The On-Going Conversation

The Mobile Explosion

Mobile is expanding at a phenomenal rate and according to some predictions, mobile internet usage will overtake desktop before 2015.

Breaking News: AT&T and T-Mobile Unite

AT&T reached an agreement with Deutsche Telekom to buy T-Mobile for $39 billion. If approved, AT&T will become the largest wireless provider in the US.

Read the full article on Mashable

The Nature of Online Relations

Social networks are helping people stay in touch, but are Internet communities simply tangible cliques taking place online? Social platforms allow friends and family to stay in touch more frequently, although there may be detrimental elements to consider as well.

The ramifications of social media could include the destruction of interpersonal communication skills and the wasting of time throughout the day. I can only imagine how much time people use on a weekly basis to stay connected with their digital friends.

Read the full article and listen to the story via NPR

LinkedIn Wants Users to Visit Daily

LinkedIn launched LinkedIn Today, a social news tool for business users that encourages perpetual use, similar to Facebook and Twitter.

From a consistent use standpoint, LinkedIn has a hard time competing with Facebook and Twitter. Users seem to view LinkedIn as a professional portal that doesn't require continual monitoring. Facebook and Twitter on the other hand seem to have a connected mantra that requires daily attention, and users feel out of touch if they aren't constantly engaged and interconnected.

Obviously this isn't the case, but users feel a subconscious isolation if they aren't checking their digital lives on a daily basis. Most people view LinkedIn as an environment for career networking, which doesn't consist of frequent changes and status updates. Users even have their Twitter updates linked via an external platform that appears on the LinkedIn feed, which is included on the landing page.

As a result, LinkedIn is trying to capture a degree of success with this approach to social media. They want to encourage uses to visit on a daily basis, by providing more value and the ability to directly search news online. To a certain extent, they want to be a one-stop shop for online content absorption. This may be quite challenging, although it is a great place to commence in a difficult social space.

Read the full article via Fast Company

Social Law in a Digital Age

A federal judge recently granted the U.S. government access to the Twitter accounts of three of WikiLeaks's strongest supporters.

Read the full article via Mashable

Digital Tennis in a 3D World

The Wimbledon men's and women's finals will be shown in 3D capable movie theaters this summer, with help from Sony.

Read the full article about tech tennis

The Era of Tablets: Microsoft Strives to Compete with Apple and Google

Microsoft will strive to release a tablet-oriented version of Windows by 2012 to compete with Apple's iOS and Google's Honeycomb.

Read the full article via Mashable

A Showdown: Amazon. Netflix and Hulu Style

Amazon launched Instant Video, a streaming movie and TV service, which is less expensive than subscriptions to Netflix and Hulu.

Read the full article via Fast Company

BranchOut: The Social Job Search

Social Tools: LinkedIn has 90 million users and Facebook has roughly 500 million active users, with more joining each and every day.

Read the full article via Fast Company

Preserve Your Online Reputation

Survey: 45% of employers questioned used social networks to vet candidates; 35% decided not to hire a candidate based on online data.

Read the full article via Mashable