Skype for iPhone and in-flight wi-fi

While I am all about cheaper alternatives to expensive cell phone plans and of course the nerdiest things possible, I do have to draw the line when it comes to in-flight phone conversations.  I will seriously reconsider a carrier if they allow in-flight calls.  Granted, some planes have phones which can be used if needed, but who the heck uses those.

Now however, with skype available on the iphone, what is to stop someone from making a call on a plane?  Would it be rude to ask someone next to you to not have a phone conversation?  Are flight attendants politely asking customers to refrain?  I honestly don’t know, but I certainly hope something is in place.  Nothing more annoying than hearing someone talk over jet engines…

My rant for the day…thanks for tuning in.

Is twitter growing too quickly?

A recent report showed that twitter has seen over a 1300%+  growth since February of last year. Apparently everyone wants to answer the question, “What are you doing?”. It is getting much more media buzz right now than facebook and that other site, My-Something-or-other. It has become an effective way to reach out to people faster than TV and newspaper.

I’ve found that the same RSS feeds I subscribe to are also some of the same folks I follow on twitter. I’ve also found that I read about something on twitter and see a feed in my reader later on. So much for digg bringing me breaking news.  If you are crafty enough, you can even have all your facebook updates pipe to twitter.  

As twitter’s popularity grows, so does its user base. Everyone in Hollywood has a twitter account and has apparently been the cause of the breakup of Jennifer Aniston and John Mayer. Some big name celebrities tweet regularly such as Shaq and Dane Cook.  Retailers are getting into the mix using twitter as another customer service touchpoint or to keep customers up to date.

But lets get real, take a look at how many people follow over a thousand people.  How can you keep up with everything?  You are sure to miss the hilarious tweet a co-worker posted or 75% savings at your favorite retailer.  This is becoming serious information overload.  

I have yet to figure out the perfect group of people to follow.  I have to admit, I get a kick out of updates from William Shatner and John Cleese, but I tend to miss some industry news.  How do you manage twitter?

What’s old is new again

The web changes, its a simple fact.  How users interact with websites changes as more sites adopt functionality.  Some basic principles will never change and should not be ignored.  However, remember that “cool” functionality you thought was cutting edge and you spent hours developing 3 years ago which you removed because of a drop in clicks, sales, etc…  Why not try it out again?  If it was unfamiliar to users, it may not be so now. Chances are by now, someone else is doing it and chances are they are seeing positve results.  So uncomment the code, review the change and try it again.

Addicting Apps - Mafia Live! And iMob Online

There are two iPhone apps which have become a must play throughout my day, Mafia Live! And iMob Online. Add me to your family.

Mafia Live! Family Code - 110 319 788

iMob Online Friend Code - 107 017 034

 

EDIT:

here is a link to family codes for Mafia Live!  Add yours.

http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=pTGPNtj4WiEmhAibknokIPQ

Oosah - 1TB Free Online Media Storage

Thanks to Lifehacker, I think I may have found the perfect solution for backing up the gigs of photography that I have already backed up on an external hard drive.  

Oosah.com boasts 1TB of online storage available for free.  Sound too good to be true, well there are some limitations which you need to know up front

  • Only media files (jpg, mp3, wmv, etc…) can be stored online
  • Size limitations in place include 50mb/image, 9mb/mp3, and 200mb/video
  • There appears to be a limitation as to how many files can be uploaded at a time
  • No drag and drop utility yet available meaning you will need to create your own folder structure online
Seeing as how these maximums were more than enough for my personal use, I began to investigate more.  Some major benefits in my opion… 

  • Drag and drop uploaded images/video to a linked picassa, flickr, or youTube Account
  • iPhone optimized interface for browsing files (additional features soon to be available)
  • Media can be syndicated - RSS feeds are only a click away
  • Analytics available for uploaded content
  • Create oosahs - Presentations made using the media uploaded to your account.
  • RAW files accepted from all major camera manufacturers
I am intrigued enough to begin using primarily for photography at this point.  At some point I may choose to back up my mp3’s.  It seems like a great way to backup data which won’t fit on DVD’s
Just a side note…be careful if your ISP has any limitations on the amount of bandwidth your account is allowed before incurring additional charges!