October 2022 archive

For virtually all of its 22 years, Wikipedia has confined its technology to the wiki, which was already nearly 10 years old when the online encyclopedia was introduced. But some big changes are in store, including the use of machine learning, all in service of enticing more people to become editors.

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, November 21.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request the credentials in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. Neville’s “asides” blog, Outbox, is also available.

Links from this report:

• Wikimedia is adding features to make editing Wikipedia more fun
• Growth/Feature summary – MediaWiki

The post FIR #293: Big Changes at Wikipedia appeared first on FIR Podcast Network.

To hear the media talk about it, NFTs are overpriced works of digital art on which a lot of gullible people will lose bundles of money. In fact, NFTs have utility far being investments, and savvy marketers are figuring it out, right down to local car washes. Neville and Shel share a handful of stories about such applications in this short midweek episode.

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, November 21.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request the credentials in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. Neville’s “asides” blog, Outbox, is also available.

Links from this report:

• This San Diego Car Wash Is Using NFTs to Drive Up Demand
• Azuki ‘Proof of Skate’ Auction Draws $2.5 Million for NFT-Backed Skateboards
• Reddit Users Open 2.5 Million Crypto Wallets After Launch of NFT Marketplace
• NFTs Can Be Considered Property, According to Singapore High Court Ruling
• Why Yes, an NFT Bar Is Opening in North Park This Month
• Nike’s Venture into Web3 Isn’t About Tech – It’s About Culture
• Anthony Hopkins sells out NFTs in minutes: Nifty Newsletter, Oct 12–18

The post FIR #292: The Sure and Steady Evolution of NFTs appeared first on FIR Podcast Network.

AI tools that turn text prompts into images, video, and music are definitely cool, but they get a boost in utility when incorporated into a larger tool designed for a specific purpose. Omneky is one such tool, designed to improve the effectiveness of your social media ads. One element: DALL-E 2 is baked into the software, helping you create images that align with the software’s assessment of your current and previous ads.

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, November 21.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request the credentials in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. Neville’s “asides” blog, Outbox, is also available.

Links from this report:

• Omneky uses AI to generate social media ads
• Omneky – Personalized Design:Omneky
• Omneky Demo on YouTube

The post FIR #291: Adding AI to Applications appeared first on FIR Podcast Network.

The first graphic format for the web to gain widespread adoption was the GIF. Even the advent of better formats replaced it for graphical display, it gained new strength through animation; what was once called an “animated GIF” became just a GIF. But today, for multiple reasons, the end appears nigh for all but the most die-hard fans. This short midweek episode is an homage to the GIF.

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, November 21.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request the credentials in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. Neville’s “asides” blog, Outbox, is also available.

Links from this report:

• The GIF Is on Its Deathbed
• Here’s a Timeline of the Debate About How to Pronounce GIF

The post FIR #290: Alas, Poor GIF, We Knew You Well appeared first on FIR Podcast Network.

New data suggests a lot of bloggers are employing practices that are the opposite of those that deliver results. Shel and Neville dive into the data from a new blogger survey. Also in this episode: Microsoft is bringing the DALL-E 2 AI graphic generator to Office 365 via a new app called Designer, as well as a tool called Image Creator that will be deployed through Bing and Microsoft Edge; virtual influencers, already a big deal in Asia, are making inroads in the US, performing in concerts, signing record deals, and pitching products for brands; Edelman’s CEO, Richard Edelman has given an interview in which he outlines his vision for the future of PR and his company; the category of meme creators is heating up but a lot of these people aren’t happy with Instagram’s rules; a new Danish political party is being led by an Artificial Intelligence.

In his Tech Report, Dan York reports on more digital services copying others, including yet another “stories” feature, this time on Signal; Facebook is dropping support for its Instant Articles mobile format amidst a decline in its support for news in general; meanwhile, TikTok is becoming more of a news source; and a volunteer opportunity awaits those interested in working with the Information Technology Disaster Resource Center.

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, November 21.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request the credentials in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. Neville’s “asides” blog, Outbox, is also available.

Links from this report:

• New Blogging Statistics: What Content Strategy Bloggers
• Microsoft brings DALL-E 2 to the masses with Designer and Image Creator
• Microsoft announces Designer, its AI rival app to Canva and Adobe – but why?
• AI-generated imagery is the new clip art as Microsoft adds DALL-E to its Office suite
• Microsoft Designer
• Are Virtual Influencers the Real Deal?
• Richard Edelman on the future of PR: ‘it’s going to be more like a newsroom’
• Meme Creators Help Brands Speak Internet
• How paying Instagram meme creators helped a Guy Fieri Super Bowl ad go viral
• Meme Creators Want Instagram To Change Its Content Moderation Policies And Stop Deplatforming Them
• This Danish Political Party Is Led by an AI

Links from Dan York’s Report:

• Introducing handles: A new way to identify your YouTube channel
• YouTube Shorts adds narration voiceovers, a popular TikTok feature
• Yes, even Signal is doing stories now
• Scoop: Meta ending support for Instant Articles
• Katie Robertson on Twitter: Facebook shuttering its Bulletin newsletter subscription service
• Meta officially cuts funding for U.S. news publishers
• Google to make “page experience” a ranking factor in Search results
• 33% of US TikTok users say they regularly get their news on the app, up from 22% in 2020
• Google exec suggests Instagram and TikTok are eating into Google’s core products, Search and Maps
• Teens shun traditional news channels for TikTok and Instagram, Ofcom says
• Volunteer at the Information Technology Disaster Resource Center (helping people with connectivity after disasters)

The post FIR #289: Bloggers, AI, and The Future of PR appeared first on FIR Podcast Network.

October 11, 2022, was not your typical day at the UK House of Lords, where Ai-Da, a humanoid robot artist, delivered testimony in response to questions posed by peers. The testimony came as some of Ai-Da’s original artwork was displayed in a museum. In her answers, Ai-Da was candid about AI’s threat to human artists but was also realistic about the role technology has always played in art. In this short mid-week episode, Neville and Shel review the testimony and explore some of the issues Ai-Da raises.

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, October 17.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request the credentials in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. Neville’s “asides” blog, Outbox, is also available.

Links from this report:

• AI robot Ai-Da is about to make history giving evidence to a House of Lords inquiry
• Ai-Da robot makes history by giving evidence to parliamentary inquiry
• Ai-Da the robot turned on and off again during historic speech in House of Lords
• I’ve seen a few robotic performances in Parliament, but this will take some beating
• The Artist in the Machine? Meet ‘Ai-Da,’ the AI robot debuting her work in London’s Design Museum
• ‘Mind-blowing’: Ai-Da becomes first robot to paint like an artist
• Ai-Da: Portrait of the Robot
• The Intersection of Art and AI | Ai-Da Robot | TEDxOxford

The post FIR #288: A Humanoid Robot Artist Gives Testimony appeared first on FIR Podcast Network.

Some companies were experimenting with internal podcasts — for employees only — before companies sent employees home to work remotely as the COVID-19 pandemic spread. Faced with reaching and engaging employees who now never interacted face-to-face with their colleagues elevated the value of a podcast, which could establish a personal connection. At the same time, podcasting had gone mainstream, making more employees receptive to listening to one from their employer. In this short midweek episode, Neville and Shel look at some of the companies that have adopted internal podcasting and how they plan to evolve them in the new post-pandemic world of work.

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, October 17.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request the credentials in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. Neville’s “asides” blog, Outbox, is also available.

Links from this report:

• Your company might one day have its own internal podcast. Here’s why
• ‘You can’t show empathy over email’: Business leaders turn to internal podcasts to stay connected with workforces
• Podcasts Gain Favor Amid ‘Always on” Work Cultures
• Employer podcasts preferred over company-wide emails
• 4 ways internal podcasts can help boost remote employee engagement

The post FIR #287: Internal Podcasts Gain Momentum appeared first on FIR Podcast Network.

We read everywhere about increased productivity resulting from the remote work the pandemic forced upon companies. In fact, that increased productivity is leading several companies to adopt remote or hybrid work as the new status quo. But research conducted by Microsoft finds that not everyone agrees with the assessment. Managers are not on board with the notion that remote work has led to greater productivity, and the gap between what managers believe and employee perspectives is considerable.

The next monthly, long-form episode of FIR will drop on Monday, October 17.

We host a Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly, request the credentials in our Facebook group, or email fircomments@gmail.com.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Shel has started a metaverse-focused Flipboard magazine. Neville’s “asides” blog, Outbox, is also available.

Links from this report:

• Bosses think workers do less from home, says Microsoft
• Great Expectations: Making Hybrid Work Work
• Are We Really More Productive Working from Home?
• 4-Day Workweek Brings No Loss of Productivity, Companies in Experiment Say

The post FIR #286: Managers Believe Remote Work Produces Lower Productivity appeared first on FIR Podcast Network.