Getting on the Digital Bandwagon

Lately I have been finishing up my portfolio and basically have all of the campaigns closed to being "finished". (read earlier post "Messin with Fire" to understand the quotes)

So recently I have been on a hunt to upgrade my knowledge of the digital world, Social Networking Sites, SEM, RSS feeds to give myself a leg up on everyone else entering the job market. Thanks to Alex "The Boss" Munro (gotta give a little shout out), I have been tracking a few websites that have done wonders for me, but I'll get to those later. First I will start with the basics. Please get on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. These are the basic social networking sites that are necessities. I repeat, NECESSITIES!

Then there are sites that organize information on the web to the most viewed, searched and commented.

Digg.com and Buzzfeed.com are both sites that update real time what is going on currently on the web. They organize what people are liking, disliking and "digging". Of course they also stream onto Facebook and Twitter so if you like something you can press a button and wham bam thank you ma'am, you can show everyone and your mother.

There are other sites coming out like Hookk.com that allow you to look at reader's comments on news articles before even reading the articles. So I get to see Carrie's reaction to the article on the new flu epidemic before I even look at the article. iMapWeather.com is doing the same thing with weather. It not only gives you impressive "weatherman" maps (got really technical there, sorry) but it also links user generated content to that area, like pictures from Peter in Boston and videos from Natalie in Cleveland. Weather just got a whole lot more interesting.

The next category starts getting a little more confusing. I am still researching this currently but it centers are RSS feeds, so try and stay with me. I won't go on defining what it is but whatisrss.com does a better job than I ever could.
RSS is becoming more and more common on sites because everything is becoming real time oriented. As we start getting attached to the internet through smart phones and constantly updating material, everyone is going to want the most recent info right now, like a screaming child demanding for frosted flakes (that used to be me, now I am more mature). So when you like a website you look to see if it has an RSS feed like this one http://www.ecogeek.org/ and boom you can follow it and your other favorite sites pain free. An RSS reader like googlereader.com accumulates these sites, receives all of the newest articles from your favorite sites and organizes them for your reading pleasure. Kind of like a daily newspaper for the internet.

There are tons of crazy sites coming out as we speak but this is where the internet and technology is going. The internet is becoming so vast that no one can keep up with it themselves so these sites will help you, along with other people.

What's funny is that this article is probably "so 5 years ago". But I feel it hasn't hit the mainstream yet so there is still time. While people are still getting acquainted with Facebook and LinkedIn, we have to be one step ahead.

To stay one step ahead I have been reading Mashable.com. They are the gods among mortals of social media and I would be living under a rock without their posts. I have also been following a lot of social media "masters" on Twitter who post in depth articles on new technology and the power of these sites, "Use the force Luke".

I'm still researching this stuff and half it maybe wrong but I'm still on the goose chase, trying to gather as much knowledge and understanding as possible, like a nerdy Rocky. Cue soundtrack.