Making Use of This Newfangled Internet Thing

Are you an avid follower of this here li'l ol' blog?

Do you enjoy reading my musings, opinions, and occasional rants?

Are you on Facebook and/or Twitter?

That's What I Was Going To Say now has an official Facebook fan page, and an official Twitter account! Fan TWIWGTS on Facebook and follow @TWIWGTS on Twitter, and always be in the know when new posts go up. Also, there are plans in the works for some Facebook-specific and Twitter-specific content, contests, fun and games. Why, it'll be like being in a special club!

Who wants to help build the clubhouse?

The Revolution Will Be Downloaded

The first sign of the impending revolution was a cryptic message on Twitter on June 25: "The French Revolution is coming..." was posted by @TFRevolution. Then, months of silence.

The next volley was fired September 21, when both Twitter and Facebook received the warning, "Nobody expects The French Revolution..." A fan page had been set up on Facebook by The French Revolution, to compliment the Twitter page, and now the battle was ferociously joined. Over the next several days, both sites saw constant salvos:
• "Aren't you tired of having the same old thing spat back at you?"
• "Your patience with the Revolution will be rewarded"
• "Good morning. Hope you all have slept well. The Revolution never sleeps..."
• "In just a few short weeks, mysteries will be revealed. Stick with us, and thanks for following!"
• "October 13 will be a landmark day for the Revolution. Mark your calendars!"

I am personally not a fan of the "it's all a big mystery" approach to marketing. Oh, it works - these Revolutionaries certainly got people talking, trying to figure out what or who this was - but for me, the payoff better be well worth the wait for it not to be seem hokey and manipulative. Today being the landmark day, the big reveal turned out to be a letdown.
Wait, allow me to rephrase that: the big reveal turned out to be The Letdown, the excellent debut album from Lancaster's newest musical project, The French Revolution.

Friends Daniel French and Jeremy Bentley, each veterans of local bands, form the core of The French Revolution. The project began back in 2007 as both French and Bentley found themselves fed up with trying to play by the Corporate Music Industry's rules for establishing a career in music. As they wrote in the initial blog post at their long-standing MySpace page,

"...once you forget the fun involved in creating and giving your music, and start playing it for reasons beyond the pure joy of it (say... to impress labels, or get on tours with bands you don't really like but who have more "industry clout," to try and get a deal with an agent, etc. etc. etc. the list goes on and on and on), the life and joy tends to get sucked right out of music."

Feeling drained and frustrated, French and Bentley made a pact to thumb their nose at the whole machine and go back to making the music they want to make, sharing it with people who enjoy it, and above all else having fun doing what they love to do: writing and playing rock music. Today, that vision has resulted in The Letdown, a thoroughly enjoyable collection of a dozen tunes available for free download both at their own site and through Gimme Sound.com.

Supported by fellow Revolutionaries Patrick Kirchner (of the band Slimfit) and Matt Campbell (of Ex Education), French and Bentley aren't necessarily breaking any new ground here, but that's entirely by design. This is Cheap Trick wearing a Green Day costume; this is what was good about '70s-'80s-'90s rock without all the pompous overblown overtones; this is every alternative band reimagined as mainstream rockers; this is power chords and ra-ta-tat-tat drums and a party that overflows into the street. It is, simply, a FUN album - almost an anachronism in today's musical universe.

And, in the ultimate gesture of disdain for the Industry they have turned their back on, they're giving the whole shebang away for free! It's not about anything more than the music, period - it's not business, it's not product, it's music that is meant to be shared and enjoyed.

A follow up album is in the works already, this time as a three-piece with guitarist Jason Sherman. Bentley says, "Each new album by TFR will most likely include a different member, or changed membership, to spice things up and add different influences, but it will always be the core of Daniel and myself for as long as we wish to continue The French Revolution." If they keep making music like this, let's hope this Revolution goes on for quite awhile!

Listen to my personal favorite cuts from the album, "WMD" and "Force Field":


WMD


Force Field

Then, go download the whole album and join the Revolution!

Lunch Amongst the Twitterati

Another check mark on my Life Experiences List: today I attended my first Tweetup.

For those of you who have not yet been inculcated into the Twitterworld, "Tweetup" is an overly-cute term for an organized meeting of two or more Twitter users, in the Real World as opposed to online. OK, I'll accept the overly-cute term. At least it makes me feel better about myself than if I were to tell you I attended a "Twitup".

Anyhoo, there is an ever-growing group of Twitterers here in Lancaster, PA who have been deemed Lancaster's "Twitterati". And how, exactly, does one become a part of this esteemed group of highfalutin' folk? Live in or near Lancaster (or at least, be able to locate Lancaster on a map), be on Twitter, and ask to be listed. As curator of the list @danielklotz notes,

"On the whole, we are a coffee- and beer-loving crowd that can be easily coaxed into spontaneous Tweetups. If you’re from out of town and need a recommendation on what to do or where to go, these are good people to ask...We’re also useful if you’re bored, or want to know what the weather’s like, or if you’d like to keep up with what’s going on in Lancaster when you’re away."

I can attest to the fact that it's a warm, friendly, and accepting group of people, and I've gotten to know several of them well online. But, despite the fact that we are all local, I had met very few of them in person before today.

Our Tweetup was organized for lunch at a little "see-if-you-can-find-it" Spanish restaurant called Antojitos, which opened up on West King Street about three months ago. I am a fan of Spanish cooking, and the food that was served was very tasty...but it was clear that the 20+ folks who attended the event were a larger group than the staff was prepared to handle. Our first clue to this appeared when we were asked for our drink orders. Those who asked for water were promptly served bottled water; those who asked for regular sodas were given cans of Pepsi or Sierra Mist; those who asked for diet soda sat waiting until one of the staff came running in with a plastic shopping bag filled with cans of diet coke. Had he run down the street to the store? Probably better not to ask.

After initial attempts to provide each person with their own plate as ordered proved futile, our hosts began bringing us large platters of rice, beans, pork and chicken to pass around and share. Oddly, rather than bringing salad, they brought us one large plate of lettuce, one large plate of tomatoes, and a dish of lime quarters, prompting me to comment that we had reduced them to bringing us random plates of food. It added to the conviviality of the event, though -- so many of us meeting each other for first time were passing food and laughing like a family at a holiday meal. Really, the owners of the restaurant went out of their way to make us feel welcome and did their best for us -- even providing the table with a complimentary flan (and how often do you get complimentary flan?)

My fellow Twitterati proved to be as enjoyable a group in person as I have found them to be while interacting online. A range of ages, backgrounds, occupations and hobbies provided a wide variety of conversational topics. This is a creative, intelligent, and downright funny group of folks, and I am honored to be among them.

I am one who, especially over the past several years, has dealt with sometimes horrendous social phobia. I am diagnosed OCD (far more obsessive than compulsive), and hand-in-hand with that has been a growing fear of social situations. It has caused me to go from a once very social life to very hermit-like one. In recent times, I have consciously made efforts to turn that around.

That said, today was a bit of a personal victory for me. There was a time - as recently as six months ago - when I would have found or created out of whole cloth any excuse at all not to go by myself to have lunch with a group of people I'd never met in person before. And sure, this morning, I had the nerves going and had to give myself a bit of pep talk to get moving. But I went, and I had a great time! And you can bet I will be at the next one!

If you are in the area, or even just on Twitter, and want to find and follow a great group of people, you could do a lot worse than those listed on the Lancaster Twitterati page found here. Please feel free to follow me on Twitter - I'm @berutt.

So, I'm an Old Facebook Fogie?

Over at Time Magazine's website, Lev Grossman wrote a great article on why Facebook seems to be custom-made for those of us who are - ahem - a little bit older. In Why Facebook Is for Old Fogies, Grossman spells out ten reasons why, when every other social networking website you could name is overrun by high schoolers (or those who never progressed beyond) spewing their L33T-speak, Facebook remains for the most part the realm of the forty-ish.

Gotta say, as one who is dead-smack in the demographic's wheelhouse, Grossman is on the money on 8 of 10 points as far as I can see. I don't have kids, so that point doesn't apply; although those of my friends who do are just as happy to show you their pictures as he describes. OK, Lev, I'll give you that one. 9 of 10. Not a bad average!

The only point I have to take exception with is his declaration that "We don't understand Twitter." On the contrary, Mr. Grossman! I happen to enjoy Twitter very much, and many of my Facebook friends are followers/followees on Twitter as well. They work together surprisingly well: Twitter is the cocktail party where you get to meet new people; Facebook is the neighborhood bar where you all wind up daily to discuss the day.

That point aside, I wanted to share Grossman's piece with my readers, as I know many of you have found this blog through Facebook. The list will make you smile; it's funny because it's true.

Twittering Away in Amish Country

I am honored to have been included in the Lancaster Twitterati roll call created by Daniel Klotz of the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce. Folks, if you have any connection at all to Lancaster, PA, whether as a tourist or as a current or former resident, and if you are currently on Twitter or are considering joining, these are the folks you want to follow!

One of the pluses of having some extra time on my hands recently is that I have had the opportunity to catch up with some old friends, forge new friendships with some very good folks, and reconnect with the goings-on in my own town. The folks you'll find in the Lancaster Twitterati list are a large part of what rekindled that hometown pride.

Twitter, like any other Social Network, does have a global reach. But one of the neatest aspects of Twitter is its ability to bring together a strong local community, who can not only serve as ambassadors for their locale but can also work together to improve it.

If you are reading this saying, "Great, Bryan, but I'm not in Lancaster, PA, and have no reason ever to be," I say to you: Create the Twitterati Roll Call for your town. Build the group that will welcome travelers to your community, that will foster that sense of local pride, and who can be your ambassadors to the Twitter universe. Not sure who those folks might be? There is a great piece of Freeware called TwitterLocal that allows you to filter down your Twitter stream to a particular zip code or area, and can give you a start on discovering your Twitterati.

Oh, and even if you're not from around here, consider following the folks on the Lancaster Twitterati list. I can attest to the fact that they are among the most friendly, open, and occasionally goofy group of folks you'll find.

Oh No, It's Bebo!

I admit it: I'm a social networking junkie. I have a great time checking in with my online friends on a daily basis, sharing snippets of my life and catching glimpses of theirs. While it is certainly no substitute for actual human interaction, there is a definite sense of community found among those of us who are conducting this "virtual social life". And, the online neighborhood has no physical boundaries. My network, for example, includes folks from as far away as Amsterdam, Indonesia and Australia as well as friends who literally live a few blocks from my house.

As I am still a relative "rookie" in the Social Networking world, and there are a wide assortment of Social Networks out there to choose from, I try each one out in order to find which fit my personality best. I have presently settled into four main services: Facebook is far and away the best I have used, combining a user-friendly interface and a variety of privacy levels with an assortment of games, discussion groups, and other interactive services; it is my main network online. Twitter is a close second, with its "online cocktail party" vibe; here is where I have met the most new and intriguing people. Linked-In is an absolute necessity for maintaining a professional network; here I maintain existing business contacts as well find new ones. MySpace, while definitely geared towards a younger main demographic than I fit into, is useful for keeping in touch with some of my former employees as well as keeping up with bands I enjoy. There are other networks online that I am in for various purposes (MyBlogLog, for example, now that I've entered the blogosphere), but those four are the hub of my online life.

A couple of days ago, I was introduced to Bebo. Now, there have been sites that I have tried and decided weren't for me, but never before a site that I'm sorry I ever came into contact with. Folks, let me tell you about the fun that Bebo injected into my world...

Like any other social site, Bebo wanted to know about me - who am I, where am I, what do I like -- you know the drill. I dutifully filled out my profile, and onto the next step: are any of my existing contacts already on Bebo, and if not do I want to invite them? Again, pretty standard fair. Plug in your address book and let it determine who matches up to the current roster, and hit a button to send automated invites to those who aren't. Simple, right?

A few of my contacts were already on Bebo, so I wanted to add them to friends list. However, when I'm trying out a new service, I don't want to invite my whole network willy-nilly until I have had the chance to see whether I'm even sticking around. On most sites, this is easily accomplished - and the steps to accomplish it clearly indicated. Bebo is not so clear when it comes to navigating its auto-invite page, but I'm a smart guy. Should be no problem. Ahem.

In a matter of moments, a few acceptances trickled into my inbox, including one name I didn't remember being on the list of friends already on Bebo. Hmmm...maybe I missed that one or it just didn't register. Oh well, good to have friends...wait a minute, now I know I didn't invite THAT person yet. What's going on here?

Within about fifteen minutes, what had happened became embarrassingly clear: Bebo had, despite my wishes, sent invites to my entire address book. What's more, somehow invites had also gone out to every single email address found on any email in my inbox...including several people I don't even know!

Now my inbox was being bombarded with confused emails from strangers asking who I was, how I had their email, and in one or two cases telling me in less than polite terms that I should never email them again, and suggesting places I might stick the invitation.

Damage control time! As quickly as I could, I put together an auto-response that would go out to anyone sending me an email explaining what had happened and apologizing profusely. Many folks were understanding - thankfully so. But I was still left wondering how in Blue Hell this happened. Had I really misread the instructions? Had I picked up some sort of Bebo virus?

One of my favorite type of Google searches to do if I want to find out about a company, product, or website, is search for "________ sucks" -- if you get a small number of search results, you know that not many have gone online to voice complaint. My search for "Bebo sucks", however, returned page after page of results, including this remarkably similar tale. And my personal favorite, here, complete with a call to arms that my post here responds to.

The good news: after three or four days, everything seems to have settled back down. Clearly, there are those who use Bebo and are fine with it. I am not one who wants to work with a site that spams my entire email universe, though, so I went to cancel the account. Surprise, surprise - even though there is a link to click to cancel, all of the sudden Bebo doesn't recognize my password in order to allow me to delete the account (even though I just used that password not a minute before to log in to the site in the first place!)

Facebook is wonderful. Twitter is outstanding. Linked-In is excellent. MySpace serves its purpose well. Bebo = FAIL.