tagged w/ Online Communities
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Facebook has acquired FriendFeed, we’ve learned. We’re gathering details now.
At this point details on the acquisition are still very sparse, but it’s clearly a good match. Over the last year or so, Facebook has “borrowed” quite a few of features that FriendFeed popularized, including the ‘Like’ feature and an emphasis on real-time news updates.
Obviously Facebook has already built out some of FriendFeed’s functionality so there is some overlap, but there are still numerous ways FriendFeed beats out Facebook’s News Feed setup. One of these is the way stories are ‘floated’ to the top as new users comment on them. And FriendFeed’s system is truly real-time, unlike Facebook’s feed which users have to manually refresh.
But the biggest win here for Facebook is the FriendFeed team, which includes an all-star cast of ex-Googlers. Perhaps best known of these is Paul Buchheit, who is responsible for creating Gmail, pioneering some of Google’s early (and incredibly lucrative) advertising products, and coining Google’s “Don’t be evil” motto. Other ex-Googler co-founders include Bret Taylor, Jim Norris, and Sanjeev Singh.
And so begins the next step in Facebook’s assault on Twitter.Facebook has acquired FriendFeed, we’ve learned. We’re gathering details now.... more
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Open ID is now being used by Facebook, Yahoo, Flickr, Paypal, Google, Microsoft, AOL, MySpace, IBM, LiveJournal and VeriSign, among many others.
OpenID is a distributed single sign on solution that allows people to sign into different services with the same login credentials.
Simply put, one cracked OpenID site (by hackers, the government, parents, etc) could result in total profile information access and/or one's identity being abused over several other OpenID sites.
The creator of OpenID currently works at Google.
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenID#Security_and_phishingOpen ID is now being used by Facebook, Yahoo, Flickr, Paypal, Google, Microsoft, AOL,... more
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More invasion of privacy on the online social network front...
"Twitter is handing out the personal details of people who register brand names on the micro-blogging service to big companies, without alerting the original registrant or performing any kind of standard due diligence."
"Stephanie Robesky of Atomico registered @Skype... a Twitter employee had handed out her name, email address and contact details to someone at Skype who then contacted her."More invasion of privacy on the online social network front...
"Twitter is handing... more
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Clearly Facebook is not the greenest company out there given this. Seems like a big price to pay for being able to tell people you're cooking dinner right now. This article raises the question; Is it environmentally conscious to have Facebook storing your numerous photos and videos?
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Facebook Completes Rollout Of Haystack To Stem Losses From Massive Photo Uploads
38 Comments
by Michael Arrington on April 6, 2009
One nugget of information Facebook leaked out to press last week during the Gideon Yu fiasco: the company has been EBITDA profitable for five quarters, but doesn’t expect to generate positive cash flow until 2010. Why the discrepancy? There’s only one answer to that - Facebook is paying out big dollars for something that must be depreciated over time. If they could just write off the expense in full as they paid it they’d be having much bigger losses now that matched cash flow, and they’d hit profitability sooner. But accounting rules let them pay cash now and recognize the expense later on. In early leaked projected financials, there was a $200 million difference in 2008 cash flow and EBITDA profitability (or lack thereof).
What have they been buying? Stuff to serve up all these massive page views, and photos in particular. In our post last October, when Facebook was fishing for dollars in Dubai, we noted some of their expenses, including a massive ongoing outlay for NetApp storage systems that cost $2 million each:
The company is likely spending well over a $1 million per month on electricity alone, say experts we’ve spoken with. Bandwidth is likely another $500,000 or more per month on top of that. The company has earmarked $100 million to buy 50,000 servers this year and next. And sources say they’ve been buying one NetApp 3070 storage system per week just to keep up with all this user generated content. At up to $2 million each, that adds up quickly - we’ve heard estimates that they may have spent as much as $30 million this year alone with the company. And the icing on the cake - earmark another $15 million per year in office and datacenter rent payments.
As we noted in February, Facebook is the largest photo application on the web (forgetting everything else they do). More than 850 million photos uploaded to the site each month, and these things chew up bandwidth and storage like crazy. And it’s even more expensive to serve photos in poorer countries where Facebook is getting all its growth (and little revenue).
Enter Haystack
Haystack is Facebook’s way of substantially lowering the cost of storing and serving photos, and the rollout of the new internal infrastructure was recently completed. See Niall Kennedy for a technical overview of what Haystack is and why it’s so much more efficient than third party solutions they’ve used to date, as well as this 2008 presentation by Jason Sobel.
What isn’t clear is if Haystack will really help Facebook control costs outside of the U.S., particularly in Asia. But it’s a step in the right direction for cost control, and is certainly being factored in Facebook’s estimates of cash flow profitability by next year.
CrunchBase Information
Facebook
Website: facebook.com
Location: Palo Alto, California, United States
Founded: February 1, 2004
Funding: $516MClearly Facebook is not the greenest company out there given this. Seems like a big... more
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The Internet makes it easier than ever to connect with others who are in the same boat as you and allows you to communicate quickly and easily with people from all over the world. Check out this list of 100.The Internet makes it easier than ever to connect with others who are in the same boat... more
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Tomorrow is the big day, and we want you to be a part of it. Here's what you need to know to participate in our inauguration coverage, so take notes and maybe we'll see you on TV.
+ Live streaming on Current: since the ceremony will be taking place 11:30am EST on Tuesday morning (with repeats at 5:30pm EST and 10:30pm EST), this means the live broadcast will be taking place in the middle of the day (and at 8:30am in PST). So, we are going to be streaming the whole thing on Current.com. We've already heard others with plans to pick up bagels and have a viewing party in their PJs, so why not do the same? Head to http://current.com/44 to check out the whole event.
+ Twitter: We've once again teamed up with Twitter to give everyone a chance to weigh in on the event from the comfort of their laptop or mobile phone. If you're not yet familiar with Twitter, I'll post a quick explainer video from our own Brett Erlich (@bretterlich) below in the comments. If you haven't signed up, jump in now, or just plan to text message your thoughts to 40404 tomorrow during the event. Here is a short list of hashtags to use to get your tweets better positioned to air on TV:
-- #current: This is like the "Hey Current, look at me" hashtag du jour. If you have something interesting to report, or you just want to chime in, use #current in your tweet to get it on our radar.
-- #inaug09: NPR started this one up, and Andy Carvin (@acarvin) got us hooked. Simply put, this one is too good to ignore. We'll be monitoring the stream of tweets coming in with #inaug09, and pulling some of these to air as well. So, it couldn't hurt to pop this one into your tweet as well if you have some extra characters to spare.
-- #dcalerts: The good folks over at The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) have put this little gem of a hashtag together with a twist. They are asking anyone in the Washington D.C. area tomorrow to use #dcalert to send updates regarding traffic conditions and the overall vibe of the crowd as the ceremony progresses. If you happen to be in the mall, headed to the mall, or trying to escape from the mall, tag your adventures with #dcalerts for others to follow along. We'll be pulling updates from here as well, so keep it handy.
And that's it! Everything you need to know for a very social media enhanced Inauguration Day. We hope you'll join us, and as always send us feedback about the whole thing.
Best,
Mario
Online Community Team
Subscribe to our blog: http://feeds.current.com/topic/77589461.rss
Connect on Current.com: http://current.com/users/mario_a/all/0.htm
Follow the Current.com team on Twitter: http://twitter.com/current
Follow me on Twitter? http://twitter.com/manimaTomorrow is the big day, and we want you to be a part of it. Here's what you need to... more
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A "social media" company based out of Denver, CO is pressuring a teacher to give up his Twitter account with the same name. The account name is room214, and the company is Room 214. They have allegedly sent him a direct message via the Twitter site which mentioned legal action against him in order to acquire the name. Colin, the teacher, does not use his account for commercial purposes. His account has no relation the company, room214, nor the type of online marketing that they partake in. He started updating on Twitter in April 2007. The name stems from the number of his former classroom.
According to the room214 company's website, they started as a company in 2004, but their current Twitter username, room_214, started updating on Twitter on December 20th, 2008. Their most current post says they are "working things out" with user room214. It appears that there is no trademark on the name by this company, although this has not been confirmed by room214.
On December 28th, the company room214's co-founder explained that an employee independently sent the communication mentioning legal action and this move was not endorsed by the company. He also said that issue has been resolved and both parties will keep their existing usernames.
Nevertheless, what do you think about this? In this case, there was no actual legal action - does a company have the right to take a noncommercial, non-related username from an individual regardless of the date of creation? If not, should they? Do users on internet communities have the right to protect their online identities?A "social media" company based out of Denver, CO is pressuring a teacher to give up... more
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Obama's embracing the collaborative side of the web as his site now has a tool that allows visitors to ask questions and vote for other people's questions. Like Current, Digg and other collaborative websites he's using the "wisdom of the crowds" approach so that questions most important to people get wider publication and will be answered by his team.
By Wednesday evening, the day of the launch, 159,890 people had voted on 1,986 questions from 3,255 people.
Maybe one day we'll see this approach in the UK as well and hopefully awkward issues that we want to hear answers to won't get covered up.Obama's embracing the collaborative side of the web as his site now has a tool that... more
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Don't get me wrong, Current is a great idea, and for the most part it's a good alternative news site with interesting articles and such. But there are some things that drive me crazy about the site. Here's a list of them:
#1: Rampant Environmentalism/technophobia
It's not the environmentalism itself, it's the blind support of it in it's most drastic forms by the majority of currenters, regardless of it's effect on progress or personal life, the environment comes first. The US is in economic turmoil, yet somehow obscure species going extinct (due to failure to adapt, which is called "Natural Selection" if I remember correctly) makes the front page. One doesn't dare say they eat meat unless they're prepared for an onslaught of posts condemning this "archaic and barbaric" practice. What's this? A new military technology? I've seen people condemning an automatic tourniquet because it was created for military use, I kid you not. Whats this? A breakthrough in robotics or genetic engineering? It's the evil corporations trying to control us! Run for your lives!
#2: Celebrity Gossip
This is just despicable. People dying all over the world from famine and warfare, governments closing in on their people, technology advancing at breakneck speeds, and somehow the latest offhand remark by Angelina Jolie or photos of some strung-out ex-pop star end up on the front page? People who post this crap should be ashamed that they mindlessly put up this voyeuristic prolefeed because their lives are so boring they're more interested in those of "famous" people. Go die in a fire.
#3: Tinfoil Hats
UFO sightings, paranormal drek, crackpot theories, fluoride is incredibly toxic and shouldn't be put in the water (even though you've been drinking fluoridated water for years now and you have yet to die or submit to government mind control), paranoid superstitions, and the constant assertion of massive corporate conspiracies. Perhaps a grain of truth to some of these, but not nearly enough credible evidence to believe it as rabidly and blindly as some people here do.
#4: Business isn't just bad, it's evil
Making money is evil. Capitalism only causes misery. Every large corporation on earth is inherently evil, bent on world domination and cash. Don't buy anything ever. It will solve world hunger, AIDS, and cure poverty. Or so Current's inhabitants would say. They never have an alternative to capitalism ready when I ask them, but currenters are constantly bitching about it and blaming all of the evils of society on the exchange of goods and services for money. I've even had people suggest the barter system to me. Sure, that works great in the post apocalyptic wastelands, but money was created because carrying pieces of paper, metal, and electronic data is a hell of a lot easier than carrying around livestock and sacks of grain.
#5: Annoying Typing Habits...
...Make me want to stab people in the face.
Example 1: HAY GUYZ CAPS LOCK IS CRUISE CONTROL FOR AWESOEM LOLOLOL!!111
Example 2: People.... who post.... like this.... deserve no less..... than.... being stabbed in the face....
Example 3: who needs punctuation srsly guys i see no real need for it wow i'm hungry has anyone seen the new star trek trailer punctuate your sentences or i will stab you in the face
Well kids, that's all for today. Oh yeah, feel free to hate things. It's okay, you don't always have to be politically correct. You don't have to be so open-minded to everything all the time, you can express your dislike for certain people or beliefs. Do you not like it? Then don't pretend you're okay with it. as the great band KMFDM says, "Free your hate!"
PS: #6: Hipsters.
I don't like them. They're bloody annoying. Scene Kids are even worse.Don't get me wrong, Current is a great idea, and for the most part it's a good... more
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I have been banned from Digg. I have been given a Digg death sentence with no reprieve.
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bcuban
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When Current:News launched, we snuck in a leveling system for community participation. Since then, our levels have expanded with a fourth track and achievements. Yet people wonder – “What are levels for, how do I level up, and why would I want to?”
Here’s a re-hash of our levels, achievements, and swag details. We want to leave an element of surprise, but it’s enough to get you going:
// How many levels are there? //
We have four leveling tracks, each with four levels. That means there’s a whopping 16 levels to aspire to, and each one has unique attributes.
// How do I know what level I am? //
When you level up on Current, we’ll send you an email with the details. We know emails get lost in junk filters, so you can check your status on your profile page.
There are four tracks are on the levels tab: picked for TV (pink), producer (periwinkle blue), contributor (orange), and commentator (aqua). Each track includes your total points accumulated and color-coded box indicating your level. For each level you earn, another box lights up with the color for that track.
// Picked for TV //
It’s exactly what it sounds like, anytime something you’ve posted makes it to TV you will get closer to leveling up. Get picked for TV 30 times and you’ll make level 2.
// Producer //
Producers work hard on VC2 and VCAM eligible videos, so the number required to level up reflect that. You’ll need one upload for level 1, and more than 15 for level 2. To shoot for level 3 you’ll need over 40 VC2 or VCAM eligible uploads.
// Contributor //
Contributors clip news stories, blog posts, photos and videos from around the web, or upload videos that are not eligible for VCAM or VC2. Level 1 requires only one contribution, but you’ll need over 200 contributions to make level 2. Level 3 entails accumulating over 600 contributions.
// Commentator //
Commentators weigh in with comments and votes. For each day that you comment and/or vote 5 times (in any combination) you earn 1 commentator kudos. You only need one kudos to make it to level 1. Level 2 requires more than 30. If you’re up for the challenge, shoot for level 3 – more than 90 commentator kudos are needed.
// So what is this for, and what do I get? //
One reason for leveling up is to show others in the Current community where you stand. Community members who level up are more likely to be involved on a regular basis. Plus, we’ll continue to build out this system over time.
It’s not just about profile recognition, we want to reward you, too. If you reach level 2 as a contributor, commentator, or producer, you’ll score a unique Current swag kit. Make sure you update your email and mailing address on your profile on Current.
We also have some rewards cooked up for higher levels. These could include access to private betas, or could be something similar to our producer/contributor/commentator level 3 recommendation power: http://current.com/items/88943502_
// You mentioned something about achievements? //
The achievements tab on your profile page is like a trophy case, detailing how many of your pods, commercials, news stories, or comments have made it on air on Current TV.
We also added an activity tab, which lists a total count of your contributions, responses, videos, webcams, and votes on Current.com.
// I got my level 2 email. Where’s my swag? //
We process swag once a month, so if you’ve reached level 2 as a contributor, commentator, or producer sit tight. If you haven’t received a swag pack email, then shoot us a message at feedback [at] current [dot] com.
Still curious? Check out our FAQ: http://current.com/s/faq.htm#What_are_levels_and_why_do_I_need_them
Now go forth and level up!
Mario
Online Community Team
When Current:News launched, we snuck in a leveling system for community participation.... more
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Interesting blog post on the power of new media -- specifically, a random post of the Mervyn's bankrupt story turned up a response from someone who's family was very deeply influenced by the growth of the company.
Fascinating that it all ties together through community interaction and sharing of interests...hmmm?Interesting blog post on the power of new media -- specifically, a random post of the... more
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Violet Blue expounds on the vitriol Internet trolls fire at women online in her SFGate column: Open Source Sex. Her point is compelling, the methods in which beauty is "standardized" by our society creates a warped double standard, and I especially like her take on trolling behavior because it applies on so many levels.
"I just write and talk about sex. But every woman on the Internet gets called slutty and ugly and fat (to put it lightly) no matter what; all we have to be is female. In dinner conversation, my friend Lori reminded me of the Oscar Wilde quote, "Give a man a mask, and he'll tell you the truth." I restated it for the Internet, replying, "Give a man a mask, and he'll slit your throat." The application here is, "Give a man (or a woman) an anonymous account, and he'll eviscerate your self-esteem.""
The link between Internet anonymity and troll behavior is nothing new, but exploring the different ways it impacts groups is interesting. Thoughts?Violet Blue expounds on the vitriol Internet trolls fire at women online in her SFGate... more
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Ariel Waldman posted about her experience with personal attacks on Twitter, and their subsequent responses to her requests. She raises a great point, if Twitter refuses to ban or remove users who post with the intent to “abuse, harass, threaten, impersonate or intimidate other Twitter users," then public identity is certainly called into question.
The interesting twist to this story is the comparisons between Twitter and Flickr. Twitter's TOS openly states that "These terms of service were inspired, with permission, by Flickr.” So, when Ariel found evidence of abuse that crossed over between Flickr and Twitter, the opportunity to compare methods of enforcement arose...let's just say, it hasn't been favorable for Twitter.
Check out a search for Ariel on summize: http://summize.com/search?q=%22ariel+waldman%22
Check out Twitter's response over on GetSatisfaction:
http://getsatisfaction.com/twitter/topics/twitter_refuses_to_uphold_terms_of_service#reply_503197
By the way, it's well known that Ariel is the community manager for Pownce, however it's also well known (via her Twitter) that this began long before she was hired. She has disclosed this on her post as well.
I just hope Twitter comes around on matters like this.Ariel Waldman posted about her experience with personal attacks on Twitter, and their... more
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"Last month, its founder Philip Rosedale said he will step down as CEO of Linden Labs - the company which runs the community. He said he was staying on full-time as chairman preferring to focus on innovation rather than people management.
The management part certainly looks like it is getting harder. Over the last two years millions of users all over the world signed up to mix, mingle and play out their fantasies on Second Life. It was the hot thing. The virtual world had its own currency, its own economy and it didn’t take long for the business world to catch on. Companies rushed to open virtual stores and offices.
But the initial hype has faded. Although it has an estimated 13 million registered subscribers, only a small portion - as little as 5 percent - are considered active. Corporations are shuttering their virtual stores. A series of banking scandals prompted Second Life to shut down all virtual-only banks in January. Lawsuits involving everything from land deals to copyright infringement have been filed.
Like real life, Second Life is getting … well … complicated ..."
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I never really saw the potential in Second Life. Everything I can do in Second Life, I can do much easier, faster and especially more efficiently using different specialized software. Second Life might have made a few people rich; however, unless Linden Labs decides to innovate, I see "Second Life" turning into just another "First Life" "Last month, its founder Philip Rosedale said he will step down as CEO of Linden Labs... more
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neokn
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Blue Cross mails out confirmation letters for each patient that is having an MRI or CT scan. They also mail the same letter to the provider that is doing the study. These envelopes each contain 2 pieces of paper. The info in the letters are not necessary or helpful to the patient or the facility since the auth in the letters do not match the auth the insurance company gives the patient. This is an obscene waste of paper. Someone at Blue Cross needs to take action to stop this unnecessary waste. It is not just a few pieces of paper. I do recycle the envelopes myself but the useless pieces of paper just sit in patients charts. Also I believe this is done statewide.That is quite an excess of waste. Blue Cross please look into this and be eco friendly.Blue Cross mails out confirmation letters for each patient that is having an MRI or CT... more
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I've joked about this before, but based on the growing forms of social interaction in the 2.0 space the need for a clear, all in one solution to social aggregation seems like a logical direction.
And to think many believed Web 3.0 to be mobile-based. Is it still to early to tell? It used to be that social networks cropped up and withered based on predominate adoption, however now it appears that adoption rates are much higher (look at the Twitter/Friendfeed situation).I've joked about this before, but based on the growing forms of social interaction in... more
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![Quick! Your neighbors house is on fire. What do you do? - [current.com blog]](http://i2.crtcdn.net/images/asset/898/214/33/LA1890_60x45.jpg)
