My dream

I've been thinking if there are ways that people around the world can be connected without using SNS. However, I havent got to the solution.

It is hard to be connected with someone far away without using internet.

I want to own a business one day that has something to do with connecting people.

I came to the U.S. when I was 15. I met so many people from so many backgrounds. However, some my friends back home have never seen the world other than my home city and few cities in Japan. I wish they could meet with people outside of our city and experience things. But using SNS isnt nothing new and isnt interesting anymore. so I want to find ways without using internet or SNS.

This would be my life time question and am hoping to find ways someday.....

Business and SNS

Online article talked about SNS and Business coming together: http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10880936

Companies are hoping SNS to become a bigger force in online advertising. Everybody agrees that is the next big thing. A decade ago, Microsoft bought Hotmail—the firm that established web-based e-mail as a must-have service for internet users. This May it was AOL, a struggling web portal that is part of Time Warner bought Bebo, a small but up-and-coming online social network. However, I have a feeling this will be another feeling as partnering up with Time Warner for AOL...

Facebook, now allied to Microsoft, has fared worse. Its grand attempt to redefine the advertising industry by pioneering a new approach to social marketing, called Beacon, failed completely.

The article says
"Social networking may end up being everywhere, and yet nowhere."

I feel this is just a beginning and companies are trying out new thing and getting used to the new tool. Once they adapt, SNS will become their strong partner

the GPS mobile

In an article:
"GPS devices are getting smaller, and over the next couple of years more and more mobile phones will come equipped with chips that communicate with satellites in space, providing pinpoint data about your location"

In Japan:
Japan has had Internet in cell phone for a long time (i think about 8 years).
Because of that there are so many Internet sites for only cell phone.
Cities in Japan are so crowded and big. New building are built everyday and many shops change there name and owner so fast, nobody knows what's where.
One time I asked a guy working at an electrical appliances store in Tokyo,
"Do you know where I can find a restaurant called [....]?"
He said "I'm sorry I don't know."
I found the restaurant 1 block away from the store by using GPS on cell phone.
Now cell phone companies are adding GPS function to the cell phones.

The technologies are making our lives easier to live, but I'm sure in the old days people knew everyone around the street and could tell me what's where...

How the web polarized politics

Which government would you choose if you had a choice of

A government that monitors your every move,
or
A government that won't move without your opinion?

I would choose a government that monitors my every move.
Good companies do market research to find out what kind of things we like and want then provide goods or services.
So if government knows what we want and like, then government will act as it should.

if a government asks us for approval for everything. it's too much, if we do that then what's the point of having representatives or delegates for governing the country.

Computer technology can enable us to do all these, but will it be a good idea?

The way to hire.

I just read an article "Hire Great People: 10 Simple Rules by Barbara Reinhold" on nytimes.com & monster for employers.

In the article, it says "Rule number one is clear: Don't ever, ever hire somebody just like yourself".

Last year, I was hired by a banker who is not like me. This made me worried why I was hired. but now I think I understand why they hired. That was because I am not like him.

But I still am worried, what is gonna happen over the summer because I still dont know where I'm gonna work at. I know I'm gonna work for the bank, but they havent told me where the office gonna be. I hope I will be working in Tokyo..... If not I might change the job.....

It's too much!!

Today, I read some articles about [social news and social bookmarking].

Everyday I check so many things to keep up with others.

These new innovations in technology have increased the value of information.

Everyone is looking for new valuable information about anything.

I feel it is too much for me. I don't want to stay in front of PC all day looking for the information I want.

I just want to check my e-mail, do little bit of social networking stuff, and do one or less (0) research.

I don't want to bookmark so many different websites and keep checking them.

Is there any way that I don't need to do all this......



Social bookmarks helps it easier to look at different websites.

But, I hope there will be a day that I don't need to do any research to find the information I want. I hope someday I become so rich, so that my assistants do all the work for me.

Can you really build trust with your team?

I read "6 ways to build trust with your virtual team"

and it gave 6 solutions to problems you face in virtually working together.

but can you really build trust with your team by doing all the things she suggests?

Her suggestions were to:

- to have office hours' section, have IM
- work on some projects together
- give people the context as well as the information
- have team meetings, simply do their email
- use the feedback tools widely, interactive online meeting
- have a system that writes down what is expected of everyone

I thought these will help virtual team work better.
but wasnt sure it will build trust with team members.

I think there are many people who cant build trust in real life.
so it is better to give how to build trust itself since working virtually cant see others face and it is harder to build trust in those environment.

I heard that IM and other internet tools are making people's English and grammar skills worse. however, I think to build the trust, people really need to work on their English. It is harder to understand others with out looking at them. Therefore, I think people need the skill to tell what you really mean to others.

image from:www.ultracall.co.jp/eng/confe/index.html

Networking - Six Degrees of Separation

One day, I was told by my superior.

"The key to success in anything is to make large number of people involve for good cause."

I asked "how?"

Then he explained this philosophy.

Majolity of people know more than 300 people, so ask those people to introduce their friends. By the time you know the friend's friend, you'll know 27,000,000 people.

I know 300 x 300 x 300 = 27,000,000

Six Degrees of Separation is the same thing.

so Many business use this philosophy to success by gathering more consumers.

10,00O people buying $10 product is easier than one person buying $100,000 product.

so now Kevin Bacon is using this idea to make large number of people to donate money for fund-rasing.



The thing is that you cant do anything by your self.
Knowing someone doesnt connect you to anyone.

First, you need to ask someone to connect you to 27,000,000 people or more.

Just knowing 300 people wont give you job, money, or anything.

you need to start connecting the dots.

Everything is about Connecting!!

Last week we played Second Life in class.
It seemed everyone was enjoying it.

Now you can play Second Life on an iPhone!!



!!Make many people involved!!

Theseadyas, every company or thing is working together to do things that couldnt be done by alone. Connecting and working together is big. SNS is about connecting many people together. if there was only one person doing SNS, then it wouldnt be big or it wouldnt even work. Being many people involved is huge!! Second Life is the same thing. It needs many people to play to make it grow and make it better.

The Japanese Tradition

This is How Japanese Eat Sushi!!!

In our last class we talked that some people believe that "internet makes people dumb".

This youtube video can be some proof of it.

Some people might actually believe this is the way to eat sushi and all Japanese eat like this. But this is absolutely not truth. This video clip is funny and nice. and this is just a spoof.

as a conclusion I think nobody will believe stupid enough to believe this. and these stupid video clips will enhance a sense of humer and will make people smarter.

hahaha

No computer for today....

Question:

Can people today live without computer?

Answer:

.......

The answer for this question is hard to state.

That's because there are many people living in the different environment.

But, for people living in capitalized world, I think the answer is no.

Because everyone use money and money is managed by computers.

Even for people not living in capitalized world if they have citizenships in their country, there documents are managed by computers. so if there isnt any computer, governments of their country wont know if they live or not.

i guess everyone is controled and managed by computer thesedays.....

☆☆☆that's cool☆☆☆

i think computer is making our world more interesting to live.

so i thnak every computers except the ones in North Korea trying to launch missile to Japan, for making the world more fun place to live.

Link to others in the class

cool blog
http://dalaplante.blogspot.com/

Technorati

Technorati Profile

mixi SNS site in Japan

mixi is one of several SNS sites in Japan.
It makes its earnings from advertisement.
I am one of its user.

It used to be only for individuals, who post blog, pic, video, and etc.
But nowadays, a lot of companies have created their account.
The reason is to collect feedbacks
or for small businesses (like consulting firm),
they are looking for customers who wants to do business with them.

also there are communities for {people who use amazon} and those individuals do their ads using blogs they write. I found a girl selling her underwear with uploading her pics with the blogs......
it isnt a good example but, i thought it was effective.
because i've never seen people uploading many pictures at amazon.

i use amazon to buy text books for class, but i always worry if text books are in bad shape or not. so uploading pics at seller's blog will solve the problem and it will be more reliable.

my second blog post

I heard some people earn money from using blog.
I also heard people earn money from playing "Second Life".

But by listening to these stories, I feel suspicious.

Can u really earn money that easily??

The reason why I feel like this is that
the world they are using is not real and it is not visible.
But still there are using it to make money.
It is becoming a new tool to earn money, I guess.

But is earning money in imaginary world a good thing?

I guess it is a good thing since many people are playing "Second Life" and having fun.
I've played it once before. I didn't like it because it wasn't real. but many people do.
so I think there will be many more products or system? like "Second Life" will be coming out.

I hope those people who play the game will not addicted too much to the game than real life.

my first blog post

I'm writing my blog and it is already after the due date........
This class is about social networks and I've read some articles about social networks.
and now I figured out that I know nothing about social networks.

I've been using facebook and mixi, Japaneses social networking thing.
But now I am asked to create an account in a social network by the company I will be working for. This Network is internal network and only people who is accepted by the company and people who works there can see it.

The problem I'm facing is that now they have asked me to upload my picture and profile.
For facebook and mixi I've uploaded my usual pictures.
But for this social network, should I post something professional? what kind of things can I post?

I always thought social network is for fun not for formal use.....
I know how to use it for fun but I am new to social network for formal use.

Have anyone used social network for a company?

This is strange for me......

I hope by the end of this semester I will figure out the way to use social network for formal use too.

First Posting

I'm a student at American University.
I'm writing this blog for a class.
Everything posted here is all my work.