MyTechOpinion.com » Reggie

Google Maps: New “What’s Here” Feature

Reggie Nicolay — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 18:36:32 +0000

Not too long ago maps were used simply to find locations and get from one point to another. But over recent years digital mapping has pushed the boundaries; adding new and innovative features with Google leading the way. Yesterday was no different; Google announced a new feature called “What’s here?” A very intuitive implementation that works by simply selecting a point on their map and choosing “What’s here?” Google then presents what they feel is “the most relevant result representing that location”

For example, say you’re working with a homeowner moving to the Marina District in San Francisco California. They’ve been asking lots of questions about local attractions, so you sit down with them and search the area using Google Maps. Right mouse click the general area, and select “What’s Here?” You’ll see a green arrow display like this:

Now look to the left-hand side of the screen, you should see the geographic name and a link to “Explore this area.” Based off the zoom level, Google will serve up the “most appropriate geographical entity at that point.”

Once selected the maps should fill with photos from the surrounding area. To see more, select the “More photos” link on the left-hand side and all available photos quickly populate the map, something like this:

MyTechOpinion
This new feature is super cool and will certainly come in handy for anyone looking to investigate an area further. To get the most complete mashup available, try clicking the “more” link located at the top right corner of the map. From there you can add videos, Wikipedia, webcams, and transit information to the current view. If you want to take your search experience from Google Maps into Google Earth, you’ll aslo see a button included.

For those of you that want to participate in the user generated content, try Panoramio.

TinyChat: Don’t let the name fool you, it’s all muscle

Reggie Nicolay — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:37:32 +0000

If you’ve been unimpressed with the available chat applications for your blog, you’ll be excited to learn about TinyChat.

TinyChat recently delivered version 2 of their chat product and I’m really impressed. The application is extremely intuitive, which starts with a large text field prompting for a chat room name. Within seconds your new room is created. But not before you’re given the chance to sign in using Twitter and invite other participants. If you’re not using Twitter don’t fret; just enter your name to continue.

At this point the chat room has been created, now set a chat topic and select your privacy option. By private it really means not listed on the TinyChat website. If you need password protection, you’ll have to upgrade to the professional plan. With that plan, you’ll also own up to 5 rooms, and broadcast in HQ video.

A TinyChat session can host up to 200 concurrent chat participants, and 12 simultaneous audio, video broadcasts. The audio and video is really easy to operate. Click the big message the reads “Add live audio and video to this room” then approve the use of Tiny Chat to access your camera and microphone. In our testing, we had multiple users streaming audio and video and I found the quality was equal to what I experience from Skype.

Other TinyChat features worth noting include:

Share files via Flyupload
Save chat transcripts
Ban annoying users
Embed the chat on your website or blog
Share the chat room via Twitter, Facebook, or MySpace (or via any network by sharing the URL).

MyTechOpinion

I’m really impressed with the user interface of TinyChat. I like that I wasn’t forced to install cumbersome software to initiate a chat session. I appreciate the “ignore” link that moderators see next to each user’s update. If an unruly visitor joins the chat, use this feature to block them from participating. It’s also comforting to know that TinyChat works on Windows, Mac and Linux; using Firefox, IE, Safari, and Chrome browsers.

Real estate agents using this tool on a regular basis for online chat or webinars sessions may want to consider subscribing to the professional plan. As mentioned you’ll gain the ability to save room names-to protect your brand or keyword.

TheClozing: The Real Estate News Aggregator

Reggie Nicolay — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 15:26:44 +0000

I remember just 3 or 4 years ago I could count all of my favorite blogs on one hand. It was easy to keep up with all the useful content. But obviously with the growing popularity of blogs and other online content all that’s changed. While this evolution took place, many of us turned to websites that aggregate useful information like TechMeme. Although if you find yourself in the real estate niche you’ve noticed that we’re often forgotten, so that mainstream content can take center stage. That is, until I ran into www.theclozing.com

TheClozing is based off the TechMeme format, but is classified as a real estate and business news aggregator. This is done by gathering and organizing real estate news from major U.S. newspapers, magazines and publications with related articles from the social media world. That’s where the real value comes in. Viewers can read the mainstream stories, and then review related blogs for the back-story. The site refreshes every hour, to provide new content.

You’ll notice high to the right side, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate is a top-level sponsor. By sponsoring, they get their most recent post highlighted. TheClozing still has room for additional sponsors, if you’re interested visit the about page for more info.

All in all, I like what Joe Ferrara (aka J.F. Sellsius) and Anthony Barba have done with the site. They’ve created an easy to read interface that links out to original posts. You can bet I’ll be following this news source closely.

Next-Gen iPhone Details Revealed?

Reggie Nicolay — Wed, 20 May 2009 13:56:11 +0000

Today when I checked my reader I was excited to see rumored details of the next-gen iPhone from the Wired Gadget Lab. The article claims the latest iPhone will be released on July 17th and will include many hot upgrades, such as:

* 32GB and 16GB storage ($199 and $299 price points to be maintained)
* 3.2-megapixel camera (up from the current 2-megapixel camera)
* Video-recording and editing capabilities
* Ability to send a picture & video via MMS
* OLED screen
* 1.5 times the battery life of the current models
* Double the RAM and processing power
* Built-in FM transmitter
* Apple logo on back will glow
* Rubber-tread backing
* Sleeker design
* Built-in compass
* Turn-by-turn directions

It’s easy to see how these new features are great for iPhone users, but how will they affect the average real estate agent? Many non-iPhone users will argue features like mobile video and MMS have been on other mobile devices for some time now. But the reality is that other devices are missing the slick yet extremely powerful interface of the iPhone combined with the flourishing iTunes app store.

Now video to the iPhone is not revolutionary. Obviously people have been jailbreaking their iPhones for some time now to setup services like QIK to stream video from their iPhone. But as I said, they had to jailbreak the phone which is not sanctioned by Apple and equates to hacking the device. Now, if this news is correct, all new iPhone owners will be able to capture and share video using the device they’re already using for leading social networking applications, GPS, mobile email, internet activities, etc.

My mind starts racing at all the possibilities for real estate professionals. Imagine harnessing the power of a lifestream to aggregate all your shared video, pictures, and content shared from this one device. (See my lifestream here.) Let me give you an example, you drive to your first appointment of the day and you arrive a few minutes early. You realize the sunrise is exceptionally beautiful so you take a few minutes of video highlighting the entrance to the neighborhood and sports park. You tag and share the video. Now it’s immediately available for your network to see and archived on your blog/website via the lifestream. Later the same morning you learn of a new downtown project that will be affecting local homeowners so you break out the iPhone and open your favorite Twitter application and share the news. That too, has been broadcast to your network and archived on you lifestream. I think you get my point!

12 Facebook Marketing Strategies Webinar

Reggie Nicolay — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 17:06:04 +0000

As we’ve become increasingly social online, new opportunities to interact and grow our sphere have emerged. Once such opportunity is Facebook-the largest social network in the world. Neilson recently reported that 3 out of every 10 people online in the world were using Facebook. And Facebook themselves stated that over 100 million users login to the site at least once a day, further positioning the social networking giant as a trusted communication channel.

Those real estate agents that authentically engage with their network will succeed in creating new and flourishing relationships across the Internet. Some members of your network may help your business in terms of promotion, referrals or even through a transaction. I can’t tell you which, that depends on you and your actions. Although we can help you by sharing strategies you can implement into your business immediately!

If you’re interested in learning more about marketing your business in Facebook, and you’re free tomorrow (April 21st, 2009) at 10am (pacific) please join us for a free webinar hosted by Cyberhomes.com. The session will be led by @Nik_Nik and me @Cyberhomes.

Resources:

Here are some fun promo videos for the event. Please let us know what you think!
Facebook Strategy #17 - Authentic Messages

Facebook Strategy #24 - Business Pages

14 Tools for Real Estate Lifestreaming

Reggie Nicolay — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 21:17:05 +0000

As a real estate professional using social media you’re probably starting to think about different ways to aggregate your web presence. So I decided to get a list going of helpful lifestreaming resources. However by no means is this list complete, so please share your favorites (i.e Facebook, MyBloglog) in the comment stream below. I’ll be sure to review and add suggestions to this permanent resource. This will be the beginning of a series of blog posts focused on lifestreaming for real estate pros like you!

FriendBinder

Use FriendBinder to create a lifestream of you and your connections. One notable feature to FriendBinder is their “Interest Levels” feature, This will let you group your followers by a number 1 - 5-with 5 being your closest friends and family. Still in private beta.

FriendFeed

One of the most popular lifestream applications, FriendFeed offers a Facebook application to connect your Facebook profile with your activity on other popular social media sites. They also offer a widget for your blog/website.

Identoo

Cool lifestreaming application that’s built off the decentralized social network called NoseRub.

Lifestrea.ms

Lifestrea.ms is still in private beta , and I’m hoping they change that soon as their site is pretty cool. It’s starts as all lifestreams do with the aggregation, but also allows users to comment and forward updates. Check out this example for a better understanding.

Lifestream.fm

Slick lifestreaming interface. Newer features include leaving comments on posted items, filter and search users, import fiends, even add your lifestream to Facebook.. Lifestream.fm also lets provides users with a way to keep up to date from your desktop with their Adobe Air application.

Me In One

Me In One was built by Mubashar Iqbal in hope of consolidating his web presence. The lifestream app will allow you to aggregate RSS feeds from any website. The interface is clean and not only displays events in reverse chronological order, but business card data and individual feeds are available from the page too. See an example here.

MugShot

Mugshot offers a fun interface that includes your profile, account icons, flickr and YouTube images. They also make using the lifestream outside on MugShot.org easy with their countless apps including a widget for your blog, a desktop client, Google Desktop, and facebook app.

Posterous

Posterous takes a different approach to the lifestream. You’ll email post@posterous.com and attach photos, videos, MP3’s even other files and they will stream to your own account. Your items will appear much like with Tumblr accounts. In addition to populating your own Posterous page, your updates can update Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Tumblr, Blogger, Wordpress, Typepad, Movable Type, Livejournal, and Xanga. For you teams, Posterous will allow groups site too!

Profilactic

Profilactic displays both your lifestream and a group lifestream from your friends. They supports over 190 social media sites. An if you’ve been looking for a Lifestream app that will integrate into your WordPress blog, you’re in luck. See WordPress plugin.

SocialThing

SocialThing is still in private beta while they’re developing a new technology to include a stronger back-end, faster response time, a new interface, integrations into many other websites and more. I really hope this one is worth the wait…keep checking back.

Tumblr

A tumblelog format, Tumblr lets users share life events with photos, music, and videos easily. These items can be shared from your browser, desktop, phone or email. Don’t forget to add your “Share on Tumblr” bookmark for simplistic web sharing. Also easily skin your page to update the look and feel.

Storyltr

Storytlr comes from two guys in Belgium and they have added their own interesting spin on the lifestream. I like being able to enter content directly into the application.

Soup

Soup is a tumblelog kind of like Tumblr. They allow for CSS customizations, and you can use your own domain name. They also allow in-place editing of entries.

SweetCron

If you’re looking for a self-hosted lifestream I would check out Sweetcron. Yong Fook really outdid himself with this app. You’ll need a server with PHP and MySQL. Once you setup, you’ll enjoy the flexibility…simply add your RSS feeds. If you’re looking for a “How-To” check out this resource

Lovely Charts: Sophisticated Diagrams Made Simple

Reggie Nicolay — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 13:53:09 +0000

If you need to create a flowcart, diagram, org chart or even a wireframe, I have a powerful and attractive resource for you! Lovely Charts is a slick Adobe Flex application that uses a simplistic drag and drop drawing engine. You can tell Lovely Charts has placed heavy importance on their clean design and attractive chart output. Their graphics and symbols will help you clearly represent your ideas on screen…without having to dig deep through thousands of choices. But don’t take my word for it, view their Gallery here.

So what’s it going to cost me?

Lovely Charts offers both a free and paid version. The free product allows users to print or export as many charts as needed, however you can only save one editable chart. If you need to be able to save more editable charts, try the professional version. It supports versioning and team collaboration with commenting.

Lovely Chart Resources:
Keyboard shortcuts
Screencast

ZingDing: A Fresh New Spin on Real Estate Marketing

Reggie Nicolay — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 14:29:46 +0000

Recently I had the pleasure of meeting August Giles, founder of ZingDing.com. After reviewing his new approach to real estate email marketing, I couldn’t help but share it with the MTO audience! When you think of ZingDing, think of a cross between your favorite virtual tour and eCard software all mixed into one…with viral share tools!

After previewing the site, I found many great ideas of how real estate agents have used ZingDing to promote their listings and rentals. Many have elected to include additional design elements like holiday themes-sure to get your sphere excited by your creativeness!

What does it take to build a ZingDing eCard?

Start by gathering all necessary photos and logos, then choose your desired music from the ZingDing library, add any desired effects (i.e. burning fireplace, snowfall, etc.), then input your properties details!

For distribution, the ZingDing eCards can be emailed out or embedded into a website/blog or even sites like Craigslist or Realtor.com. If you choose email, ZingDing has a few ways to get your email list into their system. To start you can upload lists from Outlook, or add one by one. Although you might also try sending yourself the eCard, and then forwarding it out to your contacts from your email client!

So what’s this going to cost me?

The ZingDing pricing is very attractive; a single eCard is only $9.95. Although if you expect to be sending these eCards throughout out the year, I would recommend subscribing to the annual package for $49.95. That includes unlimited use of all ZingDing eCards.

If you still have questions about ZingDing, try reviewing their forum.

Issuu SmartLook: Turning Downloadable Files into Attractive Online Publications

Reggie Nicolay — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 14:45:49 +0000

When you share files on your website or blog, how do you have your visitors access them? The easiest method is to simply supply a link, and have them download the file and open it locally on their computer. Although with this method there is always the possibility of an incompatible program type. You could also manually embed the file each time using sites like Slide or Scribe.

Both methods work, but I have an exciting new option for you that will render your documents into an elegant and flowing online publication. Issue has a launched a new free tool called SmartLook; and it’s very easy to setup. Start by visiting: Issuu.com/smartlook and add your domain name. Issuu then supplies some embed code to be included immediately above the tag found at the bottom of your website pages. If you’re using a blog …that will be your Footer file.

Once you have completed the setup, and a document is downloaded the first time, Issuu imports a copy of the document into your account. Once it’s uploaded, it’s then converted and will show up when clicked for all new visitors. If users need to download the file, not view it…simply right click the link and choose “Save As.”

See Issuu SmartLook Demo

Nominate Cyberhomes for Crunchies 2008

Reggie Nicolay — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 17:27:31 +0000

If you don’t already know, I’m now the Director of Social Media over at Cyberhomes.com. I’m really enjoying my new gig! But that’s not why I’m writing this post. The nomination period for Crunchies 2008 is underway. The Crunchies is an annual award ceremony that recognizes stand-out companies. The event is co-hosted by TechCrunch.

I’m hopeful that you can help me get Cyberhomes nominated. I’ve setup VoteForCyberhomes.com and now I need you to visit the site and nominate Cyberhomes.

You can vote each day until midnight on December 10^th. If you have a few seconds…vote now!

AppLoop Turns Your RSS Feed into a Brandable iPhone App

Reggie Nicolay — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:01:15 +0000

Would you like your blog on the iPhone? Well now you can! Start by visiting AppLoop and requesting a beta account. Their slick new tool will convert your blog to a fully native mobile application in about 2 minutes. The cool aspect of AppLoop is that you can brand your iPhone application and learn about usage through supplied analytics.

Also check out AgentGenius, they’ve covered another app called intersquash.com. This tool works slightly different, as it turns your RSS feed into a webpage that fits your iPhone.

iPhone Application Generator Demo from AppLoop on Vimeo.

7 Apps to Improve Your Next Online Group Meeting!

Reggie Nicolay — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 02:52:20 +0000

1. Notifu

Trying to communicate with a group can be difficult! Particularly with the increasingly busy schedules of today’s real estate professional. If you’re looking for a product to address this challenge, you need to check out Notifu. This free web application lets you send a message by Email, SMS, AIM, Gtalk, ICQ, MSN IM, Yahoo IM even phone to a group of people without having an account on those services. With phone calls, Notifu will deliver to any phone number worldwide by converting the text you’ve typed in a voice message. After the messages have been delivered, you’ll know who has received the message and who has not.

2. Twiddla

Twiddla is a free tool for online group collaboration with no limit to the number of participants you can invite. The interface is cool because it’s different than most. Right from within the canvas you can search a web page and mark it up with your colleagues. Markup tools include lines, shapes and text. It’s also straightforward to add images (.jpg, .gif, .png, etc.) and documents (.doc, .xls, .ppt, .pdf, .txt) onto the canvas.

3. DabbleBoard

Dabbleboard is a free whiteboard application that works well for group collaboration. This interface is simple yet powerful. Start by creating a new whiteboard/canvas. If you want to invite others, click Share + Chat. DabbleBoard supplies you with a private URL and email invite feature. Once the collaboration has started users can upload images, work with freehand tools and adjust colors. When the canvas is complete users can download the project in PNG format. Also make the canvas public, to get listed in the “Public library” and obtain embed code for use outside of Dabbleboard.

4. MindMeister

MindMeister is collaborative online mind mapping software offering both free and paid packages. The interface is simple and intuitive. If you’ve built mind maps before you know the shape evolves as you get going. Having a canvas that can be adjusted is very useful. I also appreciate MindMeister for integrating with various gadgets and extensions. They understand that when thought happens you may not be sitting in front of a mind map. These tools are designed to fit into life where thought happens. Tools include a Gadget for Google Gears, Windows Vista Gadget, Mac Dashboard, Yahoo! Widgets Desktop, browser extensions and text/email.

5. Snipd

The idea behind Snipd.com is that you can clip parts of the Web including text, images, and videos…then share with friends. It has certain Twitter like characteristics, but it’s for “snips” you collect across the web.

Start by adding their bookmarklet onto your browser toolbar. Then as you surf the Internet and come across interesting content you would like to save or share simply highlight the text or object and click the Snipd bookmarklet. Then add some brief notes or comments. Back on Snipd.com your account has been aggregating recent snipping’s. These snips will be available via a custom URL you set up.

6. Stixy

Stixy is described as an online bulletin board, but that doesn’t capture the power of this application. To start Stixy offers a clean interface that allows for the dragging and dropping of objects called widgets. These widgets come in the form of tasks, appointments, files, photos, notes, and bookmarks. These widgets can be placed anywhere on the Stixyboard. Stixy also supports sharing of Stixyboards.

7. Oovoo

Turn your phone conference into a video conference. Oovoo is a free technology that allows face-to-face conversations over the web. Invite up to 6 participants into an Oovoo session. If your goal is to produce an interview for your website or blog, try Oovoo and then export the video to your favorite video sharing site.

Outside of the video, Oovoo also has a chat client. It’s setup much like the others. They’ve also got the ability to send files to your connections.

New Choice for Social Media Signature: Hyplet.com

Reggie Nicolay — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 15:29:16 +0000

I’ve always been a fan of the email signature. If done properly, your contacts will know exactly how to get in touch with you. But they don’t exactly have a web 2.0 flare. Sure you could list out each social network with text links, but that’s looks boring and spammy. All those links my even trigger a spam filter. Check out Hyplet.com. They’ve created a free service to help you quickly create a signature or “personal ID” for your emails, website or blog. The service is similar concept to Retaggr but Hyplet offers much more customization.

Hyplet’s personal ID’s come in a variety of shapes and colors. Easily make modifications with drag and drop tools, even rearrange all contact information including phone, email, Skype, IM, Facebook, Flickr, Delicious, Twitter, your blog and others with the text editor. I did run into a small issue when using Firefox to customize my personal ID. In Firefox I was not able to apply formatting like bold or increase font size. I tried the same tasks in Internet Explorer and it worked fine.

In regards to compatibility, I’ve only used Hyplet with Outlook. Although, Hyplet says their ID’s work in many applications such as Gmail, Hotmail & IncrediMail.

Start creating a Hyplet now.

Attending NAR? Don’t Miss The Web 2.0/Social Media Panel

Reggie Nicolay — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 21:15:18 +0000

If you’re attending NAR 2008 in Orlando, make sure you attend the Web 2.0/Social Media panel sponsored by Diamond Dwellings. [more at Diamond Dwellings]

Panelists include:

Jeff Turner @respres from Real Estate Shows

Teresa Boardman @TBoard from StPaulRealEstateBlog.com

Cyndee Haydon @cyndeehaydon in Clearwater, Fl. Her blog is from SandbarstoSunsets.com

Ines Hegedus-Garcia @ines from — also well known for her blog at Miamism.com

Panel start at 11am on Saturday November 8th. Location below:

Look for the “Exhibitor Presentation Theater” which will be located in the Exhibit Hall E, Booth 4840

Free Seminar Tomorrow: Top Ten Money Making Tech Tools of Today’s Top Real Estate Agents

Reggie Nicolay — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 16:53:56 +0000

I have another free opportunity to improve your technology skills in a webinar coming up tomorrow. The event is sponsored by Cyberhomes and presented by Allen Hainge of CyberStars. If you are an MTO fan, you may remember that Allen has recently become a guest contributor here at MTO. He has lots of industry knowledge and is a techno-fan too! See more on Allen here.

For those of you attending the webinar, you’ll leave this session with concrete, proven steps to increase your business today! Here are a few of the topics Allen will cover:

+ Why old tools & strategies don’t work in today’s market
+ The Top 10 tools top agents use to build their businesses
+ 3 types of agents Web sites…and why only one really makes you money
+ 5 “must have” elements of a money making Web site
+ 5 things listings on your site must have

Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now!

Join us for a Webinar on October 30th, from 10 am to 11 am PST
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/938348453

Here are a few other upcoming events:


	How to Effectively Drive Prospects to YOUR Web Site November 3, 2:00PM PST
SEO Expert and Leading Technology Trainer
	The Seven Keys to Social Networking for Profit November 11, 2 :00PM PST
Technology Expert Leading Technology Trainer
	Three Things You MUST do to Survive in This Tough Market November 13, 2:00PM PST
Trained Economist and Marketing Expert

Is a Mobile Smartphone Docking Station In Your Future?

Reggie Nicolay — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 17:26:59 +0000

Hold on to your seat, Active Innovation Management (A.I.M.) is trying to turn mobile computing on its head. They’ve started with a vision of making an efficient and inexpensive alternative to Netbooks called the Olo. Their concept is a “mobile smartphone docking station” which would not include its own processor, memory, or wireless connection. These specifics play into their concern of shrinking our “ecological footprint.”

A.I.M.’s goal is to make the Olo fully compatible with future versions of smartphones. So when it comes time to upgrade your mobile device, simply upgrade the phone and make any necessary updates to the Olo fitting module. Now the new smartphone could be applied. There is no need to replace components like monitor, speakers, keyboard on the Olo.

No physical prototype is available yet, but the patent process has begun to protect the Olo^TM concept. So for know well be waiting in anticipation for this great idea to surface.

What will this mean for Real Estate Agents?

In an industry where being mobile is an advantage, I suspect this idea will be warmly welcomed. Don’t get me wrong, this device will surely have limitations. But what real estate agents need most while mobile is internet with email, access to MLS and contracts. These activities could be carried out with the limited processing power of a next generation smartphone. Add a large screen and keyboard; I suspect the Olo will be a winner.

Free Seminar Today: Web site secrets and powerful social networking strategies

Reggie Nicolay — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:40:23 +0000

Trying to build your online presence? Cyberhomes has hired Randy Eagar, Search Engine Expert and leading technology trainer in the real estate industry to teach you the secrets of some of the most successful agents earning over six figures a year online.

In this seminar, Randy will share easy-to-implement web site secrets and powerful social networking strategies that work. He’ll also introduce a ton of other ideas you can use to dominate your real estate market online!

The Seminar is today Friday, October 24
1-2 pm PT / 2-3 pm MT / 3-4 pm CT / 4-5 pm ET

If you are interested, click this link to RSVP

StudioNow: The Affordable Answer to High-Quality Video

Reggie Nicolay — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 13:37:29 +0000

For the last few months we’ve covered many different options for adding video into your business. Some of the methods were self produced, some originated from still photos…and today from a full service network. StudioNow has assembled a network of professional videographers, directors, editors, animators and voice over specialist available for your next video project.

Is it really that simple?
That’s the idea. Streamline the process; work with the best freelancers in the industry and provide high-quality video content. That’s the idea from founders David Mason and Adam Solesby.

David explained that StudioNow has created a robust tracking and communication tool. Think UPS tracking but for the video upload, creation, production and distribution. Have a question about where your project is in the process…just login and view.

Don’t fumble at the goal line.
Once you have your completed video project, your work has just begun. The obvious next step is to make sure the video gets viewed by the right audience. StudioNow can automatically push your videos to Google, YouTube, Yahoo!, AOL, MSN, MySpace and many more based on your requirements. DVD’s can also be delivered.

Cyberhomes Here I Come!

Reggie Nicolay — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 16:15:27 +0000

That’s right I’ve scored a new gig at Cyberhomes.com. It’s official. Actually my title is the official part: Director of Social Media. Very exciting given the fact that Cyberhomes is such a major player in the online real estate search. If you don’t already know, they have extremely deep and rich data around more than 100 Million homes in the US. Also layered over the home ownership data you’ll find neighborhood stats, school info, home sales, and rental info.

If you are a fan of me or Cyberhomes I would appreciate you joining our newly created Cyberhomes Fan Page on Facebook. I’ll be using this page to highlight Cyberhomes events, conventions, meet-ups etc.

Also please follow me on Twitter: @cyberhomes.

Since I’m asking favors, I would also like you to investigate a program Cyberhomes has created to help real estate agents gain market advantage.

Cyberhomes Neighborhood Expert^TM - A bundle of exclusive tools for your zip codes. The package includes your Local Ads on local home searches, current market data, offline marketing materials and slick co-branded property reports.

Cyberhomes Good Reading: Good reading includes writers from BusinessWeek, Money, Bankrate.com, Wall Street Journal and more. In good reading you’ll also notice a new Cyberhomes blog held down by Lauren Baier Kim & Janine Sieja.

See Sellsius coverage of my new gig.

Splashup: I can’t believe it’s not Photoshop

Reggie Nicolay — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:05:52 +0000

With Web2.0 we’ve seen the introduction of many remarkable web applications that would not be possible just a few years ago. Microsoft has seen growth from competitor products like OpenOffice.org and Google Docs.

Now it’s time for Adobe Photoshop to start feeling the pressure from online competitors in their space. Introducing Splashup (formerly Fauxto).

Splashup is a 100% free web-based image editing application, and will run in all major browsers. The tool makes grabbing and editing photos from sharing sites like Facebook, Flickr, or Picasa a snap.

Once you have your artwork open, you’ll feel like you’re running a desktop application. The menus drop down, tool palettes are in familiar locations, and the interface is very clean.

Splashups notable features include:

Ability to edit multiple photos at once
High end filters: blur, sharpen, pixelate, emboss, colorize
Layer effects: bevel, drop shadow, glow, gradient bevel, gradient glow
Advanced text editing

One note of caution for you newbie’s to photo editing. Strangely enough I noticed that Splashup has a help button, but it’s grayed out. So if you are seeking to build your knowledge through a helpful interface, you may need to investigate another photo editing tool.

A few competitors include:

MyTechOpinion.com » Reggie

Google Maps: New “What’s Here” Feature

Other posts you may enjoy:

TinyChat: Don’t let the name fool you, it’s all muscle

Other posts you may enjoy:

TheClozing: The Real Estate News Aggregator

Other posts you may enjoy:

Next-Gen iPhone Details Revealed?

Other posts you may enjoy:

12 Facebook Marketing Strategies Webinar

Other posts you may enjoy:

14 Tools for Real Estate Lifestreaming

Other posts you may enjoy:

Lovely Charts: Sophisticated Diagrams Made Simple

Other posts you may enjoy:

ZingDing: A Fresh New Spin on Real Estate Marketing

Other posts you may enjoy:

Issuu SmartLook: Turning Downloadable Files into Attractive Online Publications

Other posts you may enjoy:

Nominate Cyberhomes for Crunchies 2008

Other posts you may enjoy:

AppLoop Turns Your RSS Feed into a Brandable iPhone App

Other posts you may enjoy:

7 Apps to Improve Your Next Online Group Meeting!

Other posts you may enjoy:

New Choice for Social Media Signature: Hyplet.com

Other posts you may enjoy:

Attending NAR? Don’t Miss The Web 2.0/Social Media Panel

Other posts you may enjoy:

Free Seminar Tomorrow: Top Ten Money Making Tech Tools of Today’s Top Real Estate Agents

Other posts you may enjoy:

Is a Mobile Smartphone Docking Station In Your Future?

Other posts you may enjoy:

Free Seminar Today: Web site secrets and powerful social networking strategies

Other posts you may enjoy:

StudioNow: The Affordable Answer to High-Quality Video

Other posts you may enjoy:

Cyberhomes Here I Come!

Other posts you may enjoy:

Splashup: I can’t believe it’s not Photoshop

Splashups notable features include:

Other posts you may enjoy: