The Internet is killing the great American institution of lying. Why do people lie knowing it will go on the Web for the world to fact-check?  Bill Maher sums it up:

For the Wall Street generation it was all about being upwardly mobile.  Today you’ve got to be socially mobile.  Social networking and mobile technology are setting the pace for the Web.  Is your online strategy socially mobile?  If not, you could be missing out.

Here’s a quote from Darryl Zanuck of 20th Century Fox from 1946:

Television won’t be able to hold on to any market it captures after the first six months. People will soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night

Don’t be to social mobility what Darryl Zanuck was to TV.

Here are some “bottom line” considerations for a socially mobile web presence.

To Flash or Not to Flash
Flash is a proprietary technology from Adobe primarily used to add animation and video to websites.  The problem with Flash is that is not supported on many mobile environments.   There has always been tension between Flash and the Web.  Artistic types like it.  But because of security issues, incompatibility with search engines, and being not compatible with many mobile platforms, Flash has fallen out of favor with the IT community.
The bottom line.
You should not build your website on Flash or use Flash for your navigation.  If you use Flash at all, use it sparingly.  I prefer using JavaScript; it is an open system that works well on mobile devices.  And if you use video upload it to YouTube and put the link on your website.  Then when your website is viewed from an iPhone/iTouch/iPad it will launch the YouTube app and the user can view the video.

Content is King
On the Web content is king.  Of course you want a nice looking website, but on the Internet it is more important what you say that just having a pretty frame.  And in today’s real-time online world you need to be able to update your website quickly without a lot of drama.  Your website should be built on an open source platform where you post updates without having to go your web designer.  Then you can save your webmaster for the big “techie” stuff (ecommerce, RSS feeds, social network plugins, etc…).
The bottom line.
If you need to call your web person every time you want to make even a tiny change to your website then it’s time to renovate your website to a content control system.  My favorite is WordPress because of its ease of use, plays well with social media, and works well on mobile browsers.

Can Facebook Help Your Business?
The short answer is “yes”.  Whether it is Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, and even MySpace, having a social media strategy ranks up there with having a search engine optimization plan (Google ranking).  Having a page on social networking websites is the best way to improve your search engine placement, so it all ties together.  However, it is important to control your social networking and not let it control you.  (Stay clear of Farmville, Mafia Wars, and politics!)
The bottom line.
Embracing social networking can help others embrace your business.  If you are a bit social-media-shy then I suggest you start with Linkedin as it caters to the business community and is not as intense as Facebook.

Need Help?
Becoming socially mobile can be fun, but it can be tricky, too.  Let TechAdvocate Solutions help you with you develop an online strategy that’s right for you.   Click here, fill-out the VERY short form, and someone will be contacting you!

Every time there is a glitch in Facebook privacy people complain their confidentiality has been violated.  So I have solved the Facebook privacy issue.  Are you ready?  Here it is:

If you want to keep something private then don’t put it on Facebook.  Period!

Here’s the thing about social networks – they’re social.  Facebook is not the place to have an online chat with your secret lover.  If you want to keep your affair private then do what people use to do and have a “third rate romance low rent rendezvous” at a seedy motel.  And with foreclosures at an all time high there are plenty of abandoned buildings and empty luxury condos to carry on your shenanigans.

And if you are going to do something sleazy and hypocritical then you’re only going to make things worse by trying to justify it on Facebook.  Let’s say you’re an anti-Gay activists who uses your credentials as a doctor to help push homophobic policy.  But you secretly have a thing for rent boys giving you massages while in the nude performing a move called the “long stroke”.  And say your name is Dr. George Rekers, co-founder of the Family Research Council which under the guise of religion leads the charge to discriminate against Gay people.  When you get caught with your hand in the “rent boy” cookie jar then don’t post psycho-babble on your Facebook page that makes you seem certifiable insane.

Click here to read George Rekers’s Facebook post in response to getting caught spending 10 days on a European vacation with a male hooker.  And I challenge you to try and read it with a straight face.  (Sorry, it had to be said.)

By the way, if you are a closet homosexual like George Rekers then you should not parade it all over Europe and the Miami airport.  Why not do your “gay business” in airport bathrooms.  Well, maybe that’s not such a good idea, either.

So let’s keep privacy private and Facebook social.  Complaining about privacy problems on a social networking site is like going to the beach and gripping about the sun and the sand.

Stephen Hawking says aliens from outer space could be dangerous. Stephen Colbert says aliens should fear us.  You decide!

The great physicist Stephen Hawking thinks our encounter with aliens will go something like this:

“If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans.”

Talk about cosmic karma!

Here’s what Steven Colbert thinks:

I think humans would have a lot to offer an advanced race of alien visitors.  But much like when company comes over and you clean your house, hide your porn, and put out the personalized autographed picture of Elvis, here are a few things to we should do to prepare for a visit from ET.

Things we need to hide:
All references to anal probes (don’t want to give them any ideas)
American Idol
“Alien vs Predators” movies
Snuggies
Area 51
Karaoke
The British Parliament

Things we need to show:
youtube.com
Glee (TV Show)
The “Galaxy Quest” movie
Chocolate
Yosemite National Park
Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert
Stephen Hawking
Cool Technology Blogs (shameless self-promotion plug!)

What do you think we should hide from hide from aliens and what should we show-off?