How ironic: LinkedIn - indeed any social network - is all about making a connection. Yet thanks to the blizzard of coverage generated by the professional-themed network’s new $53 million-dollar round of funding, all I saw when I first tried to get on LinkedIn were error messages saying “connection interrupted” (Firefox) or “the server unexpectedly dropped the connection, which sometimes occurs when the server is busy” (Safari).
Yep, a New York Times story and ton of links on top content aggregators like Techmeme will do that to you.
LinkedIn is currently the Social Network Media Darling of the Moment because of its willingness to carve a niche for itself with $100,000-a-year-plus professionals, and many in that income bracket who have found their job security threatened in a down economy have turned to the site for career information. Indeed, a lot of people in my former profession - television news - who were recently downsized or may see a layoff around the corner have sprouted LinkedIn profiles. I’ve also noticed a rise in LinkedIn Groups dedicated to TV/media work (full disclosure: I’m a LinkedIn member.)
While a lot of the coverage has focused on forthcoming company-centered applications for LinkedIn and how that will go over with its 23 million members, The broadcast newsguy in me is curious about when I will see more video/audio on the site, specifically on the front page. I’m not talking about turning LinkedIn into Facebook or MySpace; I’m thinking valuable resources for the executives, mid-level professionals and entry-level staffers who make up the core of the membership.
Take some of the member-generated questions-and-answers and expand on them in LinkedIn-produced “news” stories; take more of the company-produced video content seen on LinkedIn’s blog page and put it out front; set up audio podcasts and quiz select members on major business stories of the day. No doubt LinkedIn’s membership includes some knowledgeable experts; any cable business network booker would love to include them in their Rolodexes. Use them and watch the connections multiply in the LinkedIn News Network.
Read [LinkedIn Blog]

Change is messy. Paradigm shifts, revolutions, restructures – any way you phrase it, widespread change entails considerable effort and uncomfortable periods. The same rings true with digital alterations. Challengers to the ubiquitous MP3 format face serious challenges despite their technical superiority to the old standard.
The foremost contender is the MT9 format. This upstart enables every user to split an audio file into six channels—vocals, guitar, bass, percussion and so on –- effectively making ordinary Joes into amateur recording producers. The format provides unprecedented widespread technical access to users as they isolate specific channels in their audio files.
Known commercially as Music 2.0, industry pundits are supportive of the MT9 format. The Motion Pictures Experts Group (MPEG) is even considering making it an international standard in their meeting this month.
But the road toward this goal is long, hard, and riddled with industry realities. Big and small labels would need to start using the new technology to sell their music –- not an easy thing, as the Blu-Ray/HD DVD war reminds us.
Another critical hurdle is to convince audio device manufacturers –- phones, portable players, etc.—to start making products that support the format and its capabilities. In short, replacing the old standard would require an unparalleled amount of collaboration among labels, digital retailers, and device manufacturers.
The movement requires a strong leader that could force the issue and pave the way for others to follow. Apple, for example, could use its iTunes/iPod clout to talk with major labels and start the revolution.

Give Your Brain a Boost

Can't remember where you put your glasses? Blanked on your new colleague's name? "Forgetting these types of things is a sign of how busy we are," says Zaldy S. Tan, MD, director of the Memory Disorders Clinic at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. "When we're not paying good attention, the memories we form aren't very robust, and we have a problem retrieving the information later."

The key, says Harry Lorayne, author of Ageless Memory: Simple Secrets for Keeping Your Brain Young, is to get your brain in shape. "We exercise our bodies, but what good is that great body if you don't have the mental capabilities to go with it?" Sure, you could write everything down, keep organized lists and leave electronic notes on your BlackBerry, cell phone or PDA. But when you don't have access to those aids, or if you want to strengthen your brain, try these expert-recommended strategies to help you remember.

Brain Freeze #1 "What the heck is his name?"
• Pay attention. When you're introduced to someone, really listen to the person's name. Then, to get a better grasp, picture the spelling. Ask, "Is that Kathy with a K or a C?" Make a remark about the name to help lock it in ("Oh, Carpenter -- that was my childhood best friend's last name"), and use the name a few times during the conversation and when you say goodbye.
• Visualize the name. For hard-to-remember monikers (Bentavegna, Wobbekind), make the name meaningful. For Bentavegna, maybe you think of a bent weather vane. Picture it. Then look at the person, choose an outstanding feature (bushy eyebrows, green eyes) and tie the name to the face. If Mr. Bentavegna has a big nose, picture a bent weather vane instead of his nose. The sillier the image, the better.
• Create memorable associations. Picture Joe Everett standing atop Mount Everest. If you want to remember that Erin Curtis is the CEO of an architectural firm, imagine her curtsying in front of a large building, suggests Gini Graham Scott, PhD, author of 30 Days to a More Powerful Memory.
• Cheat a little. Supplement these tips with some more concrete actions. When you get a business card, after the meeting, jot down a few notes on the back of the card ("red glasses, lives in Springfield, went to my alma mater") to help you out when you need a reminder.

Brain Freeze #2 "Where in the world did I leave my glasses?"
• Give a play-by-play. Pay attention to what you're doing as you place your glasses on the end table. Remind yourself, "I'm putting my keys in my coat pocket," so you have a clear memory of doing it, says Scott.
• Make it a habit. Put a small basket on a side table. Train yourself to put your keys, glasses, cell phone or any other object you frequently use (or misplace) in the basket -- every time.

Brain Freeze #3 "What else was I supposed to do today?"
• Start a ritual. To remind yourself of a chore (write a thank-you note, go to the dry cleaner), give yourself an unusual physical reminder. You expect to see your bills on your desk, so leaving them there won't necessarily remind you to pay them. But place a shoe or a piece of fruit on the stack of bills, and later, when you spot the out-of-place object, you'll remember to take care of them, says Carol Vorderman, author of Super Brain: 101 Easy Ways to a More Agile Mind.
• Sing it. To remember a small group of items (a grocery list, phone number, list of names, to-do list), adapt it to a well-known song, says Vorderman. Try "peanut butter, milk and eggs" to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," "Happy Birthday" or even nursery rhymes.
• Try mnemonic devices. Many of us learned "ROY G BIV" to remember the colors of the rainbow, or "Every Good Boy Deserves Favors" to learn musical notes. Make up your own device to memorize names (Suzanne's kids are Adam, Patrick and Elizabeth, or "APE"), lists (milk, eggs, tomatoes, soda, or "METS") or computer commands (to shut down your PC, hit Control+Alt+Delete, or "CAD").
• Use your body. When you have no pen or paper and are making a mental grocery or to-do list, remember it according to major body parts, says Scott. Start at your feet and work your way up. So if you have to buy glue, cat food, broccoli, chicken, grapes and toothpaste, you might picture your foot stuck in glue, a cat on your knee looking for food, a stalk of broccoli sticking out of your pants pocket, a chicken pecking at your belly button, a bunch of grapes hanging from your chest and a toothbrush in your mouth.
• Go Roman. With the Roman room technique, you associate your grocery, to-do or party-invite list with the rooms of your house or the layout of your office, garden or route to work. Again, the zanier the association, the more likely you'll remember it, says Scott. Imagine apples hanging from the chandelier in your foyer, spilled cereal all over the living room couch, shampoo bubbles overflowing in the kitchen sink and cheese on your bedspread.


Brain Freeze #4 "What's my password for this website?"
• Shape your numbers. Assign a shape to each number: 0 looks like a ball or ring; 1 is a pen; 2 is a swan; 3 looks like handcuffs; 4 is a sailboat; 5, a pregnant woman; 6, a pipe; 7, a boomerang; 8, a snowman; and 9, a tennis racket. To remember your ATM PIN (4298, say), imagine yourself on a sailboat (4), when a swan (2) tries to attack you. You hit it with a tennis racket (9), and it turns into a snowman (8). Try forgetting that image!
• Rhyme it. Think of words that rhyme with the numbers 1 through 9 (knee for 3, wine for 9, etc.). Then create a story using the rhyming words: A nun (1) in heaven (7) banged her knee (3), and it became sore (4).

Brain Freeze #5 "The word is on the tip of my tongue."
• Practice your ABCs. Say you just can't remember the name of that movie. Recite the alphabet (aloud or in your head). When you get to the letter R, it should trigger the name that's escaping you: Ratatouille. This trick works when taking tests too.

Brain Freeze #6 "I just can't memorize anything anymore!"
• Read it, type it, say it, hear it. To memorize a speech, toast or test material, read your notes, then type them into the computer. Next, read them aloud and tape-record them. Listen to the recording several times. As you work on memorizing, remember to turn off the TV, unplug your iPod and shut down your computer; you'll retain more.
• Use color. Give your notes some color with bolded headings and bulleted sections (it's easier to remember a red bullet than running text).
• Make a map. Imagine an intersection and mentally place a word, fact or number on each street corner

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