Twitter

Want to know what your favorite celebrity is into these days; head to Twitter.

Thanks to the five year old social network you can follow every thought coming out of Hollywood. And some start-ups are now using Twitter to cash in on those thoughts. The idea is to connect celebrities with companies willing to pay them for a tweet. And the stars aren’t turning down the easy money, no matter how obscure the product.

Companies say Twitter has become an easy way to grab an audience and is cheaper than most advertising campaigns. And there’s a science behind it. The effectiveness of a paid tweet is measured by how many times it’s re-posted and how many followers the celebrity has.  read more »

Is someone else running your online social life; they could be ruining your reputation.

Social media is a powerful business tool because it’s personal, fast and unfiltered. Unfortunately a lot of businesses place that power in the hands of the inexperienced; and it becomes that company’s downfall. According to MSN Business most business executives allow junior employees or interns to manage Facebook pages and twitter feeds. But while those people might have grown up with the social sites they don’t have the business background to make their knowledge meaningful. And their lack of experience could mean bad things for your company and your career. Instead the younger more internet savvy employees should work with the business minded to put their best online foot forward.  read more »

Facebook and Twitter are being de-friended by the French.

Mentioning either of the social networking sites has been banned by French officials on radio and television. The only exception is if they are the subject of a major news story. French officials are citing a 1992 law for the new restriction. This states that programs can not advertise or promote private companies. Journalists will also not be able to say things like “follow us on Twitter” or “visit our Facebook page.”

Instead they’re being encouraged to adopt the phrase “find us on social networks.” Officials say cutting down on the Facebook and Twitter shout-outs will also give smaller companies a chance to gain some recognition.  read more »

Celebrities take note. Your career could be one tweet away from over.

A survey by publishers Bauer Media found that easy access to stars through twitter makes them less appealing. This leads to fans getting bored and moving on to the next rising star. And according to the survey this also means a shorter career for the celebrity tweeter. The publishing company says these days it’s easy to follow the day to day activities of your favorite celebrity. But the easy access leads to fans losing interest quicker.  read more »

Not only do you have to watch what you post on your favorite social site but how long you spend doing it.

Most of us know not to post inappropriate pictures on Facebook or tweet negative comments about our co-workers but now you have to monitor yourself in another way. According to careerbuilder.com if an employer sees that you’re being overly active on social media your professional commitment could be questioned. If you are always on social sites employers will start to question how your online activity is contributing to the company. They will also wonder what is not getting done while you are connecting with old friends.  read more »

The world is witnessing a disaster and now we’re getting some high tech relief.

Japan has suffered though a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and a deadly tsunami. Aftershocks still rattle the region amid fears of nuclear reactor meltdowns. And some of the biggest tech companies are stepping in to offer help as rescuers continue their searches and clean-up gets underway.

Silicon Valley based Google has an online “people finder” for people seeking information about a loved one. You can go to this site to post information about who you are looking for or you can post information about a person you have found. Microsoft is offering free technical support and temporary software licenses to help companies impacted by the quake. They have also pledged $250,000 in cash.  read more »

Ever changing technology might be replacing most of your everyday items, but there are a few gadgets that aren’t quite ready for the scrap pile.

The iPod might have silenced your portable CD player and your GPS system may get you places faster than a map but some of that old fashioned technology has staying power. PC World made a list of the ten technologies that should be extinct but are still clinging to life.

Whether it’s a diehard fan base or pure necessity, items like the typewriter and fax machine have managed to stick around, even though companies use planned obsolescence to get you to buy their newest gadget.  read more »

Heading for divorce court? You might want to remember that the next time you update your Facebook status.

The American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers reports that 81% of its members has used or faced evidence pulled from social networking sites like Linked In, My Space and Twitter. But when it comes to the best site for scandalous information, Facebook takes the top slot with 66% of lawyers retrieving most of their ammo from the site. Linda Lea Viken is President of the matrimonial lawyers group and says this type of evidence makes the cases very easy. Viken says she can’t believe some of the things clients are posting on Facebook.  read more »

The most famous love story of all time has been portrayed on theater stages for centuries and the silver screen for decades. And now with all of their sweet sorrow, Romeo and Juliet are coming to twitter.

A twenty-first century rendition of “Romeo and Juliet” will be featured on both Twitter and You Tube. The production is titled “Such Tweet Sorrow” and is collaboration between the Royal Shakespeare Company and Mudlark, which produces cell phone entertainment. While organizers have devised a script loosely based on the original play, most of the dialogue will be improvised by the cast through tweets.  read more »

When you were a kid perhaps you wanted to be a fireman or an astronaut. Well today's generation is on a whole new path, a path that ten years ago didn't even exist.

From the latest gadgets to living green, economic changes over the past decade have brought us many new industries. And job titles that would once have made you skeptical are becoming the norm. Career Builder has put together a list of the ten careers that didn't exist ten years ago. For example number ten on the list is the Virtual Business Service Provider. These people offer public relations service, concerige service or customer service from the comfort of their homes. Thanks to telecommuting, the internet and video conferencing all the work in an office can be done from your couch of kitchen table.  read more »