Quick hits for the morning

My morning ritual consists of emails, then Google Reader so here is what I have been reading this morning;

Tech Industry Stuff:

• Will South Africa’s unbanked embrace M-PESA via memeburn
• Google Arrogance via TechCrunch

Some Politic:

• The Camerons thinking the unthinkable via Bagehot
• Pilot Paul Kagame via Texas in Africa

Creative:

• WonderBra goes 3D via Cherryflava

Other:

• Mark Zuckerberg opens up via New Yorker

Hope you enjoy.  Cheers.

Twitter, Facebook and whatnot

Among my frinds on facebook, they has been a debate about what or which platform is better to use, Facebook or Twitter.  My take is that it all depends on what you want to get out of your online interactions.  I use both, both professionally and personally and they have both been working for me as I intended them to.

Facebook for me is more personal, as in like friends I know, went to school with, have somehow met them, something like that, though I have been using in for WildlifeDirect business for sometime now.  The thing with Facebook is that the lines are blurred between your social life and you work life.  I mean how do explain someone posting photos of you from that night out you most certainly want to keep under wraps.

I am sure the way FB will monetize their systems is to separate the social from the professional, career advisors will tell to keep your wall clean as employers these days go through your FB wall to get a feel of what and who you are but that is something next to impossible.  If FB had a closed social bit of their platform and a more business-y bit then I think they’d be raking in lots right now.

Twitter on the other hand doesnt pretend to be a social/family thingy, it is all about conversations.  Talk to me I reply, ask a question if I know it and I follow you I’ll tell you the answer.  Most of the guys I follow and who follow me are those I have never set my eyes on but, the act of tweeting to them everyday has bred a familiarity that I dont even have with my FB pals.

Finak thing, Microsoft/Bing and Google have now incorporated Twitter into their search, that begs the question which is better, FB or Twitter?

Goodbye 2008

I think this will be my last post this year, though I hope to get one out just before we cross into 2009, this year has been a rather eventful one I must say, it started out horribly to say the least but the latter part of it has been very very productive and satisfying for me.

First I started of writing and contributing to the CPB site, where Curt and I, report and try and document attcks, threats and persecution of bloggers around the world, something which I have come to learn is very prevalent despite what others might think.  In most parts of the world writing a blog post is usually a private matter governed by only your conscience, but in other place it is a life and death issue, bloggers have been killed and others are languishing in jail for very long jail terms.  Yesterday, Curt took a much needed break and I have now been appointed the editor-in-chief of the site, I hope I will be able to follow in his footsteps and even grow the site and our non-profit even bigger.

I also joined WildlifeDirect in September and my insight into conservation has grown amazingly, after a long period of viewing this as something not of my concern getting immersed into conservation projects and helping the conservationists with what I know best, blogging, has been satisfying a lot.  It is important i think that we, starting owning this projects and not thinking that it is for ‘some other people’.  We should individually strive to leave this earth better than we found it.

I have had my writings published in a number of sites including The Tomorrows News Tomorrows Journalists Blog, a collective blog of young journalists, Kenyaimagine, an online news portal, AfricanPath, an african news portal and I have also had the pleasure of writing for Al Jazeera, and also an article of mine got published in The Mail & Guardian Newspaper of South Africa.  This has grown my writing portfolio and I hope that next year will bring more of the same.

I am very encouraged with the growth of our internet industry here in Kenya, everyday new material is coming out, new apps are being built, new sites are coming up and blogs are slowly entering the mainstream which to me is absolutely wonderful.  The good thing is that most of this enterprenuers are doing this themselves without waiting for the government to help them out, as it is currently just paying lip service, to the ICT industry. I await bigger things this coming year.

Happy holidays to you and see you soon.