Twitter Status

Ever wonder what condition Twitter is in today? Is the site up? Is the site down? Usually when a big event occurs Twitter goes down for the count or they have overcapacity and you can”t log on. Bookmark the following URL and pull it up the next time you wonder what is happening with Twitter.

http://status.twitter.com/

Scan Twitter with Downtweet

Do you have time Tweet everyday? Did you just sign-up for Twitter to just get an account so you could follow people? If Twitter isn't for you then you need to try Downtweet? Downtweet streams real-time Twitter updates all onto one page! Downtweet is a mashup of Twitterfall and TweetGrid.

Downtweet in a nutshell:

• 4 separate boxes for streaming.
• Drag and drop pre-selected categories into each box
• Watch the live streams
• Edit each feed
• Each box has a custom search bar

What I like best is that you could create a DownTweet feed for your site or blog and you can login with a twitter account on the far right and
watch your stream live. The 4 boxes can collapse into 2 large streams
as well.

http://www.downtweet.com

yfrog Shares the Conversation

Give your tweets a face with yfrog! If you are looking for an easy way to post some tweets with photos or simply just another platform to send messages, then yfrog is it! You don't need to register, you can just connect your existing Twitter account.

http://yfrog.com/

That's Not Cool

Your mobile, IM and social accounts are a part of you? Where do you draw your digital line? Do you need some pointers on how to deal with textual harassment, pic pressure, constant messaging or communicating clearly in today's digital world?

On this site, you'll have access to extensive campaign research, interactive videos, support information, helpful tips on engaging your kids in your local community, and more! If you are having an issue with someone close to you using tech in a harsh way, then check out these tips.

The site says, “That's Not Cool is a national public education campaign that uses digital examples of controlling, pressuring, and threatening behavior to raise awareness about and prevent teen dating abuse. That's Not Cool is sponsored and co-created by Futures Without Violence (formerly Family Violence Prevention Fund), the Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against Women, and the Advertising Council.”

http://www.thatsnotcool.com/

Facebook Facial Recognition Feature

Your Facebook pictures will be scanned for facial recognition. Remember in all the 1990s spy movies where the investigators always had some super computer they'd use to find their suspects? Now Facebook will save you the trouble of tagging your friends in photos and do it for you automatically. Privacy experts are outraged. According to the following CNN article, Google was researching the technology but decided to not move forward due to privacy issues. Facebook on the other hand decided that the feature would enhance their user's experience. What do you think? Is this a good or a bad thing?

http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/social.media/06/07/facebook.facial.recognition/index.html

Twitter to Buy TweetDeck

TweetDeck is a revolutionary Twitter client and now big brother is going to buy them out. Are you a fan of TweetDeck? Is this a good or bad move for the consumer?

Blogs are Dead

A recent pew study released says that “Blogs are Dead!” Last year Wired stated that “The Web is Dead” and now blogs are passe. The study attributes the loss to the gravitation to Facebook and Twitter. It states that “only half as many online teens work on their own blog as did in 2006, and Millennial generation adults ages 18-33 have also seen a modest decline.” More people are having success posting their thoughts, videos, podcasts, etc… up on social media website. But why can't you have your cake and eat it too?

I am constantly surprised that people forget that Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Vimeo are free websites. What do you get for free? I guess if you are posting to free Blog websites, then my point is moot. However, if you are a blogger then you need to figure out how to bridge the gap between the two mediums. The bottom line is that when it's free, the social networks like Facebook are free to do what they want with your information. One day the event will occur where they go out of business or they are sold. Where is your website?

Here is a recent article from the Daily Blogger that stresses “Why brands shouldn’t trust Facebook“. It's not about what's the hottest trend, it's about what makes most sense for your business. Relying on free is never the answer and Facebook is free.

Gizapage's Social Media Hub

Why not house all your social media real estate on your website? Gizapage brings all your separate Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr accounts and integrates them into one single page on your website. Can you say a flashback to the days of iframes?

King Fisher used this service to combine all their networks into one page. They created a separate navigation item called “Connect”. The concept seems great, however as you can see, if most of the content is the same on each network, then it look repetitive. I like the concept of consolidating your social media into one hub, but I am not sure this is the solution.

http://www.gizapage.com/

Who's Following You On Twitter?

To update a Whitney Houston song for 2011, “I believe that Twitter is our future, I believe let them lead the way.” Are you speaking the social networking language of 140 characters or less yet? If you are more a Facebook person, than a Twitter person, then maybe this website will help you take the leap. Who do you follow on Twitter, but isn't following you? or better yet, who are you following but aren't following them back? Obviously if you are following Aston Kutcher and he is following 617 people and has over six million followers, the odds of him following you are slim.

On Twitter it is difficult to determine who is not following you. In the Twitterverse, it customary practice to follow back interesting followers. During my last post, I suggested a chart to help you determine who to follow. Hopefully this website will bridge the gap and make Twitter easier for you to digest.

Who's not following you back on Twitter? Who are you not following back? Who are your mutual friends? Find out!
http://friendorfollow.com

Who To Follow On Twitter

The other day I stumbled upon a great guide describing the method of how you should determine who to follow on Twitter. John Antonio's Social Media and Personal Branding Blog outlines the methodology. His method is first based on if are you interesting. Then it breaks down what you are talking about, how long your account has been in existence and do you provide real information.

Thanks to Tony Catalano for the link!