4 Twitter Tools to Add to Your Toolbox

Darrell Etherington on April 20, 2009

Twitter continues its march of social networking dominance, spurred even further into the spotlight thanks to a recent high profile race to a million followers between Ashton Kutcher and CNN, and Oprah Winfrey’s decision to sign up this past Friday. Along with its massive increase in popularity comes a growing library of useful third-party Twitter tools. Here are four new web apps that offer unique features that could be especially beneficial to web workers.
picture-23twi.bz: Better Name-Dropping in Shortened URLs
URL shortening is a necessity when using Twitter thanks to its strict 140 character limit. Some URLs exceed that limit by themselves, even without any context. The problem with most URL shorteners, though, including bit.ly and TinyURL, is that they mask the site of origin of the story, so you can easily be misled by tricky taglines or overlook something you may otherwise have clicked on. Read More about 4 Twitter Tools to Add to Your Toolbox

Vid-Biz: Break, Clearleap, Warner Bros.

on November 4, 2008

Break to Show Full-length Films; company moves beyond clips in a bid to reach advertisers, movies available to include Ghostbusters, Men in Black and The Fifth Element. (MediaPost)
Clearleap Gets $3.3 Million; company looking to a combo of set-top boxes and partnerships with TV service providers to deliver broad choice of video to the living room. (VentureBeat)
Warner Bros. Bringing Legal Movie Downloads to China; official online distribution a move to fight rampant piracy. (LA Times)
Netflix Getting Out of the Used DVD Biz; company shifting focus to rentals and direct streaming. (Netflix Blog)
Starz Bulks Up Its Movie Catalog; company gets movies from Summit, Lionsgate, IFC and others for its 16 TV channels as well as its broadband video service. (Broadcasting & Cable)
CNN President Credits UGC for Success; Jonathan Klein says reliance on social networks, Twitter and amateur video helps his network reach younger viewers. (Contentinople)
Astronauts Cast Absentee Ballots; crew makes a get out the vote video from space. (io9)

Vermont OKs the Creation of Virtual Corporations

Wagner James Au on June 17, 2008

Ah Vermont, that lovely New England state known for its maple syrup, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream…and now, limited liability corporations that only exist online. [digg=http://digg.com/business_finance/Vermont_OKs_the_Creation_of_Virtual_Corporations_GigaOM]

On June 6th, Gov. Jim Douglas signed an inauspicious-sounding bill entitled “H.0888, Miscellaneous Tax Documents” that could revolutionize the way startup companies are formed and run. As New York Law School professor David Johnson explained to me, up until now, U.S. law required LLCs to have physical headquarters, in-person board meetings and other regulations that have little relevance in the digital age. Read More about Vermont OKs the Creation of Virtual Corporations

This Week’s Net Neutrality Cheat Sheet

on May 9, 2008

It’s Friday. The weekend everyone’s been working for is here. The last thing you want to read about is proposed Net Neutrality legislation making its way through Congress. But there were two developments on that front this week that you should at least be aware of, so to make it easier for you, we created this handy-dandy chart.

Bill Title Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2008 (H.R. 5353) Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (H.R. 5994)
Sponsor Rep. Edward Markey (D.-Mass) Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), Rep. Zoe Lofgen (R-Ca.)
Tactic Authorize the FCC to monitor broadband network operators. Uses antitrust laws to keep broadband network operators in line.
Concerns House committee split along party lines. Republicans fear FCC will over-regulate. Antitrust suits can be drawn out and expensive.

Read More about This Week’s Net Neutrality Cheat Sheet