funduBytes

Cannes Cyber Lions 2011 - Entries from India

2011-06-21T11:35:00.002+05:30

Here is a list of entries for Cannes Cyber Lions 2011 from Indian Ad agencies. So, which one is your bet?

Update (22/6/2011):
There are no shortlists from India in the cyber category.
http://www.canneslions.com/work/cyber/?award=99

The Easiest Trick to Record your Computer Screen

2011-05-23T12:03:00.003+05:30

ScreenR is a web-based screen recorder that enables you to capture your computer screen as video without any install or download. Steps involved are-

1. Go to screenr.com
2. Launch the screen recorder to capture the computer screen (upto 5 min).
3. Login to publish the video online which is available for download.

But, the above process includes uploading of the processed video and downloading the same to your local computer. Can we have a way to save time and bandwidth by skipping step #3 and still acheiving the screencast? Yes, you can!

Once you have done with the recording, login to publish, give a dummy description and click the publish button. Here is the trick -

while the video is being published, go to %LOCALAPPDATA%\Temp\Screenr folder and see if there is a file called screenr.mp4.ns whose file size keeps on changing. Keep refreshing the folder till screenr.mp4.ns automatically gets renamed to screenr.mp4, copy it to another folder, cancel publishing and delete screencast.

The copied file is the required screencast video which you are looking for, now available with you hassle-free of publishing and download; thus saving time and bandwidth. This trick is also helpful if the screencast is for personal use and you don't want to share it publicly.

Now, someone try this trick on mac/linux and let me know the respective folders to retrieve the screencast locally.

Obama Ousted Osama as Mayor of Abbottabad; Osama Tweets from the Hell

2011-05-02T12:28:00.001+05:30

Yes, you might be reading the news everywhere about Osama being dead but here's a twist to it in foursquare language. (courtesy: Digital Inspiration)

And in reply to the above, Osama is tweeting from the hell

Let the social circus begin!

I AM - Crowd Sourced Film In India

2010-07-12T13:26:00.000+05:30

Lots of people bark social media, only few are actually doing it. Onirban Dhar, an independent director and producer of movies 'My Brother Nikhil', 'Bas Ek Pal' and 'Sorry Bhai' has set an e.g. by crowd-sourcing his next project 'I am'. 'I am' is a collection of 4 short films based on social issues like child abuse, homosexuality, single motherhood and Kashmiri pundits.

It all started when the script was ready and they were struggling for funds. Onir then updated his facebook status appealing like-minded people who believe a movie on these issues should be made urging them for monetary support allowing people to contribute starting Rs 1000 and become a co-owner of the movie and giving them back credits at the end of movie. Those contributing more than Rs 1 lakh become partners in the profit.

Full details on how to invest.

The movie has roped in Anurag Kashyap, Juhi Chawla, Sanjay Suri, Rahul Bose, Nandita Das .etc. as actors. Last heard, 'I am' has got about 65-70 owners and almost 350 co-owners raising 85 lakhs.

'I am' because of facebook! Be the change for the change.

Pune Layar - Desi Version of Nike Grid

2010-07-01T13:57:00.000+05:30

Remenmber Nike Grid? Augmented reality based campaign where London is the gameboard and you run between the grids and claim them to score points and badges.

Now, see this

LAYAR Application developed by Upside Learning Solutions. Pune Layar allows users to identify & locate significant landmarks in and around Pune city using a mobile device. Search for your favorite restaurants, know more about a historical monument or still better, add your favorite place - all at a touch. Explore Pune the way you never have!

Facebook 'Like' Experiment

2010-05-21T15:23:00.000+05:30

Recently facebook made some changes and replaced the "Be a fan" button with "Like" button and everyone suddenly started liking every other thing. In the hustle and bustle of daily life, we often forget to adore ourselves. Thus is the social media experiment for self realization. Like 'himself' and 'herself'. When you do so, your news feed reads like-

"Rupesh likes himself" / "XYZ likes herself"
and thus catching the attention of your friends, men and women, to like themselves respectively.

Now, to add a fun element, used the same old trick, men Vs. women. Who gets more likes!

Vs.

Also, this experiment is being done to see if we can segregate men and women into two different communities. Let's see, join the project!

Are you looking for a Creative Technologist?

2010-04-15T13:46:00.014+05:30

Hello,
"Speech is Silver, Silence is Golden, Twitter is #Cannes".

Winning a Creative Abby recently, shamed me, inspired me, challenged me to do something. I am currently in between jobs, thus, an experimental project to let you know that you and Cannes Lions are just a tweet away better say, you Cannes 140 characters.

Bio:
If you belong to a creative team in an advertising agency and daily update your facebook/twitter status with the kickass campaigns other offshore agencies are doing and crave to do something at that level or the entrepreneurship bug is itching you to start your own and you are looking out for partners, here is the offer- Reply @fundubytes and hire as creative technologist in your existing system.

Three musketeers teamed - copywriter, art director and creative technologist (new entrant, lacking in Indian advertising industry structure).

creative technologist? who?
With changing times, there is a need in mainstream agencies to integrate technologists as the full partners in the advertising creative team, fluent and confident in using emerging media technologies appropriately in the service of branding, advertising, marketing and persuasion. (Read More)

A rare breed of person with a mix of left and right brain, who is the fusion point between bleeding edge technology, the creative teams, brands, & people. Inventing and discovering new ways to connect with people and bring rich creative ideas for brands to life in the digital world. (Read More)

Most important, people who just not talk about technology, who actually *make* things and here is under-the-hood story, that brought you here.

@YouCannes is a simple Yahoo Pipes mashup hack, a robot that listens to conversations on twitter and responds to tweets having keywords '#goafest', 'cannes', 'advertising', 'creative director', 'copy writer', 'social media' to catch your attention leading you to this post. Now you know!

Doesn't it sound like twitter whore?
It's your opinion. But, I would say that it's a pull mechanism to draw your attention on this post with a purpose. since I am mostly offline these days, to automate the process. Beauty is to do such without writing a single line of code because creative folks are mostly scared and clueless of technicalaties. So, the solution is in your words. Not a single line of code. Also, it's smart enough not to reply to the retweets as retweets are not original sayings.

Why twitter?
twitter users are the early adopters. So, to target the niche audience associated with a creative team in an agency whose wavelength matches with mine.

PS: DM for you.

So, what are you waiting for? Reply @fundubytes or leave a comment below or email at rupeshmandal [at] gmail [dot] com to start a conversation.

or simply, help spread the words.

Thanks,

Nano Diaries is a Metaphor!

2010-04-07T00:51:00.002+05:30

Vanessa Able, a freelance writer and photographer is traveling across India in a Tata Nano to raise funds for a charity. When I approached her saying Nano Diaries is a brave attempt being a one women show, she replied back asking why I used the word brave and what should she be wary of? So, here is my reply.

Nano Diaries is not a trip. It's neither a tour nor a vacation. It's a metaphor.

It's about doing what you want to do while lot of mediocre people outside in the world stopping you doing what you want to do. The mediocre people, the collective soul, raises the question of authority of your act and try to stop you as they themselves couldn't do it. They try to scare you by reminding the dangers you can face in the journey. They try to recruit you to become like them, forbidding from doing what your soul truly enjoys.

When they can't stop you start, they put speed limits in your way. The toll booth on the highway, the moral police, asks for the authority and toll tax to attest your act. They place roadblocks in your way and make you detour. The crowd conspires traffic jam to get you stuck in a deadlock. They honk at you from behind as they don't have the courage to speak face to face, looking straight into your eyes. They retry to deviate you from your purpose by challenging you to race with them. Remember, it's not even a race. Actually, a test of your patience, lose your calm and goal. With the 'no entry' sign board, they try to put a ban on the freedom of your mind. The 'one-way' sign board, double checks your romantic belief on the chosen path.

The road ahead is steep, there are blind U-turns and at times you'll face the road breaking into two paths and you wonder which one to choose. If you are wandering aimlessly, without any apparent sense of direction and you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there. But, if you know the purpose you know the way. The petrol pumps on the way, like hope, keep coming and tank up your incurable optimism.

Sometimes, it happens, you're lost on the way or the road seems a dead end. And you backtrack. All the way back to square one. But, square one is underrated opposed to apparently what it's considered. It does not make sense going ahead the wrong way when your vision is lost. It's better to backtrack to the right spot left behind, where you had the chance to find the right road.

When you move in the direction of your inner voice, you may lose a lot of things on the way. Like relative motion of Physics, when you are in motion, things near you move in opposite direction, your near and dear ones go against you; but the things at distance move in the same direction, you discover set of like-minded people who move along with you.

While moving, it leaves a trail of dust for the rest to follow. It takes a while to settle the dust and when you look back, everything is visible, crystal clear. You watch the things you left behind in the journey through the rear view mirror, because "objects in mirror are closer than they appear". You can connect the dots now. You can only connect the dots while looking back, and then the journey matters more than the destination.

It's a metaphor in your journey as well as mine, the journey called life. So, wary of nothing as nothing can stop you doing what you want to do. Get going!

Valentines Day: Try this magic trick!

2010-02-14T14:15:00.001+05:30

I remember the last post I wrote on V-day was "Don't fall in love; rise in love". Today is the day again and it's on a sunday. What Valent_nes day without 'i', what S_nday without 'u'..! Now, try this out-

Hold her hands.
If she's not with you just think of her and make a heart by joining your hands.
Close your eyes and kiss it, and place it over your heart.
Don't say a single word!

Now hold on your breath for as long as you can.
Feel your beats and wish that all her pain and sorrow comes to you in lieu of all your happyness and believe this. You might get goosebumps or shivers while doing it, but don't panic.
Also, believe that the breaths you didn't take being added to her life.

Now you can open your eyes. You may feel exhausted and tears might float in your eyes. But, don't let em fall... it will rain on her wherever she is...

Disclaimer: It's all in your mind whether this trick works or not and you have to do it to find it. Either do it or take it as another random shit of a demented mind.

Blockbuster #ChetanBlocks on Twitter Featuring Chetan Bhagat

2009-12-07T21:08:00.000+05:30

and the making is here:-

The live feed

The Secret Behind Google's New Look!

2009-12-04T14:53:00.002+05:30

Recently, Google.com got a new cleaner interface. Guess who should have done the above campaign?

World AIDS Day - WRAP THE RASCAL

2009-12-01T15:56:00.000+05:30

Today, December 1, we observes it as World AIDS Day to spread the awareness about HIV and AIDS around the world. I remember, 2 years back I wrote a blog post - "NEGATIVE x POSITIVE = POSITIVE, Stop AIDS, Keep the promise."

This year I am attempting - "WRAP THE RASCAL". Well, I guess you have already noticed on this blog mouse cursor being changed to middle finger (signifies 'f**k you') and a condom following it, wherever it goes. Need I say more?

If you like it, add it on your blog/site too, in just 2 simple steps:-

1. Download the code and copy paste in between your <head> and </head>
2. Change <body> to <BODY onLoad="JSFX_StartEffects()">

Credits:-
Above tweak is a mashup of the original scripts available at JavaScript-FX and Dynamic Drive. The coder inside me hasn't died yet... huh!

How Mobile operators + Facebook + OOH = Pull Marketing

2009-11-30T18:11:00.001+05:30

Physics teaches us it's easier to pull an object rather than push it. In advertising, most of the OOH/billboards push their content to reach the target market. Now, just a thought - can Facebook + mobile operators + OOH medium together convert it into pull marketing scenario?

Mobile operators have VLR (visitor location register), a temporary database to determine your current geographic location. You can be present at only one place at any given time.

Also, this is the same mobile number that you have registered on Facebook to update status and receive sms notifications. Adding to it, your profile information contains vital meta data about you and your likings and other facts.

Now, consider this- facebook, mobile operators and OOH owners enter into some deal. Summing up together,

A: You carry the tag cloud of your meta-data along with you, wherever you go.

B: Your mobile operator traces your location and fetches the tag cloud of meta-data from facebook through some automatic script. No human intervention.

C: When you and many others pass by a hoarding, it does a intersection of all meta tags and also the tags associated with the hoarding location (predefined set of localized keywords for advertisers).

The hoarding displays the ad filtered to the intersection of A, B & C.

e.g.
When more number of people, fan of Shah Rukh Khan pass by a hoarding can see the Airtel Ad compared to when majority liking dogs cross by, can see the Vodafone Ad.

Thus, the OOH no longer remains "push". It becomes "pull" depending upon the density of people carrying an associated tag cloud, crossing by a particular hoarding site at any particular point of time. Not only this, advertisers can now bid on the keywords (like google adsense) and highest bid wins the spot.

Also, advertisers can track the performance of their ad at any particular location and tweak them accordingly. Thus achieving more transparency.

This is just a proof of concept, which in my belief could revolutionize the OOH advertising medium. Your thoughts please!

HOW TO: tweet via SMS if you don't have an Airtel number - Part 2/2

2009-10-15T15:49:00.000+05:30

The previous post demonstrates how to update your twitter status using facebook mobile. That's one way communication. Receiving SMS notifications when someone sends you a tweet completes the dialog which is pretty simple and free of cost.

1. Twitter Search: Go to search.twitter.com and look for any tweets referring to your twitter handle; @fundubytes in my case. Note the feed for the query.

2. Configure Google SMS channel: Create a private SMS channel on Google SMS channels and set your twitter search query feed as source.

Now, you are all done to receive free SMS notifications when someone sends you a tweet!

HOW TO: tweet via SMS if you don't have an Airtel number - Part 1/2

2009-10-15T15:04:00.000+05:30

So the news Airtel brings twitter via SMS in India is all over now. In an exclusive deal, only Bharti Airtel subscribers can send and receive tweets via SMS for the next 4 weeks. Afterwards it will be open to all. But, non-Airtel subscribers need not envy this. You too can tweet via SMS with a small trick as follows:-

1. Create a facebook page: Assuming twitter users are mostly early adopters, they must be having a facebook account too (Get one if you just woke up!). Now, create a fanpage. Select Website under Brand, Product or Organization category and if you don't have a website, let your twitter profile act the same. Publish the page.

2. Activate facebook mobile for the page: Edit page and activate Facebook Mobile to publish status updates to your Facebook Page on the go.
*Note: Doing such will break any previous linkage of facebook mobile with your account and you won't be able to update your profile status (facebook mobile allows only one status updating at a time). But, don't panic!

3. Link your facebook page to your twitter account: Visit http://www.facebook.com/twitter/ and link your twitter account with your facebook page.

Doing such will make sure that the status message of your facebook page is reflected back on your twitter profile.

Now, you are ready to tweet via SMS. All you need is to send an SMS to 92FACEBOOK (9232232665) to update your fanpage and thus your twitter status. And the best part is, it costs approx 50 paise to do so (national SMS charges). Read more if you want to sync the same message as your facebook status too.

4. Twitter to facebook: Add the twitter app on facebook and set it to update your facebook status whenever you tweet.
Alternatively, you can add Selective Twitter Status and update your facebook status only when your tweet ends with a #fb.

Now, you are all set to tweet and facebook on the go.

Next part of this series will illustrate how to receive SMS when someone sends you a tweet. Say thanks to facebook by sharing or re-tweeting this!

First Cricket Game on YouTube – A social media experiment to find the feasibility of TV like Advertising model for YouTube

2009-04-21T16:00:00.008+05:30

Ahem… finally investing 10 days - staying back after office hours, including 2 sleepless nights, messing up with 96 videos, the first playable Cricket game on Youtube is ready for beta release.

How to play?
1. It’s a game of 2 overs. You need to score your maximum runs.
2. When a ball is delivered, it pauses for a while and gives you an option to click on buttons labeled – A,B C, D…
3. You click a button and guess your hit. Add the hits manually to your total score and remember it.
4. At the end of each hit, it displays a button and clicking on it takes you to the next ball.
5. At the end of 2nd over, you can share your score by writing it in the video itself.

Since the game is based on streaming of YouTube videos, you might find the UI a bit glitchy.

Now, apart from the game, the real motive behind this personal project was to find the feasibility of a TV-like advertising model where multiple advertisers can bid for time slots within youtube videos.

Currently YouTube offers the following advertising options:-
1. Create your own brand channel
2. Sponsor a brand channel
3. Participatory video Ads that are shown on homepage
4. Contextual Google Ads and banner Ads

YouTube statistics show that around 5.8 billion video clips are watched each month, with average time spent per person is 54 seconds. Complete report

While watching a YouTube video, the full attention is within the dimensions of the video player which need to be leveraged by giving advertisers a TV like platform to buy time slots within a YouTube video and unlike TV, viewer can interact with the Ad and ROI can be correlated directly with the video views.

I shared the same hypothesis to Shishir Mehrotra, Director of YouTube monetization to find the feasibility of following advertising options using YouTube Annotations feature:-

1. Advertisers can buy time slots for FOURS and SIXES. You can find “Your Ad Here” links. It let you compose a message where advertisers can inquire for a time slot. e.g. Castrol can bid for the FOURS as it is a four-stroke engine oil (just for demo purpose)
2. A secret link can be shared with the advertisers, which will enable them to write their copy, brand name right on the video on the exact timeline.
3. After 1st over there is a drink break and advertisers can buy that space to play a video ad (maximum 10 sec).

Note: current YouTube policies do not allow any commercial activity of your videos. Thus, the pointers mentioned above are just a proof of concept. But, YouTube partner channels can join the project.

Now, various other possible advertising options could be derived from the same:-
1. In-video advertising - “A 10 seconds time slot within most viewed videos on YouTube”. Tell me how it sounds?? So, there is a possibility of media buying on youtube.
e.g. Branding of a condom brand within a videos tagged as sex related (which generally get high views), of course with a message for safe sex, where multiple advertisers bid for the same time slot. Kiwi and Cherry Blossom shoe polish brand can bid for a time slot in a highly viewed video of Charlie Chaplin for a scene of “polishing a shoe”.

2. Integrating Google AdSense with YouTube Annotations feature, a revenue sharing model for video publishers where advertisers bid and buy time slots dynamically based upon the tags and description of the video.

3. Improvement of YouTube annotations feature might enable you to integrate images, videos in future.

Let’s see how the face of online video advertising changes!

Why lkadvani.in AdSense Ads is Nonsense?

2009-04-10T21:54:00.003+05:30

You can find him anywhere. Like in mythology we say "Aakashvani", it's now "(Ad)vani". Recently noticed that the ads found place into porn blogs too.

(image source: http://blinking-eyes.blogspot.com)

Currently the lkadvani.in ads seem like slap on your face. But, one fundamental thing to note is - electing Indian Prime Minister is different from US presidential poll. So, instead of bugging an internet user from Indian demographics by showing the damn ads of promoting L. K. Advani as brand, what they could have done is - tracing your locality from your IP and showing you the respective BJP candidate for the nearest constituency, showing manifesto for local development and then asking to vote, thus promoting BJP as brand. Tackling the most common issue during elections - of not knowing "who is the candidate in your constituency?". Ultimately, if BJP gets majority, L. K Advani's dream too will be fulfilled.

Another coincidence with the recent Varun Gandhi incident is that L.K. Advani's facebook page has a powered by "RSS Connect" tag.

I hope this is not Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh which is considered as as reactionary group of Hindu fanatics with Fascist tendencies.

Let me try if anyone from BJP or Congress is reading this (are they listening to the online buzz)? Mark your presence with a comment below if you are listening to.

Do you know the correlation between SPAM & orkut demographics?

2009-03-23T17:22:00.000+05:30

Recently Symantec released stats of SPAM messages which says the top 3 regions of origin are - US (25%), Brazil (9%) and India (5%). (Download PDF Report)

Now, if you analyze the orkut demographics, the top 3 source of traffic are - Brazil (49.64%), US (20.82%) and India (17.14%). (orkut demographics)

Pretty interesting, isn't it! So, what's your take on this?

Tzomet Sfarim Bookstore Targets Avid Facebook Users

2009-02-05T13:08:00.008+05:30

"Disconnect for a while. Read a book."

This is how a recent print ad of Tzomet Sfarim Bookstore targets the avid facebook users to go offline and read a book. Pretty simple and clever! (More details)

Stand UP Take ACTION Orkut Community, RSS, App & Youtube Game

2008-10-14T00:12:00.009+05:30

You know me as a professional blogger and a social media evangelist.
So, while driving the United Nations Millennium Campaign across social media, I have successfully accomplished some exclusive tie-ups and work to spread the words through social media. Rahul Bansal and Divyansh Sharma helped me a lot in the process:-

1. Exclusive orkut community:- http://orkut.com/endpoverty This exclusive public URL community page can be accessed without even logging into orkut. To participate, of course you need to join the community.

2. RSS feed for the community:- By default orkut does not provide RSS feed for an orkut community. But, we have developed an online service that provides an RSS feed for any orkut community. You can track the activities of the above exclusive community without logging into orkut, by subscribing to http://orkutfeeds.com/endpoverty2015 in your Feed Reader.

3. An orkut app is coming soon. (check unreleased preview)

4. Youtube video Game:- youtube game built using the video annotation feature based on a pacman kind of game where poverty monster is chasing you and you need to click on the goal buttons for level up before the poverty monster eats you. Similar to 8 UN MDG (Millennium Development Goals) this game has 8 levels and failing in a level it educate you about the Goal in details.

(Do not cheat by rewinding the video)

5. Blog badge:- Bloggers and site owners can put the following blog badge on their sidebar to spread the words to their site visitors.

Thus, requesting all readers to take action to help eradicate poverty on 17-19 Oct and register your count at http://standagainstpoverty.org/
Also, this is an appeal to other similar causes, campaigns to unite and join this cause.
Together we can make a difference.

orkut Demographics: India Slips To 3rd Slot Again

2008-09-25T12:01:00.002+05:30

Following table shows the orkut demographics for past few months.

Some points to note:-
1. India which overtook US for the 2nd position in May 2008 has slipped to the 3rd slot again.
2. US has increased 2.47% from Aug to Sept to reclaim the 2nd position.
3. Canada out of the race in Aug, Australia being the new entrant.

What may be the reasons for this?

A Comprehensive List Of Alternative Twitter IM Bots

2008-09-13T00:11:00.026+05:30

Twitter IM bot twitter@twitter.com, which enables you to send tweets right from your Gtalk, Yahoo Messenger .etc. is facing downtime due to heavy usage and the current status shows - "Offline. Working on additional capacity."
Lets find out some alternatives that work in this crisis period.

Tweeting through IM includes two steps - LISTEN and RESPOND.

Apart from ego-surfing i.e. checking for any tweet targeted to you, Listen helps in tracking trend of keywords and topics of your interest. To listen through IM, you need the following earplugs:-

1. iNezha - Add inezhabot@gmail.com in your Gtalk contact which let you read any RSS feed right in your IM chat window. Update the notification frequency to 1 minute.

2. IM Feeds - Similar to iNezha, you can add imfeeds@gmail.com as a Gtalk buddy which notifies you whenever a subscribed feed updates.

After you are done with any of the above, search for any tweet that mentions your name or any keyword you want to monitor using search.twitter.com and subscribe to the RSS feed in your IM. Some other twitter search e.g. tweetscan have advantage over the default search as they display the originator of the tweet too in the RSS. E.g. RSS feed for any tweet that mentions my name is - http://tweetscan.com/rss.php?s=%40fundubytes

Now, it notifies you with any updates for your chosen feeds at regular intervals. The second part is to respond to them by blowing these horns:-

1. Excla.im - A jabber bot that allows you to update your twitter status by verifying your twitter account and adding tweet@excla.im as your Gtalk buddy.

2. IMified - A very powerful tool that does much more than mere updating your twitter status. To send tweets, you need to add imified@imified.com in your friend list and add the Twitter widget in your account settings.

3. twitt'd - You can send (also receive) tweets by adding twittd@jabber.org as your Gtalk buddy and verifying your twitter credentials. Tweets sent by twittd are displayed as being sent by web interface.

4. Ping.fm - Sign-up for a ping.fm account and integrate your twitter profile. Add pingdotfm@gmail.com as friend and update your twitter status by sending a message starting with @tt

5. TwitterIM - msn@twittermsn.com and TwitterIM for Windows Live Messenger and ICQ respectievely seem to be broken since quite some time.

6.SMSgupshup (India only) - This is a bit tricky. First sign-up for SMSgupshup and create an SMS group. Integrate your Gtalk account and add webaroosms@gmail.com as a Gtalk buddy. Now, you can send message to this SMS group right from your gtalk.
The next step is, sign-up for twitterfeed and add your twitter account and RSS feed for the SMS group. E.g. RSS feed for my SMS group is http://www.smsgupshup.com/feeds/fundubytes
Now, whenever you update your SMS group your twitter status automatically gets updated, though there are some limitations like only 8 SMS/hr and twitterfeed minimum update frequency is 30 min.

Apart from the above IM bots, there are some other options too:-

1. Yahoo Messenger Twitter Sync Plugin - This synchronizes your Yahoo Messenger status message with your twitter status.

2. Jabber Twitter Bridge - Java application to update Twitter with Jabber's status (Gtalk).

3. Twit4Live - A Messenger Plus! Live Script that adds twitter interaction to Windows Live Messenger. Interact with Twitter from Windows Live Messenger.

4. Twitter plugin for Pidgin - Pidgin is a multi-protocol IM client where users can log in to multiple accounts on multiple IM networks. Along with the twitter plugin, use the character count plugin for Pidgin that displays the character count of the current message in a Pidgin chat window.

Now, if you liked this story retweet it! or reply @fundubytes.

Also read: Find who ditched your or un followed you on Twitter

Google Chrome Firefox Theme For Windows, Linux And Mac OS X

2008-09-09T18:00:00.001+05:30

Recently launched Google open-source browser, Google Chrome has got much appreciation for its looks.
Now, Firefox addicts like me have got a reason to flaunt it with Chromifox - an experimental Firefox 3 theme inspired by bright and soft blue Google Chrome.

Since, Google Chrome is not available for Linux and Mac OS yet, you can use it as an alternate till the release. Download Chromifox

Tyroo Migrated Ad Network To New Platform Without Any Prior Official Notification

2008-09-09T00:36:00.004+05:30

December, 2007:
I was looking for advertising programmes that can be run along with Google AdSense, when I interacted with Sidharth Shukla from Tyroo and discussed its compatibility issues with Google Ads. Also, while googling I noticed Tyroo being bad-mouthed by few blogs.

When, I shared the links with Sidharth, got the following reply:-

Hi Rupesh,
Like i mentioned, there is nothing wrong with using Tyroo with Google ad sense. If there was i would not have the 2000+ publishers that i do.

Regarding the links you sent i cant seem to recall the exact problem with sourabh's account but yes its possible that we may have had a bad patch at that point,its equally possible that we could have got low quality placements resulting in low CTR's and revenues.

Jeba if you notice recommends Tyroo for Indian websites and at the end of the day there will always be blogs undermining Tyroo, i could produce over a 100 by the end of the day today for Google ad sense as well :-)

I really do appreciate your feedback, and we take it seriously rest assured and if the need warrants , adjustments along those lines are made.
Which is your site incidentally.

Thanks

Sidharth

Anyways, I thought of giving Tyroo a try and signed up for it.
Though I have monetized my blog, I use Firefox Adblock Plus addon to hide my own impressions and prevent any invalid click.

September, 2008:
Recently, while I was trying out Google Chrome, I noticed blank space at the leaderboard. Initially I thought it's a browser issues but later noticed the same result with all the browsers.

I logged into my Tyroo account and found zero impressions for past few days. Here is a snippet of the Tyroo report:-

When I contacted Sidharth in this context, Neeraj from Tyroo replied as under:-

Hi Rupesh

I am Neeraj managing the Tyroo publisher network. PFA excel for migration of publishers to new platform, wherein a new tags would be provided along with login to access reports with better metrics.

It took me a few minutes to figure out the meaning of the mail. Then, I noticed an excel sheet attached with the mail. I opened the excel sheet with curiosity and found it asking for basic details like name, email along with which tags to use etc for migration to the new platform. I replied back asking for clarification of few doubts and got their respective replies as follows:-

1. Is it mandatory for all publishers to fill up the excel sheet and send it back to you and that too only when a publisher complains about no ads being displayed?

it is important for the publisher to notice his site and the changes, we implemented this some time back and wanted to see who all comes back to us. You are early still many have to revert to us

2. First and foremost, Tyroo has all the details of a publisher those being asked in the excel sheet.

we do have for ‘n’ publishers

3. Again, what about the time period where no ads being displayed?

this was publishers conscious responsibility as he should let us know the changes he is noticing, the onus and the loss is for all the stake holders, be it advertiser or publisher or network

4. Isn't it responsibility of Tyroo to notify all publishers for any outage or modification in advance so that publishers are prepared for the forthcoming changes?

An excel is provided which requires information for migration, which happens in 24 hrs of replying

Now, that's such an irresponsible behavior from a company in which Yahoo has 35% stake. This experience justifies why Tyroo was bad-mouthed by blogs earlier.

Please support with your comments and help spread this message.

Google Suggest For Search; Guess Whose Business Card Got Affected?

2008-08-30T16:38:00.004+05:30

After a long wait of 4 years, Google will finally be implementing Google suggest feature on the homepage, Google.com. Google suggest is an auto-complete for search which means as you type in the search box, related search keywords automatically appear below in a "drop-down menu" fashion. You can check out the feature at http://www.google.com/webhp?complete=1&hl=en

Wait, I am not discussing here how it will affect user experience or SEO (Search Engine Optimization). A simple question - Guess whose business card will be affected with this feature?

Heard of Matt Mullenweg, who is founding developer of popular blogging platform WordPress? His business card is pretty simple and great.

But, the inclusion of Google suggest in Google search has affected him. Also, with this feature, the "I'm feeling lucky" button is hidden.

Similarly, Kiruba Shankar, a prolific personality in Web 2.0, Blogging, Podcasting & Social Media in India has got Google cards as shown below:-

But, when you try with the new search,

Since, a picture says more than 1000 words, people might click on the image just above his website listing. So, for both of them it's time to change the business card. Yahoo too has instant search ajax functionality to the search. So, the only option left is Live Search. Here is a branding opportunity for Microsoft, any folk listening?

Do you know how Google affected funduBytes?