Mick Darling's posterous http://mickdarling.posterous.com All my blogging in one spot. (mostly) posterous.com Wed, 02 Nov 2011 08:15:56 -0700 Facebook Co-Founder’s Startup Asana Launches Publicly http://mickdarling.posterous.com/facebook-co-founders-startup-asana-launches-p http://mickdarling.posterous.com/facebook-co-founders-startup-asana-launches-p


While still at Facebook, Asana co-founders Dustin Moskovitz and Justin Rosenstein developed a prototype task manager that helps groups cut down on email chains and meetings. After watching the prototype take off within Facebook, they left the giant social network that Moskovitz helped found and continued developing what would become Asana. Now they’re introducing that collaboration tool to the world by opening it to the public for the first time.

Asana, which has been in private beta for about a year, is a free, single-shared task list for groups. It helps everybody on a team keep track of what they and others are working on without what the startup has termed “work about work,” or unnecessary logistical conversations.

“People ask us, ‘Is this a to do list?’” Rosenstein says. “We’re like ‘No, this is the to do list.’”

What sets Asana apart from dozens of other task manager programs, he says, is real-time updates, flexibility to fit any project’s work flow and simplicity that makes updating Asana quicker than updating a Word document. That, and the fact that Asana wants to be seen more like email than corporate software: a go-to organization method for everything from class projects to small companies.

A tangle of startups have attempted to streamline project communications — corporate or otherwise — but haven’t breached mainstream adoption. That doesn’t seem to faze Moskovitz and Rosenstein.

“The reason there are a million of these out there is the same reason that before Facebook, there were a million social networks and before Google, there were a million search engines,” Moskovitz says.

In other words, despite an environment of email overload that demands an efficient group collaboration product, nobody has delivered the right one yet.

For Facebook, the prototype that inspired Asana turned out to be just right. Moskovitz and Rosenstein say the social network is still using the prototype to manage projects.

Since becoming Asana, the same idea that inspired that prototype has become a full product, transformed from something focused on power users to something that anybody can pick up in a few minutes and spawned a complementary mobile site. It’s not something that’s designed for a large company like Facebook — though the startup says that such a premium product is on the roadmap.

The second company that Moskovitz co-founded could transform the workspace with a task-oriented product the same way that his first transformed the social space with a people-oriented one.

Or, it could become one more to-do list program that managers pressure employees to update weekly — a Friendster rather than a Facebook.

More About: asana, Dustin Moskovitz, Facebook, trending

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Tue, 01 Nov 2011 00:00:46 -0700 Daily Mac App: QREncoder http://mickdarling.posterous.com/daily-mac-app-qrencoder http://mickdarling.posterous.com/daily-mac-app-qrencoder

QREncoder

QR codes are a great way of instantly sharing information with a quick camera snap? QREncoder is app for your Mac that'll let you quickly and easily generate them for printing, uploading and sharing.

You can encode almost any sort of text into a QR code: a URL, phone number, text message, email address, twitter handle -- maybe even a haiku. QREncoder makes creating codes easy. Fire up the app, select the type of code you want, and bung your text in the box.

You've got a choice of size for your QR code, 5, 6, 9 and 12px and you can save it as a PNG for later use.

QREncoder is quick, easy to use and free from the Mac App Store, so is well worth checking out if you want to create quick response codes.

Daily Mac App: QREncoder originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mon, 31 Oct 2011 23:45:21 -0700 Classic Elite, Interplay titles coming to iOS http://mickdarling.posterous.com/classic-elite-interplay-titles-coming-to-ios http://mickdarling.posterous.com/classic-elite-interplay-titles-coming-to-ios

Touch Arcade has some good and bad news for fans of classic PC RPGs out there. The bad news is that the expected Elite Collection (which was set to come out last week and round up some of old developer Elite Systems' best games on iOS, has been delayed due to some rights issues. One of the companies involved that had previously agreed to share its games decided instead to claim a trademark at the last minute, which will hold up the process for a while, perhaps only a week or two.

The good news, however, is that that extra time will allow the folks behind the apps to add in some extra titles, which TA presumes are some really amazing Interplay games, including The Bard's Tale and the great RPG Wasteland. That would be awesome -- almost all of Interplay's old titles are classics, and it'd be great to get those up and running on iOS devices.

We'll see -- Elite is still working on getting everything together, but as I said, news should be out in the next couple of weeks. Here's hoping iOS gamers get their hands on this great collection soon.

Classic Elite, Interplay titles coming to iOS originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 31 Oct 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mon, 31 Oct 2011 11:30:37 -0700 5 Reasons Google+ Could Win the Social Enterprise Battle http://mickdarling.posterous.com/5-reasons-google-could-win-the-social-enterpr http://mickdarling.posterous.com/5-reasons-google-could-win-the-social-enterpr


Balakrishna Narasimhan leads solution marketing for Appirio, a cloud solution provider that helps enterprises adopt, connect and extend cloud platforms such as salesforce.com, Google and Workday. Follow him on Twitter: @bnara75

Last Thursday, Google announced that Google+ will be available for Google Apps users. This means that the millions of people using Google Apps for their businesses will now have access to the Google+ social collaboration platform.

With Google+’s unique features for search, selective sharing and rich communication, it offers consumers a very different user experience than the established social networks. For individuals, Google+ has quickly become a great place to build your interest graph — that is, find the latest content and people related to topics you’re interested in.

SEE ALSO: Google+: The Complete Guide

With its seamless integration with Google Apps, Google+ promises a very different type of social enterprise experience. In fact, Google+ has five unique advantages over other social business platforms.


1. Smart Integration With Existing Google Apps


Google+ is fully integrated with Google Apps. As a user, you don’t need a new login — it’s just another tab like mail, calendar, docs or video. Most business users spend their day in mail or calendar, so a tool that’s easily accessible from the daily workflow has advantages over third-party software.

Thinking a bit ahead of where the product is, the possibilities that are opened up by the integration with Google Apps are pretty exciting. You can imagine “+1” buttons and rich collaboration across sites, docs, spreadsheets, presentations, blogs, videos, photos and more. Or imagine working within a doc and starting a hangout with collaborators while sharing your screen. For companies using Google Apps, taking advantage of these features would require no additional software, logins or changes in behavior.


2. Google+ Already Knows a Lot About You


Because of its tight integration with Google Apps, Google+ could take advantage of what it already knows about each business user, including whom they email, how often and how recently, as well as the topics they write about and search for. Google+ is in a position to help an enterprise user not only quickly build out his internal circles, but also discover those outside the company who are talking about the same topics or industry. If Google chooses to pursue this, it would make a great tool to help each user build out broad interest-based professional networks.


3. Google+ Is Uniquely Positioned to Help You Find and Share Interesting Content


Nobody has a better index of what’s on the web than Google. So nobody is better positioned to help you find interesting content and people from both inside and outside your company. Google+ Sparks let you follow the latest from the web on topics you’re interested in, and one can imagine something similar within your domain. Internal Sparks could let you quickly find content and experts within your company on work-related topics you’re most interested in.


4. Google+ Integrates Public and Private Sharing


Unlike other social enterprise platforms, which keep most shared content behind company walls, Google+ integrates public and private sharing. When I’m using Google+, I can decide for each post whether I want to share it with my colleagues, my clients, or certain subsets of either category. Also, because a number of websites have already embedded +1 buttons, it’s easy to “like” content from across the web and share it with targeted groups.


5. Android Phones Sync Easily With the Entire Apps Suite


Finally, an Android mobile phone brings this complete integration to users on the go. Activating Android handsets with your company’s Google Apps account brings all this productive and social functionality to the palm of your employees’ hands. And the wide variety of devices and carriers means greater flexibility.


A Video Explanation of Google+



The Google+ project: A quick look


Google provides an overview of the entire Google+ project.

Click here to view this gallery.

More About: Business, contributor, features, Google, Social Media


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Mon, 31 Oct 2011 11:30:31 -0700 The 24-Hour Countdown Clock Is a Shot in the Arm to Get Things Done [Motivation] http://mickdarling.posterous.com/the-24-hour-countdown-clock-is-a-shot-in-the http://mickdarling.posterous.com/the-24-hour-countdown-clock-is-a-shot-in-the

Ideally you're always so excited about tackling your next task that the only motivation you need is another cup of coffee. Unfortunately we don't all live in that world, and sometimes we need a little help getting into gear. If all you need to motivate yourself is a simple reminder that the clock is ticking, Maker Eugene Baumstein's web-based 24-hour countdown clock does what it sounds like. More »


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Sun, 30 Oct 2011 12:46:16 -0700 Bright House TV app brings rebranded Time Warner Cable TV to the iPad http://mickdarling.posterous.com/bright-house-tv-app-brings-rebranded-time-war http://mickdarling.posterous.com/bright-house-tv-app-brings-rebranded-time-war

Congratulations Bright House Networks customers, your off-brand Time Warner Cable experience now includes live TV streaming on your iPad. The Bright House TV tablet app has hit iTunes and is, unsurprisingly, a direct clone of the TWCable TV app, although it's not the latest version as it doesn't have parental controls yet. Otherwise it's basically the same experience, complete with the restriction to using it at home on your own WiFi network and its initial unfriendliness towards jailbroken iPads. there's no word on which channels are available, but we wouldn't be surprised if they also mirror the Time Warner list. If you're jailbroken, check the MacRumors link below for a workaround, otherwise you can just head to iTunes and download the app directly.

[Thanks, EvilSpock]

Bright House TV app brings rebranded Time Warner Cable TV to the iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 Oct 2011 09:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sun, 30 Oct 2011 12:46:05 -0700 57 New Digital Media Resources You May Have Missed http://mickdarling.posterous.com/57-new-digital-media-resources-you-may-have-m http://mickdarling.posterous.com/57-new-digital-media-resources-you-may-have-m

icon heads image


Since Halloween weekend is currently in full swing (despite the snowy weather in the U.S. Northeast), we know many of you are probably busy modeling your costumes in front of your mirror in preparation for tonight’s festivities. Before you put your masks and wigs on, Mashable wants to share a roundup of the week’s special features with you.

From the Netflix downturn to the spooky Halloween tech-inspired pumpkins, this list has it all.


Editor’s Picks



Social Media


For more social media news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s social media channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.


Tech & Mobile


For more tech news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s tech channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.


Business & Marketing


For more business news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s business channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Image courtesy of PSDDude

More About: Business, List, Mobile, Social Media, web

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Sun, 30 Oct 2011 12:46:01 -0700 AWS Load Balancer Sends 2 Million Netflix API Reqs To Wrong Customer http://mickdarling.posterous.com/aws-load-balancer-sends-2-million-netflix-api http://mickdarling.posterous.com/aws-load-balancer-sends-2-million-netflix-api

rsk writes "Amazon Web Services' Elastic Load Balancer is a dynamic load-balancer managed by Amazon. Load balancers regularly swapped around with each other which can lead to surprising results; like getting millions of requests meant for a different AWS customer. Using ELBs can result in AWS unintentionally introducing a man-in-the-middle (attack) into your application environment. Most AWS users do not realize this can happen and have not secured against it."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 11:04:21 -0700 Beware the Digital Disruptors: They’re Coming for Your Industry http://mickdarling.posterous.com/beware-the-digital-disruptors-theyre-coming-f http://mickdarling.posterous.com/beware-the-digital-disruptors-theyre-coming-f


James L. McQuivey, Ph.D. is a Vice President and Principal Analyst at Forrester Research serving Consumer Product Strategy professionals. Follow him on Twitter at @jmcquivey.

Growing up in the ’70s, I was the world’s biggest fan of The Six Million Dollar Man. Every Sunday night at 7 p.m. you could find me glued to our Trinitron TV to watch Steve Austin battle every villain from Bionic Sasquatch to the evil Dr. Dolenz. The appeal of the show was simple: Amplified by technology, the Bionic Man is better, stronger, and faster than his enemies.

It turns out to be a morality tale for our own day. But you are not the bionic man in the drama I’m unfolding — you are his target. Because while you were carefully planning your business strategy, hundreds — if not thousands — of individuals and competitors have been exploiting technology to make themselves better, stronger, and faster than you.

We call these people digital disruptors. And they’re coming right for you.

No matter what industry you are in, you are their target. Where you could once dismiss digital disruption as the sole province of the music or other media industries where it destroyed billions in value, digital disruption has now expanded. These disruptors employ technologies — and the platforms they enable — to build better products than you can, establish a stronger customer relationship than you have, and deliver it all to market faster than you ever thought possible.

Oh, and it doesn’t cost anywhere close to six million dollars for them to get started. I offer Lose It! as one of many case studies worth considering. Targeting the weight loss and fitness business — one of the most analog industries on the planet — Lose It! is disrupting the more than $40 billion Americans spend on weight loss each year. It’s a costly industry to enter — think of Jenny Craig’s marketing budget alone, then add its hundreds of physical locations, prepared meals, and all the infrastructure to support the entire enterprise. So while franchises like The Biggest Loser have succeeded in entering this business recently, they have done so at great cost.

Meanwhile, a single app that helps dieters keep track of the calories they consume on their smartphones has gone from 0 to 7 million downloads in just a few years. FitNow, the company behind the app, pulled this off with four employees, establishing an unheard of customer-per-employee metric of 1.75 million.

This is digital disruption at its finest: better, stronger, faster. The app got to market quickly, partly because as a digital disruptor, FitNow could afford to launch something that didn’t try to solve all the problems in the weight-loss world. As Charles Teague, CEO, told me recently, “Let’s not pretend that we know the endgame here. Let’s do the least amount of features to know if it will work. Then improve it if people use it.” And improve it they have, adding fitness tracking and more recently a robust social community of like-minded dieters.

Because it sounds so easy, a CEO I shared this with asked me why, if digital is so quick and dirty, his company’s website redesign was over time and over budget. I told him it was precisely because he staffed up his business under assumptions about design and functionality that were true in 2005 but are no longer the case. Digital disruption has even disrupted the digital businesses that preceded them.

While digital disruptors are better, stronger, and faster, they are not untouchable. Their ease of entry comes from the fact that traditional barriers have fallen to zero. That means your direct cost to emulate their practices can also be low.

That’s why I recommend you steal the digital disruptor’s handbook. Use the iPad, the Kinect, and whatever platform is next to build a digital bridge to your customers. Like with Lose It!, your bridge must engage customers more often than your current product can, packaging and delivering benefits that you didn’t realize were part of your consumer contract because before now, they weren’t. You have to change your understanding of your product so you can then change your customer’s understanding of it as well. This will require better thinking than you currently do – I previously explained how digital disruptors take advantage of a type of thinking called “innovating the adjacent possible.” It’s crucial to generating more ideas more quickly so that you can find the nearby opportunities that will succeed while quickly culling those that will fail.

There’s more to do, but before you can even begin, you have to know: Are you ready to do this? Does your company have the energy, skills, and policies to turn into a disruptor or are you more likely to be displaced by the digital disruptor nearest you?

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Nikada

More About: apps, contributor, Disrupt, features, Startups, Tech

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 11:04:18 -0700 Twitter Now Lets “X Factor” Viewers Vote via DMs http://mickdarling.posterous.com/twitter-now-lets-x-factor-viewers-vote-via-dm http://mickdarling.posterous.com/twitter-now-lets-x-factor-viewers-vote-via-dm


The fate of the 12 remaining contestants on the U.S. version of The X Factor will be in the hands of the viewers starting Nov. 2., and they’ll now have a new way to support their favorite performer: Twitter direct message-enabled voting.

Though other shows have used Twitter to create buzz, The X Factor will become the first TV competition to tally DM votes to help determine a winner.

The X Factor has raised the bar for innovative television with its use of Twitter,” says Chloe Sladden, Twitter’s director of content and programming. “We’re thrilled to see the creators of The X Factor push the envelope further by being the first television show to formalize this phenomenon through Twitter voting.”

Social media and technology continue to change the public’s TV-watching experience, but the evolution of social TV has affected competition shows the most.

For example, American Idol let viewers vote on the show’s Facebook Page during season 10. The Voice — a new singing competition that became a 24/7 social media conversation earlier this year — allowed viewers to vote by buying the contestants’ songs on iTunes. And design competition Project Runway let fans use Twitter hashtags to vote for a “Fan Favorite” every episode

The shows hope the new voting methods spark social buzz that will lead to better ratings.

The X Factor offers four other voting methods: Viewers can call, text, go to the show’s website or — if you’re a Verizon subscriber with an Android device — use The Xtra Factor App.

“Launching touch screen voting on Verizon’s The Xtra Factor App and the new voting on Twitter is really exciting,” says the show’s star judge Simon Cowell. “I love that the audience has more and more choice in the way that they can vote.”

SEE ALSO: The X Factor Gets Social With Help From Pepsi

To vote on Twitter, viewers must follow @TheXFactorUSA and DM their votes to that handle. Regular tweets will not be tallied. The X Factor has set a limit of 50 votes for viewers voting on the show’s website and on Twitter, while voting via SMS, SMS in-app and telephone is unlimited.

For a full list of contestants’ Twitter handles, click here.

More About: Social Media, social tv, television, Twitter, verizon, x factor

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 11:04:13 -0700 5 Ways Advertising Is Changing in a World of Non-Linear Media http://mickdarling.posterous.com/5-ways-advertising-is-changing-in-a-world-of http://mickdarling.posterous.com/5-ways-advertising-is-changing-in-a-world-of


Chris Schreiber is director of marketing at social video advertising company Sharethrough. Before joining Sharethrough, Chris worked in the Global Communications and Public Affairs Department for Google.

Earlier this month, the advertising industry’s leading brands, agencies and technology platforms descended on New York City for Advertising Week to discuss how brands can effectively connect with consumers across today’s fractured media landscape. Participants analyzed the increasing role of brand content, the changing nature of content distribution and the complexity of measurement.

One particular observation emerged on multiple occasions: When it comes to how we consume media, we no longer live in a “linear” world.

People now move quickly and unpredictably between devices and media environments throughout the day. Therefore, content creators and brands are challenged to tell a story that unfolds in an intended sequence.

Brands and agencies are rearranging many of the core components of their programs to be able to thrive in this non-linear, distracted media universe we now inhabit.

Here are five key ways advertisers and brands are changing it up.


1. Switch to Non-Linear Storytelling


Non-linear storytelling is becoming much more popular with brand content creators. Take the granddaddy of all non-linear brand content campaigns, Old Spice’s “Response” videos. No matter which video you start with, you’ll be entertained and hooked into watching more of the videos.

Given that consumers can discover content in so many different ways, brands need to create content that can stand on its own, even if it’s part of an episodic series.

Another interesting example of this type of approach is Audi’s new campaign, “Untitled Jersey City Project.” The series was shot in the style of a TV thriller, with eight unique episodes of interconnected cliffhangers that, nonetheless, are not designed to be viewed in a linear manner.


2. Restructure Operations Around Content and Sharing


Brands are working harder to create genuinely entertaining content that consumers will choose to watch (and hopefully share). Agencies are creating new positions and departments to ensure this content is succeeding; for example, “earned media directors” devote themselves to achieving real results for brand clients with earned media. Coca-Cola has even created company roles dedicated to ensuring “content excellence.”

The University of Phoenix, one of the nation’s largest direct response advertisers, has broadened its web content programs and is now producing content to supplement its advertising programs and engage audiences.


3. Rethink the Purchase Funnel


Advertisers are realizing that the purchase funnel is no longer a linear process. The Internet makes so much information available – both through our social connections and the 24-hour news cycle – that the traditional sequence from awareness to purchase intent is often truncated, with consumers bouncing back and forth across the purchase funnel.

To better understand these changing dynamics, advertisers are implementing new methods of digital research to measure their campaigns’ social engagement, and its effects on brand metrics. Emerging digital measurement companies such as Vizu, as well as established players such as Nielsen and comScore (who both introduced new social measurement products within the last quarter), are helping brands access this deeper social activity data.

Neville Manohar, head of digital marketing, credit card and analytics at Chrysler Group, spoke to this trend during Advertising Week. He noted that immediately following last year’s Super Bowl ad featuring Eminem, the company witnessed a flurry of social engagement that far surpassed its expectations. The activity helped change how Chrysler views the purchase funnel when it comes to digital advertising.


4. Facilitate Content Discovery


Search is a linear process: You want to find out about something, you search for it online. If, along the way, you come across an advertisement for what you are looking for, you click on it. However, as social media becomes a more dominant vehicle to experience web content, we come across advertising in a less linear fashion. In fact, the starting point for many people when they jump online is their news feed, where they can discover content friends have posted and find new stuff that interests them.

Rather than forcing products and services on a consumer, advertisers are turning to distribution models that facilitate content “discovery.” StumbleUpon‘s new “Paid Discovery” advertising model illustrates these new types of offerings by allowing a brand’s site to be the content that users discover and interact with, whereas before, ads appeared ahead of content.


5. Focus on Evergreen Entertainment


Advertisers are now considering whether the traditional campaign-based advertising approach is the right way to build a brand in today’s media landscape. Consumers fluidly switch between their computers, TVs, mobile phones and social platforms, making it very difficult to guarantee reach with a single campaign.

On the other hand, this new non-linear climate allows for a deeper and longer level of consumer engagement than the typical television commercials of past.

Heineken, in conjunction with AKQA, recently launched the revolutionary “Heineken Star Player” iPhone app, which allows fans to interact in real-time with the UEFA Champion’s League action. Not only does the app provide a novel, interactive addition to the sports viewing experience, Heineken has also succeeded in creating an entirely new environment in which fans spend a significant amount of time.


Presenting Sponsor: AT&T


More About: Advertising, content discovery, contributor, features, Media, Social Media

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 11:04:06 -0700 Google Blog Manager Flies to Twitter http://mickdarling.posterous.com/google-blog-manager-flies-to-twitter http://mickdarling.posterous.com/google-blog-manager-flies-to-twitter


The woman who started and managed Google‘s blogs will now be shaping Twitter‘s voice.

For the past nine years, Karen Wickre has been senior media liason at Google, where she built the now more-than-150-strong Google blog platform. Here’s how she described her role in the blogs in a 2007 interview with SearchEngineLand:

“I shepherd them. I call myself the managing editor, and I’m the gatekeeper for the new blogs. I’ve been with Google a long time and have worked in publishing a long time, so I can’t help but pay attention to the words — to the ways in which Google is communicating with the world.”

Wickre also launched Google’s official Twitter presence, according to her LinkedIn profile.

She announced Tuesday on her personal blog that she would be crossing over to work for the microblogging platform.

“I’ll be working closely with the marketing & comms teams (and probably a few others) in a new role: editorial director,” she writes. “As you might guess, it will involve a fair amount of wordsmithing as well as nurturing a consistent Twitter voice across our public messages and information pages.”

As wordsmiths ourselves, we can appreciate the potential of Twitter’s blog. Despite generating boatloads of interesting data that has inspired many analyzing tools, the company only adds a handful of posts each month — many of which are focused on product features or company milestones.

Might Wickre give it a facelift? Anyone who has enjoyed learning about everything from Dead Sea Scrolls to Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee through Google’s blogs surely hopes so.

Image courtesy of Flickr, Shawncampbell

More About: Google, Twitter

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 11:04:02 -0700 Timeline: How Netflix Lost Two-Thirds of Its Value in 3 Months http://mickdarling.posterous.com/timeline-how-netflix-lost-two-thirds-of-its-v http://mickdarling.posterous.com/timeline-how-netflix-lost-two-thirds-of-its-v

It’s hard to believe that a mere three months ago, Netflix stock had reached its all-time high at $300 per share. After Monday’s announcement that the company lost over 800,000 subscribers due to its price hike, the stock took a sharp dip.

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings has admitted to the company’s many mistakes that have spanned the past few months.

SEE ALSO: 5 Ways Netflix Can Stop the Bleeding

Here we look back at the events that contributed to Netflix’s sharp downturn.

Do you think the brand retains enough industry clout to survive? What should Netflix do to turn the company around? Sound off in the comment section below.


1. Netflix Stock Hits All-Time High


Mashable!

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 10:52:31 -0700 Hulu to Get Current Season of Gossip Girl and Other CW Content http://mickdarling.posterous.com/hulu-to-get-current-season-of-gossip-girl-and http://mickdarling.posterous.com/hulu-to-get-current-season-of-gossip-girl-and


Hulu inked a five-year deal with The CW on Friday, giving the streaming site access to next-day content from five of the six major networks.

Starting “later this year” (Hulu declined to get more specific), Hulu will begin providing next-day content from shows like Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries and 90210, among other shows.

Subscribers with Hulu Plus will see that content the next day; those who get the free Hulu service will see it eight days after the content airs. Hulu Plus costs $7.99 a month.

With The CW on board, Hulu Plus is now offering next-day content from all the major networks except CBS. Hulu’s proposition and its pointed emphasis on next-day content is intended as a stark contrast to Netflix, which got access to past-season content for CW shows earlier this month.

What do you think? Will next-day CW content persuade you to sign up for Hulu Plus? Let us know in the comments.

More About: hulu, netflix, streaming video, the cw

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 10:52:18 -0700 First look: Google TV gets Honeycomb, Android apps http://mickdarling.posterous.com/first-look-google-tv-gets-honeycomb-android-a http://mickdarling.posterous.com/first-look-google-tv-gets-honeycomb-android-a

Google’s smart TV software platform, Google TV, is poised for its first significant overhaul since it launched in Logitech and Sony hardware a year ago. Via over-the-air updates that should begin streaming to hardware devices on October 30, Google TV users will find new TV-optimized Android Apps, an improved YouTube experience, and new features that provide easy, direct discovery of TV and movie content.

All this Googly goodness is wrapped up in a new user interface that aims to simplify a challenging information design—a design that has left many Google TV customers with a persistent sense of yuck.

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 10:52:16 -0700 6 Great Alternatives to Netflix http://mickdarling.posterous.com/6-great-alternatives-to-netflix http://mickdarling.posterous.com/6-great-alternatives-to-netflix


On Monday, Netflix reported losing more than 800,000 subscribers since the company announced a 60% price increase, which went into effect in September. If you’re one of these Netflix customers who couldn’t seem to rationalize the hike, you’re probably exploring other options.

A few years ago, our only option was to drive to the nearest Blockbuster or Hollywood Video, only to be subjected to ironclad late fees and out-of-stock titles. Now, with a multitude of popular online streaming services, our favorite movies and TV shows are just one click away. From Amazon Instant Prime to Blockbuster On Demand and VUDU, more and more companies are providing viable streaming alternatives.

Luckily, most of these sites offer free trials without any obligation to sign up. If you’re still not sure which service is best for you, take a look at our gallery below to compare your options.


1. Amazon Prime Instant Video


Mashable!

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 10:52:14 -0700 Comcast commits to bring more broadband to Innovation District http://mickdarling.posterous.com/comcast-commits-to-bring-more-broadband-to-in http://mickdarling.posterous.com/comcast-commits-to-bring-more-broadband-to-in

On Thursday, the city and Comcast Corp. said Comcast’s advanced fiber network is being expanded into parts of the Innovation District that aren’t reached by the company right now.

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 10:52:12 -0700 A Deep Dive into Dogpatch Labs: $140M Has Been Invested in DPL Companies in Two Years http://mickdarling.posterous.com/a-deep-dive-into-dogpatch-labs-140m-has-been http://mickdarling.posterous.com/a-deep-dive-into-dogpatch-labs-140m-has-been

With the recent opening of our Dublin Lab and the impending launch of Palo Alto, it’s a good time to take a look at progress since we started @dogpatchlabs a couple of years ago.

Some interesting numbers from across the 4 Lab communities:

  • To date, over 350 emerging companies have been residents.
  • Right now, there are more than 70 teams in the Labs.
  • Team quality has never been higher & incredibly-interesting stuff is being worked on.  The waiting lists in each location range from over 60 to over 100 interested teams.
  • About 100 total DPL companies — or about one third — have received funding. Rounds have ranged from $100K to $10M.
  • Over $140M in capital has been invested in @dogpatchlabs companies.
  • So far, 14 more companies have been acquired by the likes of Google, Facebook, PayPal & others.

So far, Polaris has invested in a little over 10% the total teams funded.  That ratio feels great.

Why?

Well, @dogpatchlabs is — and always will be – an “open source” founder’s community.

What does that mean, again?

That means that we believe that a fundamental part of Dogpatch’s value comes from catalyzing connections between innovators & their peers, advisors and investors.  Lots of entrepreneurs & their friends. Polaris’ network.  Other networks. And other investors.

So what does Polaris get out of Dogpatch other than some really interesting investment opportunities?

Lots.  We measure progress by asking several questions:

  • Is each @dogpatchlabs a really strong community, with residents, mentors & investors supporting each other?  Is each a “magnet” for great – really great – new & repeat entrepreneurs?
  • What quality of ideas are we seeing?  Are we getting a great chance to build relationships with the next generation of great talent?
  • Are we contributing to a richer, deeper ecosystem in each community we participate?
  • Is there a good ratio of financings & acquisitions to companies selected for residency?
  • Are we building deeper, lasting relationships over a “rational” period of time with entrepreneurs we find to be compelling?

We think results are strong in each of these areas.  That said, lots of room to grow further.

We’ve put a lot of emphasis on building strong @dogpatchlabs communities.  For the last two years,  each of the three U.S. locations has been quarterbacked by a lead Polaris partner (i.e, Ryan Spoon in SF (now Palo Alto), Peter Flint in NYC,  me in Cambridge & Dublin.)

Beyond us, our other Polaris partners spend a significant amount of time in each community.

And beyond physical expansion to four Labs, we’ve also expanded the Dogpatch leadership team by hiring three great entrepreneurs-in-residence (EIR) over the past year: Gus Weber in Cambridge & SF (now Palo Alto), Matt Meeker in NYC, and Noel Ruane in Dublin.

Each of our EIRs have been great entrepreneurs and/or technologists themselves.  And they’ve made a tremendous impact in taking the Lab communities to the next level.

As example, in Cambridge, Gus Weber has done an incredible job partnering with the broader tech ecosystem. He’s brought over 35 events (skill share classes, open angel forums, speakers on various topics, and other networking events) into the Cambridge Lab over the last several months. Such events help build a community culture internally, support the growth of companies, create external awareness for what we are building, and support the “open source” model by ensuring that the community at large is welcomed and engaged with the @dogpatchlabs community.

On more than a dozen occasions over the past several months, we’ve shared the @dogpatchlabsmodel with representatives from other regions, government agencies, and universities.

Gus, Matt, Ryan & Peter have each done an incredible job building relationships with other important players in each market’s Innovation Community.  Groups like TechStars, MassChallenge, 500 Startups, StartX, AngelPad, NYC Seed Start and YC.

Dogpatch is attracting very high quality, repeat entrepreneurs that have typically shied away from traditional incubator/co-working type spaces.

The quality of folks & their ideas is staggering.

That said, when we forge an investment partnership with entrepreneurs,  it’s not only about quality — but quality of match.  Our Seed investment approach is straight-forward:

  • A big, important idea with a great model and most of all, great team.
  • A great match for our interests, experiences and network.
  • And importantly — potential for synergy & partnership.  We actively partner with each Seed company team.  We work & support.  We believe our most valuable contributions are experiences, networks, energy, & time.  So we’re really thoughtful selecting opportunities where we can add value.

For us, Dogpatch has proven that it’s a great vehicle for building relationships with, and working closely with exceptional people.

For entrepreneurs,  “open source” has proven to enable relationships to be built with a cross-section of investors, advisors and mentors.

We’re proud that Dogpatchers will tell all that we’ve been active partners in the goal to help everyone succeed (regardless of whether Polaris has invested in them). We’ve worked closely with folks working on really great companies to help them meet other investors & secure funding.

One of the things we’re most proud of – and what makes the @dogpatchlabs network effect work — is the sheer number of quality companies who’ve successfully secured funding.

Because a fundamental goal of @dogpatchlabs is to welcome & encourage connections between entrepreneurs, value-additive advisors and investors.

So far, so good.

Dogpatch gives Polaris another great view into the where/what/how compelling innovation is happening.  Across 4 important and complementary markets.

Bottom-line, we’re early stage investors with a long-term view.

Building relationships & helping the community at-large helps make us better investors.

For partnerships today — & down the road.

Editor’s Note: David is part of the BostInno Insiders Network.

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 10:52:10 -0700 DirecTV's iPad app updated with live TV streaming, as long as you stay at home http://mickdarling.posterous.com/directvs-ipad-app-updated-with-live-tv-stream http://mickdarling.posterous.com/directvs-ipad-app-updated-with-live-tv-stream

DirecTV debuted its iPad app in February with an impressive suite of remote control and content browsing options, but one of the few missing features was the ability to watch TV on it, which has now been added. Like similar apps from Cablevision and Time Warner Cable, v1.3.1 adds the ability to watch 38 channels live on the tablet, provided you're connected to the same home network as your DirecTV Plus HD DVR. That home restriction, plus being limited to only live TV streams and not DVRed programming separates it from Sling's apps, but at least it's still a free add-on. If you want to watch recorded shows or take them on the go you'll still need the Nomad box for that. Check below for a link to one of DBSTalk's usual thorough walkthrough PDFs breaking down the new features, a few screengrabs sent in by a reader, and the complete channel list after the break.

[Thanks, Will & Jon]

Continue reading DirecTV's iPad app updated with live TV streaming, as long as you stay at home

DirecTV's iPad app updated with live TV streaming, as long as you stay at home originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Oct 2011 14:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sat, 29 Oct 2011 10:52:08 -0700 The Real Story Behind AngelList: Interview with Founder @Nivi [Video & Photos] http://mickdarling.posterous.com/the-real-story-behind-angellist-interview-wit http://mickdarling.posterous.com/the-real-story-behind-angellist-interview-wit

Last Friday night, BostInno and Atlas Venture partnered to host AngelList Unplugged with special guest Babak Nivi. Nivi is the founder of popular blog Venture Hacks and of course AngelList. The goal of the event was to give entrepreneurs unique insights on how to raise money using AngelList. And there was no better way than to hear from the co-founder of the site himself. The sold out event was held in the  atrium of Atlas Venture’s office, which is also home to HubSpot.

In front of a crowd of 200 people, the event began with a fireside chat featuring Atlas partner Jeff Fagnan and Nivi. The two go back over 10 years to Nivi’s days as an engineering student at MIT. Fagnan made it clear that if we wanted to really understand AngelList, we had to understand Nivi. So we took a ride down memory lane.

Editor’s Note: I included time cues to where you can find the story in the video below.

The two met while Fagnan was at Seed Capital when a long haired, unmatched shoe-wearing engineer came into his office looking to become a venture associate. Regardless of his appearance (and thanks to Fagnan’s gut), Fagnan reluctantly hired Nivi.

At that time Nivi was in a fraternity called TEP, which turned out to be an incredible breeding ground for high tech startups. Datapower, Veracode, Covio, Squid Labs, Instructables all came out of that MIT fraternity. Nivi noted that a lot of that was luck, but he did always surround himself with quality people. (3:45)

After a seven year stint at MIT (Nivi joked that he should have dropped out way before) and after successfully raising a few rounds of investment, Nivi teamed up with Naval to write down their some of their entrepreneurial experiences and advice that they had come across over the years. And VentureHacks was born.

The tagline for Venture Hacks was “valuation is temporary, control is forever,” meaning that your valuation doesn’t matter today, what matters is your valuation when you exit, which is determined by how much you control of the company. The goal of the site was to level the playing field for entrepreneurs and share some of the great advice that the two founders had acquired along the way. (5:05)

Venture Hacks worked because entrepreneurs were always seeking the answer to one question, “I have a term sheet, is this a good deal?” said Nivi. ”But the real question [is] do [we] know any investors?”

“Dude,” Nivi recalls Naval saying. “Just make a list of investors and put it up on a web page.” (11:45) And just like that AngelList was born.

The site started as a simple list of investors on WordPress page and a Wuffoo form. “We asked investors the right questions though,” said Nivi. “How do you add value, how much are your typical investment amounts and how many investments do you do a year?”

“We’re trying to take the advice on Venture Hacks and productize it on AngelList.”

Now, startups and investors can create profiles and network in a private online community all through AngelList. The site has facilitated over 10,000 intros between startups and investors and somewhere between $100 to $200 million in funding has gone through AngelList. Jeff Fagnan referred to AngelList as “the most interesting and compelling thing that has changed venture capital in the last decade.” (14:25)

Today, 75 startups and 15 new investors sign up EVERY day. If you are a startup looking to raise a round of investment, it is imperative that you sign up and get on AngelList. (Find tips and tricks here)

Just like most startups, AngelList is constantly being iterated on. And Nivi was lucky enough to give us a sneak peak on what we can expect to see soon. (16:38)

The most prominent new futures include a job board and a one-click check out, essentially automating the funding closing process. These features could potentially save investors and startups thousands of dollars in recruiting and legal fees.

AngelList hopes to suck all the friction out of raising money for a startup. And they are well on their way.

Check out the video below of the incredible chat with Jeff Fagnan and Babak Nivi.

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http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/809209/ME.JPG http://posterous.com/users/4TeZSRpSSwQV Mick Darling mickdarling Mick Darling