New Media Picks Of The Week: Sharewood Picnic 48

Where online collaboration starts and where individual isolated applications end is going to become a next to invisible borderline, as most applications are gradually drifting toward the integration of some form of collaborative features.

Photo credit: M. Brozek

Sharing, is becoming an essential asset for those who need to communicate, edit, evalute and publish information. Not sharing means isolating oneself and loosing touch with many relevant sources of information and advice.

The Sharewood Picnic, which is my weekly collection of the best, most interesting new media tools, resources and pointers I have run into during my daily research and online explorations, brings you more of these tools and web services that facilitate open interaction, free sharing and the ability to discover and exchange with like-minded individuals.

These are new media tools and technologies that can help independent publishers, online authors, webmasters and communication officers to publish, promote, evangelize and network faster, with less effort and cost-effectively, avoiding old, difficult and expensive communication and marketing systems.

Here is what I have found for you this week:

1. Web-based shareable calendar launched by Google


2. Share anything from video to text


3. Send free SMS in exchange for receiving ads


4. Mobile chat messaging to major IM networks from your cell phone


5. Web-based instant messenger allows SMS messaging and file sharing


6. Video clip recording and hosting


7. Online digital images archive supports digital camera upload as well as PCs and Macs



8. Digital image archive allows album creation, printing and free storage


9. Publish and display custom news feeds on your web site


10. Shared calendar integrates with your IM and mobile


11. Web-based application for streaming mp3 audio files to any web browser on any computer


12. Color selector enables you to create color sets and use them for web design applications


13. Mobile audio peripheral provides crystal-clear, hands-free audio communications for web conferencing applications

1. Google Calendar
   
   
Google Calendar is a web based calendar service, offering a wide set of features that makes it easy to keep track of your own schedule and share calendars with others. Google Calendar displays a clean interface: a "mini-calendar" on the left side of the screen shows the current month, and a view to the right shows either the current day, week or month view, the "next 4 days," or a list of all of your scheduled events. You can also import calendars that use the common iCal or CSV formats. The new Google Calendar is available to anyone who has a free Google account. To access the calendar, visit http://www.google.com/calendar and sign in, or register for a free Google account if you don't have one.
http://www.google.com/calendar





2. Multiply
   
   Multiply offers you an easy way to share all kinds of digital content, including photos, blogs, videos, music and more, all in one convenient place. With Multiply, you can share and discuss your files with everyone in your "social network" and also be alerted whenever they have something new. Your personal web site on Multiply - http://yourname.multiply.com - is the one place where you can share many different types of content. There are no system requirements and there's no need to install anything. Multiply comes with free unlimited storage space and also provides accounts suited for higher monthly activity levels.
   http://www.multiply.com
3. i-Text
   
   i-Text is a service that allows users to send free SMS in exchange of receiving advertisement on their mobile phones. Your network provider's data rate is all you will ever pay for sending an i-Text. In order to use i-Text, you need to download a copy of i-Text software by pointing your phone's browser to http://www.i-text.it/download.do. Once you are there, you will be prompted for your country code, your phone number, and the password that you signed up with. When you sign up to i-Text, you also get an i-Text account on the web, which allows you to send messages to mobile phones absolutely free. i-Text is good news for advertisers too, as it enables them to reach target audiences: learn more about advertising with i-Text. Any phone that is Java-enabled and supports GPRS can run i-Text.
   http://www.i-text.it





4. MXit
   
   MXit is a message exchange program for your cell phone. That means you can chat to people on their PCs and to other MXit users on their mobiles, from your mobile, anywhere in the world. With MXit, you can send a message of up to 2000 characters. And not only can you chat to other MXit users, but you can also connect to MSN messenger, ICQ, Google Talk or Jabber communities. Sending a message costs you less than 1 cents ($) per message. MXit can be used anywhere in the world, as long as there is GPRS/3G coverage. You can download MXit for free.
   http://www.mxit.co.za/





5. Parlis
   
   Parlis is a web-based instant messenger that enables you to text chat and share files with your contacts. With Parlis you can also send free SMS to all those friends of yours across the world who have mobile phones and also receive SMS from Parlis directly to your mobile. Parlis does not require downloading or installing because all you need is an Internet connection. You can access to Parlis from all web browsers and operative systems. It is also possible to integrate Parlis in your desktop (this feature is available only for Windows operative systems and Internet Explorer).
   http://www.parlis.com





6. BlogCheese
   
   BlogCheese is a service for creating and hosting video blogs. With BlogCheese you can shot and share your very own videos, record as many one-minute video posts and video comments as you want and view other people's video blogs. BlogCheese takes care of storing and sharing everything for you. Currently, BlogCheese does not allow users to edit their videos online or import existing videos from other services, but these features will be added in the future. No downloads or plug-ins are required. All you need is a computer with a web camera attached and an internet connection. BlogCheese is completely free to use.
   http://www.blogcheese.com





7. Zoto
   
   Zoto allows you to safely store and organize an unlimited number of digital photos, with total control over who has access to them. Upload photos right from your PC, Mac or camera phone. Tags and permissions allow you to organize and control who sees them. You can quickly and easily publish photos to your blog. Zoto supports the following blog service: Blogger, TypePad, WordPress and more. Zoto offers unlimited upload and 10 GB storage.
   http://www.zoto.com





8. 23
   
   23 makes it easy to share your digital photos via the web or with prints. With 23 your photos are safely stored and backed up on 23's servers. You get your own photo pages, you can create albums, use tags, create stories, and more. The free account has full functionality and is by no means a crippled version of the product. 23 also provides a paid account option available, the 23plus account. The difference between the free and paid account is a matter of upload-quotas. On the free account you have a maximum of 20 MB upload per month (measured in bandwidth) whereas the 23plus account have an unlimited monthly upload quota.
   http://www.23hq.com





9. Feedo Style
   
   Feedo Style allows you to add fresh themed content to your website from any sources with a simple copy and paste. With Feedo Style you can easily convert any valid RSS, RDF or ATOM feed into stylish looking news tickers and boxes that update automatically according to your settings. If your website spans different topics, you can consider creating different Feedo Styles for each type of content. You can use Feedo Style in your online desktop or personalized homepage, like Google's Personalized Homepage, Microsoft's Live.com or Pageflakes, as a replacement for the standard feed boxes. No XML or programming experience is necessary. Feedo Style is free to use.
   http://www.feedostyle.com





10. Kiko
    
    Kiko is a calendar that delivers all the functionality of desktop calendar software. It is a simple and functional calendar you can use right in your web browser. Kiko integrates with your mobile phone and AIM and lets you access your calendar from any computer. You can invite anyone to events and let others view your calendar with just a click. Appointment reminders can be sent by email, instant message or text message. Users can import appointments from iCal and contacts lists from vCard.
    http://www.kiko.com





11. Portable Playlist
    
    With Portable Playlist you can view or listen to your portable playlist from any computer, anywhere. Portable Playlist is a free web-based application for streaming mp3 audio files, that can be accessed through any web browser on any computer with internet access. The website interface incorporates a selection of tools that help you to manage files found in various locations across the web. You can store URLs to offsite mp3 files, subscribe to podcasts, create and edit playlists or find media files using the built-in Blogdigger search. No audio files are hosted at the website, so you need to have them stored somewhere else in the Web. Portable Playlist is a free service.
    http://www.portableplaylist.com





12. Color Tool
    
    Color Tool is an online application that enables you to create color sets and use them to design your personal web site. You can work with a dynamic visual color palette and instantly explore harmony relationships and analyze contrast and readability. Once you are on the homepage, you just have to pull out the color tool, hidden on the left, to begin. The top and middle row of colors are variations used to alter the rows of colors on the bottom of the palette. These bottom colors can be dragged to the right of the website, and dropped on the little boxes there. Thus, you will be capable to test color matching and save the color scheme for your use. Color Tool is ideal for web designers and it's totally free to use.
    http://color.sharewonders.com





13. Chat 50 Plus
    
    The Chat 50 Plus is a mobile audio peripheral that connects to a variety of devices and provides crystal-clear, hands-free audio communications for web conferencing. Chat 50 offers full-duplex capability, enabling users to simultaneously speak and listen without disruptions. The Chat 50 also provides high-quality audio playback for music, gaming and other sound files. It is slightly larger than a deck of cards, making it a truly mobile device. It can be used with Internet telephony applications, such as Skype or Vonage and VoIP softphones, such as Cisco and CounterPath. The Chat 50 Plus ships with a USB cable, 2.5mm-3.5mm cell phone & telephone audio cable, power supply, quick start guide, and CD for $180.
    
    http://www.clearone.com/products...