Techno Mojo

I’ve caught the micromedia or microblogging bug and it may very well be terminal. I’m proud of my early-adopter and beta tester status but I was slow to catch this trend and even now still feel like I am not using it to full potential. As one’s time and attention and have shrunken down, more audio/video/blogs are shrinking their content to this bite-sized media. This is why Techno Mojo has been neglected. I’ve been keeping up with web apps and sharing my thoughts with these web/mobile apps in an effort to communicate.

Lifestreaming-

Twitter/Jaiku/Pownce- In 140 characters or less per post, mention anything you want or share links with anyone and everyone you want to. Think of it has hyper-text messaging and not to be confused with an instant messenger client. All have RSS feeds so you can track them and read others. Be sure to research all of the various Twitter 3^rd party applications that enhances the experiences.

Voice Blogging-

Utterz/Jott- Using your mobile phone, you can add/embed a post to your website and/or have it hosted on their websites. Use the RSS feeds to send to Twitter/Jaiku/Pownce and notify your contacts.

Microblogging-

Tumblr/Soup/Facebook- I use these to catch all of the aforementioned applications into one neat little blog. Combo Mojo receives feeds from Twitter, Jaiku, Pownce, Flickr, The Mojo Network, YouTube, Vimeo, Utterz, Jott and so much more. Why go to all of these sites when they are pulled into one?

Micro Video-

Seesmic- this is a web app that appears to be like Twitter but with video added. I say “appears to be” because it is very difficult to get an invitation to this limited beta tester application. I would use the heck out of this, given the chance. Did you like the not-so-subtle hint?

UStream- live streaming video rocks my socks. Includes chat client.

Kyte.tv- read above

Click on the links below to find me on these web apps:

Twitter, Jaiku, Pownce, Utterz, Tumblr, Soup, Facebook, Ustream, Seesmic (coming soon?)

your ads here (468x60) - after 1st post.

There is a huge influx of web-based photo manipulation software out there but I want to focus on Picnik which just came out of beta testing and is ready to serve. We’ve mentioned Picnik before and thought it was worth mentioning again now that it has officially released. There are both free options and a $25 annual subscription. The difference is in the filter effects, text, framing and icons that you can access. 

This week only, everyone can have access to all photo tools to wet your whistle and have you salivating enough to open your wallet. 

Picnik has just added access to your Photobucket account as well as previous favorites, such as Flickr and Picasa. You can search, upload, edit and save to your photo accounts with ease. Downloading to your computer or printing for use is a snatch. 

Picnik’s user interface is fast and fluid. Click a button and it just moves for you. Very nice touch to your digital workflow. This web app is highly suggested for people on the go or who doesn’t have access to Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro, etc.

Ain’t it cool?

I spend a lot of time on the internet. OK, make that a ginormous amount of time. I also contribute to the web frequently and in various fashions via text, photos, video etc. Even I can’t keep track of it all. I’ve found a way to pull more than a few of my content feeds together so people won’t HAVE to visit my websites, just this one. Yay!

Introducing, Combo Mojo: http://mojodenbow.tumblr.com/

The RSS feed is here: http://mojodenbow.tumblr.com/rss 

screenshot from Tumblr.com: 

Tags: Tumblr, Mojo Denbow, Combo Mojo, Techno Mojo, RSS

Polar Rose has recently invited a few people in to test out their facial recognition software. Upon creating your account, you are prompted to download the Firefox extension (sorry IE/Safari). Every time you see a facial photo online, a small rose will hover and allow you to type in a name for the face. These will then be stored on site and searchable.

This reminds me of Spock, the people search engine that collects people’s names and online presence (+ more). But what does this really offer? To what end do we catalog various names/faces?

With Riya, you can train the webware to recognize faces for you and offers photo hosting/blog posting. But all for naught since hey have moved to Like.com visual shopping. Disappointing.

Polar Rose has offered some new features before the Beta test like favorites and faces as your profile pic but that is it for now. How is this marketable? What is the ROI? What is next for face recognition software? Lastly, who will acquire Polar Rose?

photo captured by Polar Rose from Riya.com. Ironic, no?

Hiatus, holiday, interval, break, gap or time-off. Either way you can synonym-ize it, I’m doing it. There are many time influencers going on right now and I am choosing my prioirties accordingly.

Let me encourage you to read all of the other great tech & web 2.0 sites out there!

Check out the other Mojo sites like Go Mojo & Photo Mojo. Most of all, thank you for your daily readership. We’ll be back and adding to the conversation soon.

 …and in with the new. TechCrunch is reporting a major announcement tomorrow from Yahoo. Yahoo will be closing the doors on Photos to focus on Flickr, the web hosting/photo community that Yahoo purchased.

Even though Photos outnumbered Flickr users, Flickr’s growing popularity & strong social community make it a perfect fit for Yahoo’s social agenda. Y! Photos was…boring.

Mojo Denbow’s Photo Studio

I’ve been testing the Beta release of PhotoShop from Adobe Labs for awhile now and it is becoming increasingly difficult to say no to the upgrade that was released this week.

I purchased a copy of the original Creative Suite a few years ago and saw no need to upgrade to CS2. What’s the difference? Enhanced RAW support and Bridge so I no longer have to shoot in JPEG mode and can go completley RAW (larger, non-compressed images). More filters included and PhotoMerge. But again, is it worth upgrading for $200? Is it worth $650 to purchase outright?

Why not make use of the free online photo manipulation webware such as Picnik, Fauxto and more? Why not wait for Adobe Photoshop software online?

If you are not a professional or serious amatuer photographer, a graphic designer or a web designer, don’t purchase. Stick with what you have. For the rest of us…VERY tempting.

 **BONUS**  This month’s IPSA (Internet Professionals Society of Alabama) special event is all about Adobe’s Creative Suite 3 release and will be demo’d by Adobe reps Greg Rewis and Stephanie Sullivan. Wednesday, April 25th from 6-9PM at the Vulcan Park Conference Center. Free for IPSA members and only $10 for non-members. Space is limited so RSVP now. One copy of Adobe Creative Suite 3 worth $650, will be given away to a lucky IPSA member at the event. If you are not a member, why not join us now?

Zooomr, the brilliant photo hosting site that previously offered unique features such as portals, voice recordings, geomaps with Google is almost done releasing Mark III. This new release is supposed to have over 250  new features including the ability to sell your work as photo stock. On top of all this, Zooomr will allow you to load unlimited photo storage at any resolution size!

What I am hoping to see is an integrated photo uploader as opposed to the current 3rd party offering that is iffy and holds me back from loading as many photos as desired.

My question is, how does founder, lone coder Kris Tate do it? What is driving all of this innovation, server space and generosity?

When Mark III is released, I’ll wait at least a week and then try to hit him up with some Q & A!

In the meantime, keep up the brilliant work, pace yourself and get some rest, Kris.