Is Facebook old fashioned or advanced technology? Watch this video to find out.

I’ve thought about this for quite a while. This is actually one of the reasons I first started blogging and podcasting 4+ years ago. I looked into it and I saw the uncharted territory, the vast size, and was instantly pulled in. I’m an explorer by nature, curious as all get out, and always manage to find a new angle to look at something. Just ask the disassembled electronics scattered around my room when I was 10. That was fun.

New Media offers something that nothing else does. A chance to be yourself and get noticed, no more hoops to jump through. The opportunity to explore your passion to your hearts content and get lost if you want to. And the chance to truly make a living, and then some, off of doing what you love.

Are you with me? What are your thoughts?

Justin Bieber may be a rockstar for this generation, but Beethoven is master for all time. Fred may be the biggest rockstar ever to crash through the rankings on Youtube and become an overnight sensation, but the Three Stooges have him beat in the long run. It isn’t about being popular. It isn’t about showing off to the world. To truly become a master you must sacrifice your life to the calling. You must give something so spectacularly amazing to the world that shines bright enough to become your legacy.

How it all started

It was a typical day in the office. I was digging through my usual clutter of information when a dropshipping website fell into my lap. Being an entrepreneur, I looked into it. I had tested the idea out before, but it didn’t pan out (some Nigerian scammer tried to buy it and pay nothing). I thought I could try it out again and see what became of it, perhaps the whole Nigerian scammer picture was out of the issue now that Ebay had “toughened” security.

I signed up, found a product to list on Ebay and put up the auction. Everything went on as normal.

Things are looking up

People started visiting the auction I had listed, and began bidding. The price started rising and I felt confident that it would go well. That’s when I should’ve cut off the auction. I didn’t listen to my gut.

The price eventually landed to within $50 of the retail price of the product I was selling, then the auction ended. The auction sold and soon after I noticed the payment in my paypal account. At this point, I was running around with joy because nothing was going wrong! It was a good day in my book, little did I know of the doom hanging on the horizon.

After The Sale

The payment was pending in my account until Paypal had notification of my shipping number. Ok, no problem I thought. I went through the checkout process with the dropshipping company and eagerly awaited the shipping number they would send me. The auction sold on a Friday, so I expected at least a couple days until they could supply me with the number. I contacted the buyer so that they were aware of this as well.

Paypal Saves The Day

Sunday. Two days after the auction. Doom struck, but not from who you may expect. I was going about my usual day when I noticed an email from Paypal. The email said,

A review of recent transactions indicates that you might have received a
payment that the PayPal account holder did not authorize.

We recommend that you not ship the item until our investigation is
complete. If you’ve already shipped the item, please log in and let us know
where you shipped it.

We have placed a temporary hold on the funds until we complete our
investigation.

I contacted Paypal regarding this, but they gave me the run around. Within a day my account was closed via an “executive decision” by Paypal because I was too much of a “risk” for them. Too much of a risk?!?! HEY PAYPAL, I’VE BEEN A LOYAL CUSTOMER SINCE YOU FIRST CAME OUT!!! You wanna talk about betrayal, this was it. Great job Paypal, save me from absolutely nothing.

Oh, here’s the kicker, the dropshipping order was mixed in with my Paypal account too, so I was out of MY OWN MONEY, they were holding that money as well. I was able to refund the buyer of the item and notify them that I wasn’t able to send them the item as Paypal had closed my account for no reason. The buyer understood and agreed with me, so we were fine on that end. Paypal on the other end? Things were just about to get a whole lot hotter.

The Bubble Pops

Ok, so Paypal saw something they didn’t like, fine by me. Closing my account and refunding the buyer? I guess it was ok. Not being able to use Paypal ever again for any of my payments? That hurt. Not being able to run my online business and get money for work I’ve done? That burned. Almost literally. Paypal holding onto MY MONEY for no reason whatsoever??! That was the kicker that did them in.

I snapped. At that time, I was in Oklahoma City for some TESOL training for a trip I would be taking to Taiwan within the month. My life virtually came to a halt and this problem needed to be fixed immediately.

I called Paypal up and tried to fix it on my own. Paypal’s response to my plea? “You’re too much of a risk.” “We don’t know what is going on” (when I verbaitum explained my side of the story). “That money in your account is not your money, we have to hold on to it in case there are “any refunds” (whatever the heck that means).” “We can’t change anything, that’s our policy.”

Then I brought in the big guns. I brought my parents into this and we spent the next hour on the phone with a “manager” of Paypal customer service. It got heated pretty fast. Paypal did the classic balking maneuver and hid behind their “policies etched into marble”. This was gross what Paypal was doing to an honest person with an honest problem and we would not stand for it. The call ended as follows,

Us: This is the last straw, I have done nothing wrong. Since you seem to be incapable of anything remotely close to customer service and there is no one we can talk to directly to solve this problem, we are going to take legal action. I am going to call my lawyer as soon as this call ends. See you in court.

Them: …[click]…

Us: [Hung up and dialed the lawyer]

I also brought my bank into this whole problem and reported the charge on my account as fraud. My bank went to work immediately. From talking to the bank, we heard of some other horror stories like ours with Paypal as well.

The Aftermath

We searched online for some answers while awaiting a response from our lawyer, who was going to look into some cases for us, and found some websites (About Paypal). The stories we read made us realize we weren’t alone, Paypal had screwed thousands of normal, honest, hard-working people as well. This wasn’t the first time and most definitely wouldn’t be the last of Paypal’s stunts. Read some here. Here are some more stories.

Luckily our bank pulled through on us and we got the money back into our account within the week. How did Paypal respond to a big bank sitting on them? Here’s their email response:

You recently attempted to transfer funds from your bank account to your PayPal account.

Your bank declined the funds transfer on Jul. 23, 2010.

While this transaction had already been identified as unauthorized, the payment process was already underway and could not be stopped. If you have any questions about why this transfer was declined, please contact your bank.

Classic. Turn tail and run away like the wimps you are. Pretend there is nothing wrong and that the “bank” was the problem. Also notice how the “payment was underway and could not be stopped” when I had repeatedly hammered them about returning MY MONEY back to me until I pulled my bank into this situation.

What I’ve Learned

Don’t ever, EVER trust Paypal (or eBay for that matter). Everything that I had linked in my Paypal account has been deleted. They will never have access to any of my financial information or accounts. They have betrayed my trust for the last time. I am done with Paypal forever. If they want to see me ever again, it will be in the courtroom in front of a judge. Paypal has a stinking dung heap worth of sins to atone for, I’m just one of their many horror stories. I may just be the spear that pricks the armor and unleashes the flood, but so be it. Paypal needs to be held responsible for this until they have atoned for what they have done. Get this, according to Paypal policies,

We can close your account at any time and for any reason whatsoever.

Whatever money you have in your account when we close it is ours.

We can hold that money for up to six months and there is nothing you can do about it.

Any access to your financial accounts is permanent, and we can charge it at anytime.

Think I’m lying? Go check the policies for yourself. Wanna get scared out of your freaking mind about how much power they wield over you? Go ahead and read the policies and listen to the stories. After you return to your body, I can guarantee you will disconnect everything from Paypal and run to the hills. That is my hope after telling you my tale.

Want to know the even scarier part? Paypal is responsible for 70% if not 80% of all sales on the internet.

For Paypal

Paypal, if you are even listening and if you even CARE, know this. You have betrayed my trust and thousands of others as well. Your efforts to quell the “Nigerian scammers” isn’t working. It is hitting loyal customers and evangelists who have had accounts with you for years.

Because of that, I will NEVER. EVER. EVER. use, recommend, or listen to anything you have to say for the rest of your miserable existence as a company.

Your customer service is the worst I’ve ever had.

Communication between departments is a failure.

Hiding behind your “policies” is a failed excuse at showing that you care. Your policies are only for the good of your employees and board of directors, ensuring that you get “your” money.

If you truly CARED about your customers, you would move heaven and earth to make sure they have what they need and do everything in your power to rectify their problem, even if that means going outside of your bounds *ahem* policies *ahem*.

But because of that, I will not be satisfied until every single brick of your pathetic excuse of a company is torn down, examined, and BURNED.

I will see you in court.

What About You?

How should you respond to this relentless hammering of a company?

If I were you, and had half a brain to take action, I would close my account with Paypal immediately and look for someone else to use.

I’d also leave a comment thanking the author who wrote this article for enduring hellfire for no reason and for telling his story for the world to hear.

Finally, I’d share this article with my friends and encourage them to do the same.

Not exactly the introduction you expected to read about right? You probably were expecting me to say something along the lines of “I hacked Facebook and got some massive dough, let me show you my insider secrets!”

No, I am not that kind of person. Nor do I expect to be. I am the kind of guy who provides you with some solid information you can use. I am the kind of guy who wants to document my journey online. I am the kind of guy who wants to give you something of value.

To that end, and in response to the unexpected introduction you just read, here is what I have up to this point.

That introduction is basically what my mind was going through at the time before I started making solid money online. Using allegory is as close as I can come to explaining my predicament at the time without giving away private information.

How did I do it? How did I make my first $100 online?

1. I searched for an Urgent Need

I thought to myself, “What do people need help with? How can I help them?” My thoughts stumbled across Facebook Fan Pages. The more I thought about it, the more I uncovered that I knew alot about Fan Pages that I could teach people and that this was something big enough for companies to have. 400 million targeted potential customers in one place with dirt cheap access to all of them and companies just flirting around the issue? I knew I had to do something.

2. I provided customers with the exact solution

I figured many businesses knew about Fan Pages, but had no idea how to create/maintain/promote one. I also knew of other companies who just jumped in without looking and stepped in a couple problem areas that could have been avoided if they had guidance.

3. I Planned In Advance

Not everything was planned out, but most of it was. I cannot stress this enough when starting out online. You need to have some key aspects planned out, such as name, upsell flow, content, offer, and price, before you start “officially working on it”.

4. I Started Free

When I started putting the wheels into action, people already started coming in, but I wasn’t even finished! I was still in the midst of making my skeleton, which was barely operating at this point, yet people were coming in. I knew at that moment that my idea had paid off and continued with renewed vigor.

5. I Strategically Positioned myself to take advantage of all the Free Traffic/Exposure

In the name, where it was located, and how I started, I strategically positioned everything to take advantage of all the free traffic out there on Facebook. I never spent a penny advertising, they all came to me. This particular step required some thinking on my end to make sure this idea worked, the rest came in all by itself naturally.

6. I converted from Free To Paid

I left the free option open for about two weeks, then shutdown the free offer I had going. I stuck a price tag on it and stuck it back on the shelf. I expected traffic to drop, which it did, but people still came and purchased based on the pricing structure I had planned out beforehand. I even made a cold sale over the phone, which left me energized for at least a week! (Gotta thank Wells Fargo for all that sales training when I was a teller)

7. I Upsold to a Premium Option

Yup, contained within my plan to get their foot in the door was the first small purchase and the subsequent value I added in the content I provided. I wanted to provide them with enough value that they would be happy and clamor for more. Some did, and I gave it to them. They are extremely happy, know exactly what to do, and are all fired up to handle what they have.

What do I do?

I Create Fan Pages.

What do you do?

Can I run my business for 30 days with nothing but an IPad?

What do you think? Can Paul do it?

I am personally interested in this challenge. Owing to the fact that the IPad is more of a content consumption device than anything else, this will be an interesting twist. I am curious Paul if you, being a content creator extraordinaire, will be able to pull it off with the apps available for the device. I know all the apps are there for you to use, but this will get interesting when you want to do video, take pictures, record your voice, and such. How will that work into your New Media Content Creation Model?

The interesting feature about the IPad, which I foreshadowed in my first post (The Apple iPad. Greatest thing since iSlicedBread?), is that Apple is purposely marketing this as a “content consumption device”. This device, as confused as you may be at this point, is for the content consumer not the content creator. Does anyone besides me and Paul notice this subtle shift?

If you want to keep tabs on what Paul is up to with this challenge and if it actually works, visit:

http://www.paulsipad.com/

It used to be completely different. Business in the 1900′s was all about how many levels we could advertise our product/service on. The internet has completely changed the game, as well as the rapid change in technology. Now we find ourselves with an unlimited amount of levels we can promote our company in. That game has changed and we need to quickly find where we can make the most impact and leverage it.

“But wait” you may be saying right now. “Isn’t marketing and advertising the same thing?” Well…yes, and no.

Advertising is a communication strategy used to persuade the person engaging in the “ad” to take action and to buy from that brand.

Marketing is the process by which companies create value for and build strong customer relationships to ensure brand loyalty and word of mouth distribution with their market base.

Notice the slight but important difference here. (Muaha! And you didn’t think I would flex my communication degree muscles while here in college eh?…)

What did the Industrial Revolution give us? A simpler way to mass produce goods and services at a lower cost. What did the Information Age give us? Well, it kicked down the doors of the Industrial Revolution and said, “Hey, I can do all of that and more for the cost of NOTHING!” What is the Social Media Revolution giving us? It stole the idea presented in the Information Age and scattered it to the far reaches of the globe while giving us the means to connect and share with anyone and everyone across the planet at virtually the speed of light.

What multi-level advertising was to the Industrial Revolution, multi-level marketing is to the Information Age and the Social Media Revolution. You need to stop persuading and start providing value for and building strong relationships with your customers. The persuading will work itself out in the customers’ mind once you have built that relationship.

I worked for the big boys. I know those who have taken this new approach and are now soaring on untold heights. I’ve also watched others flap their “multi-level advertising” wings in vain and plummet straight to the earth below. I know the reason why too, but that is for another post. You’ll have to wait for that to come out…

In the meantime, what are you doing to ensure your multi-level marketing strategy succeeds? Do you even have one?

I’m not giving you the rest of the pie until you’ve consumed your chunk of it and let me know what you thought of it below. You know I love hearing feedback from you guys…

It is a week after all the hubbub around the Apple press conference. Things have now cooled down a tad. Now its time for me to interject my thoughts…

Here they are:

The iPad is nothing more than a glorified IPhone, only bigger.

Yes, you heard me. That is what I think of it. Now, before you start calling me out on twitter, let me say a couple things. (Yes I know about all the jokes, but I am not posting them here)

First off, Scobles’ 16 year old kid agrees with me! Secondly, Paul Colligan, the tech guru that he is, ran the numbers on the iPad which proved to be quite interesting. Third, a college friend of mine has 27 reasons against the iPad. And finally, my good friend Harrison Painter thinks that the iPad will soon be coming to a WalMart near you!

Oh, and I haven’t even launched into the jokes yet! (Don’t worry, I’ll be breaking them out at the end)

In all honesty, lets go back to my original quote. It does everything the IPhone does, why do we need another thing to lug around? And by lug, I do mean lug! Don’t worry though, you won’t be getting flatter abs or bigger biceps with this thing anytime soon.

I am not convinced. I was really looking forward to what would happen with IPhone’s exclusivity deal with AT&T. And I REALLY didn’t like the fact that to add insult to injury that Apple goes ahead and throws in 3G on AT&T.

Now that you’ve heard the bad, here is the good side.

What I did like about the iPad was the option to have a bigger screen to see more detail. The 3G option is pretty neat as well. I did look at Verizon’s netbooks when they first came out but realized I would max the bandwidth usage in an hour with that I do, so the iPad just might be the answer to that problem. If only it had an iBall camera though!

I could see this device finally making use of the RPG gaming apps in the app store. Now you can actually see detail on a larger screen and have more options than be squished between your two thumbs.

I also liked the fact that this takes us another step in the digital media distribution medium. Looking forward to the day when we no longer read inewspapers, as “neat” as they once used to be, and iwalk around with a little tablet thing with all the news we need at the touch of our finger. That and the podcast options too.

If I do get my hands on the iPad, it very well may be version 2 or 3.0.

Those are my thoughts, what are yours?

iDone.

Geese fly in the classic v-shape formation, each leading one at a time, giving the leader time to rest as they fly south for the winter. Notice here that no one goose leads for the entire length, he’d be DEAD before they reached the destination! Nor do two of them duke it out for first place, it would waste too much energy.

Nope, they do it the most efficient way possible. Each goose leads for a time, then falls back to let another lead while he rests to wait his turn again. That way, they get to the destination that much faster and farther than possible by one or two geese.

Every single business in every industry works the exact same way. As a matter of fact, so do nations. Hint: I’ve been studying Western Civilization I for the past three weeks and it has been interesting to watch each nation rise to power, take the stage for a time, then fall back and give it to another nation.

Where are you in the formation? Comment below.

Then I grew up. I still enjoy watching the Super Bowl and can hold my own when it comes to debating over football teams and players, but that is just side knowledge. One of the reasons I watch the Super Bowl now is for the ads. Yes, you heard me right.

I enjoy watching the creativity of these companies as they duke it out on the big screen. For all practical purposes, there is a subliminal battle going on as well. I want to see which one understands people and the culture better, and what spin they can throw on it whether serious or humorous.

Mashable just posted an article on Pepsi dropping the Super Bowl Ads in favor of a $20M Social Media Campaign. Listen closely here. Anyone think the Social Media Revolution is still a fad, or are we going to wake up?

I am dead serious. Here we have a company who has been around for more than 100 years, and has been an integral part of the Super Bowl for the past 23 years. They know and have used all the traditional media and advertising outlets since the beginning. Want to know what made Pepsi big though? It was NONE of these ads. It was word-of-mouth. Think I’m kidding? Try the good old “Do you like Pepsi or Coke?” line on anyone. Better yet, talk to the company directly. You’ll get answers real fast.

If Pepsi can pull off their $20M social media campaign in 2010, that will show the world something. Something that needs to be taken seriously. Something that the nicely padded traditional agencies need to wake up to if they expect to have a job down the road. This monumentous shift will show the world that if a company that has been around for the past 100 years is taking this emerging industry seriously, you had better darn well too. Let me remind you that Burger King did pretty good with its whopper sacrifice in the beginning of 2009.

Thoughts? Think Pepsi can pull it off?

Oddly enough, the day started out with nothing planned, but I knew for a fact that I would see Avatar before the day was out. I was waiting on a call from the friends as to the exact day and time, and when I did check in with them they said it would be that very night. I may have been caught up in the hype, but trust me, this was a movie I wanted to see.

We went for the IMAX 3-D version of it. When I got there, a line had already formed for the movie. I got my big bulky glasses and waited in line with the rest of them, meeting my friends in the process. There was a slight buzz of excitement, but that was about it. Not long after, we were ushered into the theater. Yeah, it was sold out, but we got the best seats in the house. Smack in the middle, 4/5ths of the way up.

IMAX has a tendency to come out and punch you right in the face when the movie starts, and it did just that. The sound was gorgeous, though I wouldn’t have minded if they cranked the speakers up more. This was a movie I could get used to watching at full volume. The 3-d glasses were an annoyance at first, but I got used to them quickly. if I could give one recommendation on this movie, go for the IMAX 3-D version, you’ll thank me for it afterwards.

Avatar began. Now how do I rate movies? I rate them based on the story they tell and how accomplished they are in its telling. If they are a master storyteller and can weave a story of awe and wonder, that will usually do it for me. Graphics and music come second. James Cameron is one of those masters.

**Spoiler Alert!!!**

The Story

The story of Avatar goes as follows. Jake Sulley was sent to take his twin brothers place at a human base on the planet of Pandora. He had been in cryo for the past 6 years as they traveled from earth to this distant planet. They landed on Pandora, which if viewed in 3-D is absolutely gorgeous. The colors are vibrant, and it feels for all practical reasons like you are there. Very quickly we find out that Jake is handicapped, he can’t use his legs. The rest of the people there are marines, sent to defend and protect in this hostile planet. We are debriefed and learn there is an alien tribe, the Na’vi, who pretty much like to keep to themselves. Ah, but he isn’t fighting. He was sent as part of a project, Avatar, to find out about the Na’vi by actually becoming one. Apparently the base had been around for a while as they were able to mix human and Na’vi DNA together to form a hybrid. That hybrid was then controlled by the “driver”. Jake was one of the drivers. For all practical purposes then, when they linked their brains together, he became a Na’vi. He only looked like one though, he had no idea of anything else. One thing he did like though was that he could use his legs again.

We soon find the real reason the human base is here. There is a rich supply of unobtanium that they want to mine, but the Na’vi just happen to have their “Hometree” located there. Jake is to spend time with them and earn their trust in order to move them to a different location. But the Na’vi have been watching what Jake and the other drivers have been doing in the forest. He is separated from his group, and is almost killed until a Na’vi female by the name of Neytiri saves him. They bring him to their home, but on the way find out that he is unique. They decide not to kill him, and he is paired up with Neytiri to teach him everything about being Omaticaya, or one of The People. He does quite well at it, and soon becomes one of them at the same time winning her heart.

The tables turn here as Colonel Miles Quaritch is impatient with the slow progress. He decides to go and blow up Hometree, where all of the Na’vi live. Jake and the rest who are in their Avatars try to stop it, but are unsuccessful. Hometree is destroyed and some of the Na’vi die. Everything lies in ruin, but there is one place for the Na’vi to go. The Vault of Souls. Jake then does the most insane thing ever by capturing and riding one of the most feared flying beasts of Pandora. Then, with the help of the remaining Na’vi, he gathers as many tribes as can be found for battle. Colonel Miles Quaritch finds out that the Na’vi are amassing for battle, so he decides to pre-emptively attack first. Jake hears about this, and decides to use the surroundings to their advantage.

The battle for the survival of a civilization begins, and many Na’vi lives are lost. But in the end the human ships are destroyed and Colonel Miles Quaritch dies in the final battle scene. All of the humans are then driven off of Pandora, the base is shutdown, and Jake is then merged with his Avatar body with Neytiri at his side.

I can’t imagine watching this in regular now, the IMAX 3-D version was the crispest I have ever seen. Everything about Avatar gushes jaw-dropping graphics from the first moment until the end. Soundtrack was pretty good too. As a matter of fact, a friend gave me a copy and I am listening to it as I write this. This almost three hour long movie was definitely worth the time and cost.

Are you a Marketer? Read Jeremy Schoemaker’s Review on What Marketers can learn from Avatar.

My Story?

Lets just say that I come pretty darn close to Jake in this. Might not be the best or the strongest out there, but its the heart that counts and ultimately makes all the difference. This movie came at the exact moment in my life, its kind of creepy (in a good way) how it mirrors my own life struggles.

One thing in particular I enjoyed about the movie is that when Jake is learning the language of the Na’vi is that Neytiri keeps repeating to him, Oel ngáti kámeie (I See You). Jake is somewhat confused by this until he consults one of the other Avatar drivers, Norm, what this means. He finds out that it actually means “I see into you; I see through you; I see all of you; I understand you.” Don’t know why, but I particularly enjoy this line.

How does this apply to Social Media?

Apologies if its taken this long to get here, but if you are still reading, this is a very powerful point.

In Avatar, they soon find out that all of the trees seem to be connected on a subconscious level. The Na’vi know this. Interestingly enough, they can upload and download memories faster than the speed of light at certain groves of trees. Everything on Pandora seems to be connected to each other at 10¹² level with everything around it, each sharing even more then that with everything else both near and far, effectively having more connections than the human brain.

Think of the Internet in this way. Its unbelievable yet true at the same time. There are so many connections, no wonder its called the world wide web. Now with the emergence of social media, you are front and center to the most fundamental shift in communication. 1.7 billion people are now online and connected with each other quite frankly to the umpteenth level. Are you aware of how powerful this is? Tapped into this still blows my mind, as it should yours.

How long did it take the radio to reach all of us? 38 years. TV? 13 years. Internet? 4 years. Oh, and the amount of people coming online daily are growing by leaps and bounds unfathomable. What are you doing to connect and engage?

Pretty impressive eh? And this is just the beginning.

Want to read another post on How Avatar applies to Social Media?

Thoughts?

Official Avatar Movie

When you first start out in WoW, as its called by its rabidly loyal fan base (probably should write another post on that…), you begin at level one. Currently the maximum level you can reach is 80. You start out with quests which range from anything to having to hunt down and kill a thief to finding a stupid chicken that is running away from you while little fishies jump out of the water and bite you. The quests get harder and harder as time goes on, but at this point you are starting to catch on with the technicalities in how to do certain things. You are gradually leveling up, yet haven’t met anyone. Don’t worry, some of the quests become so hard that you cannot finish them without a guild or calling on friends you run across in game. Just like life eh?

Well, that’s not even the end of it. You’ve officially just started. Soon you may join a guild, think of your friend group in real life, befriend someone and become good friends, and start venturing into other things. Now you are starting out with responsibilities. Guild rules, friends, quests, better gear, and so the list starts to grow. Just like real life eh? (PS, the guys who built this game were pure geniuses are they not?)

Things start moving at a regular pace, additional things keep piling up on your plate and being consumed as you use them, and in general you are starting to enjoy this game very much. But I haven’t even shown you the kicker.

Level 80 is the most highly coveted level you can reach in WoW, hands down. Not only for bragging rights and pretty awesome gear (see pic), but a whole new world opens up to you. Hey, wait a minute, I thought this was my life you say? What are you talking about “new world”? Let me show you.

Not many people reach level 80 because they either become bored or frustrated. But those who break the little wheel of being a lowbie (what levels under 80 are called) find they can do whatever they want. Level 80 entitles you to gear unavailable anywhere else, and you get to run higher level instances. You also start out with Arena matches. Basically in arena matches you and your group are pitted against a group of equal score to see who will be the victor. Last man standing wins. Now comes the race of getting better gear to outdo your opponents, match up to battle a raid boss, and test your skills to see if you know your character inside and out. Not only that, but also the other characters you battle against and aid, inside and out. Level 80 is where everything becomes a game. Everything is moving at a faster pace and you become excited in trying to beat the challenge. Ha! But how does this apply to life you say?

This is very similar to those who are part of the middle class, and those who are rich. This is very similar to those who ultimately become successful in life, and those who settle for mediocrity. This is very similar to those who spin the wheels of the rat race, and those who create their own game. Do you see how this applies now? The fun begins at level 80. The fun begins when you break the cycle of the rat race and create your own game.

Are you game?

Learning anything new? Is there something you would like to learn about? Let me know! Hope you are sharing what you learn with others!

Finances: Why I cut up my Credit Card

Figured I’d snip temptation in the butt. Snip! Snip!

Business: Do you love your business?

An obvious question, but have you thought about it recently? Are you doing something you love to do?

Technology: Why Google Wave?

5 Reasons to watch Google Wave: http://www.macworld.com/article/143079/2009/10/googlewave.html

Here are a couple additional articles for you to have fun with!

New Super Computer? http://www.dailytech.com/ORNL+to+Use+NVIDIA+Fermi+to+Build+Next+Gen+Super+Computer/article16401.htm

Bing and Google: http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/173016/bing_and_google_success_on_their_own_terms.html

—> Lets continue the conversation, comment below or use these options:

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Woot! Passed my first CLEP test and excited to release another episode!

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End of the week episode, but that is because I was studying like crazy to pass my first CLEP test. I did, and now am back in the hotseat and ready to crank out another episode. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did creating it!

Finances: Maximize Income

Did you know the Internet can be your biggest leverage? I’d love to have a chat around this, feel free to connect!

Business: Don’t be like your Competition

3 Tips I want to bring up today:

1. No “Ipod Killer” (was supposed to be IPhone, but still applies)
2. No “I’m better than you”
3. No Trash talking your competition <— I HATE this kind of Marketing

Technology: FCC on Net Neutrality

More guidelines being created around Net Neutrality and whether preferential treatment can be shown to those who pay their way in. Here is the link to the article: http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/blogs/bizfeed/172290/fcc_to_take_a_stand_on_net_neutrality.html

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Intense week here at college, yet cranked out another episode. Enjoy…

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I actually had to go without lunch today in order to record this episode, but I am excited about the information I’m sharing with you. Feel free to share what you learn in this episode!

Finances: Trim Expenses

Setup a plan on a regular basis to evaluate your expenses. Cut back on those you do not need, leaving the most important ones. You will find you will have more money for yourself in the long run, as well as the short run.

Business: Daily Time Management

Are you running your company or is it running you? Listen to the solution to find out how to manage your daily to-do list.

Technology: Can you hear me?

AT&T is going to be ramping up coverage in cities to eliminate slow or crashing networks. http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090909-710137.html

Is Monopoly going to take over the world? Find out for yourself: http://www.themoneytimes.com/featured/20090909/monopoly-be-launched-online-using-google-maps-id-1083146.html

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On campus, so it may sound a tad different than normal. But I am pumped to release this episode even though I’m in the middle of college classes. Enjoy!

Finances, Business, and Technology: Jeff Mills on Outsourcing

Jeff Mills joins us again for another interview. The last show he was on was #26. Good tips today that you can apply in all three areas, I’d recommend taking notes.

Want to learn more about the Midwest Super Conference? http://taylormarek.com/midwestsuperconference <-This one gives you all the freebies!

Want to learn more about Jeff? http://jeffmills.com

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Yes, The podcast has finally hit 100 episodes! Not to mention I am heading off to college in exactly 2 days, so this is a jam-packed episode!

Finances: What are Assets?

Best explanation I heard? Assets make you Money. Are your assets doing that?

Business: Leslie Freebie

Today I interview Leslie of TheFreebieGuy.net regarding his remarkable success with the CaliStyle101.com Forum. I took notes for this one!

Why were we laughing in the middle of the interview over a “mini-Leslie”? Here’s why: http://www.entrepreneurs-journey.com/1486/what-can-expensive-tuna-teach-you-about-marketing/

Technology: Should I update to Windows 7?

Good article from Wired.com, weigh the pros and cons for yourself: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/08/7-reasons-to-avoid-windows-7/

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Big moves and changes being made in the Business and Technology sector, you will want to sit down and listen to this one.

Finances: What is your Question?

Now its your turn. Phone line and e-mail are open! 1-866-867-2860

Business: Derek Media

Today I interview Derek Johnson of Tatango on a HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT! http://derekmedia.net/!!

Technology: Facebook buys Friendfeed

Yeah, this changes the game once again. Here is the article: http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/aug2009/tc20090810_284380.htm?chan=technology_technology+index+page_top+stories

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You heard right, this is the third year anniversary edition of the Taylor Marek Podcast. I hope you are learning alot over all these years.

Finances: Economic Spending Tips

Here’s a tip for you in these economic times, why don’t you look into local events near you? They might be better then you thought…

Business: Derek Johnson

Today I interview Derek Johnson of Tatango. Good stuff in this interview and well worth a listen. ;D

Technology: VTechTV

I reviewed the VTechTV video podcast today. Interested in the latest in the gaming world? Then hop on over: http://vtechtv.com/

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Lets continue the conversation, comment below or use these options:

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If you are reading this, you are the first to know I am heading off to college in a matter of weeks. Absolutely PUMPED to release this episode. Oh yeah, this one has a blooper on the end as well!

Finances: What are your goals?

Have you set your financial Goals? Short-term and Long-term?

Business: Dale Beaumont Interview Part 2

This week wraps up the interview I had with Dale Beaumont. This one has the tip every entrepreneur should listen to.

I was introduced to Dale via Twitter. Once I read his personal site and found out he does video posts over at GetPublishedTV.com, I was hooked. This is a stellar interview and I would highly encourage you to take notes!

Technology: Something BIG is about to happen

Things are changing so fast that if you blink, you will miss it. The internet hasn’t even hit 20, and is on the verge of exploding into something we’ve never seen before. Can you feel it happening?

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Let this be the first video bashing I ever undertake. You can make a decision of whether you want to get a website designed from them after you’ve watched it, the choice is up to you. I personally will NEVER recommend them for any reason whatsoever.

Here is the link to the video and my personal story: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/1904450

Have you read why iNET Web’s Marketing Fails? I think you’ll be more than surprised.

Interview Special!

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It is smack in the middle of the night, and I am releasing this episode a couple days behind schedule. Oh well, such is my life eh? ;P

Finances: The Next Step

Bouncing off of Episode #95, You aren’t going anywhere if you are standing still. Have you taken that next step?

Business: Dale Beaumont Interview Part 1

I was introduced to Dale via Twitter. Once I read his personal site and found out he does video posts over at GetPublishedTV.com, I was hooked. Hear how he wrote his first book at the age of 19 and what inspired him to do so.

http://www.secretsexposed.com.au/

Technology: Google Chrome OS

Yup, Google has kicked in another door. This one being the OS on netbooks. Take a listen!

http://www.pcworld.com/article/168628/googles_chrome_os_may_fail_even_as_it_changes_computing_forever.html

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Lets continue the conversation, comment below or use these options:

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I’m a little behind on posting this, but this is roughly a years span from when I first talked about it, to some news coming out about it.

Panasonic is slashing the price on this gigantic tv. And not just by a couple hundred bucks. By at least 20 grand!

Finding itself in the odd position of selling a suddenly low-end 103-inch 1080p plasma, Panasonic has responded by cutting the price of the professional model TH-103PF10UK by $20,000 to a mere $50,000.

What do you guys think? Here is the link to the full story:

http://www.engadgethd.com/2009/05/08/panasonic-slashes-price-of-103-inch-plasma/

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Can’t wait to release this episode, though its in the midst of a festival right across my street. You’ll have to ignore the background noise, but awesome content regardless!

Sammie called in and left an audio comment. His question was regarding this post: America’s Got Talent Tips

Take a listen to find out!

Finances: Now is the Hour

You have all the training you need, but are you going to take action?

Business: 5 Branding Mistakes

Don’t make the same mistakes when building your brand.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/branding/article200980.html

Technology: Facebook breaks 250 million

Facebook has broken 250 million users and is crushing MySpace in terms of page views, you’ll want to listen to this one!

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9135566/Facebook_crashes_through_another_milestone_250M_users?taxonomyId=1

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Lets continue the conversation, comment below or use these options:

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Back to the regular show format, though I changed a couple things. Good to be back in the hotseat!

Finances: Who runs the boat?

Are you the captain of your ship or are you letting someone else run it? Do you have a crew and a guide? Listen to find out.

Business: For all you DIY’s

Are you a one-man show in your small business? You could be hampering your own growth and killing your business. Listen closely for a book recommendation.

Technology: CrunchPad

http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/handheld/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=218400545 – Michael Arrington of TechCrunch plans on releasing a new touch screen tablet to surf the web. Exciting news!

I blame @Barely, of Barely Podcasting, for skyping me right in the middle of my intro! Its in the blooper real at the end and it still has me in the ground in tears laughing when I listen to it…

Lets continue the conversation, comment below or use these options:

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I could make the same comparisons about Facebook, but for the sake of this post, I’m sticking with Twitter.

It has been my experience that as soon as something, anything, hits mainstream and is “talked up” all the time in the media means it is on the verge of dying out. Completely opposite of mainstream thought eh? Remember this point. Remember Furby? (And yes, I did have one for those wondering)

Want some examples? Remember MySpace? Probably not (I’m joking around ). I remember when Myspace was “talked up” all the time in mainstream news, whether it was good or bad. Sure, the media shined more of a negative light on myspace, which accounts for most of the traffic, but the instant myspace hit the airwaves and everybody heard about it is when it hit its high point. Its declining right now, and having to cut 25% of its staff.

I’m applying the same principle here. I remember back in the early stages of twitter how much fun it was… It was a tight-knit community of like-minded people openly sharing ideas and links across the internet. I miss that. Now I have to sift through untold thousands of twitter spam accounts and spam tweets and spam direct messages to communicate with my audience and friends.

As soon as twitter hit the traditional news outlets all chaos broke loose. Spammers saw this as an opportunity as well and jumped on it. New people, who had no idea what twitter was, jumped on the bus, but soon jumped right back off. Twitter is bloated, and something needs to be done.

What do you think needs to be done?

Lots of updates and changes to the site, and plenty stuffed into this episode.

First off, my start into the video realm came on May 19 with the launch of the TaylorMarek20 Vlog. Find the latest vlog/video of my making over at: http://www.youtube.com/taylormarek

This episode is a new twist, in that I have New Media instead of Finances for this episode. Take a listen and tell me what you think.

New Media: 13 Successful Blogging Tips.

http://www.problogger.net/archives/2009/06/10/successful-blogging/ – Darren Rowse and his 5000th blog post! Well worth a read.

Business: Business Podcasting

Have you looked at integrating a podcast into your business? If not, you’re missing out.

Technology: Bing Pre-Iphone

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10261061-2.html – Google’s Schmidt dings Bing

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10261260-1.html – Five of my favorite things about the Palm Pre

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-19512_7-10260521-233.html – iPhone OS 3.0 revisited

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10260010-1.html – Details about Apple’s new iPhone 3G S

Lets continue the conversation, comment below or use these options:

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What do you guys think? Don’t believe me? Go to this link: http://www.bing.com/search?q=how+to+override+vista+activation&FORM=AWRE

In this episode, learn whether you should take control of your money, if you should let your business go, and what kind of April Fools Day pranks went down on the internet.

My Podcast Alley feed! {pca-c501184f1dce9e6d9ffaeb0a846bff3a}

Links:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jsONW-3iv58PvU4osW9nhIevnJ2gD97A0FDO0

Continue the Conversation:

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• Or leave a comment below…

First off, taxing the internet period is just dumb. Its virtually impossible to enforce, and even if it was able to be, you would have the masses to deal with.

Second, how in the world is this going to work? Is this going on your internet bill, or is it being footed directly to the businesses?

Thirdly, if the US government was really having a problem with money, they would be cutting things back like crazy, like any normal business would, and re-organizing on the inside. Oh, but wait. What about the stimulus package that is supposed to help? Is that not doing anything?

Really guys, this is not creative thinking at all. I expect better of you or I will boot you out of office on your next term.

Now I’m not trying to make this into a political post, but this just makes me mad.

What can we learn about this?

To apply to your personal finances, watch your spending. If you don’t have the money, don’t buy it. If it seems money is escaping through a hole, find the hole and plug it. Do not make it bigger or try to hide it. If it is a legitimate thing that needs to be cut off, cut it off.

What about business? If there is some expense that is draining your business, cut it off. Also look through your entire business to see if there are areas you can improve and save money on.

What about Technology? Simply put, trying to tax something like downloads is impossible to enforce, it only makes the masses mad at you.

http://www.fox6now.com/news/sns-ap-wi-xgr–budgetwoes,0,5520090.story

What do you think about this? You’ve heard my end, and I would love to hear yours. Lets get a conversation going around this. Did I mention this will be signed into Wisconsin law this Friday (2-20)?

I originally wanted to post this early this month, but with my blog crashing and everything, never had a  chance to. Now I can, so here it is.

Ever wanted to see if you were getting what you paid for when it came to your ISP? Well, Google is working on a tool that will do just that. Now you can see if your ISP is throttling your internet or not. The project is called M-Lab, and withing a few clicks, all this information will be at your fingertips.

Here is a link to the article I found on it: http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9126997

Here is the link to M-Labs: http://www.measurementlab.net/

Most of us remember the days of Internet Explorer 6 (IE6). Some of us might still be using it. Some of us brave types moved to IE7 because of the “gadgets” Microsoft had added to it. Now IE8 is on the doorstep and will be walking in very soon. Why should I get IE8? Will it be better then IE7 or worse? Legitimate questions, I’ll be happy to answer.

Why should I get IE8? If you like “new stuff” and always being the first to get it, then join the waiting crowd. If you are skeptical about IE8, feel free to wait until the kinks are worked out and the majority starts climbing on.

Will it be better then IE7 or worse? The updates being made for IE8 are as follows: private browsing, improved security, and a new type of add-ons, called accelerators. Personal opinion in whether you want these features in your brower is up to you.  If you are worried about security, an update to IE8 might be very helpful and put your mind at ease.  If you like addons, IE8 has a new addon that you might find very handy.

Want my opinion? I may or may not update to IE8. I use Firefox all the time, so IE doesn’t play much on my computer. I occasionally use IE, Chrome, and Safari if I am testing a website and need to see the look from different browsers, but for the most part I don’t use it that much. The new addon Microsoft plans on adding to IE8 looks very interesting, and I might just update to play with it.

Here is an article for you to read about IE8′s upcoming final release: http://www.download.com/8301-2007_4-10149503-12.html

What are your thoughts? Comments are open.

Sun, Dec 28, 2008

Dear Podango Customers (Podcasters and Station Directors),

We at Podango believe that you, our customers, are our most valuable
asset. Given this belief, we have always done our best to be honest
and forthright in our dealings with you. The current uncertainties of
the financial market has affected many of us in this nation. As of
this morning, Podango is no longer immune to it’s effects. Our ability
to continue operations past the end of this year (2008) is in
question. We do not want any of you, or any of your shows to be
negatively affected by this uncertainty and so we are encouraging you
to begin taking all necessary steps to secure your data or begin
moving to another hosting provider.  On Monday we will have a more
definitive direction. As of today, the last day to move or secure your
data is December 31st, 2008. RSS feeds will need to be redirected by this
date as well. It is our hope that the events of the next few days will
allow us to continue providing you a service based upon a subscription
fee. Again, we will know more on Monday and you will be notified of
any changes to the above plan as soon as we are made aware of them.

Again I personally apologize for this notice of caution. We truly
appreciate your business.

Doug

Douglas G. Smith
President – Podango

And just like that, another AWESOME service ends. Doug and company, good luck in your future ventures, you will be missed. You had an awesome service unlike any other. Let me be the first to say I would be more than glad to pay for your service if I had to. You cut my podcast production in half, plus the automation you had built into it outdid ANY other companies product. If you could somehow find a way to make “Show Builder Lite” into an individual product and have it run on the podcasters server, rather then have a big huge server for all the files, I would jump right on it. Hear me on this, I would PAY for your service, it is that awesome!
Posts from a couple well known bloggers/podcasters:

http://www.paulcolligan.com/2008/12/27/about-podangos-demise-and-the-smart-podcasters-response/

http://mwgblog.com/archives/2008/12/26/podango-bankruptcy-looming/

http://www.geeknewscentral.com/archives/008489.html

This is the second post I have had to write regarding a service I use closing down, the first one being Radio Tail Ripple. Thoughts? Any parting wishes you want to make if you used Podango? Comments are open.

I had the Dell Inspiron 1720.  It was, in my opinion, the best laptop for the price and features. I was completely blown away by what I got. You are able to choose the color on your laptop, and I picked the midnight blue. When it first came, I unpacked it and started it up. It ran Windows Vista Home Edition. It started up very fast and I was able to start working on it very shortly with full internet connection from the wireless installed in it.

After a couple days, I installed several games on it, World of Warcraft and Star Wars Battlefront 2. Both games performed very well. I never had any errors, no lag time, no jumping graphics. Everything ran so smoothly I thought I had a 512MB video card in it, but that was only working off the integrated graphics card. I was very impressed by the integrated graphics card. It ran on 2GB memory with a 120GB hard drive.

The only thing I regret not adding to it was the integrated webcam. It would have worked perfectly with making several videos and my ustream.tv channel.

You would think I paid a pretty penny for this, but surprisingly I didn’t. I only payed roughly $950 for everything, including a wireless mouse in the same color as my laptop. If ever I were to get another laptop, this would be the one, unless I was swayed to another laptop. This laptop was a dream laptop, worked like a charm in every way for me, and blew me away every chance it got. I can’t say a bad thing about this laptop, literally.

Care to read the review CNET gave on it? http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops/dell-inspiron-1720/4505-3121_7-32471367.html

First, understand the categories.  Laptops are broken down into several categories.  Netbooks or mini-notebooks are inexpensive, lightweight, and portable but they are primarily designed only for light uses like basic e-mail, basic internet, and typing.  Ultraportables, or thin & lights, are larger than netbooks but in most cases just as light and more powerful.  You can use these notebooks for most tasks, but they can become expensive depending on the features you want in them.  Standard laptops can handle average tasks but usually aren’t good for high end uses that a gaming latop provides.  They tend to be medium sized and are generally cheaper than everything but a netbook.  Gaming Laptops are both feature packed and expensive, but they make up for these deficiencies by offering the largest screens and best overall power.

Second, think of your primary task.  When most people are asked what they need out of a laptop, they respond with some variant of “I just need it to work”.  But your life will be much easier if you just decide what one thing you’re buying the laptop for more than anything else.  Are you buying one because you’ve always wanted to blog from a coffeeshop?  Then make sure you get something portable, either a netbook or an ultraportable, and be willing to shell out for style points so you can show off.  Are you looking for something just to go online and check your mail?  Then make sure you get something inexpensive, either a netbook if you can handle the small screen or a standard if you can’t.  Or did you want to play new games and watch HD videos?  That’s more in line with a gaming laptop.  As you can see, understanding the categories is like understanding what primary task each genre of laptop is designed for.  Simply match up your own with the category, and you’ve already narrowed your search down tremendously.

As for the details, feel free to experiment.  Most vendor websites, from Toshiba laptops to Dell laptops to Lenovo laptops and others, are informative and offer great customizability.  Each vendor will have a series of similarly labeled laptops devoted to a single category, and since you already know yours you’ll know which to pick.  Then by going through the process of choosing amongst all the available features a few times, you’ll gain an understanding of what choices you can make and what they’re worth.  When all is said and done, you’ll be able to make a more informed decision and know you’re getting your money’s worth.

Here are a couple places you can visit to help you in the quest for that “perfect laptop”:

http://laptoplogic.com/laptop-finder/

http://laptoplogic.com/dell-laptops/

http://laptoplogic.com/hp-laptops/

http://laptoplogic.com/toshiba-laptops/

Comments are open, and if you have questions, feel free to ask them. I will be more than happy to help you.

I’m finally back on track writing. What I thought would be a simple update from wordpress 2.5 to 2.7 on my site turned into a couple weeks of error messages. Not to mention Christmas came and went in the mix.  I wanted to write during that time, especially during the Christmas and New Years season, but the errors on my site prevented me from doing that. I basically crashed my site, had to figure out what was wrong, find where in the “code” it was incorrect, then fix it. But couple that with it crashing again, and calling tech support numerous times to find the problem and that is where you get the couple weeks from. It is fixed now, and wordpress 2.7 is running beautifully now. I am impressed with what the guys at wordpress have done with this version and very impressed.

Just thought I would write this post to let you know that you can start expecting your regular posts from me. See you tomorrow (or later in the day if I decide to write another post )!

Remember how long it took Apple to update its software? I am glad Research In Motion, the phone’s maker, is moving much quicker then that with updates.

Interesting fact I found, when the Storm was released, there were people waiting in line to buy them, just like the IPhone…

Legitimate Competition? Another hype? What do you think? Comments are open.

Full article can be found here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28158098/from/ET/

Acer! This quarter they gained a 38.3% share in this newly developing market. In second place is Asus with a 30.3% market share.

What are “mini-laptops”? They are a smaller version of the regular laptop computer, run either windows XP or linux, and are mainly used for e-mail and web browsing. Asus created the first mini-laptop, called a “netbook”, in late 2007.

Here is the link to the full article: http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/desktop/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212300571&subSection=All+Stories

You heard me right. Apple is planning on coming out with a $99 IPhone by year’s end (2008).

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will begin selling Apple Inc.’s iPhone later this month, employees at several stores in the discount retail chain said today.

Of course, this is just an “official announcement”, so there is not much information beyond that. It could very well be a 4GB model of the IPhone, with a 2 year agreement, but that is just rumor. What do you think about this move? Comments are open.

Want dibs on the full article? Here it is:
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9122880&intsrc=news_ts_head

What was the number one question you had when you started podcasting?

I am planning on writing an ebook based on that question. Something that not only you can use to look back on to remember, but also to share with others so that they don’t have to search for the answer. Feel free to comment below, otherwise I have posted the question into the following forums below…

Podcast Pickle Forums: http://www.podcastpickle.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=52163

Podcast Alley Forums: http://www.podcastalley.com/forum/showthread.php?t=145198

Thought this might be up your alley if you are a computer geek like I am.

IBM, which usually makes PC’s for Microsoft, has now come out with a new line of computers. They are now offering Linux for the PC instead of the default Windows. According to IBM, “…the system can save businesses $500 to $800 per user on Microsoft software licenses and an additional $258 per user “since there is no need to upgrade hardware to support Windows Vista and Office…”

My personal take on this? I am liking where the technology is heading, more open-source. Why? I seem to like the “anybody can improve” line of open-source. It also is harder for hackers to get into, in my opinion, as many people are working and improving the software. Whereas Microsoft and Apple have to worry about someone hacking into their “top secret” information and messing up the OS, Linux seems to not worry about it. The multitude of people working on Linux and improving it is impressive, and is shown by the quality of the OS. I toyed around with Red Hat, a flavor of Linux, in my younger years. It was a bit more code oriented, but I liked the feel and way the OS handled itself. More recently I have looked into Ubuntu, which I like alot more than Red Hat. First thing that blew me away, my jaw actually dropped, in Ubuntu was the look of it. Take a look for yourself if you are interested: http://www.ubuntu.com/

To read the full article about IBM offering a Linux line of PC’s, go to: http://www.informationweek.com/news/software/open_source/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212202109&subSection=Hosted+Software

Did you know that Google and Yahoo were planning on launching a search engine deal? Yahoo would have had Google search results appear alongside Yahoo’s search results if everything went as planned. It was shortly called off before the Dept. of Justice was able to file an antitrust complaint.

Read more here: http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9122498&intsrc=hm_list

I am looking forward to the new possibilities this can bring to the table. What are your thoughts on this?

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=anatomy-of-a-social-hack
http://www.geeknewscentral.com/archives/008190.html

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.geeknewscentral.com/archives/008168.html -Todd Cochrane on Alexa Rankings
Website Flipping Resources:
http://www.entrepreneurs-journey.com/275/how-to-buy-a-website-and-flip-it-for-profit/
http://marketplace.sitepoint.com
http://www.outsourcesecretsrevealed.com/flipit

If you have any questions, comments, ideas, or need help:
Call 1-866-TMP-2860
E-mail me using the form found at http://taylormarek.com/blog/contactme
Visit the Forums at http://www.taylormarek.com/forum
Or leave a comment below…

Update: For some odd reason, linking this file to be included in the podcast keeps crashing the feed, so I decided to link directly to it instead:

Taylor Marek Podcast #89

For Your Homework, head on out to #28: Taylor Marek Podcast #85

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.geeknewscentral.com/archives/008148.html
http://thenextweb.org/2008/08/04/feedburner-hack-how-to-get-2500-subscribers-overnight-video/

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

In today’s episode you will learn about the Economic Stimulus checks, and why I don’t think they will work. For Business, you will learn to lead the pack in your marketing ventures. And for Technology, you will hear about the long awaited New Media Expo that will be happening in August. I am attending and if you are going to be attending, let me know and we might be able to get a meetup going. Looking forward to seeing you there. Stay current on what is happening by staying tuned to the Podcast Brothers: http://newmediaexpo.com/podcastbros/permalinks/PodcastBrothers_2008-05-15.htm

Looking on staying current on the NME conference schedule? Here’s the link: http://www.newmediaexpo.com/conference.htm

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.kiplinger.com/features/archives/2008/05/rebate_questions_and_answers.html
http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/marketingcolumnistkimtgordon/article194170.html
http://www.newmediaexpo.com

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

In today’s episode you will learn about how credit cards can eat you alive for Finances. For Business, will you pick a sales staff or invest in advertising, and for Technology, I give an update on the Google/Viacom lawsuit and how Dell was caught red-handed.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://askfsb.blogs.fsb.cnn.com/2008/05/23/taking-your-web-design-firm-to-the-next-level/
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/google/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=208400312
http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/desktop/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=208400410

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

Hello,

We’ve decided to end our free statistics service, RadioTail Ripple. It’s
been a pleasure having you on our system and working with so many fine
podcasters.

As of the end of this month, we’ll stop generating statistics for your
podcast. We will continue to forward the redirects to your media files
for the foreseeable future.

I’ve used RadioTail Ripple on my own podcast (www.venturevoice.com), so
I’d like to assure you that we’ll do everything possible to make this
easy for you.

Your listeners will not notice any change because we will continue to
forward the old Ripple redirects to your podcast.

We recommend you consider looking into using another metrics service
such as FeedBurner, PodTrac or Libsyn.

(All the) Best,

Greg

Wow. Just like that, gone is another podcast statistics service. I actually enjoyed Ripple over many others because of the total downloads button you can watch. Also, redirecting it through Ripple is very easy compared to some other stat tracking services.

I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors, Greg. I shall miss the excellent service you and your team developed.

Special Announcement: Today is my Golden Birthday!

In today’s episode you will figure out how fast you want your money in Finances. For Business, you will learn about the best advertisement a business can have. And for Technology you will learn more about the Intel Quad-Core as well as Panasonic’s Plasma TV’s.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://crave.cnet.com/8301-1_105-9947555-1.html
http://crave.cnet.com/8301-1_105-9947208-1.html
Want an even bigger picture to look at? Here is the link

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860. You can also send me an e-mail or Post a comment below.

In today’s episode you will learn from mistakes for Finances. In Business, you will learn about a sense of urgency. And for Technology, you will learn about the Microsoft Windows XP update to SP3.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:

http://www.news.com/8301-13860_3-9941687-56.html?tag=nefd.top

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

In today’s episode you will be challenged with how much you can live on, find out Why I’m not a salesman, and hear from the people at Kindo.com. Sneak Peek! Next week I will show you how urgency can help make the sale for Business.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/06/technology/06yang.html

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or
to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

In today’s episode I teach you about the importance on how to manage your finances, the problem around business hackers, and the possible merger of Microsoft and Yahoo. Sneak Peek! Next week I will be interviewing the founders of Kindo.com

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://money.cnn.com/2008/04/23/smbusiness/whos_stealing_intro.fsb/index.htm?postversion=2008042809
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5g9cE_gI-aemyNxZQb7YOBC3rsNlQD90B29FG2

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

Stay tuned……

In today’s episode I teach you about compounding, why you have to sell, and update you about the problem with Skype and Ebay.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.investopedia.com/university/beginner/beginner2.asp
http://www.news.com/eBay-What-to-do-with-Skype/2100-7352_3-6211053.html

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

In today’s episode I reveal what investing is. In Business you will gain some tips to improving your sales presentation. Technology announces Halo 3 along with some inside information.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.investopedia.com/university/beginner/beginner1.asp
http://www.lifespy.com/2007/tips-for-an-effective-sales-presentation/
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20944792/

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

In today’s episode I show how to survive a layoff. In Business you will find out about the 10 Steps to a Sucessful Online Empire. Technology talks about Intel on the lookout.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.worktree.com/newsletter/surviving-a-layoff.html

http://www.instigatorblog.com/10-steps-to-building-an-online-media-empire/2007/09/14/

http://www.news.com/Intel+on+lookout+for+next+big+thing/2100-1006_3-6208098.html?tag=nefd.top

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

In today’s episode I talk about Investing 101 for Finances. In Business you will find out about going public. And Technology talks about the AMD Barcelona chip.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.investopedia.com/university/beginner/
http://www.entrepreneur.com/growyourbusiness/howtoguides/article81394.html
http://www.news.com/AMDs+Barcelona+not+a+savior%2C+yet/2100-1006_3-6206898.html

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

In today’s episode I reveal that sales tax does go on vacation. In Business you will find out about the confessions of a serial entrepreneur. And Technology talks about the IPhone unlocking software.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/06/pf/taxes/taxbreak_shopping/index.htm?postversion=2007080613

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/may2007/sb20070507_959441.htm?chan=search

http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/09/iphone-unlockin.html

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

The Twitter team must have had a Red Bull machine installed at the offices, because suddenly they’re launching new stuff left and right.

These look like some very interesting features:

1. Search – allow search via name or other profile information (location, bio, and url).

2. Gmail import – Find and invite friends from gmail.

3. Explore – a list some of the tools people can use to interact with Twitter off the site itself.

4.Twitter Blocks – “an abstract way to navigate your Twitter neighborhood or block.”

Read more by following the link. Like what you see? Feel free to comment.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/08/30/new-twitter-visualization-tools-twitter-blocks-on-friday-morning/

NBC Universal, unable to come to an agreement with Apple on pricing, has decided not to renew its contract to sell digital downloads of television shows on iTunes.

Wow. Where did this come from? Is it all about money or does NBC not realize the loss they will cause to themselves? I won’t get into this issue too much, but read the article for yourself and post your comments.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/31/technology/31NBC.html

What do you think of this? Pretty neat huh?

I was just surfing the web when I ran across it. Take a look for yourself and watch the video to get the full effect:
http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/31/researchers-develop-a-360-degree-holographic-display/

Links:
Review for Riches Contest

In today’s episode I answer “Should you buy with cash”. In Business you will find out how to reward employees. And Technology talks about 64-Core Chips.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://entrepreneur.com/humanresources/compensationandbenefits/article171630.html
http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2007/08/20/64_core_chip_promises_to_be_a_big_leap_ahead/

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

My computer is suffering from an extreme case of BSOD’s (Blue Screen of Death) relating to driver and memory errors. It is bad enough that I had to take it into a local computer shop for repair. If you know a solution and might be able to help me, feel free to contact me.

As soon as this problem is fixed, the podcast will be back on track. Thanks for understanding.

Update: Everything is back to normal, ignore this post.

Links:
Podcast Ready Contest
Review for Riches Contest

In today’s episode I uncover a myth about finances. In Business you will find out how to create an employee manual. Technology unveils a new website called YouMail.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://www.work.com/creating-an-employee-manual-320/
http://youmail.com/login/corp/learnMore.do

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

Links:
Taylor Marek Podcast Forums – Down right now, seems whenever I touch them I break something
TMP College Fund

In today’s episode I show you how to cover your bases. In Business you will find out about a new kind of branding. And Technology dwells on how satisfied PC users are.

The articles used in today’s show can be found at:
http://news.com.com/Customer+satisfaction+down+among+PC+buyers/2100-1011_3-6202366.html

If you have any questions, comments, or ideas about anything mentioned during the show, or to give your two-cents on a topic, call our toll-free line at 1-866-TMP-2860.

TechNewsGadget is the podcast dedicated to bringing you the latest in Tech News and Product Reviews.
http://technewsgadget.mevio.com