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Filed under: Internet, Social Software, Search, web 2.0

Need interesting bookmark suggestions? Try inSuggest!

by Jay Hathaway Jun 10th 2008


inSuggest for bookmarks is the latest way to get more out of your del.icio.us account. For those not familiar, del.icio.us (now owned by Yahoo!) is a thoroughly handy little site that lets you quickly save, tag and share bookmarks. It's a great service, but it would be an even bigger deal if there were a way to find other bookmarks you might want to see based on the ones you're feeding in. That's what InSuggest is trying to do.

Social networking pundits are making a big deal out of inSuggest for a good reason. If it turns out to be the next big thing, it could be a good way for interesting sites to get residual traffic and well-deserved attention from related sites that are already popular on del.icio.us. But for the average user, it's just another useful way to discover cool new sites, and it's easy as putting in your del.icio.us username. If you're looking for something more specific, you can even filter by tag. Happy bookmarking!

[via ReadWriteWeb]

Tags: bookmarks, de.icio.us, Delicious, inSuggest, recommendation, social software, SocialSoftware, yahoo

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Filed under: Internet, Social Software

Texas Attorney General declares MySpace plan "smoke and mirrors"

by Romeo Wahed Jan 15th 2008

Smoke and mirrorsEarlier today we told you about how 49 states are going into a comprehensive partnership with MySpace to stop sexual predators and protect children on social networks. Those of us good at geography remember that there are 50 states, so who is the odd one out that isn't part of this "joint statement?" In case you haven't guessed it yet, it's the Lone Star State, Texas.

Greg Abbott, the Texas Attorney General, explains the reasons for not participating like this: the implementations that are suggested by the statement are more like window dressing rather than a reliable way of keeping children safe online. And yes, although it is a good idea in essence, it is not as if this is going to change anything in regards to protecting social network users, and therefore inadequate. As such, if Texas joined, it would convey a false sense of security to parents and children - which, according to Abbott, can't be solved until an age verification system is in place.

Although Abbott's stand against the herd is admirable, the idea of an age verification system is not very appealing. For example, surrendering credit card information or social security numbers to prove one's age just to use a social network is probably not going to sit too well with a lot of users. Even if a great system is developed, like some sort of age verification service that is compatible with a number of sites, people will look for alternatives that don't impose these barriers upon users.

Ultimately, with social networks moving towards openness and data portability, this is going to be a fine balancing act between enforced security measures and trusting users to manage their own security.

[via News.com]

Tags: myspace, security, socialsoftware, texas

Filed under: Internet, Security, Social Software

MySpace agrees to take measures against sexual predators

by Romeo Wahed Jan 14th 2008

MySpace to implement measures to block sexual predatorsThe Associated Press reports MySpace is looking to implement structural changes as well as independent monitoring in the hope of blocking sexual predators from preying upon its innocent user base. MySpace supposedly has made the agreement with 49 states, and is going to make the announcement official later today.

Considering that last year Internet safety ranked as one of the top 10 children's health concerns, this is hardly surprising. It is however a classic example of the old freedom vs. security debate, and whether what a child does online is the responsibility of the parents to monitor or a third party. Hopefully, the change will be a positive one, providing tools to parents instead of limiting usability to the average user of MySpace who is neither a child nor a sexual predator.

Or maybe it's just a cover-up for MySpace to model itself a little more after Facebook and having a good excuse for it - who knows. As MySpace has implemented a number of features that are eerily similar to Facebook, not excluding the MySpace platform, it wouldn't exactly be beyond them. But then again, MySpace might just be sincerely concerned about sexual predators on social networks.

[via AP]

Tags: myspace, security, socialsoftware

Filed under: Symbian, Web services, Social Software, web 2.0

Jaiku releases Nokia Series 60 client

by Nik Fletcher Aug 17th 2007

Jaiku, the Finnish presence service, is turning up the heat on rivals such as Twitter today with the "ahead of schedule" final release of a dedicated Nokia Series 60 client for the service. The application, which runs all the time on compatible (switched on) handsets, has a pretty impressive feature list including:
  • threaded conversations
  • status updating
  • a live updating buddy status list
  • the sharing of phone-based calendars "to notify others of [your] upcoming events and availability."
The final release is now available on the Jaiku Mobile site.

Tags: contacts, jaiku, nokia, nokia series 60, NokiaSeries60, series 60, Series60, socialsoftware, webpresence

Filed under: Fun, Internet, Web services, Social Software

New Facebook apps for LastFm and Twitter

by Dolores Parker Jun 1st 2007

Now that Facebook threw down the gauntlet with their new Facebook Platform which allows unprecedented access to developers to add third party apps, we're going to see lots more fun tools to use within Facebook. Here are two for Twitter and LastFM.

Twitter
You can post tweets in Facebook, but you lose that cute pink girl icon with with a tree branch and a cloud. If that doesn't bother you, it is SO convenient. Below is a screenshot of the Facebook twitter interface.



LastFM
Everyone on Facebook - even those without a Last.fm profile can use Last FM's personalized full-length streaming radio. You can showcase any of your stations (or your playlist) along with recently-played tracks on your Facebook page.

If you don't have a Last.fm username, the app creates a station based on the artists listed in your 'favourite music' section. You can also see all your Facebook friends' stations on one page, so you can quickly see who's listening now and play their music with a single click. You can even browse new music recommendations and compare compatibility with the Taste-o-meter right from Facebook.

There were some problems getting this to work however. This was explained as a few kinks that need to be ironed out since the app is new. See screenshot below.


When it finally does work, it is supposed to look like this.


What are you thoughts of the new Facebook platform? And while you're at it, let us know your favorite apps as well.

Tags: Facebook, Facebook Platform, FacebookPlatform, lastfm, social software, SocialSoftware, Twitter

Filed under: Video, Web services, Social Software

StumbleVideo: Cool video aggregator from StumbleUpon

by Jordan Running Dec 14th 2006

StumbleVideo
StumbleUpon is one of the old dogs of the social bookmarking biz, but apparently it can be taught a new trick or two. StumbleVideo is a new section of the site clearly aimed at people who are bored and want something neat to watch. And it works pretty well. It aggregates bookmarked videos from the usual suspects--YouTube, Google Video, etc.--and shuffles them for you, so you can watch one video after another and up- or down-vote them through your StumbleUpon account. The videos are organized into channels (including some very specific ones like "Cats" and "Guitar") and you can see what users have voted on each video or share them with your friends. It will also display a history of the videos you watched, as well as which ones you've voted on if you're signed in.

While StumbleUpon isn't the first site to try the "TV in your browser" paradigm, its is a pretty polished and well-organized attempted, and if you're an existing StumbleUpon user (or have been thinking of getting an account), you'll appreciate the integration and social features.

Tags: social bookmarking, social software, SocialBookmarking, SocialSoftware, stumbleupon, stumblevideo, video, youtube

Filed under: Design, Web services, Adobe, Social Software

kuler - Slick social color picker from Adobe

by Jordan Running Dec 12th 2006

kuler
I'm not sure I've ever understood the web's obsession with color pickers, i.e. apps that help you build color schemes for whatever you're trying to design. Maybe that means I'm good at designing my own color schemes, or maybe it means that I'm really, really bad at it. At any rate, some of them are pretty cool, including kuler, a newish one from Adobe Labs. Characteristically, kuler is Flash-based and has a very slick interface. For creating color schemes you have a lot of help: there are analogous, monochromatic, triad, complementary, compound, shades, and custom modes, most of which are Greek to me but the little multiple-spoked color wheel is fun to play with. More interesting, though, is kuler's social aspect: If you create an account and log in you can save and share your color themes with other users, and rate the themes others have created. Though Flash interfaces aren't always my cup of tea, kuler is fun to use and great if you're looking for a little inspiration.

[Via Ned Batchelder]

Tags: adobe, adobe labs, AdobeLabs, color, color picker, ColorPicker, design, kuler, social software, SocialSoftware

Filed under: Audio, Web services, Social Software

New Last.fm features: Flash player, concerts, free MP3s, and more

by Jordan Running Nov 1st 2006

Recently social music site Last.fm unveiled an impressive array of new features, the first since July. Here's a breakdown:

Last.fm Flash playerFlash player
Previously listening to Last.fm radio required downloading and installing a desktop app, which was less than optimal. While the desktop player remains, Last.fm now also has a version in Flash that plays inside your browser. It's compact and works pretty much as advertised, though I experienced a few minor connection issues. The buttons from left to right are Recommend this track to your friends, Tag this track, Express your love for this track, and Don't ever play me this track again. The player's only failing, in my opinion, is the absence of a Pause button.

Last.fm EventsEvents system
Last.fm now has a built-in event calendar that shows upcoming concerts near you. It shows gigs for the bands you listen to as well as (optionally) your friends' favorite acts and recommended artists. Users can add events that the system doesn't already know about, but I'm not sure if it also draws data from a more authoritative source, e.g. Pollstar or Ticketmaster.

Free MP3s
The site now offers some free MP3 downloads. The download links appear both on your dashboard (based on Last.fm's recommendations) as well as artist pages. You can preview the each track before downloading.

Last.fm Taste-o-meterTaste-o-meter
Lastly, the Taste-o-meter, which appears on other users' profiles, tells you how closely your musical tastes are aligned with theirs, and what artists you have in common.

Overall, I'm pretty impressed with these new features, in particular the Flash player and the event calendar. I had almost given up on Last.fm in favor of Pandora (OpenPandora in particular). I've always been a fan of Last.fm's social features, and I'm glad to see them expand.

[Via Read/WriteWeb]

Tags: concerts, events, flash, last fm, last.fm, LastFm, music, social networking, social software, SocialNetworking, SocialSoftware, web 2.0, Web2.0, web20

Filed under: Web services, Social Software

Medium: Browse with your friends

by Jordan Running Oct 31st 2006

Medium

GigaOM is running a profile of Medium, a new startup that "thinks it can help make web browsing social by telling you what pages your friends are on at any moment, and where people are congregating on the web at that instant." The software comes in the form of a Firefox sidebar that displays real-time map of the web with the site you're currently visiting in the middle and "related" sites--determined by what people with similar browsing habits visit--surrounding it. Below that is a chat area where you can talk to other people who are visiting the same site as you. GigaOM's Liz Gannes describes the experience of following your friends around the web to see what they're looking at, and hopping over to a site where people are congregating. Though the chat thing has been done and done again, this social "map" aspect sounds pretty novel, and Gannes says it's easy to turn the tracking on and off, and that it's disabled by default for password-protected sites. Medium is currently in private, invite-only beta, but in classic Web 2.0 you can enter your e-mail address at the Medium web site to be notified when the site launches this winter.

Tags: chat, firefox, medium, social networking, social software, SocialNetworking, SocialSoftware, web

Filed under: Audio, Video, Web services, Social Software

Facebook sharing features are live

by Jordan Running Oct 27th 2006

Facebook sharing
Those Facebook social bookmarking features we told you about the other day? Well, the wait wasn't long and it seems that they're available to everybody now, even little ol' me. Facebook, of course, isn't calling it social bookmarking, they're calling it "Sharing." There's now a "My Shares" link in the left-hand sidebar, and there's little "Share" buttons all over the site--next to photos, people's profiles, and items other people have shared. When you share an item you can choose to put it on your profile or share it with specific people, or both.

Facebook sharing 2When you share something with another Facebook user, it shows up in their right sidebar, not in their News Feed, which will be a relief to those who were afraid of overzealous linkers (or those with dreams of "free" iPods) spamming things up. Like events, you can enter someone's e-mail address if they don't have a Facebook account, but they have to register for an account before they can see what you've shared. There is, naturally, a bookmarklet that you can use to share links from across the web, as well as MP3s and videos from YouTube and Google Video.

Overall, I think Facebook's new Sharing features are well-implemented and well-thought out. They don't get in the way, it's easy to control who you share with and easier still to manage items. I really wish MP3s had an embedded player like videos do, but you can't win 'em all. Look after the jump for a bunch of screenshots of it in action.

Read more →

Tags: bookmarks, facebook, links, mp3, sharing, social networking, social software, SocialNetworking, SocialSoftware, video

Filed under: Video, Web services, Social Software

Facebook dabbles in social bookmarking

by Jordan Running Oct 25th 2006

Facebook social bookmarking
TechCrunch's Marshall Kirkpatrick is reporting that Facebook is dipping its toes into del.icio.us territory with a new social bookmarking feature. Given the recent controversies over the News Feed feature and Facebook's opening for all users, the company is currently only letting Stanford and Berkeley users in on a private beta. The new sharing feature lets Facebook users bookmark both outside sites as well as Facebook pictures, notes, and profiles, and users can choose to share a bookmark publicly on their profile (in which event it will may appear on their friends' News Feed) or privately with the friends they choose. The bookmarking can be done by entering a URL into a form, clicking on a browser bookmarklet, or clicking on a "Share" button next to an item on Facebook. Justin Smith at Inside Facebook has more images of the feature in action, which show a YouTube video being bookmarked. It looks like Facebook is smart enough to recognize that it's a video and put a thumbnail image in feeds as well as a full embedded player in your profile. Smith says it recognizes MP3s, too, and does the same.

I think this is a very cool feature, but though I don't think it will cause a stir like the News Feed did initially, I have a feeling that Facebook will be hearing its share of complaints. In the end, though, if they make great features that users ultimately find useful, even if the mere thought of change scares them at first, everybody wins.

Tags: del.icio.us, facebook, links, share, social bookmarking, social networking, social software, SocialBookmarking, SocialNetworking, SocialSoftware, youtube

Filed under: Web services, Social Software

Facebook registration now open to everyone

by Jordan Running Sep 26th 2006

Facebook opens its doorsToday Facebook, the U.S.'s second-largest largest social networking site, opened its doors to the world. With the long-anticipated addition of regional networks, new Facebook registrants no longer need an email address from a Facebook-approved college or company to join. Facebook's Carolyn Abram explains the privacy implications of the change on the official (and frustratingly feed-less) Facebook blog, and there's now a How this expansion affects you page as well. Facebook was originally planning to launch the expansion shortly after the launch of the News Feed, but after users had a bit of a privacy freak-out, they delayed the expansion to give the community a little time to get their heart rates back under control. There was still widespread resistance to the move, but nothing on the scale of the News Feed. Users seem pacified by the fact that college, high school, and work networks are still as exclusive as ever, and the riff-raff (like me) still can't get too close.

Tags: expansion, facebook, open, social, socialnetworking, socialsoftware

Filed under: Audio, Web services, Commercial, Social Software

la la: Trade music CDs for a dollar

by Jordan Running Sep 20th 2006

la laWant some new CDs? Got some to get rid of? la la might be of some assistance. It's a web service that will hook you up with the CDs you want, in exchange for the CDs you want to rid yourself, and a dollar. It works like this: At the la la web site you enter the CDs you have and the CDs you want. When la la sees that you have a CD somebody else wants, and you agree to ship it, la la will send you prepaid mailing envelopes, and credit your account with one CD. Then, when la la sees that somebody else has a CD you want, they'll send it to you. While this might not seems like the best deal, consider how much money you're likely to get trading in your CDs at a used record store. While brand new albums are predictably rare on la la, if you're like me and constantly behind the curve when it comes to new music, or are constantly getting rid of old CDs, la la may be just what you're looking for. In addition to being good for trading CDs, la la has a social networking component and will recommend new music to you and introduce you to others with similar musical tastes.

[Thanks, David!]

Tags: cds, cheap, lala, music, social, socialnetworking, socialsoftware, trade

Filed under: Video, Web services, Microsoft, Social Software

Microsoft's Soapbox video sharing fails to impress

by Jordan Running Sep 19th 2006

Microsoft SoapboxThat Microsoft is launching a new video sharing site called Soapbox isn't really news, but somehow it escaped my attention until now. CNet's Rafe Needleman is more on the ball, however, and got to take a look the currently-in-private-beta service. Microsoft has been turning a lot of heads lately with its Live.com offerings, but Needleman is unimpressed by Soapbox. "I found nothing in the Soapbox product itself to propel it past other video sharing sites," he concludes. "It will live or die based on its content and its community." Interestingly, Soapbox is sailing under the MSN Video banner, rather than the Live banner, which seems odd given that MSN Messenger and MSN Search are both being tucked under the Windows Live's waiting wings. You can give Microsoft your email address if you want a shot at the beta, but if you're happy with YouTube or another offering it may not be worth the bother.

[Via Slashdot]

Tags: microsoft, msn, msnvideo, soapbox, socialsoftware, video, videosharing, youtube

Filed under: Web services, Social Software

Facebook gets a face lift

by Jordan Running Sep 5th 2006

Facebook News Feed
Last night social networking heavy hitter Facebook got a significant update in the form of the News Feed. The News Feed is a sort of dashboard that consolidates all of the recent updates relevant to you, e.g. your friends' profile changes, new members of your groups, new events, photos, and so on. Though I'm disappointed that there's no actual feed in the RSS/Atom sense, I am pretty impressed with the interface. Each category has a unique icon, e.g. a heart (or broken heart) for relationship status changes, a calendar icon for events, a flag for political issues, and so on. It also puts the full text of wall posts and thumbnails of photos right there in the feed. In addition to the News Feed, every user's profile now features a Mini-Feed which shows all of their recent activity.

The News Feed basically condenses all the day-to-day information that Facebook power-users would have spent a lot of time clicking around for into a single page, which is essentially the opposite of what MySpace does. MySpace takes advantage of poor design and endless clicks to maximize pageviews at the expense of usability. Facebook seems to have taken a stand against that sort of pageview inflation and made user convenience its first priority. Sorry for hating on MySpace, but it's really refreshing to see someone else do it right.

Tags: college, facebook, minifeed, myspace, newsfeed, socialnetworking, socialsoftware

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