Since joining Mashable in 2009, I have written several hundred posts about social media and technology. Many of my favorite posts have been those that manage to bridge social media and other industries together. As we saw in 2009 - and will continue to see in 2010 - social media is really transitioning from being just another buzz word and niche alternative to becoming an increasingly common - and important - part of how individuals, consumers and businesses communicate.
I can't wait to see what new and innovative uses are in store for social media in 2010. When companies like Pepsi are foregoing Super Bowl ads for their beverages and instead concentrating on social media, it becomes impossible to write-off social media and networking as just a fad. In 2009 we saw mainstream adoption of Twitter and Facebook and its quick and almost invisible assimilation into popular culture as a whole. Going forward, recognizing and highlighting the convergence of culture and what we think of as social media is something I find both exciting and interesting. At the end of day, behind all the hype, social media is about sharing and communicating. Here's to making that communication easier and more barrier-free in 2010!
It's obviously an understatement to say that internet is changing both the publishing industry and the way that people consume media. We've all read the stories about newspapers and print magazines bashing blogs while they quickly rush to start their own and try to overhaul their advertising models. The story that is perhaps getting less attention, however, is how even the blog model of 2004, 2005, 2006 is rapidly shifting as social networking takes a firm root in online culture. Back when I started Inhabitat.com in 2005 it was novel enough just to publish a blog about sustainable design - I didn't need to do anything fancier - as I was one of the very few voices on the web talking about this stuff. My main goal was just to get the word out about sustainable design, build awareness, and start conversations. Of course we always had some element of "conversation" going in the comment section of our website - but aside from the comment section - traditional blog publishing is really not that interactive, and not that different from magazine publishing in its basic approach: I write a story, I publish it, you interact with it, and if you have feedback, you let me know in the comments. This model is slightly more "conversational" than a magazine perhaps, but still a very one-sided conversation.
Now with the advent of social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Reddit, I think many publishers are realizing that there is so much more we can do with our online communities. Certainly at Inhabitat we're anxious to build communities that go beyond screens and keypads into real physical space. We know that the old adage 'Think globally, act locally' is a apt description of the dynamic power of local community, and we want to get into the business of building locally-based communities of people who are passionate about socially-responsible, good design. Watch our video to find out more about our New Year's resolution for 2010 and how we plan to connect the global and the local through the power of the social web.
In 2009, I spent a lot of time thinking about the easiest way to make a better life for myself. I like the idea of being active in shaping my own life, instead of letting things happen to me. I didn't read a big pile of self-help books, I didn't have some grand epiphany, I just sat down and made a list of things I wanted to do -- and then I started crossing things off.
Then I did what I always do, I posted about it. The response was pretty overwhelming. Over the last year, hundreds of people wrote me to say that they were making their own lists, and I started to see them popping up everywhere online. I'm still pretty gobsmacked by how many people sat down with a pen and started making things better for themselves. It's such a simple idea, but making time for anything in an already full life can be a challenge.
Anyway, in 2010, I have another simple idea that I hope will have us all dreaming a little bigger for ourselves. Have a look.
With the holiday season upon us and New Years resolutions pending, for many people it is a time for reflection. As an Intel Insider, I am thankful for all that Intel has offered this year as I was able to attend CES in Vegas, Computex in Taipei and Portland to see how chips are made. Thank you Intel.
Studies have shown that gratitude is the "forgotten factor" in happiness. Through highly focused studies, thought leaders Robert Emmons at University of California Davis and Michael E. McCullough of the University of Miami were able to shed some light on the nature of gratitude, its causes, and its potential consequences for human health and well-being.
"Getting organized." Pretty general and diffuse as New Year's resolutions go, isn't it? And yet so many of us make that our Number One goal for the next year. I find myself resolving to be more organized next year (as I do most years), but this time, I've got a specific motivation in mind which I think will make all the difference.
I turned 41 a few weeks ago, and I'm well settled into my mid-life...not crisis, exactly...more curiosity. I'm more aware than ever that letting time mindlessly slip by is about as smart as throwing money into the ocean. The kids are growing. The grandparents are getting older. It's time to get moving on those hopes and dreams. And to not lose sight of what makes me...me.
What about you? What will you do next year to get closer to your dreams?
Technology and media professionals today are besieged by an increasingly blurred boundary between life and work. The downside to the wonderful technology that has allowed us to take our laptop (or blackberry) everywhere we go and work remotely from any location has led to precisely that - people working from anywhere and everywhere - at all times - to the detriment of their families and personal lives. The upside of the 1990's model of being chained to an office cubicle meant that when you left your desk at 5pm you were psychologically free to shelve work thoughts until the next morning and enjoy the rest of your life without a thought for work's problems. Today's increasingly mobile workforce don't have that luxury of a physical divide between life and work, and this is manifesting in an increasing erosion of screen-free personal time.
As the publisher of the Inhabitat family of blogs and a work-from-home entrepreneur, I know all too well how easy it is to get sucked into round-the-clock work. The laptop is always there, and every time I look at it there seems to be some new email or AIM message requiring my attention -- whether or not it is 4pm in the afternoon or 11pm at night. It is not just me who is suffering the consequences of my perpetual distraction by laptop and phone. My family needs more of my time and energy, and I know it's important that I break the addiction to my laptop. So this year I'm resolving to break the psychological shackles of 24-7 access to technology... but you might be surprised about how I plan to do it! Watch this video to hear my plan for how technology can help me log off.
In 2009 Mashable has expanded at a faster rate than ever before, and in 2010 we expect to grow the team significantly more. The hockey stick growth of social media has created high demand for insight, commentary and breaking news on the evolution of social tools online - we aim to meet that demand and become the first port of call for those looking for information and guidance related to this exploding industry. Our positioning is ideal: we simply need to execute correctly.
As we grow, we increasingly use online tools like Google Docs to work collaboratively; with a team spread across 9 cities and 2 continents, it's doubly important to ensure that we retain coordination. How can we manage that growth and ensure all team members stay on the same page? How can we preserve our core values while continually adding to the team? How do we retain quality while also increasing the quantity of our content? Those are the questions we ask as we formulate our resolutions for 2010, and devise strategies for carefully managed expansion. Our resolution for 2010 looks to retain efficiency by using these tools: one in particular.
For many, resolutions are about aiming for bigger and better accomplishments, but my hopes for 2010 lie in less, not more.
At this point, the "less is more" mantra may sound pretty tired, but I've never felt it so keenly. As my children get older, the needs of my family are only getting more complex. (And here I thought things were supposed to get easier.) The "I can't do it all" wall, which used to loom far off in the distance, is now smack dab in the middle of my path, and I'm on a collision course. I need to pare down, simplify, clarify. Now.
My website, Parent Hacks, has had to take a back seat at times as I've tended to my family. This site, which started as little more than an idea for what I myself wish I had as a new parent, means so much more to me than "my business." It's a place of grounding and conversation in the often hectic, isolated world of parenting. And while it goes without saying that the needs of my family come first (Parenthackers would be the first to agree with me on that), setting Parent Hacks aside, even for a few days, feels like missing an important connection to the world. Not just for my readers...for me.
I know I'm not the only one with a complicated and busy family life. Most of us are in the struggle to juggle, and it's a lot to handle. Hopefully my resolution for Parent Hacks, which I share in my video, will resonate with those of you who are trying to see your way to a simpler 2010 as well.
I'm not what you'd call efficient. The idea of Inbox Zero makes me want to do a spit take. The last time I bothered to check, I was at inbox 2,000. This is not a point of pride.
In 2010, I only seem to be increasing the pace. I have so many lists, projects, plots, schemes, but I don't seem to have grown any more hands. Evolution is stupid slow.
So in addition to slowing down enough to prioritize the mountain of lists, I have another resolution for the year.
As 2009 comes to a close, it's natural to look back over the year's accomplishments and pitfalls and to think about what we want to achieve in the new year. I've never been one for resolutions, and I used to think it was because it felt so cliche. But I'm starting to see that it was because I had no idea how to set goals.
Oh, sure -- I knew how to say "this year I'm going to get organized!" But moving beyond that generalized wish? I'd often get stuck. I needed a plan for "making a plan"!
I've read plenty of books on getting organized, but, for some reason, this year, it finally sunk in. To set goals and actually accomplish them, you need to focus your attention on the small steps that will take you all the way to the finish. Here's what's working for me:
It's that crazed travel, shopping, family filled time of year, and if anything, that means a lot of waiting, standing around, multitasking, and it never hurts to be over prepared with forms of amusement ready for kids and adults of all ages (yourself included). So, here are 5 of my favorite iPhone apps I can't imagine living without this holiday season.
This time of year is all about surrounding yourself with the people you love. Between friends and family this means a lot of get-togethers. Adding a personal touch to your celebrations makes them that much more meaningful.
Since nobody wants to receive a box full of crumbs (well, it's probably better than coal, but still) follow these tips for shipping baked goodies.
For Cookies Bar cookies and drop cookies travel best, especially in smaller sizes (greater threat of crumbling in big cookies). Try Molasses Cookies or the Classic Sugar Cookies. Avoid fragile creations and those that crumble easily.
Wrap each cookie, or a pair of them touching bottom-to-bottom, in waxed paper or plastic wrap. Place cookies in a sturdy box lined with extra waxed paper and fill any empty air spaces with tissue paper or newspaper. Cookie padding is KEY--they should not be rolling around. To maintain moisture, try throwing in a slice of fresh bread. The moisture from the bread will migrate to the cookies via cookie osmosis.
Somewhere on your holiday lists this year--either your personal wish list or the list of gifts you've yet to buy--is bound to be some kind of tech. Maybe it's an iPhone for your spouse or a gaming system for the kids. Perhaps it's a sassy new netbook for your mother or a Keurig coffee maker for the dorm-living college student in your life. No matter the gadget or device, one thing's for sure: tech is a lot more expensive than, say, a nice hardcover book or a cozy pair of slippers.
If the requested gadget or gizmo is a budget buster for you, but you know someone else in the extended family is giving or getting one, I've got a few ideas for gifts that go beyond the gadget.
We're all media creators now, from bloggers and podcasters to the most wet-behind-the-feathers Twitterer. Along with the new freedom to create comes more responsibility: The new media ecosystem places an increased burden on all of us to become more perceptive consumers and dissectors of media. In the age of We Media, it's important that we be able to discern fact from fiction, to separate reportage from speculation and to not become unwitting participants in the latest spam scam.
In short, we need to sharpen our online media smarts. Every day, when we take a ride on our favorite search engines or tune in to our favorite news sites, we seem confident that we know how to spot the good stuff and weed out the nonsense. But do we?
Here's a guide to help you optimize your BS detector to deal with the new realities of democratic media.
That's it. You've finally exhausted every possible option in the Star Wars franchise. You know what your geek really wants, but all the safe-bet tech gifts come with price tags that rival your entire holiday budget. And frankly, that's how you landed here. Sit down, have a cup of coffee -- we found some good stuff.
This past year people have come to realize that it is not how much the present costs, but how much love and thought is put into it. What better way to show someone how much you care for them than by making them a present! We have here 5 sites that have complied lists of great gifts you can make for a loved one.
I'd gotten along just fine for years without a digital candy thermometer. For plenty of purposes in the kitchen--just trying to get a bubbling pot of sugar to a certain range, like the soft ball or hard ball phases, or just trying to get oil hot enough for frying--a standard candy thermometer, giving temperatures on an old-fashioned analog dial, is just fine. This Taylor Classic or Polder 511 will do the trick nicely.
It's that time of year... shopaholics ravaging stores and typing furiously to find the perfect gifts to add to their carts. Maybe it's just me, but I swear it's so much harder to find fun and unexpected surprises this year than years past! BUT, that being said, here are a few new tried and true favorites that have popped up recently. The 10 below are particularly good for those jetsetters and technophiles on your list if you're looking for fun stocking stuffers they will probably use and LOVE!
Not long ago, my friends considered my texting habit part of my curious but slightly cool geek cred. (I use the term "geek" loosely; my husband works for Twitter where that term has a much higher barrier to entry. But I digress.) Now, texting is an accepted communication channel among non-techies. Friends who still wonder about blogs routinely text their kids after school.
But, while firing a quick text may now be second-nature, you may not know about several nifty things you can do with your regular, old cell phone -- no data plan required.
If it plugs in, boots up, or connects wirelessly, your favorite geek already owns two. Still, gadget lust is unquenchable. No matter how many mystery power cords are coiled in your junk drawer, there's always room for more toys in the heart of a gadget lover. Check out our geeky picks for any budget.
Workplace communication used to fall into two categories: email, which is clumsy, asynchronous, and gets messy if it involves more than two people, and face-to-face or phone meetings, which are often overly structured, time consuming, and hard to coordinate. Social web applications are making workplace collaboration a much more fluid and easy prospect. Using collaborative web apps in the workplace makes communicating and cooperating with colleagues much easier, whether they are in the same room, down the hall, or on the other side of the world. The benefit of collaborative and social web apps in the workplace is increased productivity and enhanced communication.
The apps and web sites here are just a sample of the broad range of web-based, social media applications that are available to business users.
The holiday season is upon us, and we all know what that means: lots of eating, drinking, gift-giving and receiving, and travel. In other words, nearly endless consumption. But that doesn't mean holiday celebrations have to damage the environment. On the contrary, effective use of technology can make sure that this December is a green one-and not just because of that giant Christmas tree in the living room!
There are thousands of apps for your iPhone, so it is no surprise that you can navigate the holidays with your iPhone as well. For this mission, I choose to focus solely on apps that can be had at my favorite price point - free. In exchange for viewing a few ads, these apps will leave more money in your pocket to spend on gifts and tips for your bartender.
If you have a book lover in your life, don't struggle with which book to buy this holiday--get them gadgets that make all books more fun instead. Here are our favorite high-tech gifts for the avid readers.
If you don't ask for what you want around the holidays, you'll be be doomed to itchy sweaters and ugly socks. These online wishlist tools are a lot more high-tech than throwing letters in the fireplace, and a lot more reliable than just dropping hints.
When most people hear the term open source they usually think one of two things: 1) what the heck is that or 2) it's something tech-related. Open source actually refers to sharing software code, a product or production methods to allow collaboration. This means people can take a raw material and improve on it by building off each other's ideas. Though open source typically describes technology, it's also a philosophy about collaboration and information sharing. While creating BurdaStyle, we were captivated by the open source model: sharing intellectual property and letting everyone adapt it to their specific needs. We took it to heart at BurdaStyle and removed the copyright from our patterns.
Here are a few other areas where open source can benefit all of us:
LifeScoop is where ordinary people make surprising things happen with technology. It's taking everyday tasks and doing them better, faster and smarter. Find your story and see why amazing things happen with Intel Inside.
With the holiday season upon us and New Years resolutions pending, for many people it is a time for reflection. As an Intel Insider, I am thankful for all that Intel has offered this year as I was able to attend CES in Vegas, Computex in Taipei and Portland to see how chips are made. Thank you Intel. 
Photo by 
Workplace communication used to fall into two categories: email, which is clumsy, asynchronous, and gets messy if it involves more than two people, and face-to-face or phone meetings, which are often overly structured, time consuming, and hard to coordinate. Social web applications are making workplace collaboration a much more fluid and easy prospect. Using collaborative web apps in the workplace makes communicating and cooperating with colleagues much easier, whether they are in the same room, down the hall, or on the other side of the world. The benefit of collaborative and social web apps in the workplace is increased productivity and enhanced communication.
The holiday season is upon us, and we all know what that means: lots of eating, drinking, gift-giving and receiving, and travel. In other words, nearly endless consumption. But that doesn't mean holiday celebrations have to damage the environment. On the contrary, effective use of technology can make sure that this December is a green one-and not just because of that giant Christmas tree in the living room!
There are thousands of apps for your iPhone, so it is no surprise that you can navigate the holidays with your iPhone as well. For this mission, I choose to focus solely on apps that can be had at my favorite price point - free. In exchange for viewing a few ads, these apps will leave more money in your pocket to spend on gifts and tips for your bartender. 