Archive for the ‘General’ Category

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RockMelt: A Time Saving Browser For Authors and Small Business Owners

Sunday, February 5th, 2012

What is RockMelt and why should you care?  It’s a web browser and it has the potential to make your life easier.  One of, if not the most challenging issues facing a self-marketer today is finding-the-time-to-get-it-all-done.  I mean seriously.

Rockmelt, based on Google’s Chromium architecture, is a slick web browser that allows you to research, share, stay in touch with your readers, get inspired, chat with friends, and more—all at the same time. Add chewing bubble gum to that and you just might take over the word.

Here’s what it can do for you:

  • Provide a totally customizable and slick browser that is based on Google’s Chromium (so, it’s fast)
  • Import and organize all your bookmarks, so you can move over seamlessly
  • Deliver instant news from the feeds of your choice (say Twitter, Facebook, HufPo, MSNBC, industry blogs, etc.)
  • Reveal Facebook notifications at the top of your browser (so you’ll never miss an important message or opportunity).
  • Social Reading apps that kick ass
  • One-click sharing
  • Chat with friends (from any window).

It could also distract you, so be sure to set boundaries and only follow those leads that will help further your marketing efforts. It’s too easy to get caught up in the increasingly distracting world of the Internet.  If needed, you can easily turn off your notifications and browse uninterrupted, because alone time is so often under-rated.

Posted in Facebook, General, Resources | No Comments »

Google+ open to public beta

Thursday, September 22nd, 2011

It’s official – Google+ has been opened up to public beta. Go on, go setup your account – you can read this anytime. Login to your Google account, then in the upper left corner click +YourName and it will walk you through the setup process.  I was kind of giddy about the process—I’m pretty excited about Google+, it’s just so darn easy to use—it makes sense. The question is, will Google+ outstrip Facebook in popularity?

Google+ SymbolI’ll be posting as I explore and learn the G+ system. Feel free to share your thoughts with me and join me on Google+ too!

So far, the number one positive feedback I’m hearing is that G+ has excellent privacy features.

My favorite feature is the search functionality. It’s kind of like Twitter meets Facebook in the way that you can do a search for a specific keyword and you’ll get results for anyone who has posted publicly on that topic; then, you can create a Circle using that keyword name and add those interesting Plussers to your Circle. (Users are called Plussers by the way—no longer a “Twit,” now that’s a Plus).

Getting Started:

1. Set up your profile: you can share as little or as much as you feel comfortable sharing. (more…)

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Square Up and Get Paid Fast!

Thursday, May 19th, 2011

Are you able to accept credit cards payments anywhere, anytime?  If not, you need Square, a fabulous little tool that will change your selling power. Here’s the the best part: It’s Free.

Example of how SquareUp worksAs an author and speaker, I know how important it is to be able to sell your books and products at the back of the room—or even out of the back of your car (since we authors always have copies of our book with us). Square is a simple little device that plugs into the headphone jack of most smart phones (check to see if your phone is supported). The account is free, the device is free. You pay as you go, and the money deposits right into your account. Here’s how it works: (more…)

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Google’s +1 = a new social media giant?

Monday, May 16th, 2011

Google is recently conducting an experiment with a new program they are calling +1. It’s similar to Facebook’s Like button, but it appears right there in the search engine and allows you to give that page your vote of approval (a nice way to remember which sites you liked in a previous visit), plus it shows you who else in your network of friends has approved that page.

Here’s how it works: First, login to your Google account and do a search for Google +1 – you will be directed to a page that allows you to sign up “Try it Now.” You then have to activate your account, which gives Google permission to access your profile information and share your +1 recommendations with people within your network.

To see the +1 feature, you will need to (more…)

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Making a Good First Impression—Online

Tuesday, April 26th, 2011

You have less than a second to make a good first impression online.  Make your website or blog the best it can be: professional, free of clutter, organized, easy to understand, and available (meaning offer your readers value, and they will come back to you again and again).

With my consulting business I travel to conferences around the country and have the pleasure of meeting many new people on a regular basis.  This gives me the opportunity to make a good first impression, over, and over again.  Consequently, when I travel, I like to look and feel my best.  When I speak, I always wear a suit, makeup, designer shoes and I stand up tall and speak clearly—my friends wouldn’t even recognize me.  When you look good, you feel good, and people are more likely to trust you.

It’s true. We do judge a book by its cover. When we meet someone for the first time (more…)

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Word Press 3.1.1 is now available

Friday, April 22nd, 2011

A new version of Word Press is now available, not a major update, but there were some security issues addressed, and the folks at WordPress are recommending this update, I’ll let them tell you why.

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Did Greg Mortenson lie?

Thursday, April 21st, 2011

Pause.

Greater pause.

Three Cups of TeaIf you are like me, you probably love to see a successful publishing story, one that warms your heart and gives you hope. The release of Three Cups of Tea was indeed a story to remember, which is why when 60 Minutes announced that Greg Mortenson may have lied about the details of his story, the experiences that make up his book, and further that he may be misappropriating funds, I felt a pang in my heart that gave me great pause.

I watched the 60 Minutes episode and the evidence is indeed damning—of course they did their research and back up these allegations with several key witnesses (who were there) and pictures of Mortenson “happily hanging out” with (more…)

Posted in Book Publishing, General, Tweet this | 2 Comments »

Yelp Reaches 50 Million Monthly Visitors

Wednesday, April 20th, 2011

Earlier this month Yelp reported more than 50 million unique visitors—these are both users and reviewers (contributors).

People Love us on YelpYelp has become one of the best sources for finding good local anything: food, hairdressers, dentists, movie theaters, and even pharmacies.  Everyone has an opinion.  Of course, to get the most out of Yelp, it’s best to check the source.  Whenever I see a bad review, I check to see if the reviewer is just an all around negative person with nothing good to say, or if they review fairly and frequently. I also check reviewers of overtly sterling reviews to ensure that (more…)

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Robot Journalist Wants Your Job

Tuesday, April 19th, 2011

Okay, it’s bad enough that newspapers and magazines all over the country are shutting down the presses (forever), but now we have to compete with robot journalists?  Where’s the whiskey? I think I might have to wallow in bad country music for awhile.

NPR staffer tells the story: Robot Journalist’ Out-Writes Human Sports Reporter

 

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The Difference Between http & https

Tuesday, April 19th, 2011

“http” versus “https” – So what’s the difference (and should you care)?

HTTP stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol. The S stands for “Secure.”

If the URL of a website or web page begins with http:// then the website you are viewing is communicating with your browser via an ‘unsecured language. What this means is that the information you view and or send (in a form for example) is not protected and can be viewed by others—technically this means someone can eavesdrop on your computer’s conversation with the website.

Clearly, it is not a good idea to share your credit card information with just anyone, so be sure that the form or commerce cart you are using is on a secure server.  How can you tell?

The URL of a secure website will begin with https:// (the S is what you are looking for).  This tells you that the website is secure and no one can eavesdrop.

Be aware, remember to look to see if the URL address begins with httpS before entering sensitive information like a credit card number, social security number, or any personal information that you do not want to share.

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Google Bookstore

Tuesday, December 7th, 2010

Well, we all knew it was coming – but today it’s live. Google has a new digital bookstore this week and new apps to go with it. Forget using Kindle with it though. But you can get your iPhone app here, and your android app here. You’ll need a Google Checkout account too. But you can get that here. And most importantly, publishers get involved here. I can only imagine being involved with the (free) Google Books Partner Program will only help your visibility online.

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Twitter saves the world.

Friday, October 22nd, 2010

Well – not really, but it saved a Charger’s game from blackout by selling the requisite tickets.

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The future of books

Monday, October 18th, 2010

IDEO offers up three brilliant directions that reading may well take in the near future.

The Future of the Book. from IDEO on Vimeo.

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Enjoying Language

Wednesday, October 13th, 2010

These are a few of my favorite things – typography, language, and the spoken word. Ad a British accent and ….

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Twitter – it’s big in…

Friday, October 8th, 2010

Brazil?
According to Silicon Alley Insider Twitter’s reach per country is largest in Brazil.

Now, the chart is handicapped according to the amount of people on the web in each country as defined by comScore but still, if you speak Portuguese or your book is about Brazil maybe Twitter is where you need to be (Grace Deters I’m thinking of you).

By the way, comScore has some other interesting bits of data you might use.

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