i-Lights

Finding My Way, Series Finale

This series was supposed to be a weekly Friday feature at The Light Stuff. But, like the short-lived Internet series, Quarter Life, this feature has been cancelled.

Well, that's a wrap. Thanks for tuning in.

But seriously, The Light Stuff is a blog for people who have made or are considering making i-Lighter a permanent part of their Internet experience. Those of you who already know what a great product i-Lighter is, I'm not going to waste my time preaching to the choir. I-Lighter is THE tool for teachers, librarians, journalists, hobbyists, researchers, cooks, why, i-Lighter is the perfect free tool for just about anyone who surfs the web and wants to save their online content to files that can be accessed from anywhere. End of story.

To those of you who are still on the fence about downloading i-Lighter...I don't understand your hesitation, but I respect your right to hesitate. And maybe, eventually, you'll come around.

New Niche Networks Include One for Beer Lovers

A trip to Venice Beach, California reveals some unusual sights. A man dancing to the beat of boardwalk bongos, eyes closed and cradling a new puppy. Another who talks to himself while rolling out a collection of brightly colored crystals. Palm readers, fortune tellers, and an "Ask Zoltan" carnival game add color and mystique.

People have a need to gather, to see and be seen. We can't all hop on a plane and journey to the Pacific Ocean. But we can use the Internet as a central meeting place, joining social networks to connect with like-minded people. As part of The Light Stuff's continuing niche social network series, here are some more sites with unusual social themes.

In Observance of the Memorial Day Holiday

Today, Americans celebrate Memorial Day, a national holiday since 1868. A day of remembrance for fallen war heroes, traditional observance includes visiting cemeteries and memorials, flying flags at half staff until noon, pausing for a moment of silence, listening to a rendition of "Taps," and pledging aid to disabled veterans, and the widows and orphans of our fallen soldiers.

These days, many people celebrate with parades down main street, a thank you to war veterans, and environmentally friendly backyard barbeques. Some will go out for pizza, while others will focus on more strenuous tasks. As mentioned last week, i-Lighter is an easy way to collect Memorial Day celebration ideas anywhere from the web, then organize them into an account. Files then can be accessed from any computer with the proper login ID and password. Pretty cool for free.

This Memorial Day, I plan to spend time raising the flag, observing a moment of silence, relaxing with friends and family, organizing computer files, and readying myself for a trip out west. You will still find me here posting articles, but beginning Tuesday, they'll be emanating from sunny California. I also plan to celebrate by spotlighting members who mention Twitterlights.

You may have thought I've forgotten Member Spotlight Day, what with all this hoopla for fallen soldiers and related Memorial Day matters. But indeed no, I have not. In fact, today I'm trying a slightly different format.

Boomj Just Got Better and Travelers Have a New Social Network

More niche social networks are emerging online. The subject has become somewhat of its own niche here at The Light Stuff. Like a social media watchdog, I've decided to devote more time to this fascinating topic, reporting related news and providing reviews at least one time each week.

Boomj is a social networking and ecommerce site attracting the 41-64 year old sector with family friendly content and world and lifestyle news. Now boasting over 78 million members, the site recently entered into a strategic partnership with AmericanLife TV Network.  The Network provides classic and original television programming like "The Courtship of Eddie's Father" and "Welcome Back, Kotter." The programs can be found online as well as their independently owned cable channel. The partnership looks like a perfect marriage in that both sites are dedicated to a certain age group that prefer tamer viewing content.

The Sci Fi Channel, long regarded as a niche network, is expanding the focus of its programming. Rather than run only mainstream network castoffs, their new President, Dave Howe, is developing original programs and promoting older content that ask viewers, "What if?" Its corporate parent, NBC Universal, is expanding the market into Russia. Like similar foreign markets, Sci Fi will tailor its content to suit local tastes.

Celebrate Memorial Day With These Fun Ideas

I don't know about your neck of the woods, but where I come from, it's raining like crazy and cold. Unusual weather for the week before Memorial Day. All of this time, I thought the planet was suffering from Global Warming. Turns out Global Cooling is to blame.

In anticipation of the big weekend, today's site review focuses on activity ideas, history of the holiday, and other Memorial Day related articles. I'm hoping they'll inspire each of us to do something special in honor of our fallen heroes, something more than browse yards sales and host barbecues. Why not use i-Lighter to collect and organize related articles of your own? It's the perfect free tool for Memorial Day preparation. Here's some ideas to help get you started.

The Ojai Post provides water and fire safety tips for anyone planning to camp or spend time outdoors. These safety gems are applicable outside the forest too, say in a backyard pool, or neighborhood cooking pit. I never realized the hot exhaust of a car could ignite grass. Ours has been so soggy and wet, only a herd of cattle could get it to burn.

If I'm Visualizing Hashtags, It Must Be Monday Member Spotlights

This morning while surfing for members to spotlight, I became completely baffled by Twemes for Twitterlights. Twemes is supposed to be the ad hoc live chatroom for twitter. Instead, it looks like an abandoned well.

I decided to play around with some hashtags for Twitterlights. Funny, whenever I think of the word "hashtags" I can't help but visualize eggs, sunny-side up with a side of light toast, hold the butter. Oh yes, it must be early morning. How else to explain my utter confusion about Tweme. It's hard to believe a meme about Twitterlights, an application with one-click bookmarking to del.icio.us, has no links at del.icio.us. Yet, that's what it says at the Tweme for Twitterlights.

Decided to dust myself off and visit the global Twemes. That was like entering a third dimension. Begin live update. End live update. Why not just comment and get it over with? But that would be too simple, I suppose. I must not be the only one feeling uncomfortable. There's no live chat at Tweme because the last chatroom update was fifty days ago. Wouldn't mind hearing from someone in the know about this application. I feel like I'm missing the point.

Windows Live Writer and Blogging Tips

Finding the inspiration for a riveting blog article is not always easy. Certainly, there are times when a story seemingly writes itself. Like a free flow stream of consciousness, the words somehow tumble right out on to the page. Other times, just finding a suitable topic can be excruciatingly difficult.

I carry a gem of wisdom from a Las Vegas bloggers convention I attended last November.  All throughout the day, a blogger should be planning their next article. What to say, how to write it, how to engage readers -- these are the building blocks of the writing process. Creating the skeleton lays the ground work for quality material. As content comes to mind, write it down, or put it on a tape recorder. Pretty soon, the article will take shape. From there, edit like mad.

And when complete, edit again.

Whenever I come across unexpected pearls of wisdom like this on the Internet, I use i-Lighter to gather and save the information for future use. There are many other free applications and tips at a blogger's disposal. Here are a few that seem particularly useful.

Mothers Day Gift and Celebration Ideas

Every year, mothers across the United States anxiously anticipate the arrival of Mothers Day. It's the one day of the year when mothers can relax in bed, leave the dishes and laundry for another day, and focus solely on themselves. All this without a lick of remorse. No wonder some like it better than birthdays.

Honoring mothers is a practice that dates back to ancient times. Reports of ancient Greek festivities honoring Rhea, mother of the gods, appear to be the earliest known. The tradition of Mothering Sunday in midieval England may have been the impetus for a similar American holiday.

Accounts vary as to the American origin. Some say Mothers Day began with Julia Ward Howard, the famous composer of the Civil War favorite, Battle Hymn of the Republic. Others say the credit goes to Ann Jarvis, a Philadelphia woman who, with her sister Elsinore, wished to honor the memory of her beloved mother, Anna Marie Jarvis. Ann Jarvis and her friends began a letter writing campaign to important officials in Congress. In 1912, West Virginia became the first state to adopt an official Mothers Day. President Woodrow Wilson followed suit in 1914, officially establishing the second Sunday in May for national observance.

Niche Social Networks and Social Media

Trying to learn the difference between social media and social networking is a confusing exercise. Is there really a significant distinction? And if so, what difference does it make? Don't the two forms of communication work in tandem?

According to 123Media.com, "you can have social media without social networking," but you can't have "social networking without social media." Social media is a type of technology, a blanket term covering many different forms of online communication. Social networking, on the other hand, puts that technology to work for the purpose of forming online connections.

I still find the slight differentiation between the two somewhat dubious. By writing this article, I'm engaging in a form of social media. If someone comments on this article, only then am I engaging in social networking. But using that same analysis, isn't everything on the Internet a form of social media, the purpose being to communicate through a vast connection of pipes and tubes? If so, social networking merely takes what already happens on the Internet to the next level.

Popular and Unusual Hobbies to Fill Leisure Time

Everyone likes to engage in some amount of leisure time. Whether to simply relax or engage in creative endeavors, leisure provides a respite from every day pressures and responsibilities. Many view leisure time as a godsend, a way to pursue actual interests and explore their creativity, while others long to be more productive, leisure being thrust upon them by old age or infirmity.

Hobbies are a productive way to fill leisure time. By engaging in worthwhile activities for the pure sake of enjoyment, we expand our minds, nourish our souls, and in the process, achieve a real sense of accomplishment. The list of hobbies is endless. Many people tweak traditional ones to suit their particular interests. For example, a portfolio featuring only motor vehicles, or loving to read only one genre of books.

I thought it might be nice to explore different hobby sites, traditional as well as those slightly off the beaten path. Maybe this article will entice hobby enthusiasts to pipe in with a comment or a link to a their own favorite hobby sites. As always, i-Lighter is there to assist in all hobby pursuits. I encourage you to review the tutorials and other information about free i-Lighter accounts.