Facebook hits 300 Million users
After all the press that Twitter receives, we still tend to forget just how massive Facebook is. Today it hit 300 million active members and is still growing. What’s more amazing is that it grew from 200 million to the current 300 million in only 5 quick months.
Facebook Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg highlighted the constant grown and mission to connect the world, as well as, its cash-flow positive status.
Facebook is also rolling out more Twitter-like features, such as the latest feature @mentions status feature, which could be a threat to the minute in comparison Twitter (under 18 million users).
Although the other big social media websites serve different functions, which give reason for their popularity. Facebook still watches trends and adapts, which makes the value of brand loyalty interesting to watch.
Facebook adds @mentions to status
Facebook has released the most Twitter-like feature to date – the @mention function is now live.
Your status update can now include friends names, brands, events and groups which are called up and can be picked from a drop down menu. The auto-suggest feature works in the same manner as adding names when composing an email in Facebook.
Facebook adds @mentions to status
The users who’s names are uses will be notified, as well as a post on their wall. Status updates will have clickable links to the persons profile.
In my mind, this was one of the main features that separated Twitter from Facebook and could be a huge threat to Twitter.
Winston the Pigeon, faster and more awesome than ADSL
@iamsmith from a local company called ‘The Unlimited’ not only launched one of the craziest online experiments that I’ve heard to date, but created something amazing that went ridiculously viral.
The team at The Unlimited sent a near one year old pigeon with the name Winston, which was picked from a competition on GottaQuirk, from their offices outside Pietermaritzburg to Durban. Winston, mission ready, was strapped to a data card and heroically flew the distance in 2:06:57. During that time, only 4% of the same 4 GB was sent over the Telkom line.
The experiment made use of the various mainstream forms of social media, such as Twitter and Facebook and quickly went viral featuring on BBC, Mashable, Engadget and Techmeme.
One of the key reasons for success, besides the fact it worked and they beat Telkom, was allowing for the public to take part in the experiment, rather than just telling a story.
Winston, you can fly my data anytime.
The Silicon Cape
Something fresh has brought together the creative and digital minds of Cape Town.
Online entrepreneur Vinny Lingham, well known for the success Yola (previously SynthaSite) teamed up with investment man Justin Stanford to launch a new platform for Capetonian’s to meet, interact, share ideas and essentially bring change to Cape Town, known as The Silicon Cape.
Here is the overview as on www.siliconcape.com
THE VISION
The Silicon Cape vision is of an ecosystem in the Western Cape of South Africa, that serves to attract and bring together local and foreign investors, the brightest technical talent, and the most promising entrepreneurs, to foster the creation and growth of world-class IP start-up companies in an environment that competes with other similar hubs around the world against the backdrop of one of the most beautiful settings and pleasant places to live, work and play on the globe.
THE CONCEPT
The concept of the Silicon Cape is not owned or controlled by any single entity. It is a living community and an organic, ever-developing concept in the hearts and minds of every participant, which endeavours to catalyse the local IP entrepreneurial community. As a community member, come and be a part of the genesis of turning the Silicon Cape into reality.
THE INITIATIVE
The initiative aims to start a conversation — to plant a seed and foster the concept of the Silicon Cape in people’s minds and on their lips around the world as the emerging Silicon Valley of Africa, and to create an environment and a perception of the area as a world-class location and destination that is not only capable of delivering but already is. This will in turn create real benefits for the Cape and it’s residents and stakeholders, and assist in attracting further foreign direct investment into South Africa.
THE EVENT
The aim by the end of the first event is to catalyse widespread conversation around the concept online and offline, build a global brand, and to establish a working group of volunteers and donors to take the vision forward and see it through to reality, garnering support from all sectors and stakeholders and ultimately establishing a foundation. The event is due to be attended and addressed by the Premier of the Western Cape, Helen Zille.
Windows 7 Commercial
A Windows 7 commercial was uploaded to the WindowsVideos channel on YouTube recently and at first watch is really quite cute.
Bringing back the ever-so-cute Kylie from Microsoft’s earlier Windows ad was a good choice, but can’t say the same for the choice of soundtrack. Kylie, who made her debut in February 2009 with a Windows Live Photo Gallery ad that was part of the “Rookies” marketing campaign, ends the ad by saying “I’m a PC, and more happy is coming.”
Social Media Revolution
Some people say that Social Media is a fad, but others argue that it is the biggest movement since the Industrial Revolution… Welcome to the Social Media Revolution.