Viewing entries tagged
Social Media

How to stop broadcasting all your updates on Linkedin

Linkedin is a great resource for professional networking, information gathering and sharing, and discovering volunteer, work, and other opportunities. It also does a fairly good job of keeping us in the know about what's going with others with whom we're connected through email updates as well as their homepage. Usually, when I see an update that one of my friends or former colleagues has received a new promotion, job, or is now seeking new opportunities, I reach out via email or a phone call and congratulate them and/or see how I might be of assistance.

However, there are many reasons you might not want your information being broadcasted every time you make an update. Perhaps, you're trying to update your profile to prepare for new opportunities. Maybe you're simply updating your profile in stages and don't want to show up in multiple emails as you make periodic updates. It might be something altogether different. Recently a friend simply changed the title of her current job to better describe what she does and I received an email telling me I should congratulate her on her new position. More than a few people have said, "Thanks, but I didn't know Linkedin sent out a message. I didn't want anybody to know. Thanks for letting me know you saw it. Do you know how I can stop that from happening?"

By default, Linkedin broadcasts your updates. However, there in a few steps you can change your preferences to stop that from happening. After being asked more than a few times, I thought I'd put together this brief tutorial complete with screenshots. I hope this is helpful for you. I've highlighted the click points in yellow.

Step 1: Login to Linkedin and then hover your mouse over your profile icon in the top left of the page.

Step 2: Click on "Privacy and Settings" from the drop down menu.

Step 3: Click on "Turn on/off your activity broadcasts."

Step 4: Uncheck the box and save changes. 

That's it. I hope that was helpful. Let me know if you have any questions at @michaelbmaine on Twitter.

My Experience using EyeEm Photo Sharing & Discovery App

Image courtesy of EyeEm

Image courtesy of EyeEm

I've been wanting to write a reflection about EyeEm for a while, ever since I first started using it almost a year ago. I was introduced to it while searching for alternatives to Instagram. At the time, I was seeking an alternative for two reasons: 1. I was using a Windows Phone and Instagram wasn't available at the time. 2. I wasn't pleased with Instgram's privacy policies.

My initial experience with EyeEm was short-lived. I remember I really liked it, but dropped my HTC 8X and rather than pay $600 to replace it, I switched back to the iPhone and Instagram. They had reversed their statement about their privacy policy, and although I wasn't ecstatic, it was familiar and I already had a community there.

Fast forward to about a month ago I found myself again feeling something lacking from my experience with Instagram. I enjoy looking at the photos people post, leaving comments, and following the lives of those close to me through images. However, what I felt was missing was a deeper experience and connection. So, I thought I'd give EyeEm another go.

Most of the reviews and reflections I've seen of EyeEm compare it to Instagram and the comments normally are full of people saying they love one and/or hate the other. For me, I don't see one as a replacement for the other. As I see it, both have their place. If you don't want to read all the way to the end, this is how I explain the fundamental difference between the two:

  1. Instagram is about people sharing their lives through images (and now video).
  2. EyeEm is more about people sharing interesting photographs and art.

It's been a little over a month that I've been using both Instagram and EyeEm side-by-side and here are my initial, personal observations. There have been many reviews and blog posts that compare the two, so for the rest of this post I'll simply focus on my experience with EyeEm:

I like the photographs people post

One of the things I like most about EyeEm is the set of images I see when I open the application. For the most part, they're simply beautiful and I find that people are consistently putting up really cool work.

It's easy to discover interesting photographs

When I open the EyeEm application, the home page shows several albums that help me discover images I might like. If you allow EyeEm to know your location, one of the albums will be "Live Near You." Other ones I like are "art," "blackandwhite," "Urban Geometry," and "street art" just to name a few. Rather than tagging all of your images with hashtags, you organize them in these albums. You can choose favorite albums, view the albums your friends have recently added photos too, receive recommendations from friends, etc., making it very easy to both discover and keep up with the kinds of images you like.

The design is beautiful

I love the design. From both aesthetic and functional perspectives, I really find this application a joy to use. It flows well, easy to navigate, and places the focus on the work people do.

Thoughtful commentary

When I look through the photographs people post on EyeEm I'm constantly impressed with the insightful comments people leave. This is one way I like to see digital photography put to use. I think it's important to find ways to harness the potential of digital photography rather than simply recreate the same experience we do with film. It's kind of like how television shows were merely adapted radio shows before we figured out how to use it as its own medium. I'm a big fan of both analog and digital photography. When I choose to use one over the other, it's often not a matter of technical qualities, but rather how they can be implemented as part of a larger story or conversation.

The accompanying website

Besides lacking the ability to post photos, I can do almost anything on the EyeEm website that I can do in the application. Sometimes I'd rather look at the images and leave comments using a computer rather than my iPhone or iPad.

When do I use EyeEm vs. Instagram

Especially with photo sharing applications and website, it's easy to make one photo and post it to Facebook, Google+, Flickr, 500px, Instagram, EyeEm, Deviant Art, Tumblr, Foursquare, Pinterst, etc. I think it's really boring to simply repost the same content from one place to another. Each platform has their strengths, weaknesses, and communities and we should keep that in mind when choosing how to engage with them. Here's a quick rundown of the platforms I use and how I use them. However you decide to proceed is completely up to you.

  1. Instagram - This is my general sharing place. If there's something I think is worth sharing through images, this is my first stop. The idea here is that people can look at my feed and get a basic idea of what I'm up to. If it's something more notable, I'll even share it on Facebook when I upload it to Instagram.
  2. EyeEm - For anything that takes more effort, time, and creativity, I post it to EyeEm first. I don't post images of a party, meeting, dinner, etc. here. I post the images I'm truly intentional in creating. I often use the albums as ways to organize my thoughts and plan my shots.
  3. Flickr - I share work I'm particularly proud of as well as collections in progress on Flickr. Here's where you'll be able to find works like my "52 Rolls in 52 Weeks," "The New Jim Crow," etc.
  4. 500px - I only post images here I think are worthy of selling. I like the community aspects of Flickr—as I find the feedback and suggestions really valuable. I see 500px as much more of a refined portfolio of my absolute best work.

Comments

Okay, so there you have it. I hope you found this piece interesting. If you have any comments, please leave them in 140 characters or less with the hashtag #mbmEyeEm on Twitter. If you want me to see it make sure you address it to @michaelbmaine.

Links

iPad Screenshots

iPhone Screenshots

Behind The Scenes With Ildikó Kalapács

A couple of days ago on Sunday, August 26, we tried something new. By using a combination of social media tools and a physical location, I hoped to minimize one of the biggest issues we face when conducting interviews. When in an interview, the interviewer is supposed to uncover the answers to all the questions the audience might have. However, no matter how skilled or experienced an interviewer is, they can never place themselves fully into the hearts and minds of everybody who has a question.

So I figured, why try to do that at all? I began to wonder in what ways can we allow passive viewers and listeners become active participants. If people are provided the opportunity to to ask questions and leave comments in real-time they are more likely to engage in the interview and leave with a feeling of satisfaction than they would otherwise.

In order to accomplish this, we used Google+ Hangouts On Air to automatically stream and record the interview on YouTube. I then placed the link on the event page, my personal page, and the Menrva Labs page on Facebook. I also embedded the code on my website so viewers could watch it there. Rather than use an expensive camera setup, I picked up the new Logitech C920 HD Webcam from Best Buy. Audio was captured with my trusty Zoom H4n. Lastly, we used Twitter as the platform for people to ask questions. By using the hashtag #menrva and the free service TweetChat we were able to watch questions and comments come in in real time.

Overall, I think it was a success. Thank you to all of you who supported the idea, came to the location, and watched/participated online. I see a lot of opportunities to merge offline and online methods to increase engagement in future projects. Also, a special thanks to Andrew Vanasse, who came out and shot such beautiful pictures. For more of his work, check out his blog and website.

The highlight of the night, of course, was the time spent with Ildikó. Although she's about to travel around the world to talk about The Bearing Project she made time to speak with us and share her story, the inspiration behind the piece, advice, and where she's headed next. Truly incredible person. Checkout her websites to learn more about Ildikó Kalapács and the Bearing Project.

Important Links

Job Seekers, Do NOT give your login and password to potential employers

​

Job seekers, do NOT, under any circumstances, provide a potential (or current) employer with your login credentials to your Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media account. Security in all its forms is to be taken seriously. As employers and recruiters have taken to the social web to carry out more comprehensive background checks, social media profiles are becoming increasingly seen as a way to get an inside glimpse of who you really are. Posts on Facebook, updates on Twitter, pictures on Instagram, etc. all provide a peek through the firewall we often put up in the form of résumés and cover letters.

As we have become increasingly aware of privacy issues and concerns, many people have set their privacy settings to block certain people from viewing certain content. What you decide to share or not is your prerogative. Just know that the decisions you make regarding your privacy will impact the way you are perceived by people researching you. The more open you are, the more likely someone will trust what they find as representative of you. To get around restrictive privacy settings, some prospective employers have been asking applicants to provide them with their user names and passwords to allow them full access. Please understand that this is a violation to your right to privacy and is not common practice. For me, asking for this information shows a lack of trust and I see no reason to work with people I can’t trust or who don’t trust me.

Read the response Facebook posted about employers asking for login information.

​