GeekSugar

Do You Use Social Media to Contact Companies?

GeekSugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:44:18 -0800

I just finished reading an article about a US couple who, because of visa problems, nearly missed their Russian honeymoon. They thought they'd done their research; online travel agency Expedia assured the couple that they didn't need visas to travel to St. Petersburg. It turned out, though, they did. After sharing their experience and anger in real time via Twitter and their blog, Expedia reached out to the couple, reimbursing the cost of their trip, the additional expenses they incurred, and offering a huge credit toward their next trip.

More companies are using social media to respond immediately to problems and interact closely with customers. In fact, some of Sugar staffers used the service to get in touch with JetBlue during a severely delayed flight.

While I agree it's a great way to interact with a company, I can't decide if this will increase their responses or just create a new forum for more people to complain. What do you think?

Do You Keep Old Profiles Online?

GeekSugar — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 13:16:37 -0800

Nothing to hide here: from time to time I like to Google myself, just to see what comes up. After all, you never know who's going to search for you from a potential boss to a potential date. Even Kristen Stewart admits to self-Googling, as do a few other celebs.

This time, though, I came across one of my outdated social networking profiles that I'd last looked at in 2005. Until now, I'd completely forgotten about it, but there it was, online for everyone to see! I quickly deleted the, um, evidence and then did a quick search to find any remaining profiles I may have forgotten about.

If you decide to stop using a site, do you actively delete your profile? Or do you just stop using it and hope it sort of disappears into the abyss?

Website of the Day: DailyBooth

GeekSugar — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 09:09:57 -0700

If you can't get enough social networking action (what, with your Twitter updates and Facebooking), add this service to your daily update list: DailyBooth.

DailyBooth is kinda like Twitter, where you post what you're doing and personal updates, but with the extra added feature of adding a photo to every post. Just activate your computer's on-board camera (or external camera) and snap away every day to show off your new haircut, or that shiner you got while playing volleyball with your pals.

Have an interesting website you want to share? To learn how to post your favorite websites to our Website of the Day group, read more.

First of all, join the Website of the Day group.
Click "New Post" under the website of the day tab at the top of the page.
Give your story a "Title."
Fill in the "Body" with a link to your favorite website and the reasons why you love it.
Type "Technology and Gadgets" in the Categories box
Add keyword(s) in the tag field with relevant tags (for example mine for this story was "Website of the Day").
Choose whether you want the post to be private or public.
Click "Create Post" to submit content.

Do You Use Facebook More Than Email to Stay In Contact?

GeekSugar — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 13:25:45 -0700

I'm guessing that since you're reading this site, you're on some sort of social networking site (more specifically Facebook), and probably check a few times a day (or if you're like me, checking it all the time via a mobile app). Facebook, as well as other social networking sites, provide a great way to keep in touch with people. So much so that social networking may be edging out email as a way to keep in touch with friends and family.

Time spent on Facebook is up 88 percent from five years ago, while email usage dropped by 41 percent in the same amount of time. It makes sense - I mean, even grandmas use Facebook! Do you use Facebook or other social networking sites now more than email to stay in contact with friends and family?

Website of the Day: Hi I'm

GeekSugar — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 13:25:16 -0700

Whether you've got a Twitter or MySpace page, a Facebook profile, or you use Flickr and LinkedIn - and yes, there's an all of the above option - you have to agree that it can sometimes be one hot mess trying to share content with friends from all of your respective "pages."

Well Hi I'm is basically a "nametag on the Internet" that will help you share all of your social networking content from one page.

Unlike Google Profiles, which is very similar, Hi I'm updates whenever you post anything to your network profiles. And I love the fact that the site makes your personal URL http://hi.im/yourname - short and sweet.

Have an interesting website you want to share? To learn how to post your favorite websites to our Website of the Day group, read more.

First of all, join the Website of the Day group.
Click "New Post" under the website of the day tab at the top of the page.
Give your story a "Title."
Fill in the "Body" with a link to your favorite website and the reasons why you love it.
Type "Technology and Gadgets" in the Categories box
Add keyword(s) in the tag field with relevant tags (for example mine for this story was "Website of the Day").
Choose whether you want the post to be private or public.
Click "Create Post" to submit content.

So join the Website of the Day group and share information about all your favorite sites! Yours just might end up on the GeekSugar homepage!

Geek Tip: Stave Off Social Identity Theft With KnowEm

GeekSugar — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:50:55 -0700

Needless to say, I have a ton of active social networking accounts out there. Sometimes I even forget which ones I belong to! So when I discovered KnowEm, I was relived to be able to check a plethora of social networking sites for my user name, not only to remind me which sites I have an account with but to also make sure someone isn't going around stealing my moniker or worse - my identity.

KnowEm makes it easy to stay on top of user name squatters and identity stealers and is a quick way to jog your memory about which sites you belong to so you can delete, cancel, or bookmark those for future use. I sometimes get weirded out about how many open accounts I've forgotten about which are ripe for a hacker's picking, so keeping tabs on your online accounts is a good idea for all.

PSA: Tweeting About Being on Vacay Can Make You a Target

GeekSugar — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:35:22 -0700

Looks like we have more to worry about than just blurting out TMI on your Twitter or Facebook pages: a study reports that nearly half of users polled broadcast when they're out of town on their social networks, leaving them open to potential burglaries.

Seem far-fetched? It's not, as the Arizona man who was robbed in June after tweeting about being out of town can tell you.

It may seem alarmist, but I'm taking this to heart. What makes it tough is that when you tweet all the time, how could you not tell people that you're in a cool city on vacation? Maybe just leave out the tweets where you explicitly say you're out of the house and for how long.

Illinois Bars Sex Offenders From Social Networks

GeekSugar — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 01:47:02 -0700

On Thursday, Illinois lawmakers signed a law that bans registered sex offenders from using social networks. The law, of course, aims to prevent offenders from victimizing those they might find on a social network such as Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter.

Interestingly, they define social network as "an Internet website containing profile web pages of the members of the website that include the names or nicknames of such members . . . or any other personal or personally identifying information about such members." You know as well as I do how many websites that defines nowadays, with more sites adding a social aspect to keep up with the times.

The powers-that-be appear to be growing more aware of the impact of social networks, and are responding accordingly - see the US Marines' ban. This law, though, has a different purpose entirely: protection of minors. Do you think it will be effective?

Do You Take Breaks From Social Networks?

GeekSugar — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:05:27 -0700

Sometimes you don't realize you need a break from something until you actually get it, and you realize how nice it was to just have a little time away from an obsession.

Such was the case for me on a recent vacation where, while I didn't completely disconnect, I didn't have time to check in on my Facebook and Twitter accounts.

I didn't know who was on their way to an amazing party, I didn't see photos posted by distant family member, I saw no Facebook status-offs. I admit that there used to be a time when I'd try to catch up on every update I'd missed in the time I'd been logged off, but this time when I came back, I felt no need to scroll through days and days' worth of tweets and status updates.

And it's fine. I'm not suffering from social networking anxiety. I rather enjoyed it, in fact, and think that I will implement social network breaks in the future. Do you take these kinds of breaks?

Photos courtesy of The CW

Which Do You Like Better: Twitter or Facebook?

GeekSugar — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 15:45:35 -0700

Who's the social network whipping boy this week? Facebook. Yesterday, Bill Gates admitted that he had been so overwhelmed by friend requests when he joined that he gave up on it.

As if on cue, media maven Martha Stewart took Facebook to task as well, and taking the opportunity to cite her real networking face, Twitter. She said:

I just love it so much more than Facebook. First of all, you don't have to spend any time on it, and, second of all, you reach a lot more people. And I don't have to "befriend" and do all that other dippy stuff that they do on Facebook.
Girlfriend has a point. In fact, I've had a lot of previously Facebook-addicted friends recently cop to all but abandoning it because they'd gotten so into Twitter.

I still spend equal amounts of time (occupational requirement), and I do honestly love them the same - but what about you?

Which Do You Like Better: Twitter or Facebook?

Twitter

Facebook