Image by DigitalTribes via Flickr

I’m not sure what to think of this new race to see who gets a million followers first.  On the one hand, it seems like some strange popularity contest, where we’re all supposed to run like lemmings and “follow” after a celeb to give him/her more validation and status in the eyes of their peers.  Or maybe it’s simply to stroke their ego?  I don’t know, but it feels a bit awkward for me.

On the other hand, I’ve read that Ashton Kutcher is going to buy 10,000 mosquito bed nets if he beats CNN to a million followers and CNN said they’d match that if they reach a million followers before him.  I applaud them for their charitable actions, but just wish they would have stated that *before* they went on this race to collect followers, rather than afterwards.  But hey, I shouldn’t criticize – at least they’re doing something good.

Given this race to collect mega-followers just for the sake of the numbers, I’m re-examining if I understand what Twitter is all about.

I thought Twitter was about the ability to talk to others in a two- or multi-way conversation, without the barriers of status, physicality, situation or velvet ropes.  Twitter leveled the playing field so any one of us could “@ reply” somebody else – whether they were Ashton Kutcher, Neil Diamond, or the latest person coming on supposedly tomorrow, Oprah Winfrey.  This notion of collecting “followers” as a status symbol doesn’t feel right.  I like Robert Scoble‘s approach – he follows almost everyone that follows him and actively responds to everyone – not just celebs, but even those with a single follower. It probably takes a lot of time for him, but it seems quite genuine and warm.

Connecting with people on the internet, even if only for 140 characters at time, can feed into us in many positive ways.  I’ve met many interesting people through Twitter and enjoy these new relationships; plus I now even rely on Twitter for my daily news.  I hope Twitter remains the place where serendipitous conversations can happen – and not the place where we can collect people like we can collect stamps.

Related articles

• CNN acquires leading Twitter account (news.cnet.com)
• Ted Turner May Endorse Kutcher In The Race For A Million Twitter Followers (techcrunch.com)
• Ashton Giving Away Guitar Hero? We’re Giving Away Chanel! Help Us Get to 1 MM Votes Before Ashton Reaches 1 MM on Twitter! (popsugar.com)
• CNN, Ashton, Twitter … Oh My (mashable.com)
• Ashton Kutcher Vs. CNN On Twitter (cbsnews.com)

via flickr.com

Posted via web from Kathy’s posterous

Have a few gadgets at home? Maybe a BlackBerry, an iPod, Nintendo DS, Flip video recorder, etc.? You know how you have to set up the software for all these bleeping gadgets because there isn’t a universal tool that connects them all? Well, your frustration at sharing media between various devices has come to an end. Today, doubleTwist launched the PC version of their software which lets dogs and cats live together in harmony (the Mac version has been available since February 2009).

It’s quite simple: doubleTwist is a unifying media platform that connects consumers with all their media and all their devices, regardless of whether they are online or offline. So you can stop worrying about formats and silly file names like DSC50491.jpg and just let doubleTwist do the work.

They’ve also raised another round of funding from heavy hitters like former Disney honcho Michael Ovitz, former Head of Digital Strategy at Warner Music Alex Zubillaga, Index Ventures, China’s richest man Li Ka-Shing, and Northzone Ventures.  Their Series B was $5 million, bringing the total to $7.3 million.

Related articles:

• doubleTwist and its band of heavy hitters (USA Today)
• doubleTwist raises $5 million to help you manage your music and more (VentureBeat)
• DVD Jon’s doubleTwist raises $5 million and releases PC version (NewTeeVee)
• Media platform startup doubleTwist raises $ 5 million from Ovitz, others (PaidContent)
• doubleTwist media manager comes back to Windows (LifeHacker)
• Infamous hacker DVD Jon raises $5m for new venture (Guardian)
• doubleTwist media manager now available for download on Windows (Gizmodo)
• Media sharing platform doubleTwist lands $5 million (Digital Media Wire)

Been thinking about getting your hands on that brand-spanking new Nintendo DSi that’s shipping this weekend ?  Or how about replacing that fridge that keeps fritzing?  Is it time to get a new bling watch?  If you’ve got the patience and smarts to do a bit of homework and build your strategy, you could well land an incredible deal on brand-name, brand-new consumer goods at an average of 65% off MSRP at Swoopo.  And while you score on Swoopo, Swoopo has scored funding with venerable August Capital, the venture capital firm behind such behemoths as Microsoft, Intuit, Seagate, Sun and Symantec.

Related articles:

• August’s $10 million swoop on auction site (Financial Times)
• VCs pump money into eBay rivals like Swoopo (PaidContent)
• Swoopo raises $10 million more for “entertainment shopping” (VentureBeat)
• Swoopo wins new funding for auction site (Dow Jones VentureWire)
• Swoopo raises new round from August Capital (Vator.tv)

Travel expenses getting you and your company down? Do you need to hold a seminar, meeting or class — or just meet up with the far-flung members of a book club or church group?

Dimdim answers all these needs through its FREE, easy, open-source web conferencing mastery. The company today unveils Dimdim 5, an even faster and more secure version of what remains the most effortless, affordable and open web-conferencing solution to date. Check out the new version, which introduces improved screencasting, webinar widgets, registration reports. And did we mention it requires no downloads? Dimdim is also introducing a new pricing plan for its Pro version that’s saves customers money over competitors.

Go ahead and live your dream of diagramming basketball plays online — just in time for this weekend’s Final Four.

Check out this video demo to see Dimdim 5 in all its web conferencing glory:

Related articles:

• Dimdim Upgrades Its Alternative Web Conferencing System (xconomy.com)

via nytimes.com

Ever go to the store with your list of things to buy, then realize you left it on the counter when you get there? ReQall to the rescue. But what’s even cooler for me, is that I can be driving by the pet store and will receive an IM that I need to pick up another 25 lb of bird seed (we’ve got a bunch of hungry twitterers, and I don’t mean the digital kind)!

Check out David Pogue’s “State of the Art” column for his full review.

Posted via web from Consort Partners