I played around with Google Buzz today… I won’t regurgitate everything that is already being said out there, but I will post a link to a good conversation about the service e that unfolded (on GBuzz) after Steve Rubel (@steverubel) posted his initial reaction. And if you care to, check out what people are saying on Twitter now.

I know that it takes times to “see the light” when it comes to new products and services. But since pretty much everything offered on the Web is in constant beta state, if we, the users, don’t do things “Nero-style” and give companies a brutally honest thumbs up or down verdict sooner rather than later, then we miss out on the opportunity to shape the products and services that will later come to shape our reality (Twitter, FTW). So here are my two cents. I am an inbox Nazi. I delete and respond to emails in the constant pursuit of the zero-inbox utopia. Seriously, I’m pretty sure the way to finally reach Enlightenment is through an empty inbox. I ADORE Gmail and email is my top priority. I couldn’t believe that in an effort to force themselves into the social network market, Google would put a “Buzz” link right under my sacred “inbox” link and then tell me that I have more than 100 things to look at when it has taken me all day to respond to 5 emails. Talk about a lack of research and understanding of your publics. So essentially, I have been forced to ignore Buzz. To me it seemed to fall under the “fruit flies buzz around” rather than the “word-of-mouth” definition of the word. I resent this. My friends online are bright people and I just called them fruit flies because Google put out a half-assed product. My affair with Google is intimate. I collaborate using Google Docs, I organize my life with Google Calendars, and I read and learn from the blogs I subscribe to on Google Reader.  My affair with Facebook and Twitter is a little more scandalous and public. For Google to just go balls to the wall with Google Buzz is unacceptable and a huge disservice to their brand and certainly to the rest of us. February 11, 2010 UPDATE: Thanks to Aaron Brazell (@technosailor) for a solid post on Why Google Buzz is the wrong product for Google to try to shove down our throats and for the key to turning it off:

I enabled Buzz on my Gmail account and then promptly disabled it (you too can disable it, if it’s already turned on for you, by clicking on the “turn off Buzz” link in the footer of your Gmail account).

It is true what they say. The good ones are worth the wait.

Christmas came early for those of us — in fact, most of us, according to a November 16, 2009 article on Read Write Web — who use TweetDeck as oru third-party Twitter client of choice. This week, TweetDeck released a series of several updates including Twitter lists, geolocation, more Facebook support, and brand new LinkedIn support. A great article on Read Write Web covers the most significant changes in the new version of Tweetdeck. Here, I will discuss some implications and considerations for those of us who plan on continuing to use TweetDeck now that it has been cranked up to 11.

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace integration

Because Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are now integrated, those who know that most of their friends and followers are shared across networks should consider NOT updating Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn with the same thing. TweetDeck is now TRULY a deck, so use it as such. Instead of finding thinking of using the new TweetDeck as a shortcut to cross-posting the same thing all over the place, think of how to tailor your message accordingly to where people are going to care to read about it. If it’s work-related, Link it in, and so on and so forth.

Now that you can easily access your Twitter lists AND your TweetDeck groups, be smart about how you build them. TweetDeck groups aren’t public, so save your “cool people I tweet with all the time” list for a TweetDeck group and use Twitter lists, which are public, with a little more purpose in mind. Use them to add value and become a point of reference.

The new TweetDeck lets you write on the wall of the Facebook Pages with the same ease with which you tweet. This means that you can be more proactive and engaging with your fans on Facebook. Time to be more consistent about showing fans some love, as opposed to only updating the page every time you need something from them.

Should you choose to activate the Facebook news updates column on the new TweetDeck, be strategic about it. I don’t check Facebook as often as I do Twitter and when I do, I tend to see what a few number of my friends are up to  — I write a few witty wall posts, comment on pictures and then I’m off. Now, I’m using TweetDeck to try to catch what some of my new friends or old friends whom I have lost a bit of touch with are up to. In other words, I’m using it to maintain relationships that I may be giving less attention to simply because I’m not on Facebook as much and when I am, I default to commenting on the walls of friends with who I interact more often.

LinkedIn updates come in with less frequency than everything else, so why not activate that on the new TweetDeck? It’s information that I rarely, if ever, was paying attention to. Now, I can tell who is on the move and maybe some opportunities to connect people or connect with people will arise. I haven’t gotten there by using LinkedIn yet but maybe the new TweetDeck will make all the difference in that world.

More updates

TweetDeck’s new profile view includes geolocation; your bio; your link; and followers, following, tweets, and lists information. Don’t set your geolocation as “global” or “wherever the wind blows,” because that tells me nothing and it won’t help you make local connections — and the potential to scaling things back to local is where social media eventually wins and rules above everything else. Also, make sure your link actually goes somewhere, because it is now featured more prominently on your profile view and I might just click on it.

The infamous retweet function is opt-in on the new TweetDeck. All I have to say about that it… you guys are smarter and now your users better than Twitter. And, thank you.

Final Thoughts

TweetDeck, if you’re reading this, Flickr integration would be the cherry on top

February 8, 2010 Update: TweetDeck is now allows you to view Flickr, YouTube and Posterous media within the client.

Watch a video of the features in TweetDeck’s latest version below.

Your turn. How is the new TweetDeck fulfilling your every need? Or is it still coming up short?

More screen shots of the new TweetDeck here.

No joke. The world population is 6,706,993,152 according to a July 2008 estimate. So the iPhone App store hitting one billion downloads is pretty significant, especially considering the fact that the it has only been a little more than two years since the iPhone was first introduced and less than a year since the iPhone 3G and the App Store were launched.

So in the spirit of celebrating one of the material possessions that have changed my life by putting everything at, quite literally, the palm of my hand, thus changing many of “my ways” – from the way I wake up to the way I entertain myself – I thought I would put together a list of favorite applications. The respondents include my roommates, fellow Twitterers and yours truly. I’ll try to break this list down before that counter on the Apple home page hits the billion mark. It’s moving so fast I’m afraid I won’t make it! (Currently at 996,139,962 downloads)

NOTE: Anything in red is me speaking… starting now.

Question:What iPhone app has changed or improved your life? In whichever way…

My roommate Dan. Senior at Trinity University, majoring in Finance, originally from California, 22 years old.
ViewTi: It has almost every golf course in the U.S.. You go to a course, type in its name and it uses GPS to tell you how far away the hole is so you know which club to use. It also keeps scores. The ultimate golf application. It was $1.99 but there is a $29.99 version. Supposed to be absolutely ridiculous. Dan is a golf nerd.
WikiTap: Wikipedia for your phone. Quicker than going to the actual Web site.
Blooomberg: Any financial news that you can imagine and helps you track your portfolios as well. He’s a finance nerd as well.
Pandora: I use that quite a bit. A lot when I work out. I’d say this one actually changed my life. I use it ALL the time. And I agree, listening to music will never be the same.
Word Whirl: I told him about this one. And Peter as well. A game where you get six letters and two minutes and you have to make as many words as you can. The game has a multi-player feature, you can play online or host a game on your network. Not going to lie, it has brought us roommates together in more than one occasion.
Light Saber Unleashed: I told him about this one too! Many light saber fights have ensued. One in public, while shopping for groceries. People stared.
LOLcats: Dan loves cats. Dan loves cats more when they are ridiculous. This application was made for him.
UrbanSpoon: I think we all saw this one in one of those “… there’s an app for that” commercials. It finds places to eat for you when you can make up your mind. Forces you to try new places which is cool and to me, has been pretty life-changing.

My roommate Peter. Graduate student at Trinity University, majoring in accounting, originally from England, 23 years old.
BlackJack Run Lite: You have 30 seconds to try to win five different games of blackjack. You get points for the value of the cards. Realistically, the maximum you can get is 105 base points. You get points for how much time you have left – 10 points for every remaining second. If you are fast, can add quickly you can get at least 200 extra points there. You get points for getting blackjack. If you get it with a face card and an ace you get an additional 100 points. If you get it with more than two cards you only get 50 points. So to get the best score you want to get four two-card blackjacks to get 400 extra points. And you have to get blackjack on the fifth game to get another extra 50 points. If you get all blackjacks you get an additional 200 points. So the maximum score, realistically, can be 105 + 200 + 400 + 50 = 755 + 200 = 955 to 960 points. And you do this for three rounds. Your score is tallied and the high scores are ranked. You can compare them to other high scores around the world. My highest score is really good — 2,233 (he swears he had a 2,300-something). I’m only 300 points away from getting into the top five and being unbelievable. If I played this enough I could get there. Can you tell he’s an accountant??

Response from the Twittersphere:

@colleenpence: My fave iPhone apps are Tweetie, Public Radio, Fiesta (schedule of San Antonio’s annual Fiesta events), Pandora, Facebook.
@Bill_Archinal: Have yet to drink iPhone kool-aid. I like my BlackBerry but BBApp World will not work on my Pearl, technology is passing me by.
@Facelogic: app that I love: Facebook. And [if there was an app made just for me, it would be] one that gives a de-stress massage!

@momonmars: Definitely ReQall. Love the voice to text. I never lose my notes (or my grocery lists) anymore!

My list of favorite or life-changing iPhone app? Other than those mentioned above…

Google Maps: I know it’s not an app perse but it’s my life saver. I drive ANYWHERE now and I know I’m safe. Well, Let me clarify – safe as in I won’t get lost not as in I’ll drive safe because between glancing back at the map directions on my iPhone and driving… I’m actually not that safe.
Skype: This is one is SWEET. I’m originally from Ecuador and can call my mom a lot more often now. All I need is a WiFi spot. As a matter of fact, she is completely foreign to the concept of the iPhone but I bet this would be her favorite app by far.
TED: Me loves. I can watch nerdy, geeky TED Talks right on my phone. I am happy.
Mancala FS5: I loved this game in sixth grade and I love it now on my iPhone. (By the way, I’m a nerd)
TwitterFon: Helps me Twitter wherever I may be. The interface is pretty and it is OH-so-free.
Evernote: It’s pretty much the personal assistant I won’t ever afford. Helps me make notes to remind myself of things later. I forget things I have to do unless I write them down ALL the time.
Shazam: “What song is that? Ugh, that’s frustrating. That’s going to be stuck in my head all day.” – Sound familiar? Shazam helps solve the problem we all agree we have but had no way to solve it… until now.

Counter now at 996,632,713

Remember The Jetsons? Yeah you do. I won’t prolong this then…

I wish I had taken bets back in the day to try to guess which of the futuristic gadgets featured on the show would make it in the real world first.

To be honest, my money would have been on the housekeeper robots.

However, yesterday I caught a tweet about 12seconds.tv, which is basically a video version of Twitter. Brilliant concept. Today I read a post on Mashable about  YouTube adding social networking capabilities. Right on. And minutes before I posted this I learned about Fliggo.

So I was wrong on my Jetsons prediction. And I should have known better. There was no way that cleaning one’s dwelling could ever be more important than communicating with family, friends, peers… people.

I remember when Facebook first came out with its video application. I found it odd to see a freeze frame of an unflattering close-up of someone’s face in my inbox. From the looks of it, it may be my own face on someone else’s inbox pretty soon – all unflattery-looking.

None of this is breaking news. I’ve seen plenty of blogs that post videos but I do wonder just how much this will catch on, in lieu of  the written word and for personal communication. Remember, this post was originally about The Jetsons family and their microcosm.

Afterall, video is faster and it may solve the problem, at the receiving end, of not being able to pick up on the sender’s tone, mood, etc. due to the lack of face-to-face interaction.

Video, for better or for worse?

Today was Google’s.

Everywhere I turned, the one thing I kept hearing people talking about was the new Google Latitude feature on mobile Google maps and iGoogle gadgets. The service is available in 27 countries and allows users to let others know where in the world they are located. If you choose to opt-in (because that would be the only way Google could ever get away with this) you can use Latitude to find friends and communicate with them via SMS, Google Talk or simply by dialing their phone number.

The feedback, per usual, is both positive and negative. Some were delighted with the news because it shows just how increasingly accessible and open our world is becoming, and others shivered at the thought of being exposed and having their privacy put in jeopardy.

A few days ago I was listening to NPR’s Studio 360 and heard the story of Hasan Elahi who, after suffering the biggest scare of his life when he was arrested at the airport shortly after the attacks of 9/11 and was held in custody as a terrorist suspect, started recording his every move and posting information about his whereabouts on a Web site. Elahi’s decision to publicize his privacy and keep track of himself was motivated by fear and not a willingness to share his life with others - practically a complete deviation from the norm where most people are unwilling to post any personal information online because they are afraid others may be able to trace their steps.

As I have mentioned before, we are entering an era where the traditional definition of privacy is coming into conflict with what is happening with technology and the power of the Web. How do we deal with that? Baby steps? Do we just hit the ground running and correct mistakes along the way?

I signed up for Google Latitude today but I have to tinker with it before I can say anything about what I think about how it works. I will say this though – our lives are getting streamlined and I have no qualms with getting a little outside help to make some aspects of my every day a bit easier.

I am a very private person but I’ve never felt that my integrity or confidential information are under any sort of threat by having an e-mail account, a profile on LinkedIn… this blog…

Think about this… how much of what has happended during this recession could have been prevented if we thought differently about privacy… leading to transparency… leading to accountability… leading to a participative society???

This is not an excuse.

My ears finally popped yesterday and I can officially say that I have gotten over the worst case of the flu I’ve had to deal with in six years. For a while all I could hear was myself chewing. I have a new-found sympathy for fishes living in fish bowls.

There is a saying in Spanish about healthy minds leading to healthy bodies (I’m sure it’s true for other languages), however, I’ve confirmed that there is nothing the mind will do if the body doesn’t feel like cooperating and I can think of other instances where that is true.

A friend introduced me to Larry Lessing (not in person, just his work) who is an advocate of less anal copyright laws that stifle creativity. You can think of copyright laws as the flu virus that is standing between new content, products and services that have the potential of BEING once the original ideas that will drive them cease to be afflicted.

Steve Jobs recently announced he will be taking a six-month leave of abscence due to health issues.  Apple’s stocks dropped as stockowners’s felt that their money was at risk unless Steve Jobs was behind the company in mind AND body.

The U.S. economy is ailing as well and hundreds of thousands of talented people are unemployed and being forced to “take a leave of absence”.  What’s afflicting the country? I could list so many things as the situation seems to propagate and become more widespread.

I drank nasty syrup to get over my personal case of the flu that was cramping my style, productivity, willingness and ability to do anything at all. I had to be consistent. It was not pleasant. It’s done. I’m good as new.

What perscription do we need to get all other things back into good shape?

Too much of a stretch? Probably. But there is so much going on and some things that are completely unrelated seem to mirror each other in many ways. It’s uncanny and… airborne… ?

My friend told me about this because she new I posted about the same topic earlier.

A friend was at a club and was approached by the proud owner of an iPhone who asked her what her favorite flower was and disappeared after she answered “lilies”. He returned moments later with a sketch of a lily he drew using an application I think might be Sketchinz but I’m not completely sure.

These were his words, “Here is a lily, let me get your e-mail and I’ll send it to you.”

He got her… letters? I guess you can’t say “digits” anymore. Those days are starting to be long gone.

The other day I read on a blog (couldn’t find it again) how someone had proposed using Twitter.

I remember when skeptics worried that technology and the internet were replacing face-to-face interaction, thus diminishing people’s social skills and their ability to establish close, long-term relationships with others. I always felt comfortable and confident on e-mail and AIM. I’m not necessarily shy but I definitely think those tools do wonders for those who are a bit more reserved and kept to themselves. They bring down barriers to entry if you will.

Wait, I immediately regret that last sentence.

Today I tried TweetDeck and went back to Twhirling almost immediately. I could tell right off the bat that the simplicity and basic functions of Twhirl were less threatening to my productivity at work and life in general, thus I opted to opt right out of Tweedeck (no offense).

My feed gets a massive dose of blogs daily that talk about the latest applications, sites, updates and online tools available to all web users, which as of last week include even my grandmother in Quito, Ecuador, the unchallenged epitome of the phrase “out of the loop”… or so I thought. 

And yet I don’t see many blogs that talk about us – the web users. It seems to me that we have arrived at a new phase of human evolution. We have adapted in order to use the resources available to us but with a new twist – we also happen to be the creators of these new resources. We have changed the very ecosystem we live in and slowly but surely, by general consensus we have made things like Twitter, Facebook, blogs, Google search, Digging, bookmarking, sharing, etc. essential to our personal and professional functions.

We have posed ourselves with the challenge of evolving and we are all doing so. Ask my grandma.

Things like Twitter, Google, etc. are almost second nature to my generation and it looks like it’s only a matter of time and further evolution until they are concepts that are innately familiar to us.

The interesting thing is that many – or should I say ALL – of these sites are in constant evolution as well. They adapt according to our needs and then we tweak them in return. It’s the best vicious circle I’ve ever known of and have had the chance to get sucked into.

What about survival of the fittest? Am I out because I can’t Tweetdeck? Do my blog and Facebook profile keep me in the game? The beauty of it all is that collaboration and participation still have degrees. But we certainly need to react to the fact that the web is evolving the world as the world evolves the web. Our institutions need to adapt as do our industries and ourselves.

How fast? In which way? … that is the evolving dilemma.

The new pick-up line

The Friday after Thanksgiving a few friends and I went to Mantus Lounge, a very posh club in Dallas that, regretfully, people seem to frequent more for its poshness than for the DJ/owner’s unmatched (according to me at least) ability to mix songs seamlessly and almost effortlessly. 

It was while scoping out the dance floor that I witnessed one way in which new media and technology have changed ways in which people interact with each other, even face-to-face. 

In an act of either cleverness or cheesyness (you be the judge) somebody placed his iPhone in front of my friend displaying a game of tic-tac-toe  where he had made the first move and it was now up to my friend to decide whether or not to continue playing. The novelty of this compelled my friend to participate and see the game through to the end. Later, the guy confessed that he had let her win as well – clearly the man left nothing to chance.

No further conversation ensued after the game and that brief moment during which two complete strangers connected with each other. However, for the rest of the weekend and now until the end of time through this blog post, I discussed with family and friends just how many aspects of our lives are being enhanced or completely revamped by the apparently unnecessary applications we have found for technology and new media.

We can now break out into random light saber fights, we never have to worry about songs getting stuck in our head because we can’t figure the title or artist and, as of Friday night, I learned that pick-up lines are a thing of the past as well. I can’t imagine the original tic-tac-toers would have ever seen this coming.