A member of the judging panel for ComputerWorld Canada’s annual blogging contest “Blogging Idol” this year is Maggie Fox, CEO and founder of Toronto-based Social Media Group.
Fox, who has been blogging for the past six years, shares some valuable advice for those new to blogging or who are intimidated by it.
1. Keep it short
Given that bloggers often have to keep up with a content production schedule that might mean two to three blog entries per week, it helps to keep blog posts nice and short. “You don’t need to blog more than a couple of hundred words to get your point across,” said Fox.
2. The open-ended question
If a topic is of interest, then summarize it in a blog entry and pose a question about it to readers. “It’s a great way to encourage discussion and engagement with the content,” said Fox.
3. Lists
A blogger may come across five to 10 things of interest, in the course of a week, that can be shared in a blog entry. It’s very acceptable to post a series of links accompanied by a few words about what the blogger thinks. “You don’t have to write a novel every time you write a blog post. And, in fact, it’s best if you don’t,” said Fox.
4. Rich media.
Images and videos are a great way to spice up a blog entry, said Fox, especially because readers find that sort of content very engaging and it increases the stickiness of the site.
excerpts from: http://www.itworldcanada.com/news/bloggin-idol-returns/142898
Tags: blog, blogging
Posted by digitalmediarts on Apr 10, 2011 in
design,
dma411 Intro to Print,
Typography 
Looking for some Lorem Ipsum or Random Text to kick your web design going? Well here we have compiled a list of 8 Lorem Ipsum and Random Text generators for your use. These text generators are handy when you want to insert text into web design or development project to get things going.
You don’t have to waste time trying to thing of something to write for sample text, all you need is generate the text you want and you are good to go.
1. Lorem Ipsum Generator
2. adhesiontext
3. HTML-Ipsum
4. Lipsum Generator
5. Text Generator
6. Blind Text Generator
7. Dummy Text Generator
8. Random Text Generator
Source: 8 Lorem Ipsum And Random Text Generators
Tags: Lorem ipsum, test, type, Typography
Posted by digitalmediarts on Mar 21, 2011 in
Social Media,
Twitter 
“At 4:50 p.m. on March 21, 2006, Jack Dorsey wrote “just setting up my twttr.” Five years later, Dorsey and his fellow Twitter co-founders Biz Stone and Evan Williams have transformed a neat idea conceived during a daylong brainstorming session into a worldwide phenomenon. Twitter is now valued at more than $10 billion and has gone from zero to 1 billion tweets per week.
But not all tweets are created equal.
Here’s a countdown of five historic moments, brought to you by Twitter…”
Full article HERE
Tags: history, twitter
Adobe Labs is the home for experimental and early-stage projects where developers and designers can experience and evaluate new and emerging innovations, technologies and products from Adobe engineers.
Adobe Labs fosters a collaborative software development process, allowing users to become productive with new products and technologies faster and allowing the Adobe development teams to respond and react to early feedback to shape the software to meet the needs and expectations of the community. At Adobe Labs, visitors get access to resources such as prerelease software and technologies; code samples and best practices to accelerate the users’ learning curve; early versions of product and technical documentation; and forums, wiki-based content and other collaborative resources to help them interact with other developers and Adobe.
Recently Adobe came up with a new Flash-to-HTML5 tool, known as “Wallaby,” that enables Flash developers to build apps with greater reach. Adobe introduced Wallaby in a demo at the Adobe MAX 2010 conference in October and released it on the Adobe Labs site March 8 as an experimental technology for developers to try out. Adobe customers called for a closer look at the technology following that MAX demo.
Wallaby is an Adobe AIR application that allows designers and developers to convert Adobe Flash Professional files into HTML5 with a simple drag and drop of the mouse, quickly expanding the distribution of creative content across platforms.
Full article at URL below.
Source eWeek.com : http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Application-Development/Adobe-Labs-The-10-Hottest-Projects-in-the-Works-140393
Tags: adobe, Adobe Labs, flash, HTML5, Wallaby
Posted by digitalmediarts on Mar 1, 2011 in
design,
dma188A Interactivity 
“Design, according to industrial designer Victor Papanek, is the conscious and intuitive effort to impose meaningful order. We propose a somewhat more detailed definition of human-oriented design activities:
- Understanding users’ desires, needs, motivations, and contexts
- Understanding business, technical, and domain opportunities, requirements, and constraints
- Using this knowledge as a foundation for plans to create products whose form, content, and behavior is useful, usable, and desirable, as well as economically viable and technically feasible
This definition is useful for many design disciplines, although the precise focus on form, content, and behavior will vary depending on what is being designed. For example, an informational Web site may require particular attention to content, whereas the design of a chair is primarily concerned with form. As we discussed in the Introduction, interactive digital products are uniquely imbued with complex behavior.
When performed using the appropriate methods, design can provide the missing human connection in technological products.”
Credits:
text: About Face, The Essentials of Interaction Design 3
image: Bill Verplank’s sketch-lecture to CCRMA HCI Technology course, Stanford University, 2000.
Tags: design, interaction, interactivity
Posted by digitalmediarts on Feb 22, 2011 in
Adobe Flash
One distinction that tablets running Google’s Android OS will have over the iPad is the capability to play Flash content. Adobe says it will launch support soon.
Article By: Dan Nystedt — 2/22/2011 9:13:00 AM
Adobe says Flash support for tablets based on Google’s upcoming “Honeycomb” version of the Android operating system will be available “within a few weeks”.
Honeycomb is the first version of Android designed for tablet PCs and is eagerly anticipated. Motorola’s Xoom tablet will launch on Thursday as the first to run the software, but initial versions won’t come with flash support. Verizon, which is putting it on sale, previously said Flash would be available in “spring 2011.”
The vague time reference had people fearing flash wouldn’t be available until the end of the season, but a posting on Adobe’s blog points to a slightly earlier release.
“Consumers are clearly asking for Flash support on tablet devices and the good news is that they won’t have to wait long. We are aware of over 50 tablets that will ship in 2011 supporting a full web experience (including Flash support) and Xoom users will be among the first to enjoy this benefit,” wrote Matt Rozen, on Adobe’s Flash Platform Blog.
Adobe said version 10.2 of its flash player will be offered as a download or preinstalled on some tablets launching later in 2011. Adobe has said that Flash Player 10.2 will offer users of dual-core tablets and smartphones HD Flash video and up to 30 frames per second video performance.
The blog posting appears to be aimed at a number of critics who have recently suggested it might put people off buying them.
Daniel Ionescu at PC World, for example, noted the Motorola Xoom is seen by many as the first real rival to Apple’s iPad, yet it may be a “hard sell” due to its hefty $800 price tag and lack of Flash.
Support for Adobe Flash Player software is seen as a major advantage for rivals to Apple’s iPad because Apple has eschewed the technology, which has found widespread use as a video streaming format.
Steve Jobs listed several reasons why Apple does not allow Flash on iPods, iPhones or iPads in a public posting last April, including a drain on battery life and that more modern offerings work better.
Adobe defended itself by posting data of its own and taking out full page ads in major newspapers.
Adobe expects to see Flash installed on over 132 million devices by the end of this year, he added, saying the company had raised its estimates for 2011.
Source: http://www.itbusiness.ca/it/client/en/home/News.asp?id=61392
Posted by digitalmediarts on Jan 18, 2011 in
LinkedIn,
Social Media 
Smartly executed self-promotion is the key to career advancement, and in our hyper-connected days, LinkedIn is one of the best tools to help you do this. The question isn`t whether you should be on LinkedIn, the mega-popular professional networking service, but rather, how to best take advantage of this powerful medium to separate you from the pack. After all, with more than 80 million registered LinkedIn users, standing out among your peers can be a daunting consideration.
“Not doing something with LinkedIn is like leaving money on the table,” says Debra Forman, a certified executive coach in Toronto, Ontario. “You don’t need to pay for the upgrade — the free service is all you need — but the key is getting people to land on your page.”
To get the right people to view your profile and to wow them while they`re there, consider these tactics:
- Get connected. “The key to LinkedIn is being found and being fabulous,” says Irene Koehler, a social media consultant in San Francisco. Koehler says the first step is to make relevant connections. “Understand that the number of connections you have directly impacts how easily you can be found,” explains Koehler. Forman agrees but believes there should be quality along with quantity: Don`t add more connections than you can keep up with, she says.
- Say something. Take advantage of the “Share” tab on your profile page, which lets you share insights, a website link or other information with your community. “Draw people into whatever you’re doing, and it’ll go out to all of your connections,” says Forman, who promotes a monthly video in this fashion. “Remember, you might only have, say, 100 people in your network, but you could reach millions because every one of those connections has connections who can see what you’re up to as well.” Using the “Share” tab is a good way to be proactive in the search process, as if raising a hand above the crowd. Another way to be heard is to regularly answer questions in the question/answer component of LinkedIn, establishing your expert voice.
- Be a joiner. Belonging to a LinkedIn group that’s relevant to your expertise opens up new opportunities, says Forman. “The beauty of groups is you can promote yourself, get work and be noticed.”
- Be a wordsmith. “Unless you optimize your profile, which includes using good keywords, you’ll be the world’s best-kept secret,” says Koehler. “Understand which keywords are best to use, which speak to who you are and who you’re trying to attract. Use the terms employers are using, says Koehler. “For example, if you’re a Web designer, you’ll want to use searchable words like ‘web,’ ‘html,’ ‘graphics,’ ‘design,’ ‘designer’ and so on. The top key words should be in the summary section of your profile page.”
- Show, don`t tell. Aim for compelling text on your profile page, such as, “You’ve only got that one moment to impress them,” says Koehler. Your profile should not look like a resume with bullet points; instead, potential employers should hear your voice and understand how you approach this job differently than the next person, she adds. Include links to your work-related blog and import feeds from Twitter if you offer commentary on IT issues.
It`s not just what you have to say, however. Recommendations from others who know your work in IT are important too, says Koehler. “We all think we’re fabulous, sure, but it’s more powerful to have others offer their perspective.”
article by Elizabeth Wasserman
Article Source: http://mediadesigner.digitalmedianet.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=1314546
Tags: Linkedin, self promotion, social
Today we all use our smartphones and our broadband-equipped home and work PCs and tablets to instantly access information and data on just about any topic via the Internet. But have you ever taken a few moments to realize how far we’ve come since our first forays online?
by Todd R. Weiss
article here: http://www.itbusiness.ca/IT/client/en/slideshow/20-Internet-Events/index.asp
Tags: history, internet
“… people in the newspaper industry saw the web as a newspaper. People in TV saw the web as TV, and people in book publishing saw it as a weird kind of potential book. But the web is not just some kind of magic all-absorbing meta-medium. It’s its own thing.”
—Paul Ford
