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Kayvon Beykpour was the longest-serving head of product at Twitter and was GM of Twitter's consumer division until the platform was acquired by Elon Musk. He originally joined Twitter in 2015 through the acquisition of his company, Periscope, the largest live video streaming platform at the time. Periscope pioneered technology that inspired Instagram Live, TikTok Live, Facebook Live, and other social networks' expansion into video streaming. In our conversation, we discuss:• The story of being let go from Twitter after Elon's acquisition• How he turned Twitter's stagnant culture around• Kayvon's thoughts on the limitations of frameworks like Jobs to Be Done• Why Periscope failed• Advice for building consumer products• When to copy, when to innovate—Brought to you by:• Enterpret—Transform customer feedback into product growth• OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster• Heap—Cross-platform product analytics that convert, engage, and retain customers—Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/twitters-former-head-of-product-kayvon-beykpour—Where to find Kayvon Beykpour:• X: https://twitter.com/kayvz• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kayvz/—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Kayvon's background(04:31) Getting Elon up to speed at Twitter(11:34) The story of being let go from Twitter after Elon's acquisition(21:09) Changing the product culture at Twitter(29:44) Building the “hide replies” feature(32:02) Sacred crows, taking bold bets, and reigniting growth(34:28) Aquihires and their impact(42:40) Tips for successful acquisitions and staffing(47:00) The limitations of frameworks like JTBD(53:20) Signs you've gone too far with a framework(57:44) Lessons from building Periscope(01:00:41) Reasons why Periscope failed(01:07:24) The challenges of implementing video at Twitter(01:12:05) Copying ideas in good taste(01:17:58) How to get better at building consumer products(01:19:51) What Kayvon is building(01:20:31) Lightning round—Referenced:• Lessons on building product sense, navigating AI, optimizing the first mile, and making it through the messy middle | Scott Belsky (Adobe, Behance): https://www.lennyspodcast.com/lessons-on-building-product-sense-navigating-ai-optimizing-the-first-mile-and-making-it-through-t/• What it's like to sell your startup for ~$120 million before it's even launched: Meet Twitter's new prized possession, Periscope: https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-periscope-and-why-twitter-bought-it-2015-3• Walter Isaacson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/walter-isaacson-b8b81520/• Elon Musk on X: https://twitter.com/elonmusk• Parag Agrawal on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parag-agrawal-5a14742a/• Jack Dorsey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-dorsey-a43b07242/• Blackboard: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackboard_Inc.• Keith Coleman on X: https://twitter.com/kcoleman• Esther Crawford on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/esthercrawford/• Twitter acquires Chroma Labs: https://tech.hindustantimes.com/tech/news/twitter-acquires-chroma-labs-story-aqvcRPAoYXqXJuAbefA6cN.html• John Barnett on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbarnettt/• Jobs to Be Done framework: https://jobs-to-be-done.com/jobs-to-be-done-a-framework-for-customer-needs-c883cbf61c90• Hot takes and techno-optimism from tech's top power couple: https://www.lennyspodcast.com/hot-takes-and-techno-optimism-from-techs-top-power-couple-sriram-and-aarthi/• Nike Is Unveiling the Kobe 11 Tomorrow Using Periscope: https://sneakernews.com/2015/12/13/nike-is-unveiling-the-kobe-11-tomorrow-using-periscope/• Chris Sacca's website: https://chrissacca.com/• Facebook Live: https://www.facebook.com/formedia/tools/facebook-live• Kevin Hart on X: https://twitter.com/KevinHart4real• Clubhouse: https://www.clubhouse.com/• Vine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vine_(service)• Paul Davison on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davison/• Rohan Seth on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohanseth/• Cryptonomicon: https://www.amazon.com/Cryptonomicon-Neal-Stephenson/dp/0380788624• Reamde: https://www.amazon.com/Reamde-Novel-Neal-Stephenson-ebook/dp/B004XVN0WW• The Name of the Wind: https://www.amazon.com/Name-Wind-Kingkiller-Chronicle-Book-ebook/dp/B0010SKUYM• Star Trek official site: https://www.startrek.com/• Dune: part 2: https://www.dunemovie.com/• Oppenheimer on Peacock: https://www.peacocktv.com/stream-movies/oppenheimer• Tokyo Vice on Max: https://www.max.com/shows/tokyo-vice/e7d93204-7f98-4e62-ab52-6c1da053f942• Devs on Hulu: https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/devs• Nick Offerman on X: https://twitter.com/nick_offerman• 3 Body Problem on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81024821• Perplexity AI: https://www.perplexity.ai/• Particle: https://www.particle.news/• Crokinole board game: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/521/crokinole—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. Get full access to Lenny's Newsletter at www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe
Tim Chi is the Chief Executive Officer of The Knot Worldwide. After getting married in 2005, Tim set out to make wedding planning less stressful and frustrating. Together with his co-founders Jeff, Lee and Sonny, they threw four desks into his empty living room in Chevy Chase, Maryland and created WeddingWire, which became a leading global vendor marketplace serving the wedding industry, helping millions of engaged couples plan, execute and celebrate the most important day of their lives. WeddingWire grew to 1,000 employees worldwide and owned leading wedding brands in North America, Europe, South America and India. In 2019, Tim became CEO of The Knot Worldwide following the merger of XO Group Inc. (parent company of The Knot) and WeddingWire Inc. Previously, Tim co-founded Blackboard Inc. in 1998. While at Blackboard, Tim pioneered many of Blackboard's flagship products and strategic initiatives, bringing technology into the classrooms of colleges, universities and school districts across the world. During his tenure, the company raised over $100 million in capital and was taken public on the Nasdaq in 2004. Tim holds a B.S. in operations research and industrial engineering from Cornell University and an M.S. in engineering management from Tufts University. He resides in Maryland with his family and is based out of The Knot Worldwide's Chevy Chase headquarters. Tim had a number of amazing insights during our conversation. Some of them include: “I actually do try to separate the idea of video game time from screen time” (7:20). “Video gaming time [for my kids] is generally done with me” (7:30). “We're trying to create an intentional balance around exposing [our kids] to different things” (10:35). “A lot of dedicated athletes do really well in any occupation I think because of that discipline and because of the team winning mentality” (12:10). “I just know I'm not good at a lot of things” (13:25). “In order to really excel, you need to have complementary skillsets at the table” (13:35). “My chance of success is much improved if I'm working with partners” (14:05). “Everything starts with relationships because that's where trust gets built” (14:35). “I tend not to take up as much headspace thinking about things that I'm not an expert in or I can't connect with” (21:20). “Disruption is natural” (22:15). “Everybody has really good ideas, the difference is entrepreneurs do something about it; they're willing to take a risk” (22:25). “I like to think of myself as a realist with slightly rose-colored glasses on everything” (35:20). “Video gaming is one of my escapes” (36:05) “Everybody is entitled to make mistakes. It really is what did you learn from it?” (37:30). “We know people are going to move on [from our company] and that life circumstances change. But what would be great is if people that left here said ‘I learned something, I took something away that helped me move to that next thing…' That to me is success” (42:30). “The how and when you implement it, those tend to have to get pessimized a lot” (47:30). “I'm sort of just generally bullish on the idea that access to information and knowledge is a good thing for the world” (52:30). “Start with a problem statement. What are we trying to solve here?” (56:00). “Culture sits there as a broad-based thing, norms are how it shows up daily” (59:10). “I do try to be very self-reflective about things and just in my own mental model always learning” (1:01:05). “My personal development has really come from other people who I trust who I've built relationships with pushing me forward” (1:02:30). Additionally, you can connect with Tim himself on LinkedIn here, and also follow The Knot Worldwide on LinkedIn here. Thank you so much to Tim for coming on the podcast! I wrote a book called “Shift Your Mind” that was released in October of 2020, and you can order it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Additionally, I have launched a company called Strong Skills, and I encourage you to check out our new website https://www.strongskills.co/. If you liked this episode and/or any others, please follow me on Twitter: @brianlevenson or Instagram: @Intentional_Performers. Thanks for listening.
Michael Chasen is the co-founder and CEO of Class Technologies Inc., the maker of Class. He is an entrepreneur who has dedicated his career to improving the way people live and learn. Most notably, Chasen served as co-founder and CEO of Blackboard Inc., a pioneering edtech company with software used by over 20,000 institutions in more than 70 countries by 20 million teachers and learners worldwide.Recommended Resources:The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm GladwellOutliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm GladwellMalcolm Gladwell PodcastFreakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. DubnerFreakonomics Podcast
In 2018, entrepreneur Daniel Cane made a $1 million gift to establish The Cane Institute for Advanced Technologies at A.D. Henderson University School & FAU High School. The Institute's integrated approach to solving society's most challenging problems engages the best and brightest students, faculty, and resources to explore today's most complex challenges in cybersecurity, autonomous vehicles, robotics, virtual reality, augmented reality, automation, and artificial intelligence. Daniel is a trustee of Florida Atlantic University, the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce, and a Cornell University Council member. He is the CEO and co-founder of South Florida-based Modernizing Medicine, Founded in 2010, transforming healthcare by placing doctors and patients at the center of care through an intelligent, specialty-specific cloud platform. Daniel has a Bachelor's in Applied Economics from Cornell University, where he co-founded Blackboard Inc., raised over one million dollars in venture capital, and, in 2004, helped take the company public on the NASDAQ in 2011, and was sold for over one billion dollars. Allan Phipps is the K-12 District STEM Coordinator and Director of The Cane Institute. During his tenure as an educator, he has experienced what most only dream about, such as being an Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellow, attending the National Science Foundation as a practitioner informing policy, and speaking at the White House during an Environmental Education Summit. Mark Zagha is an FAU High sophomore pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering or biology with a minor in math. To date, one of his most significant accomplishments was winning the best presentation award for the MATE regional competition in the 7th grade. Mark enjoys helping others as a Learning Assistant at Florida Atlantic University in Calculus 1 and is a volunteer at Learn To Be. This online 1:1 program helps kids from underserved communities by connecting them with exceptional tutors like Mark online for free.
Jennifer Didier and Shannon Meadows talk details on education technology. How it came to be a necessary service for our daily lives. Some additional information about Shannon: Shannon was previously VP of Sales & Operations for Blackboard Inc. where she worked on $182M in Acquisition between NTI Group & Blackboard Connect. As Chief Revenue Officer, Shannon leads the Sales and Customer Success organizations at BibliU. She is an industry expert in Ed Tech and Digital Publishing sales and go-to-market strategies. She has led companies in C-level roles in Sales, Marketing and Business Development, building several start-up businesses resulting in successful company equity events. About BibliU BibliU is a learning enablement platform that empowers higher education institutions to streamline their textbook and courseware workflows to achieve greater student outcomes, affordability and social mobility. With BibliU, colleges and universities can finally deliver on the promise of digitalization, guaranteeing all students have first-day access to the learning content they need.
Of all the tools and skills you need under your belt for a career in treasury, networking might be the most important. Networking can help you learn and grow in your field, find new opportunities, solve problems, and also improve open communication across teams. Alan Goldblatt, Vice President, Treasurer Farmer Mac, joined this episode of The Treasury Career Corner podcast to talk more about it. Since August 2020, Alan has led the debt capital markets team covering areas of debt funding, liquidity investments, and asset/liability management. Prior to joining Farmer Mac, Alan served as VP of Finance and Treasurer at Blackboard Inc., a leading global education technology firm. While at Blackboard, Alan held leadership roles in Capital Markets, Investor Relations, Payments Processing, Treasury Operations, and Mergers & Acquisitions. In addition, Alan served as Assistant Treasurer at TerraForm Power and Senior Policy Advisor for Capital Markets at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, with a focus on housing finance reform. He also served as VP of Finance at Fannie Mae, Treasurer at American Management Systems (now CGI Corp), and Financial Risk Manager at Mobil Oil (now ExxonMobil). Alan is a licensed CPA and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Lehigh University and an MBA from the Darden School at the University of Virginia. The Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (Farmer Mac) is a stockholder-owned, government-sponsored enterprise or "GSE" created by Congress to improve the availability of long-term credit for America's farmers, ranchers, rural homeowners, businesses, and communities. Farmer Mac accomplishes this public policy mission by providing a secondary market for qualified agricultural mortgage loans, rural housing mortgage loans, rural utilities loans, and the guaranteed portions of agricultural and rural development loans guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. On the podcast we discussed… Alan's background in finance and treasury The differences between working at private firms and government entities How treasurers help a wider business' needs Why treasurers need to be proactive and prepared for the future Why networking is one of the most important parts of a treasury career How open dialogue across teams can help problem-solving You can connect with Alan Goldblatt on https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanpgoldblatt/ (LinkedIn). Are you interested in pursuing a career within Treasury? Whether you've recently graduated, or you want to search for new job opportunities to help develop your treasury career, The Treasury Recruitment Company can help you in your search for the perfect job. https://treasuryrecruitment.com/jobs (Find out more here). Or, send us your CV and let us help you in your next career move! If you're enjoying the show please rate and review us on whatever podcast app you listen to us on, for Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-treasury-career-corner/id1436647162#see-all/reviews (click here)!
Siobhan Carroll was born and raised in Bloomfield, New Jersey just outside of New York City. She is the middle of three daughters, born to Irish Catholic, New Yorkers. Siobhan attended Catholic schools her entire life including Villanova University in Pennsylvania. After one “ill-conceived semester at Seton Hall Law School” she moved to Washington, D.C. During her 20 years in the DC area, her world changed, significantly. 14 years ago she married her husband Marc. Marc and Siobhan are very proud parents of 3 daughters. I am intrigued by Siobhan’s ability to have a “pulse” on everything. This interview was “waaay” too much fun. She is so amazing, heart-warming, and smart too. I’m honored to share her story with all of you. There’s no doubt in my mind that this will be one of those “edge of your seat” experiences, for all. We are delighted to have Siobhan, Marc, and the girls as part of the 12 Oaks family, for the past 11 months and hopefully, many more to come. In This Episode: [02:01] Welcome Siobhan Carroll our 10th “P” in the pod[cast]. She has spent her entire life, developing skills in pursuit of proprietorship. [02:49] Siobhan has realized the formula to success is reading the customer right and leveraging the talents of subject matter experts. [04:44] Lucky for all of us 12 Oakers, Siobhan, Marc and the girls moved to 12 Oaks 11 months ago. [06:29] She was born and raised in Bloomfield, New Jersey and describes this experience as fun. [07:44] She spent a lot of time on her bike and played outside until the lights came on. [08:37] Siobhan learned the value of education from her parents. [10:34] She was instilled with the belief if you work hard, learn, and you continue to have curiosity about the world around you, you are setting yourself up for success down the line. [13:24] She loved her time and had a blast at Villanova. She is also a huge college basketball fan. [15:28] Siobhan shares the story about when her and her friends camped out for basketball season tickets. [18:08] Law school felt like the right path for her based on a number of things. [19:14] For many different reasons, she decided to leave law school, start working at a temp agency and she never looked back. [20:12] She had a variety of careers in her pursuit to proprietorship. [20:19] In terms of the work ethic that was instilled in her by her family, it is hard for her to think of a time when she didn’t have a job. Early on in her life she became the lawn mower of the family. [21:12] In high school she transitioned from a well-loved babysitter to working at McDonald’s. [22:21] During her time at McDonald’s she learned how to make delicious fries of course, but she also learned the basics of the customer service...needs and other skill sets that really helped transfer over to the rest of her career. [24:26] The other thing she really learned at McDonald’s is how other people think and how their experience(s) wasn’t the same as her’s. [25:45] Siobhan started waitressing at an Italian restaurant in Bloomfield. The most fascinating people she has ever met have been chefs. [27:44] She learned very early on when to let things roll off her back and when to push back and put her foot down. [28:16] You will always come across people in your life who you don’t agree with, who don’t treat you well, who don’t like you, or who you don’t like and in some way you have to find a way to either get along with them or contain and move along in your life, away from those sort of folks. [30:23] At Blackboard, Siobhan managed higher education accounts mostly in the states. [32:44] She chose to move on from Blackboard and try some other things. Her friendship with Sarah persisted and then she came back to Blackboard a few years later. [35:36] Siobhan and Marc were not finding the new home they wanted and when they came to visit her sister-in-law and they decided to look around and found 12 Oaks. [35:57] 12 Oaks has a lot that is very attractive as well as the high tension wires which made her feel right at home. [36:48] Driving through 12 Oaks reminds her of the Truman Show. It is a beautiful neighborhood with great amenities. [37:16] Siobhan shares how she got into the Wine and Beer business. [38:37] She loves that wine has the ability to bring people together. [40:12] At the new member orientation back in August there were many people interested in forming a new, additional Wine Club. [42:15] The Wine Club has been a great way to get to know people and a great way to get out of the house. [43:24] She doesn’t like to complain, instead she likes to contribute something that is going to be constructive. [44:27] Siobhan feels that if she has a conversation with someone and has not learned something she has really missed out. She has a curiosity around people, society, who we are and where we are going, plus a continued curiosity about how things work. [46:25] Siobhan loves social media and feels like it is a great distraction. [48:49] She does like new experiences, but she needs to feel a certain element of control. [52:04] Middle children are usually referred to as the diplomat, because you are usually between two strong personalities and are trying to negotiate and figure out how you can get what you want out of the situation. [54:01] Being around people is what she needs, but she also tries to give it back as much as humanly possible. [54:38] Siobhan shares the story about how her and Marc met. [57:13] She loves hanging out with her girls a lot. All three of them are curious and fun kids. [59:04] One of the main things she has learned from her girls is their love for nature. [59:53] Siobhan shares the story about their recent animal excursion at the farms. [60:40] She hates snakes and has been blessed with Nora who is obsessed with all reptiles and amphibians. [62:57] She shares about her love for cooking. [65:09] When her first daughter was born she decided to buckle down and learn how to cook and she loved it. She loves cooking baked meals and having people over. [67:46] She loves exposing her kids to new things and they love helping her cook. [67:30] What are you most proud of? [69:24] What would be a surprise that most people wouldn’t know about you? Links and Resources: 12 Oaks Community Website Team Anderson Realty Bloomfield, NJ where Siobhan was born and raised: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloomfield,_New_Jersey Irish Catholic New Yorkers: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Americans_in_New_York_City Siobhan’s 1st Job outside of home (post the newspaper route days): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonald%27s Middle child personality traits: https://www.rd.com/culture/middle-child-traits/ Villanova University: https://www1.villanova.edu/university.html Silver Spring, Maryland: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_Spring,_Maryland Blackboard: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackboard_Inc. Just Fun Facts about Wine: http://justfunfacts.com/interesting-facts-about-wine/ Siobhan and Marc’s 1st date: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dude,_Where's_My_Car%3F
Founders Nextdoor: Entrepreneurship | Small Business | Startups | Freelancing | Washington DC
Kevin Alansky is the Chief Marketing Officer of Logi Analytics, a software company in Northern Virginia. Kevin was one of the early employees at DC tech scene’s superstar, Blackboard Inc. He was also the cofounder of startup SocialRadar. In today’s interview, Kevin share his marketing insights, including how to develop … Continue reading The post Startup Marketing Tips from the Trenches appeared first on Founders Nextdoor.
Timothy is a serial entrepreneur who previously co-founded Blackboard Inc in 1998. While at Blackboard, Timothy helping the company grow to over 600 employees and a valuation of over $750 Million. Today, Timothy is the founder/CEO of WeddingWire, an online marketplace for wedding. Along with his cofounders, Jeff, Lee and Sonny they are building a technology company that would revolutionize the wedding and event industry.
In this podcast meet Stephanie McKenzie, MBA, Author & Entrepreneur learn about her new book “The Business of Dating” and the story behind her company The Relationship Firm. Questions or comments email “Coach Steph” at sdm@TheRelationshipFirm.com.EMPIRE OF WEALTH“Sixty years ago there were no great fortunes in America, few large fortunes, no poverty. Now there is some poverty (though only in a few places can it be called pauperism)”…James Bryce, Author of “The American Commonwealth”, 1894. Questions or comments email David@GDTB. Biz.MARKETING MATTERSJonathan Lee of Creative Cube Company is back to discuss simple logo design part of his simple design series. Questions or comments email Jon@creativecubecompany.com.Who’s Suitable for Equity Crowdfunding?Do you believe that everyone deserves the right to invest in small companies? Listen to comments from Michael Chasen, CEO of SocialRadar and co-founder of Blackboard Inc. Link to the full article visit Getting Down to Business® on Facebook.
Alicia says, "Participating in as an audience member of the Global Product Management Talk over the last several years has been beneficial in helping me develop as a Product Manager. Now I am delighted to have the opportunity to help other "Up and Comers" in the in the same manner. I hope to generate some lively and thought provoking discussion." Alicia spent 5 years as the Mobile Product Manager for UPS Logistics Technologies, a subsidiary of United Parcel Service (now Roadnet Technologies). At UPS-LT Alicia was responsible for strategic and tactical development plans for MobileCast®, a GPS based mobile resource management solution that is part of the Roadnet Transportation Suite®. This role included working with both customers and prospects in order to seek out prevalent challenges that could be solved using technology as well as moving the product through the many stages necessary to bring it to market. Prior to her role with UPS-LT, Alicia spent nearly 10 years in product & brand management roles with Blackboard Inc., Dell Inc., Fruit of the Loom Inc., and Kids “R” Us (Toys “R” Us Inc.). Alicia holds a B.S. from Howard University, an MBA from Baruch College, City University of New York, and a MS in Marketing from the University of Alabama. resources: http://bit.ly/1320MBr REGISTER TODAY!Startup Product Summit SF2 October 11, 2013 http://bit.ly/11fNVcU startupproduct.com
IntroAccording to wikipedia.com: Social media describes the online tools and platforms that people use to share opinions, insights, experiences, and perspectives with each other. Social media can take many different forms, including text, images, audio, and video. Popular social mediums include blogs, message boards, podcasts, wikis, and vlogs. In this session we'll take a look at a few of the common social media applications including mySpace, Facebook and Flickr. We'll also look at some applications that are designed specifically for academic use. Gordon, can you tell us a little more about what these social media tools?�What we want to express with the term social media is the fact that in media design we are aware of the existence of others and the collaborations we see happening through the so-called social software. Concrete examples of social media are online communities, social networking places, social sharing tools (flickr),.... � Source: Belgian Master course in Communication & Multimedia Design: http://listserv.aoir.org/pipermail/air-l-aoir.org/2006-April/009573.html How about some examples? mySpace: http://www.myspace.com/ Eons: http://eons.com Flickr: http://www.flickr.com Digg: http://www.digg.com MyHeritage: www.myheritage.com del.icio.us: http://del.icio.us Facebook is probably a good example of what many of our students are using. Can you use as an example of how these work with some detail? (www.Facebook.com) Let�s take a look at the Facebook website site tour. [Source: http://www.facebook.com/sitetour/] I�ve heard about social media applications that extend beyond the desktop. Can you give an additional example? Dodgeball: http://www.dodgeball.com/ Mobile location-based service that functions using �devices formally known as cell phones� and text messaging. See website for demo. Are there any specific academic applications? CiteULike: http://www.citeulike.org/ Is there a good comprehensive list of social media application links? Sure � Wikipedia maintains a great list that is linked up in the shownotes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_networking_websites How about academic applications? Blackboard/WebCT (www.blackboard.com) � RSS not available yet Moodle (www.moodle.org) has a basic blogging tool. It has the capacity to add tags and create RSS feeds for the other people in your course/class. � Moodle is an �open source� application�� Other Course Management Systems [samples from www.wikipedia.org] ANGEL Learning (commercial) Brihaspati (Open source, commercial version also) eCollege (commercial) Desire2Learn (commercial) Dokeos (open source) Edumate (commercial) LON-CAPA (open source) .LRN (open source) Sakai Project (open source) Scholar360 (commercial) WebCT (commercial, owned by Blackboard Inc.) Vuepoint (commercial)