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20 Essential Social Media Resources You May Have Missed
It’s that time again — time to tap into all the tips, tricks, apps, and expert advice that may have flown under your radar this past week. We’ve corralled these must-reads into one handy list for your browsing convenience. This edition is ripe with valuable info, including the biggest trends to watch on Twitter, some creative advice on keeping your business strategy social, a list of the best new web apps built for Google Buzz, and plenty more. And if you’re in the mood for a bit of web-based entertainment, see below for some fun YouTube compilations and amazing iPad video demos. Social Media Facebook vs. Google: The Billion Dollar Battle to Be Your Default Social Profile Both of these Internet giants are vying to become your main destination for social, search, and shopping. This posts discusses the seeds they are sowing now in the hopes of future web dominance. 5 Simple Social Design Tips From the Masters Good design is a critical component of the social web. We asked the experts for some simple advice that can make or break your next social design. 5 Big Twitter Trends to Follow Right Now Day-to-day Twitter trends are interesting to follow, but it’s important to step back and take a look at where the social network is headed, and the challenges it will face in the future. This post takes a meta look at the state of the Twitterverse. 10 Amazing Magic Trick Videos on YouTube YouTube is home to some amazing content, and the prestidigitation department is no exception. Check out these ten close-up and street magic tricks, each of which packs a solid wow-factor, and will leave you wondering, “How’d they do that?” Top 10 Funny Dog Videos on YouTube If there’s one thing the Internet is good for, it’s funny pet content. This post rounds up some premium canine hilarity from YouTube that you simply cannot miss. 5 Free Ways to Identify that Song Stuck in Your Head The days of agonizing over those relentless and unidentified melodies are over. The Internet, in all its musical genius, offers up a handful of ways to pinpoint the tune that simply won’t let you go. Why Chatroulette Is More Than Just Penises The stunning viral runaway success of Chatroulette is often overshadowed by the “naughty bits” that are so prevalent on the service. This post delves deeper into the trend to discuss what the phenomenon of random, anonymous video chat means for the greater web culture. 12 Fresh Web Tools for Getting the Most Out of Google Buzz Though still in its infancy, Google Buzz is quickly gaining traction with the help of eager developers who have pounced on the network’s open API. If you’re looking to integrate, connect, and spread your Buzz around the web, check out these 12 useful tools. 5 Ways to Go Green for Earth Day with Social Media The social web is the perfect medium for spreading the word about an important cause. This post offers up five ways to get involved with the environmental movement, just in time for Earth Day. 15+ Great Ways to Find Web Design and Development Work For web designers and developers looking to take on new projects, the Internet offers a great number of online resources that can help them find work. Here are more than 15 places for web creatives to land gigs. For more social media news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s social media channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook . Mobile 10 Essential Money-Saving iPhone Apps Though the iPhone is a pricey piece of hardware, it could pay for itself in the long run if you use it to find deals and live more frugally. This post examines 10 essential iPhone applications for living the frugal life. How 5 Brands Are Mastering the Game of Foursquare Foursquare could easily be mistaken for a frivolous mobile application with little to no value for businesses, but here are five businesses that are proving the value of location-based social media apps. For more mobile news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s mobile channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook . Tech 10 Amazing iPad App Video Demonstrations If you haven’t gotten your iPad yet, but you’re jonesing for your Apple app fix, check out these truly awesome video demos that showcase the power and versatility of the new tablet device. 10 Insanely Great iPad Apps We Can’t Wait to Use For those of you that have gotten an iPad, has it lived up the hype? Which apps are you enjoying the most? Here is a list of the 10 iPad applications were most looking forward to checking out. 10 Must-See Google Street View Sightings You can’t drive around photographing the entire world without running across at least a few oddities. Check out this list for some strange and hilarious images captured by the Google Street View car on its quest to virtualize the globe. For more tech news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s tech channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook . Business 5 Essential Apps for Your Business’s Facebook Fan Page If you’re turning your business’s Facebook Fan Page into a real destination for customers, you may want to consider incorporating more content. These five apps are a great way to build more value into your Page. Growing Your Business: 5 Tips From the Founder of Foursquare The location-based darling Foursquare has seen staggering growth in its one year on the scene. We spoke with the company’s founder Dennis Crowley about some of Foursquare’s unique business strategies. How One Small Biz Turned Their Company Retreat Into Social Media Success WooThemes, purveyors of premium WordPress themes, recently made the most of their biannual corporate retreat by turning the working ski trip into a social media event for their customers — and the strategy paid off big. This post explains how they did it. How Startups are Using Social Media for Real Results Startup money is often the hardest to preserve, but many small business are turning to social media to squeeze the most out of early budgets. We spoke with some socially-savvy startups to get their take on how the web can make things easier for burgeoning companies. HOW TO: Integrate Paid Search and Social Media for Better Marketing Results While the goals of paid search (sales) and social media (brand awareness) are different, the two strategies should work together for maximum ROI. This post discusses some concrete strategies. For more business news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s business channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook .
20 Essential Social Media Resources You May Have Missed
It’s that time again — time to tap into all the tips, tricks, apps, and expert advice that may have flown under your radar this past week. We’ve corralled these must-reads into one handy list for your browsing convenience. This edition is ripe with valuable info, including the biggest trends to watch on Twitter, some creative advice on keeping your business strategy social, a list of the best new web apps built for Google Buzz, and plenty more. And if you’re in the mood for a bit of web-based entertainment, see below for some fun YouTube compilations and amazing iPad video demos. Social Media Facebook vs. Google: The Billion Dollar Battle to Be Your Default Social Profile Both of these Internet giants are vying to become your main destination for social, search, and shopping. This posts discusses the seeds they are sowing now in the hopes of future web dominance. 5 Simple Social Design Tips From the Masters Good design is a critical component of the social web. We asked the experts for some simple advice that can make or break your next social design. 5 Big Twitter Trends to Follow Right Now Day-to-day Twitter trends are interesting to follow, but it’s important to step back and take a look at where the social network is headed, and the challenges it will face in the future. This post takes a meta look at the state of the Twitterverse. 10 Amazing Magic Trick Videos on YouTube YouTube is home to some amazing content, and the prestidigitation department is no exception. Check out these ten close-up and street magic tricks, each of which packs a solid wow-factor, and will leave you wondering, “How’d they do that?” Top 10 Funny Dog Videos on YouTube If there’s one thing the Internet is good for, it’s funny pet content. This post rounds up some premium canine hilarity from YouTube that you simply cannot miss. 5 Free Ways to Identify that Song Stuck in Your Head The days of agonizing over those relentless and unidentified melodies are over. The Internet, in all its musical genius, offers up a handful of ways to pinpoint the tune that simply won’t let you go. Why Chatroulette Is More Than Just Penises The stunning viral runaway success of Chatroulette is often overshadowed by the “naughty bits” that are so prevalent on the service. This post delves deeper into the trend to discuss what the phenomenon of random, anonymous video chat means for the greater web culture. 12 Fresh Web Tools for Getting the Most Out of Google Buzz Though still in its infancy, Google Buzz is quickly gaining traction with the help of eager developers who have pounced on the network’s open API. If you’re looking to integrate, connect, and spread your Buzz around the web, check out these 12 useful tools. 5 Ways to Go Green for Earth Day with Social Media The social web is the perfect medium for spreading the word about an important cause. This post offers up five ways to get involved with the environmental movement, just in time for Earth Day. 15+ Great Ways to Find Web Design and Development Work For web designers and developers looking to take on new projects, the Internet offers a great number of online resources that can help them find work. Here are more than 15 places for web creatives to land gigs. For more social media news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s social media channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook . Mobile 10 Essential Money-Saving iPhone Apps Though the iPhone is a pricey piece of hardware, it could pay for itself in the long run if you use it to find deals and live more frugally. This post examines 10 essential iPhone applications for living the frugal life. How 5 Brands Are Mastering the Game of Foursquare Foursquare could easily be mistaken for a frivolous mobile application with little to no value for businesses, but here are five businesses that are proving the value of location-based social media apps. For more mobile news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s mobile channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook . Tech 10 Amazing iPad App Video Demonstrations If you haven’t gotten your iPad yet, but you’re jonesing for your Apple app fix, check out these truly awesome video demos that showcase the power and versatility of the new tablet device. 10 Insanely Great iPad Apps We Can’t Wait to Use For those of you that have gotten an iPad, has it lived up the hype? Which apps are you enjoying the most? Here is a list of the 10 iPad applications were most looking forward to checking out. 10 Must-See Google Street View Sightings You can’t drive around photographing the entire world without running across at least a few oddities. Check out this list for some strange and hilarious images captured by the Google Street View car on its quest to virtualize the globe. For more tech news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s tech channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook . Business 5 Essential Apps for Your Business’s Facebook Fan Page If you’re turning your business’s Facebook Fan Page into a real destination for customers, you may want to consider incorporating more content. These five apps are a great way to build more value into your Page. Growing Your Business: 5 Tips From the Founder of Foursquare The location-based darling Foursquare has seen staggering growth in its one year on the scene. We spoke with the company’s founder Dennis Crowley about some of Foursquare’s unique business strategies. How One Small Biz Turned Their Company Retreat Into Social Media Success WooThemes, purveyors of premium WordPress themes, recently made the most of their biannual corporate retreat by turning the working ski trip into a social media event for their customers — and the strategy paid off big. This post explains how they did it. How Startups are Using Social Media for Real Results Startup money is often the hardest to preserve, but many small business are turning to social media to squeeze the most out of early budgets. We spoke with some socially-savvy startups to get their take on how the web can make things easier for burgeoning companies. HOW TO: Integrate Paid Search and Social Media for Better Marketing Results While the goals of paid search (sales) and social media (brand awareness) are different, the two strategies should work together for maximum ROI. This post discusses some concrete strategies. For more business news and resources, you can follow Mashable’s business channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook .
10 Beautiful Free Blogger Templates
This series is supported by Rackspace , the better way to do hosting. Learn more about Rackspace’s hosting solutions here . Let’s face it: The default themes that come with a Blogger blogger account aren’t going to win any design awards. They’re plain, fussy, and lack that bit of the snazz you’re probably accustomed to during your daily online reading. Fortunately for us, the Blogger community is full of great designers and template adapters who have shared a bit of their XML magic. Below, we’ve highlighted 10 Blogger templates that are clean, highly adaptable, and would look great for any personal, business, or professionally-minded blog. All the templates below are free to download and use (with their proper attribution included), and you can see them in action by clicking the “Live Demo” links. If there’s a sharp looking Blogger template you absolutely love, share it our way in the comments below. 1. Aparatus Aparatus has a clean, professional look without being too stodgy. The rich red bars and headers make the page pop, and the dashed border gives it a touch of texture, but there’s still plenty of easy-breathing white space. Header bar pages are enabled, and the Twitter Twitter update icon at the top displays your latest tweet. A nice open title space at the top means there’s plenty of room for a logo image, and no worries about crowding the design. Just be sure to grab a swatch of that lovely red if you plan to add your own graphic elements. Live Demo 2. Notepad Notepad++ We’ve certainly seen paper and handwriting-themed blog templates before, but this notepad layout is really fresh, with smooth graphic elements and subtle textures. Social media links are built-in right at the top (which we dig, of course), and your pages and search bar sit snugly in the binding of this yellow legal-style pad. The dates of your post hang neatly in the margin, which is a nice touch, and the mellow-yellow of the pad itself is no distraction from your text. The design does get a little flowery toward the bottom, and there’s no amount of CSS magic that will ever set your text properly on the lined paper (OCD bloggers, beware!), but in all, this theme is clean enough for serious content, and cute enough for more personal musings. Live Demo 3. Clean Type If you’re a modern minimalist, Clean Type may be the look you’re after. You’d get lost in all the empty white space if it wasn’t for the punchy orange accents on links and menu items. The orange is also a refreshing departure from some more common color schemes. The template keeps elements spaced nicely, with left-hand navigation and a nice empty title space where you can pop in your brand or personal logo. Keep it in the orange family and you’ve got one sharp looking header. Live Demo 4. Twitter We think you’ll dig this one — a near replica of the Twitter homepage for Blogger. The layout is right on the money, complete with the soft blue clouds wafting in the background. Each blog post resembles a tweet, and the fonts in the side bar line up nicely with the space for profile info. With some well-placed widgets, you might really be able to fool some people — which could be good or bad, depending on your intentions. Live Demo 5. Tune Up If blue is your color, look no further than this theme, which serves up some cool hues without over-complicating things. A header stripe brings your home page into the third dimension, and all your widgets and boxes live on smooth aqua gradients. The rest of the space is white, so in-post graphics stow safely away from potential color clashes. Live Demo 6. Indicator You can get a little darker without going all mysterious. The Indicator theme has a serious tone, but maintains its design chops. A bit of grain textures the dark background, and the nice wide columns make it ideal for posting YouTube YouTube videos and larger images. Personally, I love the arrow tabs that break out from the main column and divvy up the side bar with attitude. This theme is bold, sharp, and functional — grab it now, before your friends do. Live Demo 7. Vio If you’re looking to make your blog a bit more feminine without totally “pinking it out,” take a peek at the Vio theme. It offers a smooth purple header, lots of open white space, and some unique layout elements. It’s essentially a two-column blog with the side bar cut in half to make a third column. While they are narrow, these columns are great for keeping extra content (and ads) right up near the top where visitors can see them. Other nice touches include the dark gradient comment bubbles on each post, matching search button, and purple blockquote formatting. Live Demo 8. Colorbold Colorbold is, well, bold; but not over-the-top. The header is dark and metallic, and each blog element is striped by a strong blue banner. Beyond that, your wide white columns are open for business, and content can sit comfortably within those bold ramparts. This template might work nicely for an edgier corporate blog or as a home for photos of your personal hands-on projects. Live Demo 9. Arclite Arclite is warm and inviting. The rich brown header gives way to some wide open spaces below. A rounded blue top menu lifts from the page just a bit, and the pink gadget bars add a surprising dash of color. This template could go in any direction and still look great, so go ahead and make it your own with content. Live Demo 10. DailyNotes If you’re old enough to remember pin feed printer paper, you’ll probably get a kick out of this clever design. If you don’t, it’s probably past your bed time anyway. This template deviates a bit from our hunt for clean, versatile layouts, but the design is really functional and well implemented. It’s a standard two-column with a nice “paper layers” effect that’s not overdone. The theme is perfect for your next retro-tech blog, or diatribe against new-fangled laser printers. Note however that because of the textured background, a custom logo graphic in the header may create some design dissonance up top. Best to stick with the included white text. Live Demo Series supported by Rackspace Rackspace is the better way to do hosting. No more worrying about web hosting uptime. No more spending your time, energy and resources trying to stay on top of things like patching, updating, monitoring, backing up data and the like. Learn why. More web development resources from Mashable: – 14 Fantastic Free WordPress Themes – 10 Popular Firefox Add-ons for Web Developers – 10 Essential Chrome Extensions for Web Developers – 11 Outstanding Online Resources for Web Developers – 7 Superb Social Plugins for WordPress