Tech Talk

The future of social media is here. It’s called Google+.

The technology giant’s latest attempt of dominating the social media world combines the best aspects of Facebook and Twitter. Millions of people around the world are already members of the Google community. Now these users have a simple and intuitive platform to join.

Among its many pluses (pun intended), a few stand out:

The circles feature, which your humble Tech Talk editor was at first very skeptical of, is a game-changer.

The feature gives you the opportunity to easily group information around a specific topic or group of individuals. It’s also much cleaner, like what Facebook was when it debuted more than a half-decade ago and has since cluttered. There are no applications or other annoyances to distract the user — yet.

Users are likely to find this platform to be refreshing in that they can still connect with whoever they’d like, but don’t have to be bombarded with every detail a given connection posts. Users may choose to select specific groups of individuals to populate their news feeds at any given moment. Sure, Facebook and Twitter have these options, but Google does it better. It’s easier, more prominently placed and more intuitive.

The integration with other services (like GMail, Calendar, Reader, etc…) people are already using will attract more people to Google+.

The platform is also fast and seemingly dependable.

Google+ also allows users to share content and updates with individuals not using the platform by still allowing you to add them to a circle. Your updates then get emailed to them.

While it remains to be seen if Facebook will continue its dominance in ways MySpace and other services could not, this editor is confident Google+ will be a major player. Facebook is not going to die anytime soon, but folks now have another viable option to connect with others.

Prediction: Within a year, Google+ will be more popular than Twitter and give Facebook a real run for its money.

One of the fastest spreading video clips of the past week focused on NBC’s Today Show hosts trying to figure out what the Internet was back in 1994. It was an eye-opening clip, not because three of the most educated and connected broadcasters of the time were ignorant or stupid, but because it showed how far the network has come in less than two decades.

It was also great publicity for NBC, a network your Tech Talk editor once proudly produced and edited content for.

Unfortunately, according to Washington Post columnist Rob Pegoraro, the peacock network still doesn’t understand how the Internet works.

Pegoraro tweeted late Wednesday:

The guy who posted the 1994 Today Show “what is Internet?” clip on YouTube e-mailed to say he got canned for that. Ugh.

An organization as large as NBC should recognize that such an action would do nothing good — or crush the story. One would think NBC would know that its own reporting of the technology.

In fact, if the report is true, it will simply reignite the story and lead to criticism of the network. A story that initially brought smiles to countless viewers’ faces will now surely bring grimaces.

Miss the clip? Simply search Google for “Couric + Internet” and you will quickly find one of thousands of sources.

Not smart, guys.

Let’s face it, it’s often difficult to let go. The same certainly holds true of significant others — past and present. However, it is often critical to do exactly that and let go to stay healthy and maintain a level head — and then find future romance.

It is for that reason Tech Talk applauds YourTango.com, a site devoted to relations, for crafting the first “Break Up With Your Ex” day on Facebook — slated for Feb. 13. Best of all, no cards, candy or purchase of any sort is required.

According to a recent survey conducted for the company, 71 percent of respondents indicated that they think about their ex too much and 48 percent (including 42 percent of married folk) said they look at their ex’s social networking profile too often. If there is a positive side to the results, it’s at least people realize that they are doing it too often.

The site encourages everyone to cut social media ties with former boyfriends, girlfriends, spouses and partners on Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and the like.

However, the site doesn’t stop there. To ensure that we’ll all move on, YourTango.com encourages folks to:

• Untag and/or delete photos of yourself and that person online, on your computer and phone;
• Delete songs and playlists that remind you of the person;
• Block or erase the person on Google chat, AIM and other instant messaging services;
• Delete their numbers from your phone and their email addresses from your address book;
• Enlist the support of friends and community to detach and stay detached from your ex;
• Get back into the dating scene to complete the moving-on process.

“The current digital landscape makes it especially difficult to truly break from past relationships. Nevertheless, getting someone out of your head — and your heart — is a necessary part of moving on and finding new love, as well as succeeding in a current relationship,” said Andrea Miller, founder and CEO, YourTango.com in an e-mail to Tech Talk. “With the massive ex-attachment going on, we devised this simple call to action to help individuals digitally untether themselves before Valentine’s Day.”

In the same e-mail, Miller stressed the importance of severing ties with the following disturbing details:

• 57 percent of singles said thinking about their ex prevents them from finding new love
• 60 percent of married people agreed that their ex is on their mind too often
• 36 percent said their attachment to their ex interferes with their marriage

 In an attempt to encourage others to follow suit, and surely to garner attention for the website, participants are encouraged to post “I Broke Up With My Ex,” and use the #DumpYourEx hashtag.

Regardless of why YourTango.com is doing it, it’s a great idea and one that TechTalk endorses.

The Internet has been compared with an untamed wilderness because of its seeming ability to foster rebels wishing to strike against the world’s most powerful and then elude capture.

However, the world’s reaction to the WikiLeaks diplomatic cable leaks has shined a light on how even the Web could fall in line with the world’s standards, expecations and influences.

As documents continue to surface against the wishes of some of the world’s most powerful players, a noose continues to tighten around the resources and founder of WikiLeaks.

The site was banished from Amazon’s servers last week, as Tech Talk reported. Days later, PayPal followed suit. And most recently, MasterCard and Visa have cut payments to the organization.

As if Amazon’s blow was not difficult enough for the organization to overcome, the loss of income could be devastating to WikiLeaks’ very survival — particularly at a time when it needs liquid finances the most desperately.

Meanwhile, WikiLeaks founder and editor Julian Assange faces a potential extradition to face sexual assault allegations in Sweden.

The situation reminds us that no one could hide on the Internet from a determined world — and ultimately, cyberspace is not much different from our brick and mortar world.

For generations, the North American Aerospace Defense Command has kept millions of people around the world abreast of Santa Claus’ precise location each Christmas Eve. The dissemination began via the telephone began in 1955, the Web in 1998 and now is available through social media.

Beginning on Dec. 24 and running through Christmas Day, NORAD will share the latest location of Kriss Kringle.

Folks can follow the man in red through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google, Flickr and TroopTube — as well as on mobile devices, Time reported.

If you prefer to call NORAD, you still may: 1-877-Hi-NORAD from within the United States. Folks can also send Santa a letter at noradtrackssanta@gmail.com.

You may read more about how NORAD tracks Santa in the Tech Talk archives.

A new website has the potential to change the way folks look at America’s cities.

Hottblock.com, launched last week

Paul Mansour launched hottblock.com, a self-funded website out of Austin, Texas, last Tuesday. Masour created the innovative site after becoming frustrated while considering the pros and cons of job offers in different cities. He did not know anything about the communities, and his web research only provided him with statistical data — and not a feel for the culture.

After hearing that many of his friends suffered the same concerns, he launched the site that offers reviews and ratings of many medium and large cities across the country. It will give folks the opportunity to share the benefits and drawbacks of each community.

Among the communities locally listed:

• Ansonia
• Bridgeport
• Danbury
• Derby
• Milford
• New Haven
• Norwalk
• Shelton
• Stamford
• Waterbury
• West Haven

However, none of the aforementioned communities have been reviewed as of this posting. But you can change that. In fact, the founder told Tech Talk that he is depending on members of the community to help populate the pages.

“Contemplating a new job in a new city is hard enough already without the added difficulties of weighing the pros and cons of a particular city and its many neighborhoods,” Mansour told Tech Talk. ”Unless you know someone in your prospective town, it’s difficult to find the best neighborhood or part of town. I’ve had many friends over the past few years who have encountered this issue and not been satisfied with the resources currently available online.”

He said there are many sites that offer housing statistics, restaurant reviews and opinions on destinations from the perspective of a visitor — but not any that tie it all together.

“You can scour the Web for articles or posts with similar information, but hottblock.com gives visitors a chance to learn about a city from long-time residents in once place,” Mansour said. ”Though larger cities comprise most of the reviews, visitors have the option to explore reviews for any city or town in the country with a population over 5,000.”

He told Tech Talk that he is considering expanding the site to offer multimedia opportunities. It currently only allows text to be posted.

Hottblock.com has a lot of potential. Its success, however, will depend on how involved he could make the numerous communities in which he has launched portals. Currently, Mansour is depending on the site to grow through word-of-mouth. He may need to do a little more than that to be successful.

A new browser is changing the way people surf the Web and share information.

RockMelt, which requires those interested to request an invitation, allows users to share websites with friends instantly through Facebook and Twitter — while monitoring other sites through linked RSS feeds.

The specialty browser, which is integrated with Facebook and requires folks to sign into Facebook to use, allows users to monitor which friends are online and chat with them while surfing the web.

The browser will be particularly useful to folks who enjoys regularly sharing information with their friends. RockMelt allows people to simply drag and drop content to the two vertical sidebars docked on both sides of users’ screen. Suggested information is already filled in. It’s as innovative as it is simple.

Give it a try. You won’t regret it.