Image via Wikipedia

Both Houses of Congress are looking at legislation aimed at curtailing online piracy… copyright violations.  This movement is largely backed by the photography community and the music and movie industries… as well as many professional sports leagues.

But all isn’t well.  The current legislation is VERY poorly written.  In fact, they are written so loosely as to allow the government to shut down a website because of a comment.  Not after any sort of warning… but instead of a warning.  A website owner’s income could be cut off without warning or proof, and then he would have to engage in a protracted legal battle to regain access to their own website.  And it wouldn’t have to be from content generated by the owner of the site.

But, I think that the largest part of the problem is that property (a website/domain) could be seized without due process.  Possibly even at the behest of a competitor… since a violation could be recorded because of something placed on the site by a commentor.

The goal is appropriate.  The method of trying to achieve the goal is SERIOUSLY flawed.  Call your Congressmen and Senators.

***UPDATE*** After writing and scheduling the post, but before publication, Congress dropped the legislation from consideration… for now.  Of course, that doesn’t mean that they won’t pick it up again when they think nobody is paying attention.  “We’ve got to pass the bill to find out what’s in it.”  Nancy Pelosi, referring to ObamaCare…

Related articles

• On SOPA and PIPA (leiterreports.typepad.com)
• What are SOPA and PIPA? (programmingpalace.wordpress.com)
• Rand Paul Vows To Block Internet Censorship Bills (mountainrepublic.net)
• Sopa & Pipa (eclecticedibles.wordpress.com)
• How SOPA and PIPA would Censor the Internet (connectwithyourteens.net)
• Stop SOPA and PIPA (kelleyeskridge.com)
• Sign the petition to Stop SOPA & PIPA (radiopd.wordpress.com)
• A day against SOPA/PIPA (lifemash.wordpress.com)
• BlackoutSOPA.org – Change your profile picture to protest SOPA! (darioalvarez.net)
• Stop the Internet Blacklist Legislation – Stop #SOPA #PIPA (adafruit.com)

Image via Wikipedia

It was a LOT of fun.  As a first time organizer for this type of event, I had a few concerns.  My biggest one was that the attendees wouldn’t feel comfortable asking questions… which was not a problem.  Their questions allowed us to better tweak the information to their needs.

So, here are some random notes from Monday’s Lunch & Learn…

GoDaddy is great for hosting domain names.  Several of us are using them for that purpose… but for hosting actual websites, they aren’t so great.  A couple of the hosting companies that were mentioned were HostMonster (affiliate link), BlueHost (affiliate link), and GreenGeeks.  One of the advantages of these host (as well as many other… there are a LOT of hosting companies) is that they offer “one-click script installations”.  Through services like Simple Scripts, you can install WordPress VERY easily, without having to understand things like FTP and creating databases.

Blogging does NOT have to be time consuming.  Randy mentioned shooting short videos or pictures at local venues (parks, restaurants, city hall, etc) and posting those right from your phone.  I mentioned video blogging… if you can knock it out in one take, you can post a 3 minute video (try to keep videos short) in 5 minutes.  However, when you launch, you really need to have 10-12 good posts on the site.  After that, it does NOT need to be updated every day.  Updating a few times a week should be enough.  I would say that you should update as many times as you can while keeping your post quality high.

Image via CrunchBase

Use Landing Pages.  These are pages that are designed for readers from a particular ad or search to land on.  Give them what they want… don’t make them search around your site to find it.  People won’t search, they will hit the back button.

Have a CLEAR ‘Call to Action’.  What is the purpose of the site/post/ad?  Have you told the reader EXACTLY what you want?  Do you want them to sign up for the email list?  Do you want them to call you?  Do you want them to honk at Green Ford trucks?  Tell them exactly what you want, and make it as easy as possible for them to do it.

If you can’t measure it, it isn’t happening.  You have to know what posts are working to bring in traffic, what posts are working to convert traffic to leads, what ads or outposts bring in traffic, which search terms are most effective and who is looking at your blog.  There are several ways to accomplish this, including Google Analytics and Clicky.  Google Analytics is free and VERY powerful.  I use Clicky (which also has a free level) because I like the interface more.  The more advanced version of Clicky (affiliate link) allows real time tracking of traffic.

Search yourself.  And aim at the right target.  There are two points here.. the first one is that you need to pick a target and then seek to dominate it in the search engines.  And in order to really do that, you need to see the Google RAW search data.  You can search through Goosh.org and see the basic search… not the one that is influenced by your habits.  Secondly, you need to pick a target that you CAN dominate.  Face it, you aren’t going to be able to dominate “Atlanta Real Estate”… but you might be able to control the search for “Midtown Atlanta Lofts” (and no, I don’t know anyone offhand at the brokerages on that search).

Once you get WordPress, there are a few plugins you HAVE to have.  WordPress Editorial Calendar, Back WP up, All-in-one SEO and ShareThis are on the list.  There are several more, but these are a great start.

Image via Wikipedia

WordPress (self-hosted) might be the best option, but it isn’t the only option.  Posterous, Active Rain (not really an affiliate link, but I will get points if you sign up through here…) and WordPress.com are all valid choices.

• Posterous is really cool.  You can email almost anything there and it will be a blog post.  Videos, pictures, text, pdfs.. whatever.  And it will push it out the Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, FaceBook and other places.  It is very easy and quite powerful.
• Active Rain has a great community.  Just reading blogs there is better than a lot of CE classes.  There are some sharp folks there, and between the knowledge and connections (both local and national) that you can make, it is well worth the time.  It is also a great option to dip a toe into blogging.  The basic platform is VERY powerful for SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and the posts will do quite well if they are public-facing.
• WordPress.com is good because it is a valid way to learn how to wander around in the admin panel and learn the rest of the back-end functions of WordPress.  It is very similar to the self-hosted version of WordPress.

There was a LOT more.  It is hard to believe that we were only there for 90 minutes.

And you can learn all of this and a LOT more at rebarcampAtlanta2011.  It is coming up on October 28th, 2011 at the Mansour Center in Marietta, GA.  Tickets are only $10 until September 30th, and just $17.50 after that ($25 for registration the day of the event).  If you are a real estate professional, it’s the best $10 you can spend… and even at $25, it is a bargain.

Related articles

• Site traffic: Posterous vs. WordPress.com (halfblog.net)
• GoDaddy coupon: 31% off any order (9to5toys.com)

And that is fine…

But it leaves me thinking something…  That since Google+ is the shiny new object in the room… the new kid that all the girls think is “mysterious”… is it getting a pass? 

Or, am I just the stodgy old dude that doesn’t like change?

Frankly, I think I do like change, but I also don’t dive on every new toy.  And I like FaceBook.  I never warmed up to Twitter.  FourSquare took me a little while, and it isn’t on the top of my mind.  There are probably 20 social networking options that I have discarded in the last few years because they didn’t thrill me.  In fact, Google Wave and Google Buzz would be two of the platforms I dropped well before they went away.

And don’t think for a minute that I think Google+ is going to go the way of Buzz and Wave.  Google+ is too good for that.

But, personally I don’t think it is the coolest thing ever…  I think we have a case of Social Media Bias.  Right now, Google+ is made up of early adopters.  And early adopters, in general, are people that like the shiny new objects.  And because early adopter love the new stuff, Google+ is in a Honeymoon phase…  it is getting the love and it doesn’t have to prove itself.

The question is this…  What do YOU think?  Is Google+ all that and a bag of chips, or does it need to bake a little longer?  Is it easier to work with that FaceBook, or is it that the users are those that are generally quickest to adapt?

Image via exceptnothing.com

Related articles

• Google+ : How long will the Craze Last? (aisjournal.com)
• Facebook, Twitter: Doing better than before Google+ (go.theregister.com)
• Brett Greene: Google Plus Fuss Proves They Finally Got Social Networking Right (huffingtonpost.com)
• Google+ One Month Later: What’s Next? (suburbanmen.com)
• Nym Wars: Google+’s real name policy explained using the Joker and Buzz Lightyear (venturebeat.com)
• Regarding Google Plus: A Plea For Patience (By Everyone) (vocecommunications.com)
• Wayback Wednesday… Social Media Breakfast (lanebailey.com)
• Facebook Copies Google+ Sharing, And It Doesn’t Matter (hubspot.com)
• Google Plus Benefits (buzzoodle.com)
• Google+ – Should SMEs embrace or discard it? (questprblog.com)
• Brands Still Not Welcome on Google+ (forbes.com)
• The Google+ Conundrum (customerthink.com)
• Is Google+ All That You Thought It Would Be (wassupblog.com)
• Facebook+: Social Networking Giant Adds Google+ Features (wired.com)
• Public Google+ Posts: the Latest Improvement to Google Social Search (carocomarketing.com)
• Google+ : more a guy’s platform? (comuq.wordpress.com)
• Are you thinking the unthinkable? Unthink – the New Social Network [Mike Turner] (ecademy.com)

Among the requirements I have for a to do list are:

• Repeating Tasks… I write on 4 blogs and maintain a couple of dynamic websites that always need fresh content.  So, I need to remember where I need to write posts each day.  My repeating tasks include:
  • Same day each month (gathering statistics in my local MLS)
  • Same day each week (weekly posts like my 53 Cool Concept series each Sunday)
  • Every X number of days (for places I post every four or eight days, etc)
• Ability to tag or note which tasks are for which purpose
• Prioritization (so I don’t get caught up in stuff that doesn’t matter… missing things that are more important)

Ability to sync between my mobile device and other devices (laptop, cloud, etc.)

That seems pretty simple…

Image via Wikipedia

Fifth up is Taskos.

Repeating Tasks

This is the one that kicks out most of the To Do Lists for me.  There are several options, which may make this a great opportunity for some folks, but I felt a little limited.

• Daily – You can set tasks to repeat daily, or every x number of days.  Not every Tuesday or any other variant.
• Weekly – Tasks can be set to repeat on a weekly basis, as well.  So, if you have a task that needs to be done every Tuesday, this is the option you would use.  You can set it to repeat on multiple selected days without entering each of them separately.  That puts this above many other task apps.
  

  Image via CrunchBase

• Monthly – The next option would be a monthly task.  This can be set a specific day (November 20th for example) but not on a trigger (like the 3rd Saturday of the month).

Categorization

Tasks can be applied to specific categories.  This helps to keep things organized.

Prioritization

We HAVE to be able to focus on the things that are most important.  Checkmark has three priority levels: low, medium and high.  One thing I would note here, though.  You CAN change the order that tasks appear on the list, however, the changes aren’t controlled enough.  For example, I keep several tasks without due dates.  With my tasks organized by date, they appear first, even though they are not a priority for me.

One thing that Taskos does is to sync well with Google Calendar.  I personally find a lot of limits in Google Calendar (not the calendar as much as the accompanying tasks).  If Google Calendar and Google Tasks could do exactly as I wanted, this would be a viable app for me to handle Task Management.

Related articles

• To Do Lists… GOALS ToDo Free… (lanebailey.info)
• To Do Lists… Checkmark (lanebailey.info)
• What To Do… (lanebailey.info)
• Getting Things Done… (lanebailey.info)
• One of My FAVORITE WordPress Plug-ins… WP Editorial Calendar (lanebailey.info)
• The Six Best Apps for Getting Stuff Done [Appbattle] (gizmodo.com)
• Producteev Organizes and Syncs To-Do Tasks With Google Calendar [Personal Organization] (lifehacker.com)
• Top Android To Do List Apps (brighthub.com)
• Upcoming Changes to Google Tasks (searchenginejournal.com)

Among the requirements I have for a to do list are:

• Repeating Tasks… I write on 4 blogs and maintain a couple of dynamic websites that always need fresh content.  So, I need to remember where I need to write posts each day.  My repeating tasks include:
  • Same day each month (gathering statistics in my local MLS)
  • Same day each week (weekly posts like my 53 Cool Concept series each Sunday)
  • Every X number of days (for places I post every four or eight days, etc)
• Ability to tag or note which tasks are for which purpose
• Prioritization (so I don’t get caught up in stuff that doesn’t matter… missing things that are more important)

Ability to sync between my mobile device and other devices (laptop, cloud, etc.)

That seems pretty simple…

Fourth up is Todo of Me.

Repeating Tasks

Image via Wikipedia

This is the one that kicks out most of the To Do Lists for me.  There are several options, which may make this a great opportunity for some folks, but I felt a little limited.

• Daily – You can set tasks to repeat daily… just daily.  Not every Tuesday or any other variant.
• Weekly – Tasks can be set to repeat on a weekly basis, as well.  So, if you have a task that needs to be done every Tuesday, this is the option you would use.  You can’t set it to repeat on multiple selected days without entering each of them separately.
• Monthly – The next option would be a monthly task.  This can be set a specific day (November 20th for example) but not on a trigger (like the 3rd Saturday of the month).

Partial Completion

Tasks can be made partially complete.  This is great if you have multi-part tasks.  They can be unstarted, in-progress or complete.

Prioritization

We HAVE to be able to focus on the things that are most important.  Checkmark has four priority levels: low, medium, high and emergency (I named them that… they have different color stars in the app).

This app is pretty bare bones.  It might serve for some, but my calendar/task needs are well beyond this app.  There is a paid/Pro version, and I have not reviewed that version.

Related articles

• To Do Lists… GOALS ToDo Free… (lanebailey.info)
• To Do Lists… Checkmark (lanebailey.info)
• What To Do… (lanebailey.info)
• Getting Things Done… (lanebailey.info)
• One of My FAVORITE WordPress Plug-ins… WP Editorial Calendar (lanebailey.info)
• The Six Best Apps for Getting Stuff Done [Appbattle] (gizmodo.com)
• Producteev Organizes and Syncs To-Do Tasks With Google Calendar [Personal Organization] (lifehacker.com)
• Top Android To Do List Apps (brighthub.com)
• Upcoming Changes to Google Tasks (searchenginejournal.com)

I was at a real estate conference last week, and one of the things the presenter said REALLY struck a chord with me.

Ten years ago, WE used to tell our clients which houses we were going to look at that day.  Now, THEY come in and tell us which houses we are going to see.

Obviously, this is a giant change in the way real estate agents do business.  Since my entry into the real estate business, it has always been the way I’ve done business.

In the “Old School” world of real estate, agents were the gatekeepers.  We controlled the access to the information.  We had the listing information, and it wasn’t available to the public.  Some agents still wish that the old order ruled the day.

Technology has turned the tables… and it is for the better.  Buyers have never had as many choices, nor as much access to information.  That is something to be applauded.

Feel free to tell me which houses interest YOU…  I’ll be happy to make suggestions, but they are just that, suggestions.

Related articles

• Disruption… Tables Turned (lanebailey.com)

Remember from the intro post, these are the primary requirements I have for a To Do app for my phone/computer/the cloud…

Among the requirements I have for a to do list are:

• Repeating Tasks… I write on 4 blogs and maintain a couple of dynamic websites that always need fresh content.  So, I need to remember where I need to write posts each day.  My repeating tasks include:
  • Same day each month (gathering statistics in my local MLS)
  • Same day each week (weekly posts like my 53 Cool Concept series each Sunday)
  • Every X number of days (for places I post every four or eight days, etc)
• Ability to tag or note which tasks are for which purpose
• Prioritization (so I don’t get caught up in stuff that doesn’t matter… missing things that are more important)

Ability to sync between my mobile device and other devices (laptop, cloud, etc.)

That seems pretty simple…

Second up is Astrid Tasks.

Repeating Tasks

This is the one that kicks out most of the To Do Lists for me.  There are several options, which may make this a great opportunity for some folks, but I felt a little limited.

• 

  Image via Wikipedia

  Daily – You can set tasks to repeat daily, as well as set them to repeat after a certain number of days… (every third day or 19th day, whatever).  There are some other options… they are under the “Weekly” tag.

• Weekly – Tasks can be set to repeat on a weekly basis, as well.  So, if you have a task that needs to be done every Tuesday, or one that needs to be dome every three weeks, this is the option you would use.  There is also the capability to set a task to be done on selected days of the week.
• Monthly – The next option would be a monthly task.  This can be set a specific day (November 20th for example) but not on a trigger (like the 3rd Saturday of the month).
• Yearly – This option allows longer range tasks (like birthdays) to be set up.  It can even be set up to remind about the task after a period of years.  To do this, it has to be set up to repeat in 12 months… or 24 months… or whatever.
• Hourly – This is a cool little addition.  I don’t have a need for it, but it does have the ability to set up a task to be repeated after a certain number of hours (like medicine that needs to be taken every 8 or 12 hours, for example).

Tags

Tags can be created to help search out tasks that need to be done or that have been completed.  There is also a place to enter notes about the task that can help get it done.  I don’t know if those notes are searchable.

Prioritization

We HAVE to be able to focus on the things that are most important.  Checkmark has four priority levels: low, medium, high and emergency (I named them that… they go from ! to !!!!).

Astrid CAN be set up to sync with a Google Calendar, and I would bet that with the Add-ons there are a lot more options.  One of the Add-ons that IS really interesting is Locale.  With this, the list will be location aware, so it will be able to give you reminders that are tied to a location (buy milk when it knows you are at the grocery store).  The drawback is that it will take time to set up the location, and tags would have to be regimented and applied.

The weakness I have with Google Calendar sync revolves around repeating tasks.  The tasks aren’t currently fully synchronized.

This is an interesting option, and holds some promise.  The monthly tasks not being available for the 1st Saturday (or whatever) is very limiting for me.

Related articles

• To Do Lists… Checkmark (lanebailey.info)
• What To Do… (lanebailey.info)
• Getting Things Done… (lanebailey.info)

Remember from the intro post, these are the primary requirements I have for a To Do app for my phone/computer/the cloud…

Among the requirements I have for a to do list are:

• Repeating Tasks… I write on 4 blogs and maintain a couple of dynamic websites that always need fresh content.  So, I need to remember where I need to write posts each day.  My repeating tasks include:
  • Same day each month (gathering statistics in my local MLS)
  • Same day each week (weekly posts like my 53 Cool Concept series each Sunday)
  • Every X number of days (for places I post every four or eight days, etc)
• Ability to tag or note which tasks are for which purpose
• Prioritization (so I don’t get caught up in stuff that doesn’t matter… missing things that are more important)

Ability to sync between my mobile device and other devices (laptop, cloud, etc.)

That seems pretty simple…

First up is Checkmark ToDo List by GreenBeanSoft.

Repeating Tasks

This is the one that kicks out most of the To Do Lists for me.  There are several options, which may make this a great opportunity for some folks, but I felt a little limited.

• Daily – You can set tasks to repeat daily, as well as set them to repeat after a certain number of days… (every third day or 19th day, whatever).  There are some other options… they are under the “Weekly” tag.
• Weekly – Tasks can be set to repeat on a weekly basis, as well.  So, if you have a task that needs to be done every Tuesday, or one that needs to be dome every three weeks, this is the option you would use.  There is also the capability to set a task to be done on selected days of the week.
• Monthly – The next option would be a monthly task.  This can be set a specific day (November 20th for example) or a trigger (like the 3rd Saturday of the month).
• Yearly – This option allows longer range tasks (like birthdays) to be set up.  It can even be set up to remind about the task after a period of years.

Tags

Categories and Notes are the two options.  Different lists can also be set up.  This is a little more limiting that tags… but it isn’t terrible.  The Notes are going to primarily be notes about how to do the task (assignments, links, other info).  The Categories will likely be the way tasks are sorted.

Prioritization

We HAVE to be able to focus on the things that are most important.  Checkmark has four priority levels: none, low, medium and high.

There are a lot of other options available… ranging from Google Calendar sync to Lists that can be created.  Categories can be created, and the items can be sorted by due date, priority and title. Items can be backed up (and restored), as well as imported and exported.  There is also email sharing.   Let’s not forget there is a 3×3 widget that can be deployed on Android phones.  The checklists are VERY flexible, and can be used as anything from a vacation checklist of items that need to be taken care of, to a grocery list.  In effect, it is a nested to do list.

The weakness I have with Google Calendar sync revolves around repeating tasks.  The tasks aren’t currently fully synchronized.

This is an interesting option, and holds some promise.

Related articles

• What To Do… (lanebailey.info)
• Getting Things Done… (lanebailey.info)

I am a huge believer in To Do lists.  I have a lot of tasks, and building out lists is one of the best ways to make sure everything gets done on time.

The direction I have been moving in, especially since getting my Android phone, is moving those lists to my phone.  I have been looking at numerous apps to handle my calendaring and to do list duties.

Among the requirements I have for a to do list are:

• Repeating Tasks… I write on 4 blogs and maintain a couple of dynamic websites that always need fresh content.  So, I need to remember where I need to write posts each day.  My repeating tasks include:
  • Same day each month (gathering statistics in my local MLS)
  • Same day each week (weekly posts like my 53 Cool Concept series each Sunday)
  • Every X number of days (for places I post every four or eight days, etc)
• Ability to tag or note which tasks are for which purpose
• Prioritization (so I don’t get caught up in stuff that doesn’t matter… missing things that are more important)
• Ability to sync between my mobile device and other devices (laptop, cloud, etc.)

The tough one is repeating tasks… so far, the only thing I have found that really rocks repeating tasks is Microsoft Outlook.  And there isn’t a real good way to incorporate it with an Android phone.

Over the next few weeks I am going to test and review as many ToDo List applications as I can find.  I’ll be looking at them through the prism above… how they fit my needs.  I will try to update this post with the links to each of those reviews… but feel free to subscribe to get the posts as fast as I write them.

And don’t be shy about suggestions… I find most of my apps through AppBrain, but also try to keep an eye on the Android Marketplace and even Google searches.

Related articles

• Task List Guru Is Complete Desktop To-Do List Software (addictivetips.com)
• Top 20 Best Android Apps You Need To Get (That Aren’t Games) (makeuseof.com)
• Making It All Work – Getting Control: Organizing (thesimpledollar.com)
• Taskos Is a Voice-Powered Mobile To-Do List for Android [Downloads] (lifehacker.com)
• GTD Blog (eyesofcalvin.wordpress.com)

Last year everyone was talking about the Google Wave… it was the hottest ‘beta’ invite around.  There were hundreds of blog posts from all sorts of tech luminaries about the Google Wave and how it was going to revolutionize communications… rich media, text, video, audio, websites… all together.

About two and a half months ago, Google announced that the Wave was going to die… probably after the end of 2010.

I wrangled a Wave invite last year.  It was cool… but not cool enough to actually use.  And I guess that was why nobody bothered to really use it.  It didn’t revolutionize email communications.  It didn’t make a wave… in fact, it was barely a ripple.

But here is the big question…

When we look back at this a couple years from now, will we see the Google Wave as a trans-formative communications revolution?

I don’t know that we will… or won’t.  But I think it is just as possible that Google’s Wave will be an idea ahead of its time as it is to be just a bad idea.

Take a look back…

Related articles

• Google Wave: Failure Can Be Great (lostremote.com)
• Wave good-by to Google Wave (inquisitr.com)
• Google Wave to Rise Again on Its Own (mashable.com)
• Google Wave: why we didn’t use it (arstechnica.com)
• Death of Google Wave Clarified [Google] (gizmodo.com)
• Users Still Able to Catch the Google Wave until 2011 (searchenginejournal.com)

Normally, I keep my Flashback posts on LaneBailey.com… but this one was just so appropriate for here…