PANDORA

It’s like they know me! Enter the name of a band, song or genre , and Pandora’s intuitive system will play tunes that have similar musical qualities to your selection.

Registering entitles you to 100 “stations” and the ability to bookmark songs or people. Album art and a blurb about the band accompanies each track.

The recently launched Pandora One offers higher audio quality, a five-hour timeout period (if you don’t interact with Pandora, the system will auto-pause) and no ads for $36 a year. The free version peppers in audio and video ads, and while they definitely interrupt the flow, they are certainly not deal breakers.

BLIP.FM

Designed to allow anyone to be a virtual DJ, Blip.fm allows you to tell the world what you are listening to. A blip creates a short URL to a song that is accompanied with a brief message. This information is broadcast to your friends or shared on Twitter.

Even though I’m not big on ‘blipping,’ I do use the site to pull up songs I want to listen to. A preview button next to each track will actually enable a song to play all the way through. The availability of tracks is a bit unpredictable, as the system pulls songs from a variiety of servers and Websites – including YouTube.

This site is for folks who want to impress their friends by showing off their DJ skills or for people who want access to a song in a flash.

MUSICOVERY

As the name implies, this is another music recommendation engine. What’s unique is that playlists can be built based on your mood. Feeling like a dark mix from the 70s or an energetic mix from the 90s? Use the filtering system to customize your music. Free users can ban songs they hate and enjoy lo-fo streams.

A graphical interface based on Liveplasma technology. The Liveplasma technology creates a graphical map of possible tastes, with songs most likely to please the user appearing closer to the current song on the visual map than songs less similar.

LAST.FM

Last.fm recommends music, videos and concerts based on what you listen to. The system registers every track that you play and stores that information behind your profile. It can then recommend similar songs – and people who have alike taste.

Music can be recommended o a friend, tagged or commented on, all impacting the song’s importance on the site. The more positively a track is received the higher up the Last.fm charts it moves, resulting in greater exposure. With Last.fm, you have the power to help decide what’s hot and what’s not.

DIZZLER

Dizzler, the self-proclaimed media tornado is a search engine for music tracks, music videos and song lyrics. Type in what you are looking for and you will be presented with an opportunity to stream the song for free, add it to your playlist (free registration required), view lyrics, share with a friend or (via Thumbplay) purchase the ringtone. The information comes from public searches but all URLs are encrypted to protect the identity of the content source.

The site also hosts chat rooms devoted to your favorite artists as well as links to news, photos and tour dates.

Spotify.com – Listen for free (ad-supported), purchase a Day Pass (24 hours ad free) or subscribe for the Premium program.

MP3.com – Listen online or purchase tunes for download. My favorite feature is the “Random Artist” button on the top toolbar.

Lala.com – All the music you could ever want, playable in a web browser. Over 7 millions songs, the first 25 for free.

Slacker.com – Personalized radio service featuring over 100 expert-programmed genre stations and the ability to create your own.

Where are you listening to music on the Web?

Yawn. Snore. Boring!

Thankfully she has an open mind and I was able to introduce her to screencasts: simple videos that have the ability to show what is happening on the computer screen. They can be recorded in advance and some neat bells and whistles can be added. The best part is that many of these tools are free.

ScreenToaster

ScreenToaster is compatible with Windows, Mac OS X and Linux and is 100% Web-based. Simply approve a Java Applet to run and you can capture screen actions with a single click.

The keyboard command of ‘ALT + S’ will record/pause your presentation. Choose to record the full screen or designate a specific area, depending on what you are looking to illustrate.

Bonus features include the ability to add subtitles, an option to remove/replace audio and control over a screencap preview.

Upon completion of your recording, you can upload the file to ScreenToaster for the highest resolution; send it to YouTube for a more compressed version. Videos can also be saved locally as a Quicktime file or Flash (in beta).

Social networking: E-mail screencasts to a friend, share them across all the usual networks, generate a URL or embed directly on your site.

FreeScreencast

FreeScreencast allows you to create Flash-based screencasts for free after downloading the required screecast recorder. The software is ad-free and allows you to publish to the internet in seconds.

Embed your screencast in your website or blog.

Screencast-O-Matic

All of the tools listed here allow you to not only create screencasts, but to view other people’s casts as well. Screencast-O-Matic does this better than most by letting the user search for videos in dozens of different languages.

To record, approve the Java applet and you are off and running.

Videos can be placed into “channels” which users create. These channels generate a pop-up window or an embeddable box that let viewers add videos into the channel. So for example, we could create a Rotorblog Channel and ask our wonderful readers to submit screencasts.

Jing

Jing is free but requires a download. The software, which adds visuals to your online conversation, works on both Windows and Macs.

For a maximum of five minutes, Jing will record all of the actions that take place on your screen. If your computer is mic’d up, you can record audio simultaneously.

Uploaded videos can be accessed via unique URL or embedded on a Web site.

Jing’s functions expand beyond screencasts. You can also use the service to put your “Print Screen” button to shame. Select a portion of the screen, grab an image and then mark it up with text boxes, arrows, highlights or rectangles. The image can then be one-clicked over to Screencast.com, Flickr, Twitter or just about anywhere.

A paid version, known as Jing Pro lets you sync videos with Vimeo and Viddler, record MP4 screencasts and eliminate “Jing” labeling from your final product.

Honorable Mention

Capture Fox

If you’re a Firefox user, there is a great add-on that records your screen frame-by-frame. Add your voice and download as an .AVI file. Since it works within the browser, it is not OS dependent.

Camtasia Studio

For $299 you can record onscreen activity, edit it and share with the world.

Adobe Captivate

For $799 you can create professional-looking eLearning content with advanced interactivity, software and scenario simulations, quizzes, and other engaging experiences — no programming or multimedia skills required.

In my humble opinion, I do not see the need to pay for any of these tools, unless you are really looking to WOW an audience. My fall back choice is ScreenToaster. It has proven to be a consistent and useful with excellent uptime.

Passpack

Passpack offers centralized storage for personal passwords, logins and links. You can even store private data. The site is accessible from anywhere there is an Internet connection. A 1-click login lets you enter your favorite sites without having to type.

Keywallet

Browser independent and easy to use, Keywallet works with all form types and Windows operating systems in order to encrypt your private data. There is no spyware or ad-ware and there are cool skins that can be added to give the program a unique look. An extra layer of protection has the program capture the key strokes of your login information. After that, you simpy drag and drop your user name and password to fill out any login boxes or forms.

Clipperz

With nothing to install, Clipperz is a password manager that offers an extra layer of encryption, meaning that the bad guys can’t access your login credentials. The site encourages you to use their service for all sensitive data – not just the stuff that’s found online. (i.e. – Security system password, secret notes, etc.) There is also an offline version which allows you to access the system sans Web connection. A Firefox app is available as well.

MySafeBox

MySafeBox operates on the premise that you should never trust anyone with your passwords – not even them. That is why rather than store your password, the site encourages you to store your “secret question” or password hint data. Stored info is placed into an encrypted database and is not seen by any other human eyes. Watch a demo.

Mitto

Mitto is Latin for “to send.” While we’re not 100% sure if that’s a great name for a free password manager, we do like the simple/free service. You can access your passwords securely from any computer, organize them with tags, and securely share them with trusted friends.

Handy Password

Part password manager, part form filler, part bookmark manager, Handy Password is designed to improve the quality of your Web browsing experience. the add-on can be hooked into IE or Firefox and will ensure that you never forget a password again. For under $30 (there is a free trial), you can download the USB Flash drive manager which includes a random password generator.

RoboForm

With over 22 million downloads, Roboform touts itself as the “#1 downloaded password manager.” The program allows you to create a single master password, meaning that even if you have 20 different sets of login information, you only need to remember a single password. Powerful AES encryption securely stores your user names, passwords and other information stored on your computer.

I know many people reading this blog are well under 40. But let me ask…do you find your memory getting worse with each passing year? I do! I’m lucky I remember the birthdays of those I love, let alone my login information for some random social networking iste I signed up for 3 years ago.

When someone truly know who you are, they better understand the things you will enjoy – way better than a ‘reviewer’ ever could.

When it comes to music and movies, Filtersage asks a simple question: What does it remind you of?

Relying on groups of strangers who have similar interests, the site aims to introduce you to movies and music from yesterday that are similar to your faves from today.

For example here are two of my own recommendations…

If you like the Goo Goo Dolls…try The Replacements.
If you dig There’s About Mary…watch The Sweetest Thing.

When you connect arts from the past with the present, you can truly appreciate how an artist was influenced along the way.

Filtersage is fun because you can add your two cents to existing pairings or create your own.

This is a great way to filter through new releases to see if an album or movie is worth your time. After all, with so much media floating around out there, you HAVE to be somewhat selective.

Rounding out the site experience are trailers and music videos, enabling you to check certain media out on the spot.

Howsthe.com is a Website that allows you to monitor your Web properties. Enter in the URL you would like the site to track and select the interval in which you would like the site checked. A free plan, which gives you the ability to monitor three Websites, lets you choose between 5 minutes and 1 hour. You can set e-mail or SMS notification to send downtime notifications as the happen, every six hours or once a day.

Howsthe.com will regularly check your Website, and if they receive a code outside of the normal 200 – 300 HTTP status codes, you’ll know about it.

The site has another useful function as well. You can have Howsthe.com search the content of a Website for specific keywords or phrases.

This can prevent false positives on a website that is having database issues or application errors, the website my be reachable but is displaying errors. With keyword search you can require that the content of the website always includes this keyword or phrase.

There are two U.S.-based servers that can perform a Website “quick check” in under a second. This is a useful tool if you’d like to check a Websites without going through the free registration process.

TweetTest is trying to change our minds…and they just might do it!

There is no registration or password required. Simply enter your Twitter handle and you can begin to play a series of games and take several tests based on your Twitter activity.

I got off to a horrible start. For example…

Which Friend has this bio:
“this is my subgrouping of twitter career people I follow.”

I was given several choices – and failed miserably!

Since I came to the conclusion that I don’t know the people I’m following as well as I should, I move on to Picture Shuffle. This is a game where you slide pieces of a picture – in this case one of you tweets – and have to put them in the correct order so the image makes sense. Your score is determined by the number of moves and the time it takes you to solve the puzzle.

Finally, a game I’m not that bad at!

I moved on to Memory. This is where you are shown a grid of hidden squares. Each time you click on one, an image of one of the people you are following is shown. You must then find the matching pairs. The quicker you put 1 + 1 together, the higher your score.

Other fun games include Guess Whose Tweet, where you pick out the one that doesn’t belong; Guess the bio; Or Tweet-Lib, where you must differentiate between real and fake tweets from one of the people you are following.

There are a few too many ads on teh site, but overall, it’s a fun way to pass some Twitter time.

Coupling style-based content with a shopping community creates an experience that is unique to each user. Based on your preferences and history, you are presented with items (clothes, accessories, beauty products) that the system has selected for you. These can be purchased online 24/7.

As you browse the style network, if you see someone who has a style you are fond of, you can select them so that they begin to influence the things you see on the site…and eventually wear.

“My Forecast” is a 7 day outlook that includes weather and events, allowing you to select the right fashion for the coming week.

The “15 Minutes of Fame” section can get your fashion prowess featured on the Website.

Videos, fashion news, and tons of images and deals round out StyleCaster.

The site is currently in beta and you can register using your Facebook credentials.

The social network helps personalize and enhance your shopping experience. Give it a try!

I recently professed my love for CC Betty. Now it looks like I have another hottie on my hands with Alice…she even makes sure I’ll never run out of ketchup or toilet paper again!

The free service has you search and add your favorite products to virtual shelves. When the system thinks you’re getting close to running out of an item, you will receive a reminder. Alice will also share relevant coupons and discounts with you. Shipping directly to your front door is free, meaning no need to roll around a wobbly cart as you dodge seniors.

Here’s an example as how it works. Let’s say I’m shopping for GUM. Alice reveals that she currently carries 56 varieties and has 7 coupons available. When I locate the product I want (Orbitz Peppermint) I label it and select how many I want. I then tell the system when to remind me to order more.

Products can be sorted by brand, price, coupon availability, bargains and even if they are “green.”

There is a social networking element to the site too. In the “neighborhood” you can chat, make friends and share information about your favorite products.

The homepage will monitor how much money you have saved with coupons, how many products are in your cart, the average amount of money spent, your total # of shipments and the # of products Alice thinks it’s time for you to reorder. There are also recommended deals which relate to your product history.

If you have any doubt that Alice will help you pinch those pennies, just click on the site’s “Budgeting” tab. Here you will see a chart that compares average purchases with those made by the Alice community.

Launching today is fitorbit, a new Website that aims to level the playing field, making personal trainers available to the masses. What sets the site apart is that you can actually filter personal trainers to find one that best suits your goals, lifestyle and preferences.

As someone who has walked in and out of several gyms during his life, this sounds like a great concept. I often find that I have nothing in common with the trainers I’ve been paired up with. And as hard as I’ve tried to outline MY goals, I have found the trainer always reverts back to what THEY know or want for me.

Once you find a trainer to your liking, together, you develop a course of action. On a daily basis you will receive daily encouragement from your trainer and be able to offer feedback.

To get started you tell fitorbit what you are looking to work on (weight loss, strength training, injury recovery, etc.). Tell the system what areas of your body you want to target and a little about the lifestyle you lead. Pick your five favorite physical activities and your five least favorite.

You can either filter through to find a personal trainer match or you can browse through a list and pick your own.

As you would imagine, a personal trainer does not come cheap – though the virtual type will set you back a lot less than an in-gym option. If you’re willing to commit for 6 months, you can expect to pay around $10 a week. A single week can cost up to $29.99.

A small price to pay for health, nutrition and general well-being, no?

Each day new Twitter apps appear that seem to apply the micro-blogging formats to all sorts of daily chores and tasks. For all of your corporate cogs out there, I’m willing to bet that over the past year you have participated in a Webinar. You know the drill – live meetings and/or presentations are held via the Internet.

ParaTweet, powered by Adobe AIR, allows organizations to harness the power of Twitter for any conference, concert, barcamp, nightclub, or church.

For approximately $299 a month you can add live moderation, auto-filtering and the ability to handle one event at a time.

The way it works is that two screens are on display, one showing the ParaTweet app and the other showing the moderation pane.

Participants can ask questions by posting a query that includes a predetermined #hashtag. (For example, #rotorblog)

ParaTweet is ideal for question and answer sessions. It also has a neat secondary function which is to allow attendees to communicate after a conference or session is over.

The site has been live since late April. It will be interesting to see how many organizations/individuals are willing to invest a few hundred dollars on a Twitter app – no matter how useful it may or may not be.

Based on your zip code you will be shown people in your area looking do to stuff. You’ll see a thumbnail photo, the distance they from you and a list of the activities they like to engage in. Your Activity8 dashboard will show people who have common interests.

All you have to do is select the activity that interests you. From hiking to tennis – yoga to rafting – paintball to darts; you can even add your own activity.

Each activity on a person’s profile lists the frequency in which they partake in the event, how long they’ve been doing it for and what their experience is. If you find someone who appears to be a good activity buddy, you click on the “Invite” link. This populates a box where you can send a message and suggest a day and time to participate in a specific activity. You can choose to share your e-mail, phone number, address, or communicate through the Activity8 Website.

You can also choose to nudge a person to get their interest. However, be warned! When I was checking out the site I accidentally hit this button and pinged a person I was not looking to speak with.

Activity8’s slogan is “activity8 is about DOING STUFF and MEETING PEOPLE! Sign up and spend less time in front of a picture box!”

The site is new so please be forgiving if you find that you receive a few errors along the way. There is a feedback button in which you can report any issues.

TinyPetition lets you put together a brief petition on anything. Find a bug in your food at the local taco joint? Ask people to boycott! Think David Letterman made an offensive joke? Rally the troops on Twitter! Favorite show get canceled? Bring it back by collecting digital signatures.

Each TinyPetition is created as a unique URL which can be shared across social networking sites – or simply sent to friends.

I’m willing to bet politicos will jump all over this Twitter app as well.

Currently there are 19 petitions with over 5,000 signatures.

Get to know the system by signing my petition to eliminate Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt from the limelight.

The only feature on the site I did not love is that when it asked if I wanted to Tweet my TinyPetition link, I was not given a chance to make any changes/additions to the Tweet.

To get started you teach Hunch about the things you like so that the engine can help you answer questions you’re dying to know the answers to.

The queries to help build your profile range from which celeb you find hot to what kind of French fries you prefer to how you like your sandwich cut (horizontally or diagonally).

Even the seemingly serious questions are written and presented in a light and fluffy fashion, encouraging the user to answer. After all, the more questions you answer, the better the future results. Maybe that’s why I finally pulled myself away after answering 126 questions.

I’m not sure if Hunch uses the collected data to target ads your way, but they sure could draw some seriously bankable conclusions.

After Hunch learns about you (a minimum of 10 answered questions) you are ready to get the answers to the questions on your mind. For example, ‘Where should I go on vacation?’ or “What cell phone should I buy?’ or ‘Which Lord of the Rings character am I?’ Each core question is followed by several sub-questions that will help the system choose an answer.

Now God as my witness…when I went to find an answer to ‘Where should I go on vacation?’ – the system generated an answer that was EXACTLY where I was looking to book a trip earlier in the day. Perhaps it was a fluke, but color me impressed!

Hunch is sort of like Yahoo Answers without all of the idiots. The site was actually co-founded by one of the brains behind Flickr and the aforementioned Yahoo Answers!,

This site has some serious potential. And that’s a question we don’t even need to ask!
Here’s my profile.

Future classes can now take to the Web to add a new dimension to the yearbook experience. Gone are the committee meetings of yesterday. Instead, a program known as Cliq-in allows students to assist in yearbook assembly in a secured and moderated environment.

Have a silly picture of the class clown? A concept for a idea that will act as a virtual time capsule? No problem! Just submit content via a secure intranet site and beg the book’s editor to include it!

The implementation of an online submission system will encourage students to be more forthcoming with information. Not to mention, it will give them an easier way to contribute content – including those over-thought senior quotes.

The Cliq-in system is not just for yearbooks. It can also equip schools with a means of communication that can be used year round.

“Students want a way to organize and save their memories, photos, conversations and reflections, in a secure common environment. Cliq-in provides a vehicle for individual expression,” said Gary Gallivan, Vice President of Marketing for Taylor Publishing Company. “Cliq-in also offers a platform for each school to showcase school activities, academic achievements and athletic accomplishments throughout the entire year,” Gallivan said.

As long as a concept like this doesn’t eventually replace printed yearbooks, I’m a fan!

emicus is a community-powered emergency network, and it could be the most important social media site you register for.

When the crap hits the fan your first course of action is to make sure you and your loved ones are safe. Not too far after that, you will want to know the whereabouts of everyone else you care about.

emicus offers an “I’m OK Service” which allows you to easily alert people you choose that you are swell (and alive!).

Beyond that, the site is designed to help you prepare, react and recover from a natural disaster. From locating the nearest pet shelter to monitoring the hurricane tracker, staying safe just got all Web 2.0 on us.

The site also has an after the storm section where you can find volunteer opportunities for affected areas and see ways to donate supplies and money. You can also contribute content and verify the information provided by others.

It is important to keep in mind that the site exists purely for informational purposes, and any true emergency, should be reported to 9-1-1. Data is collected from government agencies, news media, voluntary organizations, social networking sites and people just like you an me.

Coming soon: SMS integration, preparedness info, and more real-time information sharing.

SU discovers Web sites based on your interests and keeps track of the pages you like in order to deliver similar content. While the ’stickiness’ of the traffic sent by SU is definitely questionable, most Web site owners are happy for the extra traffic.

What good would a recommendation engine be in mid-2009 with being Twitter-friendly? A step in the right direction for SU is Su.pr, a URL-shortening service that the site will help bolster its popularity. It’s currently in closed beta, so hang tight.

Like many other URL truncating tools, there is a metric dashboard in the background, tracking how many times your link is clicked and which social networks it has been shared across. One of the cool features is that URLs can be scheduled, giving you more control over when you share these links.

You might be wondering why the world needs another shortening service. Fair question. But the one clear benefit is that SU comes along with a built-in audience, giving users the opportunity for additional distribution. It a link catches fire amongst the SU community, you could be looking at a traffic avalanche.

Right now Su.pr is utilizing a frame rather than redirecting folks directly to the underlying page. However, once the tool opens to the public, users will have an option of how to display the link.

StumbleUpon has move into a post-eBay-ownership world, and quite honestly, I’m surprised it took them this long to roll out this feature. It is, however, a natural fit with their overall product, and we wish them success.

I didn’t even have to add her to payroll; she works for free!

Cc:Betty is a neat little Website that helps you get more out of your e-mail be simply CCing “Betty” on your e-mails.

Next time you send an e-mail, be sure to carbon copy to betty@ccbetty.com.

By taking that simple step, you will give yourself the option to take advantage of several neat social media and organizational tools in the future.

- Bring someone new into the discussion by forwarding them the link. This will enable them to share their two cents or add their comment to already existing thread.

- If you are e-mailing a photo, and you CC: Betty, the image will automatically be added into an album, giving you the option to let others view and/or download your pics.

All content is sent to what is referred to as a “Mailspace.” This is a Webpage that is updated as you send e-mails and CC: Betty.

Other cool features:

* Dates are turned into downloadable calendar events

* Maps are created for any addresses

* Linked or attached videos and music are playable right from the mailspace

Using Betty seems like a no-brainer to me. Sorry honey, better make that reservation for three, cause Betty’s coming with us!

JustProto is a newish Web tool that allows you to create prototypes of network and desktop applications.

If you’re looking to increase communications and encourage input from varying levels of staff, the tool can help reduce errors, shorten implementation time and increase customer satisfaction.

Designed with project managers, art directors, customers, Web developers, and marketing professionals in mind,

Assembling prototype elements is a breeze, and all displayed information is transparent. For example, image sizes and file names are described. The best part is, your prototype will include as mush working functionality as you would like.

There are three packages, each of which is available for a 30-day, no-risk trial. The Standard package runs $19US a month (2 collaborators, 7 projects, 1GB of storage), the Plus is $59US a month (7 collaborators, 15 projects, 5GB of storage), and the Unlimited is $99US a month (15 collaborators, 10GB storage). A free version gives you access to a single project – up to 10 pages in size.

A new upgraded JustProto version (1.5) with several upgrades was just launched.

Watch a video on how easy it is to create a prototype below.