Category Archives: General IT

General IT, Technical

Tweetdeck v Seesmic Desktop

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One of the benefits of twitter is the proliferation of desktop applications that are available to enhance the twitter experience (if you are still using twitter via the web then you want to try one or more of these applications). For a while I’ve used a combination of tweetdeck and thwirl with the later slowly getting less and less use.

Then this week I downloaded Seesmic Desktop and I’m a convert. They’ve basically copied tweetdecks best features and added to them.

That’s not to say I’ve given up on tweetdeck, there are plenty of opportunities for improvement in both camps. But I thought for a blog post though I’d highlight some of the things I see strengths in both and benefits of each.

Big benefits both bring over rivals:

  • Multiple columns/decks, allowing you to slice up your tweet feed in ways to suit you. Either group by user lists, keep an eye on twitter searches for specific topics etc
  • Integrate your facebook feed and post facebook statuses

Seesmic desktop benefits:

  • Multiple accounts! This is the killer for me at the moment and my big reason for switching, you can integrate multiple twitter accounts into one application and then group people across all your accounts (I would like to see the ability to post to one of more of this accounts in one go though like ping.fm, rather than one at a time)
  • Enhanced facebook integration. Not just see status timeline, but the whole facebook timeline

Tweetdeck benefits:

  • Twitpic integration is nicer, like the fact you can stay in tweetdeck and not have to jump across to a web browser
  • Twitscoop. See trending topics in a column/deck
  • You can post to your twitter account and facebook in one post (seesmic is an either or)

There are indications that Tweetdeck will introduce multiple accounts, so maybe I’ll switch back shortly. But once that’s there, then there is probably only one feature that will make me switch again. The killer feature I’d like to see is:

  • ability to either export my settings for import on another computer (regardless of OS) or better still have these stored online (in fact is it time for twitter to add groups as a permanent feature?)

Final note is for people with Windows Mobile devices. Get Pocketwit! It has many of the features on seesmic desktop and tweetdeck: multiple accounts, groups and integrated twitpic.

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General IT

How’s your Google CV?

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I saw an interesting post on the Personal Branding Blog last week, written shortly after the Michael Phelps cannabis story. It referred to a “Google CV”.

What’s a Google CV? I’m not sure Dan Schawbel actually coined the term, but on his site it’s referred to as

“A Google CV is the Google search results page returned for a name search.”

There have been countless cases of the impact of the negative Google CV, people sacked for something said on facebook etc. But I suspect the more savvy HR departments and employers will start to use the online you more positively and begin to complement your paper CV with your Google CV.  So just as you take time to prepare your paper CV, maybe now is the time to take a look at your Google CV and make sure it’s one that you want to show a potential employee?

So here are 6 tips for maintaining your Google CV

  1. Unless you’re quite confident that your non-work persona is perfect for the workplace AND that your social network of friends fulfil the same criteria, then create a dual online personality.
  2. Get at least two email addresses (make sure they’re not both from your own domain!!), one for signing up the professional you to social sites and one for the personal you. Most social sites use the concept of a “friend searches” that use email addresses.
  3. Make sure your online presence is up to date. And unlike your paper CV that is gathering dust, keep it up to date. A two year old Lined In profile with 1 connection may send a wrong impression.
  4. Use Google itself and services like  123people to look at the online you, find all those sites you’d forgotten you’d signed up to and tidy up those you don’t want people to find!
  5. Obvious one, for those personal social sites (facebook, bebo, myspace), lock them down to your friends. Here’s a great post on facebook privacy.
  6. Get the professional you on LinkedIn or other similar social sites, set yourself up a blog related and/or contribute to online forums that relate to your field of expertise. Basically heighten the chance of that HR person finding the professional polished you on Google!

If you’ve any more suggestions why not post a comment?

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General IT, Legal

Internet Blackout N.Z

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The whole music and film industry against “the internet” is getting a little ridiculous. From the Pirate Bay trial (follow it on twitter) this week to the Davenport Lyons debacle (yes, debacle! a friend of mine got a letter and the one piece of evidence? An IP address, I mean come on!)

Through following Stephen Fry on twitter I come across this law being put into effect in New Zealand. From what I can tell a section of this law will allow “for internet disconnection based on accusations of copyright infringement without a trial and without any evidence held up to court scrutiny”. Basically if you’re accused, your internet connection is taken down!

Find more details at http://creativefreedom.org.nz/

I don’t even think the whole copyright theft or illegal file sharing is the root issue. I think it’s the fact that the music industry and film industry know they were too late to the internet party and rather than use technology to innovate they got scared and decided to use what they know, the law.

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General IT

Working 9 to 5………why?

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I got an unexpected call from work yesterday (Sunday) which ended up with me doing about an hour and a half’s work. I got phone calls and emails on my BlackBerry, returned a couple of phone calls, went online on my home PC and connected to my work network, realised I needed some specific client software, booted up my work laptop and connected through to work…..

Basically wherever I am (and whenever) I can be contacted and gain connection to work. So this got me thinking on why firms (and law firms in particular) are so tied to working in the office, from Monday to Friday and from 9 to 5 (well that’s the supposed hours for support staff anyway). It makes no sense!

In IT specifically there is such a need to work outside the norm to avoid interrupting the business when doing system maintenance etc, isn’t it time we shifted to shift work or a more flexible working schedule? I’m sure for secretaries and other support staff a wider coverage in hours would be a big bonus for the lawyers.

Work has encroached so much into your private life (and as a consequence private life has encroached on work life, as you now sort out your private life on work time!), isn’t time to accept the fact and allow people to conduct their work whenever and from wherever?

Certainly there are some functions that do need to cover the 9 to 5, but ideally we’d love these to cover 7 to 8 or more. Anyway it’s as simple as managing your staff and ensuring a core set of hours are always covered adequately, isn’t it?

There’s plenty of evidence that suggests flexible/home working :

  • reduces sick leave
  • reduces commuting time
  • saves money for the employer (power saved, overtime saved etc) and the employee (lunchtime sandwiches, coffees, cost of commute etc)
  • gets more out of employees for the same time

I’d love to hear if your firm (especially law firms) have a widespread policy for home working or flexible working. Let me know in the comments.

 

If you’re interested in mobile working, have a look at moof.mobi. It’s a great blog on the subject (although Mr Moof has gone a little quiet of late).

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General IT, Technical

2009 – the year we’ll be always online?

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Will this year be the year we are able to be always online? Fire up your laptop and you’re connected wherever you are?

I remember have a conversation with our CIO about 18 months or so ago, discussing why for document management we shouldn’t invest too heavily in enabling people to “go offline” when they’re out of the office. The simple reason I put forward was that we’d soon be always online.

The reason behind my comment wasn’t due to that current fad in the UK – 3G dongles from Vodafone, Orange etc but a technology that was on the horizon. WiMAX. This technology is effectively like WiFi but over much greater distances.

I just got a twitter tweet from a friend in the US about such a service that has started in his city. It looks like these services are starting to rollout in earnest. Personally I think this will kill WiFi hotspots and (hopefully) mean we soon won’t have to think about online or offline, if your laptop is on it’ll be connected to the internet or via VPN to your work network and email.

There is one cavaet to this and that is if you do business globally. It may take a while to see even WiMAX hotspots when you’re in the middle of say Dubai for example (for those that work in the UAE they know the difficulties and cost of telecoms/networks in that region!)

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