Image via Mashable.com

Alright, so a little bit of history: June 30th was designated Social Media Day by Mashable. They wanted “a day to celebrate the changes in media that have empowered us to stay connected to information in real time, the tools that have enabled us to communicate from miles apart, and the platforms that have given a voice to the voiceless”.

Over 600 meetups were organized across the world, and here in Phoenix the folks that put together Social Media AZ, and Social Media Club Phoenix came together to organize this event. They even set up Skype to connect with a Tucson group also celebrating Social Media Day in AZ.

At the event there was a band, Bears of Manitou, lots of prizes like Mill Ave bucks, Go Daddy gift cards, and even prizes donated by Smashburger. Attendees were encouraged to share their social media stories and experiences, in essence an in-person tweet about how social media has helped you in your everyday lives (both personal and professional). We listened to social media users who had met their boyfriends through social media, received jobs, won prizes like an $1100 computer (via @WesleyTech), became more involved in their community because of social media (via @JackAlert), and one story about how social media has been used to recruit employees through the use of sites like LinkedIn and Twitter.

Another example? Our very own Abby Gilmore was introduced to us through social media. She first started following Elise (@RedlinCook) on Twitter, showed up at a local #Buzzcation event after hearing about it on Twitter, won a $1,000 scholarship in our SEO Poem contest promoted on Facebook and Twitter, became a Vertical Measures Intern after seeing it promoted on YouTube, and now is a permanent staffer.

As you can see there are many amazing stories that all involve social media, bringing online users together into one HUGE community.

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Open source, the practice in production and development that promotes access to an end product’s source materials like their source code (per Wikipedia), has been a trending theme in social media. There are many that dislike open source and others who praise this movement. The OSI, or the Open Source Initiative, looks to educate and advocate the benefits of open source because "open source [offers] better quality, higher reliability, more flexibility, lower cost, and an end to predatory vendor lock-in". 

• Customize your URL, that’s kind of a given but surprisingly many need to be reminded.
• Add links to your profile under "websites" section. You have up to 3 available, so make sure to add some anchor text that is appropriate. Recently LinkedIn added rel="nofollow" to these links, but general anchor text like "my blog" seem to be dofollow….for the moment.
• Add substance to your profile by filling it out!
• Actually USE your LinkedIn profile: Ask questions, answer questions, get recommendations, post your resume, utilize LinkedIn groups, and participate throughout the community. This will not only help build your credibility and authority, but also give you the opportunity to build connections.
• Add your companies profile to LinkedIn: Mashable’s "How-To: Build Your Company’s Profile on LinkedIn" is a great resource if you haven’t added your companies info to LinkedIn yet.

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Due out in late 2010, Google’s new operating system Chrome OS is already drawing some rants, raves, and criticism. Ben Parr over at Mashable has been writing lately about Chrome OS and what he has dubbed "The Google Revenue Equation". His theory is that Google is constantly looking to improve the web because their revenue is dependent upon its success: Revenue = Amount of Time on the Web. Totally makes sense right? And with Chrome OS Google is looking to get users online faster and with ease. 

• Chrome OS completely focuses on the most important part of your computer: your web browser. Its interface is 100% web.
• Chrome OS eliminates time sucks: desktop. Even the fastest computer takes 45 seconds to load up!
• Nothing is stored on your computer. Chrome OS is literally 100% web based.
• Chrome OS will be free!
• Chrome OS will be open source.
• Chrome OS is not Android.
• There are no desktop applications, Literally everything is web based.
• Everything that comes in Chrome now will be available in Chrome OS.
• When you don’t have a live Internet connection: you can’t store or access data.
• Chrome OS, for now, will be on specific netbook like devices. No hybrids available that are compatible with your existing Windows OS or Mac OS. 

What are your thoughts about Google’s Chrome OS? Would you use it?

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