New Media Picks Of The Week: Sharewood Picnic 26

Here is Robin Good's weekly basket of new media resources, software and articles that I would like to share with you. They are all powerful digital weapons for participating in the user-driven publishing revolution Robin is chronicling.

Photo credit: Joăo Estęvăo A. de Freitas

Feel free to test, download and freely use any of the little gems listed here below.

1. Personalized start page and content aggregator service
2. Music software to record, store and connect online
3. Pro search service for Usenet-based multimedia content
4. Multimedia bookmark and content manager
5. Podcast and vlog client with full BitTorrent support
6. Search service to find and download mainstream television programs using BitTorrent technology
7. Ping notification service
8. Guide to videoblogs impact on education
9. Recommendations clearinghouse for independent musicians
10. News site for interactive media professionals

1. Windows Live
   
   Redmond has unveiled their version of the personalized homepage that combines many of Microsoft's existing MSN services into an advertising-supported product for consumers. Windows Live lets users create a specialized page with all their favorite content, including email, newsfeeds, weather reports, stock reports, bookmarks and other features, all in one place. While the MS personalized homepages do not compare to the simplicity of the Google version, they are likely to become prominent, as they are designed to work seamlessly with Microsoft software. The Windows Live suite also contains new versions of MSN Messenger, virus protections and a mobile-compatible search.
   http://www.live.com/





2. Digital Musician
   
   
   Digital Musician.net is a network for musicians, producers and recording studios to connect and create music via the web. The site is an online community where musicians can find the right session player, singer, studio or producer for their project. The site also features discussion boards, instant messenger and video conferencing tools allowing musicians to network and communicate easily. Digital Musician lets users create a personalized page to showcase their talents, capabilities and preferences, as well as post clips of their work. Using the power of virtual studio technology, Digital Musician enables easy creation of musical pieces via the web, turning a DSL line into a microphone cable you can use to make music with people around the world. A basic account is free of charge and an advanced version is available for as low as 24 Euro per month.
   http://www.digitalmusician.net/





3. Guba
   
   
   GUBA is a service for searching, downloading and viewing multimedia content posted on Usenet newsgroups. In existence for over 20 years, Usenet consists of thousands of discussion forums that are also often used to post multimedia content. However, searching for specific content is often difficult on Usenet due to the massive amount of information available. GUBA makes finding that content easy and provides downloading and viewing capabilities from a single program. GUBA provides "previews of all video files prior to download via frame extraction, detailed information on all content...." Unlike P2P sites, GUBA automatically removes any file protected by digital rights management and permanently blacklists it. GUBA also blacklists files that are banned or illegal and compares images and identifies image files that are identical so users don't end up with multiple versions of the same file. Available for $14.95 USD.
   http://www.guba.com/

   
   
   

4. Clipmarks
   
   
   Clipmarks lets you bookmark any web page components you may encounter online, and not entire web pages as typically happens. With Clipmarks, users can easily bookmark and locally store pieces of content found on any web page including text, video and images of any kind. Users can also tag their clipmarks as well and share them through the site's searchable collection. Clipmarks is a free download, but only works on Internet Explorer for Windows.
   http://clipmarks.com/





5. Nimiq
   
   
   Nimiq is a podcasting client that automatically downloads audio and video with podcasts, and allows BitTorrent downloads as well. Nimiq supports importing OPML feed lists and easily synchs with iTunes or Windows Media Player. A free download.
   http://www.nimiq.nl/





6. TvTorrents
   
   TV Torrents is an online hub for finding BitTorrent files for television programs. The site contains a search feature and provides a forum for discussion and social networking so users can easily find TV shows they want. The TV Torrents site is somewhat hard to navigate and is designed for people with experience with BitTorrent. Free to join.
   http://www.tvtorrents.com/





7. Pingoat
   
   
   Pingoat is a site that notifies services that monitor weblogs (such as Icerocket or Feedster) when you publish new content. Users need to enter their blog's URL, name and XML feed, and then need to select from over fifty blog search engines that they may want to "ping". Then each time you publish content, your selected services are notified. The service is fast, free and an easy way to increase your blog's popularity.
   http://pingoat.com/





8. Videoblogging mini-guide
   
   Educase Learning Initiative produced this web brochure discussing videoblogs (vlogs) and their impact on education. The brochure explains what vlogs are, who is using vlogs, why they are significant, and includes a scenario where vlogs are used in the classroom. The .pdf file is available for free.
   http://www.educause.edu/...





9. CD From The Artist
   
   
   CDsFromTheArtist.com is a site for independent musicians to promote their music without going through a record label or CD store middleman. CTFA doesn't actually sell anything, the site only exists as a informational center where music lovers can find new music from any part of the world. Users post links to artist websites, and as people discover and buy CDs, they give feedback so others can get a feel for the artist. Some artists even post .mp3 links directly to the CTFA site. CTFA accepts music from any genre and is a great resource for spreading the word about music. However, CTFA is new and only lists a small number of artists. Free.
   http://www.cdsfromtheartist.com/
   





10. Creole.Spavia.com
    
    
    Creole.Spavia is an informational hub for syndicated news geared toward interactive professionals (i.e. bloggers, journalists, business people and others). Created by Spavia.com, Creole is a combination of "creativity online," and posts daily links to "news and commentary about the interactive industry" often selected by individual readers. "Content of Creole has been optimized to the demands of the working professional who needs a broader but quicker overview of the industry than was available before, at one place." Free to use.
    http://creole.spavia.com/