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Archive for the ‘Tumblr’ Category

Tuesday, December 20th, 2011

For a long time no one knew what Tumblr was. Twitter has long been a dominant force alongside Facebook. Tumblr has gained momentum in recent years though and it begs the question, which is superior: Twitter or Tumblr?

Admittedly some people might prefer to play online games like partypoker or Sudoku than exist in a social network, but you can’t deny their power. While celebrities and businesses enjoy the simplicity of Twitter to promote themselves, there is a younger generation who have switched to Tumblr to discuss their favorite recording artists and television shows.

So which site does it better?

Reblog vs Retweet

On Twitter if you want to share someone else’s Tweet with your own followers, there is the Retweet option. On Tumblr if you like someone’s blog post, you can Reblog so it is on your blog too. Reblogging is often more aesthetically pleasing and draws the eye, unlike the simple text of Twitter. That said, the limited characters per Tweet can make a Retweet have a snappier impact than a long Reblog.

Graphics vs Text

While there is the TwitPic and Link options on Twitter, you have to click in order to view when they pop up in your Time-line. On Tumblr the graphics are already on display. So long as you are following, it will appear on your Dash. Images have long been proven to be more eye catching than text.

Trending Topics vs Tags

When lots of people discuss the same topic on Twitter within the same geographical area, it becomes a Trend. This allows curious Twitterer’s to view the time-line to see what’s being said. They then use the hash tag and/or words in the title of the Trend to get their thoughts across. On Tumblr you can follow a certain tag for, say Lady Gaga at all times. When you click on the tag at the side of your Dash, you can see everything that has been tagged with her name.

Ease of use

Twitter is easier to get to grips with than Tumblr. This due to the the options of Tumblr far outweighing Twitter. However Tumblr is far more amusing to play around with.

It is difficult to know which one is better, but it is practically an inevitability that a new social media site will come along and wipe the two from existence.

Tags: Reblog, Reblogging, Tumblr, Twitter
Posted in Tumblr, Twitter | 1 Comment »

Boulder Digital Works’ Occupationalist.org Aggregates Like No Other

Monday, November 7th, 2011

The Occupy Wall Street protests have been anything but typical. There is no clear leader of the movement, their message is very broad, and it is taking place throughout every major city (and not so major cities) in the country.

The strange thing is, though, it doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. As of today, the Occupy Wall Street movement has been going strong for over 50 days.

Ten years ago, this may not have been possible. Through the use of social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr, protestors in cities all over the country have been able to communicate and organize activities for thousands of people.

But, even with all of the tools that social media offers, it can still be difficult to know what is happening minute to minute. What modern day protests thrive on is speed of communication. While one group may be using Twitter to communicate, another group could be using Tumblr or Facebook. It takes time and vigilance to keep an eye on every social media outlet. There was a need to bring all of this information together on one page.

It’s often said that necessity is the mother of invention, and out of a need for better aggregation came Occupationalist.org. Constructed by Boulder Digital Works, the site curates every bit of social media data for the movement from various Twitter hashtags to a map that shows the number of Foursquare check-ins for each city. It truly is a social media lovers dream.

Here’s how the creators of Occupationalist.org describe themselves:

“Occupationalist is an impartial and real-time view of the Occupy Wall Street movement. Covering history as it unfolds. No filters. No delays.”

Given the success of Occupationalist.org, we’re likely to see other aggregation sites like it popping up for other movements. Keeping participants up to date on the latest information is crucial. Those that do it best are the most successful.