the openness of the Internet” and this is fantastic news, but everyone (not just librarians or technologists etc.) should be aware of this threatening legislation and stand up and be heard. The Electronic Frontier Foundation makes it easy to send a “Please oppose the Internet Blacklist Legislation (PROTECT IP and SOPA)” letter to your representatives. So, if you oppose this proposed legislation, then please let your voice be heard!

Any Google search (right now at least) for SOPA will provide well over 120,000,000 results, but here are a few worth checking out:

Senator Ron Wyden’s statement opposing SOPA

What do you need to know about SOPA PIPA? Begin here

List of SOPA Supporters

List of Those Expressing Concern With SOPA & PIPA

SOPA: The debate in plain English

“A New Hope for Books”

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 08:00:02 PST

I couldn’t find an online version of this article, but Clive Thompson begins with a question that many of us have been asking for a long time and that is “will the e-book kill off the print book?” Well, the paperless office still doesn’t exist and it probably won’t; so, could this fact help answer the above question with a simple and emphatic NO!? Books will live on well into the future; however, they probably won’t flourish and we are already seeing a decline in print materials thanks to all this e-stuff floating around within the “clouds.” I shouldn’t be using that word because it makes me feel silly, but I digress. So, do you think that the above question and the multitude of prophetic answers even matters anymore? Does it create a moral panic? Even Marshall McLuhan predicted the end of print in the 1960’s and we still have print. We still have vinyl records! Hmmm …

Thompson states that print-on-demand will do the same thing to books as the explosion of paper use did for the paperless office. The print-on-demand trend is allowing people to self-publish and this is creating an “intergalactically long tail.” Thompson compares traditional publishing, where the number of new titles increased 5%, to print-on-demand and self-publishing, which is growing 169% -- albeit not all good content, but that is another post. So, imagine what the book market will be like when the average computer user can print out paperbacks at home using more affordable print-on-demand technologies. I can’t wait to read “The Myth of the Paperless Book” someday. ;)

Check out “The Myth of the Paperless Office” by Abigail J. Sellen and Richard Harper.

Is Instantaneous Access to Information Good?

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 10:37:20 PDT

Find the needle in this haystack.

I was driving my “almost five” year old daughter (her words) to school the other day and she asked me to play “Another One Bites the Dust” by Queen. My first reaction was my daughter is pretty cool. My second reaction was absolutely – I can do this for you because I have instant access to most everything. So, I was able to find and play that song on my phone thanks to Spotify and this is a great luxury, right? It probably is. Well, I started to think more about what happened and remembered a time, not that long ago, when I had to wait until an album was officially released before I could get my hands on it. The bike ride to the record store was exhilarating! I miss that anticipation today. Now, I can listen to albums BEFORE they are even officially released thanks to leaks and so forth. For the record, I usually don’t listen to leaked albums from artists I highly respect because I want to listen to it on their terms. Again, that eager anticipation is a strong feeling for me and I wonder if that feeling will be lost with our growing expectancies to have instant access to music, books, film, and other content. If so, does it matter?

We all know that finding a needle in a haystack can be challenging. In fact, it is probably unlikely that you’ll find the needle unless you have a strong magnet or some special needle-finding tool. Today, it seems that we have very strong magnets to help us, but we are finding thousands of needles. So, I wonder if we have too much content (i.e., music, books, film etc.) instantly accessible to us. Will we become less interested in discovering new content if everything we find isn’t extraordinary? Will the ordinary stuff be ignored? Plus, our attention spans are getting shorter and shorter, so we may want to throw that magnet away. Should you throw away your magnet?

Just recently, Tzadik’s collection was removed from Spotify. My instantaneous access to this incredible music catalog is now lost and I need to search for it and acquire it again. For this week at least, MOG has the Tzadik collection and I can rebuild it from scratch. I hope MOG doesn’t lose this collection, but I’ll have to wait and see. So, I have a great collection started at Spotify and I don’t really want to start over, but I probably will. I own close to 2,000 CDs, but they aren’t convenient for me anymore. I’ve slowly started to digitize the ones that won’t be in Spotify and/or within other music services and have donated the others because I can stream any one of them instantly to any device whenever I feel the urge to do so. I am spoiled and get upset when I don’t have instant access to everything. Is this okay?

Most content that we have instant access to never sees the light of day, so is it important to even try to provide consumers with all this stuff? As Bob Lefsetz says regarding music, “it's so hard to find greatness amidst the cacophony” and I can see libraries suffering from this too unless we help to curate our content and give our users multiple opportunities to create something useful with it.

My daughter will grow up not having to wait for anything – digital at least. Sure, if she needs quick medical or safety information and can get it within seconds then that is a good thing, but is it good for everything else? I think it is wonderful that technology is providing us with this luxury, but I wonder if it will cheapen the value of the content and/or if we’ll get so spoiled and lazy that much of this content will get lost amidst the cacophony. I hope not. I hope humanity becomes more intelligent because of the torrent of information instantly accessible to us. We’ll see. What do you think? Does it matter?

Will Amazon Offer Purchasing and/or Donation Options for Library-Owed E-Books?

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 07:07:19 PDT

It may already have happened, but if not, I am wondering how long it will take Amazon to offer a purchasing and/or donation option for library “owed” e-book titles. For a while, OverDrive’s LibraryBIN (“Buy It Now”) program has allowed patrons “to buy popular and best-selling e-books and audiobooks with most of the LibraryBIN profits going back to libraries.” This is pretty cool, but will Amazon do it? I’d think that publishers would be happy because they could gain some revenue from it. A win-win, right?

Undoubtedly, library e-book collections will gain more visibility and with more visibility comes more demand, which many libraries may not be able to handle. Although I am fairly confident that libraries can handle it, it is probably too early to tell. Anyway, I would welcome the idea of Amazon adding a purchasing option for high-demand library e-book titles as long as a portion (even a very small portion) of Amazon’s profits go to library funds AND if library users could then donate their used e-books to their library’s digital collections to give others the opportunity to read them.

On another note, Gary Price from InfoDocket, wrote a thought-provoking post on “eBooks, Privacy, and the Library” and he asks some very important questions that everyone, not just librarians, should be trying to answer.

What do you think?

Chad Mairn, CTO of Novare, publishes a chapter on Mobile-Optimized Library Resources and Services

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 10:34:05 PDT

Chad Mairn, Chief Technology Officer at Novare Library Services and St. Petersburg College Librarian, wrote a chapter titled ‘Acquiring, Promoting, and Using Mobile-Optimized Library Resources and Services,’ which will be published this month in “E-Reference Context and Discoverability in Libraries: Issues and Concepts” edited by Sue Polanka. You can take advantage of IGI Global’s pre-publication pricing today or read a summarized version of Chad’s chapter from Advances in Library Information Science’s newsletter here. You can also read the first few pages of the chapter here.

Here is the abstract:

Although the reasons vary, it is apparent that the majority of library users prefer electronic reference content primarily because information provided in that format is easier to find and use; plus, much of this content is accessed via mobile devices. This chapter will discuss best practices for acquiring, promoting, and using mobile-optimized library resources and services including reference content -- although most Ready Reference print collections have disappeared because of the ease of finding factual information thanks to Google, Wikipedia, and others. A report on mobile library surveys and vendor usage statistics regarding the use and future aspects of mobile-optimized library reference resources and services will also be discussed in order to provide a snapshot of what is working in this emerging technology that is impacting most everyone today. The chapter also will attempt to answer questions to determine if promoting mobile-optimized content is helping users discover oftentimes hidden library reference content while they are on the go.

It Is Time To Negotiate Change

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 17:59:20 PST

Photo by Maggie Smith

Companies are in business to make money. I get this. If the book publishers looked to the failing, or failed, music industry they could learn a lot. They probably won’t and the most recent HarperCollins news seems to provide some evidence to support that statement.

Well, I’m sure this has been mentioned already, but I wanted to state it again because it makes sense to me. Okay, if I am reading an eBook and I am on chapter 12, then technically there are many other chapters that are not being read at that point in time. Another reader could start reading chapter 1. Another reader could have 3 pages left to read etc. It is technically possible for more than one person to read an eBook at the same time, but the publishers keep thinking “one reader/one book” and that is 20^th century thinking – maybe even 15^th century thinking.

Maybe it is time to look more closely at a Netflix-esque, Rhapsody-esque, or some other subscription model for libraries so that authors/publishers get paid per download or per view. Libraries can help distribute content! Libraries are pretty good at this actually. Publishers could make more money if they were more flexible and allowed libraries to do what they do best, which is helping connect their users to valuable information. Of course, libraries do way more than this, but this connection is significant. If an eBook is popular and, let’s say, 26 people read it, then charge the library for those “reads” by adding code to the eBook that automatically pays the publisher out of the library budget. It seems to be working for musicians – although musicians make more money if they aren’t under contract with a music label and/or distributor. Plus, an analytic reporting function could be incorporated into an eBook that lets the publisher know that a user, for example, was only browsing a particular title to determine if they wanted to read it or not and this would not count as a “full read.” I can browse books at Barnes and Noble and I am not charged for doing this. It should be the same for eBooks.

Going further, it is now affordable and convenient to download/stream music. More and more people are doing this legally because it is so much easier to have instant access to everything you want and whenever you want it, instead of illegally searching for music on torrent and file sharing web sites and taking risks with malicious software and other repercussions. For me, paying a $10 to $20 a month subscription fee to gain access to unlimited music or movies is totally worth it and I would do the same exact thing for eBooks through my library if it was possible. The funny thing, this is possible! We need to move past the “one reader/one Book” model soon. OverDrive offers “max access” subscription models and this is a step in the right direction, but this needs to benefit everyone and I am not 100% certain this is the case. If it is, please let me know.

Libraries need to step up and negotiate with these publishers, and as many librarians have already mentioned in other posts and tweets, librarians need to become strong advocates for their readers! If having access to eBooks and other eContent was in everyone’s “best” interest, including library users, then what is the problem? Why hasn’t this happened yet? Money? I would think publishers (and their authors) could get paid more money if they went this route and began to think like innovators and not like stubborn idiots. It is not my intention to insult anyone. I just want to know why we don’t have a decent model yet? I’d like to share a passage from Bob Lefsetz because it supports my initial thoughts above:

Eviscerate piracy. Make it so it’s just not worth it to steal. Hell, people may even forget how to steal… But, but, but…if we lower the price so everybody can get in, we’re going to lose that extra revenue from our best customers! Cable providers don’t care how much you watch TV, it’s just about signing up. And cell providers have unlimited plans. And both have great anti-piracy measures so there’s no direct comparison, but the point is today’s paradigm is giving a lot for a little, not being pecked to death by ducks, micro-payments of $1.29 for every track. Who could survive on a system like this? Not car companies, who sell accessories in packages. The key is to come up with a bucket of tracks, for a reasonable price. (Source: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/index.php/archives/2010/04/09/track-sales-peak/)

I agree! This is nothing new, but I do feel that it is time to rethink our library subscription models. Not just for eBooks, but we need to explore this for our databases and other eContent as well. Vendors are already figuring out ways (simple ways, in fact) to bypass libraries altogether and deal directly with their end users. This is unfortunate on so many levels. Should we simply watch this happen, or should we start negotiating, or should we boycott publishers who are not “library friendly?” These are tough questions that need answers. This recent HarperCollins announcement is ridiculous at best and libraries need to respond intelligently. A couple of good places to start:

The eBook User’s Bill of Rights

Library Renewal: Pioneering Electronic Content Delivery for Libraries

HarperCollins Puts 26 Loan Cap on Ebook Circulations

Search/use #hcod hashtag on Twitter.
There will be an “eBook Trends and Practices” track at the 2011 Computers in Libraries conference.

Mobile library website fits in your pocket!

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 17:24:00 PST

Although the SPC Library website has been optimized for mobile users, the time has come to utilize innovative technologies for the new generation of touch screen mobile devices.

SPC Librarian Chad Mairn designed the library’s new mobile-optimized “touch” website interface to act much like an application for an iPhone or other mobile devices. But unlike most applications, the website is entirely web-based and no downloads or updates are required.

“The trend is moving more toward mobile, and once students know that a website is mobile-optimized, they’ll be using it more,” Mairn said. “If a site doesn’t look well on my mobil device, I just won’t use it.”

The new mobile-optimized website, designed for on-the-go users, includes:

Library locations with one-touch access to Google Maps, library telephone numbers and hours of operation

Access to mobile research databases and the library catalog, making it quick and easy to find articles, books and other information

New library releases, resources and services such as Ask-a-Librarian

Selected research tools for a variety of operating systems, including Android, Blackberry, iOS (Apple’s iPhone), WebOS, Symbian and Windows

External links to the library’s full website

To access the mobile library, visit www.spcollege.edu/central/libonline/touch on your mobile device or scan this QR code to gain instant access.

For more information or to provide comments, please contact Chad Mairn. Special thanks to Yuka Takayama for helping code the mobile redirect script.

Testing my new ShareSquare QR code

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 13:22:07 PST

Abandon Ownership!

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 07:52:53 PST

An interesting Wired article regarding the "rentership society" got me thinking about libraries. Libraries have been in the "rental" business for a long time and it seems to be working, right? In the article, Suellentrop states that ownership is "for suckers" and I see his point. He goes on to say that ownership can be a burden and I know this feeling fairly well too (especially the last few years) since I do own my own home. Hopefully, the investment will pay off in the long run, but we'll have to wait and see.

Getting back to the point, I used to own thousands of CDs/DVDs/books and I still do, but I haven't bought a CD, DVD, or book for personal use in years because I simply can't find space for this stuff anymore. Conveniently, I now stream and/or download all my music and moving pictures. Occasionally, I will have Netflix mail me a blu-ray disc, but for the most part I have instant access to entertainment. The point is, I don't mind paying a monthly fee to have unlimited entertainment. I access content (e.g., music, film, documentaries, etc.) whenever and wherever I want, but I don't have this option right now with eBooks! I personally won't pay $10 for a single eBook EVER! Finally, Suellentrop wrote something that hit me hard in that "the winner of the ebook sweepstakes will be the bookseller who becomes a book renter." Wow, doesn't this sound like a perfect fit for libraries or is it just me? Having a library Netflix model for books in any format would be fantastic, wouldn't it?

Handheld Librarian 4 Online Conference: Call for Program Proposals!

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 10:57:11 PST

TAP Information Services and LearningTimes invite librarians, library staff, vendors, graduate students, and developers to submit program proposals related to the topic of mobile library services for the online Handheld Librarian 4 conference to be held online February 23 and 24, 2011.

The Handheld Librarian 4 (HHLib4) conference will feature interactive, live online sessions and links to recorded events following the conference. HHLib4 is interested in a broad range of submissions that highlight current, evolving, and future issues in mobile library services. This year, HHLib4 will feature a program track with presentations by graduate library students. These include but are not limited to the following program tracks:

ebooks
location-based social networking
augmented reality
twitter
apps
device and OS trends
QR codes
reference
mobile trend spotting
mobile technologies impacting society
web/app development best practices

Proposal Submissions:
Submit your proposal by completing the webform at http://www.handheldlibrarian.org/submissions-form by December 1, 2010. Online presentations may be conducted in one of four formats:

a 45-minute live online session (i.e. synchronous webcast)
a 15 minute student presentation ***
a 10 minute live online session or
a pre-recorded presentation (i.e. narrated web tour or slides).

You will be notified by January 15, 2011 if your proposal has been accepted. Conference registration fees are waived for speakers. Presenters Are Expected To:

Conduct your session using Adobe Connect (computer, Internet, mic required)
Provide a digital photo of yourself for the conference website
Respond to questions from attendees
Attend an online 30-60 minute training on Adobe Connect prior to the conference

Thank you for considering submitting a proposal. If you have questions, please contact:

Lori Bell, lbell927@gmail.com
Tom Peters, TAP Information Services, tpeters@tapinformation.com
Susan Manning, LearningTimes, susan@ltgreenroom.org

Social Media Quick Guide

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 07:58:05 PST

I am talking about social media and I wanted to show how easy it is to publish to a blog. Here is a link to the Social Media Quick Guide.

Hello Android!

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 12:13:49 PDT

Hello Android!

Well, I finally made my decision to move away from Blackberry and to start using Android. My Blackberry was great the first year, but it really started to have issues the second year. For example, it would drop calls unpredictably and became pathetically slow even after multiple reinstalls. Regardless, I won’t dwell on my Blackberry woes because, for the most part, it was a good phone.

So, let’s rewind two weeks. I started exploring other cell phone carriers and then started reviewing the overwhelming world of smart phones. My wife and I looked at the 3 main carriers: Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile. T-Mobile had the best deal for us (we have 5 phones on our plan) and we both were able to upgrade to Samsung Vibrant (Galaxy S) phones with the Android 2.1 operating system (Kernel version: 2.6.29). Playing with this phone in the store sold me instantly. I was, quite frankly, blown away by the speed, intuitive interface, the crisp high-definition screen that was flawlessly playing the preloaded ‘Avatar’ movie. Oh, and Swype texting is awesome. I don’t need a keyboard anymore. Okay, so I won’t go into all the technical specifications, but if you are interested visit http://galaxy-s.t-mobile.com/samsung-android-galaxy-phone for more information.

I did play with an iPhone and loved it too, but the Samsung phone seemed much smoother and quicker to me. Plus the screen is way better in my opinion.

So, I have had my Samsung phone for a little over 2 weeks and I am still in love. Here are some of my favorite apps so far:

A Online Radio – online radio plays MP3/M3U/PLS/AAC channels, shoutcast/icecast etc.
Aldiko – eBook Reader.
Barcode Scanner - scan product barcodes, Data Matrix and QR Codes. Also share your contacts, apps, and bookmarks via QR Code.
Congress – keep up with new legislation, contact info for legislators etc.
Dolphin Browser HD – an excellent browser that offers tabs, add-ons, and much more. My favorite add-on is the Dolphin Reader, which provides an “interference-free reading environment.”
Evernote – create notes, tag them, and sync from anywhere.
Fring – free video calls.
Google (Talk, Voice, Maps with Latitude, Google Goggles so you can use pictures to search the web).
Kindle – eBook reader.
Kobo - eBook reader.
Laputa – eBook reader.
Layar – Augmented reality with multiple layers.
mSpot – send 2 GBs of your music to the “cloud” and listen from your phone or any other connected device.
NetQFree – manage your Netflix queue and read reviews etc.
Nook – eBook Reader
News apps (NPR News, NYTimes, TechNews)
Pandora – free personalized radio.
PocketCloud – remotely access your desktop.
Rhapsody – listen to a huge collection of music anytime and from anywhere.
TaskOS – task manager.
TweetCaster – Twitter application.
TweetDeck – Twitter application.
YouTube – for mobile!

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 15:01:02 PDT

The time is now for digital textbooks, http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/oreilly/radar/atom/~3/7fTVWn9thKI/punctuated-equilibrium-httpbit.html

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 05:03:34 PDT

Brave New World With Such Google Transparency In It, http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/3LI84nxBWcQ/

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:35:31 PDT

http://www.dailyfinance.com/story/company-news/google-verizon-fcc-war-over-internets-future/19605776/

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:21:39 PDT

http://thenextweb.com/google/2010/09/08/google-engineer-on-adding-social-to-google-instant-stay-tuned/

Mashable Shared Story

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 15:56:26 PDT

Google's Music Service to Launch by Christmas [REPORT]: http://bit.ly/9eHeSS

Sent from my iPod

5 Useful Facebook Trend and Search Services (Source: Mashable)

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 13:34:06 PDT

As the world's largest social network, Facebook is a fascinating place to find out what's hot, what's news, and discover the latest meme.

Despite recent improvements, Facebook's in-site search doesn't necessarily offer the best way to see such data. However, there are various services that provide a dedicated way to either search Facebook's 500 million-strong data stream (at least what's made public), or see what's "trending" on the site in a way that's similar to Twitter.

While we can't overlook the fact that search engines like Google and Bing have begun offering "social search," we think the five services listed below offer a more useful way to find out what people are saying about a particular topic, or even find out what's being "Liked" in your social circle.
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1. Kurrently
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Kurrently is a dedicated search engine for both Twitter and Facebook, but you can narrow down the options to see results from one service or the other.

Kurrently's great selling point is that the search results continue to refresh after you've looked up a word or phrase, so you can experience the kind of auto-updating hashtag search we're already familiar with on Twitter.

Kurrently's programmer Gilbert Leung said he started the site because he wanted to get a sense of the global sentiment on a certain issue.

"Twitter Search was the obvious tool at the time," says Leung, "but my immediate question was, What about Facebook?' Why am I searching through a community of around 60 million when a network of around 500 million exists?'"
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2. It's Trending
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Right now It's Trending offers a non-searchable, real-time feed of the most shared content across Facebook, which is useful for anyone who wants a snapshot glimpse of the social web's current zeitgeist in an incredibly simple and uncomplicated way.

Giving you a new way to see hot topics across categories (video, news, sports, tech, gaming, comedy, etc) and across popular sites (Cracked, YouTube, Vimeo, DailyMotion, TechCrunch, Huffington Post, NY Times, CNN and yes, Mashable) it's a good-looking service that has big plans for the future so definitely one to watch.
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3. Openbook
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While many of you may already be familiar with Openbook, it's worthy of a place on this list for how simple it is to search, or see what others are searching for.

Also worth mentioning for marketeers or researchers is Openbook's unique ability to see search results from just male or female Facebookers something that's an incredibly useful tool if you need to narrow down data on a gender basis.
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4. Booshaka
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Recent startup Booshaka offers a real-time look at what's trending on Facebook based on open search keywords, as well as via topic if you're interested in more a general browse.

Main channel topics include news, music, sports, politics, gossip, TV, fashion, movies, deals, travel, brands and games (with each broken down into further sub-topics). Clicking on one of these will give you a stream of updates from relevant accounts.

Once you've carried out a topic search, you can see how many "Likes" and comments a Facebook post has received, and narrow down the results by what's trending now, what's most popular, what's most recent, and what has the biggest "buzz."

These further options could potentially help identify up-and-coming trends, as well as find out what folks are saying about established ones.
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5. Facepinch
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Facepinch promises to let you know popular "Likes" (as well as create your own "Like"), view hot trending topics, and see what's being sought after on Facebook with its top 100 most popular searches list. There is also the option to see recent searches if you're more interested in what's happening right now.

While there's no data to be gleaned from it, you can also browse recently updated profile pics with a gallery of random Facebook users' names and thumbnails. The site's default is the U.S., but you can select specific countries if you've an interest in a particular geographical area.

The service's creator, London-based Andrew Webb, states that besides the more obvious voyeuristic uses, he sees value in the site for brands:

"[C]ompanies and marketing professionals [can] see an unfiltered glimpse of how their products are being really perceived by the public."
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BONUS: Like Button
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More aimed at finding out what's hot in your own social circle, Like Button shows you "what people you know like on the Internet right now."

If you're signed in via Facebook, you can see what your buddies have "Liked" on popular pre-loaded sites such as YouTube, CNN, The Huffington Post, etc, and via categories including news, social media, tech, Apple, etc. But there is the infinitely useful option to add sites of your choosing too, making the Like Button site a personalized social window on the web.

You can also click to view a brief overview of what's hot on Facebook with the nine top trends displayed and refreshed every 15 minutes.

In addition, and on the fun side of things, Like Button lets you create your very own "Like" and "Dislike" buttons, the former of which looks like this when posted to your Facebook wall:

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More Facebook Resources from Mashable:
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- 10 Fascinating Facebook Facts
- 10 Cool Facebook Status Tips and Tricks
- How News Consumption is Shifting to the Personalized Social News Stream
- How Online Retailers Can Leverage Facebook's Open Graph
- 10 Fun Facebook Accessories

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, sodafish

More About: booshaka, facebook, facebook apps, facebook tools, facepinch, It's Trending, Kurrently, like button, List, Lists, openbook, Search, search engines, trends, web apps

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Mobile Users Prefer Coupons to Checkins [REPORT] (Source: Mashable)

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 13:26:57 PDT

As mobile users become more acclimated to sharing their whereabouts via mobile devices, findings from JiWire's Mobile Audience Insights Report prove that they're also becoming more open to receiving ads and mobile coupons relevant to where they are.

In fact, more than 50% of respondents indicated that they wanted to receive location-specific advertising, with mobile coupons a more appealing incentive than checkins.

In the report, mobile media company JiWire examines market trends around audience data over public Wi-Fi during the second quarter of 2010. The survey portion of the study focused on location-based mobile services and queried respondents on their location-sharing habits and attitudes.

Men showed more interest in sharing their location than women, and those in the 25-34 and 35-44 age categories indicated more openness than younger and older age groups. Responses also showed that mobile users are nearly as likely to use location-based services in their homes as they are while on the go.

JiWire also looked at the most popular LBS applications, and the functionalities and features that are most appealing to users. GPS and applications such as Google Maps ranked highest. Google, Yelp, Facebook and Foursquare round out the top five in sequential order. Interestingly enough, coupons and discounts placed second only to maps, and out-ranked reviews, status updates and checkins when users ranked the most valuable features of location-based applications.

The data is extremely telling and could point to a future where discount-oriented, location-sharing apps à la Shopkick make a major impact on mainstream mobile shopping behaviors. With Facebook set to make a big location announcement later today, it's also interesting to note that in the eyes of mobile users, the behemoth social network already out ranks Foursquare in location utility.

The full report is available as a free PDF and includes interesting data on the increase in free public Wi-Fi and the most popular Wi-Fi mobile devices.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Thomas_EyeDesign

More About: checkins, foursquare, geolocation, jiwire, location based advertising, location sharing, Mobile 2.0, mobile coupons, study

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How Mobile is Affecting the Way We E-mail (Source: Mashable)

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 11:30:30 PDT

This series is brought to you by the new BlackBerry Torch, the touch screen BlackBerry complete with social feeds, improved internet browsing, and much more.

As smartphone and mobile web usage continues to soar, users are spending more and more time on social networks like Facebook and Twitter. But how is the mobile web impacting the oldest form of Internet communication, e-mail?

For desktop Internet users, e-mail may be playing second-fiddle to the likes of Facebook and social games like FarmVille, but on mobile devices, e-mail is still number one.

In fact, new research from The Nielsen Company suggests that e-mail represents 41.6% of mobile Internet time for users in the United States.

Putting that in perspective, if all mobile Internet time was condensed into one hour of usage, e-mail would represent 25 minutes of time spent.

In fact, mobile e-mail usage continues to grow, even as social media continues to become a bigger and bigger part of the mobile experience. Last fall, ExactTarget commissioned a study on smartphone Internet usage and found that the rise in social media adoption has lead to an increase in how much we e-mail from our mobile devices, and not the decrease many analysts were predicting.
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Mobile E-mail is NOT Just for Business
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It's easy to conflate mobile e-mail with business users, after all, this was the demographic that first fully embraced the ability to send and receive messages from their mobile devices.

Over the years, however, e-mail usage on mobile devices has become less about business and more about staying in touch with personal contacts. According to ExactTarget's research, 71% of business professionals with smartphones said that they send more personal e-mails than work-related missives from their mobile devices.

Don't let the business suit fool you next time you see a smartly dressed corporate type tapping away on their phone, chances are, they are probably e-mailing with friends.

Part of the reason we're seeing an increase in personal e-mail communication devices is because of the nature of mobile. Users are always connected to their inbox and thus, can always receive a message.
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E-Mail for Breakfast and After Sex
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As we noted earlier this summer, more than 50% of U.S. online users check their e-mail before doing anything else online.

When you consider that peak Internet usage often takes place around 7 a.m., it's not a stretch to say that many of us check our e-mail on our mobile phones before, well, stretching and getting out of bed.

It's not just when we wake up that we check e-mail; studies indicate that more and more individuals check e-mail in the middle of the night and even after sex.

Again, the always-connected nature and location-ambivalence of mobile devices makes it easier for users to check their message or jot off a quick note, whether it's the most appropriate time or not. I think we've all seen "that guy" at a solemn event like a funeral desperately trying to refrain from checking his BlackBerry during the service. Heck, some of us may even be that guy.
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Is Social Media Eroding E-mail Usage?
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Last year, Nielsen looked into what impact social media is having on e-mail usage. The results showed that there is a strong correlation between those who are frequent e-mail users and users that are also active across social media.

In fact, the study basically showed that social media makes users consume more e-mail, not less. Part of this is an effect of the e-mail nature of many social networks. Facebook, for instance, sends you an e-mail when you get a new wall post or someone sends you a message. Likewise, Twitter and Foursquare send you follower updates, and Twitter sends out direct message notifications.

Many blog comment systems can notify users when someone has responded to an article online, and services like Google Buzz bring commenting on social statuses or shared Google Reader items to the inbox.

We should note, however, that more and more users are starting to treat services like Facebook as replacements for an e-mail inbox. E-mail is still more versatile, but for users that have a heavily populated social graph, sometimes social networking services can offer a more convenient messaging experience.

Have your e-mail habits changed since buying a smartphone? Let us know in the comments!
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Series supported by BlackBerry Torch
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Discover the new BlackBerry Torch. With a touch screen, a slide out keyboard, and the new BlackBerry 6 OS not to mention BlackBerry Messenger, integrated social feeds and improved web browsing the BlackBerry Torch helps you do what you love. Join the BlackBerry Facebook Community and stay up-to-date with all the latest BlackBerry news.
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More Mobile Resources from Mashable:
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- Top 16 Unusual Foursquare Badges
- 5 iPhone Apps to Help You Learn to Dance
- A Look Back at the Last 5 Years in Mobile
- Top 5 Mobile Commerce Trends for 2010
- Why QR Codes Are Poised to Hit the Mainstream

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, graphixel
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Reviews: Facebook, Foursquare, Google Buzz, Google Reader, Internet, Twitter, iStockphoto

More About: e-mail, mobile web, stats, web usage

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RIP Google Wave (Source: Mashable)

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:20:25 PDT

Google Wave, a product once heralded by many as a massively disruptive communication tool (heck, invites were even selling for $70 on eBay), is no more.

In a blog post this afternoon, Google says they "don't plan to continue developing Wave as a standalone product," though the code for it will remain available as open source.

The move isn't much of a surprise; adoption never seemed to materialize for Google Wave even after it dropped its invite-only status as users struggled to find meaningful use cases for the service (though we found a few).

What's most interesting about Wave, perhaps, is the spectacular rate of its rise and fall. It was easily one of the most hyped products of 2009, but within months of its launch, the buzz had almost completely disappeared.

The product might've been more successful had it been integrated into Gmail (basic e-mail notifications weren't even part of the launch), though Google hasn't had much success with Buzz in that department either.

In any event, Wave represents another disappointment in Google's long line of attempts at social, an area in which the company is now reportedly eyeing a completely new approach. Shutting down Wave, it would seem, is a logical step in moving on.

[img credit: Vaguleartisti]

More About: Google, Google Wave, trending

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RIP Google Wave

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:19:22 PDT

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Mashable/~3/Uv3gBl_YaDw/

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Facebook Taking Gaming Seriously, Hiring Head of Games Partnerships (Source: TechCrunch)

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 13:31:59 PDT

(Schools should pay attention to this job description to better prepare students for opportunities like this in the future!)

If there was any doubt before, it's clear now that Facebook is embracing the fact that games are a core part of its experience, and it's taking its relationship with gaming companies very seriously. The company has recently posted a job listing for a Head of Games Partnerships, who will be asked to "develop and enhance successful partnerships and influence internal and external partners and industry stakeholders in the Gaming industry." Facebook exec Dan Rose, who used to head the company's global business development and is now VP of Partnerships and Platform Marketing, posted a link to the listing twelve hours ago.

Gaming has been very popular on Facebook for quite a while, but the social network has created a strained relationship with some developers as it's changed the rules on the fly by cutting off the viral notifications channel and pressuring developers to use official Facebook Credits (which Facebook gets a 30% cut of).

But now the battle over games and developers is heating up: Google is preparing to launch a new social strategy with a social network rumored to be called Google Me, and gaming will play a big part in that. Google has already forged an alliance with Zynga, which has long been a major source of Facebook traffic and advertising dollars.

The news also comes just a week after a Nielsen report found that in the US, online gaming was beating email in terms of time spent online, with half of Americans playing online games like FarmVille.
The full job listing:

Facebook is seeking a leader for our Strategic Partner Development team to build and manage a high performance team, develop and enhance successful partnerships and influence internal and external partners and industry stakeholders in the Gaming industry. This job requires high levels of creativity and strategic thinking, as you'll be called upon to help both large, incumbent gaming companies as well as venture-backed gaming start-ups develop innovative social gaming experiences building on Facebook Platform. This team is the face of Facebook to our external gaming partner relationships and serves as the primary point of contact for both internal and external stakeholders. You should be as comfortable pitching and negotiating deals with partners as working cross-functionally with colleagues in Product, Engineering, Sales, Operations, Finance, Marketing, and Legal to create new social experiences that meet the strategic objectives of partners and Facebook. You should also expect to handle day-to-day operations and partnership management with many of our most important gaming partners, develop and execute on strategic partner initiatives and advocate internally and externally for our social gaming partners.

Responsibilities: •Build, train, manage and grow a high-performing team of talented and motivated partner-facing individuals •Develop and drive our gaming partner strategy to support the continued growth and success of our partners and social gaming on Facebook •Scale our gaming Partner Development team by hiring highly talented and motivated individuals • Initiate, structure, negotiate, and maintain high impact strategic gaming partnerships. •Support new partners through launch process and liaise with Facebook product and technical support. •Track, analyze, and communicate key quantitative metrics and develop and execute against partner account plans. •Become the primary point of contact for and maintain strong direct relationships with Facebook's key gaming partners • Be an internal and external advocate for our gaming partners.
Requirements
Requirements: •BA/BS degree with outstanding academic performance. MBA a plus. •10+ years experience, including 5 years of related partner or partner facing experience •Extensive experience in the gaming industry • Business development experience negotiating complex media or Internet deals preferred. •Deep passion for Facebook products and social gaming • Strong management and coaching skills •Proven track record of initiating and successfully driving new business opportunities. •Excellent project management experience, with the ability to lead and execute multiple time-sensitive projects •Exceptional communication and presentation skills, and the ability to clarify and summarize complex issues • Demonstrated ability to think strategically about complex issues, leading to thoughtful recommendations and action plans.

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Library of Congress Gets a Mobile App

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 17:23:03 PDT

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/library_of_congress_gets_a_mobile_app.php
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Blackberry Aims For the KIN Generation, But Is It Too Late? (Source: TechCrunch)

chadmairn@tampabay.rr.com (Chad Mairn) — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 11:22:24 PDT

Want to know why Blackberry launches are so exciting to so many? Because it means those chained to RIM because of their IT departments dependence on Blackberry mail services will get new phones. So what is this inexplicable Blackberry Torch and what does it mean for the brave folks in RIMs Canadian mountain fortress? First off, office drones, don't expect to get the Torch with all its security breaching social media razzmatazz. You'll probably get a toned down version with much of the functionality locked down. That's the first problem.

The second problem, as Matt noted before, RIM isn't very good at consumer grade products. While I'll agree that Blackberries are, bar none, the best email devices out there, they have all the sexiness of a road accident.

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