<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><!-- generator="WordPress/2.7.1" -->
<rss version="0.92">
<channel>
	<title>Simple Thoughts - Java and Web Blog &#187; Social Networking</title>
	<link>http://blog.taragana.com</link>
	<description>News and views from a Software Architect and Web Entrepreneur on Java, PHP and Web 2.0 Technologies.</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Sun, 11 Oct 2009 17:57:52 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<docs>http://backend.userland.com/rss092</docs>
	<language>en</language>
	
	<item>
		<title>Twitter set to go video-tweeting?</title>
		<description><![CDATA[LONDON - Here's good news for Twitterati - soon the users of the site may get to upload short video clips on their profiles.

Founders of the social networking site Twitter are planning to upgrade the site to allow users to paste live videos on their profile from phones, laptops or other devices.
At present users can [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/twitter-set-to-go-video-tweeting/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>ET  looking cereal, &#8216;New Zealand&#8217; among weird things sold  on  Oz eBay!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[MELBOURNE - eBay Australia has revealed  that  a cereal that looked like ET is the weirdest item ever sold on  its website - fetching more than a thousand dollars.

The  online  auction website has hosted strange auctions,  but  a thousand-dollar piece of Nutri-Grain resembling ET was dubbed  as [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/et-looking-cereal-new-zealand-among-weird-things-sold-on-oz-ebay/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>AP, News Corp bosses say it is time for search engines, bloggers to pay for content</title>
		<description><![CDATA[AP, News Corp bosses tell search engines to pay up
BEIJING — The leaders of two of the world's major news organizations said Friday that it is time for search engines and others who use news content for free to pay up.

The comments from Tom Curley of The Associated Press and News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch come [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/ap-news-corp-bosses-say-it-is-time-for-search-engines-bloggers-to-pay-for-content/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>How to protect you brand / identity on 120 Popular Social Media Websites</title>
		<description><![CDATA[KnowEm is the new buzz in the social networking media that filters unclaimed usernames at 120 social media sites. Well, social media is expanding and too soon you would see all media going social. It high time to preserve your social media identity before it's compromised. If you have a unique identity established in Facebook, [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/how-to-protect-you-brand-identity-on-120-popular-social-media-websites/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Media6Degrees hires former Google executive Tom Phillips to be its CEO</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Media6Degrees hires former Google executive as CEO
PHILADELPHIA — Media6Degrees said Wednesday that it has hired a former Google Inc. executive to serve as its chief executive.

Tom Phillips joins the New York-based company, whose technology allows online advertisers to target their customers and the people with whom they most closely associate. Media6Degrees spokeswoman Susan Turner said [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/media6degrees-hires-former-google-executive-tom-phillips-to-be-its-ceo/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Compuware to buy Web applications manager Gomez Inc. for $295 million in cash</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Compuware to buy Gomez Inc. for $295 million cash
DETROIT — Compuware Corp., whose software improves the performance of computer programs used by companies to run their operations, said Wednesday it is acquiring Gomez Inc. for $295 million in cash.

The deal, which is expected to close in November, gives Compuware a company that manages, tests and [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/compuware-to-buy-web-applications-manager-gomez-inc-for-295-million-in-cash/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>3 men win Nobel Prize in physics for work in fiber optics, digital photography</title>
		<description><![CDATA[3 Americans share Nobel physics prize
NEW YORK — The next time you snap a digital photo and post it to Facebook, you can probably thank the three men who won the Nobel Prize in physics Tuesday.

They helped develop fiber-optic cable and invented the "eye" in digital cameras — technology that has given rise to film-free [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/3-men-win-nobel-prize-in-physics-for-work-in-fiber-optics-digital-photography/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Bid on eBay for a whole hotel in Denver for New Year&#8217;s Eve</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Bid on eBay for a Denver hotel for New Year's Eve
DENVER — The Curtis Hotel in Denver is putting itself up for auction on eBay for New Year's Eve.

The winning bidder gets 330 rooms, the grand ballroom, live music, champagne, caviar, dinner, breakfast and of course all the staff to pull off a once-in-a-lifetime party.
The [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/bid-on-ebay-for-a-whole-hotel-in-denver-for-new-years-eve/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>MySpace names Mark Rosenbaum as its first chief financial officer</title>
		<description><![CDATA[MySpace names Rosenbaum as its first finance chief
NEW YORK — The social networking hub MySpace says it has named Mark Rosenbaum as its first chief financial officer.

News Corp.-owned MySpace said Monday that Rosenbaum will report to CEO Owen Van Natta, who replaced co-founder Chris DeWolfe in the company's top post in April.
MySpace says Rosenbaum has [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/myspace-names-mark-rosenbaum-as-its-first-chief-financial-officer/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>How to make public broadcasters reach wider audience</title>
		<description><![CDATA[WASHINGTON - Public broadcasters are said to be the most trusted news providers. An effort to pursue opportunities through digital technologies such as social networking and mapping would help them reach wider audiences, say experts.

"Providing high-quality news and information to the public is crucial for our democracy and public broadcasters are among the most trusted [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/how-to-make-public-broadcasters-reach-wider-audience/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Gandhi would have embraced Facebook, Twitter to broaden his reach among masses</title>
		<description><![CDATA[LONDON - Had he been alive today, Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of India, may have overcome his aversion to technology and embraced the mobilizing power of software such as Facebook and Twitter to organize massive pro-democracy protests, claims George Paxton of the London-based Gandhi Foundation.

Gandhi, who advocated a return to a simpler way of life, [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/gandhi-would-have-embraced-facebook-twitter-to-broaden-his-reach-among-masses/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>NASA astronaut has more than a million followers on twitter</title>
		<description><![CDATA[WASHINGTON - The first astronaut to tweet from space has passed an important social media milestone, as in he now shares his daily experiences with more than a million followers on the micro-blogging service.

The astronaut in question is NASA's Mike Massimino, known as @Astro_Mike on Twitter.
Massimino flew in May this year, aboard the final space [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/nasa-astronaut-has-more-than-a-million-followers-on-twitter/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>&#8216;The Real Buzz,&#8217; Apollo 11&#8217;s Aldrin, welcomes Buzz Lightyear back to Earth in Disney parade</title>
		<description><![CDATA['Real Buzz' welcomes Buzz Lightyear back to Earth
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Fresh from "infinity and beyond," Buzz Lightyear received a rocket hero's welcome home Friday, sharing the spotlight with none other than the astronaut for whom the character is named.

The 12-inch action figure that returned last month from a real 15-month space station mission [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/the-real-buzz-apollo-11s-aldrin-welcomes-buzz-lightyear-back-to-earth-in-disney-parade/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Secret Service find no threat to president in Facebook poll; juvenile responsible not charged</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Secret Service: Facebook poll no threat to Obama
WASHINGTON — The Secret Service has determined that a juvenile was behind the online survey that asked whether people thought President Barack Obama should be assassinated, an agency spokesman said Thursday.

No criminal charges will be filed against the juvenile or the juvenile's parents, spokesman Edwin Donovan said. Donovan [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/secret-service-find-no-threat-to-president-in-facebook-poll-juvenile-responsible-not-charged/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Brit girl, 10, puts &#8216;annoying but cuddly&#8217; grandma on eBay!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[LONDON - A 10-year-old British schoolgirl tired of her grandmother's "moaning" decided to sell her on eBay.

Zoe Pemberton, a pupil at the Great Clacton Church of England Junior School, described Marian Goodall, 61, as "rare and annoying and moaning a lot" but also "very cuddly and loves word searches", reports The Daily Express.
And to her [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/brit-girl-10-puts-annoying-but-cuddly-grandma-on-ebay/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Pair of pawty anipals and owners use Twitter to make money for charities around the world</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Animal friends have 'pawpawties' for charity
LOS ANGELES — Dougal and Romeo live in different countries and have never met in person. One's a dog, one's a cat. But they're quite the party animals.

The two pets — OK, their owners — host "pawpawties" on Twitter to raise money for animal causes.
Every month, a date and cause [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/pair-of-pawty-anipals-and-owners-use-twitter-to-make-money-for-charities-around-the-world/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>10 best Twitter Tips for Power Users</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The real power users on Twitter are celebrities like Ashton Kutcher, Britney Spears and Kim Kardasian to name a few. Well, if you are to make somewhere near Robert Scoble - make every tweet a magic, you need to go an extra mile. There's a host of things to explore on Twitter. If you are [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/10-best-twitter-tips-for-power-users/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>General Motors&#8217; partnership with eBay to sell new cars through Calif. dealers set to end</title>
		<description><![CDATA[GM's trial program selling cars on eBay set to end
DETROIT — General Motors says it's ending a trial program that put new cars for sale in California on eBay as it shifts its focus to national marketing efforts.

GM spokesman John McDonald said the trial was slated to end Wednesday, after a run of about six [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/general-motors-partnership-with-ebay-to-sell-new-cars-through-calif-dealers-set-to-end/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>US Secret Service investing Facebook poll that asked if Obama should live or die</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Secret Service probing Facebook poll on Obama
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Secret Service is investigating an online survey that asked whether people thought President Barack Obama should be assassinated, officials said Monday.

The poll, posted Saturday on Facebook, was taken off the popular social networking site quickly after company officials were alerted to its existence. But, like [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/us-secret-service-investing-facebook-poll-that-asked-if-obama-should-live-or-die/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>World War II camp in Britain up for sale</title>
		<description><![CDATA[LONDON - A former World War II prisoner-of-war camp in Britain has been advertised for sale on eBay as a "unique leisure attraction" at 900,000 pounds ($1.4 million).

The Harperley Prisoner of War Camp near Crook, in County Durham in northeast Britain, housed German and Italian prisoners during the 1939-1945 conflict.	 	
The complex of rows of [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/world-war-ii-camp-in-britain-up-for-sale/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Secret Service probing Facebook poll that asks if Obama should be killed</title>
		<description><![CDATA[WASHINGTON - The U.S. Secret Service is investigating a poll posted on the social networking site Facebook that asks if President Barack Obama should be assassinated.

The Huffington Post has a screen shot of the poll.
It asks, "Should Obama be killed?" The possible answers are "yes," "maybe," "If he cuts my health care" and "no."
"We are [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/secret-service-probing-facebook-poll-that-asks-if-obama-should-be-killed/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu get prize for love and forgiveness</title>
		<description><![CDATA[VANCOUVER - The Dalai Lama joined Bishop Desmond Tutu, eBay founder Pierre Omidyan, "Power of Now" author Eckhart Tolle, Nobel laureates and other spiritual leaders here to call for change in the world through compassion.

The Tibetan spiritual leader, who is here to lead the Vancouver Peace Summit, and Bishop Tutu were jointly given the Fetzer [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/dalai-lama-desmond-tutu-get-prize-for-love-and-forgiveness/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Muhozi has added you as a friend: Ugandan gorillas join Facebook as part of online fundraiser</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Endangered Ugandan gorillas join Facebook, MySpace
KAMPALA, Uganda — He's hairy, his table manners are atrocious, and he wants to be your friend on Facebook.

No, it's not the ex-boyfriend. It's Muhozi, an endangered Ugandan mountain gorilla, who's appearing online as part of a fundraising program the Ugandan Wildlife Authority launched Saturday to help save the species.
Around [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/muhozi-has-added-you-as-a-friend-ugandan-gorillas-join-facebook-as-part-of-online-fundraiser/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Sarah Brown among most popular UK Twitter users</title>
		<description><![CDATA[LONDON -  British  Prime  Minister  Gordan Brown's  wife, Sarah, has apparently become one of the  country's most popular Twitter users.

Over 776,000 people are said to follow her updates, exceeding the avid fanbase of one of the nation's foremost wits, Stephen Fry.
Since  she  signed up to the micro-blogging [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/sarah-brown-among-most-popular-uk-twitter-users/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Endangered Ugandan gorillas seek friends on Facebook, Myspace</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Ugandan gorillas get friendly on Facebook
KAMPALA, Uganda — He's hairy, his table manners are atrocious, and he wants to be your friend on Facebook.

No, it's not the ex-boyfriend. It's Muhozi, an endangered Ugandan mountain gorilla, who's appearing online as part of a fundraising program the Ugandan Wildlife Authority is launching Saturday to help save the [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/endangered-ugandan-gorillas-seek-friends-on-facebook-myspace/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>How tweet it is! Twitter gets $100 million more as founders try to build independent company</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Something to tweet about: Twitter valued at $1B
SAN FRANCISCO — Twitter Inc.'s founders now have a billion-dollar baby, and they seem determined to raise it without a corporate parent.

That was the message underlying Friday's news that Twitter has lined up $100 million to finance its operations while founders Evan Williams and Biz Stone plot ways [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/how-tweet-it-is-twitter-gets-100-million-more-as-founders-try-to-build-independent-company/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Twitter raises another large investment; published reports say deal values company at $1B</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Something to tweet about: Twitter gets more dough
SAN FRANCISCO — Twitter Inc. has raised $100 million in a deal that values the startup at $1 billion — even though the 3-year-old company still hasn't generated any meaningful revenue.

CEO Evan Williams didn't specify dollar figures in a Friday blog posting. But a person with knowledge of [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/twitter-raises-another-large-investment-published-reports-say-deal-values-company-at-1b/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Twitter-like technology can reveal songbirds&#8217; social lives</title>
		<description><![CDATA[LONDON - Creating what could be called Twitter for tweeters, scientists have developed a new social networking technology that could find out which songbirds spend time together, and could also reveal how they learn their tunes.

Developed by biologist John Burt and his colleagues at the University of Washington in Seattle, the technology, called Encounternet is [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/twitter-like-technology-can-reveal-songbirds-social-lives/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Nielsen says people spend more time on social networks, blogs than a year ago</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Nielsen: People spending more time on social sites
NEW YORK — Americans have been devoting 17 percent of all their Internet time to social networks like Facebook and blogging Web sites like Blogger.

The percentage for last month is up from 6 percent a year earlier.
The report comes from Nielsen Co. and follows its decision to team [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/nielsen-says-people-spend-more-time-on-social-networks-blogs-than-a-year-ago/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>10 Best Social Networking Tips for Business</title>
		<description><![CDATA[
This isn’t a direct marketing tool, this is human communication
says Rob Key, chief executive officer of social marketing firm Converseon. Social networking is fast growing into a future-business-tool.   Most businesses grow with the word of mouth, especially recommendations from peers and communities. Using social networking for business has widespread benefits. most importantly it allows interaction [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/10-best-social-networking-tips-for-business/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Whitman says Calif. needs smaller government, more private-sector jobs to reclaim its promise</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Whitman formally begins bid for Calif. governor
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Former eBay chief executive Meg Whitman is launching her bid for governor of California, promising to return a sense of optimism to the troubled state and saying she will "refuse to let California fail."

She says creating public sector jobs, cutting state spending and fixing the education [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/whitman-says-calif-needs-smaller-government-more-private-sector-jobs-to-reclaim-its-promise/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Advertising blitz: Yahoo to spend more than $100 million in latest attempt to rejuvenate brand</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Yahoo to spend $100M in bid for more brand buzz
SAN FRANCISCO — Yahoo Inc. believes a lot of its good work has been overlooked by investors and the media so it's spending more than $100 million to get the word out to consumers directly.

The money is going toward the Internet company's most expensive marketing campaign [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/advertising-blitz-yahoo-to-spend-more-than-100-million-in-latest-attempt-to-rejuvenate-brand/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Tharoor meets Sonia Gandhi over &#8220;Holy Cow&#8221; tweet controversy</title>
		<description><![CDATA[NEW DELHI - Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor met Congress President Sonia Gandhi here today and is reported to have discussed his "cattle class" comment on the social network site Twitter.

Tharoor is also scheduled to meet the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, this evening where he will inform about his trip to [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/tharoor-meets-sonia-gandhi-over-holy-cow-tweet-controversy/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>MIT students take images of Earth from space at total cost of 90 pounds!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[LONDON - Cost of space exploration doesn't always have to be out of this world, ask American students Oliver Yeh and Justin Lee who have taken images of the earth's surface using a camera bought on eBay, a weather balloon, a mobile phone, handwarmers and a drink cooler at a total cost of 90 pounds.

It [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/mit-students-take-images-of-earth-from-space-at-total-cost-of-90-pounds/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Former eBay chief marks official launch of bid for Calif. governor, vows to cut state spending</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Whitman to make Calif. gubernatorial bid official
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman says she wants to cut state spending by another $15 billion and reduce the existing state work force by 17 percent.

The former eBay chief executive will make those proposals in a speech Tuesday in Fullerton, where she will formally announce [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/former-ebay-chief-marks-official-launch-of-bid-for-calif-governor-vows-to-cut-state-spending/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Facebook to shut down Beacon tracking tool as part of lawsuit settlement</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Facebook to end Beacon tracking tool in settlement
NEW YORK — Facebook is shutting down its much-maligned Beacon marketing program, launched nearly two years ago amid fanfare only to generate a storm of privacy complaints over the tracking of user activities at partner Web sites.

Facebook agreed to end Beacon and create a foundation to promote online [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/facebook-to-shut-down-beacon-tracking-tool-as-part-of-lawsuit-settlement/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Travel brands and deals on Twitter: Who to follow</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Travel brands and deals on Twitter: Who to follow
NEW YORK — What are you looking for when you follow a travel brand on Twitter? News? Deals? Exclusive offers? And which Twitter travel feeds are the most popular?

DealBase.com researched airlines, hotels and booking sites on Twitter and found that of the brands surveyed, JetBlue's Twitter feed [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/travel-brands-and-deals-on-twitter-who-to-follow/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Facebook to shut down Beacon tracking tool as part of class-action settlement</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Facebook shuts down thorny marketing tool
NEW YORK — Facebook is closing an uncomfortable chapter in its five-year history.

The social network says it will shut down Beacon, a program that tracks users' activities on other Web sites. When it launched in 2007, Beacon was immediately attacked by users as a privacy violation.
It tracked purchases Facebook users [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/facebook-to-shut-down-beacon-tracking-tool-as-part-of-class-action-settlement/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>ComScore, Omniture join up to measure digital audiences</title>
		<description><![CDATA[ComScore, Omniture join up to measure audiences
NEW YORK — Two of the largest companies involved in tracking and analyzing Web traffic are joining forces to measure digital audiences more comprehensively.

The partnership involves comScore Inc. and Omniture Inc., which announced Tuesday that it agreed to a $1.8 billion takeover by Adobe Systems Inc.
ComScore and Omniture plan [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/comscore-omniture-join-up-to-measure-digital-audiences/</link>
			</item>
	<item>
		<title>Newspapers expected to open Internet toll booths this fall as publishers test online fees</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Want to read all about it online? It may cost you
SAN FRANCISCO — With their advertising revenue drying up, newspaper publishers spent much of the spring and summer debating whether to cut off free online access to some of the material they run in their shrinking print editions.

It looks like the talk will turn to [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/newspapers-expected-to-open-internet-toll-booths-this-fall-as-publishers-test-online-fees/</link>
			</item>
</channel>
</rss>
