Facebook “Connects” to MySpace

Well folks, MySpace and Facebook have finally announced the rumoured project, “Mashup with Facebook”. Executives from both companies hosted a joint-conference today, invite-only, to announce the project at 3 EST. Essentially, the announcement brings the “Facebook Connect” Button to myspace, allowing users to use their Facebook account to surf through MySpace, or connect their existing MySpace account to their Facebook Account. This also allows for synchronizing between the two Platforms.

 

Now I know what you’re thinking…

 

“MySpace still exists?!”

MySpace never really left infact! NewsCorp bought MySpace way back for $500 Million. They mismanaged the Platform, failed to continuing developing the brand, and ultimately lost their reign to Facebook. MySpace is generally seen to be junky, cluttered, hard to load, etcetera, particularly when compared to the sleek design of Facebook. NewsCorp cites the purchase as a dissapointment, and says the losses from buying MySpace are “inexcusable”. MySpace has roughly 120 million users, whereas Facebook is now over 500 Million. Only recently has MySpace realized that their strengths lay in Music, and Entertainment… it’s about time guys. MySpace has now been rebranded with a new logo, new theme (reviewed below) and finally embraces the Music. Given the losses, MySpace execs say they “really had no choice” but to team up with Facebook; ultimately their largest partner now.

 

So,

 I Tried It Out!

When I Connected my accounts, MySpace managed to find all my old things from highschool… turns out I stopped using Myspace in 2007. Even though it’s the same website, nothing looks the same.. at all. MySpace execs clearly leaned heavily on the design of their superiors; “MySpace 2.0” looks like the child of Twitter and Facebook. MySpace now has a news feed, and a posting bar which look strikingly similar to Facebook, accompanied nicely by a Trending box on the sidebar… much like Twitter. They’ve even added a Messaging system, much like Facebook.. but I’ve got to say, leaning on these two platforms was not a bad idea at all. Even though I’ve never used this new MySpace before, it feels very familiar, and is so much easier to use than their old layout. Everything is VERY well organized.  All of my music and shows I follow on Facebook show up very nicely in a rather detailed news feed. MySpace execs said at the meeting today that Facebook’s “like” button will be coming to MySpace soon, to help synchronize the two.

Summary

Pros:

I really really like all the things in the “My Stuff “ Tab on the top bar. in it you’re able to manage all the different aspects of your account; manage your blog, posts, bulletins, and whatever else MySpace offers. They really allow you to use all their services in a professional, organized manor. Another thing I love is the “My Profile” section, particularly the My Music tab. in it you can see what bands you follow have posted new music, or blogged etc. I already followed a ton of bands through their MySpace, it’s just nice to have a friggen feed to condense it all for me, now I won’t miss anymore concert announcements! :)

Matching Facebook and Twitter’s layouts was definitely a smart move too. Like I said, it’s very easy to use right from the start, considering we use it all the time on Facebook. You’re really not left to learn too much, and you can just begin to enjoy the service. Making the layouts the same will no doubt attract many people back to the service, and bring people from Facebook over who may have never even used MySpace… Smart move guys!

HOWEVER!

Cons:

I know I keep raving about how organized MySpace has become… but there’s still A LOT going on. They offer SO many options and customizing  that it’s still confusing and a lot to take in. I’m sure that if Facebook wasn’t so clean and sleek in appearance that I wouldn’t care.. but it’s just hard to avoid. Even in the news feed, you can see WAY too much about each post. Beyond that.. no complaints.

 

Conclusions!

Overall, I’m just glad MySpace has a purpose again. I will probably use the services again.. maybe not so much with the friends, but definitely to follow my TV shows and Bands. When you listen to the style of music I do, it’s hard to find any news coverage of your stuff, so services like this are essential. The joining is kind of bitter sweet, as MySpace once reigned supreme in the Social Media markets, is now ultimately considered a financial burden.

I’ve only spent a couple hours on MySpace since the release, but I’m finding more and more about MySpace I didn’t realize they had. MySpace is really no longer competition for Facebook.. It feels more like an expansion pack! You can really appreciate these services on top of your Facebook usage. If you’re a person who listens to a lot of music… go back to MySpace.

Conan’s Back!

Well everyone, after much anticipation and 9 months of waiting, Conan’s made his return to LateNight!

Now I really do miss the old days when I could watch Letterman ‘till 12:30, then flip to Conan on NBC at 12:35, but I’m still happy he’s back! I’m really glad he kept the traditional LateNight format,(Monlogue, funny skits, interviews, musical guest), but did anyone feel like the first night was kind of weak? Conan definitely had some Cobwebs to dust off…but I mean the man’s had 9 months to freshen up. His entire first monologue was basically him complaining about his budget cuts caused by flipping from Network TV to Cable. Or about how he lost his last job. Conan, unlike most americans without jobs, you had an $80 Million contract buyout, not to mention 9 months later you make a reported $10 Million with TBS. TBS Hired you… not saying you didn’t have other offers, but show SOME respect. I absolutely loved his cold Intro, giving a synopsis of his departure from NBC, and looking for a job.

His first guest was Seth Rogan, on to promote his movie coming out in January: The Green Hornet. Seth talked about his proposal to his Fiancee, and used some unconventional language to explain it. He dropped the F Bomb some 4 or 5 times before Conan interrupted. The most interesting thing about the first night was how during the musical guest, instead of watching from his desk, Conan played guitar WITH Jack White. It’s little things like that which set Conan apart from the oldies on NBC and CBS. On night two, things really picked up. His monologue was lively, comedic, and took some good humour to himself. He reintroduced some older characters from his days at NBC, and then had Tom Hanks on. Loving the CoCo hand symbols by Tom Hanks. Tom Hanks really had no purpose for being on Conan (promoting his movie coming out in July? lol..) but he came on to show his support for Sir CoCo! He was the second guest Conan’s Tonight Show, and the 2nd on Conan now aswell. They poked fun at Conan’s situation, and how in 9 months he’ll be the 2nd guest on Conan’s  Univision show. This show really hit stride on night two, I was really happy with it. Actually, my favourite thing about Conan is his presence in Social Media now. Conan is all over Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook and more social media with the “TeamCoco” team. Conan has really embraced this campaign. Since Canada gets Conan an hour later than the states, I really cannot stay awake for it every night, SO I can watch it online the next day! Conan may very well become my new morning show if I can’t stay up! :D

Conan’s best days were always when he would joke that he couldn’t meet expectations, and now he can thrive on making jokes about his basic cable situation. I really don’t see an issue with him being on basic cable.. now everyone can watch. I really think he’ll thrive here, with total control of his show, and it’s ownership, he now has a lot more freedom than he did being constrained by NBC. Conan refered to TBS as “a very leniant parent”. Conan knew he would be safer with TBS than with taking the offer with Fox, given network TV has a lot higher expectations.

You can really tell that despite having a bit of a sour start, Conan really is just happy to be back in the studios, that smile he has is legitamate. I’ve always been told that LateNight isn’t made or broken in one night, you’re in it for the longhaul. I’m sooo excited to be in it for the long haul with him! This is a man who loves his job, and I love watchin him. Team Coco!

Album Review: Baptized in Blood

Album Rating: 4.5/5

I’d like to take the time this morning to introduce you to a band I’ve been following for many years, and have just made their first major full-length album. For those of you who don’t know about them already, this is Baptized in Blood. Baptized is comprised of 5 guys from London Ontario who have taken the metal world by storm. Founded in 2004, these boys have independently released an EP and Full-Length debut, Gutterbound. They’ve toured with bands like Shadows Fall, Fear Factory, Threat Signal, and HateBreed to name a few. Their unique brand of thrash metal, mixed with heavy influence from the 80’s, has truly created a unique sound. Baptized recently signed with RoadRunner Records, released a full length Label debut, and is now Co-Managed by Dave Mustaine of Megadeth. Not a bad run for these guys eh?

This album had much anticipation with their loyal fans. Ever since the album came out, I can hardly put it down. It truly encaptures Baptized in Blood’s sound over an extremely well recorded 12 song album. At first listen, I really did not enjoy hearing 4 songs off Gutterbound redone. I’d been listening to those songs in their original format for a rather long time, and just didn’t want to adjust to the changes (Example: in UpShirts DownSkirts redone, the harmonic squeals are lower in the mix, or non existant in some parts). However, after now 3 weeks, I’ve come to adjust and will admit, the redone songs are worth my time too. The most interesting thing about the redone songs, was renaming Lightning Speed to Sinking Ships.

Not only do these songs sound great on record, they sound amazing live! Last time I saw them play, opening for Fear Factory at the Opera House, they played primarily new songs before the release, and wow were they tight! I’ve seen them many times over the past years in Hamilton, and they seriously never disappoint. Every time they get off the stage they leave you craving more! Songs like Game On, and Will of a Demon, definitely were written with the live show in mind with their call and response sections. Lovin’ it.

This is a must-have on your CD Shelf. Hit-up HMV and get your copy now. You can also find it on iTunes with 3 bonus tracks (including a remastered Blue Oyster) or for sure catch them on an upcoming tour and snag a copy at the merch booth. While you’re at it, grab Gutterbound… it’s still one of my favourite albums ever.

Review: RockMelt, the birth of a new browsing era?

 

I spent a lot of time online, so I like to do so through an effective browser. Like most of us, I started with Internet Explorer untill moving on to the bigger and better (FireFox, Chrome, Opera, Safari, etc. However, when it all comes down to it, they really are identical in function, but different in speed and extensions. Untill today, I’ve almost soley been using Google Chrome. However, RockMelt certainly feels promising.

RockMelt is built on Chromium, the open source project behind Google's Chrome browser, and it has financial backing from Netscape founder Marc Andreesen. It's Mac and PC friendly, and available today as an early release. Funding is estimated at $10 Million.

When I first changed over I immediately became concerned by its similarities to Chrome, only a little junked up with side bars (known as edges) and other buttons. It not only has an identical bookmark bar, and folder appeal, but it also has built in Google search. However, you can not only search google easily from the address bar, you can also search google through a popout tab by using the google search bar. This feature proves rather useful, as you find yourself not bouncing form page to page as much juggling information.

This browser is clearly built for social media. For starters, you have to log into Facebook to use it. once logged in, you have access to all your settings and bookmarks no matter where you log in. RockMelt also adds a very convenient “Share” button, which allows you to directly and conveniently share webpages right to Facebook. You can add pages to your right edge, giving you RSS Feed updates directly as you search. You also get popup updates when your friends update to Facebook, like an MSN popup. Very convenient.

My first concern came with the edges. At first glance they are just too much clutter, especially when coming form a browser as sleek as Chrome. On the left edge you can see everyone who is online on facebook, and on the right is your page updates. I immediately removed the left edge. It’s annoying. Now my RockMelt browser resembles my Chrome browser almost identically, but with a right edge giving me updates on my FB, Digg, and Twitter, as they happen without even needing to flip to the pages.

I will admit, I really did not like it for the first few hours. Now I really see no reason to ever leave it. Everything is just so easy, and integrated, all with the beautiful layout of Chrome.

Welcome!

Hello Blogosphere! Welcome to my personal blog, Life With Watson.

I’m a student from Mohawk College in Hamilton, Ontario. This blog was initially created for a project for one of my classes.  I’m born and raised in Hamilton Ontario. I went to Sir Allan Macnab Secondary School, graduating in 2008, and now I go to Mohawk College. Last year I finished a 2 Year Program in Business – Marketing. I’m now doing the 1 Year Public Relations program before hitting the real world.

My two passions are Music, and Curling. I spend all my spare time listening to music, mostly Rock and Metal, and playing my beautiful ‘72 Tele Custom (Pictures to come!) . I’ve been curling for 8 seasons now. Though I’d love to have more time for it, this season I’m only curling once a week, and curling with the Mohawk Varsity team :).

In this blog I plan on writing about concert and music reviews, personal rants, and whatever else comes to mind! You’ll be sure to find reviews primarily of bands from the Southern Ontario music scene. This area has such an amazing mix of bands that I’m sure you’ll all enjoy!

I should have this site up and running by the end of the week, so bare with me through the ugly layouts and construction! Until then, I must go. Byee!