Author: JD Rucker

To say social media will be bigger in 2011 is like saying a 5-year-old will be bigger when she’s 6-years-old. It is still in its infancy and while many people are engulfed in some form of social media, there are still billions of people who haven’t been on Facebook or its kind before. As 2010 draws to a close, every website is faced with different questions that they need to answer next year. For some, it’s a matter of turning a good profit. For others, it’s a matter of staying alive to see 2012. Nobody has the luxury of having only one major question to answer, but we’ve selected seven big ones that each must…

Everyone knows that the Internet is serious business. Many are starting to understand that blogging is now serious business as well. Professional bloggers have an average of 3.5 blogs each and work over 10 hours a week on blogging, something that most would equate with (gulp) work. The reality is that blogging is a business and as a result has its own economy. This graphic by Grasshopper Group depicts the economy surrounding blogging and breaks down the ins and outs of it as a profession. …

On launch day Thursday, Opera 11 was downloaded 6.7 million times compared to 1.7 million a year ago with Opera 10.10. While these numbers are strong for the company that has put much of its focus on its mobile browser, one aspect of the numbers may catch many by surprise. 53% of the new downloads admitted to switching from Firefox while 43% were switching from Internet Explorer. Part of the success of the launch can be attributed to Opera’s appeal to the Reddit audience. The social news site is quickly becoming a force that drives tremendous traffic and holds a certain level of “intellectual superiority”…

Hybrid vehicle sales account for less than 3 percent of auto sales overall. Despite this surprisingly low figure in the midst of unrelenting buzz, hybrid technology will only become more prevalent over the next couple of years. Evidence of that was on display at the recent 2010 LA Auto Show, where many automakers showed off new hybrids that were destined to reach showrooms in the near future. But consumers aren’t the only ones looking to gain miles per gallon and curb emissions. Even the most unlikely of vehicles benefits from cutting-edge hybrid technology: street sweepers. “A sweeper…

Memes have been a staple of the Internet since emails were sent out with subject lines that started with “RE: FW: FW: FW: CC: RE: FW: RE: FW: FW: FW:”. 2010 was another stellar year for memes as old celebrities unintentional hit the spotlight and regular folks joined them in utter memeness. This graphic by MySpace takes 10 of the best ones from the year and visualizes them for us nicely. Below, you’ll find the live memes all on one nice page for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy….

What people use as their favorite browser is often a tell-tail sign about their personality and understanding of the Internet. Most of the time, people use what they have originally (IE) but the trends seem to point to the blessed fact that even the non-tech-savvy in the world are realizing that there are options outside of a certain pre-installed Microsoft product. This graphic depicts most of the popular web browsers by comparing them to their celebrity personifications. Are you a Samuel L Jackson or a Matthew McConnaughey? Are you one of those who have recently become Christopher Nolan browser…

CNN may not be the first mainstream media outlet to create a blog on Tumblr, but their entrance there yesterday means that they won’t be the last. As an unofficial “trendsetter” for mainstream media sites after their (purchased) success on Twitter, others will be watching to see how much success they can have on the site that has traditionally been seen as dominated by hipsters (that don’t like to be called hipsters). The staff of 5 who will be updating Tumblr while still performing their normal duties hope to bring a lighter touch than what is normally found on the CNNMoney Tech News section of the…

Internet Explorer is a distant memory for anyone who knows what the word “browser” means. Firefox is hanging on by a thread amongst the tech savvy mostly due to its assortment of addons and plugins, but Chrome is climbing fast and will likely eclipse it on most fronts. Is there any room left for Opera? Many who have tried Opera 11 would say, “Yes”. It may just be that good. What’s New? There are several new features added to the newest version. Added safety, integration with search and mail, and visual mouse gestures are nice additions, but it’s in the other two that we see a potential for Opera to distinguish…

Adobe Flash has taken its lumps this year with on-again, off-again feuds with Apple, Google, and most of the large tech companies in existence. Websites are pulling away from using it. Video players are switching to HTML5. The future looks gloomy for one of Adobe’s staples over the years. One of the biggest complaints is that it’s considered a CPU hog. A high-quality video with vector overlay can eat up all of the processing power on an average computer. Fortunately, Flash Player 10.2 beta has a video-playback-optimized mode called Stage Video that can leverage complete hardware acceleration…

Translating technology has come a long way since Babblefish. A new iPhone App called Word Lens combines augmented reality, real-time translation and character-recognition software that will have you heading to that Mexican restaurant you always wanted to try but couldn’t read the menu. The app looks for characters through the iPhone camera and translates them in real time, replacing the foreign words with their English counterparts (and visa-versa). For over 2 years, Quest Visual founders Otavio Good and John DeWeese have been working on the technology that will aid travelers abroad….