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News, insight and tips from the social web.
The Hoop blog covers the evolving digital landscape, social media, mobile communications, content marketing and also includes 5 top finds and Fish on Friday. Feel free to make comments.
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5 top finds #17 »
We thought we'd make your Friday a bit more enjoyable, so here's this week's 5 top finds. A new animation from Wallace & Gromit's makers, a discussion on beautiful web design, being asked for money by the American Government, growing your own bike and an innovative marketing ploy to get a job at Google.
1. The world's largest stop motion animation, shot entirely on a mobile phone
Do you remember Dot? We wrote about her a few months back, and today her makers are again getting some love on the Hoop blog. Aardman and Nokia again join forces to produce the world's largest stop motion animation, "Gulp", shot over five days on the Welsh coast using the Nokia N8. You can see the video here but it's the "Making of" that really blows us away. Superb stuff.
2. An insightful editorial on web design
We were impressed by this TechCrunch article, entitled "The Beautiful Internet". Whilst we agree with most of what Devin Coldewey (rather brilliantly says), we were a little concerned about his point about getting "the great unwashed" from their older browser versions. Which was wonderfully summarised in this piece from Isolani.
Web development isn't about getting everyone on the newest browser iteration, it's about catering to your target audiences' needs.
3. Apple has more money than the US Government
We followed the US Government's wheeling and dealing to raise the debt ceiling with baited breath last week. When it was announced that Apple had more cash in the bank than the 50 states of America, our jaws hit the floor.
But we knew things were really bad when the US Government gave us a ring and asked for our money.
4. Bamboo bikes
We've featured wooden bikes on the Hoop blog before, but none as innovative as this one. The above trike wasn't built into the above shape, the bamboo was grown (yes grown!) by its builder Alexander Vittouris as an entry for a competition run by Good Design Australia. Amazing!
5. Google, hire m.e
We've all been there, finding the perfect job but not quite knowing how to apply. If you're Matthew Epstein, you spend $1,200 on a moustache, a website and a video and you end up getting phonecalls from Microsoft, Google and Amazon three days after launching your "employ me please, Google" marketing strategy. Kudos to the guy, we're impressed!
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5 top finds #16 »
It's Monday so we've lined up another 5 top finds for your enjoyment. This week sees us exploring photographic innovation; Spotify under the spotlight; the next round of Google v Facebook; Square mobile payments and the Tweet Olympics.
1. Some photography loving
We're huge lovers of photography here at Hoop, so we were bowled away when we stumbled across Dear Photograph. The premise is simple, revisit the location of old photographs and overlay the old with the new. A wonderful idea with superb execution in submissions from all over the world.
We've been talking about the rise of mobile for a while now, and with that we've been keen to follow the rise in popularity of 'iPhoneography' apps like Instagram and Hipstamatic (two of the most popular). We recently noticed this superb Hipstamatic photojournalism experiment from the war in Afghanistan on Foreign Policy – we thoroughly recommend checking it out.
We also found this wonderfully divisive opinion piece on why Instagram is ruining photography the other day – it's an oldie but definitely a goodie.
2. Patent and IP trolls
If you've been following the launch of Spotify in the US, you'll have no doubt heard that even though they've already amassed a reported 70,000 subscribers, they've already run into legal problems – just a week after launch. They've been issued with court papers for patent infringement by a 'wireless multimedia platform creator' called PacketVideo. TechDirt have all the details and you can read the court papers in full here.
This is the latest in the alarming trend of patent and IP shell companies suing the innovative tech companies and developers – a market that's reportedly worth $6bn in litigation fees and $50bn in IP rights and licensing. The Guardian has an interesting article on the influence patents have on innovation. Definitely worth a read.
3. Google+ and Facebook Business
The ominous rivalry between Google and Facebook took an interesting turn this week. Google have been booting company and pseudonym profiles from their new Google+ social network without warning and Facebook were quick to capitalise.
The Palo Alto company launched the new Facebook Business section as an "online education centre" aimed at getting small businesses to utilise Facebook pages, ads, sponsored stories and the social plug-ins. It might not be an obvious swipe at G+ but we reckon it's a swipe nonetheless. GigaOm has the details.
4. Lets all get Square
We love Twitter here at Hoop - and you can find us all (or most of us) on it. So when we heard Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey had started a new venture, we all got a bit excited.
Square is a revolutionary new mobile payment system that turns your iOS or Android device into a cash register and a credit/ debit card reader. It seems we're only ones getting excited about the programme, the company's already shipped almost 350,000 card readers and had $135m transacted through its programme way back in April. Unfortunately, it's not yet available outside of the US but we're sure it will be soon. Pretty damn cool!
5. Olympics competitive tweeting
On July 27th, London 2012 announced the fairly self-explanatory 'One year to go' campaign. Yes, we're only 12 months away from welcoming the Olympics to London and we couldn't be more excited! To celebrate the countdown, London 2012 announced a competition to see which competing country had the biggest social fanbase which is judged by the number of tweets, photos uploaded to flickr and videos to YouTube marked with each country's 3 letter code.
It seems Twitter shares our enthusiasm for the upcoming Olympics. In 48 hours, there have already been 85,853 tweets with the #1yeartogo hashtag, putting the USA at #1 position with 16% of the votes (at the time of writing). Head over to Mashable for more info and get voting!
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Google+ or minus? »
Does Google's latest social venture follow their past (failed) endeavours or is it 'the new Facebook'?
There's one thing that Google has always struggled with. The company is primarily built around search, its complex algorithms and engineering (although their repertoire has grown significantly since their stint in a Silicon Valley garage) – so it's no surprise they've never really nailed social.
However, we think that's now changed. It's worth noting that not everyone shares this view – but we think Google have made a decent (if not awesome) attempt at producing their own social network. And as we've already mentioned, the numbers seem to be backing this up.
A month ago, on Tuesday 28th June, Google rolled out the first few invites to their new social network; the rumoured half a billion dollar Google+.
It's fair to say Google+ is the topic of many a conversation. The above video (courtesy of the talented people over at Epipheo) surfaced on the web at the end of last week and is one of the best introductions to the new Google+ product we've seen. Even Paypal's co-founding CEO and Facebook angel investor Peter Thiel has been writing about it.
So, first thoughts when using Google+.
Award-winning developer Andy Hertzfeld (of 1980s Apple Macintosh fame) was part of the UX team behind the product's development, so it's no surprise that using Google+ is a pleasant experience. Its killer feature is Circles – Hertzfeld's primary contribution. Facebook has become the go to social network, with 750 million active users, but anyone and everyone is on there. Yes, the functionality to group Facebook friends into select lists does exist, but like the FB privacy settings quagmire, the whole process is more pain that it's worth.
Google+ circumvents the lists issue by making it simple – a theme that runs throughout the product. When creating an account, you simply drag and drop contacts together into friendship Circles who you can then share content with. So instead of sharing content with every contact you have, as on Facebook, you simply choose which Circles you want to share with. You can also view each of your Circles' content via the Google+ Stream (a bit like the Facebook News Feed). There have already been a few arguments about privacy and content sharing (oh, and plagiarism) but, in our opinion, G+ trumps FB on this one.
There are other standout features from Google+ which promise to be extremely useful once the floodgates are opened to the masses (G+ is still on a closed field trial) – and all the bugs are ironed out.
Hangouts – video chat for up to ten people (which could be hugely useful for companies who can't afford expensive videoconferencing software), and Huddles – a group chat messaging service via the Google+ mobile app (currently Android and iOS) are just two of the impressive functions Google+ has.
Then there's Sparks – a way of filtering search content that is relevant to you. Sparks is one of the big clues of how Google could actually make Google+ work – and beat all the other social networks into second place.
So is Google+ a Facebook killer? No, in its current iteration it isn't, and the lack of open access is one of its biggest weaknesses. We've noticed a lot of the platform's current users are already complaining about a lack of other users – which may drive them away from the product before it's properly ready.
As Matthew Ingram on GigaOm points out, Google+ is more likely to damage Twitter than it is Facebook. Google+ is also currently hampered by a lack of integration into other social networks (although given the recent Facebook vs. Google spat that's unsurprising) – which will slow its uptake to the mainstream.
The incentive (or lack of) to entice users away from Facebook, Twitter and other social networks of note will make or break Google+.
So how does Google do that?
If Google can fit the rest of their portfolio (search, advertising, mobile, video, blogging to name but a few of their other services) into this social venture, they'll have something that none of the other networks have. A truly social all-web encompassing experience. The future of the internet or a step into the world of 1984?
If you have any thoughts on Google+, or anything else you've seen on the Hoop blog, let us know via email, Twitter or in the comments below.
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Fish on Friday takes the lift. »
Tower blocks have been widely discredited but some still like a bit of elevation.
This one's for sole occupation only.
Categories: Fish on Fridays
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5 top finds #15 »
After a month's hiatus, 5 top finds is back to give you a heads up on what we've had our eyes on. This week we've got a bit of love for Google+, the amazing power of the hive mind, what London looks like from a social perspective, a wonderful photo of the Atlantis space shuttle and a rather amusing video of Rebekah Brooks and Rupert Murdoch.
1. Google+
[Image by Leon Håland]
Google's latest foray into social media has seemingly been a success so far. If you need proof; check the above graphic. It took Facebook 852 days to reach 10,000,000 users. It took Twitter 780 days.
It took Google+ just 16 days -and that was whilst the platform was on closed beta. Today, the Wall Street Journal announced that Google+ has now reached 20 million users. In 21 days. That's an extra 10 million sign ups in five days.
If that's not enough proof, Google CEO Larry Page recently revealed that the G+ users had already shared over 1 billion items on the social network. We're yet to see if the product is a serious contender against Facebook's dominant social presence, but it seems we're not the only ones starting to get a bit worried for Twitter.
2. The power of the social network
If you ever need convincing about the power (for good) of social networks and the hive mind they create; this is a story for you.
3. London, socially
It's not often we get excited by lots of dots, but Eric Fischer's map of Twitter (blue dots) and flickr (orange) uploads (white dots signify uploads to both platforms) across the city of London did just that.
You can download the hi-res version from Eric's flickr account - where you can also see the images he's done for other cities. Absolutely beautiful!
4. Atlantis, we'll miss you
This unprecedented view of the space shuttle Atlantis, appearing like a bean sprout against clouds and city lights, on its way home, was photographed by the Expedition 28 crew of the International Space Station. Airglow over Earth can be seen in the background.
Two weeks ago today, Hoop gathered to watched space shuttle Atlantis' launch for the last time. Yesterday, NASA posted the above photo, taken by the crew on the ISS, of Atlantis re-entering the earth's atmosphere. It's a truly amazing sight that will be sorely missed.
5. News International covers Rebecca Black
We've been avidly watching the Murdoch empire do its best to collapse over the past few days with a mix of revulsion and delight. If you've missed any of what's happened, this may help...
It's Friday, which can only mean one of two things.
- 1) It's almost the weekend and;
- 2) Someone, somewhere, will be watching Rebecca Black's "hit" single on YouTube.
Luckily, we'll spare you that horror and instead we'd like to draw your attention to this fantastic News International cover. Yes, you read that right.
Happy Friday!
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Cracking the QR code »
Are Quick Response codes the next big thing or are they a waste of time?
QR codes are a type of 2D barcode that can be read by smartphones or dedicated scanners. They are the evolution of the regular barcode, as they are able to store more information and character types than barcodes and can be printed on a smaller area. Originally developed in Japan by a subsidiary of Toyota in 1994, QR codes have yet to really take hold outside of Asia.
Until the rapid introduction of the smartphone into mainstream culture, the QR code remained relatively unknown. But as the number of people owning phones able to read QR codes increases (30% of British and 31% of American mobile phone owners now have a smartphone), more companies are starting to advertise using the matrix barcodes – a process known as mobile tagging.
[Image from Mashable]
In July of last year, clothing company Calvin Klein pulled the 'normal' advertising from two of its New York billboards and one in LA. What then appeared was a giant QR code directing to CK's promotional video for a new product (a video deemed too saucy to be shown on the billboards – hence the Get It Uncensored tagline).
Calvin Klein aren't the only company using mobile tagging to stoke brand interest. Home plus, Samsung and Tesco's South Korean subsidiary, recently produced a campaign centred around a virtual supermarket utilising QR codes in Seoul – with the simple aim of expanding their online and offline market share.
[Click here to watch the video]
Home plus put up billboards in subway stations with their range of products, accompanied by QR codes. The displays were designed to look exactly like those in actual stores, from display layout to the merchandise. Customers were able to use their smart phones to scan QR codes, putting products in their online shopping carts.
The innovative use of QR codes doesn't stop there; the city of Amsterdam are starting to use QR codes on a new signage system this summer and an American artist has even started producing QR code art. The Salvation Army is even putting QR codes on t-shirts!
However, there are problems with the emerging trend of QR code use.
Because there's no one universal standard for 2D barcodes (see 'Typical 2D Code'), a standard code reader has yet to be developed. This could be one of the reasons why smartphone manufacturers have yet to pre-install code readers on handsets – slowing the QR code's move to mainstream.
Consumers also have to know what a QR code is (and there are multiple versions), before they know to download the right reader app, photograph the code and wait for the app to decode the QR (wonderfully illustrated in a tweet from Matt King below).
So smartphones have to have the right app and consumers have to know what the technology is. But other companies are also wary of the 2D barcode novelty.
Back in March, Google quietly removed the support for QR codes in its location-based Places product (although their recent purchase of customer loyalty application Punchd may signal a change of heart). And if you're using QR codes on advertising underground, consumers won't be able to access your data – a problem American airline JetBlue faced with their recent ad on the New York subway. And, let's face it, QR codes aren't very pretty.
So, are QR codes worth your time and resources? Whilst they're championing the use of mobile (which we think is a fantastic idea), there is the issue of having to develop mobile-optimised content. And until there's an industry- or location-based standard 2D barcode, the QR code readers will have to be installed by mobile users, rather having the reader app pre-installed. Which relies on mobile users knowing what QR codes are.
Until businesses invest in the technology, it will take time to be fully adopted by the mainstream. But businesses won't invest until QR codes are adopted by consumers.
It's a chicken-and-egg conundrum that's still to be cracked.
If you have any thoughts on QR codes, or anything else you've seen on the Hoop blog, let us know via email, Twitter or in the comments below.
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