Dr. CK Lin | Productivity. Innovation. Entrepreneur Profiles

Managing Your Social Life via Apps

So you have your Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Myspace.

Do you check them all every day?

Are there some sites you end up neglecting?

With the help of social aggregators, you can manage your social life more effectively.

The following aggregators have been designed to do just that:
• Atomkeep: designed to sync all your profile information among multiple social networks.
• Digsby: involves instant messaging, e-mail, and social networks. It integrates social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, and LinkedIn with a newsfeed and alerts.
• FriendBinder: Works by adding all your social networks on your FriendBinder profile and all updates appear. You can also update your Twitter and Facebook statuses as well.
• FriendFeed: From Netflix to Twitter, this social network site allows you to receive updates from a large number of sites, and also lets you subscribe to other users’ feeds.
The verdict according to CNET? FriendFeed and FriendBinder are the top two social aggregate picks.

The overall concept is great, manage all your social profiles in one spot, communicate better, etc.

However is it too much? Are social networking aggregators too overwhelming?

Some say yes, others swear by them.

Worst case, manually manage your social profiles, however now there are alternative solutions.

Are Your Tweets Copyrighted?

So you sit down at your desk, type out your less-than 140 word tweet, and post.

Is your post copyrightable?

An article posted by Brock Shinen discusses the confusion that has arisen from what can or cannot be copyrighted via Twitter (or other social networking sites for that matter).

Shinen exclaims his disbelief when discovering through another blog the “high level of participation and the supposed consensus that Tweets are, in fact, copyrightable and copyrighted.”

What does he say about this? Here are Shinen’s main points:

• How can your Tweets be copyrighted if the material you post through Twitter isn’t copyrightable to begin with? You cannot create law.

• Fair use does not affect something in the public domain-especially in Twitter’s case with material that is neither copyrightable nor copyrighted.

• Would some Tweets be copyrightable over others depending on what information they contain? Most likely not.

Lastly, Shinen ends by asking: what would you do even if you did own a Tweet?

Maybe this should be the real question to begin with, instead of if your Tweets are copyrightable.

If in theory your Tweet COULD be copyrighted, why should it? Why should you be the only one allowed to Tweet about how much traffic there is on interstate 5? Case and point.

While an interesting argument has arisen regarding copyright laws and Twitter, I’m with Mr. Shinen on this one: you do not personally have the legal ability to create or own a copyright.

So Tweet on about the weather, how delicious your lunch was, or how irritating the person sitting in front of you on the bus is, just don’t expect to receive copyrighted permissions any time soon.

How to Attract Traffic to Your Blog: The Eternal Question

There really is no question about it, blogging is a learning process for all involved.

With every post, I strive to drive more traffic to the site, capture readers, and up the number of subscribers.

What works, what doesn’t?

From trial and error, here is what I am quickly discovering in regards to successfully bringing in readers:

• This might seem obvious, but blog about what’s interesting, you are not necessarily trying to be the first one to break the news, but simply writing in an engaging manner.

• Blog about articles that are ahead of the curve: your goal is to blog about a problem that people will be looking for answers to.

• Add a unique twist to your blog: query top bloggers, ask questions, add the “so what?” factor to your blog.

The next step is to actually encompass all these main aspects in every blog you post.

I try, but every blogger knows that it is challenging.

It’s also extremely important to have a keen sense of what’s newsworthy, and (if you’re lucky) having some sort of access to an inside source about the latest buzz.

I have attempted to establish where writing sources fall for interest blogging:

• pre-curve:

topics that have begun to be mentioned on Twitter, Digg, Technorati
publications such as Forbes, Top 40 Lists
conferences, real time responses about topics

• peak of curve:

hot topics on Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo Buzz
Google Zeitgeist’s top searches

• post-curve:

topics people are no longer interested in tweeting, facebooking about
“old news”

Finding the topics that readers will search for is nothing short of an art.

Another important aspect of blogging in general: link-backs. While in my experience I can not say that this will surely act as a traffic-generator, you are still recognizing that what you are blogging about came from another source, and then crediting them.

I am more than open to suggestions as well, if there are other key aspects to a successful blog I would love to hear YOUR feedback.

As the reader, your opinion is the more important because if you are not interested, who will be?

Twitter- Why the @reply?

If you think of Twitter like a noisy bar where everyone is talking and no one is really listening, then the @reply function is the equivalent of buying someone a drink. It might not lead to anything substantial (like a follow), but you will guarantee yourself a second look.

So why aren’t more of you @replying?

If you are struggling to gain followers, hone your voice, or find a niche, the @reply is a great way to practice.

Here are some tips for using the tool effectively… Read the rest of this entry »

Twitter’s Weekend Worm Woes: Accounts hacked and compromised

Last time I discussed the awesome functionality and how, exactly, Twitter can work for you.

Well, over the weekend, a series of attacks on Twitter accounts kept programmers’ hands full.

At least two of these attacks have now been credited to a bored 17-year old that modified every profile page the worm came into contact with.

• The first attack compromised 90 accounts, the worm had been spread by 4 recently created accounts.
• The second attack compromised 100 accounts, with an estimated 10,000 tweets potentially spreading the worm.
• The third and final weekend attack was quickly quarantined and compromised accounts were secured.

So, who is the menace responsible for this worm attacking the bird fiasco?

17-year-old Michael Mooney, from Brooklyn, NY.

Mooney had the original intent of using the worm to link Twitter accounts to his rival site: stalkdaily.com.

This recent breach shows that it is possible for codes to be embedded into random profiles at large.

Since there was no spyware or malware downloaded on the computers of those who were infected, the worm was mostly a nuisance for users and programmers alike.

The lesson learned? Be careful who you follow on Twitter.