Tech Blog

TV numbers aren't shrinking.  It counteracts conventional wisdom, that tv should have it's revenue grow in an era of time shifting, PVRs, piracy and streaming. But it's true.

The reason?  Social.  You may watch tv on the big screen, but it's the second screen that is driving the numbers - and the conversation.

A new study has shown that Twitter's pull is stronger than addiction to cigarettes or alcohol. 

How long can you last with your phone face down?

The Phone Stacking Game forces you to pay attention to the people you're with.

If you could only live with one social network, which would you choose? Facebook? Twitter? Google+? LinkedIn? Pinterest?

Despite filing public offerings and having an estimated value of $100B, Facebook showed it is not the powerhouse it thinks it is this week.

Twitter is about to get noisy.  With the Super Bowl this weekend and The Oscars arriving in the next month, the conversation that normally weaves through a number of threads is about to get VERY onesided.

If youre not a red carpet afficionado or a football freak, there is a way to drown out the noise without blocking or unfollowing the noisy twitterers.

Here's how:

What's the big deal about Facebook's new Timeline feature? Well, there's really no big deal other than it's yet another design change for Facebook.

BUT .. if you've not been playing nicely on the social networks, the timeline feature makes it easier for people to go back and dig through your past.

Can you do it?

Can you go the weekend without going online?  It's Christmas, for crying out loud.  You're not *really* going to live tweet pictures of your kids opening presents are you?

Chances are you will click in .. yknow, just to have a peek at what's happening on the internet.

Authentic. Engaging. Conversational. Open. Spontaneous. Honest.

6 words that perfectly describe the spirit of social media.  

For government employees, however, social media will have a different bent.  Still, they're trying.  Witness tonight's Canadian first:  a Twitter Town Hall.

New, New Twitter was the name given to the redesign of our 140 character obsession last week and it seems the masses have spoken: they don't like it.    

Users are jumping ship and the big winner is Tweetbot.

Wouldnt you know it. Just as I was hailing Tweetdeck as my Twitter app of choice, the powers that be at Twitter go and change everything.  The desktop app, website and mobile app have all gone through an Extreme Makeover.

Pinterest is quite the rage of late. A thumbnail browsing site, it's easy to get lost drifting through 

photography, fashion, food and the frivolous.  

Now similar graphical interfaces are making waves - for articles.

How do you tweet?

I admit I'm a power user, I've amassed more than 50 000 tweets in the 4 years of using the service.  (12k a year, 1k a month, 30 a day).  I'm particular about my user experience and I've been a Tweetdeck fan for years.

For the past month, however, I've been living in Hootsuite trying to get a handle on how to use the other popular app that my mentor, Tod Maffin, is always raving about.  

Here's how they breakdown:

Mona Simpson's eulogy for her brother, Steve Jobs, made headlines around the world when she revealed his final words.

Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow.

Those were the final syllables he spoke to his family around his bedside before he drifted off to death hours later. Jobs didnt have a Twitter account, so those are the final words we have from him. 

Others, however, have had their final words memorialized in 140 characters or less.

No, really there’s an app for the upcoming Vancouver civic election. Hokey? Kinda pointless in a couple weeks? Yeah, sure on both counts, but that’s not the point here. Civic elections often aren’t the most thrilling electoral events, so anything that can help answer questions, boost interest, or reach people where they “are” is a good thing in my book.

Did you hear a strange sound today? Something like relief, but also tinged with a little excitement? Yeah that would because thousands of Google Apps users can now finally use those email addresses with Google+.

Newsflash: Google Maps isn’t perfect. Yeah, yeah, blinding flash of the obvious. Believe it or not Google knows this and would really like to fix that, so they are asking for our help. Yes, according to the Globe and Mail finally Google Map Maker is now available in Canada.