BlogHer Archives - Page 5 of 23

Thoughts On Being Iconic: Is Facebook an American Icon?

Think about cultural icons. You know, things like The Statue of Liberty or movie lines like “Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.” Think about Apple products. Think about Facebook.

That’s right. I said Facebook.

How can I think Facebook is iconic? Because it’s now become a symbol. I don’t mean a symbol on the stock exchange. I’m talking about a symbol of a way of life, of a generation, of a movement. And here’s proof in the form of Katy Perry’s latest video.

Facebook is no longer just a social media site. It’s now a way of communicating something about life and art that transcends social media. In other words, a cultural icon. If Andy Warhol were here, he would paint Facebook.

So what does it take to become iconic? Here are Virginia’s rules on becoming iconic.

1. Everybody has to Know about Whatever IT Is

Everybody knows about Facebook. Even if they don’t use it. In the U.S.A. about 59% of the online population uses it. The rest of the people just listen to endless news reports about it.

What is something everyone know about that you consider iconic?

2. Everybody has to Value Whatever IT Stands For

Everybody knows about The Statue of Liberty, too. But it’s more that just knowing about it. It stands for something important.

The Statue of Liberty = freedom. The Land of the Free. That’s what we are and we have Lady Liberty to remind you. You love freedom, right? Me, too. I scream, you scream, we all scream for freedom. We all feel a thrill when we see Lady Liberty standing in New York Harbor. We all recognize her image as she lifts her light. Why? Because we all value freedom.

Freedom is so important we are willing to die for it. The things that symbolize freedom – be they statues, flags, slogans or images – stand for those things we cherish and value. They are iconic.

What iconic symbol stands for something you value?

3. You Have to Love IT Every Single Time

Every time you watch “Casablanca” you love it, right? You can throw out lines like, “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship,” in appropriate spots and everybody knows what you are referring to because they all loved “Casablanca” too.

It bears rewatching. You never get tired of it. You’ll go out at midnight to see it on the big screen. It’s a cultural touchstone. It’s iconic.

I could have picked something more modern than “Casablanca.” Perhaps “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” When a story like Joss Whedon’s favorite ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ episodes to marathon on LOGO makes national news, you’re dealing with the iconic.

What iconic bit of culture do you love every single time?

4. IT Can Excite and Thrill

Just looking at it, touching it, using it, has to be exciting. Has to thrill you and make you feel cool and powerful and fabulous. I’m thinking of Apple’s product line here: everything from the first aqua iMac to the minimalist interface of the iPod to the sleek and brilliant iPad. This rule applies to anything extraordinarily beautiful as well as to anything that works effortlessly and beautifully.

It’s so cool to carry or wear or be around that you are cool too. We all agree on this. We bestow coolness on you because you are smart enough to have this iconic thing beside you.

What beautifully designed and thrilling thing do you consider iconic?

5. Stories Are the Road to Iconic

We love stories. We tell stories to each other, we read stories, we follow stories on TV, we watch stories in the theater. We get personally attached and involved with the stories we love. We’re passionate about our stories, our characters. I think having a great story helps make the ordinary iconic. So many of our icons came from stories. The emotional connection comes from the story, from the idea, not from the thing.

If you set out to create something that everyone would know about and love and enjoy time and again, how would you do it? How would you create something iconic that would endure through generations and across cultures? Would you start with a good story?

I think you’d have to have a good story. That’s my step one.

What do you think is the next step?

[Note: Cross-posted at BlogHer.]

Tips for Success on Kickstarter

You have a killer idea for a product or project, but you have no money to make it a reality. Could Kickstarter be an option for you?

example project from kickstarter.com

Kickstarter won’t help you start a business or collect money for charity. But it will help you with a “project.” Here’s how Kickstarter defines a project.

A project has a clear goal, like making an album, a book, or a work of art. A project will eventually be completed, and something will be produced by it. A project is not open-ended. Starting a business, for example, does not qualify as a project.

If those qualifications fit your idea, here are a few tips to help you create a successful Kickstarter project.

It’s All or Nothing

On Kickstarter you set a goal. If you reach the goal you get the money. If you don’t reach the goal, you get nothing. It becomes really important to plan your budget carefully. Consider every expense that will be involved in making your project a reality and include that amount in the goal. You don’t want to get funded and then not have enough money to make your idea real because your goal was not high enough to complete the project.

Give Your Supporters a Reward

The people who believe in your project and give you funding need some token in return. Maybe it’s a copy of the thing your project makes. Maybe it’s an invitation to your opening night. Maybe it’s some form of recognition within the project itself. Maybe it something you create especially for your donors. But give something in return for the cash and the faith they extend to you. Don’t forget to figure the cost of sending people their rewards into your goal amount if the reward is something that needs to be mailed.

The Video is Your Sales Tool

Every Kickstarter project page has a video in which the person seeking funding shows the potential donors what the project is, why it’s awesome, and why they should help fund it. Kickstarter has some tips for making the video, including:

No matter how creative or bare-bones your video, you’ll want to:

Tell us who you are.

Tell us the story behind your project. Where’d you get the idea? What stage is it at now? How are you feeling about it?

Come out and ask for people’s support, explaining why you need it and what you’ll do with their money.

Talk about how awesome your rewards are, using any images you can.

Explain that if you don’t reach your goal, you’ll get nothing, and everyone will be sad.

Thank everyone!

Be sincere and show how much you love the idea – you must believe in yourself and let it show. You’re really selling yourself in the video. If you have a product your can demo in the video, do it.

You’re asking people for money. Give them all the information they would want to know before pledging their dollars. If you leave unanswered questions in their minds, they may hesitate to participate.

Keep People Updated and Promote, Promote, Promote

Your Kickstarter page will track donations, but use Facebook and Twitter and email to keep the updates going to to celebrate success as it builds. Social media tools will also help you maintain awareness among those who might help but haven’t yet.

Promote the project in every way that you can. Reach out to bloggers who might be interested in your type of project and see if they will write about it. Send press releases to newspapers. Pass out flyers. Do whatever you can think of to build awareness. (Without spamming everyone you know, of course.)

If you reach your goal and your project gets funded, all the awareness you’ve raised with your outreach on Kickstarter will help you market the project later on.

Be Quick to Reward

If you reach your goal, be quick to get those rewards out. And use the rewards contact with your supporters to tell them more about the completed project and where they can see or buy the item they helped fund.

Share the Celebration

If you get funded, share the celebration. Not just with the reward, but with outreach in the same way you promoted your project. Put photos on Facebook, or share success with your supporters in any way you can.

Cross-posted at BlogHer.

July 9: Is it Doomsday for the Internet?

The reports about the July 9 virus, which affects both Windows and Mac, are calling it “Internet Doomsday” and Internet Blackout. A virus that could shut down thousands of Internet users certainly should make headlines. More important news is there is a way to check your computer to see if you are at risk.

Image from DNS Changer test site

The malware that could do all the damage is called “DNS Changer.” DNS stands for Domain Name Service. It’s the system for how the Internet keeps track of where servers and files are located. According to a report on Mashable, this malware . . .

redirects your computer’s DNS queries from your ISP’s server to one created by the trojan’s creators — essentially hijacking all Internet traffic from your machine. That way, the bad guys can send you to hacker-created websites filled with ads whenever they want.

The FBI Works with DCWG on Fixes

The FBI has set up a web site with security firm DCWG to help to determine whether your computer is at risk. There’s a description of what lead up to the situation and what the malware does:

The botnet operated by Rove Digital altered user DNS settings, pointing victims to malicious DNS in data centers in Estonia, New York, and Chicago. The malicious DNS servers would give fake, malicious answers, altering user searches, and promoting fake and dangerous products. Because every web search starts with DNS, the malware showed users an altered version of the Internet.

Under a court order, expiring July 9, the Internet Systems Consortium is operating replacement DNS servers for the Rove Digital network. This will allow affected networks time to identify infected hosts, and avoid sudden disruption of services to victim machines.

The DCWG site includes options for you to detect the malware on your computer, fix it if you are infected, and protect yourself from further infection with the DNS Changer.

You may also be able to find helpful information from your own internet service provided. I use Comcast for my Internet service, and found this page for Comcast users.

Both the DCWG site and the Comcast help page send you to dns-ok.us which runs a check to see if your computer is okay. This page is for English results. If you are not in the U.S., you can find a list of similar sites for other languages at DCWG/detect.

All the test involves is for you to click on the link. You don’t download anything.

Should your computer fail this quick detection test, there are instructions on what to do next. If you are okay, you see a cheerful green background with a message that you are okay. If you see a red background, you are given information about a fix. Be aware of the message below the fold on the page, however, even if you get the happy green okay message:

Had your computer been infected with DNS changer malware you would have seen a red background. Please note, however, that if your ISP is redirecting DNS traffic for its customers you would have reached this site even though you are infected. For additional information regarding the DNS changer malware, please visit the FBI’s website at: www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2011/november/malware_110911.

Do It

Run the test, make sure you’re computer is safe. If not, use the instructions at DCWG to fix it. As the lady so eloquently said, “Check yourself before you wreck yourself.”

Note: Cross-posted at BlogHer.

TechWomen: An example of success

TechWomen is hard to describe in just a few words. The purpose is to bring tech women from mostly Muslim countries to the Silicon Valley, where they work with female mentors from the tech industry. But it’s more than that: it’s an exchange of culture, technology, friendship, and knowledge that improves the lives of both the mentors and mentees.

I’ll let some of the women who have participated explain it.

TechWomen is an initiative of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It was formed under Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s leadership. It is managed by the Institute of International Education (IIE), and implemented in partnership with the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology.

A new group of mentees will arrive in San Francisco in September. The 2012 group has already been selected. BlogHer’s Elisa Camahort Page is a member of the selection committee. She’s worked with TechWomen for the past two years helping select leaders in technology from various countries who would benefit from a month with a Silicon Valley mentor.

There is still a need for mentors for this September. Women who would like to participate as either techological or cultural mentors can apply online. Professional mentors must be women working in technology fields in the San Francisco Bay Area. Cultural mentors are there to support the mentee’s personal growth and adjustment to living and working in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In a situation like this, both the mentor and the mentee get a lot out of the exchange. Here’s one pair talking about the program.

You can learn more at the TechWomen website. There’s much more background information and facts there than what I’m giving you in this brief overview. You can also keep track of this program through their Facebook Page and Twitter.

There is a TechWomen blog at techwomenmena.wordpress.com where you can find articles such as TechWomen Mentees Reconnect at E-Mediat Networking Conference in Jordan and Eradicating the Booth Babe Phenomenon.

I would like to congratulate everyone involved in creating this wonderful program for women in tech, and everyone who participates as a mentor or mentee.

This post was cross-posted at BlogHer.

Pinterest and Its Terms of Service: an announcment

Pinterest has been A) growing like crazy in popularity, and B) catching lots of criticism because of its terms of service. There were issues of copyright and Pinterest’s claim to the right to sell your images. See Pinterest and the Intellectual Property conundrum and Don’t Pin Me ‘Bro! The Saga of Copyright and Pinterest, and Pinterest’s Terms of Service, Word by Terrifying Word for background on the issues.

To its credit, Pinterest listened and is responding to the criticism and making changes to their terms of service. They posted on the Pinterest blog and emailed all their users with news of recent changes in the terms of service, privacy policy and acceptable use policy. Those changes go into effect April 6, 2012. Here’s the summary of changes:

Our original Terms stated that by posting content to Pinterest you grant Pinterest the right for to sell your content. Selling content was never our intention and we removed this from our updated Terms.

We updated our Acceptable Use Policy and we will not allow pins that explicitly encourage self-harm or self-abuse.

We released simpler tools for anyone to report alleged copyright or trademark infringements.

Finally, we added language that will pave the way for new features such as a Pinterest API and Private Pinboards.

It’s the third change mentioned, the one about reporting copyright or trademark infringements that we’ll look at first. Elisa Camahort Page started a conversation about those changes on Google+. Here’s some of what Elisa brought up:

1. Do these terms still allow them to swap user links for their own affiliate links? (The terms say they can re-format”, but do not explicitly mention link-swapping at all.) [Editor’s Note: See LLSocial for information on the link swapping or link skimming issue.]

2. Their terms have removed the exhortation not to self-pin or self-promote (kind of a duh update there), but they do specifically say not to use Pinterest to promote any third party or for commercial purpose. How does that work in real life?

3. They continue to put the onus on the user to know they have the right to pin what they pin. That probably aligns with legal precedent, but it also means that they’re not planning to change how visuals display within Pinterest in order for users to have the “thumbnail defense”.

There are many interesting comments in response to these questions that I urge you to go read. One in particular, by +Kelby Carr, who is writing a book about Pinterest, said,

As far as the copyright issue, I think at some point they will need to scale the size of all images even on the pin page itself. If they thumbnail them, yes it isn’t as pretty. But the full size image pin page is the only thing that makes Pinterest different than every other bookmarking/sharing site that pulls in a thumbnail from content shared.

A few minutes later, she added:

I also think it would go a long way if they would ban pinning from sites that are never the original source like Google image search.

No one specifically commented on the fact that the copyright owner is still the person who must police the site and go through Pinterest’s reporting process when they find a violation. As the Pinterest user, there were several ideas in Pinterest and the Intellectual Property conundrum that talked about how to be a responsible pinner and to try to be sure your pins were not in violation of anyone’s rights.

Dropping the idea that Pinterest might sell the content you pin is the topic of The Scientific American blog Symbiartic. They commented on what they call the misconception that sites like G+, Twitter, Facebook, deviantArt and Tumblr are all similar in terms of service in Pinterest updates Terms of Service, drops the “sell”. The writer points out that such sites,

do not claim to right to “sell” and “otherwise exploit” your content. The idea that this was some sort of stock, boilerplate Terms of Service is wrong.

The Symbiartic post cheers on all the bloggers and tweeters who spoke up about Pinterest’s terms with such success, and comments further,

For the people who posted the “but all sites are the same” sentiments, even if that were true, does that mean you have to roll over and take it? Most social media savvy sites like Pinterest do actually listen to their users – they understand the two-way street.

Pinterest itself echos that comment, saying users have had a big influence:

Like everything at Pinterest, these updates are a work in progress that we will continue to improve upon. We’re working hard to make Pinterest the best place for you to find inspiration from people who share your interest. We’ve gotten a lot of help from our community as we’ve crafted these Terms.

Pinterest may have a ways to go, especially on copyright, but they’ve made some significant changes. How do you feel about these new terms of service at Pinterest?

Cross-posted on BlogHer.

Speed tests, manly pin boards, and passwords

There were three stories I wanted to write about this week. I debated with myself about which one to tell you about and couldn’t make up my mind. I decided to give you a quick version of all three. You’ll find out about an iPhone 4G speed test, some new sites similar to Pinterest aimed at men, and how some colleges and employers are asking for Twitter and Facebook passwords.

iPhone Speed Test

Ramsey Mohsen wanted to know if the iPhone iOS update from 5.1 to 5.01 really ran faster using 4G. He tested with both AT&T and Verizon using both 3G and 4G. The results were interesting!

These results confirm rumors I’ve heard that devices can use 4G, but the networks don’t have it up and running much of anywhere yet. Something to think about when you are looking at device price points, perhaps.

Pin Boards for Men

Imagine the scene on the pin board playground. The girls are having a great time pinning things. They are showing massive growth in traffic, links, sales, and all sorts of metrics that might translate into money using a little thing called Pinterest. The boys want to play, but Pinterest seems filled with girl cooties and isn’t manly enough for them.

Well, some of the fellas checked out Pinterest – Mark Zuckerberg from Facebook for one. This either means Zuckerberg isn’t scared of girl cooties, or Facebook may soon have a pin board function.

Mark Zuckerberg aside, the boys want to pin, too. Who could resist the sharing fun, spreading great ideas such as where to find the best set of socket wrenches. Manly stuff. Soon enough, there were reports like 3 Pinterest Alternatives for Men. The 3 mentioned included gentlemint.com, DartItUp, and MANteresting. Some of these are still in beta. Yes, the boys are playing catch up.

Capioomnia reported on some Pinterest alternatives, too, and mentioned one that is attempting to be gender-free called Chill. Chill is for video pinning. At Chill, you can pin videos about socket wrenches and sexy high heeled shoes for Valentine’s Day ensembles. Pins everyone can love.

May We Have Your Password, Please?

Finally, we come to the privacy invasion attempts by some employers and some colleges. They are asking potential employees and potential athletes to provide passwords for Twitter and Facebook. They want a look at your private stuff.

ReadWriteWeb posted What Should You Do If Your Employer Asks for Your Facebook Password? The article quoted career coach Sandra Lamb, who said,

If your Facebook or other social media website password is requested (or required) that goes beyond a red flag–it’s a deal breaker.

In this video from CBS This Morning, Cornell University professor Jeffrey Hancock said that asking for passwords is illegal, period. It’s not okay. Also part of the password conversation in this clip from CBS is the idea of digital estates, which BlogHer featured in Are You Prepared with a “Digital Estate”.

Legal or not, this is an growing practice. With jobs so hard to find, articles like Job Seeker Balks at Request to Provide Facebook Login emphasize the difficulty someone who needs the work faces when asked to provide a password.

Have you had any experience with 4G speeds, alternatives to Pinterest, or misguided requests for your passwords? Tell us about it.

This post was originally posted on BlogHer.

Pew Study on Privacy Management on Social Media Sites

Sometimes it feels like most of the privacy issues on the Internet are women’s issues. The stalkers, the sexual wannabes, the trolls — they seem to prey mainly on women. But men have privacy issues, too. The most recent Pew Internet Study takes a look at privacy management practices among both sexes.

According to Pew, 63% of adults have some sort of online profile. That’s up about 20% from 2006. Of those online profiles, only about 20% are completely public. Most people (58%) have their profiles set to friends only. There’s also a percentage (19%) who use a setting that allows friends and friends of friends to see profiles. Out of that 19% who allow friends and friends of friends to see what they post, about 26% say they set privacy for individual posts that will bar some from seeing posts. Turn that around, it means 74% of that minority of users are allowing friends to spread around anything they want to share.

Women, however, are more careful. Pew identifies the habits of women as more “conservative in basic settings.” The following chart by Pew is labeled as privacy gender gap.

Image: Pew Research Center Internet and American Life Project

As you can see, the majority of women (67%) restrict access to information to friends only.

Women are also the most likely to delete friends, remove comments, and–on sites where photos can be tagged–women are most likely to remove their name from tagged photos. The number of people who report culling friends, deleting comments, and removing a name from tagged photos is up in the last few years, but it still not a majority behavior in most age groups. However, in the 18-29 demographic, this kind of profile control is prevalent.

For the 18-29 demographic, the Pew study says,

Deleting social media comments is part of the reputation management work of being a young adult.

Removing comments and tags on photos is a way of managing what other people are posting. As for management of one’s own content, only 11% of the people in the study say they have posted something they regret. The percent of people posting things they regret are most often men or young adults, again supporting the idea that women are more careful and thoughtful about what they are putting on social media sites.

If these results seem Facebook-centric in terminology, that’s because Facebook remains huge. Fully 93% of people who do have an online profile are on Facebook. MySpace continues to lose, with only 23% of the surveyed users being there. Twitter users are up, but still only account for 11% of online profiles. Google+ wasn’t mentioned in the study that I could find.

Also interesting, many users (55%) maintain a profile on only one site.

Personal Reflections

I don’t fit anybody’s idea of demographics. My age, my gender, and my occupation are all way off the charts in terms of normal demographics. Nevertheless, I think a few personal reflections are in order, because I think I at least represent how women act online.

First, I have never deleted a friend on any social media site I belong to. That’s because I’m very picky about who I friend. If I don’t know you personally or have a good reason to want to friend you for professional purposes, you don’t make the cut. Does this describe you, too?

Secondly, I have multiple online profiles: Facebook, Twitter, Google +, BlogHer, and more at smaller and more specialized sites. Are you a single profile person, or a multiple profile person?

Finally, I think we all (but especially women) need to be vigilant about online profiles and behavior because the landscape changes constantly. New information about privacy violations appear in the news regularly. It falls to us, the users, to take frequent tours through the account settings of the sites we use to ensure good privacy control. We cannot depend on online sites to be careful for us.