Exploring Instant Messaging

Instant messaging has become a common feature over the years. It is useful for everyday personal friendly conversation between people (or groups of people), conversations in the workplace, and online gaming just for a few examples.

While some messengers have more advanced features, most offer a number of the same. Lists of features can include the following:

• Add/Delete Friends (Contacts) – Import/Export (even through social media sites or e-mail accounts)
• Voice Chat
• Video Chat/Screen Sharing
• Personal Status Heading
• Status – Online, Offline, Away, Busy, Invisible
• Spell Check
• Tabs for Multiple Messages
• Emojis
• Photo and File Attachment
• Font Customization
• Interface Theme/Skin Customization
• Ability to send Text Messages to Mobile Phones or E-mail Accounts
• Ability to Create Groups/Lists/Favourites out of Added Contacts

Of course, the above list is non-exclusive. As messengers have changed over the years features keep being added or tweaked in favour of appealing to those who use the programs.

Personally, I remember using instant messengers back when AOL launched their messenger, AIM. I also had Windows Live (Microsoft), Yahoo, Jabber, Skype, Google Talk, Facebook, Myspace, ICQ, Battle.net, and Trillian over the years. I still have a few of these today.

I’d like to make a quick extra mention of Trillian. If you haven’t heard of this before and you use multiple messaging services, this is a great program! It works across a variety of operating systems, to include mobile. It has the ability to connect to any number of messaging services and e-mail accounts and gives you access to them all in one user interface. In the past, the program was able to incorporate messengers such as Skype and Windows Live, for example, but since they have changed their programming, these are two of a few that are no longer supported. If you’re using multiple messaging programs, social sites and e-mail accounts from the following list, you may want to consider checking this program out!

• AIM
• Bonjour
• Facebook
• Google Talk
• ICQ
• IRC
• Jabber
• VZ
• Yahoo
• Foursquare
• Twitter
• IMAP/POP3 e-mail accounts

Most of the people I talk to will either correspond through e-mail or through Twitter’s direct messages. For anything else, I normally am using Facebook Messenger these days. Even though it is a social media site I don’t like to use as often as others for personal use – the contacts I have make frequent use of the site, so I do have use messenger daily. Running a business page and multiple groups also means it’s something I have to make sure I’m staying on top of. Response time is really important when being in an administrative role, when it comes to answering and sending instant messages.

A lot of people will use messenger instead of writing in an e-mail because they think the response time will be faster, which in a sense is correct. It sounds a bit bad, but people are going to knock out taking care of social media messages far quicker than those than come through e-mail, even though it is the preferred method of interaction. It is far easier to get bad word of mouth for even taking a normal amount of time to respond because a user is already using a social media site in the first place – they are right there to publicly voice their anger and displacement.

Using a messenger for inter-office correspondence is quite common and can get questions answered and information passed along much quicker than typing up a formal e-mail message, although in certain situations, the later should still be done. I think the biggest bonus to using a messenger in the workplace would be when you need to collaborate or get answers from multiple people in a short amount of time. People in offices and other places of work are not always on the same schedules so conversing through a group message will get responses faster than waiting around for a bunch of e-mails, when people have the time to create them. A message can offer a quick and short response, which is often all that is needed in some cases.

A Bit About LinkedIn

LinkedIn is basically a professional networking website. You can choose to connect as a business, student, or professional and create a profile for others to browse and contact you. I would say that the site is mostly used by professionals (or those seeking jobs) and recruiters. You can market yourself and your skills in a profile you create, that job recruiters can pull up during their searches. You’re basically infusing your resume into a social media profile.

Features of the site now include options to have conversations, ask and answer questions, and even have informal interviews. You can allow job recruiters to contact you should they come across your profile who think you should apply for a position.

Once you’re signed up, you can add connections (people) to your network. These can be friends, classmates, professional references, family, etc. You also have the option of connecting to groups such as previous employers, schools, alumni, clubs, or you can show your interest in the same groups.

As far as suggestions go for using the site, my first and most important piece of advice to anyone thinking about using LinkedIn, is to make sure to not treat it like any other social media site. Too often you browse around and see unprofessional photos, headlines and summaries on a profile. If someone is signed up in hopes of landing a job position, they more than likely aren’t going to be contacted, because a recruiter is going to pass on all of the above when coming across it.

Another issue with the site that I found out is that you need to have some sort of knowledge of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) in order to be noticed in searches. Just like those automatic resume programs that search for certain words – profile results are filtered similarly. Having the right keywords in your profile and placing them multiple times (appropriately of course) will give yours a better boost than those who have no idea about how to integrate this SEO practice.

Personally I have not been very fond of this website, but I realize that the day is coming where I will need to invest 100% into making a proper profile. The more I search job boards elsewhere, the more I notice a decline in the amount and quality of jobs available. I have seen many more people and companies flocking to this site over the years. In fact, I was looking for some jobs this last week and saw a couple of places where the only place they wanted you to contact them was on LinkedIn. If companies are being this selective in their hiring process, then a proper profile here is something we should all think about investing quality time into.

VOIP - Skype

These days I don’t get much use out of Skype. When I was in the military, I was overseas for over seven years. This is the time when I used it the most. I connected with family back home, especially during the holidays. I remember having some kind of trouble initially because of the countries being different. They had kept trying to insist that I needed to purchase credits to use the program, but I was able to work out getting a United States number and everything was smooth after that.

On occasion I have used Skype to collaborate with other YouTube artists on videos and song parodies. I once was on a phone call with someone producing a science fiction podcast, who recorded my lines through the call as well. I have used it on multiple occasions to live screen share and provide instructions or visuals through calls to someone. The most recent use I have gotten out of the program was to get job testing instructions from a company I had applied to this last year. They delivered the instructions and followed up during and after the test through the messaging portion of the system.

For the most part, however, I use Google Voice to make phone calls and if I need to use video with a call, I can do so through GoogleHangout, or more often – Facebook Calling.

Anyone can benefit from using Skype I would say. I feel as though it has a more business type of feel to it these days than it used to. The mobile application of the program is wonderful for people on the go, but does require an internet connection, so you will need to be on wi-fi or use your mobile service as an internet connection to make use of it. Strictly as a messenger it works great! For video, it is good for domestic calling, but when you start to make international calls, it can become a hassle, although it is still low cost compared to other services. The biggest downfall I think Skype has going for it is that group calling is gated behind their premium service.

Social Media Comparison Chart

	Facebook	Twitter	YouTube
Active Users	1,712 (million)	313 (million)	1,000 (million)
Daily Users	1,130 (million)	135 (million)	Only referred to as hundreds of thousands
Foreign Accounts	85%	79%	70%
Pros	Easy for business start  up to reach customers	Anonymity, fast reach	Entertaining for longer periods of time
	Integrates other media (videos, photos, slideshows)	Status updates in  real-time	Educational/Instructional
	Instant messaging and calls	Brings/sends users  across sites	Livestreaming available
	Cost effective customer  service for businesses	Integrates video and  gif playback	Free hosting/high quality
Cons	Expensive to advertise	Word limit to posts	Ads ignored via adblocks software
	Privacy Concerns	Need to stay active daily for reach	Limited user interaction (comments)
	Potentially hurt you  professionally if employers search for your information  and see anything negative	Takes time to build audience	Difficult to make money from ads; must be partnered with an outside network or use Google Adsense

Sources:

Donchev, D. (2016). Youtube Statistics - 2016. Retrieved from http://fortunelords.com/youtube-statistics/ 

Harden, S. (2016). STATS | YouTube Company Statistics - Statistic Brain. Retrieved from http://www.statisticbrain.com/youtube-statistics/

Ingram, M. (2016). Snapchat Now Has More Daily Users Than Twitter Does. Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2016/06/02/snapchat-twitter/

Millward, S. (2015). Tech in Asia - Connecting Asia's startup ecosystem. Retrieved from https://www.techinasia.com/facebook-surpasses-half-billion-monthly-active-users-in-asia-for-first-time 

Statista. (2016). Facebook users worldwide 2016. Retrieved from http://www.statista.com/statistics/264810/number-of-monthly-active-facebook-users-worldwide/

Statista. (2016). Twitter: Monthly active users 2010-2016 - Statista. Retrieved from http://www.statista.com/statistics/282087/number-of-monthly-active-twitter-users/

Twitter. (2016). What's Happening. Retrieved from https://about.twitter.com/company

Tynan, D. (2016). Facebook's journey 'only 1% done' after surge in revenue, Zuckerberg says. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jul/27/facebook-ad-sales-growth-quarterly-results

YouTube. (2016). Statistics. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/yt/press/statistics.html

Zephoria. (2016). Top 20 Facebook Statistics - Updated July 2016. Retrieved from https://zephoria.com/top-15-valuable-facebook-statistics/

My Podcast Assignment: Podcasts/Web 2.0

TRANSCRIPT: 

INTRO MUSIC

Hello!

This is Jessica Lerfold and in this recording, I will be briefly talking a bit about what exactly podcasts are and how they fit into Web 2.0. This casting is being recorded for American Military University’s course Web 2.0 Fundamentals – all music is royalty free from Kevin MacLeod, which can be located at Incompetech.

So, what is a podcast you ask? These are audio, or sometimes video recordings of content. There are one or more hosts to the show and more often than not there is collaboration involved in the form of sharing information, interviews, or additional added content within the cast. These recordings are meant to be available for playback on a variety of media – think gaming consoles, personal computers and mobile devices. Here’s a fun fact for you: Did you know where the word podcast comes from? It is the result of a combination of iPod and broadcasting.

MUSIC

Ok, so now that we know the basics of a podcast, let’s talk a bit about how it relates to the term Web 2.0. If you’re unsure about what that is, don’t worry – it’s something you probably are involved in on a daily basis without even realizing. To keep it simple, Web 2.0 is a term used to encompass a variety of the tools and services we use on the web to make content. Have you ever used a social media site, wiki or open source software? Those are examples of what is included in the broad spectrum of components making up this term. If you can contribute or collaborate – it relates to Web 2.0.

If you think about it, podcasts will often have their own website. Users can submit ideas, questions and comments to the host, which they may or may not address during their casts. Mash ups of music, commercials, skits, and various other things are often created and included during an episode; many of these mash ups are a collaboration between the shows host, viewers, and other outside sources.

Sometimes they may record live through a streaming service with video or no video – but they have a chat room to interact with viewers while the show is being recorded. There may be some podcasts that don’t use social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to promote and interact with the public, but I have yet to listen to one that hasn’t personally.

MUSIC

I’d like to thank everyone for listening today. You can find the written transcript for this cast, as well as credits on my blog: my20path.blogspot.ca. You can also find RSS feeds and reviews for a few other podcasts. The blog contains more Web 2.0 content and discussion, so if that interests you, please make sure to check it out! Have a good one!

OUTRO MUSIC

Starak, Y. (2014). What is a Podcast? Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneurs-journey.com/230/what-is-a-podcast/ 

Podcast & Podcast Alley Websites

If I’m honest, I really disliked using both Podcast.com and Podcastalley.com.  Podcast is probably the better of the two navigation-wise when looking for a podcast to listen to. The biggest downfall to this site are the number of podcasts that are old and outdated. It was a little difficult to find current shows of interest to listen to.

Podcast Alley on the other hand, has plenty of updated shows, but I was basically only able to find ones that were on the front page. Even then, the site directed me to another site with a listing of the podcasts they host, so it was like I wasn’t even using Podcast Alley to begin with.

Both sites contained broadcaster information – tips and tricks, technical articles, podcamps, etc. While I was able to use the sites suggested to complete my assignments this week, I do prefer sites like Stitcher or iTunes when it comes to browsing for shows to listen to. Stitcher has a variety top 100 list, another top 100 list by how much shows are either moving up in the rankings, and a great selection of categories to browse through.

Podcast: The Instance

The last podcast I chose to listen to this week is one that was more familiar to me. It is a World of Warcraft podcast called The Instance. I had stopped listening to Warcraft podcasts for a number of months, as my playtime diminished significantly due to school. It wasn’t a big deal though because it was during the months before the release of the newest expansion for the game. It was good to pick this one back up and feel a sense of familiarity with all of the things they were discussing.

It was a lot of initial thoughts on leveling, zones, graphics, instanced areas, etc. since the expansion had just released. Each person touches on their experience with the expansion in the first 4 days of launch throughout the episode. As always, they listen to voice mails left by listeners and answer any questions that are sent in. (The Instance, 2016)

As a side note, the podcast has their own forum section on their website host, although most of the threads are a bit old – dating back to the winter. They are slightly more active on their Facebook (only really posting episodes), but are the most active on Twitter, as are most similar podcasts I listen to. If you’re looking for Warcraft news and player experiences from seasoned podcasters, give this one a listen!

You can find The Instance and the other Warcraft podcasts I listen to or recommend on my Podcast Twitter list.

The Instance. (2016). The home of Scott Johnson's FrogPants Studios . Retrieved from http://frogpants.com/podcasts/instance/