New Technologies

Remember the good ole days when you were the coolest kid on the block if you had a Tamagotchi or the new Pokemon Gameboy game? In the last decade technology has rapidly changed into something completely different than the norm a couple years ago. 

Every – single – day something new and improved is produced and we as consumers have to do our best to keep up. I remember the first cell phone I got 9 years ago, it was a measly little flip phone that took the most pixilated pictures that are probably unrecognizable today. But for me it was everything. Today I look around at all the new technologies the world has to offer and it is quite overwhelming.

This new technology is affecting every facet of our lives, including our use of Social Media. As I was researching and jumping around from blog to blog I was able to find some exciting information about up and coming new technologies and how they will be affecting our world and the way we do social media. Here are a few things I discovered:

Do you ever have those days at the end of the month when you’ve got the text you’re your phone provider that you have used 99.99997% of your data for the month – but you’ve still got 4 days left in the month. If you’re anything like me, you about want to shout hallelujah when you see the “free wifi” sign at your local McDonalds. Soon internet will be available EVERYWHERE! 

Check out this blog to read more

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2014/08/14-technology-predictions-2020/

 "We are on the verge of the “internet of everywhere”. It will be far more democratic: accessible to everyone, rich and poor. The excitement of the internet of things will be a small footnote in history as the internet of everywhere becomes our reality. Do you remember the old movie, Minority Report, with Tom Cruise? Ultra cheap, internet-enabled solar-powered screens that display in HDTV resolution will be on bus stops, in shopping centers, at tables in restaurants – all operating on a centralized advertising model. Gone are the days of the static acetate poster on the wall of a shopping mall. And finally, since these HD monitors have beacons, they will dynamically change content as your phone passes by, telling the monitor all your preferences. Yobie Benjamin, COO of Avegant"

According to this blog – soon we could be “sharing” our phones, and just about everything else. http://techcrunch.com/2015/11/15/what-technology-will-look-like-in-five-years/

"Revised Notions Of Ownership: Think of the things you use every day: your smart phone, your computer, your desk and so on. You own most — if not all — of those things. However, in the future, you’ll probably share most of them. We’ve recently seen a huge rise in the sharing economy; not only can you stay in someone else’s house via Airbnb, but you can sail in someone else’s boat through Sailo, fly in someone else’s private plane via OpenAirplane and go snowboarding with someone’s else’s board via Spinlister. This is only the first wave. Major players like Google, Apple and Uber are developing car technology so that, in five years, rather than driving to the office in a car you own, you’ll drive to work in a car you ordered on your cell phone that morning. If you wanted, you could drive a different make and model every day."

I found this awesome BLOG POST on Network World, which discussed 10 new technologies that will be surfacing in the next ten years. While each one of these inventions is diverse, I think that they each will play a role in the world of social media. Some of the technologies this blog discusses are a “zettaflood of data” available to users, an increased amount of data will live or pass through the cloud – up to 1/3, it discussed how smaller the world is getting because of our ability to talk with anyone anywhere around the world, as well as the discussion of “human or borg”. It’s a crazy world we are living in and so much is going on around us. New technologies are being developed every day – these technologies are ever changing the way we live, communication and socialize on the web.

Be prepared – a lot is coming!

Stand-alone Mobile Apps versus Internet Browser Apps

No matter what you want to do, there is more than likely an app for that! As I look around me in class or on the bus I am surrounded with smart phone users. If you just so happen to see a flip phone, you almost have a sense to tell them they should appear on The Antic Roadshow with that thing. With so many smart phone users, more and more of us are using apps and downloading new ones daily. I don’t think I go a single week without hearing about some cool new app I need to download and try!

App creators are so creative and thinking up apps to fix or help with every facet of our lives.

I found this awesome blog written by Jerin Mathew last year that got into the nitty gritty details of just how many apps are being created currently. In his posted he stated:

• “Developers are currently submitting more than 1,000 apps to Apple's App Store per day, according to data compiled by Pocketgamer.biz.

• There are a total of 1.9 million apps seen in the US App Store, out of which 1.7 million are currently available for download.

• About 73% of the apps and games are free. The paid apps have an average price of $1.27, while paid games are priced at an average of $0.63.”

Check out his blog to read more about these statics! CHECK OUT THE BLOG HERE!

In regards to Stand Alone Mobile apps verse Internet Browser Apps I generally always use the Stand Alone Mobile Apps. They are generally faster and better equipped to do the kind of things that I want to do on these social media platforms. Using the Internet Browser can often make the platforms look chunky and messy and it is not fun or easy to manage my way through them.

I found a blog written by Priya Viswanathan a Mobile Devices Expert where she discussed the Pros and Cons of Native Apps and Mobile Web Apps

In this article she brings a lot of really important information forward that is important to consider when trying to decide what you like and what you are going to use.

She said some things to consider:

 "In order to decide if you want to develop a native app of Web app, you need to consider the following points:

·  How important speed and performance would be, to you
·  If you would like your app to include any device-specific features
·  If you want your app to be Internet-enabled
·  If you want your app to support multiple mobile platforms and devices and if yes, how many
·  Your budget, vs. the estimated cost of developing your app
·  If you would like to monetize your app in the future"
Check out her awesome blog to read more on the pros and cons!!


Sources Used:
 http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/apple-app-store-growing-by-over-1000-apps-per-day-1504801
 http://mobiledevices.about.com/od/additionalresources/qt/The-Pros-And-Cons-Of-Native-Apps-And-Mobile-Web-Apps.htm

Viral Videos

Every time I get together with my friends we end up passing around our phones for a good half an hour just sharing and showing each other our favorite viral videos we’re currently obsessed with. Whether on my Facebook or Twitter feed, it is evident that videos are a large part of social media posting nowadays. Many one hit wonders, and slightly “famous” people have come about because of these videos, some even end up on the Ellen Degeneres show where they get more publicity than they could have ever imagined.

Video sharing platforms like YouTube and Vine make it so easy to share videos. With one little click of the button, we can share a video and open up it’s possible views tremendously so that more and more people can see it. Platforms are making it easier and easier to share, comment or like videos, which eventually cause them to go viral and cause more and more interactions. Just as a I scroll down my Facebook feed, it continually shows me how often my friends share a common video.

This BLOG blog had some tips for anyone interested in getting their videos public and viral. Go check it out to see their awesome ideas and tips.
1. Create short, high-quality videos.
2. Place keywords in your video's title and description

3. Become you own salesperson.

4. Make it easy for others to do the work.

(Check out the link to find out more details on each tip!)

This other article I read was a little more upfront and raw about the fact that getting your video to go viral is “often a crapshoot”, meaning there isn’t much science behind. Because of “dumb algorithms”, as he calls them- getting a viral video is more up to luck than anything. However at the end of his tangent, he also did leave his readers with some tips on how to improve the reach of your videos. 

Check out this ARTICLE to see what he has to say:
1. When the YouTube video launches, there should be a lot of activity that occurs as soon as it goes live.
2. Get your friends to share it on Facebook and blog about it (the other social networks really don't matter, as far as I can tell at this point in time).
3. Get the press / blogs to write and link or embed the video
4. Get as many people as you can, through whatever means necessary, to watch the video and leave a comment.

No matter what you’re sharing, it can go a long way if you get your friends and networking involved to share and build it up! Whether it’s Vlogs, Funny Family Videos or anything thing else share share share – and maybe one day, you’ll go viral!



 http://www.talentzoo.com/beneath-the-brand/blog_news.php?articleID=11836

 https://www.quora.com/Clever-ways-to-make-your-YouTube-video-go-viral

Search Engine Optimization

GEOTAGGING: to geotag or not to geotag.

Okay first off.. what is it? I found a great definition on this site : GEO-TAG

 It said: "As its name implies, geotagging involves "tagging" a geographical location to something like a status update, a tweet, a photo or something else you post online. It's particularly useful because a lot of people now share content on their favorite social networks via their smart phones or tablet computers while on the go, so they're not always in one specific location all the time like we used to be back in the day when we could only access the web from a desktop computer"

This post was very useful in giving it’s readers very specific directions as to how to best “geotag” your posts across several social media platforms, namely Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Vine and Snapchat. It would appear more and more platforms are giving it’s users opportunities to tag their location because—well.. they want to. It is becoming ever more popular to let your viewers see where you are at, whether it is the hole in the wall restaurant you and your boyfriend love, your local hockey game or checking in at Grandma’s. We as social media users like to know where other people are at, and we like when other people know where we are.

This post covered a lot of the Perks of Geotagging:

Geotagging is a great way keep your social media use and pictures organized by location. It is becoming ever more popular to “share your location” or “check in” so everyone can see what you are up to. It’s a great way to let your followers see your fun night out on the town or out vacationing.

While it is fun to see how many “likes” you can give on your post of you checking in on your week long vacation in Mexico, statistics show and many articles I came across that doing this is a very bad idea. Social Media stalkers and thieves are known for getting tips from social medias. So be careful what you post, because you never know who may see

Be Cautious Geotagging
When you geotag a picture, viewers can find out your current location, your location history and where your picture was taken. That is a lot of info that you are often letting strangers see, without even knowing it. If this kind of freaks you out, consider turning off location services on some location sharing apps. Find the location sharing settings on your smart phone and turn off the ones that you think might pose a personal safety risk. You can always turn them back on later if you want to. Most smart phones will let you turn off location sharing for individual apps as an alternative to turning them off globally.

Links Used:
 http://webtrends.about.com/od/glossary/a/what-geotagging.htm

  http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/geotagging-photos-start-right-now/

 http://netsecurity.about.com/od/securityadvisorie1/a/Why-Stalkers-Love-Your-Geotags.htm

Topic: Management Platforms and Tools

Pro’s and Cons of Using Aggregators

So much to post, so little time to post it all, so why not use an aggregator? An aggregator is a website or program that collects related items of content and displays them or links to them. (Do we truly live in a world with so much social media capabilities that we need to invent managing sites to help us manage our social media use?)  A company runs the risk of truly be “invisible” if it is not up and available on social media platforms. Because many business owners grew up before the age of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, they can tend to feel overwhelmed when it comes to taking their business to the web of Social Media. So programmers and webpage designers are trying to make it easier for these business owners to have a social media presence, using aggregators. Aggregators are a tool for these individuals to be trained on how to use and to be able to use it to greatly benefit their company.

As I started researching it was very obvious that there are very many opinions on aggregators – and how beneficial or destructive they can be. Clearly it all dependent on it’s use. I just wanted to cover some opinions discussed on other posts on my blog today.

This BLOG discussed different pros and cons to the use of aggregators, one comment made by Myles Kleeger really caught my attention.

"Google Now promises to help brands get their content in front of more people through aggregation and a personalized, relevant experience. When using an aggregator, one could argue that brands will be less likely to focus on building direct relationships with consumers through their own apps because people will increasingly access the content/functionality they want/need through intelligent app based aggregation tools as opposed to visiting the brand's app directly. With these services gaining traction and offering better experiences to consumers, brands have to determine how they will divide their efforts between optimizing content functionality for aggregators and engaging customers with their own native apps. For some apps and brands, this path may make great sense," said Myles Kleeger, CRO, Appboy.

It is very evident that there are two sides to aggregators and we have to be aware of both sides so that we do not blindly get ourselves in trouble but that we can use these tools to our benefit. This POST talks about the two sides of using an aggregator:

"We must be “have to be willing to take the good with the bad, because “social media can be a cruel mistress. Bad publicity reaches your audience just as quickly as the good stuff, and once it’s out there it hangs around,” he said. Not even the largest corporations or the best spin doctors on the planet can control it. Cyberspace is littered with hundreds of these examples.”

 Now that we’ve covered some of the pros and cons, there is still the debate of if we are going to use an aggregator, then which one will we use? There are many to choose from and the number is continually growing. I found many different articles loving on specific aggregators and hating on others. When it comes down to it, I think it depends on what you are specifically looking for your aggregator to do and how much you are willing to pay for it to do it. This article specifically discusses 7 reasons to not specifically use “Sprout Social” for your aggregator needs. He discusses very valid reasons why this site is just not working for him. 

I also happened across a great post which debated which was better, Hootsuite or Sprout Social. This site had mulitple ratings for varying service the sites offered. This article and many others that I read about made me realize that if you do decide to use an aggregator then you need to do your research. You need to find one that will fit your needs and then you need to know how to properly use it to make it an effective tool for your business.

Organizational Uses

Organization Uses

It seems like more and more organizations are using social media in many different facets. When used properly, Social Media can be so beneficial within these organizations because man people can see and be aware about what is going on within organizations. As more platforms are being created, it just creates more avenues for organizations to use and benefit from.

Today I want to focus on two main kinds of organizations, Politics and Religion. These two are very applicable to me because I regularly am involved with these kind of organization’s social media platforms and find them very important.

Specifically with politics, I want to talk about something that I am currently heavily involved with. I am an intern for Senator Mike Lee, it is an exciting time of year to be involved with politics. As most of you are probably aware, yesterday was Neighborhood Caucus, a very important night for politics not only nationally but also local here within Utah.

I have been working on Senator Lee’s campaign team for seven months now and it has been exciting and very much immersed within social media and it has proved to be very beneficial within our campaign. We do so much on social media. We use it to spread awareness of Senator Lee’s platforms and the things he stands for. We use it a lot to spread awareness and invite others to come to events hosted by Senator Lee. Just this last weekend, we had a political rally in which Ted Cruz, Glen Beck and Carly Fiorina. We had this rally planned weeks in advance, but just shortly before we learned that we would have these guests there in support of Senator Lee. With a very short amount of time we did all we could to let this news spread, and it did like wildfire. People were very excited to have these individuals here in Utah and were excited for the opportunity to hear them speak. The event continued to build momentum as we posted it all over the web, mainly focusing on our Facebook event. Our event got shared so much, that we had so many people say they were “attending”, that we had to change the location of our venue so that we could have more room.  

Senator Mike Lee Campaign Kick Off Facebook Event 

It seems this election campaign, that more and more candidates are using social media to build awareness and to support their campaigns. It seems like I can’t even log onto Facebook without being overwhelmed with all the sponsored adds from different candidates. Those adds plus all of my friends political posts has been a little overwhelming, to say the least. Mike Lee is very active on his official Facebook page as well as his Instagram account, he uses as a great tool to reach out to his supporters and build awareness. It is very evident that Social Media has and will continue to play a large role in this years policical race. 

This blog talked a lot about that.

I also wanted to stake time to focus on Religious organizations:

I love how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints uses social media to raise awareness and to share their beliefs in a non-threatening way. I think it is so cool how the church is adapting and using this tool to get themselves out there. For instance, I love the holiday videos that the church has been producing; they seem to spread like wild fire across my social media platforms. It is great to see something so uplifting on my news feed when I am often surrounded with negative political views or terrorist attacks. It allows us to spread goodness instead of negativity and hate. 

Hallelujah video 

Class Cloud

The Class Cloud activity was very fun to be involved in. I have had a twitter account for many years but took a little hiatus from it while I served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for a year and a half. After I got home I feel like I lost my desire to use Twitter and couldn’t seem to find what the hype about this app was anymore. It wasn’t until this day in class and our time “On The Cloud” that I realized just how fast information can spread and the asset this app can be in my social media use.

#SocMedDisscuss was what connected all our tweets. Some of the class stayed on topic in regards to tweeting about Social Media, while others went a little off-base discussing cats vs. dogs. Regardless of the topics being discussed, we could all see each other’s tweets and the threads they created. It was really cool to see how one simple text could result in so many retweets, and replies and that it could spread so far!

It was crazy how fast our discussion spread and how wide the spectrum of discussion covered. Just after a couple minutes, there was so many tweets repping the class hastag #SocMedDiscuss. Each time I would refresh the page I was shocked at how many new tweets and replies there were. My notifications kept going off as someone would “like”, “retweet” or “reply” to something I had said.

It was also cool to see other individuals join in on our activity. Unfortunately we never got Kanye involved in our discussion. I thought it was pretty cool that the person I decided to tweet to was Al Fox Carraway, a famous Mormon blogger and YouTuber. I asked her, “What inspired you to share your beliefs online?” Amazingly enough, she tweeted back to me and even got a little involved in our discussion. She quickly replied that she went to social media because that is where everyone is and that is where she knew most people would see. She loves her faith so much she wants everyone to see it and Social Media was the avenue she could accomplish that.  That is the first time I have ever had someone even remotely famous tweet back to me, and it was all because of #SocMedDiscuss. A lot of other classmates tweeted back to her in hopes to keep her in the discussion longer, but sadly we never got any more responses from her, just a few “likes”.

Truth of the matter is, information can and does spread very quickly, especially when you are engaged with other users who are anxiously engaged and very conscious of what is currently being shared. It was very cool to spend this time “On the Cloud” and to be so engaged in what my peers were sharing.

Social Media Case Reflection

 Wow! What refreshing viral story to read and research about! With all the depressing and sad news we too often find on the Internet; it was wonderful to read something so light-hearted and positive! It is obvious and apparent to me how fast a story can spread via the Internet and social media. Among the other 17 million viewers, Shaquille O’Neil watched Officer Bobbie play ball with some neighborhood “rowdy” boys. Shaq liked what Officer Bobbie did so much, he wanted in on the next game. It is crazy that a little Florida police force’s Facebook page can get so much publicity that someone as famous as Shaquille O’Neil would see it. News travels fast, and often it is sad stories of shootings, diseases and natural disasters. You can imagine how great it was to read something so upbeat and uplifting. Way to go Officer Bobbie and Shaq, you lightened up my week with your actions and this story!

I really like the fact that the Gainesville Police made the decision to post this dash cam video, not knowing how others would respond. They were passionate about the event though and their stance of "We're going to let kids be kids. We are going to focus on the ones that commit crimes.  "#HoopsNotCrime" I love that they shared goodness through social media and used it as a way to share their beliefs in a very beneficial way. Social Media can be such a great tool to share positive and uplifting messages; you never know how far the message can go and the eyes that will see it.

How great for these boys to meet someone that I assume is a great idol of theirs, additionally for them to have such a positive experience with the law enforcement. This event is quite timely, considering how often I see #blacklivesmatter or #whitelivesmattertoo come across my news feed. I feel like more and more segregation between ethnicity is broadcasted on the Internet, and it is beautiful within this story to see friendship and equality among races.

As I was looking through comments and feedback from viewers, it was overwhelmingly supportive, which I think is great to see! Of course, there was the occasionally negative comment here or there, but generally people were supportive.  It is interesting to me how involved outside parties can get so drawn into events that do not particularly have anything to do with us. I found myself feeling involved even though I had nothing to do with the event. Openness on the Internet has a way of making us feel involved when we really aren’t.

This has got to be great for the Gainsville Police PR and publicity. I think more often than not, law enforcement gets more publicity for negative actions than for positive ones so I assume it was refreshing for the community as a whole to focus on something so happy. This has undoubtedly has given Shaq’s public relation great feedback from the general audience! It is wonderful to see someone so big and famous out and about connecting with regular people and encouraging them to do good and to follow their dreams! It was a little reminder for many readers, myself included that rich or poor, famous or not, people are people and people like to play basketball!

What about the neighbor? To me the complaint was silly; obviously others agreed as well. But apparently the person who complained was passionate about it or else they wouldn’t have complained. I wonder what the neighbor first thought when they saw this video go viral; I assume they felt pretty silly. I wonder if they were offended by the way the cop took their complaint and did the opposite of what I assume they wanted. He supported their loud ball playing and even joined in. One article I read said, “Saturday’s pickup game, surrounded by dozens of awestruck residents and police officers, had to be louder than the shenanigans that sparked this whole thing in the first place. But we’re guessing that cranky neighbor, presumably viewing the display from somewhere, didn’t issue any complaints this time.” Nobody likes to feel like a fool, especially to 17 million viewers. I wonder if the complainer filed any other negative complaints again. Overall, I am happy with this story and the viewing success it has. I think our communities could each benefit a little more by treating situations like this as Cop Bobbie did.

Online Reputation

Rachael Fresh

Rachael Fresh aka Frosty Fresh, fresh_collective, and rach_is_fresh

Rachael is an avid social media user, using multiple platforms to share her passions and interests with family, friends, and associates. She uses a wide variety of platforms but mostly Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. She was pretty easy to find online, once I filtered through all the Rachel Ray stuff. ;)

It was pretty easy to dig up stuff on Rachael. I won’t say it was easy to dig up “dirt” on her because really I couldn’t find anything negative about her. Rachael is always about posting positive and upbeat things on her social media platforms. She has a story to tell and it’s a great one at that! It was very easy to find out stuff about her online, I was even able to find her phone number on Facebook, which was a little surprising to me. (It made me wonder if my phone number was listed on my Facebook.)

Rachael is a Utah State University student majoring in Communications. She is from Syracuse, Utah and graduated from Clearfield High School in 2013. She is very passionate about Utah State University, her family, friends, and religion among many other things. She currently works at University Inn & Conference Center as a Youth Programs Assistant Coordinator. Her birthday is coming up in just a couple weeks, March 24^th.. so make sure to wish her the happiest of birthdays then!

I noticed about Rachael’s social media use is that she uses her platforms as avenues by which she can share her passions and raise awareness for different interests in her life. She uses her networks and connections to talk about the things she loves, which I think is great because you can feel her enthusiasm for these topics as you go through her social medias. 

It is very apparent from Rachael's posts that her family is very important to her! She posts a lot about experiences with them and the gratitude she has for them. She has a lot of love for her family and considers those relationships of the utmost importance. 

One major pattern I noticed that Rachael uses multiple platforms to share and post about her religious beliefs. She is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and uses social media to share her beliefs in a non-threatening and refreshing way. It was nice to see something so positive on social media, when often we can be overwhelmed with negative posts. It was uplifting to see someone post so positively about something that they treasure so much! She is evident in her posts and the feedback that she gets from her followers that she is strong in her faith and an example to many.

Rachael also uses social media to post about social events and happenings at Utah State University. It is very apparent that she is very involved here on Utah State Campus. Rachael was recently elected as Utah State University Association Alumni VP. Social Media played a huge role in Rachael's election campaign as she used it to share her platform, to raise awareness and to build support. It was a great use of resources and seemed to be very beneficial on behalf of her election. Her election was widely spread through social media with her great hastag “#GetFresh”. She used her social media platforms in a very beneficial way during her campaign.

Rachael also uses her social medias to connect with friends/family and to share memories. Social Media can be a great outlet for documenting events with friends and family and Rachael does this quite often. It was fun to see her life and story unfold through her posts, statuses and pictures. Her posts cover a wide variety of emotion from joy, surprise, love and even moments of sadness, this it easier for her followers to connect and relate with her.

I think that Rachael uses her social media platforms very effectively and professionally. She uses them to connect with loved ones, share her experiences and to benefit the organizations she is involved with! I think she should be named the Queen of Social Media.

#GetFresh
p.s Rachael, thanks for making it so fun to creep on you for the last week or so <3

Topic: Legal, Policies, and Ethics

My father has been lecturing me about appropriate social media use since I’ve been old enough to know how to use a computer. “Everyone can see everything you do.” “Nothing you do on the Internet ever really goes away.” As I have gotten older I have come to realize that all these discussions that I deemed as silly fatherly advice are becoming more prevalent in the way that I post on social media.

Truly, everyone can see everything. Regardless of passwords or blocks, people can find their way in to find out anything and everything about you; even after you press delete. It seems like more and more social media platforms are loosening or removing entirely their user’s right of privacy. And the crazy part is they are being very honest about this, well they have to be or else it’d be illegal. But regardless of these changes being announced, users still continue to log in, Snapchat and message.
Have you ever opened an app to an announcement of a policy change pop up? Do you do what I do and quickly scroll the bottom and click “I accept” so that you can quickly get back to your Instagram feed? Social Media platforms are being very open in their policy updates and changes to avoid legal issues, but yet we as users don’t seem to notice until it becomes personal and in our face.

During some research I found where Facebook shows all their policies on privacy. I liked their setup; it provided an outlet for curious individuals like myself to seek questions to my concerns and somewhere to place complaints: Facebook's Policies

I found a very interesting article that discussed "5 Trends that will change the way you use Social Media in 2015"
The last trend applied a lot to my post and I wanted to share it here:

"The illusion of social media privacy gives way to the real thing

2014 saw a number of anonymous and ephemeral social networks – Snapchat, Secret, Whisper, Yik Yak and Telegram, to name a few – surge in popularity. Not everyone wants every conversation over social media broadcast to the world, after all. At the same time, savvy users are increasingly aware – and concerned – about ways personal data is being collected and later sold to advertisers, manipulated in tests or accessed by government agencies.

The problem is that few of these “private” networks fulfill their mandates. Snapchat has been hacked, repeatedly, with hundreds of thousands of sensitive – supposedly disappearing – user photos posted on the Internet. And in October, it was revealed that the anonymous network Whisper was actually saving users’ posts and locations and compiling this information in a searchable database. As Venture Beat points out, real anonymity and privacy on the Internet is extremely difficult to achieve. While it’s easy to make promises, it’s nearly impossible to deliver.

Ryan Holmes is CEO of Hootsuite."

The truth of the matter is, we need to be careful with what we put on the Internet because we never know when it will resurface. The way we use social media can have very long-term affects on future relationships, job opportunities and reputation. As unfavorable as these new policies may be, many of us will continue to oblige to them, so what can we do to protect ourselves on social media? I searched for proper social media etiquette and how to best present ourselves on the computer screen. This article had great tips on how to properly use social media: Online Etiquette

Golden Rule: don’t post anything your Grandma wouldn’t “like”

Topic: Collaborative and Distance Communication Platforms

I don’t personally have very much experience using Collaborative or Distance Communication Platforms. I have skyped or face-timed someone a time or two, but I am definitely not an avid user of any of these platforms. While I personally don’t use these platforms that often, I see their importance and benefits.

Brent Whent, in his article "How Skype Changed the World", he discusses how the ability to see and hear someone half way across the world has forever changed the way we can communicate. “136 years after Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone, he could finally see what Watson was wearing!” I know a lot of individuals who use it often because of circumstances they are in. Such circumstances may be because their family lives far away, they are in a long distance relationship, involved in distant tutoring, and video conferencing for work. It is a great tool that when needed can be awesome to use!

I have recently started using a cool feature of a very well known app, Snapchat. How many of you know you can do video chat on this app? If two users are both on at the same time, you can open a video chat. It is convenient feature when you both don’t have Iphones or you don’t want to download another software or platform to use.

This article brought up an interesting view of the uses of social media, and the virtual life that can be created on Distance and Collaborative Communication. It has created the possibility that we can escape the reality of our lives and go into some virtual life we can create. When I think of Distant Communication, my mind goes to talking to people that I already know, not getting to meet new people. But studies show, that is exactly why people use such platforms.

The author stated: “[Collaborative and Distance Communication] is something that will eventually become more popular as technology progresses and we start to converge with it. As for the communication aspect, it can greatly increase your reach to increase your social network, find a niche, and to express yourself with others that share in the same interests as yourself.”

 Check out this article to see the BENEFITS

While serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I was able to skype my family on holidays. On these particular occasions, I was beyond grateful for the invention of Collaborative and Distance Communication. I believe that dependent on circumstances of users, these platforms are either very important and almost essential or it can seem irrelevant for those who have no use. While I do not currently use it often, I know it has a place and purpose within my Social Media use, that I predict will increase.

Location Based Platforms

Facebook always tempts me to “Check In” with my current location. Does the world really want to know that I am sitting on my couch right now, or that I’m at Walmart for the fourth time this week? I don’t understand what is so alluring about the possibility of posting your location on Social Media. Is it for bragging benefits to you can showcase your fun and exciting life of travel? Is it used to connect with those that are in your close surroundings? Or do you do it to virtually journal your daily doings and happenings? I can say that I have used location based social media for all of the above reasons. Why do you do it? In this blog post I want to dive into why individuals, businesses, etc use location based platforms and how does it benefit them. 

The first blog that I read addressed the benefit of location tagging when other forms of tagging fails. This relates to our discussion in class when we talked about the hashtag used by Utah State University that was also used by another college. We can use tags to find similar posts, but somewhere in the middle non-related posts can get intermingled; in this instance it is beneficial to tag a specific location or event so that all related posts can be found and connected.

 BENEFITS

The article stated:

"What if the hashtag didn’t catch on? What if people were using your target keywords but weren’t actually at the event? What if they were posting valuable, actionable content, but didn’t use any relevant keywords at all?

Now, imagine searching for that location on a map, drawing a virtual perimeter around your area of interest, and visualizing the content coming only from within those boundaries regardless of what words were used.

For two weeks during the Olympics, we used Geofeedia’s platform to create virtual perimeters around 34 Olympic locations. Then, we gathered all geo-tagged content from five different sources (Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Flickr, Picasa) and searched the data for posts that contained keywords like Olympics, London 2012, #london2012 and a number of others. Here’s what we found:

• 170,000 total geo-tagged posts from the 34 locations
• 69% did not contain one of our target keywords
• Many Instagram and Flickr photos didn’t contain a caption at all

Without a location-based social media monitoring tool, more than 115,000 social media posts originating directly from Olympic venues would have been difficult to find or lost entirely.

 While researching I came across a site solely used to post location tagging social media. I was amazed at how many of them are already out there and in use. There was many that offered similar benefits, but the majority offered a place for you to simply connect with those around you by posting your current location. There are many out there, which means people must be using them!

 Check out this post to see how many social media there are, that offers sharing location:

 Social Media to try

 

The last article I would like to discuss is one I found on http://techcrunch.com/2013/07/23/location-vs-communication/

It addresses the fact that location-based social media is not an essential use of Social Media. It is not what all the hype of networking is about. Users of Social Media do not create an account with a platform for their ability of tag their location, there are far greater benefits that will rank prior to location tagging. The article states that Social Media users have a “need to communicate at regular intervals — which is the driving force behind the rise and rise of mobile messaging apps. Far fewer people feel a similar imperative to regularly broadcast their location. Or tether their communications to a particular location. That’s got ‘niche use-case’ written all over it.”

From my research, it is evident that there are multiple reasons to use location tagging Social Media platforms. For some individuals there are very apparent benefits to it's use. Others view it as tool that is not essential to their social networking. Regardless of where your opinion lies, location tagging is a something that more and more sites are adapting to. 

So the world shall continue to see that yes, I am once again at Twizzleberry getting frozen yogurt.

Most Used Platforms

FACEBOOK

Who else remembers when Facebook was just for our parents and other old people? I sure do! I vowed I would never have an account, because it was “the lamest thing ever.” Now here I am many years down the road, an avid Facebook user. It was tough for me to decide which Platform I use the most. It was close one in between Facebook, Instagram and Snap Chat, between the three I definitely spend way too much time.

Facebook has been such a great tool in my life. I have used it to stay connect to those that are dear to me that are far away. I served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where I made many life-long friends. It is truly a blessing in my life to be able to easily stay in contact with these individuals and to see how they are doing. Also while I am up at school, Facebook is very beneficial to stay in touch with my family and friends not in the area.

Facebook has so many avenues of expression for what is going on in our life. Individuals can post successes for all to see, we can share our trials so others can offer support, or we can simply post a picture of our delicious burger we had for lunch. Facebook is very versatile when it comes to it’s uses.

It is interesting to me how much we “share” on facebook. It seems it is the quickest way to get something to go viral as it spreads on our news feeds. Each time I get on my Facebook it seems like I see many blog posts that my friends share. Some of the blog posts are great, however some are inappropriate and I would prefer to not see on my feed. There are also funny memes floating around my news feed, which seem to always put a smile on my face.

With every Social Media, we must make sure we are using it in a beneficial way and not in a way that is negative. I must admit that I spend too much time on this site. In an effort to check it less I turned off the notifications on my phone so that I am not updated each time something happens. Facebook can be addicting, there is always something new and entertaining to look at. There can be a negative element to Facebook when we use it compare ourselves to others and their “perfect life” as it is portrayed on their Facebook. It is my goal to use my Facebook to uplift others and myself.

 BlOGGING:
to blog or not to blog - that is the question.


fota bear

The first blog I would like to comment on is one that belongs to a dear friend of mine. My friend Fota is a childhood friend that I enjoy staying in contact with even when there is much distance between us. I love following her blog and being able to keep up with her life. The particular post I would like to focus on is one she used to post her New Year’s Resolutions. I think blogs have many greatest purposes.  The way we use our blogs can vary greatly. They can be used for business in a very formal setting or the opposite side of spectrum, a place to journal and post our personal thoughts, ideas and experiences.

I love that my friend uses it as a place to record her personal goals. Goals are more likely to be achieved when recorded and even better for others to see so you can have other’s support. I love that she also uses it to keep track of where she is at in regards to her goals. Blogs can be a place to record and to remember important things – now we don’t have to rely on sticky notes that are easily lost. I love the way that blogging is used differently for so many individuals. This friend in particular uses it on a very personal basis, using it to post happenings in her life for her friends and family to see.

 Kristine or Polly

A couple of years ago I used to be very into blogging. I mainly followed a lot of fashion and make-up blogs. “Kristine or Polly” was one of my favorite ones to follow. She posted very often her outfits of the day and would discuss where she got it, why she would wear certain patterns together, and how modesty was the most important thing to her when it came to shopping and putting together. I loved how she used her blog to talk about something she loved but to also to share her standards in a non-threatening way. As I got back on my blog for this class I got reacquainted with her and her posts and I was sad to read her most recent post announcing that she will not be blogging anymore. It seemed due to her busy schedule and a drastic decrease in blog views, she feels like her time could be better spent elsewhere. I found that very interesting that we do something, something that I assume is for something fun and then after a while it is not considered worth it because others aren’t interested in what we are doing. Do we post things because we love them and they make us happy or do we post so others can see and approve? This was an interesting thing for me to think about in regards to why I post the things I do. Is it for me or is it for other eyes to see?  I also had a thought and wondering if blogs in general on the decrease? Are they becoming less popular because there are so many other Social Media sites to post on now that people do not need a blog format to do so?

Social Media Change Assignment Description

I think Social Medias has greatly changed the way that our society as a whole communicates. As technology has advanced, our society’s use of Social Media has increased as well. Where we used to write letters or make phone calls, now we can instant message, tweet, and snapchat someone to get a hold of them. For this assignment I would like to look at both sides of the argument, because while I believe Social Media can enhance our ability to communicate, I also believe that if used incorrectly can be detrimental to our relationships.

In many ways, Social Media has broadened our ability to communicate with those far away from us, to make friends and to build relationships. I personally appreciate that I can stay in contact with individuals from states or even countries away. By simply clicking of a mouse I can catch up on the last couple months of their life. Very quickly we can get to know individuals through social medias and build connections on similar interests. We are able to express encouragement to mere acquaintances by a simple click of a blue thumbs up button. I can think of several instances in my life where a friendship first started with a friend request. We are able to “add” complete strangers and get to know them and build our social circle. While I personally do not think that is the smartest or safest thing to do, it is done quite often in our society. There are many pro’s to Social Media when it is used positively it can be a great asset to the way we connect with others. We can build ourselves up and build up others if we choose to communicate positively on Social Medias.

Unfortunately, along with the increase of Social Media, there has been less face-to-face interaction. Studies show that this is resulting in less social skills, interpersonal communication and meaningful relationships. It is evident in today’s society the increase use of Social Media’s to communicate is leading to drastic changes in the way we communicate. As we look around us, in class, at the mall, walking down the street and even during church services, phones are out. People are always plugged in to their phones and plugged out of the surroundings. I am not an exception, I recently went a year and a half without any Social Media use, and when I started back up again I literally felt sucked into it. Social Media use can be addicting if not monitored properly.

New relationships are built on those first initial interactions and conversations. With the increase of social medias, now we can look at someone’s Facebook page and find out every essential piece of information that we need to know about some one within minutes. At times severe use of Social Medias can be detrimental to relationships. And have negative affects on friendships and even family relations as personal things are taken to the public eye for all to see.

It is our own personal responsibility to be accountable for the way we communicate via Social Media. It is our own personal decisions if we shall use it for good or use it to be detrimental. As we strive to let our interactions on these sites be encouraging and uplifting it can be used for good. 

Sources:
 http://socialnetworking.procon.org/

http://millennialceo.com/social-media/social-media-changed-communicate/

http://mashable.com/2015/03/28/internet-communication-brandspeak/

Social Media Case Reflection 1

There is the commonly used phrase, “be careful what you read on the Internet” – but I feel more importantly we must always ‘be careful what we say on the Internet.’ We develop this incorrect mindset that we can say whatever we want behind our computer screens without the negative repercussions of what those comments may bring. The event that took place at Kilroy’s is an example of improper use of Social Media and the ripple effect that it causes. What we put on the Internet can spread and it can spread fast. 15-10 years ago, information was spread differently. Phone calls, letters, etc were the main use of contacting someone or getting information out. Now with a click of a mouse we can get our message out to more eyes than we can imagine.

Things said on the Internet can spread faster and to a wider audience than we could ever imagine. In this particular situation where Holly Jones made this comment to the Kilroy’s Bar and Grill, the negative consequences are probably more than this hairstylist could have ever imagine would be the repercussions of her upset remarks about the customer service she received on New Years Eve. Holly Jones’ negative comments have created a viral explosion of opinions and comments. On one report it said that it has reached across the states and even into different countries.

            As I read through Holly Jones’ comment, I was astonished by her rudeness and lack of tact. I think she was very out of line. On her behalf, I can say she probably was not in the right state of mind, considering this took place at a bar and her party’s tab was over $700 dollars. Alcohol and instant Internet posts are a catastrophe waiting to happen. It is obvious in her attack and in our society that we feel like we can say whatever we want when it is behind a computer screen. There is a sense of protection and a feeling of anonymity in posting our feelings online. We foolishly believe we can put it out there, avoiding the fact that it is for all eyes to see. When on the contrary, more people can see, more people can reply and even spread your post for others to see.

The manager responded boldly and unapologetically. On many websites he received praise for his response. As I read the bar manager’s reply, I also was happy he took the opportunity to take a stand and stay firm with what he believes. I am on his side; clearly Holly Jones’ was in the wrong. I was curious if there were any articles that were positive on Holly Jones’ behalf, but I could not find any.

One thing I did think was unnecessary was how much hate was produced from the public towards Holly Jones’. So much hatred, cruel comments and I read even “death threats” were directed to her after this event. I think that is one very negative result of Social Medias is how it involves so many people that are truly not involved. People get so involved in issues that do not pertain to them and what is silly to me is how absolutely mad they get. Social Media has a way of making something that is not your business – your business, which inevitably creates high tensions, hurt feelings and unnecessary drama.

            I found it very interesting and pertinent to Public Relations how much this event affected both the bar and the salon that the women worked out. Things we post on social media’s affect more than just our simple social circle; it can affect our careers and our futures. The salon that Holly Jones' worked at had to publicly make a facebook post apologizing for her actions and separating the business from any negative comments she made. Actions had to be taken by both groups to save face and the reputations of both businesses.

            All in all, I found this story to very eye opening to how Social Media can truly spread a message to such large audience. When we let our emotion and anger get the best of us as Holly Jones’ did and we turn to the Internet as a source to get our frustrations out; there is going to be very negative repercussions. We must always be aware of the fact that what we post on the internet is and will always be able to be viewed by more than those we intended to.

Sources used:

http://coed.com/2016/01/04/holly-jones-indianapolis-nye-facebook-rant-kilroys-bar-n-grill-customer-heart-attack-details/

 (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/kilroys-heart-attack-response_us_568b1b42e4b014efe0db7953

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3383021/The-manager-told-dying-important-Cold-hearted-bar-customer-goes-rant-saying-New-Year-s-Eve-ruined-woman-having-HEART-ATTACK.html

Robinson, W., & Graham, R. (2016, January 3). The hairdresser who posted a rant about a diner ruining her New Year's Eve meal by having a HEART ATTACK. Retrieved January 19, 2016, from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3383021/The-manager-told-dying-important-Cold-hearted-bar-customer-goes-rant-saying-New-Year-s-Eve-ruined-woman-having-HEART-ATTACK.html

Mazza, E. (2016, January 4). Heart Attack Response. Retrieved January 19, 2016, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/kilroys-heart-attack-response_us_568b1b42e4b014efe0db7953

Woman Blasts Resturant on Facebook After Staff Cared for Heart Attack Victim Instead of Her. (2016, January 4). Retrieved from http://coed.com/2016/01/04/holly-jones-indianapolis-nye-facebook-rant-kilroys-bar-n-grill-customer-heart-attack-deta