Zach Flauaus

How did I get involved in the social? No idea.

// April 8th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Online Media

The question of the first week of the Teen Bloggers 2.0 project (cofounder by me) has been brought up and it is a simple one: “How did you get involved in social media?” Simple enough, but it’s actually one of the more difficult questions to answer. Why? Because it was all just spontaneous.

I had my first Blogger account around 2003 (12 years old) and I posted random crap on there and I do mean crap. I can’t remember exactly what I put up there but all I know is that it was crap. I started taking blogging more seriously once I got a Dreamhost account and have moved up exponentially in terms of… I guess you could say writing skills. I still have very few readers but blogging is just a small hobby for me. If this blog gets big, great. If it stays small, that’s fine by me.

So what about other venues like forums and networks like the one and only Twitter? Well, that is a bit more difficult to answer. All I remember forum-wise was joining MacRumors before I even had a Mac. I believe somewhere around 2003. I used to be extremely participatory in forums. I thought they were the best method for communication. Email was just too slow for me and seeing as all I had was a dial-up connection, I didn’t see a point in email.

Moving on into the age of the BlackBerry, which for me was January 2008, my use of forums has dropped to almost no presence at all while social networks (and email for that matter) shot up. I had a Twitter account in the middle of 2007 but I never used it because, to be quite honest, I didn’t know how to use it or what it was all about. Once I started to get used to my BlackBerry, I downloaded TwitterBerry. At that time I had maybe 10 followers. I sent out random tweets but I was still a bit uncomfortable about it.

Once I started following more people, chatting more, my name spread and as of today I am being followed by over 1700 people which in itself is amazing. Over 23,000 messages with around 22,700 of them being sent since the purchase of my BlackBerry (around 53 messages per day) and it’s a hell of a lot of fun. I’ve met so many interesting people in person and online because of Twitter. My connections are high and I’m participating in more than just TMP as a result.

Social media isn’t something you can just jump into (as many people on Twitter think). It takes time to build connections, relationships, and trust. Contribute to the community and your contributions will be rewarded.

Tweet-A-Thon: New Years’ Edition

// December 28th, 2008 // 1 Comment » // Twitter

While I consider every day that I tweet a “Tweet-A-Thon,” one person, Al Boe, is bringing a new definition to “Tweet-A-Thon.” Starting New Years Eve, Al will be tweeting for a good cause, instead of just randomly tweeting (like myself), into the New Year.

Zach: Hi Al. First, to start off, what made you want to start this Tweet-A-Thon?

Al: Hello Zach, very happy to be able to talk with you this evening. The idea of the Tweet-A-Thon came to me one night a few weeks ago. I’m naturally a Twitter addict and have thought of the idea of tweeting almost non-stop but came up with the idea to try to raise money for a great charity in there too.

Zach: Have you been involved in raising funds for charities before, like during school fundraisers, online charities, etc.?

Al: Actually I have Zach, I have always worked hard during school fundraisers, and have recently began making micro-loans on the website www.Kiva.org, as well as participating in the local Alzheimers Walk for the last 4 years.

Zach: Very impressive. And I’m going to assume that you do these events simply to help those out in need?

Al: Yes, definitely. The Alzheimers Foundation is particularly close to my heart because my mother has worked for Sunrise Senior Living for 12 years since the local one opened, moving up from Concierge to now Buisness Office Coordinator. I have now volunteered there 20 hours a week for 2 years.

Zach: So how exactly will the tweet-a-thon work?

Al: Yes, this is the question EVERYONE is asking me. The tweet-A-Thon will take place for 19 hours from New Years Eve at 8 AM PST until New Years day at 3 AM PST. During these hours I will be making atleast one tweet about anything and everything every 10 minutes. And will also put out tweets asking for donations for our wonderful charity every 30 minutes or so besides the regular tweets.

Zach: And what charity have you chosen to support?

Al: I am proud to announce that the tweet-a-thon will support and raise funds for St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital. The great thing about St. Jude is that St. Jude is unlike any other pediatric treatment and research facility. Discoveries made here have completely changed how the world treats children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases. With research and patient care under one roof, St. Jude is where some of today’s most gifted researchers are able to do science more quickly.

St. Jude researchers are published and cited more often in high impact publications than any other private pediatric oncology research institution in America. St. Jude is a place where many doctors send some of their sickest patients and toughest cases. A place where cutting-edge research and revolutionary discoveries happen every day. We’ve built America’s second-largest health-care charity so the science never stops.

It truly is a great cause, Zach.

Zach: So how can we donate?

Al: Either [Monday] or Tuesday I will be posting a link on my Twitter account that everyone can use to donate. That will give you a chance to donate before the Tweet-A-Thon and during.

Zach: Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Al: Just remind everyone that it will be on New Years eve starting at 8 AM PST 11 AM EST until 3 AM PST on January 1st. You can expect tweets every 10 minutes. The link to my page and the Tweet-A-Thon page is www.Twitter.com/Alboebno.

Zach: Alright, Al, I thank you for your time and wish you the best of luck on raising money for a great foundation.

Al: Thank you very much Zach.

All patients accepted for treatment at St. Jude are treated without regard to the family’s ability to pay. As mentioned earlier, I will update the post once I have a link to provide to you to donate to St. Jude’s.

*Note: Some of the chat may have been edited for grammar and length.

Bitching: The All-American Past-time

// December 27th, 2008 // 2 Comments » // Internet, Online Media, Twitter

Just an FYI: This isn’t for the faint of heart if you hate the word “bitch” or any other swear words. I mean, if that happens, you probably already closed the browser so you haven’t seen this part… Losers.

Bitching is fun. It lets us release stress on others (which is always good) and also lets us make a point. Usually my bitching is a combination of both, but others bitch about one topic or the other. It’s usually at this stage where we call it “ranting” and indicate it by using HTML tags. Because we are that cool.

I’ve noticed that I’ve bitched a lot more… Ok, we’re switching over for now to “complaining.” Anyways, I’ve complained a lot more since winter has arrived. Perhaps it’s because the cold weather, the amount of school work that comes this time of year, or perhaps just the simple fact that I’m always bitchy (oh, there it is again!) minus Christmas and New Years (usually). And I’ll bitch about anything and everything. It’s like something is programmed into my head to find a venting place to get out my stress which is good, right? I mean, bottled up feelings and you’ll turn into the next serial killer or worse… Lindsay Lohan shooting up cocaine. (You should appreciate that, Brandon)

My stress is usually vented into the webisphere through Twitter or (on rare occasions) a blog post where I can just explode all my thoughts into it. I should probably start doing videos because that would be cool. Well, sort of. Because then I would have to clean up, comb my hair, move all the soda out of the way, clean my room, and a whole bunch of unnecessary stuff that text can totally do without.

Anyways: My bitching = healthy. Others, not so much. They usually go something like “He’s such an asshole” or “I miss him… But he’s a prick that should die in the eternal depths of Hell” or “OMG!!!11!1! HE DUMPED ME!?!?!?! NOOOOO!!!!” (Not trying to stereotype the female bitching, guys do a lot of a bitching too [obviously]). I know when to stop. Others, once again, not so much. They’ll gone on and on for hours or days (seriously). And I’m not talking just on Twitter or blog posts, some I know will talk to me either on IM, email, DM, or some other form of -M’ing.

So what am I saying? DROP IT FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! Nobody wants to hear you constantly complain about things for the rest of their life. “Unsubscribe,” you say. “Ignore it,” you say. “Shut the hell up,” you say. You know what I say? Shut up and listen. Drop it, make amends, and move onto your life. If you must bitch about life or other personal problems, do it in moderation. If you’re bitching about Verizon, AT&T, Microsoft, or any mega company (including government sometimes), be my guest. Just keep it down some days. Please.

Now then, for more bitching, follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/zachflauaus

SPORE Giveaway!

// December 21st, 2008 // 12 Comments » // Random, Twitter

So, I’m feeling a bit generous this season and… Well, SPORE is boring now. I have it sitting on my hard drive and it hasn’t been touched in months. I also have the original disc sitting on my shelf gathering dust. I purchased it on September 12th and haven’t used the disc since.

Look ma! No scratches!

Because it’s not being used, I’m giving it away. Here’s the rules:

1) You MUST be following me on Twitter. No other way around it.
2) You MUST be in the United States or Canada. I love my Australia and England followers, but I could just send you the amount of money for a new copy of SPORE for what it would cost for me to ship it.
3) You MUST tweet, “@zachflauaus I want SPORE plz!” If you would like to add additional text, that would be fine.

I will choose the winner at random (random number generator) and they will be notified by DM. Contest ends Sunday, December 21, 2008 at 11:59PM CST.

Good luck, and follow me if you aren’t already!

“I’m coming for all of you!”

// December 20th, 2008 // No Comments » // Online Media

Who else is REALLY psyched to watch the next (and final) season of Battlestar Galactica?

KSDK, #suckit. I don’t need a new camera for DTV

// September 27th, 2008 // 1 Comment » // Online Media, Uncategorized

…

No? Neither did I. And if you did, well… Then the comments here truly do apply to you. As Darwinism said, “If you gained anything from this story you are the reason McDonald’s has to ‘Hot’ labels on coffee.”

Chrome: It’s not all shiny goodness…

// September 2nd, 2008 // 3 Comments » // Internet, Security

Google: Why don’t we just rename the world Google? I swear, they know everything about us anymore. Your birthday, what books you read, the last four digits and security code of your credit card, what hair color you used… But must they really continue into our lives, further turning us into Googlites? (It does have a ring though…)

The mega-search kings and AdSense overlords released their first attempt in the browser world, Google Chrome. Why it’s called Chrome, I have no clue. It’s not shiny, so it’s not that. While we always appreciate a new browser contender, even though it is getting a bit crowded, I’m not so sure I want Google to now own my browser. It’s bad enough that I constantly use their search engine, have it as my homepage on my BlackBerry, AND have all my email go through them on Gmail and Google Apps. I’d like a bit of freedom, if you wouldn’t mind.

If monopoly’s could be declared on web services, Google should win that game easily.

Let’s get down to what Chrome does before I go into ripping it even more. Ok, to be honest, the only thing it really does is add shortcuts to your desktop for “your favorite web applications” (can we say Google Apps?). That, and the one-box Address bar/search bar is pretty nifty. But all of these other featured have been done in other browsers.

Disclaimer: I have not yet had access to Google Chrome as I don’t have a PC box at my ready.

Yes, I know Google is just trying to do the right thing and merge them all together into one splendiferous browser and I agree there should be one to do it all, but that’s what Firefox extensions are for, no?

One of the great things that Google did was build Chrome off of the WebKit engine, and from the early tests, it’s paying off. Chrome killed the other browsers in the speed tests and seems to be pretty speedy and snappy from reports I’ve read on my own. But does all this come at a cost?

CNet brought up three key points that are mentioned in EULA. The first; Google can automatically update and install Chrome.

“The software which you use may automatically download and install updates from time to time from Google. These updates are designed to improve, enhance and further develop the services and may take the form of bug fixes, enhanced functions, new software modules and completely new versions. You agree to receive such updates (and permit Google to deliver these to you) as part of your use of the services.”

I agree that we should be notified of updates and (if severe enough) bugged constantly, but must we really have new software downloaded and installed? Apple tried that with Safari and got slapped on the wrist. Google, take notes.

Next: More ads!

“Some of the services are supported by advertising revenue and may display advertisements and promotions. These advertisements may be targeted to the content of information stored on the services, queries made through the services or other information.

The manner, mode and extent of advertising by Google on the services are subject to change without specific notice to you.”

So… If the people praying for extension capability get their wish, does this mean that the possibility of an Adblock-like extension being DOA?

Finally: All your content are belong to us.

“By submitting, posting or displaying the content you give Google a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute any content which you submit, post or display on or through, the services. This license is for the sole purpose of enabling Google to display, distribute and promote the services and may be revoked for certain services as defined in the additional terms of those services.”

…Where do I start with this? So, correct me if I’m wrong (that’s what comments are for), but Google is essentially stating that some content that you may view and send can be used by Google, thus essentially licensing your content without you knowing. Listen up folks: PRIVACY IS DEAD. It’s been dead for sometime, and this has made it as dead as a doorknob.

While I applaud Google for wanting to branch out (it’s a soft clap, listen closely for it), they’re taking a bad approach to it. If they truly wanted a revolutionary browser, they wouldn’t have done a Windows-only launch, to begin with. They also wouldn’t be selling their users out and gaining control of their content freely. I’ll give Chrome a try when it comes out on OS X, but in the mean time, no thanks. I like Firefox very much, thank you.

Congress: Uhh… We don’t like Congressmen talking directly to you on Twitter

// July 8th, 2008 // 1 Comment » // Online Media, Twitter

I don’t get into politics that often, but this isn’t necessarily so much of politics as it is questioning our own rights in the United States. Because Congress hasn’t been stupid enough lately, they’re wanting to continue to basically censor what they don’t like and what Congressional Members should and shouldn’t do. The latest shining example? Congress is trying to stop two Congressmen from actually talking to the people via Twitter and Qik.

Congressman John Culberson (R) of Texas and Tim Ryan (D) of Ohio have been using Twitter and Qik to their benefit of actually getting their word out onto the internet and talking to people in addition to listening to them. This is an absolutely astounding turn of events from the usual Congressional Members as they don’t really engage with the public on the internet (or most places, for that matter) unless they have a public statement prepared. On Twitter, it’s all about psuedo real-time discussions. On Qik, it’s speak now or forever hold your peace.

Well, the Democrats have a different position on their usage (ironic since Tim Ryan is a Democrat?). They want to ban Congressional Members from uploading content outside of the house.gov domain, essentially keeping all information inside until they can all release details on their own schedule. If they get their way, websites will have to go by government regulations before Members could post. What they don’t realize is that this infringes on one key factor: the First Amendment.

So, you’re saying that freedom of speech (and press in this case) extends to everyone (yeah…) except if you are a Congressional Member? You mean Members aren’t normal U.S. Citizens like you and me?

I believe it says somewhere in that piece of paper that you have destroyed called the United States Constitution it states that all citizens of the United States of America are entitled to their Bill of Rights, including freedom of speech. A requirement to be a Congressional Member is that you have to be a Citizen of the United States of America. See where I’m going? Complete the circle… I’ll give you time.

Bingo! They are entitled to the same rights that we are all entitled to. In fact, I think all members should have a Twitter or Qik account just so they start interacting with citizens more and actually get back to what this country is all about: By the people, for the people.

Let’s make this an outcry. Make the media see it. If our own Congress won’t see the problem with this, We the People need to make this problem bigger and more apparent because without us, this is one more step in the wrong direction.

Source Reads:
Technosailor
Mashable
U.S. Congressman John Culberson

Goodbye, b5media

// June 18th, 2008 // 6 Comments » // Online Media

It’s been a little over a year since I signed up to join b5media, only to realize that you have to be 16 years or old to blog for them. I was super excited to join them because it seemed such a good community. August 5th I joined the crew and that was a great birthday present in itself.

Fast forward to today and I am now no longer a member of the great network that is b5media. It’s nothing wrong on their part. I can’t preach enough about how awesome b5 is, but here’s two things to start with:

1. Community – If you are looking for a blog network that is all about community, b5 is the place. It’s such a friendly place where you can post almost anything and people will talk with you or if you need help. It’s just that amazing. I will miss b5 greatly for this.

2. Training – I mean, come on, when you have the legendary Darren Rowse of ProBlogger.net fame, why would you appreciate it? Tris Hussey of Maple Leaf 2.0 has also been a great source of training. Heck, even the other b5 bloggers will help you in what you need. If they see something wrong, they’ll quickly tell you what’s wrong and how to fix it.

There are a number of people I’d like to thank, but if I singled out every one of them, I might as well direct you to the main b5media authors page, so I’ll mention a few.

• Tris Hussey – Trainer Extraordinaire
• Shai Coggins – Community Goddess
• Jeanne Dupuis – Made me learn I have a blogger-stalker
• Kristen King – Made the b5 chats oh so entertaining

Working at b5media is one of the greatest things I’ve done and would highly recommend them in a heartbeat. I’ll miss working there, but if you ever want me in a weekly chat, I’d be glad to.

BREAKING NEWS: Veoh goes dark in many countries

// May 31st, 2008 // 5 Comments » // Breaking News, Online Media

Veoh has started an interesting turn of events. Reports are coming from all over the world saying that access to Veoh is restricted based on where you live. Andrew Baron of RocketBoom fame posted an entry on Twitter this morning saying that Veoh had inexplicably been blocked for no reason all of a sudden. From Veoh’s Wikipedia Page:

“So far users from Asia, Europe and South America such as : Lebanon, United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Indonesia, Chile, Argentina, St.Kitts and Nevis, Guatemala, Luxembourg, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Guam, Jamaica, Barbados, El Salvador, Hungary, Malta, Macedonia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Ukraine, Colombia, Cyprus, Romania, the Cayman Islands, Guadeloupe, Saudi Arabia, Peru, Panama, Czech Republic, Turkey, Croatia, Lithuania, Egypt, Bulgaria, Serbia, Iceland, Bermuda, Thailand, Brunei, Honduras, Bahamas, and Nicaragua have also reported being blocked, receiving the same message for their country/region.”

I submitted an email to Gaude Lydia Paez, Veoh’s Senior Director of Public Relations, asking what the situation was. Here’s their response:

Hi Zach,

Thanks for contacting me with your question – we appreciate the opportunity to weigh in as you write your article.

Veoh has decided to focus its resources on a number of significant product and platform developments that we believe will greatly enhance the experience we offer to our users. In tandem with these efforts, we have decided to concentrate on the 33 markets in which we have the most viewers and cease service in other markets.

We understand that is frustrating to many of our viewers in those markets, but we are confident that this decision will not only allow us to build an even better product but also expand internationally with better quality in the future.

I hope this helps – please feel free to contact me anytime with questions.

Many thanks,

Gaude

While focusing forces on developing their services where they have the most viewership makes some sense, why they are essentially IPs based on their geographical location makes absolutely no sense and will most likely backfire. Let’s just hope that no other services take this route or the internet could grow to be a very ugly place.