These little-known tips will help you master the art of Google Search

These little-known tips will help you master the art of Google Search. http://ht.ly/pXWdS #seo #google #geek

Filed under: Geek, Technology, e-marketing, geek, google, Google search, marketing, search, SEO, tech

I am offering Social Media training at C

I am offering Social Media training at CPCC beginning July 2nd. Seating is limited so REGISTER NOW! http://ht.ly/amtX6 #sm #clt

Filed under: Education, Social, CPCC, facebook, google, linkedin, social, social media, social networking, social networks, training, twitter

Google Now Accepting Student Application

Google Now Accepting Student Applications For Its 2012 Summer of Code http://ht.ly/9X6Kt

Filed under: Education, Geek, code, competition, developers, development, google, Innovation, programming, students

Deceased Online Users Live on Through Social Media

This article explores the needs of family to manage the online identity of deceased loved ones. It also provides resources for accessing accounts and removing profiles of deceased members.

I recently received a request from a colleague regarding a deceased team member. The spouse of the deceased was seeking ways to access accounts and remove inactive online profiles. The reality is that there is no one easy and all-inclusive way to resolve this. Often, online services and accounts are disconnected from one another and the spouse or estate representative will have to approach each site uniquely.

Below I have collected links to a few of the most popular / best of breed social media presences and links to a guiding document for resolving accounts of a deceased member.

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Google

Please note that a certificate of death or equivalent legal document is required in most cases.

Filed under: Innovation, Social, Uncategorized, death, deceased, facebook, google, identity, linkedin, online identity, online reputation, privacy, social media, twitter, user management

Generating and Managing QR Codes

At a recent marketing and public relations conference held by PRIMA-NC, I presented on the topic of mobile technologies in colleges and higher education markets. I shared a general vision of emerging trends and provided some low cost practical applications of mobile to marketing, communications, teaching and learning. One topic of particular interest seemed to be managing QR codes.

Managing QR Codes? Yes! I likened QR codes to web addresses / URLs. These odd-looking barcoding images transport mobile users to content and they must be managed or they will break. Broken QR codes are parallel to broken links and ruin a user’s experience. Managing them allows us to identify, track and hopefully fix any broken mobile experiences. 

Picking a Tool. Not all QR code creation tools are strewn across the www and many are not worth wasting time on IMO. Many of the tools out there offer very little benefit and many of them come at a cost. Now, for the sake of this conference, I simply did not have time to present a long list of pay-for options and differences so I instead focused on one very flexible and FREE QR code option that anyone can benefit from — a little company called “GOOGLE.” You may have heard of them. 

The Geeky Approach Through Google APIs. Many are simply not aware that QR codes are included as part of Google’s charting APIs. With a very small amount of “geek” knowledge, one can be easily create and manipulate QR codes using a simple query string. You may also be able to use these options to enhance your existing online services and content management systems (CMS). Geeks, you’ll like this flexible option and also note that there are some other pretty cool custom charts and effects that you can produce if you dig into what they make available to developers. It doesn’t take much to produce some pretty interesting effects and dynamic content for your websites.

Not-So-Geeky Approach. If you’re not a “geek” and aren’t interested in *that* much flexibility but more in simplicity, Google’s URL shortener “goo.gl” is a perfect option for you. The shortener includes a QR code with each URL shortened and managed. The QR code can be saved as a PNG and converted to vector by a designer. This is generally what I use to manage QR codes for campaigns as it’s clean, easy to use, provides basic analytics and it’s completely FREE. You can manage and track multiple QR code campaigns from one simple interface a no cost. 

Asset Management. An issue that many organizations are very concerned with is asset management. How can we ensure the longevity of these QR codes? How do we carry them forward as staffing changes? Well, using many Google services generally requires a Google or Gmail user account. If your organization has implemented Google Apps services, your employees can login and access the Google’s services, developer tools, APIs and, yes, even the URL shortener, through a managed user account. Google Apps ranges from FREE to premium paid options so that small and large organizations can benefit. Let’s say that the employee managing your mobile campaigns and QR codes leaves the organization, the account and access can be delegated to another user. The QR codes are not lost and can continue to be managed by the new associate. This seems to be a rather useful (dare I say elegant) no or low cost option.

I hope that you find this info useful. Please post comments and feedback!

Adam S. Brooks
http://www.adambrooks.org
@adambrooks

Filed under: Uncategorized, barcoding, e-marketing, googel apps, google, google api, google apis, google mobile, marketing, mobile, mobile marketing, online marketing, PRIMA, QR, QR codes

#GEEK: Google Pulls Plug On Android App

#GEEK: Google Pulls Plug On Android App Inventory Programming For the Masses – http://ht.ly/603yp

Filed under: Geek, Uncategorized, android, geek, google, mobile

Chelyabinsk Russia Attempts to Put Giant Smiley on Google Earth

A crowd of citizens in the Russian town of Chelyabinsk, formed a giant yellow smiley that is anticipated to be visible via Google Earth. [read more]

So, what symbol or message would your city stamp on Google Earth if it had the chance? AB

Filed under: Entertainment, Chelyabinsk, fun, funny, google, Google Earth, Google Maps, humor, maps, Russia, smiley, Technology

Google to iPhone — Competition is coming!

ARM will demonstrate Google’s Android on an early prototype device at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next week, one of several demonstrations of the mobile platform that will occur at the conference, Google said Thursday.

Click here for more!

 

del.icio.us Tags: ipod,iphone,apple,google,google mobile,google android,iphone killer

Filed under: Uncategorized, google, iphone, mobile