So you’ve uploaded all your photos to Flickr or Facebook. Now what? Sure you can click the next and previous buttons to go through them, but it is just your standard slideshow. What if you could make a flashy and interactive presentation of your photos, without having to upload them to yet another photo service?

This is the jist of FotoViewr. It allows you to create a free 3D photo gallery by simply directing the service to your photos. It is currently available for Flickr, SmugMug and there is also a Facebook application. The beauty is you don’t have to log in! All you do is enter your Flickr username – without the password – and it will find your photo galleries. Below is a gallery using the “Wall” style with photos from past likemind Chicago coffees. As you can see you can embed a gallery into a Web page, and you can also send a URL link to one.

FotoViewr was created by a local entity in Chicago, and was actually demoed at a past likemind. More is in the works for FotoViewr, and you can follow its activities on its blog.

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It’s Helsinki or bust, as I have been invited to participated in a workshop for mobile phone giant Nokia, who is based in the Finnish capital. I received the invitation a few weeks back from WOM World, who describes themselves as “a Nokia-sponsored blog covering what’s being said in the social media about Nokia devices and services.”

As a self-described New England Yankee, I of course received this with some skepticism. Why me, and are they really going to fly me out there? The answer to the latter question is yes, and I am booked to fly out the week after next.

As for the former question, I believe it is because of what I have written previously on The Hot Iron with regards to mobile phones, especially unlocked phones vs. locked phones. Though the phone attached to my belt as I write this is a Palm Treo 680, I have owned Nokia phones in the past, and currently own one I bought when traveling in Denmark a few years back, namely because Verizon Wireless wanted to charge me literally hundreds of dollars to get a phone I could use overseas for a week. Needless to say that was one of the reasons I switched to T-Mobile.

So what will this workshop consist of? From their description, it will include: “...a number of workshops that’ll see discussion with participants, and with Nokia guys, about the future of different online arenas and mobile technology. Workshops that we hope you’d like to join in with and make yourself heard.” The fact that I will be part of a conversation with people from around the world on mobile technology, not to forget Nokia staff, is an amazing opportunity. Motorola’s headquarters is only a short drive from where I live, and I have never received such an invitation.

My head is already full of ideas and questions I want to add to the conversation for this workshop. If anyone else has anything they would like me to bring up please feel free to post them as comments. I have also received links to other bloggers who will be at the workshop and I hope to connect with them before the trip.

Also, if anyone has any recommendations on what to do when in Helsinki, please let me know!

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Business • Technology • (9) Comments • Permalink

Today is Blog Day. Bloggers like myself around the world will be recommending 5 blogs to their readers. Last year I missed it by a few days, and this year I am glad I got it on time.

Here are 5 blogs I read and of which I invite you to explore. In no particular order:

Chris Brogan – Chris is a social media guru from the Boston area. I feel a lot of what he says is very grounded and practical, only as a fellow New England Yankee would.

User Effect – Peter “Dr. Pete” Meyers is a usability and SEO guru and writes about it in a very grounded and practical way as well. And he is from the Midwest.

Networking Insight – Jason Jacobsohn is a networking guru and a valued member of the entrepreneurial community in Chicago. He writes about networking and business in a grounded and practical way. I am seeing a pattern here!

Elliot's Blog – Elliot Silver is a domain name guru and his blog is a tremendous resource on the domaining industry, especially around developing domain names to Web sites. This native New Englander also writes in a very grounded and practical manner.

The Terrier Hockey Fan Blog – I am a college hockey fan, and my team is the Boston University Terriers. My best source for team information is this blog, and it’s written in a manner… well, you get the picture!

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Diversions • Technology • (6) Comments • Permalink

Earlier this year iRibbit won all kinds of eBay developer awards for their extremely user-friendly auction interface for the iPhone. Now there is iRibbit Plus, which is a full-blown iPhone app, which is available for free via the Apple iTunes App Store.

Congratulations goes out to Chuck Hudson of Aduci, who along with his team developed the app. Chuck is a good friend and a great developer. But don’t just take my word on it, read the ZDNet review of iRibbit Plus.

The accompanying photo was borrowed from ZDNet, as I don’t have an iPhone to get my own screenshot because, well, it is not an unlocked phone.

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Just in time for Colonel Tribune’s tweetup this evening in Chicago, an offer to help you when you meet people – social networking cards.

So what is a social networking card? In reality is nothing more than a rebranding of the tried and true, standard business card. However since you may not be in business or want to represent yourself as an employee when at a social networking event, Staples had the foresight to take something they already sell – in-store made business cards – and offer them to a new market with a new name.

In my humble opinion there has not been a true replacement developed for the business card. Sure, you can beam contact information from one Palm device to another, send a text message to retrieve contact information or simply tell someone your social networking site or link. The business card works on a lot of levels. It is small, provides visual cues along with the information on the card and allows you to write on it, providing you did not get a gloss coating on it. And they work best in a crowded room, where it’s loud and busy, and you are trying to balance a drink in one hand and the last thing you want to do is tap on a portable device.

Will the business card be replaced? Maybe. But in the meantime, you should have your own, and they work best when you carry them on you.

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Business • Technology • (7) Comments • Permalink