Sports fans, who are [...]]]> Ordinary TV channels, whether supplied through cable or satellite, are becoming more expensive each day. In spite of the multitude of channels, fewer and fewer programs worth watching are being shown. To make things even worse, shows actually worth watching often have to be paid for separately.

Sports fans, who are typically already paying more on their subscription packages for sports channels, are often forced to pay more to watch certain sporting events. Movie channels, which are also typically paid for in the subscription fees, are showing the same old movies over and over again. New films have to be paid for again.

This is one of the many reasons people are taking to watching Internet TV. Not only is it free, but you can find and stream most sporting events, movies, shows, news, etc. without the extra costs.

As Internet TV can be watched on laptops, mobile devices and smart phones, it’s far more convenient than your living room TV. With a portable device, such as your laptop, you never have to miss an episode of your favorite soap opera, crime, documentary, etc regardless of whether you’re at home or not.

Finding Internet TV channels couldn’t be easier. There are literally hundreds of sites providing films, episodes of series, documentaries and so on. You’ll also find plenty of links to various TV channels around the world.

Keeping up to date with real, uncensored news reports, while finding the best shows, films and documentaries around the world has never been easier….and it’s free.

Whether the kids want to watch the last few episodes of Buffy, mum wants to see the latest instalment of her favorite history series or dad wants to watch the Formula 1 racing event, with Internet TV you can manage it.

You can even organize it so every family member can watch what they want at exactly the same moment in time. Since Internet TV is so easily installed and free your PC, laptop and mobile device can become your new TV screen.

Say bye-bye to remote control battles and welcome peace and quiet. The advantages of Internet are countless, but this this is among the best! No more screaming and howling because the kids are missing their favorite cartoon while dad watches his football.

Signing up for Internet TV is easy, free in most cases and certainly offers a whole lot more entertainment, education and more. You’ll soon find ordinary TV channels are available for free or at a reasonable price.

Keeping people informed, giving a greater understanding about the world as a whole, teaching about different cultures in far away countries, creating new friends and promoting peace both at home and around the world helps make internet TV the best technological invention in some time. Did I mention the ability to watch the latest movies, TV shows, documentaries and all the other great content you can stream?

Author Box

The article is contributed by Calvin Scott. Calvin is enthusiastic about new technology and expensive gadgets. His collection for consumer electronics is worth appreciating. Visit his site for interactieve tv van kpn and internet en tv.

With the fake tans, shiny studded t-shirts, and gobs of make-up, it can be hard to see any redeeming business value in the exploits of the cast of MTV’s ultra popular reality show, Jersey Shore. [...]]]> by Rusty Bryan whose work about online accounting degrees has appeared on various sites including onlineuniversities.net

With the fake tans, shiny studded t-shirts, and gobs of make-up, it can be hard to see any redeeming business value in the exploits of the cast of MTV’s ultra popular reality show, Jersey Shore. The hard-partying guys and gals of the series drink too much, get in fights, sleep around, and engage in all sorts of other debauchery, and so many critics deride them for lacking class. One thing they do not lack is confidence — these kids have got it down. Here are lessons in confidence we can learn from Jersey Shore, an unlikely but ultimately useful source.

• Preparation leads to confidence: The men on the show spend more time getting dressed up than the girls. They carefully primp their hair, and boast of having a daily routiine composed of only three components: “gym, tan, laundry.” If they’re not done up right, they don’t go out at all — how can you pick up girls if you know your hair isn’t gelled enough? For business folk, confidence comes from preparation. The more effort you put in to a presentation or your sells pitch, the better prepared you are, and the more confidence you will having going into a big meeting.
• There’s other fish in the sea: Two of the single gents on the show, Pauly D and Mike “the Situation,” are only looking for one thing on club nights: to meet easy women and take them home. When they meet a nice young lady but find out she is not looking for the same experience as them, they say goodnight and move on. Why? Because they are confident they can find what they need in someone else somewhere else. Have the same confidence too. If you do not get the offer you are looking for, pass on it. Another firm, client, or company will have what you are looking for, so have the confidence to move on from deals, offers etc. that don’t have what you need.
• If you look good, show it off: J Wow, one of the girls on the show, has a body worthy of her name. As such, she wears revealing clothing all the time. She is hot, she knows it, and so she shows it off. You should too, though probably not in the way she does. If you know you have marketable talents and skills, be confident in them and show them off to potential employers, partners, clients, etc. Don’t sell yourself your short — be confident in your abilities, and use them like J Wow uses certain assets of her own to make yourself attractive to people you do business with.
• Take risks: The Jersey Shore folks make stupid mistakes all the time in front of millions of eager viewers. They get arrested, they yell at each other, they light coals on a gas grill and almost blow up their house. But they do it all with a smile and confidence they’ll land on their feet — and get serious endorsement and appearance money after the shows have aired. Be confident too. Take risks, though ones much more calculated and respectable than theirs, and have the confidence that even if things don’t work out, they will eventually.

Hello FiveFreeApps!

My name is Mad Man from madTREEHOUSE.com. This is my first post [...]]]> Today’s post is a guest post by MadMan, the founder and author of madTREEHOUSE. Enjoy the post and be sure to follow him on Twitter @madthouse and visit his Facebook Page.

Hello FiveFreeApps!

My name is Mad Man from madTREEHOUSE.com. This is my first post on FiveFreeApps and I’m excited to share my topic with you. Also, you better like it or you might make me mad! Lol.

I did a previous post on madTREEHOUSE about these 4 social networks – facebook, twitter, linkedin, and myspace called “The Social Network Craziness.”  Here’s the link if you want to check it out: http://madtreehouse.com/?p=1833.

Even though, I did touch on it a little bit and posted a poll on the home page (hint); I thought that I needed to touch on it a little more with regards to which is really the best social network out there.  I don’t really hear and see in studies on this issue.  Is facebook the best because they have hundreds of millions of members?  Is twitter the best because more celebs use it?  I asked the general public and the madTREEHOUSE club to assist me with their vote, so we can have some conclusion on the matter. We had a little bit of participation, which I’m grateful for but didn’t receive enough to make a final decision in this social network hierarchy.  So, I’m going to expand on this topic, define & rank them. The poll is at the bottom for you to submit your vote and comments. It’s easy to say facebook with the 9 digits in users/members on there, but that doesn’t mean they are the best social network out there. Let me explain further. I’m not going to use stats because like Tampa Bay Buccaneer Head Coach Raheem Morris said, “Stats are for losers.”  Each social network serves a specific purpose and the number of users one has over the other has no value in this argument. That will be like saying the Yankees are the best team every year because they have the largest and biggest payroll. I want to judge this competition on the merit of ‘likes’ and ‘dislikes’ with the opinion of the general public. So, let’s get into this argument!

facebook – Is a social network that allows you to communicate and share content with your network of friends.

Likes – It’s a personal assistant for keeping up with friends and what is going on at the moment. It allows you updates on birthdays, events, status, likes, and etc. of all your network of friends. I can see uploaded photos, comments, and who’s online. If you’re a business, business person, or activist, then facebook has a great community fan page that you can create. You see a lot of businesses incorporating this into their marketing strategy only because of the popularity of facebook and the number of members (friends) they have.

Dislikes – It’s not the place to network or get to know anyone new.  It’s not inviting in that way. There are unwritten rules & bylaws that you must know someone personally in order to be friends with them on facebook. Its overall appeal is to be the gateway in privacy of friends where certain country clubs are forbidden. They blast you with ads on the right side of the page from information that you and your friends submit on your facebook page. They use that information to sell to advertisers to spam you on your page. It’s a parasite and host relationship. Most people don’t mind because they use it for only one purpose, which is to connect with their personal circle and the spam doesn’t interfere with their enjoyment of the site or go to them directly. facebook is always doing updates to your page which becomes frustrating with a ‘new facebook page upgrade’ all the time!

Census - facebook is great if you already have your set of friends or personal circle. If you’re looking to network or make new friends, then it’s not the best recommended place for you. If you want a personal assistant to go with your friendship(s), then facebook is an excellent social network for you to use. For businesses or any other personal endeavors, facebook gets a grade of okay. It does a great job of collecting information from its millions of friends and give an advertiser the ability to pinpoint its target down to the teeth. But it’s original design is to be a fraternity/sorority house for friends of friends to communicate throughout the day.

twitter – Is a social network that allows you to text message updates to your loyalists of followers in the form of tweets. I know that twitter has expanded to twit pics and videos, but it’s primarily used for text message updates. twitter is hugely popular with celebs because they can easily engage, promote, and keep in touch with their fans and followers. It’s easy or easier to be associated with someone on twitter as oppose to facebook and linkedin because the restrictions are softer. It’s meant for you to follow or unfollow someone by choice and network with anyone with a twitter account.

Likes – It’s easier to follow or be friends with anybody who has a twitter account. It’s much more inviting and networking is more acceptable. You can tweet (text message) to promote, network, engage, and etc. with an audience and its encouraged to do so as oppose to do with your facebook friends. facebook people act like sharing or promoting something is taboo and frown upon.  They almost make it seem like you are saling something to them or spamming them personally. I guess it’s just better to tell the world that I just got out of the shower like anyone cares or do they? Lastly, they don’t spam you with advertisers from your personal info like facebook.

Dislikes - People will follow you one minute and not the next. It’s seems like it’s more about a race to get the most people to follow you instead of just connecting with people. At least on the other social networks, when you get a new friend – that person is part of your network and doesn’t unfriend you the next minute.  You don’t know how many times that has happen to me. On facebook, when I get a friend request notification I’ll accept it or deny it and that’s it. There’s no “GOTCHA!” or “so-&-so uses a validation service.” Like who the hell are you!  Thank Gosh! Jesus doesn’t use twitter! Personally, I don’t care for it. It’s a popularity & bragging contest of who has the most followers and no I’m not jealous because I don’t have over a thousand followers on my twitter. Furthermore, I don’t care if you tweeted how fun it was to shop today or I went outside and came back in.

Census - If you love gossip or want to keep up with the latest from somebody or something, then twitter is for you. Yes, facebook, linkedin, myspace, and etc. all have their own tweeter like functionality but remember that I said you have to be a part of the familia or country club. And I’m not talking about only having a membership account. You have to be inside the circle of friends to get those tweets. That’s why you never see any media outlets refer any other social networks tweets besides twitter.

Myspace – Is a social network site that known more for entertainment purposes. It does have the same functions that twitter & facebook have, but is less popular in those areas because of its appeal in the entertainment (music, movies, and etc) genre.  You can upload media, photos, updates, and etc. There is custom stuff you can do with your page and you can add a music playlist to your Myspace page. Sometimes you can have too much of a good-time thing and this is the reason it is not as popular as it was before. With all the numerous social networks out there, being specialized and a niche-filler makes you popular these days such as facebook, twitter, and linkedin has done. All of these social network are known to the public in one main area. Twitter is known for tweets, linkedin is known for professional networking, and facebook is known for friends-only communication. Myspace was known for all of this, but lost members due to this.  Most older people are conservative and don’t appeal to the same stuff that young people do like having loud music playing every time you go to my Myspace page.  Those older people don’t have patience and they want something that is simple and easy for them to use. Also, by having and being known for one main functionality, it makes it clearer and less confusing to a new prospector or seeker who rather have something simple to go to and use.  I believe that Myspace has now found its niche in the field of entertainment. This allows them to compete with the other social networks and appeal to a young demographic and audience.

Likes – If you like something that has a lot going on or a lot of flavor and is hip, then Myspace is your thing. You can add or embed a music playlist or a video on your profile page and you have more options with customizing your page. It has all the same features and specs as the other popular social networks (facebook, twitter, and linkedin).  They have even allowed you to incorporate twitter and facebook features into your Myspace. It’s pretty much everything under one roof.

Dislikes – Unfortunately, being the Wal-mart of the social network industry makes you not as popular as you would think. For example, It’s like when you are saling a house. What is one of the most important deal-breakers that can happen?  Yes, having too much going on. Any real-estate expert will advise you to keep your place neutral because that’s what appeals to the majority of people. Can that buyer change the color of that one room’s wall to white or whatever color that they like?!  Yes, they could easily do that but people are what they are and the customer is always right.  All the cool features and specs can get annoying after some time and you have to keep getting my attention when you want to entertain me.

Linkedin - Is a social network that allows you to network with other professional friends and colleagues. It operates very similar to facebook in establishing a network of friends. This means you have to know the person you want to add to your network and that person has to accept you. I’ve always said that high school is the best proven-ground and education in a person’s life because it teaches you how the world operates. It’s similar to how networking works in the real world.  In order to get in with certain people, you have to have a relationship with so-&-so to get in so-&-so’s network or circle.

Likes – It’s a resume of yourself on a Careerbuilder like formality. People are involved in professional networking and professional advertisement of their experience, skill set, current/previous occupations, and etc. You can reach decision-makers or hiring folks directly (if you are able to get within their network).

Dislikes – It only appeals to one thing and one thing only; professional networking. Linkedin restricts you from networking or reaching people you don’t know but want to know and it’s a tougher process than facebook in that regard. Personally, I only go on there only when I need to go on there such as a person would do with Careerbuilder.

Census – If you’re looking to network for a job or with a certain professional, then Linkedin is for you. You can connect with colleagues in a facebook-type format.  If Careerbuilder added the facebook-type format tomorrow, then Linkedin would be out of business.

Results

Now, that we have talked about each of these social networks enough, it’s time to rank them and crown which is #1.  I told you that I’m letting you (the general public) do that.  I’ve included a poll at the bottom for your personal vote. Here is my conclusion of who is the best social network site:

Best Features & Overall – Goes to Myspace.

Most Popular – Goes to facebook.

Best Social Network Functionality – Goes to twitter

Take Our Poll

MadMan is the founder and author of madTREEHOUSE. Follow him on Twitter @madthouse and be sure to visit his Facebook Page.

(polls)

Which One of These is the Best Social Networking Site to You?
(polls)

What is one of the internet’s key advancements [...]]]> No other single invention in the past century has changed human existence more than the internet. It is how we communicate, access information, shop, watch videos/movies/TV, and listen to music — nearly every aspect of our lives is documented, or only accessible, online.

What is one of the internet’s key advancements in communication is the popularity of e-mail. It allows users to send and receive information, for free, all digitally. The messages can be sent and received instantly, shared easily with others, and can contain more information than a physical letter can only dream of having.

E-mail as we know it was invented by Ray Tomlinson in 1971. E-mails had been sent to users on other networks, but his, on the ARAPNet network, was the first to be able to be sent to and from users on different computers; previously, messages could only be sent to users on the same computer. He also is the inventor of the @ sign, which he used to separate the user from their machine.

1971: Computer engineer and inventor of email, Ray Tomlinson, sends the first email.

At the time, the programmer’s invention was kept quiet, because it was not what he was supposed to be working on. Soon though, his employers saw the usefulness and genius of his breakthrough. Programmers at any work station could communicate with each other instantly, thus increasing their productivity and ability to share information.

When the internet became more accessible to more users, and soon a necessity, by the late 1990s, the general public began to be able to grasp the significance of Tomlinson’s invention. E-mail has changed the way we communicate. We can share information with anyone, anywhere in the world, from any internet connection available. These messages are now accessible by phones and other mobile devices, as e-mail and similar text messages. There is no wait time — e-mails are sent and received instantaneously. They can shared with other users easily, word for word, and can be sent to an infinite number of people at a time.

They are free to send (plus the cost of internet and a computer), and so postage costs are now moot. They are also exceptionally green, because all they require is energy to power the computer and internet, and so save trees and the energy needed to transport physical messages.

E-mail is truly one of the most important advances in communication in our time. In just 40 short years since its invention, it has changed the course of human communication forever.

Edward Stern is a guest blogger for My Dog Ate My Blog and a writer on Online Degrees for Guide to Online Schools.

Chit Chat for Facebook Chat – An Insiders Report

Over the [...]]]> Today’s post is a guest post by Daniel Offer. Daniel is the creator of Chit Chat, a new messenger for Facebook. In this post, Daniel gives us a very nice overview of all the great features of Chit Chat. Enjoy!

Facebook Messenger

Chit Chat for Facebook Chat – An Insiders Report

Over the past year, chances are you’ve noticed that an increasing amount of your friends are using Facebook not just for sharing photos, updating their status and sending Facebook mail messages, but also for Facebook Chat instant messaging.

Facebook Chat is excellent for keeping in touch with friends past and present, however, there are a number of things that I simply don’t like about ordinary Facebook Chat.

Things I Don’t Like About Facebook Chat

Firstly, you need to use a web-browser in order to use Facebook Chat – I much prefer to be able to browse the internet checking out the latest technology news rather than watch my browser for a message from a Facebook friend.

Secondly, I like to be able to have the instant messages that I’ve sent and received automatically saved. I guess that’s a habit from school, doing group work.

Desktop Facebook Messaging

Chit Chat for Facebook as a great new way to use Facebook Chat. It’s a desktop instant messenger, much like Windows Live Messenger or AIM. Therefore, you can now use Facebook Chat without having to use your web-browser.

Benefits of Chit Chat for Facebook

• Free Your Web Browser- Send Facebook Chat instant messengers from your desktop
• Chat History – Chit Chat saves your messages so you don’t have to
• Instant Message Notifications – Flashes the task bar when you have received a Facebook Chat instant message
• Tabbed Interface – Simple to use, tabbed interface, talk with many friends at the same time in the same Instant Message Window
• Wall To Wall Posts – Send Facebook wall posts
• Send Facebook Messages – Send Facebook email messages with Chit Chat

Chit Chat for Facebook – Tips and Tricks

Chit Chat for Facebook does a few neat clever things.

Send Many Facebook Wall Posts/Emails At Once

If you press Ctrl on your keyboard whilst clicking on the buddy list you are able to select many Facebook Friends at the same time. With a right click you can then send an identical wall post to all of those friends or an email.

Bold and Underlined Text in Facebook Chat

Chit Chat for Facebook allows you to send bold text and underlined text with Facebook Chat at a click of a button.

Facebook Chat Emoticons

Chit Chat allows you to select emoticons to send in your Facebook Chat instant messages.

Facebook Chat History

Chit Chat for Facebook can save your Facebook Chat instant messages.

Customize Chit Chat for Facebook

Most of Chit Chat’s features are customizable, for example, you may wish to turn off sign off notifications when you are watching a film on your computer. Or you may wish to disable chat logging.

Chit Chat can provide sign in/out status alerts

Chit Chat for Facebook can be downloaded from ChitChat.Org.Uk

Create [...]]]> I’ve previously posted about the potential benefits of Guest Blogging and have since received questions on how to get started with hosting Guest Bloggers. To address this question, I felt it was necessary to back up a bit and provide some of my personal tips to get started.

Create a Guest Blogging Informational Page

This will be the central portal that provides important information to potential Guest Bloggers and lets them know exactly what your looking for, how they can contact you, why one would want to guest blog on your site and what advantages there are for those who publish an article on your blog. You’ll want to include the following;

• Introduction and Overview of Your Blog - Not everyone who finds this page will be familiar with your blog and many may find it via search engines, social networking, etc.
• Accomplishments – Let them know what sets your blog apart from all the rest. You can include Page Rank, Blog Awards, etc.
• What’s In It For Guest Bloggers – This is your sales pitch. You don’t need to pay bloggers to write guest posts on your site. Many are looking to further expand their reader base and this is an excellent opportunity for cross promotion.
  
• What Your Looking For – You can be as specific as you want, but be sure to atleast provide basic information to help potential guest bloggers better prepare and to help you weed out posts that wouldn’t fit into your blog.
• Specifics For Guest Bloggers to Provide – To avoid excessive and unecessary e-mails, such as “I’ll do it, what do you want me to do,” provide a list of specific information you want interested bloggers to provide.

• Name
• Blog URL or Sample Work
• Story Ideas
• Availability to Post

• Requirements – Whether you will require anything from a Guest Blogger, you should address this area so it leaves no question. For example, you may want to consider requiring linkbacks.
• Contact Information – This is very important. Don’t forget to let potential Guest Blogger’s know how to contact you. I’d recommend using a contact form, but if nothing else, be sure to provide an e-mail address.

Promote Your Guest Blogging Opportunity

Now that you have all the information for Guest Bloggers to provide, get the word out. Here’s a few tips to help promote your Guest Blogging Opportunity Page.

• Link the Guest Blogging Opportunity Page to the top of your site for all to read.
• Use social networking sites such as Stumbled Upon, Digg, Reddit, Twitter, etc.
• Invite Any of Your Readers Who Stand Out.
• Post the opportunity at Message Boards where Bloggers may hang out. I’d recommend the following;

• SitePoint Forums
• Warrior Forums
• Authority Blogger Forums
• Digital Point Forums
• Blog Catalog
  

• Promote the Opportunity at Other Sites Within Your Niche

Helpful Links

52 Blogs that Accept Guest Posts (piggybankpie.com)

How to Let Multiple Authors Post on a Blogger Blog (eHow.com)