Having fun with Facebook Cover Photos

Since Facebook converted over to their timeline format, they introduced the ability to add a cover photo to your page. Some people have completely embraced it and made some really creative photos. Here's a list of 10 really cool covers and photos and here's another one. If you want to find a ton more, try doing a Google image search for unique facebook cover photos.


So, in the same spirit, I wanted to have a cool photo to act as a cover. I searched through all of the pics I had in Facebook, tried a few out and just couldn't find the right one. Then, I found the perfect pic for the job. So, here it is...

This pic was taken on Mackinac Island last year at my cousin's wedding. I was handed a camera and asked to take a family photo of my parents and my aunts and uncle. I decided I should be in the first picture so I turned the camera around, and the rest is ingrained in digital history. If you want to take a look at it on Facebook, check it out here.

Have you added a cool or unique photo to you timeline? Share it with us in the comments.

Tidying Up the Ol' Blog

When I decided to revisit my blog yesterday for the first time in two years, I found there were some things that needed to be cleaned up as part of the design. Today, I took some time to clean up the sidebar to make it a little more relevant. Here's what I did:

1. I removed my Facebook badge. I really can't remember the last time I friended someone on Facebook that I haven't met in person. That's what Facebook will continue to be for me, for now. I'd much rather connect on Twitter and G+ right now, it's a simple fact. (reminder: blog about my social media habits)


2. I added a link to my Google+ profile. I haven't done much on G+ as far as posting is concerned, but I have started to comment and +1 to try and get myself more involved with it. Twitter is still my 'go to' network to share and post for now.


3. I removed my FriendFeed link. Yes, the last time I blogged, FriendFeed was relevant.


4. I removed my "What Am I Reading" section. It was linked to my Google Reader feed. While I still maintain that feed so I can push it into other aggregating apps on my iPad and iPhone (like Zite), I haven't been pushing anything to that feed in a long time.


5. I made a minor modification to my tag/label cloud, removing the amount of tags number from each tag. It makes it look a little cleaner.

That's about it for now. I'll keep making small tweaks until I decide to either do a major overhaul (if that will ever happen) or to switch platforms altogether. This was more of an update to make sure all my links are relevant. I want to make the blog more about my writing than anything right now, instead of aesthetics.

Obama Continues to Use Internet Buzzwords on Google

I have to thank my twitterfeed again for finding this. User @chownage notes that when you google the word twitter, it comes up with the popular micro-blogging tool first, but then the second link is to Barack Obama's twitter page. I would think this might confirm Obama's campaign includes paying for better page ranks in search, especially since the same thing was happening when you searched Facebook last week and now it's gone. I guess it could be popular enough to make it to the top.



I'm still a little torn on whether it's a great idea or just over the top. Not that anything illegal is happening. It just seems like polotics is all about association and if you're associated with up and coming internet companies and buzzwords like Facebook and Twitter, it's probably better than being associated with oil companies and an old regime.

Barack Obama and Facebook

Does anyone find it odd the second search result from typing in Facebook into google is Barack Obama's Facebook page? Does that mean there's that much interest in that page or it's the most relevant page for Facebook in Google indexes? Interesting...



Update: I have to thank @chownage from my Twitterfeed for letting me know about this interesting find.

My Inconsistent Blogging

I just realized that I blog so little that my wife has taken me off of her list of blogs she reads. I'm probably still in her Google reader though. But can you blame her? I'm still pretty involved with Facebook, at least enough to keep up with the friends updates. I'm also a little enthralled with twitter right now, so maybe that's my new outlet. The content I do get to read I usually share through Google reader or comment on in either Facebook or twitter. So my web 2.0 usability just seems to come in waves. I really only keep up with 1 to 2 things at a time. We'll see if I can keep up with anything long enough where it is considered a sustainable hobby.

Are Annoyances on the Internet Worth It?

I wanted to see what the top stories were over at the Detroit Free Press web site, and an animated flying bee went over the page and eventually landed on a banner ad on the right of the screen. Thank you to the programmer who just pushed me to never come back again. I'll go ahead and use Google Reader from now on. Try going to weather.com without some animated pop-up on your screen or having to see some animated dancing silhouette. Thanks to Firefox, I can now block them with ease.

Do you want to know why I use Firefox and RSS Readers like Google reader and I hardly have any applications added on Facebook? Because I think the internet is really annoying sometimes. Things like unsolicited pop-up ads, invitations, and busy sites just don't appeal to me.

I guess those are the things I will have to continue to deal with on a "free" internet. It's one of the biggest reasons I won't come back to a site. Unless I really need the info, I'll look elsewhere.

I understand ads (as you can see some of the ones on my own blog), but give me a reason to come back to your site or I'll continue to use tools that make my experience with the internet better.