Thursday, 11 November 2010
The Internet; Simplify or die!
It is truly amazing what you can do with the Internet these days. The ways we keep abreast of subjects of interest and the options to disseminate information has been completely revolutionised over the last 15 years. But a by-product of revolution is complexity, with a myriad of different specialised technologies, each with their own way of doing things and different user interfaces that need to be used. With all this technology and resulting fragmentation, complexity escalates at an unmanageable rate. So, how do you turn the tables and use the escalation of the Internet to your advantage?
If you break Internet activity down to its most basic activities, i.e. consuming and providing information, you can then employ technology to help harness the power of the net. Let’s examine these basic functions to see what can be done to make your Internet usage more efficient.
Information consumption- We all know the Internet is rich with information. All you have to do is locate what you are looking for, and then regularly monitor the sources you have selected to keep up with the data. While finding information is a well trodden path, monitoring multiple sources of regular information can be a real pain; this is one first places you can use technology to make your life bit easier. For example, you can use RSS feeds which are provided free of charge by most newsworthy sites and you can aggregate multiple information sources into a single page view. In essence, you can monitor the news from multiple websites wiht a single click.
Standard RSS aggregation is the tip of the iceberg. Just look at the new Rockmelt Browser, it takes browser based data aggregation to a new level, allowing you to integrate numerous social networks into a browser pane. This allows you to monitor even more diverse sources of information using the same viewer.
Providing information- From interacting with information sources to running your own website, the key to efficiency is simplicity! Just like consuming information, if you have to go to 10 different places and need to use a different interface to update information for each location, it will be extremely time consuming and often frustrating. The same applies to having consistent interfaces for the tools you use for different Internet functions, including updating your website or sending a newsletter to one of your mailing groups.
At Activate Media, we strive to provide our customers with the maximum leverage for their Internet activities. We have developed numerous plug-in components for our primary Content Management System, which brings different functions together under one roof, with a consistent user interface. A good example of one of the tools we have developed is BlogExtend™, which allows our users to instantly broadcast there blog and news entries to various social media and blog sites including Facebook, Twitter, Blogger and Linked in with just the click of one button.
So, while the Internet certainly grows more complex every day, the tools for overcoming this vast sprawling mass of data are also becoming increasingly powerful. But, if you do not embrace the tools, you fall further and further behind. The key is actively thinking about, and engaging with opportunity of how you use technology to your advantage; consolidating, simplifying and in the end making your Internet experience more efficient.
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