The technology I chose this week is Huddle. Huddle is a collaborative technology specifically for businesses. Blackboard for example, is a networking technology that USU students and teachers use to communicate throughout the semester. Huddle, as far as I can see, is very similar except it is used for businesses. When you visit the Huddle site they promise to help improve the way that your business runs while helping to cut costs.
Just like most networking sites, you go to a home page enter your user name and password to get online. Once you are in the system you have a homepage that is much like an email account, or any other networking site you might use. You have the ability to communicate with all the members of your company at the click of a button. You can have conference calls, sent emails, share documents and projects. Its purpose is to save money and help people communicate more efficiently.
Huddle is used by companies such as, Toshiba, Nokia and Kia cars. All of the companies claim that Huddle is helping to improve their performance. It has become very clear within the last few years that the future of businesses is in collaborative technologies, and I think it’s a bright future that will save people money.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
Facebook moving up
Facebook seems to be the communication technology that many students are blogging about. I am not going to talk about the features and benefits as those have already been talked about. I want to talk about how Facebook has become such a hit. I think that many people are surprised with the growth of Facebook. As mentioned by some students the first major social network was MySpace. Everybody who was anybody had one. Then as fast as it started it went away with the invention of Facebook. I am not saying that MySpace is gone, or that people don’t use it, I have just noticed a trend that is shifting towards Facebook.
The sole reason that I feel that more people have shifted to Facebook is due to the over advertising that MySpace has done. At one point MySpace was making millions of dollars on ads run of MySpace. I feel that people just got a little tired of seeing advertisements everywhere they went. The interesting part is that Facebook does allow advertising on their sites; it’s just not as noticeable as it was on MySpace. I feel like MySpace launched a great networking idea and that Facebook just made it a little more user friendly. Who would have thought that and advertising change would allow one communication technology service to grow so fast.
The sole reason that I feel that more people have shifted to Facebook is due to the over advertising that MySpace has done. At one point MySpace was making millions of dollars on ads run of MySpace. I feel that people just got a little tired of seeing advertisements everywhere they went. The interesting part is that Facebook does allow advertising on their sites; it’s just not as noticeable as it was on MySpace. I feel like MySpace launched a great networking idea and that Facebook just made it a little more user friendly. Who would have thought that and advertising change would allow one communication technology service to grow so fast.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Skype
My personal favorite communication technology is Skype. Skype is a free web based communication program that anyone can download to their computer. Once you have it you can call anywhere in the world to anyone who has a computer with Skype on it. Skype voice and video calling has become one of the cheapest and easiest ways for people to communicate across the world. The idea of communication through the internet has become a reality with Skype. There are several different features that users can choose from when using Skype. You can choose to pay a little extra money and have unlimited calling to land lines anywhere in the world as well as the free computer calling.
I first came across Skype in 2004, when our family had a foreign exchange student from china live with us. She would jump on her computer and video chat with all of her friends back home. I remember asking her, what was the cost was and how I could get it. It wasn’t long before I had it on my computer. Then soon our entire family. While living in British Columbia this past summer I found Skype particularly useful. We paid two dollars a month to not only be able to call our family with computers but for the two extra dollars we could call any land line in Canada and the US. Try comparing that to a phone plan. For personal use Skype is almost perfect. The only weakness that I found listed was that large companies don’t trust Skype due to potential problems with their firewalls. (www.oreillynet.com)
I first came across Skype in 2004, when our family had a foreign exchange student from china live with us. She would jump on her computer and video chat with all of her friends back home. I remember asking her, what was the cost was and how I could get it. It wasn’t long before I had it on my computer. Then soon our entire family. While living in British Columbia this past summer I found Skype particularly useful. We paid two dollars a month to not only be able to call our family with computers but for the two extra dollars we could call any land line in Canada and the US. Try comparing that to a phone plan. For personal use Skype is almost perfect. The only weakness that I found listed was that large companies don’t trust Skype due to potential problems with their firewalls. (www.oreillynet.com)
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Top Picks
Many would agree that looking for well designed personal blogs is a little more difficult than company blogs. I chose ten blogs that I felt had all of the attributes of a great blog. They all have viable information, easily accessible and answers to any question about the topics they discuss. Below is the “top ten” list I have compiled from blogtopicsites.com.
1) Technology Weblog- This is a great blog for people who are interested in technology. The blog includes articles about any new piece of computer technology. You can also ask questions if you are having problems with your personal equipment.
2)The real estate Blogs- This site is very interesting due to the fact that it doesn’t just talk about one real estate market . Instead it has topics and information on a wide variety of estates.
3) Digger's Realm- this is a really interesting blog for people interested in politics. The reason that I love it is, not only does it talk about current issues, but there are endless links you can click on for thousands of political issues.
4) Burn Your Fuel- this particular blog is an awesome place to go if you want to know about a new car you want, or just too look at all the car reviews. It isn’t limited to just cars either; there are topics about anything that runs on fuel.
5) For the Love of the Dog- I chose this site because my wife has actually used it more than once for our dogs. Literally any question you have about dogs, you can get your answer here. It has current news, nutritional information, and my personal favorite training information.
6) A Thrifty Mom -The name of this blog speaks for its self. Women or men can learn how to save the most money possible when shopping. The cool thing about the blog is it not only gives advice but has printable coupon links to help you go that extra mile in your savings.
7) The Meanest Mom-This blog is not only an interesting read, but has received an award from parent and child magazines. The blog is about a stay at home mother with four children. This mother blogs about her daily life and the challenges and experiences she faces. The reason it’s great is that it is raw material. The good and the bad along with of course some humorous parts.
8) My Lasagna Recipe- This site makes me smile. I have never seen so many recipes for lasagna. It’s a great site for someone who wants to post a fun recipe, or go there to make something new. The pictures and step by step instructions are really helpful.
9) Online Novels- The site is kind of like an online book club. The site is unique however, because it contains links to thousands of books online. The reason this blog is so impressive is the organization of the page. The books are alphabetically listed and easy to access.
10) Gajitz Tech with a Twist This site is for those gadget lovers out there. Once again, I like it because the site not only gives you information on thousands of electronic pieces, but it also includes links to other sites if you need more information.
1) Technology Weblog- This is a great blog for people who are interested in technology. The blog includes articles about any new piece of computer technology. You can also ask questions if you are having problems with your personal equipment.
2)The real estate Blogs- This site is very interesting due to the fact that it doesn’t just talk about one real estate market . Instead it has topics and information on a wide variety of estates.
3) Digger's Realm- this is a really interesting blog for people interested in politics. The reason that I love it is, not only does it talk about current issues, but there are endless links you can click on for thousands of political issues.
4) Burn Your Fuel- this particular blog is an awesome place to go if you want to know about a new car you want, or just too look at all the car reviews. It isn’t limited to just cars either; there are topics about anything that runs on fuel.
5) For the Love of the Dog- I chose this site because my wife has actually used it more than once for our dogs. Literally any question you have about dogs, you can get your answer here. It has current news, nutritional information, and my personal favorite training information.
6) A Thrifty Mom -The name of this blog speaks for its self. Women or men can learn how to save the most money possible when shopping. The cool thing about the blog is it not only gives advice but has printable coupon links to help you go that extra mile in your savings.
7) The Meanest Mom-This blog is not only an interesting read, but has received an award from parent and child magazines. The blog is about a stay at home mother with four children. This mother blogs about her daily life and the challenges and experiences she faces. The reason it’s great is that it is raw material. The good and the bad along with of course some humorous parts.
8) My Lasagna Recipe- This site makes me smile. I have never seen so many recipes for lasagna. It’s a great site for someone who wants to post a fun recipe, or go there to make something new. The pictures and step by step instructions are really helpful.
9) Online Novels- The site is kind of like an online book club. The site is unique however, because it contains links to thousands of books online. The reason this blog is so impressive is the organization of the page. The books are alphabetically listed and easy to access.
10) Gajitz Tech with a Twist This site is for those gadget lovers out there. Once again, I like it because the site not only gives you information on thousands of electronic pieces, but it also includes links to other sites if you need more information.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
The Other Side of Blogs
I found the blog “Business strategy transformed by blogs” very interesting. For several weeks we have been talking about blogging in the corporate world and how important it is. I have to admit that before this class I didn’t know much about blogs, but as of late I have come to believe that blogs are great for companies. I still think blogs are going to revolutionize the future of businesses. They make customer service better, communication open and help customers understand products.
However, there is a side of blogging that I hadn’t considered until I read the blog by Todd Labrum. There is a quote that says "companies have to learn to track what blogs are talking about, pinpoint influential bloggers, and figure out how to buttonhole them, privately and publicly." It was as if a light bulb went off in my brain. Yes, blogs can be a great tool. That is already proven, however, now I understand that they can also be a hindrance to companies. It is a way for competitors, and essentially anyone who has an aversion to a company to post thousands of negative comments and lies to hurt the growth of a company. Yes, I still believe that blogs are more than a fad, but I also believe that for some companies blogs can end up hurting their image if they are not careful and protective of their blog. Todd’s blog definitely gave me great advice on protecting professional blogs.
However, there is a side of blogging that I hadn’t considered until I read the blog by Todd Labrum. There is a quote that says "companies have to learn to track what blogs are talking about, pinpoint influential bloggers, and figure out how to buttonhole them, privately and publicly." It was as if a light bulb went off in my brain. Yes, blogs can be a great tool. That is already proven, however, now I understand that they can also be a hindrance to companies. It is a way for competitors, and essentially anyone who has an aversion to a company to post thousands of negative comments and lies to hurt the growth of a company. Yes, I still believe that blogs are more than a fad, but I also believe that for some companies blogs can end up hurting their image if they are not careful and protective of their blog. Todd’s blog definitely gave me great advice on protecting professional blogs.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Corporate Blogs
It is very difficult to try and pick only ten good blog sites. In the business world today it seems as if a company cannot survive without a blog. I was surprised to learn that Forbes even has a “fortune 500 business blogs” website. (http://www.socialtext.net/bizblogs) After reviewing some of the companies that are on the list I chose a few that impressed me:
· Delta Airlines
· American Express
· Disney Land
· Dell
· Amazon.com
· Comcast
· Starbucks
· Coca-Cola
· FedEx
· HP
The above listed sites vary in the kinds of information they provide, however, I felt that they were all well taken care of, appealing to the eye, updated and informative and interesting. All the above blogs can be found in alphabetical order at the following website. (http://www.socialtext.net/bizblogs/index.cgi).
· Delta Airlines
· American Express
· Disney Land
· Dell
· Amazon.com
· Comcast
· Starbucks
· Coca-Cola
· FedEx
· HP
The above listed sites vary in the kinds of information they provide, however, I felt that they were all well taken care of, appealing to the eye, updated and informative and interesting. All the above blogs can be found in alphabetical order at the following website. (http://www.socialtext.net/bizblogs/index.cgi).
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Evolution of Blogs
Have blogs evolved like the internet?
I believe that there is strong evidence that weblogs have evolved, similarly to the evolution of the Internet. Blogging, like the internet they started out in a very simple form. The first so called blogs were simply online journals. It was a place that people could publish events that happened in their daily lives. As the ability to use the internet became more global as well as more well known I believe that blogs went from online journaling to somewhat of a major social network. In the early 2000's blog were used widely for newscasters and journalist. Now, Blogs have become a norm for businesses, schools, government, “for sale” ads and much more.
Now blogs are not just social networking sites, Blogging has become so large that it now has its own sphere. This is being called the “blogosphere”. A blogosphere is said to be made up of all blogs and their interconnections. This implies that blogs are their own community or in other words their own social network.
Now that blogs have become so popular software has been created to fit the needs of blogs, and bloggers." Some of the current software types are, or they can be run using blog software, such as Word Press, Movable Type, Blogger or Live Journal, or on regular web hosting services."(encyclopedia.com)
I believe that there is strong evidence that weblogs have evolved, similarly to the evolution of the Internet. Blogging, like the internet they started out in a very simple form. The first so called blogs were simply online journals. It was a place that people could publish events that happened in their daily lives. As the ability to use the internet became more global as well as more well known I believe that blogs went from online journaling to somewhat of a major social network. In the early 2000's blog were used widely for newscasters and journalist. Now, Blogs have become a norm for businesses, schools, government, “for sale” ads and much more.
Now blogs are not just social networking sites, Blogging has become so large that it now has its own sphere. This is being called the “blogosphere”. A blogosphere is said to be made up of all blogs and their interconnections. This implies that blogs are their own community or in other words their own social network.
Now that blogs have become so popular software has been created to fit the needs of blogs, and bloggers." Some of the current software types are, or they can be run using blog software, such as Word Press, Movable Type, Blogger or Live Journal, or on regular web hosting services."(encyclopedia.com)
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