SOMEWHAT FRANK

Dumpr.net Turns Photos Into Art

Have you been noticing all your Flickr friends showing off their rubiks cube photos? I have. So I decided to figure out how they were doing it and I was quickly lead to Dumpr. Yes, that is its real name. Dumpr.net offers a tool set for turning your exisiting photos into works of art. Dumpr offers some unique online photo manipulations options for your photo uploads, links to photos and photos directly from your Flickr account. It enabled me to create my own rubiks cube photo just like my friends - don't worry I did not actually get trapped inside the cube to take the photo (below).

CNet and Ars Technica Acquired, Life Streaming Architecture, Crowdsourcing Workflow, Ad Design Tactics & A Flickr Case Study

Photo of the Week: This is a photo of the TECH cocktail RACING Pine Wood Derby car which took 6th place out of 41 at this years Threadless.com Threadle Manss this past weekend.

SOMEWHAT FRANK Weekly Tidbits: 05.18.2008

Flickr Now Takes Videos (or "Long Photos")

Flickr, the photo community which we have all grown to love, after months of rumors and specutation has launched Flickr Video today. With almost six thousand photos on Flickr I was interested to see just how video was integrated. I was concerned adding videos might mess with the simplicity of the lovable photo sharing site that I have grown so accustom to. Flickr implemented short videos based on the  idea of “long photos” setting the limit to 90 seconds maximum time limit on videos. This makes it clear Flickr is not the platform for video podcasts or other stuff but more for short photo-like blurbs of life.

Polyvore: Flickr For The Fashion Shopper

Are you a fashion trend setter? If so, you might want to check out Polyvore. Polyvore is a social fashion site where users can create arrange outfits or inspiration boards to share where you and others can potentially buy the included items. Polyvore enables users to drag and drop clothing items or snag items from the Web to create new outfits which are then tied into various shopping sites and could offer some interesting revenue sharing options. Launched in February 2007 and backed by Benchmark Capital, Polyvore recently hit the one million outfit mark.

AOL Buys Bebo - KickApps Next?, Yahoo Semantic, Flickr Video Coming, Facebook IM Coming, YouTube Goes Hi-Res & SXSW Coverage

Photo of the Week: This photo was taken while recording this Blog Talk Radio episode with Kris "Croncast" Smith and Rox from BeachWalks.tv at SXSW Interactive in Austin, Texas. Photo thanks to Roxanne Darling.

SOMEWHAT FRANK Weekly Tidbits: 03.16.2008

Picnik Premium Photo Editing Tools Now Free

Picnik, the Seattle-based online photo editing application, has announced that their suite of premium features are now available to everyone for free and will be supported by online advertising. Picnik wants everyone to have access to their fabulous features and will offer a premium service for people that would rather not see ads and are looking for a little more support.

I recently reviewed flauntR which offers a totally free online photo editing option which could give Picnik some competition. I am happy to see Picnik go free since it will mean I will now be able to leverage all their features for free via the Picnik Flickr integration. TechCrunch offers additional perspective and speculation on the Picnik move.

flauntR: An Online Photo Editing Alternative

I use Flickr just about everyday to store and manage my photos. I was happy to see Flickr add photo editing tools by integrating with online photo editing software, Picnik. On thing irks me about the integration though is the fact that as a Flickr premium user I still DO NOT have full access to all of Picnik's offerings from within Flickr itself. I really feel that as part of the partnership and integration Flickr should have reconciled which users are premium Flickr users and done a revenue share to enable them full access to Picnik. That said, I have been on the lookout for an comparable alternative to Picnik for more sophisticated photo edits and updates to save me the hassle of firing up Adobe Photoshop. I recently found flauntR, a free online photo editing site create by India-based DeviceDriven, which offers a number of similar photo editing features.

Picnik Launches Development API

Picnik, the solid suite of photo editing tools, has just announced the release of "Picnik-in-a-Box," its  development API. Now any web site can integrate with Picnik free for charge. According to Picnik, the new Picnik-in-a-Box API should enable anyone with knowledge of HTML or server-side scripting to quickly integrate photo editing int0 their website with some custom design aspects.

Personally, I find myself leveraging Picnik more and more these days as its tools have been integrated into Flickr. Picnik has also integrated with Box.net and Webs (formerly Freewebs). If you are interested obtain a software key which gives them instant, free access to the Picnik API.

Welcome to Flickr Library of Congress

The Library of Congress just informed me of a new project they have undertaken with, Web 2.0 photo community, Flickr. In addition to posting photos on its own the Library of Congress website they have decided to also start putting historic photo sets on Flickr for all the world to see. The Library of Congress is looking to show off its photos to a larger photo centric community. With some 14 million prints, photographs and other visual materials at the Library of Congress, more than 3,000 photos from two of our most popular collections are being made available on Flickr. Wow!

Driftr Unites Travelers To Share

Looking to share your latest trip with your family and friends? Or looking to find a new place to travel to?  You might want to check out Driftr. Driftr is a user-generated content site for travelers, by travelers. It allows you to keep track of your travels, share your trip photos, reviews, and blogs with friends and family, as well as research new travel destinations.

Facebook Web 2.0 Summit, iPhone Platform, Microsoft 100 Startups, Flickr Maps, Vimeo HD & Social Porn Law?

Photo of the Week: These colorful orbs were all over the SF MOMA on Wednesday evening as MySpace.com held an event to celebrate their invasion of San Francisco with the opening of an office in the area.

Somewhat Frank Weekly Tidbit: 10.21.2007

circaVie For Memorable Photo Timelines

Looking to plot your photos in a memorable timeline? circaVie could be just what you are looking for. With circaVie you can easily create a flashy photo timeline.

Simply sign-up, start uploading or pointing to your photo links, associating a photo date and circaVie plots them on a scrollable timeline. It sort of reminds me of a scrapbook in a timeline format. Timeline is interactive as users can interact with each photo on the timeline as well as leave comments. circaVie offers the ability to change the color of the timeline and it can be snagged for embedding into your favorite web site or blog. You can also pass your timeline via AIM Share or by passing around an RSS feed. I have included a timeline below from a fabulous time spent exploring San Francisco last weekend.

Similar to Ficlets, circaVie was created by AOL's AIM Network, it was done using a nimble and agile development team which at times was up to six people but has since been reduced to just two. circaVie offers OpenID and also makes it easy to select a site specific username and pull in your buddy icon from AOL, AIM, Flickr or Twitter. circaVie is a fun and useful application for anyone looking for a way to tell your photo explorations in a memorable fashion.

YouTube Feature Updates, Embed Joost?, Flickr Goes Global, Me.dium $15 Million, Stalker 2.0, Fat Long Tail, RSS Toolbox, Discover via Megite & Blog Or Die

Photo of the Week: Jen Consalvo recently snapped this photo titled backlight. A little sunshine is a beautiful thing and is good for the soul - this little yellow guy appears to agree.

Somewhat Frank Weekly Tidbits: 06.17.07

YouTube Remixer: Edit Videos Online At YouTube
YouTube has officially launched YouTube Remixer, a new service that allows users to edit their videos from within YouTube itself. Also, YouTube Mobile launched this week.

Discover From Megite
Megite recently launched a discover area which offers users a place to find new things via a tag cloud and other discover links.

Embedded Joost Will Change The Market
Reports that Joost is now talking to hardware vendors about embedding Joost into set-top boxes and televisions will change the market as we know it.

Me.dium Pulls $15 Million in Funding
Boulder, Colorado based Me.dium, the sidebar social network, has received $15 million in second round funding. The round of funding was led by Commonwealth Capital Ventures.

11 web technologies political campaigns should consider
Technology Evangelist points to 11 different technologies political campaign leads should know.

Google Reader losing feeds?
A few people complained this week that Google Reader lost their feeds. I didn't see it, did it happen to you?

CommunityNext July 14th: VIRAL... Catch the Fever!
The Next CommunityNext conference is coming up July 14th - are you signed up?

Stalking 2.0: The Websites that Track Your Every Move (Voluntarily!)
Are you letting people track you online? If so you probably have encountered one of these stalker 2.0 applications.

The Long Tail Is Getting Fatter
It wasn’t that long ago that 100,000 users was considered huge for a Web 2.0 related business. Today a small startup such as SpaceTime can gain those numbers in two weeks. 6 million users three years ago would have seemed an impossible dream, and yet it is very attainable now. This article takes a closer look.

Can You Make A Living Blogging?
Great question and I will have to answer with a resounding 'YES!!!' I have seen bloggers go from nothing to something as little as a six months to a year. It is pretty amazing. However, I have to agree with Nick, we don't all blog for the money...the real benefits of blogging are all the great friendships that come from it.

Schilling's Laws for Perfect Start(up)s
Seth Goldstein talks baseball and startups on Found+READ.

The Ultimate RSS Toolbox - 120+ RSS Resources
Check out this comprehensive post on a number of RSS tools available on the web. You may already know but I think RSS is sexy. ;)

Flickr Goes Global
Flickr opens up its doors to a number of new languages and also there is word this week that Yahoo Photos is going to be closing its doors. I'd say this is a big week for Flickr. I have a feeling Flickr video uploads are coming very soon.

Print 2.0 Goes Moo

While standard businesses are not going away anytime soon Moo has been a web 2.0 cultural innovator. If you have been around the web 2.0 scene at all you know exactly what I am talking about. Moo, a London-based printing company, has created a new trend in business cards that measure 28mm by 70mm called Moo cards.

So what is the big deal? Moo cards allow users to create mini cards with a personalized card back that can display an uploaded or imported photo - this makes each card even more personalized and unique thus making exchanging business cards a more memorial experience for all parties involved. Moo has created a place for anyone looking for some business cards to easily create reasonably priced yet memorable business cards.

Aside from business cards, Moo launched NoteCards today at the Web 2.0 Expo. In talking with Moo CEO Richard Moross yesterday I got a little demo of the new NoteCard product that doubles as a standing photo. Moo makes it easy to add your photos to personalize your Moo NoteCards which measure 100mm by 100mm.

Though Moo may not be considered a web 2.0 company, they have recreated business cards and now personalized card thus influencing web 2.0 culture. Print 2.0 goes Moo like a purple cow.

Election 2.0

With a number of political candidates creating MySpace profiles, YouTube videos and Second Life avatars it appears that the Internet and web 2.0 technology are being leveraged for political campaigning.

TechPresident, a project of the Personal Democracy Forum, launched recently to aggregate the activities of U.S. presidential hopefully on popular web 2.0 social media sites. Aside from a blog which gives perspective on the presidential race, TechPresident also tracks each candidates MySpace friend counts, YouTube videos, and Technorati mentions and Google and Yahoo ads. I would love to see it add Second Life (virtual world) and Twitter (micro-blog platform) to the mix as candidates also appear on these sites.

The video below titled, Election 2.0, explains just how the 2008 United States election will be like no other election as web 2.0 takes on an unprecedented role. My only critique of the video is that it breaks the "context before detail" rule which would have made the message more powerful. Nonetheless, I think it is well done and worth watching.