Social Media
Several of you asked for resources on the dairy post– I’ll work on pulling those together for you, but in the meantime, a frivolous Friday post:
I know iPhone’s are the gold standard, yet somehow I still chose an Android phone when I finally hopped on the smartphone wagon. I might be reconsidering that choice now that I’m on my third Rezound in 3 months. I just don’t know how all you iPhone-users get along without Flash. Anyways, since I’ve become an expert in starting from scratch when it comes to apps, I thought I’d share a few of my favorite Android apps with you- specifically the photo apps I use since I always get questions about them on Instagram {I’m sideofsneakers, btw}.
My favorite free photo apps for Android:
Photo Grid is my favorite collage-making app. Sometimes just one feed. Photo Grid lets you make a collection of pictures, choose your layout, your background you want.
The best text-on-photo app I’ve found for Android. I think the iPhone version lets you make a solid background behind the text which would be an awesome feature, but I still love it nonetheless. You can choose a variety of fonts, change the size, color, shadow, etc. Again, you can share it right from the app.
My favorite feature of this photo editing app is the crop function. If you’re going to be using a photo for Instagram, it needs to be a square. It’s helpful to already have the picture cropped before you add any effects, borders, or text. Pixlr Express easily lets you do this. I also love the photo correction features, like brightening, contrast, color correction, etc. The overlays, effects, and borders are fun too.
This is my go-to for fine tuning photo correction- you can choose an adjustment and select how much or little effect you want by sliding your finger. This one crops too, and has a great center-focus feature.
The big brother to Pixlr Express. This app has lots of fun effects, but finding the one you want to use takes a little longer than the express version.
More fun effects & overlays, because you can never have too many. 
I would use this one more if it had a built in crop feature, but it is fun to layer different effects and see what you come with.
This isn’t so much a photo app as a social media-esque app: it’s a super simple photo sharing app. I use it to share pictures with my mom and the husband when he’s out of town. I can just click share from the picture on my phone and it uploads to a gallery they can see. Much easier than emailing attachments or sending a billion texts.
After my first phone died I quickly learned backing up my photos automatically was key- enter Dropbox. I already use this on my computer for work, so it was easy to add the app to my phone and have it automatically upload my pictures.
Any favorites to add to the list?
Social Media
I have nothing to say today. That happens, right?
Instead of trying pitifully to come up with something or blabbering on incessantly about who knows what, I’m just going to skip that nonsense and share one of my online favorites: Super Full Feeds Google Reader.
There was some buzz about this on Twitter yesterday that made me realize not everyone knows about it. Imagine that, me, being one of the cool kids that knows about something before everyone else on the planet. I’ll bask in the feeling for a minute.
Ok, done.
Here it is:
First of all, you need to be using Google Reader to care about this. If you don’t, then continue on your way.
{Google Reader is a way to organize your blog reading all in one place using RSS; it lets you know what’s new without having to visit a million different sites. They’re called feeds.}
Do you ever come across a feed that’s about 5 sentences and then it says “click to read more”? Superbly annoying. It usually results in me deleting the blog from my reader. But sometimes it’s stuff I really want to read, so in a rare instance I groan and grumble and click on over anyways.
Well guess what? You don’t have to. Enter Super Google Reader. It adds on a couple options that will make your blog reading life so much easier.
First, install the Super Full Feeds Google Reader extension. {That’s the Chrome version- if you use a different browser, search “super google reader + your browser”. I’ve seen a couple other version but I haven’t used them.}
Now that it’s installed…
You find a feed that’s truncated but you want to read more. {I used Two Peas and Their Pod as my example…one of maybe 2 feeds I keep even though they’re truncated.}
Click “Readable”.
Look! Everything’s there!
But wait, it gets better. Click the “Link” option.
It looks exactly like it was meant to- and I haven’t even left my reader.
{You can also go to “Settings”, “Reader Settings”,“Super”, “Default to Readable Content” so you don’t have to click it every time. It’s a little slower to load than normal, but not that much, and it saves you a click.}
You may be thinking to yourself, “Hey, people truncate their feeds for a reason- they want you to click over to their site so it counts as a pageview.” True. But usually truncated feeds get deleted from people’s readers and then you’re not reading anyways.
So Super Google Reader is awesome even if it’s not for a truncated feed. Websites were designed to look a certain way for a reason and much of that is lost in a reader. Now it’s not.
Wait. It still gets better. Ready?
You can comment inside reader.
No clicking. No scrolling. No load time. It’s just there. Waiting for you. Fabulous.
That alone is enough for me.
Now if you’re a blogger, not just a reader, you’re probably thinking “well this sucks for pageviews”. But does it? It’s likely to increase engagement, and what’s more important? I think both.
And I’m not sure about this one, but I see ads. Maybe it counts for an impression? Who knows, you’ll have to ask the Google gods on that one…
For other ways to make Google reader a more enjoyable experience check out these posts:
The Next Button by Savvy Julie
PostRank Extension by Katy Widrick
Do you use a reader? Any cool tips or tricks?
Don’t miss:
It’s Raining Babies – find out what happened when I went home for Thanksgiving.
Interested in giving a Lollihop gift subscription for the holidays this year? Use the code SIDEOFSNEAKERS20 for 20% off– but it’s only for the first 50 users & in order to time it right for the holidays, book today by 4pm PST!
Social Media
It would be remiss of me not to mention yesterday’s east coast earthquake, even though you’ve probably heard about it umpteen billion times.
It’s not often that we here on the Atlantic side of the country are innocently sitting at our desks eating lunch when the walls, chairs, and tables start to shake violently…and don’t stop for an extended period of time.
I thought I was just crazy {it’s not a far reach} until I called the husband and he felt it in his office too. While I was on the phone I glanced at my computer screen where Twitter just happened to be up. Imagine my amazement as tweet after tweet from friends from MD, NYC, and VA were all saying exactly what I had just said: what the heck is going on?!
So Twitter, I humbly thank you for letting me know I’m not crazy…this time. And now that we know everyone is safe and sound, I have to admit plenty of the tweets I saw had me cracking a grin.
{First of all, you know the east coast doesn’t get earthquakes when most of the status updates I saw said something about running outside. Don’t run outside in an earthquake people!! Door frames!}
Anyways, here were some of my favorite tweets:
Favorite East Coast Earthquake Tweets
{Although yes, we’ve established we feel it much more on the east coast.}
And not a tweet, but impressive:
And of course every event has it’s iconic picture:
Back to your regularly scheduled programming of HLS recaps tomorrow.
Did you see any funny updates about the earthquake?
Equally as exciting as an east coast quake, check out my 17 weeks pregnancy update on tiny sneakers
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Social Media
Things you may have, should have, or would have learned at Fitbloggin’11:
1. If you have big {but not super big} feet, you get to rock the black New Balance sneaks.
2. Share your friends posts- it’s better than self promotion.
3. Updating your title tags after the initial publishing of a post likely won’t do much.
4. Workout pants are larger than they appear.
5. You’ll never become a good photographer if you don’t take pictures.
6. To be successful blogger, you need to hold yourself accountable- just like any other job.
7. Use language that is unique to you and your brand.
8. Even if you eat 80,000 Popchips, despite all beliefs, you will not turn into a Popchip. And you’ll still want more.
9. If you don’t ask for what you want, you’re just hoping and wishing.
10. Have genuine, real conversations with people.
11. Jumping on trampolines isn’t just for kids with pent up energy and ambition to flip each other high into the air with the highly sought-after double bounce.
12. It’s not about competition; we can ALL be successful in our own ways.
13. Zumba isn’t so bad after all.
14. Don’t keyword stuff. You will get penalized.
15. Owning a smart phone is essential if you want to succeed in life. You may only pick up on this being mentioned 50,000 times if you don’t own a smart phone.
16. Link to each other with good anchor text, not necessarily the name of the blog.
17. Social media is an SEO factory.
18. stolencamerafinder can help you discover your photos across the web using uber secret ninja codes embedded in your camera.
19. Watch out Facebook, there’s a new “poke” in town. Pokens all the coolest thing since sliced bread. I can already see everyone walking around in 10 years high-fouring each other. So long, business cards, you’re in the past.
20. Above all else, be true to yourself.
21. Hustle.
What did you learn at Fitbloggin, or what have you learned from your own experiences?
Fun, Social Media
There are certain things you’d never say in front of your grandmother, a prospective employer, or a colleague. So why do some people think it’s ok to say this things on the Internet?
We’ve probably all heard that you should take down pictures of you doing keg stands in college or in scandalous Halloween costumes when you’re hunting for a job. But that’s not the only time you need to be careful of how you represent yourself in social media.
In 2009 a woman in Chicago was sued for tweeting about her moldy apartment:
“Who said sleeping in a moldy apartment was bad for you? Horizon realty thinks it’s okay.”
Horizon sued her for $50,000 for ruining their rep worldwide…. she had 17 followers.
A couple traveling out of town gave several Twitter updates along the way, including:
“preparing to head out of town”
“another 10 hours of driving ahead”
“made it to Kansas City.”
They were robbed.
If you wouldn’t leave it on your voicemail, don’t leave it online.
Be careful what your acquaintances say, too. A Colorado Senator repeatedly told reporters he was too busy with ‘Senate business’ for an interview. Then a tweet from another reporter shows up:
“Just back from lunch with Sen. Bennet (Colo.).”
Busted.
You don’t get a free pass for being famous either.
The owner of the Dallas Mavericks’ was fined $25,000 by the NBA for the following tweet:
“How do they not call a tech on JR Smith for coming off the bench to taunt our player on the ground?”
Seems innocent right? Not to the NBA.’
Joe Schmoe’s not off the hook either.
“Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh the utility of a fatty paycheck against the daily commute to San Jose and hating the work.”
It wasn’t long before that wasn’t a decision he didn’t have to make- Cisco pulled the job offer. {You know companies can track their name right? Anybody can.}
Forget fines, Twitter can get you arrested too. Angry about a snowstorm, a man in the UK wrote:
“Robin Hood airport is closed. You’ve got a week and a bit to get your sh** together, otherwise I’m blowing the airport sky high!!”
He was arrested and banned from the airport for life.
Thought Twitter and Facebook were just for fun, personal use? Think again.
According to Proofpoint, 8% of companies fired an employee in 2009 (up from 4%) for something social media related. 13% of companies have investigated an employee’s tweet.
For other famous social media blunders, check these out:
10 Famous Social Media Blunders of 2010
5 Examples of Social Media Blunders & What to Learn From Them
In Pictures: 20 Social Media Blunders
Ever made a social media mistake?
