The Internet knows…

October 19, 2009

What does the Internet know about you?

Great question. Some people just post anything online. Some might regret it later, others not at all. But what is out there about you? I found an interesting website called Personas. It visually represents just how much the internet knows about you in an arty way. How does it work? Just type in your name. Personas will analyze the text of the Google results, breaking your web presence down into various keywords or categories. These include everything from “online” to “books” to “social,” and each one has a color, so each person’s name results in a unique band of colors. Here is mine (click to see full version):

Personas

Of course, if more people have the same name as you (I know at least 3 do!), the results can become a bit blurry (No clue why “military” is in mine). Nevertheless, it is a very colorful overview of who you are on the Internet. On top of that, it shows how smart the web becomes and how far software can go to digitally track you.

So, what’s in it for me? What’s truly me : online, social, professional, media, management, education, news, sports, books, legal… What not? military, genealogy, fashion…

Give Personas a try yourself and see what the web comes up with :-)


Sandwich Tool

August 18, 2009

Ever wondered what’s happening on the other side of the world?

Actually, where exactly is the other side of the world? Rigth! Zefrank has come up with the sandwich tool to give you the exact point on the other side of the world, using Google Maps.

Check it out for yourself:

Zefrank.com Sandwich Tool


Tired of Roomservice?

August 15, 2009

Yes, a lot of travellers are using roomservice. Many of them are sometimes shocked by the overpriced and underdelivered meals they actually get. Now, it’s amazing what you can do in your hotelroom if you want to cook for yourself. British comedian George Egg demonstrates some hotel survival tips for cooking an impressive meal in your hotelroom.

It’s both funny and inspiring what you actually can achieve in your hotelroom! Enjoy your meal :-)

Source :  Learn to cook in your hotelroom


Nathan Flutebox Lee

May 8, 2009

Sometimes I receive these great videos! After all it’s Friday, right?

Nathan “Flutebox” Lee is giving a performance at Google in London and hear this genius create unbelievable sounds! Oh, and let’s not forget Beardyman is in this movieclip too!

I know I’ve posted about the VocaPeople and Bauchklang before, but this is something completely different again! Enjoy it like I did :-)

Thanks Sheri for sharing this video!

Have a great weekend,

Bert Verdonck
Lifehacker & Life Coach


Best Job in the World

May 6, 2009

You probably heard about the dream assignment to swim, explore and relax on Hamilton Island in the Great Barrier Reef for while writing a blog to promote the area. Most people would probably call it the “Best Job in the World”. That’s exactly what the Tourism Department of Queensland state had in mind when they launched the campaign for it.

How’s this for a job description :-)

After outbeating a staggering amount of nearly 35,000 applicants from around the world, Ben Southall, 34, of Petersfield won the job! It was announced today! Ben is an adventurous, crazy, energetic bungee jumping, ostrich-riding British charity worker was named the winner of this sublime contest.

Why don’t you apply next time? What better way to prepare then to follow his footsteps and read his blogs, view his podcasts, …

So, maybe I’ll know what you’ll be doing this summer :-)

Enjoy every day,

Bert Verdonck
Lifehacker & Life Coach


Twitter Time

April 24, 2009

Twitter is truly going global these days. If we look at the rate they are growing. Amazing! What’s happening?Twitter

Many startups, like StockTwits, are basing their entire company on Twitter’s infrastructure. StockTwits is an open, community-powered investment idea and information service. Just eavesdrop on what other traders and investors are talking about in real time.

Recently Twitter grew at an incredible rate. As the graph of comScore shows, Twitter increased 95 percent in the month of March from 9.8 million to 19.1 million.

Twitter Growth March 2009 (TechCruch)

You also probably heard of Ashton Kutcher’s stunt on getting 1 million followers on Twitter? If you want to follow him too, he’s now at 1.3 million followers :-) By the way, mrs Kutcher (Demi Moore) is attracting people herself with 750K followers! Also a must read is Simon Dumenco’s article. He’s putting things in the right perspective.

What probably made the biggest difference is the appearance of Oprah (@Oprah) on Twitter (16th April). Read Heather Hopkins’ article on the Oprah Effect on Hitwise. Or is it coincidence that Twitter made it in the Top 40 most visited websites by Australians, according to Alan Long.

And then there is the Cisco Fatty or how to ruin a “Fatty Cisco Job” with 1 tweet. You must of heard of it by now, right?

Anyway, let’s share a great comic byNitrozac & Snaggy (Joyof Tech)

Twitter Etiquette

Oh, if you were still wondering where to find me, I am also on Twitter : http://twitter.com/bertverdonck

I know, I don’t have Ashton’s number of followers (yet), but fun in progress :-)

Enjoy your weekend,

Bert Verdonck
Lifehacker & Life Coach


100 Most Iconic Videos

April 14, 2009

Urlesque : Top 100 Most Iconic Internet VideosUrlesque brings you the 100 Most Iconic Internet Videos.

An amazing list of the top 100 viral videos that inspired a lot of people or wasted time for a lot of others! :-)

Anyway, if you are looking for great viral videos Urlesque is a great place to start from. Some of them I already posted about earlier on this blog and elsewhere.

Urlesque : Top 100 Most Iconic Videos

What strikes me is that several videos in this top 100 Most Iconic Videos are from the pre-Internet era. Of course, when uploaded they took their own viral route…

And yes, I know you are curious, so I give you the shortcut to see who’s at nr. 1?

Enjoy every day,

Bert Verdonck
Lifehacker & Life Coach


A Capella Fun

April 10, 2009

Yes, a capella can be serious fun! There are lots of fantastic groups out there. The other day, I found a great clip about the Voca People.

Check it out and enjoy every second :

Yes, I used Gawkk to find this one :-)

Or if you prefer a more electronic genre, check out this human beatbox group from Austria : Bauchklang

Amazing!

Have fun, always,

Bert Verdonck
Lifehacker & Life Coach


April Fools’ Day

April 1, 2009

Yes, today is one of my favourite days: April Fools’ Day. I am always in the mood for a good prank :-)

So, several people look at me to be inspired and share some great ideas on how to crack practical jokes with friends, family or colleagues.

This happened to my dad somewhere in a restaurant a couple of years ago. Nope, it wasn’t me, but I found out how they did it :-)

Here is a small list of interesting websites to find more fun:

April Fools

April Fool Zone

Best Geek April Fools’ Pranks

Several Gadgets for April Fools’ Day

For PC : Bluescreen Screensaver

For iPhone or iTouch

Twitter Premium Accounts

Not out yet, but promising : Cublice Warfare

2008 April Fool Jokes Review

The Top 100 April Fools’ Day Hoaxes of All Time

If you still haven’t found what you are looking for, just contact me :-)

Have fun, always,

Bert Verdonck
Lifehacker & Life Coach


LED Fun

March 29, 2009

Ever seen sheeps carrying LEDs to enlighten the hills of Wales?

Have a look at this great prank, which turned into a commercial for Samsung.

Well done guys,

Bert Verdonck
Lifehacker