shawn farner|*feeding* the social web obsession

I suppose we’ll find out in due time.  It allows you to send money back and forth without fees tacked on.  Pretty sweet.

If you sign up before May 15, they’ll add $25 to your account for free.  You are free to then transfer that money to your bank account or request a check.  If you’ve ever wanted to make $25 in two minutes, this is your chance.  Sign up using the link below.

So, I’m thinking tonight I’ll be pulling an all-nighter.

I want to get a quick update in here before I start researching and writing my first blog post for WebPageFX.  I got an email from the big cheese there asking me to write about a specific topic (social networking for traditional businesses), so there’s a sneak peek at what to look forward to.  It’ll actually be nice to get that written and posted since it’ll get me on payroll for the week.  Keep an eye out for that post to be published sometime tomorrow.

Now, to answer the question you’ve probably had since you started reading this post - why will this weekend own my soul?  I’m booked SOLID.  I have to write a paper for African American literature.  Unfortunately, my weekend is also jammed full of Alpha Phi Omega activities (a fundraising project, walkout, Relay for Life and the initiation of our pledges).  Next week I’ll get a bit of a breather (four days) until I have another final.  Not sure how my schedule worked out that way, it just did.

I hit the $10 mark on CashCrate for the month, which is sweet.  Next month I’ll get a check for whatever amount I end up making by April 30.  Right now it’s at $10.25.  Pretty cool for not really doing much.

I’m still trying to figure out what to do with a lot of the web property I’ve staked my claim to.  I suppose this summer I’ll have more time to figure that out, but I really feel like I’m neglecting a lot of sites I was really excited about when I first launched them.  I’m thinking I might just do complete relaunches and keep myself on a schedule to juggle them all - maybe two or three posts a week for each.  We’ll see.

Okay, I should get started on paid work! :-P  Until next time, keep your tech glasses on.

Last week of classes!  Well, for most of us.  I’ll be hanging out at IUP until May 30 to take a LBST class about Iraq.  So in the “summer vacation” sense, I don’t have much of a reason to be excited yet.  I am, though, and I’ll tell you why:

I landed an internship!

It’s with a web design company in the Harrisburg area (Carlisle, to be more specific).  Basically, my job is this; blog about web design, internet marketing and social media.  Yes, I already do that, and that’s all the more reason to be excited.  To me, it isn’t even a job!  It’s a hobby I’ll be getting paid for.  So, here are two links to check me out on pretty soon:

WebpageFX
Keystroke Marketing

I have some conferences I’d like to attend over the summer, mainly Internet Week New York, Web Content 2008 and the New Media Expo.  I might try to drop a subtle hint to my new internship employers (pssst.. you should send me to those!).  The dates for those are June 3-10, June 17-18 and August 14-16, respectively.  If you’d like to keep tabs on me trip-wise, DOPPLR is the place to do it.

And please, please, join and follow me on Twitter.  And friendfeed.

Til next time…

I feel like the majority of the world’s citizens care WAY too much about what other people think.  Worse yet, most of these people act like the most confident people in the world; that is, until things get a little rocky.  These are the people who go immediately on the defensive and attack, attack, attack.  To me, that is a sign of weakness.

Whatever happened to taking a joke?  If it’s at your expense, so what?  Laugh it off, or joke back, playfully.  Who cares if there are a ton of people around?  Make a fool of yourself.  Why anyone would want to go a day being anything but themselves totally eludes me.  Those worth knowing will accept you for who you are, and those who write you off don’t deserve a second of your time.

Surround yourself with like-minded people; people who know what it means to “chill out”.  If you can joke back and forth and still be friends at the end of the day, you’ve found the right type of person.  If you joke with someone and they retaliate with a remark that’s meant to cut you down or embarrass you, you and that person are not on the same page.  Chalk it up to a lack of confidence and move on.

As most of you know, I’m involved in a service fraternity on campus called Alpha Phi Omega.  This organization has been on the IUP campus for decades, and while its members have stayed current with technology, the fraternity itself could use a push.  Therefore, I have taken it upon myself to “Web 2.0-ify” Alpha Phi Omega, not only to benefit and grow the cause, but also as a case study for others to apply to their own clubs and organizations.

A transformation like this will probably not be easy to pull off.  There are already systems in place to take care of certain processes, and people are sometimes not open and accepting to change.  Here are a few examples of the way certain things are done currently:

• Meeting minutes are sent out via email
• Events (service, social, fundraising) are signed up for on paper
• Contact lists are either sent out via email or are distributed on paper
• A phone tree is currently in place to spread important information

There are a few other examples I could add, but the basic point is this: there are systems in place now that get the job done, but incorporating Web 2.0 would do those same jobs much better and much faster.

One area Alpha Phi Omega lacks in is web presence.  The fraternity’s territory online is staked out in the form of a Facebook group.  I’ve spent the last month and a half or so exploring the ways this could be improved upon.  One obvious solution is a web site, which I have in fact been working on and hope to complete in the very near future.  I’ve built the site using Wordpress, mainly due to its ease of use and adaptability.  In the future, I envision minutes not being sent by email, but instead being added as a post.  This would solve the issue of lost emails and would also unclutter many inboxes.

As far as signing up for events, I’m certain there is a web app that could make this a breeze.  It would be easy to simply create a Facebook event for say, a service project, but we then run into the issue of certain people not having a Facebook account.  I would also like to get those who sign up to go immediately on a printable list, making things much easier for whoever is in charge of the event.  If you know of such an app, fill me in!

Google Docs and its “publish and share” feature solves my issue with the contact list.  An excel spreadsheet can be added to Docs very easily and a shared URL can be distributed to fraternity members.  This link could also be included on the APO web site.  Not only would this provide a contact list that will never be lost, it is also incredibly easy to edit on the fly, ensuring members have access to the latest contact information.

As for the phone tree, I feel that somewhere, Web 2.0 provides a much better way to spread a message quickly.  I’ve been contemplating whether or not to introduce Twitter as a possible solution, though I have a gut feeling people would not like the hassle of signing up for an account and activating their phones to receive texts.  I would also be higher on Twitter if they supported AIM, but they currently do not.  Does anyone else know of a web app that allows you to add users to a list and simultaneously send them all a text message?

That’s all for now.  I will continue APO 2.0 every few days, highlighting the latest way I’m trying to bring Alpha Phi Omega up to date on newer web technologies.  If you have anything you’d like to add, feel free to shoot me an email (shawnfarner[at]gmail[dot]com), hit me up on Twitter (@shawnfarner) or simply leave a comment.

I came across a pretty good post on HackCollege addressing Twitter as a communications tool for student leaders.  I’ve actually been contemplating Twitter as something that could possibly be of use for an organization I’m in, so finding that post couldn’t have come at a better time.

Kelly Sutton (the author) sees Twitter being used like this:

Okay, but let’s say you put this in the hands of the tech-headed student body leader. With the proper promotion and hopefully some word-of-mouth spread, you can get your campus instantly connected. Twitter allows updates to be sent out via SMS and IM, 2 of the easiest ways to get in touch with just about any student. With enough students signed up, any information could be spread around campus in a few seconds.

I feel this could also apply on a much smaller scale, say, to a student run organization.  In the case of the one I’m in, Alpha Phi Omega (a service fraternity), Twitter could effectively replace email and the telephone as a means to make sure everyone gets an important message; a meeting has been canceled, a service project postponed or some other dire message that needs to be relayed quickly.  As the above quote states, tweets (updates) can be received via the Twitter web site, a separate Twitter client, IM or via a text message.  A Twitter feed can also be embedded into Facebook profiles and the organization’s web site.

I’m thinking about the possibility of a trial run, just to see if it would be worth the trouble.  It seems a little too late to fully incorporate such a system for this year, since there is only three or four weeks of class remaining in the semester.  I really feel as though it would get the word out much faster when needed, and it would help keep everyone more sane.

Would you consider doing this for your organization?

Hmm… not quite what I had in mind.  Summer is fast approaching, though, so I think it’s probably a good idea that I get things figured out as soon as possible.

I’ve already decided I’ll be hanging out here in Indiana a bit longer than I should; May 12-May 30, so I can take some LBST class about Iraq.  At the least, it’ll make my Fall semester much easier.  After that, though, things start to become foggy.  I’d like to go on at least one trip this summer, that is for sure.  At the same time, I need the money to fund such a trip.

Enter job!  One of the perks of this blog is that people can find me pretty easily.  One of my former employers (one of the sweetest jobs I’ve ever had) came across my site and asked me if I’d be interested in doing more work.  Fo ’sho.  Well, maybe.  If I can’t get placed in an easy job that pays better this summer, I’ll take it.  I should be okay on that front.  I only plan on working from June 1 til August 1, though, so whoever hires me needs to respect my authoritah.

What about my spare time?  Well, I’ve recently applied to intern for a small NYC start-up that has launched a service similar to Last.FM.  So we’ll see where that goes.  I also plan to (re)start a little project of my own.  Last semester I created Be of Service, which was going to be a blog about community service.  I’ve since decided to relaunch the site with a different focus - to organize service projects in the Harrisburg area and get interest volunteers in the area to help out.  I’ve submitted the idea to ideablob to see if it catches on, but who knows ;).  Vote for me if you want.

I’m leaving the month of August (until the 21st or 22nd, when I’ll be forced to return to IUP) for relaxing and vacationing.  If anyone has any suggestions, I’m open to them!  I’m now going to return to apartment cleaning and Last.FM-listening.  Have a great night.

First off, I would just like to make my plea to anyone on campus at IUP.  Ron Paul is speaking in Eberly tomorrow at 2:00PM, and as much as I’d like to skip class and go, I can’t.  If anyone at all could attend and maybe take some video/pictures, that would be incredble.  It honestly breaks my heart that I’m going to miss it, but there isn’t much I can do.

Secondly, I’m going to quote possibly one of the stupidest things I’ve ever heard in my whole life.  I’m currently taking a class called African American Literature, and a lot of the class has to do with breaking down stereotypes.  In class today, we’re talking about a Jamaican store owner who shot a black man because he thought he was being robbed.  There is some really good (the key word being some) really good discussion and debate about the circumstances.  However, someone thought it would be a cool idea to roll out with this:

“Since when do Jamaicans freak out about anything?”

Any laughter that followed was not at the joke, but how much of a douchebag the guy was for even saying it.  For just a few minutes, my faith in humanity was restored.  If the fall of the giant-tool-who-tries-way-too-hard happens in my lifetime, I could die a happy man.

I wish more than anything that Twitter would work with AIM.  I really think that is what is holding it back from reaching a wider audience.  About 98% of the people I know don’t use GTalk, Jabber or anything of the sort.  They use AIM because that is what all their friends are using.  I know for sure I could definitely convince more people to join Twitter if they knew they could receive updates via AIM, but until that day comes, Twitter will probably just stay in the “geek” kingdom.

News flash: I’m either looking for a job/internship in the Harrisburg or Pittsburgh area for this coming summer.  I’ll probably Tweet this out in a little bit, but if you miss it for some reason and happen to see it here, get in touch with me.

Just kidding.