Sarah's Faves

The h/t goes to my sister for this one. These guys are from my hometown and are super talented. Who knew cereal could be so entertaining?

I’m going to learn the Cereal Shake to impress all my friends.

I am officially hooked on ifttt. Thanks, Techcrunch.

Don’t get overwhelmed when you visit the site. It’s actually really easy. Trust me. If I can do it, you can do it.

What is ifttt? It essentially puts the internet to work for you by creating tasks that fit this simple structure: if this then that. You either create your own “recipe” or use one another user created. A recipe might be “if I post a video to YouTube then a link to the video should go to a Dropbox folder.” Yes, ifttt helps you do all this and more. Automated simplicity.

• Sign up for ifttt beta;
• Click the confirmation link sent to you via email; and
• Begin the insanity (see below).

You can use any or all of these Twitter recipes to make your social experience even better. Just connect the services listed to your account and it’s on like Donkey Kong.

1. Greet every new Twitter follower*
2. Send all of your Twitter favorites to Evernote (LOVE!)
3. Thank people who give you a #FF (followfriday) nod*
4. Tweet “Happy New Year” at midnight
5. Follow people back automatically when they follow you
6. Thank you DM to new followers*
7. Archive tweets to Google Calendar
8. Post all photos shared via Twitter to Flickr
9. Send a tweet to Pinterest
10. Receive an SMS when someone DMs you
11. Forward DMs to an email accout
12. Send links you share via Twitter to Evernote
13. Thank people for a RT*
14. Send Last.FM update automatically to Twitter
15. Send a Facebook status update to Twitter
16. Receive a phone call when someone DMs you
17. Have a DM sent to you if it’s raining (weather update)
18. Send a tweet when you favorite a YouTube video
19. Send tweets via Google Talk
20. Create Twitter list from Twitter chat participants

* — Use these at your own risk and discretion. These are not tasks I would necessarily recommend as it takes away from the more “personal” side of networking.

Did you create an awesome recipe? Post in the comments.

Have a fave you think I should feature? Email me at prsarahevans [at] gmail [dot] com.

Send a Robocall to SOPA (HR 3261) Proponents (88 Offices). That’s right, one phone call to reach 88 offices. Record your message and Reverse Robocall delivers it for you.

All you need is your phone and of course a credit or debit card.

Reverse Robocall will call your phone number and let you record your message over the phone. They recommend, as do I, that you write down or plan what you want to say.

Did you use the service? Let me know.

Have a fave you think I should feature? Email me at PRsarahevans [at] gmail [dot] com.

(h/t @mattcutts)

I hate sending snail mail, but I love getting it. Today I received my first order from @Postalpix five to seven days after placing my order. Thank you Isaac & Christy Lay for making it possible to print my square (4×4 and 5×5) photos and not have them look crappy. Seriously, you guys are onto something. I love finding ways to enjoy the photos I share in places like Instagram and other photo sharing apps that require a square format.

All I had to do was download the free iOS app, select my photos and pay through PayPal (but you can use a credit card, too).

How come the photos look so darn good?

Equipped with one of the most innovative and advanced digital printers available on the market, PostalPix can produce sharp, beautiful prints with unmatched color accuracy. New printing technology and eco-friendly methods allow PostalPix to produce long lasting, ozone and UV resistant, high quality results.

Blah…blah…blah. All I know is that the photos turned out great. Right now the service is only available for iPhones, but don’t worry Android, Blackberry and Windows Phone 7 users, your time will come.

Don’t forget to look at the aluminum prints. I’m ordering a few to create a photo collage in Baby K’s room.

The prices weren’t bad either.

Print prices:
4×6: 21¢ – 33¢ (depends on quantity)
4×4: 29¢ – 33¢ (depends on quantity)
5×7: 89¢
5×5: 89¢
8×10: $3.49
8×8: $3.49

Aluminum prices:
4×4: $7.99
5×7: $14.99
8×10: $24.99

Premium photo prints: 4×4, 5×5, & 8×8 squares (great for Instagram!); 4×6, 5×7, 8×10
Aluminum prints: 4×4, 5×7, 8×10

Find them on Twitter and Pinterest.

Have a fave you think I should feature? Email me at prsarahevans [at] gmail [dot] com.

New York is the only real city-city. Truman Capote

How about working there for the “perfect platform for self expression”? Tumblr is hiring an editor.

The average Tumblr user creates 14 original posts each month, and reblogs 3. Half of those posts are photos. The rest are split between text, links, quotes, music, and video.

As of today there are 14,970,521,865 posts.

Looks like an editor will stay pretty busy.

They even let you apply with Linkedin.

What you’ll do:

• Editorial product development: Plan and execute new blogs, segments, features, and other products in multiple media (video, audio, text) to highlight creators on Tumblr
• Community sourcing: Work with Tumblr bloggers to source information about emerging creators and content
• Content curation: Find the best, most interesting creative expression on Tumblr and present it to Tumblr readers and the world
• Analysis: Devise metrics for measuring performance of all editorial products and staff
• Develop Tumblr’s unique voice

What they’re looking for (their words):

• Demonstrated experience conceiving and implementing original products and features online in multiple media
• A proven ability to ferret out interesting stories and render them into coherent narratives on deadline
• Sufficient range of knowledge and breadth of experience to oversee authentic coverage of our many communities, from contemporary art to cooking
• Extraordinary taste across multiple creative industries coupled with an openness to a broad and democratic creative community

Tell a friend about this job.

(h/t Matthew Keys)

“We will force you to hang with celebrities, MLB stars and watch EVERY SINGLE MLB game…oh and we’ll give you housing and pay you a stipend” would be a better title for this contest. Geez. Who would want all that? Uhhh…I would and I’m pretty sure, no I’m positive, my husband would. So I thought you might be interested, too.

“If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball.” – Dodgeball

If you can write 1,000 words of really good stuff, you can enter this contest. Yep, you have to put some effort into it. The online essay is divided into two parts, each requires 500 words. A word of advice, have someone proof read your submission before you send it in. Oh, and write it in Word or another place where you can auto save in case your computer crashes. FYI: Submissions must be received by Friday, January 13, 2012 by 11:59PM ET.

You also need to share additional blog writing samples and a link to your Twitter feed (so get tweeting if you’re not already).

It’s also encouraged to tweet @MLBFanCave (and use hashtag #MLBFC) to show your spirit. If you really want this, and I mean REALLY want this, I’d consider launching an attention-getting social campaign (if you want actual ideas, you know I’m for hire).

Last, they need a current photo of you. Please don’t send this one. Or this. Make sure you send something that reflects your undying devotion to baseball.

Now, if one of you wins, I expect to hear about it (and I’ll send a list of autographs I’d like).

Enter now: http://mlbfancave.mlb.com/fancave/application.jsp
The Fan Cave on Facebook: http://mlbfancave.mlb.com/fancave/application.jsp?partnerId=ed-5524933-240846364#

Each Winner will:

• Be a passionate baseball fan
• Have strong writing skills
• Have strong verbal communication skills
• Have strong organizational skills with the ability to give attention to multiple things at the same time
• Be comfortable in front of the camera and be able to present a positive public image
• Have a fun and creative personality
• Be highly skilled on social media (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
• Pass a background check to the satisfaction of MLB

Each Winner must:

• Reside in a location provided by MLB in New York City
• Participate in all aspects of MLB Fan Cave duties, including but not limited to, watching every game played of the 2012 MLB season, taking part in media events, interviews, etc.
• Share thoughts regarding games and topics of MLB and pop culture interest via daily blogging, vlogging and through social media platforms
• Adhere to all other policies and procedures as required by MLB
• Grant all rights in all aspects of his/her participation in MLB Fan Cave to MLB for MLB’s use, worldwide, in all media.

Have a fave you think I should feature? Email prsarahevans [at] gmail [dot] com.

h/t to my friend Jennelle Schook.

***************
UPDATE:
The entry deadline for the @MLBFanCave has been extended to January 31. http://t.co/yMBvhUxL

(h/t @cardinals)

I need your help. Try as I may, I constantly run out of juice. No, not cranberry or orange…the kind that powers my digital devices. As I write this post on my iPhone it’s at 7% because the truth is my little guy is napping on me (nowhere near an outlet).

It’s to the point when I’m traveling my family just expects to not reach me on my phone until I’m in my hotel room (usually at night).

I keep chargers in key locations like the office, living room, bedroom and car and charge when possible.

I’ve purchased almost every back up battery and mobile charging accessory the Brookstone gods offer. (Problem is most of them need to be charged, too.) I own a PlugBug to cut down on the number of chargers I need and have multiple docking stations attached to my iMac.

I’m on my phone, computer and laptop A LOT.

Is there a better way to keep a charge without being tethered to a single spot or outlet? Do you have a magic fix all, advice or product that works for you?

Yours Truly,

Juiceless in Chicago

Remember when your mom or dad used to yell at you to clean your room? Well, this is me telling you to clean up online. Happy New Year!

Here are some of my favorite tips:

Links
I share a lot of links online and sometimes want to reference them for later or just keep track of everything I’ve shared. My two favorite tools for organizing links are:

1. Bit.ly and j.mp – In addition to shortening URLs, you can track number of clicks and use to check your “link archives.”
2. Trunk.ly – This platform monitors and collects the links that you find interesting across multiple platforms. For example, I have my blog RSS feed linked here in addition to Twitter, Facebook, etc… That way if I share links direct from another source I can easily go back and find them here.

Additional: If you’re on Pinterest, you can also create a board for “Favorite Links” to assist with archiving for later.

Twitter
Do you give other platforms access to your Twitter account? Do you remember them all? It might be time to clean up or manage third-party access. Here’s how to revoke access:

1. Check out your applications by visiting the Connections tab of account settings
2. Revoke access by clicking the “Revoke Access” button next to the application description. (For a complete overview on connecting your Twitter account to other platforms, read this from Twitter Support.)

Curate content more effectively:

• Set up Twitter lists to include those you never want to miss.
• Missed Twitter for a day or two? Make it easy on yourself and use a service like Cadmus. It displays the most relevant content you may have missed since your last check in.

Facebook

• Facebook requests/notifications – Next to each group/game/friend request, you can choose to delete or ignore all requests from that person if they’re a repeat offender. Block off time on your calendar to do this if you find it needs more time. In fact, a recurring calendar entry may help ensure you manage your online requests.
• Untag yourself. Invest an hour to untag yourself or delete any photos you may have forgotten about.
• To reduce email notifications of requests, friends, etc., in the “Notifications” setting (located in “Settings” under “account settings”), deselect notifications you no longer want to receive.
• Facebook friends – Use Birthday announcements as reminders to unfriend people you haven’t talked to, don’t know or no longer care to stay in touch with. If you would prefer not to “unfriend” someone, instead “hide” their posts so they no longer show up in your newsfeed.
• Part of your spring cleaning may also mean checking to make sure you have a secure online connection. Did you know on Facebook if your URL doesn’t look like this that your connection is not secure? https://facebook.com. You should consider enabling this option if you frequently use Facebook from public Internet access points found at coffee shops, airports, libraries or schools. The option will exist as part of our advanced security features, which you can find in the “Account Security” section of the Account Settings page.

Here are a few apps and platforms for organizing your Facebook experience:

1. TheFriendMail – delivers Facebook to your email and allows you to update your status, write on friends’ walls, view your news feed, like, comment and view friends’ profiles via email. (See review in TheNextWeb)
2. Friendly Plus (for tablets) – allows you to manage your Facebook account from a single screen on your tablet.
3. Access Facebook from within Gmail
4. Facebook Desktop
5. Facebook Page Central by Sysomos helps with Facebook page management and analytics for brands (paid platform)

Gmail
There’s a lot of storage in Gmail so you may not need to delete anything. I typically only delete emails with large attachments (which I save to files) and archive all messages. This has saved me more than once when I needed access someone’s email address and hadn’t corresponded with them in a while. Here are few ways to help organize your Gmail account:

• Use Priority Inbox to automatically identify and sort important email so that the most pertinent mail resides at the top of your inbox.
• Use filters to archive emails and bookmarks into folders, add labels or send incoming items directly to the trash.
• Mark emails needing follow up with “Star” function.
• Run a keyword search for items that can be deleted (think Groupon, etc.) and mass delete.
• To save space, run a Gmail search for “has:attachment” to locate attachments, then delete or save in a file.

Looking for apps or tools to organize your Gmail experience? Try:

• Find Big Mail – Having storage issues? In three steps, this app analyzes your inbox and categorizes mail by size (see review in The Next Web), providing a report of the largest emails in your inbox that can be deleted or saved to create space.
• The Email Game – this app makes cleaning out your inbox fun by a point-based system for tasks such as skipping a message, reply to a message – and you can also challenge your friends. (See review in The Next Web)
• Boomerang for Gmail – This app helps you control when you send and receive email, allowing you to time when emails go out.

Avatar and bio

• Set up a reminder alert on your calendar for the first day of spring every year. Include: update bio and avatar (as needed).
• Take a look in the mirror. Do you look like your current avatar? If not, it may be time to update that photo. Here are “5 Tips for Creating the Perfect Profile Pic.”
• Where is your online bio listed? The majority of active online users have a bio listed in more than one place and they’re typically not synced (meaning you have to manually update each one). Create a Word document with your most recent bio and save it, including the year in the document name. If you need to update your bio in multiple places you can easily copy and paste from this document.

Email notifications
Do you need to be notified every time someone follows you on Twitter? Maybe not. Clean up how your social networks notify you. You can do this one of two ways:

1. Go to the social network and update your notification settings. Chances are you haven’t updated them since you signed up.
2. Set up email filters in your email account of choice and have them delivered right to the trash.

Smartphone – Removing location tracking
Don’t want your smartphone tracking your location? You can clean it up:

• iPhone – In the Location Services setting on your iPhone (located in “Settings” in the “General” section), either turn off the global Location Services setting or turn off the individual location settings of each location-aware application on your iPhone.
• Android – In the “Location” setting in your Android (located in “Settings”), uncheck GPS satellites.
• Blackberry – In the GPS services setting on your Blackberry (located in “Options” in the “Advaced Options” section), stop or disable GPS.

Google Reader
Why recreate the wheel? Here’s a great post to prioritize and organize Google Reader: Prioritizing and Organizing Feeds in Google Reader.

[PREVIOUSLY SHARED ON PRSARAHEVANS.COM]

What social network spring cleaning advice can you share?

Yah. I’m getting this. Could be the best $29 I’ll ever spend. Thanks for the geek fest, Think Geek.

• 200 watt inverter with 2 AC plugs and USB port
• Fits into standard cup holders in your car
• Power three devices at once with this cup

Have a fave you think I should feature? Email me at prsarahevans [at] gmail [dot] com.

You probably know how to tweet an entire blog post or shorten a URL to get to a blog post, but you might not know how to make excerpts of a post tweetable. And if you do, just humor me, okay? I’m running on little sleep.

Here it is, short and sweet:

1. Use this URL (copy and paste): https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?source=webclient&text=
2. Next add in your text (keep it less than 140 characters so people have room to RT)
3. DO NOT add hashtags as it will not work (Sorry!) You can add hashtags by doing the following: “%23 instead of a # symbol”
4. Copy the URL with your text and insert it as a hyperlink next to the tweetable text. I usually add something brilliant, like: “tweet this.”

Want to try it out? Tweet this. (It’s a surprise.)

Have a fave you think I should feature? Email me at prsarahevans [at] gmail [dot] com.
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