Mashups--take it literally. A mashup basically 'mashes up' two or more already-brilliant websites together, creating a true gem guaranteed to become a future newsroom's go-to staple.
Introducing the globe-trotting, multilingual journalist's favorite-- Twitrans. This particular mashup allows Twitter users to translate their tweets into different languages--14 to be exact.
Quite simply, Twitrans gets the job done; you send your non-translated tweet to the good people at Twitrans via Twitter, and then they translate it for you to any language of your choice and send that translated tweet back directly to your account.
From Hindi to Spanish, Twitrans makes for an incredible reporting tool when it comes to wanting to create international traffic.
It's probably one of the least complicated mashups I've personally seen and used so far. The site is partnered up with a translation service that uses actual people to translate your tweets!
So sticklers, rest assured; no more misplaced modifiers or switches in tense that only a run-of-the-mill electronic dictionary would produce for your online sentences.
Another great mashup I was able to come across was Woozor. Also great for the mobile writer, Woozor blends the genes of Google Maps and Weather.com, giving birth to a whole new race of mapping mashups.
What makes Woozor so special is that it can give 10-day weather forecasts in any part of the world the user chooses. The neatly designed webapp is also available in several different languages, adding to its worldwide appeal.
Boasting talents that go beyond a diverse community of visitors, Woozer is definitely a mashup that can be used by anyone with an internet connection, including your local weatherman.
Speaking of boasting talents, Pixelpipe is an awesome mashup perfect for the budding online journalist. Pixelpipe allows its users to upload photos, add video files and MP3s, and of course, publish text. It's almost comparable to what Blogger.com offers.
But the one unique detail that separates Pixelpipe from any personal blogging site is Pixelpipe's ability to span the information you upload over 50 social networks, making it the ultimate mashup for immediate content distribution.
Some of its most popular social networks include Flickr, Picasa, YouTube, Photobucket, Snapfish, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, and tons more; all under Pixelpipe's omnipresent umbrella.
Anyone can sign up for its free software, and you can even access your account and maneuver your content easily on your cell phone. Pixelpipe has everything you need to update breaking news on-the-go, and keep yourself entertained while riding CTA.
Last but not least, Triplify rounds out my top four mashup picks. Online Journalism pupils take note: Triplify will change your life.
Every good journalist knows that when reporting the news, clarity is key. In order to get the facts straight, the very first thing to turn to for the fastest answer possible would be an online search engine. But, which one first?
This is when Triplify comes into play. This soon-to-be cult favorite allows its users to type any word or phrase into its search engine and then view its coordinating search results across Yahoo, MSN, and Google.
It's basically a three-in-one online search engine, and its possibilities are endless. It truly lives up to its tagline: 'Search, Compare, and Sort!'.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
The Muggings That Probably Happened Near Your Pad
This summer was unfortunately peppered with several muggings where the victims were either beaten, robbed, or both. Since mid-August, Chicago police have released details of seven muggings that occurred in the Lincoln Park area.
There are still on-going investigations, as police are not sure whether two of the attacks are related. As for the other five attacks, police have linked them; and so far no suspect has been arrested due to lack of evidence.
All four victims were men in their early to mid-20s and walking alone. Each was confronted on foot from behind by at least four attackers, who were also men in their 20s.
The victims were asked for their wallets, then savagely beaten in the head and face. Two of the victims were hospitalized.
As for the seven muggings, here are the locations where they occurred. The link to this map can also be found on quikmaps
***Police also revealed that the victim in the 3 a.m. August 1 attack in the 2000 block of North Cleveland Avenue identified an arrestee in a physical lineup, though the suspect was later released on lack of evidence.
In late July and early August, there were four strong-arm robberies in the Lincoln Park area as well. Police believe these robberies are related to the attacks.
In addition to the seven muggings, there was an additional robbery in the 3300 block of North Seminary Avenue just a few blocks from Wrigley Field. Like some of the other muggings, police have not denied or confirmed any relation to previous attacks.
For help on finding more information about these crimes, click here.
There are still on-going investigations, as police are not sure whether two of the attacks are related. As for the other five attacks, police have linked them; and so far no suspect has been arrested due to lack of evidence.
All four victims were men in their early to mid-20s and walking alone. Each was confronted on foot from behind by at least four attackers, who were also men in their 20s.
The victims were asked for their wallets, then savagely beaten in the head and face. Two of the victims were hospitalized.
As for the seven muggings, here are the locations where they occurred. The link to this map can also be found on quikmaps
***Police also revealed that the victim in the 3 a.m. August 1 attack in the 2000 block of North Cleveland Avenue identified an arrestee in a physical lineup, though the suspect was later released on lack of evidence.
In late July and early August, there were four strong-arm robberies in the Lincoln Park area as well. Police believe these robberies are related to the attacks.
In addition to the seven muggings, there was an additional robbery in the 3300 block of North Seminary Avenue just a few blocks from Wrigley Field. Like some of the other muggings, police have not denied or confirmed any relation to previous attacks.
For help on finding more information about these crimes, click here.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Tiny Urls and More
From this: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8268399.stm
To this: http://bit.ly/PJn9
Pretty big difference. I used a site called bit.ly to do that.
To this: http://bit.ly/PJn9
Pretty big difference. I used a site called bit.ly to do that.
Quikmaps In A Nutshell
The basics of quikmaps. This is the first 'stepping stone' to mashups.
What is a mashup, you ask? I'll get back to you on that one...
What is a mashup, you ask? I'll get back to you on that one...
FlypMedia
Looking at the way FlypMedia sets up their site, the first thing I notice about it is how 'clean-cut' the format is. We talked about this in class, so I definitely noticed this after the lecture last week. I think it's really cool how they have their own podcast, because I don't see that a lot on different media sites, so this was a first.
I think out of most of the topics that I read about on Flyp was the one about the famous photographer Dan Winters. I'm a huge camera buff, so even though I hadn't heard of
Dan Winters before, I had already seen some of his photos in the past, and his work really is something.
Check out this video I found about Dan Winters on youtube!
FlypMedia reminds me of a less celebrity-obsessed RadarOnline, in that Flyp is more focused on politics and other topics like going green.
Oops, I just realized I linked out to another site not associated to Flyp, oh well. Everybody loves Radar though, right? Oops, I did it again.
Also, the colors used for Flyp's site suits the universal feel of the site; not too flashy, but still serious in its content with just the right amount of sarcasm every journalistic site should own up to. Reminds me of how I should probably change the colors on this blog; gotta set the mood.
I think out of most of the topics that I read about on Flyp was the one about the famous photographer Dan Winters. I'm a huge camera buff, so even though I hadn't heard of
Dan Winters before, I had already seen some of his photos in the past, and his work really is something.
Check out this video I found about Dan Winters on youtube!
FlypMedia reminds me of a less celebrity-obsessed RadarOnline, in that Flyp is more focused on politics and other topics like going green.
Oops, I just realized I linked out to another site not associated to Flyp, oh well. Everybody loves Radar though, right? Oops, I did it again.
Also, the colors used for Flyp's site suits the universal feel of the site; not too flashy, but still serious in its content with just the right amount of sarcasm every journalistic site should own up to. Reminds me of how I should probably change the colors on this blog; gotta set the mood.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Hello Blogger World!
This is my first blog. Any other bloggers claiming to be are not me; this is officially Christa's first blog :). I'm not too sure what 'linking' means, but I am assuming that either means to post a link up in here that leads to another site of relation to this class, or to 'follow' another blogger on this site? Not too sure....Hm. I guess I shall find out soon enough aka tomorrow during class.....
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