Like or be a fan?

Facebook has done it again. Yet another change. In simplest terms, facebook has changed the term "become a fan" to "liking". Instead of being a fan of a brand, you now "like" it. This is just another ploy of facebook to expand in company profits. They believe that people will be more likely to like a brand then become a fan. Nothing has really changed but the term. I find it pointless and stupid that they keep changing everything. Incase someone is unfamiliar what "liking" something is on facebook, it is basically a thumbs up to something whether its a photo, status update, or wall post. According to facebook, users click "Like" twice as much as they click "Become a Fan". There is a major difference to liking something and becoming a fan. Liking something requires little effort but acknowledging something without getting involved. But when you "Become A Fan" you receive status updates from this brand or company and your name is on their page as well as their name on yours. I believe users will not change and increase "becoming a fan" of things because the term is now "liking". I think this was a failed attempt to connect users and products.

Work Cited:

Jacobsson, Sarah. "Facebook Decides You'd Rather 'Like' than 'Be a Fan'" Web log post. PC World. 30 Mar. 2010. Web. 21 Apr. 2010. .

$$$$

Internet advertising has ended high in 2009. Ad revenue had made $22.7 billion which is down 3.4% from 2008. However the fourth quarter of 2009 made a comeback with advertisers spending $6.3 billion which was a 2.6% increase from 2008. This figure set a record for the most revenue made in a quarterly.

From this article I learned that 47% of ad revenue was from search services. Online advertising can be found on search, display related including banner ads, rich media, digital video, and sponsorship, advertisers also advertise on classified, referrals, and e-mail.

I never realized how much money goes into online advertising. I found it interesting how in 2009 it was lower but is now going up which is looking good for 2010.

Work Cited:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2010/04/internet-ad-revenues.html

Reseinger, Don. "Internet Advertising Ends 2009 on a High Note." Los Angeles Times. 7 Apr. 2010. Web. 14 Apr. 2010.

iPad

This past saturday, Apple launched their newest product, the iPad. This product is kind of like a larger version of the itouch but much more complex. It has over 3,000 apps available so far. Most of the apps are free but something are available for a low cost.
You can find digital magazines as an app, although most of them are still figuring out payment methods. For example, Men's Health is a free app in which you can review articles but has the ability to buy the whole magazine for a $5 fee per issue.
For music, there is a pandora app in which you can listen to music and read artist informaton but the negative is you can't multi task on the iPad so the user is unable to listen to pandora and do other activities.
There is a Marvel Comics app that has amazing large illustrations and moves you across the screen as if the comic is one continous strip.
Scrabble is available for $10.
For education purposes there is a app called "The Elements: A Visual Exploration" which costs $14 and is the periodic table. There is also Apples iBooks and Amazons Kindle which brings book digitally.

There are so many available applications for this iPad, which gives the user many options on what they want to do with it. I think the iPad looks like alot of fun and I would love to have one but I wouldnt have the time to play around with it.


Work Cited:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303411604575167932497910828.html?mod=WSJ_hp_mostpop_read
Mossberg, Walter. "For the IPad, Apps with Their Own WOW Factor." The Wall Street Journal. Online.

Thread.com ?

I never heard of the website thread.com before. I was searching through professional blogs and stumbled on Stuart Fosters blog from The Lost Jacket and found a blog titled "Social Savvy'".

It is discussed how people are social creatures and how we create technology to improve our current behavior. Also how some people use social technology to search for their significant other online.

Online dating: has expanded greatly. This is a big industry (bigger then the porn industry). Online dating is a $1.5 + billion industry. The mobile phone dating market is worth $550 million which is expected to increase to $1.3 billion by 2013. The largest social network is facebook that has a user base of about 450 million.

Thread.com .....

The creation of thread was based on the idea that we meet our significant other through our friends. Operating through Facebook connect, Thread looks into your profile and checks your friend's friends and discovers their relationship status. Relevant matches are then shown to you. If the person finds a match interesting, then all they have to do is ask the friend who that person is to get a introduction.

Apparently thread is very simple and easy to use and safety shouldn't be a concern because all candidates are friends with your friends. Thread offers a simple introduction and icebreaker. It is a simple tool that does not compare to real dating sites but as time progresses, it will become more complex...

I found this interesting. It is something I would never use but if someone is looking for a significant other and is looking to meet other people, this is a good way to do it.

http://vimeo.com/http://vimeo.com/6375627

Works Cited

Foster, Stuart. "Social Savvy: Thread." Web log post. The Lost Jacket. 5 Apr. 2010. Web. 5 Apr. 2010..