Since Tuesday’s release of the much anticipated Mozilla Firefox 3, outbreaks of information, including reviews, have flooded the blogosphere. Posts released by Mozilla team members prior to the launch set expectations for the upgraded web browser and provided users with a sneak peak on the features for the new title holder of the Guinness Book of World Record for the Most Software Downloaded in 24 hours.

The browser has over ten categories highlighting a substantial amount of features including instant web site ID, full zoom, platform manager and a smart location bar. Firefox 3 offers some of the same tools version 2.0 does - here is a mixed list of the new and old tools for the social media savvy (you’re welcome to add more):

• Feed Reader – one stop shop feed for all your news updates
• Smart Keywords - a simple and quick way to search web sites through the Location bar
• Bookmarks:
  • One-Click Bookmarking – just click on the white star icon in the address bar and once it turns gold, that page is bookmarked
  • Smart Bookmark Folders – a display of your most visited sites
• Library & Tags - the Library an organizational tool that archives all of the websites you visited, including your books; the Tags add specific labels to certain sites for easier browsing
• Add-ons that include:
  • Twitterfox 1.5.5.4 – an extension of Twitter for the Firefox browser that updates tweets
  • Scribefire 2.2.7 – although compatible with Firefox 2, version 3.0 fixed various kinks for this blog editor that integrates with Firefox and lets you conveniently post to your blog
  • WebMynd 0.6.1 – the Firefox 3 version of this “DVR for the Web” is compatible with Del.icio.us bookmarks for an even better way to record your visually browsed history.

  In addition to the craze surrounding the launch, Flock – known as the social web browser – announced that version 2.0 was built to launch on the Firefox 3 platform. Newcomer Feedly, a self-proclaimed RSS feed aggregator and competitor of iGoogle, was also developed for Firefox 3 compatibility.

  

  Buzz Meter Ranking: 4 out of 4 Buzz Bees
  
  Positive: The actual downloading of Firefox was quick and simple. The browser’s list of extensive features provides users with ease and is proof of the improvements Mozilla made. The location bar is deemed smart because it now gives full details to for sites visited. The One-Click Bookmarking, Library and Tags are one-ups for organizing. The list just goes on and on.
  Negative: The large number of new features and add-ons could also be seen as a downfall since it’s hard to fully grasp the full potential of the browser. After downloading, you would have to re-download all of your plug-ins and have everything transferred. Since Firefox 3 was just released and apparently not in beta mode, there still may be kinks to be discovered.
  Conclusion: Despite the delays that occurred on the big ‘Download Day’ and even some dismay about the browser’s update, Mozilla has definitely stepped up to the plate and came home with this version. I have to admit that the ‘awesome bar’ is by far one of my favorites! But I’m sure I’ll add more to my favorites list since it’s only been two days since the launch. I would definitely have to play with Firefox 3 and figure out if I can find some hidden settings, tips or tricks or even easter eggs. Overall, I would recommend the updated browser. I just wonder if businesses will be able to use this anytime soon, or if Internet Explorer or any other browser for that matter will be able to come off the bench and hit a homerun like Firefox 3 did.

Aux Interactive’s Rana Sobhany is a local social media fav. Recently, she visitied Livingston Communications Offices to talk about the glass ceiling in social media, what it takes to make it online, and the DC Social Media scene.

The recent flooding in Iowa will impact us all in more ways than we can imagine. People who are feeling the pain at the pump are set to feel the pinch even more with the cost of food increasing over the coming months. Crops, churches, hospitals, homes and businesses have all been affected, some completely washed away.

(Picture Credit: DoobyBrain/AP)

Although you can spend time comparing Iowa to Louisiana, it appears that without Katrina, we would not have been as prepared to take on the Iowa floods. We can only hope that the numbers of people providing aid and relief will continue to grow and get better.

(Picture Credit: www.craigr.com)

Livingston Communications’ intern Michael Nelson is from Iowa, and he shares some thoughts on what his friends and family are saying.

The damage is incredible – it touches everyone. Many of the families and businesses do not have flood insurance, and those that do are often only minimally covered ($25,000 doesn’t seem like much when you just lost your house and everything in it). Others have lost their jobs or have been transferred indefinitely out of town when the flooding destroyed their workplace. There is a lot to be done, but I also know Iowans, and I know that a lot will be done.

Examples of Using Social Media in a Disaster

Yesterday on Blogs of Fire, Michael highlighted how the Red Cross is using social media to inform communities in and outside Iowa as to what is happening and where people need help.

Alistair Croll at GigaOm pointed to the California wildfires last year which created a rapidly moving community that was desperate for information, and showed a need for maps, Twitter, and mobile communications.

One of Livingston Communications’ clients, FortiusOne, has demonstrated how mapping and data can be used in a time of crisis. From economic impact to waterflow watches, flood zones and flood insurance statistics; all demographic data is useful for a clear picture of what is happening in Iowa and will be helpful for first responders, aid workers, and government officials alike.

What Can You Do?

We can all say that we want to use social media for good and not evil, but when it comes down to it, can we really take action when it’s needed?

(Photo Credit: American Red Cross Flickr)

Take the time to post a blog about Iowa and what you can do to help. Write a tweet or two and include a link to donate money. Spread the word on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Consider Iowa, China, Myanmar, Darfur, and all of the other countries in need right now. Take a step back and look at the big picture.

If social media and blogs have the power to reach the Associated Press and create multiple online discussions, then why can’t we use it to reach the government aid workers, and those in need?

How to Help

American Red Cross

Hands On Disaster Response (HODR)

United Way of Iowa

Ian Schafer shares his video of the IAB Forum Panel on UGC and Social Media on his blog IansSchafer.com. The panel also features Rohit Bhargava, Geoff Riss, Aaron Lilly and Chad Stoller. They offer insight on getting consumers to care enough about a message to socially interact with it. The key, says Chad, is to get consumers to care about the brand in the first place.

For anyone who needs a list of useful products and services on the web like Facebook, Viddler, Tumblr, etcetera, check out Frank Gruber’s post on Somewhat Frank that lists many of his favorite “shiny objects.” This post will truly improve your experience on the web. Frank’s comprehensive list of tools helps with everything from communicating, to photo and video sharing, to arranging travel, and much more.

If you don’t know all of the details of the new iPhone 3G already, Eric Friedman, from Marketing.FM, will catch you up to speed. The next generation iPhone seems to have some great new applications for the social media savvy user. Some features that include location based features, the ability to delete information remotely incase the phone is misplaced, MLB.com integration of live clips, and many more. Eric also provides a number of links to other iPhone blogs for some additional information.

Now that Yahoo! will be running ads sold by their nemesis, Google, what does that mean for online marketers? On Click Z, Zachary Rodgers shares his opinion in his latest post. According to Zachary, this could mean increased prices for keyword ads and less value for marketers.

In response to the disastrous flooding in Iowa and other parts of the Midwest, Rex Hammock takes a look at how the Red Cross is using social media for disaster response efforts. According to RexBlog.com, WordPress, Flickr, Google Maps Mashups, Slide.com, YouTube and Twitter are all part of the mix.

I just did a little piece on packet switching and I get blamed for the whole go*d*mned Internet, you know?”
(Paul Baran, “How the Web Was Won.”)

It is impossible to escape the Internet. Even when trying to hide in the pages an Angelina-laden issue of Vanity Fair. The folds of this haut-living magazine currently feature an 12+ page spread celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Web.

It’s only the best oral history of the Internet ever written. Spanning Arpanet to eBay to Ning; spotlighting our forefathers Vint Cerf, Pierre Omidyar, Marc Andreessen (and more). A perfectly off-line weekend foiled again.

We’ve come a long way, baby. But the more we know, the more there is to learn – and unlearn. Some might even say that life was a whole lot easier to manage before America went online.

You’ve Got a Whole Lotta Mail

Raise your hand if you successfully keep up with email. NPR’s current ‘crushed by email’ series reminds us that, between work and family, we’re inundated with the daily deluge of being plugged in. (Worldwide email traffic, currently soaring at 210 messages per day, will double by 2014, according to the Radicati Group. Big Tech is now eating its own dog food.)

Some of you really do have it together, thanks to Xobni, AwayFind, Getting Things Done, not sleeping or not caring. Nobody can afford to declare email bankruptcy, although Microsoft’s Joel Cherkis and Wired’s Lawrence Lessig might beg to differ.

It’s no wonder the masses clamor to consume social media: they’d sooner jump off a bridge than deal with retooling the enewsletter and emarketing strategy just one more time. Blogs are sexier than the eternal battle to raise CRTs and evade spam filters.

Corporate Hoohah

On that note, don’t get me started on the ripple effect of the Web on corporate marketing. Verizon just hired a teddy bear that Twitters. Teddy doesn’t deal with customer service issues, which puts this initiative at dead zero on the “Good Use of Time” meter.

Faulty Doodads

To illustrate the theory of fallible online services, Google Maps has failed me 7 times in the past month alone. It’s one thing when faulty directions lead to late arrival to your agency’s most important event of the year (and subsequently get you tanked in the dog house by your boss). It’s another thing all together when the same mapping service delivers you an hour late to a dear friend’s wedding (at least I got there for the kiss).

While there’s an element of human error in most technological blunders, does that excuse today’s radical services from reliability? The trusty, beat up Rand McNally atlas now relegated to my trunk used to get me from point A to point B just fine.

“Kids Today”

By far, the biggest oil slick/skid mark at the end of the rainbow/long tail is the impact on younger generations. Kids r submitting school papers w/ txt msg abbrevs, and talking about issues way beyond their years in forums for teens “thirteen and older.”

COPA cannot keepa uppa. Neither can parents. Neither can the law.

Ain’t No Stopping Us

None of these - or other - issues can hold the Internet down. Privacy and copyright issues. Increased driving accidents from mobile phone usage. Incorrect self-diagnosis of illnesses. LOL Cats. All spawned by the glorious Intertubes, but we will prevail.

Because, of course, the bounty of the web has also brought us good things. Splendid, knock-your-socks-off wonders. More ways to connect with the people we love and new people that share our interests. The priceless ability to make our voices heard for things that matter. Correct self-diagnosis of illnesses. Many of our jobs. And LOL Cats (don’t front: we’ve all laughed once).

So, a toast! Here’s to the next 50 years of misery, mischief and miracles. To our choice to use the power of the Web for good. To the possibility of connecting face to face, writing complete sentences, and going dark – if only for the weekend.

And if anyone has other suggestions for online direction/mapping services, please save me. Save us all.

On Friday, BlogPotomac delivered the greater Washington region’s first hard core social media marketing event. Our intent was simple: Unify DC’s social media marketing community and provide an advanced event to push the envelope on content so our conversation was beyond 101 tactics (Below image by Co-Emcee Josh Hallet).

While the event was sold out and we had a full capacity crowd, it was the actual content that mattered. Based on the reactions, you would have to say BlogPotomac delivered a smashing hit. Consider the following:

The day started strong with Dell Chief Blogger Lionel Menchaca’s Keynote and continued through an A-List series of speakers. Dan Beyers, Maggie Fox and Jeremy Pepper followed Lionel in the morning.

As the day progressed, the content moved from very good to great with more vigorous participation from the crowd. Frank Gruber, KD Paine and Kami Huyse closed out with the final sessions (BlogPotomac Speaker Dinner image by Shashi Bellamkonda features Kami Huyse and our very own Larissa Fair). All three of these were cited as the best sessions in informal feedback from the audience.

Thank you to all of our speakers and co-emcee Josh Hallett for taking the time to do this. None of them were paid, and all of them spoke in the spirit of service. I would also like to thank co-chair Debbie Weil and Viget Labs for all of their outstanding work and support. BlogPotomac would not have happened without them.

Most importantly, thank you to all of our attendees. From bloggers like Aaron Brazell, Jimmy Gardner, Shana Glickfield and Jared Goralnick to organizations — including representatives from the Consumer Electronics Association, the Environmental Protection Agency, Goodwill Industries, Network Solutions and PNC Bank — you made BlogPotomac a true discussion.

Perhaps the most encouraging aspect of the event were the many positive comments from local social media wonks and corporate PR pros alike. Even though the WiFi sucked, people really enjoyed the cross-mix of communicators, and participated in some fantastic networking (photo of Ogilvy PR’s Rohit Bhargarva and PRSA National Capital Chapter President Heathere Keenan by Shashi Bellamkonda features Ogilvy).

There is much more to be said, but it should probably be delivered by others. In addition to the fantastic content being created by the attendees, we will have user feedback survey up on the BlogPotomac page in the next couple of days. When we close the books on BlogPotomac 2008, profits will be donated to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (image by Li Evans shows the crowd during Frank Gruber’s session).

As owner and financier of BlogPotomac, I promise that BlogPotomac 2009 (scheduled for June 12 at the State Theater) will be even better. The market will evolve, and many more professionals will be social media marketing savvy. BlogPotomac will evolve with them as a standing commitment to the Greater Washington Community to create a place where our best and most brilliant minds can convene once a year for a fantastic discussion about social media (below image by Hyku features me opening BlogPotomac 2008).

Social Media Group CEO Maggie Fox was the third session leader at BlogPotomac. Her subject was social media in general, particularly latest trends (total time: 6 minutes). Hyku’s Josh Hallett delivers the introduction for Maggie, who delivered a quick 5 minute unconference lead on what agencies can and cannot do…

Washington Post Local Business Editor Dan Beyers delivered his BlogPotomac unsession after Lionel Menchaca’s keynote. Dan talked about how social media is impacting the newspaper business and what the Washington Post is doing about it. Corporate Blogging Book Author and Co-Chair Debbie Weil introduced Dan (total time: 8 minutes).

Dell Chief Blogger Lionel Menchaca delivers his BlogPotomac keynote (10 minutes).

We are running a livecast of BlogPotomac, compliments of event sponsor ooVoo. As the event organizer, all of us at Livingston Communications hope you enjoy this special conference.

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