Take This Lollipop

Today in my APR 300 class, we were learning about web design. My teacher introduced us to this site called “Take This Lollipop.” Now, when I first heard this I immediately thought about lollipops and happiness, but I was wrong. Instead you login through Facebook where none of your information will be kept on the site. It is merely to use for purpose of this “game.”

It starts off by a man sitting at a computer looking like he is on a mission to find you and kidnap you. Then, it turns to the computer and you see some random pictures from your Facebook profile. Soon, the screen turns back to the scary man who looks frustrated because he wants to find your location. The screen turns back and forth from the scary man to the computer showing your pictures.

Suddenly, you see the man driving his car to your location. His facial expressions are very scary and I did not know what was going to happen. The man gets out of his car because he is at the location with your profile picture taped to the glove box.

Oh my gosh, this had to be the weirdest and scariest thing I have ever seen on the computer. I literally thought the scary man was going to come through the door of the classroom and scare us. Thank goodness he didn’t.

I wanted to see for myself, so I decided to do so. I signed in through Facebook and then it began. The music was slow, loud, and scary and the lighting was dark and eerie. All of the sudden I see the man logging into Facebook and then my pictures start popping up. I was so freaked out.

If you do decide to try this website out, I want to prepare you for what will happen.

Have you ever heard of this site? Do you think you will try it out?

http://www.takethislollipop.com/

 

The Success of LinkedIn

I was reading an article online called, “3 Easy Habits for LinkedIn Success.” This article was really interesting as it made me realize how to make my LinkedIn profile stand out from the others. As I am looking for an internship and soon a job, it would be great to learn the “tricks of the trade” so that I have many opportunities.

This article mentions, “It all starts with being truly thoughtful about the content you post, and how you choose to share it.” I really think this statement is true because if you are passionate about the content on your resume, then you can really sell yourself. The articles reiterates that you want to create a relationship with people you connect with for the future

I think LinkedIn is a great social media site that provides opportunities to connect with others. I think of LinkedIn as a “mature” Facebook because College students and employers are the ones who have a LinkedIn account. Not that I am saying that Facebook is not a great way to connect; however, LinkedIn is specifically used for finding jobs and networking.

The LinkedIn About Us page defines LinkedIn as, “The world’s largest professional network with 200 million members in 200 countries and territories around the globe.” From this, you can see that LinkedIn more recently has become very popular since its launch in 2003.

I just created a LinkedIn page this semester for my social media class, but I am really glad I have one because I think that it will give me great opportunities for my future. I think that LinkedIn will positively grow and expand.

Do you think LinkedIn is successful? Do you think LinkedIn provides opportunities for your career? Do you use your LinkedIn page regularly? Would you rather use LinkedIn over another social media site?

 

http://www.internetbillboards.net/2013/04/3-easy-habits-for-linkedin-success/

 

 

 

The Popularity of Vine

The first time I learned of Vine was this semester in my social media class. It’s actually really interesting because it is a six-second video that you post online. I like to think of it as video-Instagram. The premise behind this social media tool is simple, but it can be complicated too because there is no editing, which means you only get one shot to film. This can be a challenge for some but for others it comes naturally. Basically, all you have to do is follow the directions by holding down your finger on the screen where it will film and then to stop by lifting your finger.

Now, I have never used Vine before, but this seems like a simple process and cool idea. My sister actually has it and she loves it. She recently downloaded the application onto her iPhone and I think she has made multiple videos within the last few weeks. This just proves that social media is coming up with new things everyday. I actually think that this new tool can open many doors for social media. Videos seem to add a little something extra because you are able to capture more of the experience.

My question about this new social media application is how long will it stay popular before it turns into something like SnapChat that people rarely use anymore? My perspective on this is that it will probably be around for a while. Twitter owns Vine and since Twitter is a highly successful social media site, Vine seems to have good chances.

After seeing the increase and popularity of Vine, it might be time for me to join the crowd.

Do you have a Vine or have used Vine before? Have your experiences with making videos on Vine been easy? What do you like most about Vine?

 

Snapchat

Is Snapchat as big of a deal as people say it is? I feel that it is slowly dying down since its high point during winter break of 2012, but honestly what makes it so popular?

I do have a snapchat and at first I was “addicted” to it because it was different than regular social media and texting. The fact that you can take a picture and have the recipient see it for either 1-10 seconds and write on it, I think is what drew people in. From recent updates, you can now send a short video with sound to your friends.

The premise behind Snapchat is that after the seconds are up, you cannot retrieve/see that picture ever again. However, there are those who take screen shots and you will be notified of when they do. I don’t see the reason to screen shot a snapchat because that is creepy and why not text it instead? I think the idea behind Snapchat is different when comparing it to other social media outlets.

Recently there have been concerns of Snapchat due to the capturing of inappropriate pictures. Even though these pictures should disappear, lately this is not the case for some.

I was curious how others felt about Snapchat, so I asked for my sister’s opinion on this social media outlet. My sister said, “It was fun at first, but now it is overrated. It is considered a fad.” Now, my sister used to snapchat people all the time when it came out. I was kind of surprised to hear her say this, but at the same time I was not. Snapchat is slowly decreasing in popularity.

Did you or do you still use Snapchat? Is it apart of your regular social media outlets? How do you feel about the recent concerns pertaining to Snapchat?

 

 

 

The Bachelor and Social Media

Throughout the final episodes of the seventeenth season of “The Bachelor”, the production company allowed for fans to tweet during the show and of course social media increased after the “After the Final Rose Ceremony” on Monday, March 11. According to the website, Mashable, “Fans took to social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to discuss in real-time what unfolded on screen.”

I watched “The Bachelor” Monday night and social media was blowing up during and after the final episode of Sean’s season. Sean Lowe, the bachelor, utilized his twitter account with some behind the scenes information of his experience and his thoughts. I Think it established a foundation that fans were comfortable tweeting about his season because he felt comfortable tweeting about it too. Also, during the show fans were tweeting about their thoughts of Sean’s pick of Catherine. Social media hit a high when Sean picked Catherine because she seemed to be a favorite all along.

I think it was a great idea for the production company to allow fans to tweet during the show because it creates more of an interaction across the United States between the show and everyone watching. Tim Brock, VP of production said, “The social media universe lights up when “The Bachelor” and its associated shows come on. It’s the perfect vehicle for us to roll out our new ABC Network based social integration capabilities.”

I think the increase of social media has helped keep the show alive because after seventeen seasons of “The Bachelor” plus the seasons of “The Bachelorette” these two shows could have decreased. These improvements are what keep the show popular.

What did you think of the social media towards “The Bachelor?” Did you find it more positive and negative? Did you find more people were tweeting about this season and ones in the past?

 

The Unknown Features of YouTube

Did you know that there are many other features to YouTube besides being able to watch videos? Today, I just found out what else YouTube provides on their site. To be honest, I did not think that YouTube had anything else to offer.

One thing that I found really interesting from our class lecture was discovering the Disco feature. The Disco is a really neat feature that I really want to utilize because it will save a lot of time trying to find videos. To briefly explain this feature, you go to the Disco site and type in an artist that you would like to listen to. Then all of the music from that artist comes up with the music video and plays. I find this really cool because now you can listen to all of the songs without having to pay for it.

There is another feature that YouTube provides and it is very similar to Pandora because of what it offers. You can make a playlist with all of the songs that you like from YouTube. From what I have heard there are no commercials when listening to music, which is nice and different to Pandora.

I believe that this these unknown features will be a good competitor to the leading products because they are linked to YouTube, which is the number one video social media site. A question that I have been pondering since I learned of this information is why hasn’t YouTube promoted or marketed these features more? I think these features make YouTube more accessible and it allows me to be able to understand why YouTube is a top social media site.

Were you surprised to here of all of the mysterious features that YouTube offers? Do you think that you will start using YouTube features now that you know about them? Did you already know of these features?

 

Social Media and The Oscars

Before, during, and after The Oscars social media was buzzing about the award show. From the arrivals, to the outfits, to the show social media was ranking in high volume on all social media sites. According to a Mashable article, “The 2013 Oscars saw an uptick of almost 200% on social media over last year, propelling the ceremony to the top of the weekly social charts with room to spare” (Greene).

I know that while I was watching the award ceremony my twitter was pulled up on my computer because I wanted to either get behind the scenes scoop from celebrities there or from the Academy Awards twitter account and tweet about the show. I wanted instant news, which Twitter gave me.

I think that by those who tweet or Facebook about this type of event are expressing their opinion of the night. There is so much to say about an event like this that it does not surprise me that social media ranked really high on the charts. Apparently, “This makes the Oscars the third-most social TV event of 2013, behind the Super Bowl (52 million mentions) and the Grammys (17 million)” (Greene).

I think another factor of why this particular award show had the highest ranking of social media was from all of the buzz leading up to the show and all of the celebrities attending the event. Even by celebrities tweeting about watching or attending the Oscars made audiences want to watch the award show.

When the Oscars were over, people were still commenting or tweeting about those who won and performed. I know that on a few sites they asked audiences to voice their opinion, which increased social media.

What did you think of the use of social media on Sunday night? Did you use or look at social media during or after the award show?

 

Retweets vs. Autographs

 

Is a Retweet the same or different from an autograph from a celebrity on Twitter? I think the two are different because celebrities are taking the time to look at your tweets. This just shows that celebrities are invested in their fans. I think Twitter allows for celebrities to become more involved by their fans, while being influential. For instance, when a well-liked celebrity tweets about an event or something, fans will be more likely to participate if the celebrity interacts with his/her followers.

I enjoy following celebrities on Twitter because it allows me as a fan to see how normal they truly are. When I see celebrities retweet, I think that it counts as some form of an autograph because it is practically their signature. Whether it is online or on paper, you can have it forever. Plus online more people are able to see the retweet.

A question that I have been pondering is “Will retweets eventually takeover autographs?” I hope they do not because the thrill of having a signed piece of paper that you waited outside for hours in the cold is so worth it. I think that piece of paper or picture that you had signed will be more memorable than a retweet. Now, this is just my opinion, I also think that getting retweeted is really cool but call me old fashioned.

There is also the one-on-one interaction with the celebrity when you get an actual autograph that does not happen everyday. Don’t get me wrong, getting retweeted does not happen everyday but it is easier to get.

I have to be honest that I have not actually been retweeted at and I was kind of upset because it was Matthew Perry and I think he was great in the TV show Friends. Even though he did not retweet me back, the possibility that he could was exciting.

What are your thoughts between retweets vs. autographs? Have you ever been retweeted by a celebrity?

 

Does Social Media Affect Grammar and Writing Skills?

Throughout the few years that I have been apart of the social media world, I have wondered how much it can affect people’s grammar and writing skills. I know on twitter there is an amount to how many words you can tweet, but should it affect the way you communicate with people?

From observation, I have noticed that many people abbreviate words or do not correctly punctuate or capitalize words. Is it because we do not learn grammar in our English classes anymore? Lately, I have been pondering on this question because I do not want our writing skills to decrease just because of the space capacity on social media.

Yes, social media is a way to express our feelings, thoughts, opinions, but I think we should be able to do it correctly. I read somewhere that it takes about 21 days for something to become a habit, why should this type of writing become a habit?

I am curious if the intent for social media writing was to abbreviate most words to allow more interaction. Don’t get me wrong, it is a smart thing that Twitter has as limit on words, but wouldn’t it be nice not to have to Google the abbreviations. Yes, I am that girl who has to sometimes Google abbreviations because I have no idea what they mean.

I know that our world is leaning more on social media; therefore, shouldn’t we as a community of social media be more aware of our language. I just feel that there might be a better way to get a message out by using effective writing skills or correct grammar.

This is just a topic that I have been thinking about lately because I have been noticing it more. Have you noticed that same thing? I would like to hear your thoughts.

Social Media and Super Bowl Halftime

Social media was booming before, during, and after the Super Bowl’s halftime performance by Beyonce. I know that I was involved in the social media world during her performance because she was amazing. I mean besides the fact that it is Beyonce, her performance made viewers want to be there and experience the great tradition.

That night, social media was a way for people to express their thoughts, emotions, and opinions of her performance and they did. From my social media sites, I noticed positive feedback. I believe this performance was Beyonce’s big event coming back to the stage after having her baby, and she represented well.

According to a Mashable article, “For the conclusion of her show: 268, 000 tweets per minute, Destiny’s Child reunion on stage: 257, 500 tweets per minute, and Singing ‘Single Ladies:’ 252, 500 tweets per minute.” Twitter was just one of the social media sites that was buzzing with word about Beyonce’s performance; Instagram and Facebook were exploding as well..

I think that social media in this situation had great rewards to Beyonce because she was instantly able to see comments being made about her through social media. I do know that her husband, Jay-Z, was there and made a comment after the lights went out after her show. He seemed really proud of her as her performance was outstanding.

I think that if I had not watched her halftime performance, I could look online on Twitter or Facebook and watch videos or read statuses or tweets that would instantly inform me of the show. It is interesting how it takes longer to record and upload a video than to watch it and have it spread like wild fire.

Social media is a great tool for situations like this because I think it can connect friends, acquaintances, and strangers together.

Do you think that social media impacted people’s perspective of the halftime show? Do you think social media plays a part in recognizing good from bad?

http://mashable.com/2013/02/04/beyonces-super-bowl-spectacle-lights-up-instagram-facebook-and-twitter/