Eric Martindale

Thanks! I am glad to see this posted here, so thanks! This is good start but very short! I'm glad he addressed the propaganda a lot of us grew up with; which indeed was most proffered by Hitler & USSR against the USA "capitalist pigs". I'm sorta disappointed that Woods here in this brief explanation, does still associate the term capitalism with the idea of free markets. Capitalism is a term used for the means by which all people make a living-- anyone with a job is a capitalist. It is not a form of government or a form of market or a form of banking. There is capitalism; and then there are forms of government, and then there is banking; and then there are markets-- (these are separate things and the words for them are not synonymous). There are free markets and there are regulated markets. We are all capitalists suffering from the problems of corrupt people given sole authority over all the money with which power they have centralized banking & turned it into a government industry, which forces them to REGULATE the market to suit their own interests. May Luck Turn in our Favor and Right Soon! PEACE!

While marketing RolePlayGateway, one of the things we considered was the "virality" of our approach. Viral marketing is any marketing technique that induces Web sites or users to pass on a marketing message to other sites or users, creating a potentially exponential growth in the message's visibility and effect. We're going to guide you on the road to a truly viral campaign.

A successful viral push can be launched simply by following three simple rules.

1. Don't spend everything you have on a single campaign.
2. Don't rely entirely on one vehicle of viral marketing.
3. Be different from everyone else; stand out.

While we're not nearly viral enough, part of our success so far has been the evangelism of our passionate users. And there you have it, one of the most important keys to successful viral marketing:

Passion: Users who are passionate about your service, your community, or your site. They will propagate, they will evangelize, and ultimately will generate more passionate users who will do the same thing for you. Dawn Anfuso calls these members Boomers - and it is important to not ignore them.

Make it easy for your users to share. Make it hard for them NOT to share. Add a feature on your site that encourages them to send an email to their friends about the service. Add blocks where they can copy and paste code straight to their social profiles on sites like MySpace, Facebook, and Bebo. Jeanne Jennings wrote an amazing article on Optimizing the "E-mail This" Marketing Opportunity, and I'd recommend you read it and implement the things you learn from it.

Widgetize: On that note, we arrive on one of our most powerful vehicles for viral marketing: Widgets. The list of sites that you can infect with widgets are endless. From iGoogle to individual sites, widgets encourage users to put your tool on their page. Be sure to incorporate other techniques here: Include encouragement to share it. Make it easy to post elsewhere and share.

One of the items that RolePlay Gateway could utilize to great success is the concept of game trailers. Many of the games on RPGateway are text-based, and have no real graphics. However, most of these games have amazing storylines, storylines which could be utilized to hitch audiences, or at least entertain them. Flash-based videos, or trailers, with pivotal content, captivating video and audio, and viral marketing elements such as "Email this!" or "Share This", would be an amazing leap forward. Take a look at how YouTube's video player works. Such trailers could even be uploaded to social networking sites, like YouTube and Google Video, and shared to millions of users with a touch of viral marketing magic.

Juice It Up: Include your URL everywhere you go. Facebook, MySpace. Everywhere. This generates user authority, even if the site you are on has nothing at all to do with your target market. Cross sections are a beautiful thing, and even if you don't get a drop of link juice in comments, market saturation is a very important, yet delicate, part of viral marketing.

Maintain a presence on every social networking site you can sustain. Extend your campaign to all of them. Create social groups for each of these sites, and publicize them. The more targets you hit, just like investing, the less committed you are to that particular market. Your assets are distributed, and while the workload may be unfathomably difficult (keeping up with so many social networking sites sucks... that's why we have ProfileLinker), the potential for success is incredible.

Reward: Another option is to provide tangible rewards for marketing. This can be in the form of prizes, such as in a contest, or to individual users. Incentives are very powerful, and drive many users to promote where they'd be otherwise apathetic. Things can be very simple, such as giving them tokens or credits, to very expensive, such as providing real cash per referral. This is probably the most effective, albeit expensive, method of encouraging users to infect others.

Don't Stop. Don't set these actions in motion and then hope they work. Get involved. Comment on profiles. Reply to messages. Enhance your viral effect. Make it tangible. If users can see that there is a real person there, they will be a lot more enthusiastic and encouraged to participate, and your viral marketing campaign will be more successful.

Other Resources!!! Web Marketing Today has an amazing list of resource articles that are sure to help you build your campaign.

Prediction: Global Riots One Year Away?

In 2011, researchers at the Complex Systems Institute (CSI) released a paper [1] presenting a model for understanding (and ultimately predicting) the social unrest that rocked countries such as Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt [2].  Of the data analyzed, the principal factor influencing said unrest was determined to be the food price index.

That's a pretty simple concept.  If one of your most basic needs was threatened, what would you do?  To quote the MIT Technology Review's explanation of the paper [3], “This isn't rocket science. It stands to reason that people become desperate when food is unobtainable. It's often said that any society is three square meals from anarchy.”

These models have other complex implications around the world, such as in the financial markets.  Another paper from 2010, titled “Predicting economic market crises using measures of collective panic” [4], shows that the economic crisis (and other singe-day panics in the market) in the United States were predictable events that relied on the relatively volatile sociological phenomenon of uncertainty and nervousness -- which makes some of the original paper's assertions even more interesting.  Most notably:

“Both factors in food prices can be linked directly to recent US governmental actions. Speculator activity has been enhanced by deregulation of the commodities markets that exempted dealers from trading limits, and subsidies and other policies have been central to the growth of ethanol conversion.”

Food for thought.

[1]: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1108.2455v1.pdf
[2]: http://www.globalissues.org/article/792/mideast-north-africa-unrest
[3]: http://www.technologyreview.com/view/425019/the-cause-of-riots-and-the-price-of-food/
[4]: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1102.2620v1.pdf

Prediction: Global Riots One Year Away?

In 2011, researchers at the Complex Systems Institute (CSI) released a paper [1] presenting a model for understanding (and ultimately predicting) the social unrest that rocked countries such as Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt [2].  Of the data analyzed, the principal factor influencing said unrest was determined to be the food price index.

That's a pretty simple concept.  If one of your most basic needs was threatened, what would you do?  To quote the MIT Technology Review's explanation of the paper [3], “This isn't rocket science. It stands to reason that people become desperate when food is unobtainable. It's often said that any society is three square meals from anarchy.”

These models have other complex implications around the world, such as in the financial markets.  Another paper from 2010, titled “Predicting economic market crises using measures of collective panic” [4], shows that the economic crisis (and other singe-day panics in the market) in the United States were predictable events that relied on the relatively volatile sociological phenomenon of uncertainty and nervousness -- which makes some of the original paper's assertions even more interesting.  Most notably:

“Both factors in food prices can be linked directly to recent US governmental actions. Speculator activity has been enhanced by deregulation of the commodities markets that exempted dealers from trading limits, and subsidies and other policies have been central to the growth of ethanol conversion.”

Food for thought.

[1]: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1108.2455v1.pdf
[2]: http://www.globalissues.org/article/792/mideast-north-africa-unrest
[3]: http://www.technologyreview.com/view/425019/the-cause-of-riots-and-the-price-of-food/
[4]: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1102.2620v1.pdf

Prediction: Global Riots One Year Away?

In 2011, researchers at the Complex Systems Institute (CSI) released a paper [1] presenting a model for understanding (and ultimately predicting) the social unrest that rocked countries such as Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt [2].  Of the data analyzed, the principal factor influencing said unrest was determined to be the food price index.

That's a pretty simple concept.  If one of your most basic needs was threatened, what would you do?  To quote the MIT Technology Review's explanation of the paper [3], “This isn't rocket science. It stands to reason that people become desperate when food is unobtainable. It's often said that any society is three square meals from anarchy.”

These models have other complex implications around the world, such as in the financial markets.  Another paper from 2010, titled “Predicting economic market crises using measures of collective panic” [4], shows that the economic crisis (and other singe-day panics in the market) in the United States were predictable events that relied on the relatively volatile sociological phenomenon of uncertainty and nervousness -- which makes some of the original paper's assertions even more interesting.  Most notably:

“Both factors in food prices can be linked directly to recent US governmental actions. Speculator activity has been enhanced by deregulation of the commodities markets that exempted dealers from trading limits, and subsidies and other policies have been central to the growth of ethanol conversion.”

Food for thought.

[1]: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1108.2455v1.pdf
[2]: http://www.globalissues.org/article/792/mideast-north-africa-unrest
[3]: http://www.technologyreview.com/view/425019/the-cause-of-riots-and-the-price-of-food/
[4]: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1102.2620v1.pdf

Prediction: Global Riots One Year Away?

In 2011, researchers at the Complex Systems Institute (CSI) released a paper [1] presenting a model for understanding (and ultimately predicting) the social unrest that rocked countries such as Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt [2].  Of the data analyzed, the principal factor influencing said unrest was determined to be the food price index.

That's a pretty simple concept.  If one of your most basic needs was threatened, what would you do?  To quote the MIT Technology Review's explanation of the paper [3], “This isn't rocket science. It stands to reason that people become desperate when food is unobtainable. It's often said that any society is three square meals from anarchy.”

These models have other complex implications around the world, such as in the financial markets.  Another paper from 2010, titled “Predicting economic market crises using measures of collective panic” [4], shows that the economic crisis (and other singe-day panics in the market) in the United States were predictable events that relied on the relatively volatile sociological phenomenon of uncertainty and nervousness -- which makes some of the original paper's assertions even more interesting.  Most notably:

“Both factors in food prices can be linked directly to recent US governmental actions. Speculator activity has been enhanced by deregulation of the commodities markets that exempted dealers from trading limits, and subsidies and other policies have been central to the growth of ethanol conversion.”

Food for thought.

[1]: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1108.2455v1.pdf
[2]: http://www.globalissues.org/article/792/mideast-north-africa-unrest
[3]: http://www.technologyreview.com/view/425019/the-cause-of-riots-and-the-price-of-food/
[4]: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1102.2620v1.pdf

Debates... oh the fun.

Today's topic? Linux vs. Windows.

I'm arguing that serverside, there's nothing better than Linux.  It's more widely used, even.  I'm also saying that clientside, there's nothing better than Windows.  My extensive point is that Windows would never improve if Linux wasn't a competitor.  Even with Server 2003, Linux still blows the rest of the market away.  Sure, I'd love to use a fully compatible mainstream box that doesn't crash.  But without competitors, Windows will never become that.  Thanks to Linux, we have improved greatly since the beginning.

Then there's the Mac thing.  At this point, you're probably asking, "I thought he was a PC guy?" and I am.  There's no denying that touching a Macintosh makes me feel sick.  However, let's give them some credit, right?  Look at what the iPod has become.  Apple has the potential to become the biggest, the best, and the most used.  They're getting there, and stepping over to the Intel chipset was a GREAT move.  But, it just isn't enough to give them the kick in the ass that they need, yet.  I'm speculating that if Microsoft doesn't clean up their act soon, whether it's Vista or Live... Mac will dominate the future market.

Of course at this point people will STILL be using their own Linux boxes off in the background, and the market share will be about the same.  So here I am, using Windows to access my Linux server - with an old iMac in the other room sitting in a pile of junk.

--
Eric Martindale
IT Professional
Admin of GWing.net

“Do not kill, do not rape, do not steal, these are principles which every man of every faith can embrace.” -- Murphy, The Boondock Saints

We should not be deluded into thinking that #OccupyWallStreet is a protest against capitalism. It is a protest against the blatant theft perpetrated by the financial and banking systems that has plagued our great nation and its government for at least the past 98 years.

On Capitalism versus Statism:
“[...] If we are to keep the term "capitalism" at all, then, we must distinguish between "free-market capitalism" on the one hand, and "state capitalism" on the other. The two are as different as day and night in their nature and consequences. Free-market capitalism is a network of free and voluntary exchanges in which producers work, produce, and exchange their products for the products of others through prices voluntarily arrived at. State capitalism consists of one or more groups making use of the coercive apparatus of the government — the State — to accumulate capital for themselves by expropriating the production of others by force and violence [...]” -- Murray N. Rothbard, 1972 [1]

While the protests continue to grow in cities around the country [2], Anonymous is warning the NYPD against continued police brutality [3] and even previously trusted news outlets begin to censor [4] if not blatantly ignore [5].

Look through the actual photos [6]. These faces are not those of hippies, bums, or of radicals. These are the faces of your friends and family, of your neighbors and coworkers [7]. It is the majority, the 99% of affected Americans, that are on the streets protesting. It is We the People.

Thanks to +Jeremy Dahl for providing the link and video, +Michael Mozart for livestreaming the protests earlier today, and +Breana Van Den Heuvel for providing a constant stream of photos and news as this evolves.

[1]: http://mises.org/daily/3735
[2]: http://www.occupytogether.org/
[3]: Anonymous WARNING to NYPD on Behalf of Occupy Wall Street.! will not be forgotten or Forgiven.
[4]: http://ampedstatus.org/twittercensorship-blocks-occupywallstreet-from-top-trending-topic-twice/
[5]: Keith Olbermann calls out Media Blackout on 'Occupy Wall Street' Protest
[6]: https://plus.google.com/photos/112353210404102902472/albums/5658628267519370497
[7]: http://wearethe99percent.tumblr.com/

“Do not kill, do not rape, do not steal, these are principles which every man of every faith can embrace.” -- Murphy, The Boondock Saints

We should not be deluded into thinking that #OccupyWallStreet is a protest against capitalism. It is a protest against the blatant theft perpetrated by the financial and banking systems that has plagued our great nation and its government for at least the past 98 years.

On Capitalism versus Statism:
“[...] If we are to keep the term "capitalism" at all, then, we must distinguish between "free-market capitalism" on the one hand, and "state capitalism" on the other. The two are as different as day and night in their nature and consequences. Free-market capitalism is a network of free and voluntary exchanges in which producers work, produce, and exchange their products for the products of others through prices voluntarily arrived at. State capitalism consists of one or more groups making use of the coercive apparatus of the government — the State — to accumulate capital for themselves by expropriating the production of others by force and violence [...]” -- Murray N. Rothbard, 1972 [1]

While the protests continue to grow in cities around the country [2], Anonymous is warning the NYPD against continued police brutality [3] and even previously trusted news outlets begin to censor [4] if not blatantly ignore [5].

Look through the actual photos [6]. These faces are not those of hippies, bums, or of radicals. These are the faces of your friends and family, of your neighbors and coworkers [7]. It is the majority, the 99% of affected Americans, that are on the streets protesting. It is We the People.

Thanks to +Jeremy Dahl for providing the link and video, +Michael Mozart for livestreaming the protests earlier today, and +Breana Van Den Heuvel for providing a constant stream of photos and news as this evolves.

[1]: http://mises.org/daily/3735
[2]: http://www.occupytogether.org/
[3]: Anonymous WARNING to NYPD on Behalf of Occupy Wall Street.! will not be forgotten or Forgiven.
[4]: http://ampedstatus.org/twittercensorship-blocks-occupywallstreet-from-top-trending-topic-twice/
[5]: Keith Olbermann calls out Media Blackout on 'Occupy Wall Street' Protest
[6]: https://plus.google.com/photos/112353210404102902472/albums/5658628267519370497
[7]: http://wearethe99percent.tumblr.com/

“Do not kill, do not rape, do not steal, these are principles which every man of every faith can embrace.” -- Murphy, The Boondock Saints

We should not be deluded into thinking that #OccupyWallStreet is a protest against capitalism. It is a protest against the blatant theft perpetrated by the financial and banking systems that has plagued our great nation and its government for at least the past 98 years.

On Capitalism versus Statism:
“[...] If we are to keep the term "capitalism" at all, then, we must distinguish between "free-market capitalism" on the one hand, and "state capitalism" on the other. The two are as different as day and night in their nature and consequences. Free-market capitalism is a network of free and voluntary exchanges in which producers work, produce, and exchange their products for the products of others through prices voluntarily arrived at. State capitalism consists of one or more groups making use of the coercive apparatus of the government — the State — to accumulate capital for themselves by expropriating the production of others by force and violence [...]” -- Murray N. Rothbard, 1972 [1]

While the protests continue to grow in cities around the country [2], Anonymous is warning the NYPD against continued police brutality [3] and even previously trusted news outlets begin to censor [4] if not blatantly ignore [5].

Look through the actual photos [6]. These faces are not those of hippies, bums, or of radicals. These are the faces of your friends and family, of your neighbors and coworkers [7]. It is the majority, the 99% of affected Americans, that are on the streets protesting. It is We the People.

Thanks to +Jeremy Dahl for providing the link and video, +Michael Mozart for livestreaming the protests earlier today, and +Breana Van Den Heuvel for providing a constant stream of photos and news as this evolves.

[1]: http://mises.org/daily/3735
[2]: http://www.occupytogether.org/
[3]: Anonymous WARNING to NYPD on Behalf of Occupy Wall Street.! will not be forgotten or Forgiven.
[4]: http://ampedstatus.org/twittercensorship-blocks-occupywallstreet-from-top-trending-topic-twice/
[5]: Keith Olbermann calls out Media Blackout on 'Occupy Wall Street' Protest
[6]: https://plus.google.com/photos/112353210404102902472/albums/5658628267519370497
[7]: http://wearethe99percent.tumblr.com/

“Do not kill, do not rape, do not steal, these are principles which every man of every faith can embrace.” -- Murphy, The Boondock Saints

We should not be deluded into thinking that #OccupyWallStreet is a protest against capitalism. It is a protest against the blatant theft perpetrated by the financial and banking systems that has plagued our great nation and its government for at least the past 98 years.

On Capitalism versus Statism:
“[...] If we are to keep the term "capitalism" at all, then, we must distinguish between "free-market capitalism" on the one hand, and "state capitalism" on the other. The two are as different as day and night in their nature and consequences. Free-market capitalism is a network of free and voluntary exchanges in which producers work, produce, and exchange their products for the products of others through prices voluntarily arrived at. State capitalism consists of one or more groups making use of the coercive apparatus of the government — the State — to accumulate capital for themselves by expropriating the production of others by force and violence [...]” -- Murray N. Rothbard, 1972 [1]

While the protests continue to grow in cities around the country [2], Anonymous is warning the NYPD against continued police brutality [3] and even previously trusted news outlets begin to censor [4] if not blatantly ignore [5].

Look through the actual photos [6]. These faces are not those of hippies, bums, or of radicals. These are the faces of your friends and family, of your neighbors and coworkers [7]. It is the majority, the 99% of affected Americans, that are on the streets protesting. It is We the People.

Thanks to +Jeremy Dahl for providing the link and video, +Michael Mozart for livestreaming the protests earlier today, and +Breana Van Den Heuvel for providing a constant stream of photos and news as this evolves.

[1]: http://mises.org/daily/3735
[2]: http://www.occupytogether.org/
[3]: Anonymous WARNING to NYPD on Behalf of Occupy Wall Street.! will not be forgotten or Forgiven.
[4]: http://ampedstatus.org/twittercensorship-blocks-occupywallstreet-from-top-trending-topic-twice/
[5]: Keith Olbermann calls out Media Blackout on 'Occupy Wall Street' Protest
[6]: https://plus.google.com/photos/112353210404102902472/albums/5658628267519370497
[7]: http://wearethe99percent.tumblr.com/

In the spirit of PARTYMODE, here's a Harlem Shake bookmarklet.

HARLEM SHAKE!

Just like before, click it to see what it does, and click and drag it to your bookmarks bar to use it on other sites.

Payment networks will leverage Bitcoin's blockchain as a trust anchor, participating in a market that values decentralization over all else.

Here's an interesting article on the effects of beauty on the human (particularly the male's) mind. It raises several awesome points, particularly on the matter of the damages to intimate relationships caused by beauty.

It's particularly interesting to see this in relation to Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty and the accompanying marketing video. Our society proves once again to be vain.

Food for thought.

+Lisa Way Good point. Capitalism is merely the right to own property. Free Markets, Libertarianism, Austrian Economics, and Right-Anarchism simply have shared ground and tend to go well together, but are importantly different things like Physics, Engineering, or Mathematics.

I think the idea that Capitalism and Self-Ownership are inseparable is a powerful idea that is in the heart of every person that came to the US with NOTHING looking or a better life. Too bad so many people born here don't understand that.

There's been a lot of talk about how Squidoo is getting punished because of how they are getting used by spammers. The idea there was to go in, create something called a "lense" that is relevant to something about your niche, and then do your marketing thing there.

Well, I just ran into "a new service from Amazon. It appears to let you create your own list and present it to the social community. I'm definitely thinking about using it before the Googledance makes it another cesspool.

I didn't do my Ubuntu reload yet, either.

Google[x] is making their augmented reality glasses project public, and it looks like it's going to connect via Bluetooth to your Android device. Awesome.

It looks like their marketing video is a remake of an older augmented reality concept video by artist +Keiichi Matsuda [1]. What are your thoughts on their (both Google's and Keiichi's!) vision for how these glasses will be used?

Aside: I can now safely laugh and say, "I told you so."

[1]: http://vimeo.com/8569187

Google[x] is making their augmented reality glasses project public, and it looks like it's going to connect via Bluetooth to your Android device. Awesome.

It looks like their marketing video is a remake of an older augmented reality concept video by artist +Keiichi Matsuda [1]. What are your thoughts on their (both Google's and Keiichi's!) vision for how these glasses will be used?

Aside: I can now safely laugh and say, "I told you so."

[1]: http://vimeo.com/8569187

Google[x] is making their augmented reality glasses project public, and it looks like it's going to connect via Bluetooth to your Android device. Awesome.

It looks like their marketing video is a remake of an older augmented reality concept video by artist +Keiichi Matsuda [1]. What are your thoughts on their (both Google's and Keiichi's!) vision for how these glasses will be used?

Aside: I can now safely laugh and say, "I told you so."

[1]: http://vimeo.com/8569187

+Eric Martindale sounds like manipulation on their part to take try to take advantage of the market on bitcoins, just like currency speculators do.

Reminds me a lot of those Gold jewelry buyers.
They buy up your gold jewelry at below value so they can smelt it and sell it off later when the value goes up. 

Actually sounds JUST like them.
   
And you have to trust they are giving you the right amounts.  Or again have to track the amounts your self.   Just like you do with the gold jewelry buyers, or you get scammed. 

Hardly that convenient.  Just another shady start up trying to take advantage. 

Google[x] is making their augmented reality glasses project public, and it looks like it's going to connect via Bluetooth to your Android device. Awesome.

It looks like their marketing video is a remake of an older augmented reality concept video by artist +Keiichi Matsuda [1]. What are your thoughts on their (both Google's and Keiichi's!) vision for how these glasses will be used?

Aside: I can now safely laugh and say, "I told you so."

[1]: http://vimeo.com/8569187

The company I've co-founded, LocalSense, needs your vote. We're trying to win a contest for entrepreneurs, which will help us take a leap ahead in closing our first round of funding and getting to market ahead of schedule.

As you may already know, I've been hard at work building an incredible new product that empowers consumers by rewarding them for helping their friends save money. I've got big plans for helping out my friends here on Google+, but we've got to get there first.

Please vote for LocalSense in the 2012 Vator Splash competition, and help me spread the word if you're so inclined. The software we're building keeps track of how content is shared across networks, so we might just have a special reward for you. :)

The company I've co-founded, LocalSense, needs your vote. We're trying to win a contest for entrepreneurs, which will help us take a leap ahead in closing our first round of funding and getting to market ahead of schedule.

As you may already know, I've been hard at work building an incredible new product that empowers consumers by rewarding them for helping their friends save money. I've got big plans for helping out my friends here on Google+, but we've got to get there first.

Please vote for LocalSense in the 2012 Vator Splash competition, and help me spread the word if you're so inclined. The software we're building keeps track of how content is shared across networks, so we might just have a special reward for you. :)

The company I've co-founded, LocalSense, needs your vote. We're trying to win a contest for entrepreneurs, which will help us take a leap ahead in closing our first round of funding and getting to market ahead of schedule.

As you may already know, I've been hard at work building an incredible new product that empowers consumers by rewarding them for helping their friends save money. I've got big plans for helping out my friends here on Google+, but we've got to get there first.

Please vote for LocalSense in the 2012 Vator Splash competition, and help me spread the word if you're so inclined. The software we're building keeps track of how content is shared across networks, so we might just have a special reward for you. :)

The company I've co-founded, LocalSense, needs your vote. We're trying to win a contest for entrepreneurs, which will help us take a leap ahead in closing our first round of funding and getting to market ahead of schedule.

As you may already know, I've been hard at work building an incredible new product that empowers consumers by rewarding them for helping their friends save money. I've got big plans for helping out my friends here on Google+, but we've got to get there first.

Please vote for LocalSense in the 2012 Vator Splash competition, and help me spread the word if you're so inclined. The software we're building keeps track of how content is shared across networks, so we might just have a special reward for you. :)

Why not?  Who is backing bitcoin to insure it?  No one.  We've already seen multi-million dollar values of bitcoin embezzlement.   The claim it is secure is bs.  

If I have bitcoin store at any one of these sites and then all of a sudden they go belly up, what happens?  I lose everything.

A bank going belly up at least they have backing on it to secure the vast majority of the funds kept in it. 

Is other currency, or banking 100% secure?  No.  But it is a lot more than bitcoin.  

It it was supported and insured like other currencies, I'd say there isn't a reason.  But it isn't. 

And it is as much beholden to the market as any other currency out there also.   We've seen people price manipulating it just like other currency trading.

So no real insurance or security, and questionable "banks" for it.  No thanks.

I was just reviewing some of my older starred posts in Google Reader, and I came across a great post from ShoeMoney about Understanding Communities. Pam outlines some great approaches to the whole social media market, and how to understand and utilize the communities on which they are build.

Oldie but goodie! Does anyone have any feedback on how relevant this four month old post is? I for one, totally support the ideas that she came up with for usability. I don't think usability will ever become a non-issue, personally. SEO is huge, but as we've always hammered home - your visitors come first.

I've been in the market for my dream phone for almost a year now. Products have been released left and right, but none of them seem to have the functionality that I am desiring. Okay, I admit - "phone" is a bit misleading. What I'm really looking for is a smartphone... no, not a smartphone, a digital companion.

Things I'm looking for:

• Phone


• Camera


• Media Player


• Freedom

Phone
I want a mobile phone with what has become industry standards, including the dual-mode functionality of GSM and WiFi connections. I should be able to take this phone to any service provider, and get service using this device, keeping both my number and my contacts.

Camera
I want a decent camera that gets decent lighting. While a 2 megapixel camera is about the range I'm looking for, most important is the quality of the resulting pictures. The functionality of a modern-day camera should be available, including light temperature and balance. I should be able to record video using this, as well.

Media Player
I should be able to play any format of media on this device as I can play using my home Linux box. OGG, MP3, MPEG, AVI...

Freedom
I wish to be able to install software freely, from wherever I may choose. If I choose to install emulators and play me some NES, SNES, and Sega Genesis games, I should be able to do this freely, and have the necessary hardware resources to do this. I want to be able to make changes to my device's software at any point in time. I should be able to sync my calendar, to do list, and contacts with my choice of repositories.


I'll grow and review this as necessary. Until then, the Apple iPhone looks bitterly disgusting, while the Motorola Q's use of Windows continues to push me away.

Dear Search Engine Roundtable,

Since I subscribed to your feed (in early 2005), I have received and read every post you've made using my RSS reader of choice (Google Reader, currently). Your excerpts have been enticing, with well-written post titles and seemingly interesting topics. The idea was good, to aggregate content and discussions about Search Engines from multiple locations at one central blog.

Unfortunately, I've found that your articles are less informative than I'd have hoped, with frequent referrals to other locations where the conversations are actually taking place. Instead of effective bullet points and topic reviews, I find quick and hastily-written overviews of the content and discussion in question.

Not only that, but you're only providing partial content in your feeds! When I come across your posts in my daily reading of over 500 posts, you've caught my attention with your title - and because you're only giving me the partial article text, you've got me clicking through to your site (hoorah, ad impressions!). Unfortunately, half the time I'm wasting even more time by being forced to click through to yet another page to follow the conversation.

I rarely (if ever) find myself sharing your content, and from what I can tell from a cursory glance - you've never shown up in my shared items feed. (PS, when will I be able to control this page, Google? I hope this link juice means something in the future. Maybe even market that page in a bit more of a controlled fashion. I digress.) I've maybe starred one or two of your articles for future reading, but again - when I do finally read the posts, I find that I'm disappointed by your article quality and content.

What's up with that?! Alright, rabid feedreaders and social media evangelists - tell me if I'm in the wrong here, but I'm going to unsubscribe from Search Engine Roundtable.

Tips for Artists first joining Google+

Now that it's public i'd like to share some tips that i think enrich your experience here and help your art be heard and seen and some new ways of profiting from it.

1. Re think your marketing strategy
I see a lot of artists still using the site like twitter or facebook and just posting songs and not giving any inside story about how it came to be or what influenced it. Give people a reason to comment on your posts and continue that discussion.

2. Collaborate with artists outside your medium
One of the most rewarding things about this site is the quality of the community here. As a musician, think of ways you can collaborate with photographers, graphic artists, software engineers etc.. This idea i think is the future of how artists of all mediums can be profitable and retain their artistic integrity ( i have a collaboration with +Colby Brown and +byron rempel that i'm working on right now that will showcase this)

3. Be Humble or at least be real
The major change for artists that i feel is coming is how this amount of engagement and deeper connectivity will promote certain types of artists. Don't think that no matter how talented you are you can get away with thinking your art is enough to stand on it's own. Also, promote who you are and get people invested in who you are as a person and let them find out about your art if they want to know more about you, but don't push it on to people.

CC: +Natalie Villalobos, +Ryan Crowe, +Robert Scoble

Tips for Artists first joining Google+

Now that it's public i'd like to share some tips that i think enrich your experience here and help your art be heard and seen and some new ways of profiting from it.

1. Re think your marketing strategy
I see a lot of artists still using the site like twitter or facebook and just posting songs and not giving any inside story about how it came to be or what influenced it. Give people a reason to comment on your posts and continue that discussion.

2. Collaborate with artists outside your medium
One of the most rewarding things about this site is the quality of the community here. As a musician, think of ways you can collaborate with photographers, graphic artists, software engineers etc.. This idea i think is the future of how artists of all mediums can be profitable and retain their artistic integrity ( i have a collaboration with +Colby Brown and +byron rempel that i'm working on right now that will showcase this)

3. Be Humble or at least be real
The major change for artists that i feel is coming is how this amount of engagement and deeper connectivity will promote certain types of artists. Don't think that no matter how talented you are you can get away with thinking your art is enough to stand on it's own. Also, promote who you are and get people invested in who you are as a person and let them find out about your art if they want to know more about you, but don't push it on to people.

CC: +Natalie Villalobos, +Ryan Crowe, +Robert Scoble

I had a pleasant conversation with a Mac fanboi, this morning.

(08:51:01 AM) Linux User: Do Macs come with an SSH server by default?
(08:51:12 AM) Mac User: bluh...huh?
(08:51:19 AM) Mac User: just woke up
(08:51:22 AM) Linux User: Oh, lol.
(08:51:26 AM) Linux User: Good morning, sunshine.
(08:51:30 AM) Mac User: lol
(08:51:40 AM) Linux User: I've been at work for an hour. ;P
(08:51:57 AM) Linux User: Anyways - does the default Mac have an SSH server?
(08:51:57 AM) Mac User: now...what are you babbling about?
(08:53:25 AM) Mac User: no, but ssh is supported for X11 apps
(08:54:22 AM) Mac User: ....x11 being the x window environment in the Mac OS
(08:54:47 AM) Linux User: Right.
(08:55:22 AM) Linux User: So - X11 applications can SSH to other locations?
(08:55:58 AM) Linux User: And - what's the Mac equivalent of a repository, and/or aptitude/apt-get/yum?
(08:56:01 AM) Mac User: I really don't know, I haven't messed with it
(08:56:12 AM) Mac User: what the fuck are those?
(08:56:46 AM) Linux User: I can go to the command line here, and say... "apt-get install " and it'll download and install that program from the repository.
(08:57:53 AM) Mac User: ...99% of Mac users don't go "Command-Line Commando" on their system....
(08:57:59 AM) Linux User: Also, if the program has any dependencies - it'll get those, too.
(08:58:00 AM) Mac User: so...enjoy that....
(08:58:11 AM) Linux User: Oh, it has a GUI, too.
(08:58:22 AM) Mac User: website?
(08:59:02 AM) Linux User: It's a core component, it doesn't particularly have its own site.
(08:59:22 AM) Linux User: Mac doesn't have an application finder and installer type thing?
(08:59:24 AM) Mac User: of what?
(08:59:27 AM) Mac User: no
(08:59:30 AM) Linux User: Weird.
(08:59:38 AM) Mac User: OMFG!!!! NO!!!! WHAT WILL I DO!???!?!?
(08:59:51 AM) Linux User: I was trying to install openssh-server on a friend's mac...
(08:59:57 AM) Mac User: y'all pc ppl always find the weirdest off-beat shit to pick at
(09:00:05 AM) Linux User: Mac's are PCs to, ho.
(09:00:16 AM) Linux User: Understand the word Personal Computer?
(09:00:21 AM) Mac User: uh, by the definition "personal computer" only
(09:00:38 AM) Linux User: PCs also don't have to run Microshaft.
(09:00:43 AM) Mac User: but be it known that a pc is a pc and a Mac is a Mac
(09:01:01 AM) Linux User: Considering Macs aren't "Macs" so much anymore, without the kooky PPC crap.
(09:01:10 AM) Mac User: ?
(09:01:42 AM) Linux User: They're regular PCs, now. I can install Windows on a Mac, I can install Plan9, MacOS, Linux.
(09:01:52 AM) Linux User: They don't use PPC anymore, right?
(09:02:05 AM) Mac User: you can't remove the Mac OS, though
(09:02:10 AM) Linux User: ...want to bet?
(09:02:13 AM) Mac User: yup
(09:02:16 AM) Mac User: go ahead
(09:02:20 AM) Linux User: LOL.
(09:02:31 AM) Mac User: remove the Mac OS, and then lemme know what you plan to do
(09:02:35 AM) Linux User: Anyways - MacBook pro - does it have more than one button?
(09:02:45 AM) Mac User: FUCK NO!!!!
(09:02:49 AM) Linux User: Alright, nevermind then.
(09:02:58 AM) Mac User: now, shoo
(09:02:59 AM) Linux User: I was going to buy one, because they're sexy.
(09:03:01 AM) Mac User: go buy a dell
(09:03:22 AM) Linux User: Dell is increasing their Linux support.
(09:03:23 AM) Linux User: :)
(09:05:19 AM) Mac User: that is to say that they now have some kind of linux support?
(09:05:52 AM) Linux User: They've always had Linux support, but it's been somewhat hidden.
(09:06:00 AM) Mac User: pphhhht
(09:06:12 AM) Linux User: They're increasing client awareness of the option, now.
(09:06:29 AM) Mac User: ya know, it really doesn't mean anything to me
(09:07:11 AM) Linux User: I was considering purchasing a Macbook and installing Ubuntu on it, for my laptop.
(09:07:25 AM) Mac User: I can run any other OS I want, should I happen to have a sudden drop in IQ, and my machine is pretty awesome.....so....
(09:07:55 AM) Mac User: why would you buy a Mac to run something you can run on a dell?
(09:08:01 AM) Mac User: why?
(09:08:04 AM) Linux User: Because Macs are sexier?
(09:08:08 AM) Linux User: I don't want an ugly dell.
(09:08:23 AM) Mac User: uh, yeah, and at least half the "sexier" is in the GUI
(09:08:28 AM) Linux User: Not at all.
(09:08:35 AM) Linux User: My GUI is 100% more teh sex.
(09:08:45 AM) Mac User: ......wow
(09:08:47 AM) Mac User: um
(09:08:48 AM) Linux User: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzb3MSp82Vs
(09:08:49 AM) Mac User: no
(09:08:51 AM) Linux User: :)
(09:09:05 AM) Linux User: You can't install Beryl or even Compiz in MacOS, can you?
(09:09:46 AM) Mac User: ooh....pretty....gimmicks.....
(09:10:08 AM) Linux User: Oh, is there an equivalent of workspaces in MacOS?
(09:10:17 AM) Mac User: in Leopard, yeah
(09:10:24 AM) Linux User: That's this next version, right?
(09:10:30 AM) Mac User: yizzur
(09:10:34 AM) Linux User: Awesome.
(09:10:43 AM) Mac User: "Spaces"
(09:10:49 AM) Linux User: Lol.
(09:10:59 AM) Linux User: We Linux folk have had that for years.
(09:11:00 AM) Mac User: http://www.apple.com/macosx/leopard/spaces.html
(09:11:01 AM) Linux User: But anyways.
(09:11:15 AM) Mac User: again....I don't care, and you're the only one who noticed
(09:11:34 AM) Linux User: LOL. Awesome argument. :x
(09:11:43 AM) Mac User: I don't argue anymore
(09:12:03 AM) Mac User: If you've bigoted yourself into using PC
(09:12:10 AM) Mac User: s, thats ur own fault
(09:12:44 AM) Linux User: Well, if I can't "uninstall MacOS" - or heaven forbid, order it without MacOS, like I can order most PCs without any OS, for a significant price reduction...
(09:12:49 AM) Linux User: It's not worth getting a Dell.
(09:12:52 AM) Linux User: Or any "PC".
(09:13:02 AM) Linux User: Or an Apple, for that matter.
(09:13:08 AM) Linux User: Dell, I can do that with, though.
(09:13:17 AM) Linux User: I share your Microsuck hatred.
(09:13:18 AM) Linux User: I really do.
(09:13:23 AM) Mac User: you make that sound like a feature
(09:13:24 AM) Linux User: But I also hate MacOS with a passion.
(09:13:32 AM) Mac User: for no reason
(09:13:37 AM) Linux User: No, for full reason.
(09:13:42 AM) Mac User: there's 2 sides of the fight, dude
(09:13:46 AM) Linux User: It's a *nix OS, without all the good stuff.
(09:13:48 AM) Mac User: Apple, and mico$ith
(09:13:57 AM) Linux User: Then there's Linux. ;D
(09:14:05 AM) Linux User: We're not part of the fight, we've already won.
(09:14:06 AM) Mac User: you're out in the woods trying to be a nonconformist
(09:14:22 AM) Linux User: Not at all, actually, I started using Linux because most of my friends were.
(09:14:23 AM) Linux User: :/
(09:14:28 AM) Mac User: yeah, 2% market share. WOO HOO!!!!
(09:14:36 AM) Linux User: 55% of the server share. :/
(09:14:48 AM) Linux User: I think it's above 60, actually?
(09:14:58 AM) Mac User: http://www.apple.com/server/macosx/
(09:15:01 AM) Mac User: > you
(09:15:16 AM) Linux User: Why, exactly, would I run MacOS as a server? When I have Linux?
(09:15:23 AM) Linux User: You don't have a package manager (apt)
(09:15:40 AM) Linux User: apt-get install apache2 php mysql
(09:15:42 AM) Linux User: Done.
(09:15:48 AM) Mac User: you wouldn't
(09:15:58 AM) Mac User: and that's your business
(09:16:04 AM) Mac User: why are you talking to me again?
(09:16:20 AM) Mac User has signed off.

And that was him blocking me. Mac people really do think differently.