Transparency Trend...

Real-time ratings and reviews, mapmania, consumer alerts. Trendwatching.com's September briefing is on to changes in behavior and in technology. All signs point towards an 'even more transparent marketplace in the near future, which in turn is taking cues from a more transparent society.' It's important to consider your approach when empowering the social media craze, convenience and interactivity is key, but all experiences might not be of the highest remarks! I think ecommerce, online mapping, twitter, and moderated customer interaction is a good way to start. Either way, brands will be much more accountable, and will also need to invest in the network. Back it up with research and go forward with a plan and an exit strategy to boot!

The Hangover...

The Hangover follows four men to Vegas for a bachelor party, and the story takes many twists as they wake up not recalling the events of the night. My cheeks still hurt from laughing so hard. The whole cast had amazing chemistry and dialogue. You can actually begin to appreciate the ritual and accept it's ridiculousness!

Foreverism...

Check out Trend Watching's June brief, where the manifesto spawns a new consumerism and encompasses the many ways that consumers and businesses are embracing conversations, relationships, and products that are never done. Driving its popularity is technology that allows them to find, follow, interact and collaborate forever with anyone & anything!

Outdoor Tunes...

For your outdoor beach day or bbq, these portable speakers are the best!

New Year's Resolution #6...

Take more pictures!

Love this Poloroid camera by Fuji. Instant pics.

Retro Cool...

I have a teenage niece who has a fantastic retro-style. Here is a little montage for Kaela;)

Vers Audio...

Crafted from Eucalyptus, Pine wood stock, and renewable materials Vers carries iPod accessories that are nice to look at, and also tend to the quality of sound, with Class D amplifier systems. Could make a great gift! I much prefer these to the plastic bose stations.

Gadget goodies...

Wish lists & gifts for the techie!

iPod DJ Mixer $120

Kindle $359

Kodak Pocket Video Camera $180

Logitech Universal Remote $250

Sony's Digital Book Reader $299

Wii $286

Fall Preview...

New York Mag's Fall Preview. What to read, watch, see and eat.

Favorite things...

Check out Placefav, a new blog that helps you track, save, and share the places you love.

The Design 100...

Exploring architecture, green living spaces, furniture, fancy gadgets, the web, fashion and more, Time Magazine ranks the top 100 objects, places and ideas that marked 2007.

Shine...

Yahoo! launched its women-focused website on Monday. Shine is helmed by former Jane editor in chief Brandon Holley and includes content from many magazine industry refugees, such as Jennifer Romolini (formerly of Lucky), Erin Flaherty (ex-Jane), Valerie Rains (ex-Blueprint) and more. Topics include Fashion & beauty, healthy living, entertainment, parenting, love & sex, work & money, food and home.

Collective Music...

Keep abreast of new music...The Hype Machine is Web site that scans hundreds of music blogs every day and posts the latest tracks online so that you can sample new tunes and old faves, the files aren't available for download, but there are links to purchase the songs on Amazon or iTunes.

RedHerring still exists...

Back in the day, before the bubble burst. I used to sit way way south of Market in San Francisco, next to the Potrero Hill Brewing Company (which no longer exists, but has a really interesting page of detail online) - in a modern built-out warehouse style building with foosball tables, high-tech conference equipment and brilliant young editors. I used to park daily for free, have a few catered lunches, have afternoon breaks at Mission Cliffs, plan elaborate events at 5 star hotels, have a press pass entrance into any tech launch party in the valley, (which by the way always gave away bags and bags of free 'branded' schwag ie: palm pilots) and read about 400 business plans per month on everything from semiconductors to biotech to media. I wrote company profiles for the magazine RedHerring. It was semi-short lived, young and underqualified glory... by round 8 of layoffs - I was cut. Shortly thereafter the pages folded, which the Valleywag deathwatch had speculated for months. When the doors closed and editors scattered, it was a sad day. The magazine did attempt to re-launch in print in 2004, but folded again in 2005. Much to my happines, it still exists in its daily online digital form at RedHerring.com. Which I love, mainly because I know the passion that existed and still does for the editors who once ran it, and who will always contribute and because they were the 'good old days'.

*The name Red Herring is a reference to the practice of calling a preliminary investment prospectus a "red herring" as a warning to investors that the document was not complete or final. The name reflects the publication's mission: providing a first look at the companies and trends that are shaping the business of technology.

Lost cell phone...

I have been infamous for losing my cell phone among dropping it in many irretrievable, unfortunate locations... Thankfully I haven't misplaced my cell lately. But it's a shame when that happens, no phone numbers in the memory bank, no land line...What to do?

Now you can visit the site Where's My Cell Phone? Type in your number and they will call you, maybe it slipped behind the couch pillows or you accidentally left it in the cabinet when you went to get a glass? Not that I have ever done that, I'm just saying.

*Sometimes you actually have to type in the address to reach the site, but that is the correct URL.

Engrave it...

Engrave Your Tech personalizes your electronics using laser engraving. Laptop, ipod, moleskin book, iphones, they can all have a unique artistic design. Make your edition - one of a kind.

Outdoor home theaters...

If you have the space for a bbq, you might have room for an outdoor enterainment system. Geek About rates the top 10 outdoor theater systems. The reversible screen at "Cliffs at Walnut Cove," the golf community in North Carolina - can be viewed while you’re working on your putting skills, or while you relax on back porch. I can dream right? Or if you're on a budget for outdoor films, you can buy an inflatable outdoor screen for $10,000.

Delete Facebook...

Not saying that I want to, but if someday I did want to go officially AWOL on my profile...NY Times may be on to - The Way Out.

Wiki how to...

Wired tells you how to convert your DVD to Blu-ray.

How do you feel?

We Feel Fine is a global movement going on that is dedicated to the exploration of human emotion. Since 2005, the site has been gathering human feelings from a large number of weblogs around the world. The system searches all the newly posted blog entries for occurrences of the phrases “I feel” and “I am feeling”. After recording - it identifies the “feeling” expressed in that sentence (e.g. sad, happy, depressed, etc.). This is saved together with demographic data about the blogger, where they live, what the weather is, gender etc...The result is literally millions of captured human emotions and wonderful montages of moments in time. Their findings...theoretical answers to questions like: do Europeans feel sad more often than Americans? Do women feel fat more often than men? Does rainy weather affect how we feel? What are the most representative feelings of female New Yorkers in their 20s? What do people feel right now in Baghdad? What were people feeling on Valentine’s Day? Which are the happiest cities in the world? The saddest?

Give it whirl!