Topic: Social Networks and Networking

The future of social mobile applications is wide open, according to the Where 2.0 Social Application panelists. They expect to see many new applications with clean, rich client interfaces that provide significantly more functionality and manageability than is currently available. However, they are all quick to point out that the future is as much about social aspects as about the technology. The discussion focuses on breaking down barriers and energizing participation, as well as controlling usage and unforeseen behaviors.

Felix Miller, co-founder of Last.fm, wants you to join the social music revolution he and his partners envision by sharing your musical tastes and listening history with others. Your generosity will be rewarded by the creation of a community knowledgebase that enables its members to harness the collective wisdom of the crowd and discover new music. Utilizing a process of collaborative filtering on an index of over 25 million tracks, Felix invites you to discover a new path to musical pleasure and enjoy a richer listening experience.

Larry Magid speaks with Andy Halliday, founder of OurStory.com about his company's new social networking site that allows individuals and families to share and unfold the stories of their lives. Unlike other social networks, OurStory focuses on allowing users to create and share tales with select groups or the whole world, and offers tools like text, photos and videos to help make the stories better.

David Sifry is the founder & CEO of Technorati, one of the most popular blog search engines on the Internet. In his second annual "State of the Blogosphere" address, Sifry talks about the phenomenal growth of blogs, the rise of blog spam, and the signs that the ice-cold relationship between bloggers and mainstream media is starting to thaw out.

James Surowiecki offers some insights into both the best decision-making behaviors and the worst decision breaking behaviors of groups both large and small in this entertaining talk from the Emerging Technology Conference 2005. Not only providing insights gained from his recent work The Wisdom of Crowds, Surowiecki also lays out some of the perils of group thinking, and provides food for thought for future discovery. [ETech 2005 audio from IT Conversations]

With every passing day, it feels like the world is getting smaller and smaller. We have the ability to share photos and ideas with anyone in the world almost instantly, and the tools to find cheap gasoline on the road. Peter Barrett from Microsoft's IPTV and Scott Rafer of Wireless Ink talk about how people and technology create and foster community. [Accelerating Change Audio from IT Conversations]

What is the social web? According to John Clippinger in his talk at Supernova 2005 it's about creating new ways to help link people, organizations and concepts in a trusted way. Using multidisciplinary analysis and open source software developed by his organization, SocialPhysics.org, he explores new ways for "digital individuals" to interact. [Supernova 2005 audio from IT Conversations]

It may have his first name in its title, but the service founded by Craig Newmark is more the result of its community of posters and readers than it is of those who run it. Now in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, that community has found ways to utilize this amazing resource to help the victims. Craig's List is now one of the best ways for people in the Gulf Coast region to find places to stay and ways to get there. The site is also helping displaced and relocated people locate one another. [Larry's World audio from IT Conversations.]

As blogging becomes a more popular and important publishing medium, many bloggers disagree on some fundamental aspects of its very nature. In this discussion from BlogHer, women bloggers question whether they need to compete with male bloggers on the men's terms, or if their goals and needs are fundamentally different. In a discussion that will resonate with any blogger who isn't a household name, Charlene Li and Halley Suitt spark a debate about how women bloggers define and achieve success. [BlogHer 2005 audio from IT Conversations]

Some bloggers bare all on their weblogs. What are the costs and benefits of getting naked before the whole world and how do bloggers balance their responsibilities to their readers and their families? A panel of women bloggers discuss these issues in this Q & A session. [BlogHer Conference audio from IT Conversations]