The millionth word in the dictionary is....

CNN reports today:

"English contains more words than any other language on the planet and added its millionth word early Wednesday, according to the Global Language Monitor, a Web site that uses a math formula to estimate how often words are created.

The Global Language Monitor says the millionth word was added to English on Wednesday.

The site estimates the millionth English word, "Web 2.0" was added to the language Wednesday at 5:22 a.m. ET. The term refers to the second, more social generation of the Internet."

If you're stumped, you can download my ebook "The Mysterious World of Web 2.o here"

New Email Tool: PostBox

I am always searching for better email handling. Thunderbird, from Mozilla, the Firefox company has been working well for me since Netscape was shut down by its parent company.

But now I've learned at LifeHacker.com of this new program. All the benefits of Thunderbird, plus similarity to GMail. We can't go wrong using Postbox...

"Postbox - If you're not using your email's web interface, use this. It's basically Thunderbird, the open-source email client we'd previously included in our Lifehacker pack, but remixed with stronger, almost Gmail-like powers. It finds and indexes all the attachments in your email account, groups together conversations with similar subject chains with the "Gather" command (like Gmail's conversations), offers tabbed Inbox and message views, and lets you organize emails under your own chosen "Topics." It's also got built-in easy setup steps for Gmail and other webmail systems—in other words, everything we're waiting to see Thunderbird implement."

Source: Lifehacker.com
Download Postbox: http://postbox-inc.com/

BlogHer Conference in Chicago: July 23-25, 2009

Here are the details on the BlogHer Conference for Chicago this summer.

BlogHer '09 will be at the The Chicago Sheraton and Towers from July 23-25, 2009. We will kick off on Thursday July 23rd with out third annual BlogHer Business Conference, and will continue with the two-day 5th annual BlogHer Annual Conference on Friday and Saturday, July 24-25.

If you're a semi-pro1 blogger, and you are if you've paid attention to my workshops these last few years!) come and see what the online blogging life does to people once they show up in a group of thousands enjoying all Chicago has to offer. It's a chance to "celebrate blogging, whether personal, professional or political, has brought us real work, real friends, real satisfaction and is most definitely a significant part of our real life!" - Read more on their site.

Cross-posted at CClarity.blogspot.com

Uh Oh... AOL is on the block

If you know me, you know I'm not a fan of America Online (AOL). It handcuffs your internet use and limits your abilities in many ways.

So I'm not sorry to tell you that parent company Time-Warner seeks to unload AOL. Any potential AOL had was exhausted by about 1997, and its not going to catch up now. Even its free service isn't keeping users on board.

So, to provide a moment of clarity, for all you @aol.com users, its time to move on.

1. If you have DSL or Comcast, you already have a better free email account included in your service, so your email address would end in @comcast.com, @att.net, etc.

2. You only need to send an email to everyone in your AOL address book and ask them all the email you at the new address. Then, as you receive replies from them, you add them to your new address book.

It's 2009 - time to move on !!

Effective Email

While the world waits for a better email system, here are four succinct points to use in your email messages to ensure you commmunicate effectively.

On Harvard Business Publishing, David Silverman writes an excellent brief on effective emails. His take is that emails should:

Call to Action. Say what you want the reader to do.

Say it Up Front. Don’t bury the message.

Assume Nothing. Include your behind-the-scenes thinking.

Do the Thinking. Avoid the generic “What are your thoughts?” atop a chain of previous emails.

Link to Source: BNET.com

Helen Gallagher

Recover a crashed USB flash drive

If you can manage to backup your files to USB drive, and keep track of where it lives: on your key chain, in the bottom of a bag, between couch cushions... your data is safe. But occasionally a flash drive just fails or becomes corrupted. You may plug it in and find no response, no data. If so, there is a recovery tool to help you:

Flash drive data recovery software.

Although, if you accidentally plant your flash drive in the garden this spring, you might want to purchase a new one.

Understanding Social Networking: Twitter, and Facebook and Furl, oh my!

If you are curious about Web 2.0 social networking sites, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, I've updated The Mysterious World of Web 2.0 to version 4, with loads of new helpful information.

You can download it now. This ebook also contains great graphics and statistics on who uses these sites, and the high percentage of teens that are more involved with micri-blogging and following friends all day.

Click to see a preview and download the ebook now - cost is only $6.95