I’ve been engaged in Social Media and the internet since before it received its title. In the early 90s I began by teaching myself how to code HTML using Notepad and created my own graphics using MS Paint. I created websites that defined who I was and was among the first to display my contact information publicly.

Shortly after that I started working in an online gaming community that was in it’s infancy. This was a time where internet communities hadn’t yet figured out how to identify themselves. By 1997 I attended my first community meet-up where people from all over the USA met in person for the first time. Here I am today, just over a week out of a meet-up that I personally organized and ran for a podcast that I created in May of 2007.

I have formal training in graphic design and multimedia: an associates degree. That training has further encouraged me to display my communications in an attractive way; a nice, net package if you will. This is far beyond what many designers and/or social media artists are capable of. It’s this vast array of capabilities that make what I can do so very marketable.

I know what it is to communicate and create meaningful relationships that last. I know how to market myself, a business or a brand with a communication strategy that involves the written word, spoken word or graphic appeal. Relationship building, brand building, marketing: it’s all the same. We’re just learning new and innovative ways to make it more efficient.

I wonder how the rest of you came to be social on the internet and what you made of it if anything. Care to share?

I spent much of a whole day playing within Plurk. Yes, it has quite the peculiar name. When I first registered and began using the service I found it to be rather buggy. I got a lot of “File Not Found” errors and even the style sheets wouldn’t load properly. After a bit of clicking around and fidgeting with the browser, all things became right in the world.

What is Plurk?
Well it’s similar to Twitter in that it’s a micro-blogging social network. You can send out messages that are 140 characters or less. It’s your choice if you want to use a qualifier “kimfenolio IS writing about Plurk” or choose not to “kimfenolio: I’m writing a post to encourage others to micro blog.” Using the @ function like you do in Twitter works the same in Plurk only it creates a direct link without the @ sign having to appear in the final message. They’ve even supplied you with a list of safe Plurking habits.

How is it Different?
There are a number of things that set it aside from Twitter. First is the interactivity. You and your friends have the ability to comment directly on a message that you Plurk. The really neat thing is that if you have that message open while someone else responds you can see their reply appear right before your eyes.

Alerts
You are continually appraised of new Plurks and new updates with an alert box in the bottom left-hand corner of your timeline. It is unobtrusive, no sounds and no pop-up windows for it. It will simply appear when there’s something new for you to check up on. I will admit that with multiple people responding to Plurks, it certainly gets old after you have to keep going back to each message time after time. I suppose that’s why on the alert’s menu there’s a “Mark all as read” option.

Visual Timeline
While I’m talking about the timeline, let’s expand on that for a bit. The timeline runs from right to left. Updates appear as if they’re almost floating in the sky based on time. If you hover your mouse over an update it’ll highlight the time at the bottom of your timeline. Clicking on an update will expand it so that you can read the entire update as well as any responses. You can also view the mobile timeline if the visual timeline is too conspicuous for you. Either I don’t like this visual timeline or it takes a lot of getting used to.

Friend Filtering
I can create “Cliques” and add people. Once I do this I can send out a Plurk to just the users in that specific group. Apparently there’s a way to filter incoming messages from just those in that group but I haven’t found it available to me just yet. The only thing I don’t like about adding folks to the clique is that you have to type their names rather than selecting people with check boxes in a list.

Friend, No Need to Follow
Friends can be friends but you don’t have to follow their timeline. I really like this feature. Someone asked me why I would want to be friends with someone but not read what they have to say. There are folks that I’m friends with where I want to see what they have to say some of the time, not all of the time. It allows me a certain amount of discretion by letting me hit a button to turn timeline updates on or off.

Drawbacks
I was in at least 35 different conversations today and I can’t remember where I said what. I want to be able to search for things that I said. Make “me” searchable. I still can’t find out how to view just people in my clique. I want that to be an option and if it is, I want that to be more intuitive. Due to the instant interaction and the instant alerts I’ve found the use of this network to occupy a lot of my time. It’s hard to just walk away from a conversation. This is by no means the fault of Plurk, but a human trait we all possess.

I wonder how Plurk will do with scalability? Twitter has experienced a lot of trouble and downtime lately and it doesn’t have the type of interaction or interface that Plurk does. I wonder what kind of plans the creators of Plurk have to combat the inevitable?

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I think Plurk has some real potential though I don’t know that I’m ready to migrate from the familiarity that is Twitter just yet. What makes it different and sets it aside from Twitter are all huge advantages for me; aside from the timeline view. I can see using Plurk as a means by which to have more personal interaction. It’s like interactive polling. Twitter is much easier to just output and walk away. Plurk, however, is a more like instant messaging in groups at your friends’ leisure.

Have some fun. Play around. What do you think about Plurk? What drawbacks, bonuses or other features (or lack there of) should we talk about?

This entry has be Dugg!

Recently I was talking to my brother. I asked him if he had a Facebook account. His response was as follows:

Social Networking.. Blahhhh. I like meeting people the old fashion way. “Hey you, come over here. I wanna talk to you.”

I guess I’m not doing my sisterly job very well. I’ll work on that. The whole point behind social networking is to be more social. You get the opportunity to connect and network with people that you likely may not have stumbled across in the physical realm. Once you make those connections through social networking, it provides an easier means of which to make the connection in your personal space.

Heck, you may not even need to meet face-to-face. I have a number of clients that I have never physically met. I’ve communicated with them through the social networking sites, chat programs and video sites. Some of my connections aren’t necessarily clients, but are colleagues and even friends. I’ve had the opportunity to meet a number of them in person as a result of the relationship we’ve formed through the social networking that my brother blahed at earlier.

I have made some great friends, connected with old friends, networked with connections of my connections, created business relationships, negotiated ideas, have held and been the subject of interviews and meetings all as a result of this social networking.

What has social networking done for you?

This article is going to cover how to adjust your microphone’s recording volume if you’re on a Windows XP machine. I voice chat a lot and run across many people whose microphone volume’s are coming across either too soft or too loud.

Why is this a problem? Well, for example, if I have three other people on a Skype conference call, one person might be soft while the other two are a good volume. I don’t want to turn up my system volume because the other two will be exceptionally loud in my ear while that one person will be at an acceptable level. The one person who is too soft should be able to adjust their level so that the rest of the people in the call won’t have to adjust.

These instructions are for those who are using the Win XP generic drivers for their sound card. The majority of people are. If you’re using something else, then you may be able to adapt these instructions. Give it a read and see.

There are two different ways to get into the panel and adjust the recording volume. I’m going to list both ways. You decide which is easier. Screen shots are provided within the instructions. Click on the thumbnails to view the full size image.

Access From the System Tray (with explanations)

1. In your system tray (the little area on your taskbar with the clock) there will be an icon that looks like a little gray speaker. Double click on it.
   
2. The window that comes up is called your Playback Control. This is what controls the volume of anything that you hear either over your speakers or through your headphones. There, you will see a Microphone slider. This controls how loud you hear yourself through your headphones. If the mute button is checked, then you won’t hear yourself at all. This has no baring on whether or not others will hear you if you’re in a VOIP call. It only controls what *you* hear of yourself. Only adjust this volume slider if you need to hear more or less of yourself.
   
3. To get to the area where we adjust the recording volume (what others will hear when you’re in a call) click on Options at the top of the window. Then Properties.
4. The Properties box now has an area in the top that says “Adjust volume for”. Click the Recording button.
   
5. You should now notice that the options in the bottom of that box have changed. Make sure that there is a check mark next to where it says Microphone. Then click OK.
   
6. The window will now change and become the Record Control. This is the mixer that controls what gets recorded or sent out as audio through a call. Each of these sliders does not have a “Mute” under it, instead it has “Select” under it. Unless you have an advanced setup (you’ll know if you have this) you will want the check in the box underneath the Microphone slider. None of the other sliders on this window will effect your outgoing voice or audio. Generally, the best place to have your slider is right at or just above the halfway mark. If people tell you that you need to be louder, obviously you’ll want to drag the slider up. If you’re too loud, drag the slider down.
   
7. When your voice is being sent out at an acceptable level, simply close the window.

Access From Control Panel

1. Go to Start, Control Panel. Double click on Sound and Audio Devices. If you don’t see that, click on “Classic View” in the left hand side of the window.
2. Click the Audio tab. Then click Volume under the “Sound recording” area.
   
3. The window will now change and become the Record Control. This is the mixer that controls what gets recorded or sent out as audio through a call. Each of these sliders does not have a “Mute” under it, instead it has “Select” under it. Unless you have an advanced setup (you’ll know if you have this) you will want the check in the box underneath the Microphone slider. None of the other sliders on this window will effect your outgoing voice or audio. Generally, the best place to have your slider is right at or just above the halfway mark. If people tell you that you need to be louder, obviously you’ll want to drag the slider up. If you’re too loud, drag the slider down.
4. When your voice is being sent out at an acceptable level, simply close the window.

Today is the day I unleash my new site here to the masses. I want to explain a bit about what it is that I want to do here and why I’m doing it.

The Finger Trail
I’m a graphic artist. It’s what I went to school for. It’s the degree that I graduated with. It’s why I was the president of my school’s graphic design club. It’s the title that I’ve held professionally for the past five years. I love graphic design and I love being creative. Over the past year I’ve felt like there’s been something missing within the realm of my career. I haven’t really been able to put my finger on it. Finally I decided to stop running around in circles and put my whole hand down on what I want; not just that finger.

Final Destination
Playing around in new and social media is something I’ve been doing for about four years now. I say playing because it’s something that’s merely been a hobby of mine. Help is something that I have offered freely and likely will continue to do. Today I focus and make it a part of my career.

I say a part of my career because I’ve proven that I am a good graphic artist but that I’m also good at producing and consulting in new and social medias. I am creating a workable relationship between design and new media. I have no doubt in my mind that this can and will be a good thing. The next step is application and follow-through, which we all know is the key to any relationship.

The Key
I look forward to using this key to open doors not only for myself but also for those people whose paths I will cross. There are people who will benefit from the skills that I have to offer. I love to help out wherever I can, and if it’s something I don’t know how to do then it’s something I’m going to learn how to do. I love a good challenge. What’ve you got?

How I Got Started
I first got involved in podcasting back in January of 2006. It started with my listening, which quickly turned into my participating in other people’s podcasts; either by comments at their blog, messages left to show voicemail lines or participation in online forums. After a short time I was asked to guest host a show, which sealed the deal for me: I needed to start my own podcast and it didn’t matter what it was about. It was fun, engaging and wholly entertaining.

My First Show
A friend of mine agreed to co-host a show with me. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we were unable to get the show past two episodes and it fizzled out. I continued to participate in other people’s shows as well as help out where I could. There were times that I even produced my own audio segments for shows. In February of 2007 though, things changed. An idea was created to start a podcast based on the television show Grey’s Anatomy. It was the first fan based podcast of it’s time and was an instant hit. I co-hosted the show with Stephanie and Cliff Ravenscraft where we incorporated live listeners, voicemail calls, also making the show available for download at a later time. I created a visual brand for the podcast in terms of cover art, podcast logo, promotional banner and other promotional items to be used on forums and the like. After the television show finished up for the year in May, I resigned my position as co-host.

The Current Focus
Just a few weeks later in May of 2007 I launched another podcast called Girls Night In. This is a show with a total of four hosts. Not only do I occupy the role as a host but I also manage, produce and have branded this show. As I continue on I find that I’ve learned so much more than I thought was possible in regards to all aspects of podcasting.

I’ve established how to effectively market our brand, incorporate live listeners into the show, route and record audio where each of the four hosts of the show are in separate parts of the country, master audio levels, edit audio, learn to master post-production editing and effects to allow for the final product to be more palatable on the download. I’ve been able to give the show a presence on a number of social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace where we’ve been able to find a number of listeners willing to interact and pose feedback.

The Visual Brand
I’ve established our presence at a website which is syndicated with RSS (a blog) thus allowing the media that we create to reach the listener without any action on their part. The site itself is branded along with the cover art. Beyond simply creating the logo, coverart and website with a consistent brand, I also went a step further and created individual avatars for each of the hosts to use if they so desired. This way, each host would be visually associated with the show on whichever social network they chose to be a part of. The blog has been sprinkled with all sorts of goodies that make it easy for the listener or potential new listener to navigate and find out more about the show. There are blog posts from the hosts, posts that contain the podcast episodes and show notes, pages that share what the podcast is about, how to contact the hosts, where to interact within the show, outside of the show and in social networks, a schedule of our show dates and an easy way to listen directly from the site.

Why do you want to do this? Well, people are going to find your podcast by searching for it, looking for it and not necessarily hearing it first. They’re likely going to read something somewhere about it, find your page and view what you’re about before they download and listen. This is why having an attractive visual brand is so important and an integral part in expanding your podcast audience.

A logo is the most readily available representative of your podcast. Your logo can accompany press releases, be used as a link to your site, for advertising purposes, and give potential audiences a glimpse at what you and your podcast are all about even before listening to your show.

If you or your company already has a logo, you could further brand your image by incorporating your business logo or design a variation of your corporate logo to strengthen and reinforce your brand. Just as with your logo, your cover art displays your identity. It will display your logo and the name of your podcast, if that is your desire. This is what is shown when any directory displays your podcast. It is used as a way to represent your show. This image can also be used as your show artwork in RSS feeds or on your website.

The Audible Brand
Outside of making everything visually appealing and consistent, the same needs to apply to what the audience is hearing. There needs to be consistency in what to expect with audio quality as well as what’s being mixed into the natural sound. The use of an intro, outro and audio bumpers in between segments is a great way to establish a template of how the show works, thus creating a consistent flow. The audience then recognizes and is able to anticipate what’s coming up. Outside of the mechanics of the audio, you need to sound like you’re more than just a drone reading from a word document. Even if you are reading, the best way to keep your audience engaged is to add flare to your voice. You need to be interested in what you’re speaking about or your audience will lose interest. If you lose the interest of your audience, you lose your audience.

What it Comes Down to
Create your brand both visually and audibly. Make it clear, concise and easy to follow. Your message needs to be relatable and interesting. Is it? Are you sure you’ve established yourself in that manner? What else needs to be done to make a podcast work and work well?