Why the long beta?
I wonder how many websites there are out there? All these new technologies are mashing and melding to form a more perfect union. Between the social networking sites, the forums, the fancy animation sites and all the boring plain jane html sites out there, i rustled up a list of sites that a) i think will be used by many in the near future, b) offer compelling new technology and/or c) just look good. Enjoy.
This first site www.jingproject.com is so ingenious. Three very simple steps to get going, and it’s a downloadable application. Simply:
* Snap a picture of your screen.
* Record video of onscreen action.
* Share instantly over the web, IM, email.
As the site says it’s free software that adds visuals to your online conversations. This comes in handy when you want to show your homie how to quantize something using FX Pansion Guru or introduce your friends to your process of making a flyer (hint hint). You can record your video and upload it to your flickr account, upload using an ftp server, save it, or copy it to your clipboard to share some where else.
Here’s a screen shot of the program running on my mac:
That’s right is sits quiet in the top corner of your screen. Very unintrusive, indeed simple is beautiful!
The company that makes this www.techsmith.com also makes other screen capturing tools like SnagIt and Camtasia which offer, for a fee, more editing options for those folks that make a ‘living’ off of posting video tutuorials, thank you so much by the way for that.
This next site i found looking through the hundreds of informative posts on www.readwriteweb.com which itself is very handy and should be added to you RSS feeds. The site is still in Beta meaning you have to be invited to use, so I actually haven’t been able to try it out yet although I’m pretty excited about it. The site: www.rockdex.com. I really can’t explain it better than the actual site does so in quotes:
What is RockDex Pro?
RockDex Pro is a revolutionary web application that tracks 1000′s of music websites and collects data on any artist, such as blog posts, tweets, plays, and much more.
RockDex analyzes and presents the information to you in one convenient dashboard that gives you a high level view of what is happening online with the artists that are important to you.
Drill down into your data to discover trends, gauge the effectiveness of your marketing, and find out what your fans are saying–and where they are saying it. RockDex Pro helps you capitalize on a valuable and too often overlooked asset: Your Data. Plug in and sign up now!
Although when you go to sign up it informs you of the very sad fact that it’s in Beta. It does offer a glimpse of hope however, saying it will send you an invite code! This looks like a useful tool for Artists, Labels, Managers, Booking Agents, A&R Reps and Publicists. The folks that made this also made www.musicarsenal.com.
Here are screenshots from the video on their site:
And you can upload a song to their soundcloud account and they’ll let you know if you rock!
Lastly, for today, CargoCollective.com. This is from their site:
Cargo is a web publishing (CMS) and community-building platform currently in development. It powers a variety of creative communities in the fields of Education, Design, Research, and Conceptual Art. To apply for an account contact us here.
Cargo evolved out of the system that runs the SpaceCollective community. We found it remarkably successful and efficient in creating visual content on the web, placing a strong emphasis on design, layout, image quality and typography. Our goal is to dramatically increase the accessibility and exposure of creative individuals on the Internet, while aspiring to build a networked context that will contribute to the culture as a whole.
Like the previous site it is in Beta or as they call it ‘pre-release’ which looks like it means, if we think you’re good enough we might hook you up with an account. I like their taste though so good job.
Let me just hit you with some images then you go scroll the illness!
