• Twitter, Apple, & Windows 8 Links

Hi everyone, Rose here!   I thought it would be fun to make a post with links to a few random but still technology-related items I find interesting.

Are you on Twitter?  Synergistic Networks has a Twitter account (@SNIConsulting), and I tweet regularly as well (@rosebabetski).  Twitter is one of my favorite sites to check when I’m watching a TV show, because you can find out what everyone else is thinking just by checking the hashtags for that show.  Now Nielsen, a global information and media measurement company, is tracking what television shows people tweet about the most.

“It turns out the shows most seen on Twitter aren’t always the shows most seen on TV, and the discrepancy illustrates just how much more there is to learn about what a tweet about a TV show means. It also offers networks and advertisers a way to gauge the relationship between viewership and Twitter traffic, but knowing the volume of tweets is just the beginning, and there’s a lot of data in those tweets that’s still silent.”

“Granted, most of this information is generated in order to give networks and advertisers a better idea of the kind of traction TV shows are getting on social networks, but the metrics are likely going to be interesting to fans as well as ad buyers. Think about it. Joss Whedon’s cult favorite space cowboy show Firefly never got great Nielsen numbers, but if there had been Twitter TV Ratings back when it was on the air, fans could’ve pointed to the show’s presumably significant level of social engagement as a sign of its niche popularity.” – Wired.com

 

I’m not an Apple user myself, preferring my Windows 8 phone, but I did think this was a good move by Apple:  They’ve hired Angela Ahrendts, former CEO of Burberry, as their new Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores.

“Ahrendts will be in charge of all of Apple’s retail efforts, online and off. “I have always admired the innovation and impact Apple products and services have on people’s lives and hope in some small way I can help contribute to the company’s continued success and leadership in changing the world,” she said…” – Wired.com

Anybody who loves fashion, as I do, knows Burberry and their beige, red, and blue plaid.  It’s been their signature so long they’ve had it copyrighted, and refer to it as the “Burberry check”.  Ms. Ahrendts helped Burberry’s market value increase greatly during her time there and I think she’ll be a great asset to a company that prides itself on its products’ fashion-forward appearances.  I love it when the sartorial world and the technological world collide.

 

If you’re already using Windows 8, you probably should have downloaded the update, Windows 8.1, by now.  Here’s a great look from Tech Republic about some of the highlights from the update:

“One of the prominent complaints against Windows 8 was the steep learning curve. In my opinion, much of the problem was that Microsoft did a terrible job explaining how things work in Windows 8 – especially with regard to the Start Screen.Windows 8.1 includes a Help + tips tile (Figure E) that explains many of the navigation features users should be familiar with when they are using the Start Screen. There is also an explanation of some of the new 8.1 features.” – TechRepublic.com

 

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