I admit it. I had no idea what Rounds (formerly 6rounds) was when a friend invited me to check it out. My first thought was that it’s just another TinyChat or Google Hangout. After about 3 minutes in, I realized it was much more than that. The easiest way to describe it is as a video chat client for Facebook or on the web that puts fun into the conversation. It’s not just another Skype. It gives users the ability to play around both with themselves and with each other. Play games, use webcam effects, bounce around a la Tinychat (but with “safety features”) – the features are designed for more than simply chatting….

Looking back at the world of music and communication, it’s amazing to see the transitions that have taken place to get to where we are now. With iPods, FLAC (free lossless audio codec), and the domination of digital files over physical venues, we are able to immerse ourselves in recordings of the highest imaginable quality. The days of the old slogan, “Is it live or is it Memorex?” are truly upon us. In this infographic, the sound pros over at Sonos break down the history and explore the evolution of sound systems from Thomas Edison to Steve Jobs and beyond. Click to enlarge. …

The thing that most people fear when they have mobile employees is the productivity level. As humans, the common belief is that we’re more productive when people are standing over our shoulders. In this world of mobile connectivity with devices that can do almost anything we need them to do from outside the office, atmospheres have changed and many consider themselves more productive when away from the cubicle. Is it true? Is it wishful thinking to believe that working from home or while traveling avails us to more efficient working? Some would argue that there are more distractions away from…

There is so much that can be learned about a people through social media data. People don’t always act the same way online as they do in the real world, but if anything it allows likes and interests to be more genuine based upon the anonymity associated (for now) with online activities. In other words, social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Tagged may know more about us than our friends and family do. In this graphic, we explore various pieces of data that help to paint a pretty clear picture of Americans and their online activities. We may all be aware that Americans love video games, but did you…

With all of the buzz surrounding Google+, people tend to forget that Twitter is nearly 10X bigger than the new kid on the block while Facebook is over 30X bigger. Between the two, they have a billion users (granted most Twitter users have a Facebook account, but who’s counting?). When it comes to business, branding has become one of the primary focuses when it comes to using social media. Marketing directly has proven to be less effective than it once was, so getting advocates and fans has been the primary goal of social media managers at businesses large and small for a while now. This infographic…

The science behind hacking passwords has evolved much faster than the passwords themselves. While many websites and programs set limits on password-attempts that make brute-force attacks impossible, there are plenty of sites that do not. With many people using the same password for multiple sites and profiles, they don’t necessarily have to hack everything. They just need to find the weakest link. The cartoon above by XKCD brilliantly and simply explains why long passwords with common random words are much more effective than the standard 1 capital letter, 1 number, 1 symbol, 8-12 character-long…

Trolls. We all love them. We all hate them. They are entertaining when we aren’t the victim, but when they focus on us, they can make us want to cry. There are things that you can do to fight them. We’re here to help. First, you must identify them. Getting into a conversation with one can lead to a trap if you don’t know what you’re getting into. Once identified, you have to take control of the situation and lead the direction of the conversation. Finally, you need to know when to fight back and when to walk away. This graphic breaks it down for us and shows how to keep it all under “con-troll”. Click to enlarge….

Network television has owned the airwaves for decades and shows no signs of slowing despite the increased popularity of challengers such as online streaming video. In a world where many are declaring traditional television dead, the market has grown 0.2% year over year. It’s not much, but it’s still on the positive side. Streaming video, on the other hand, grew over 35% in the same time frame. Is it conceivable that YouTube, Hulu, and the like can eventually overtake traditional television as the primary media source? That’s the question that our friends at Wistia posed in the infographic below….

Despite being the most used form of online communication, email has major drawbacks. Since the dawn of spam, email has grown to become both our most used asset as well as our most despised necessity. Many have gone away from it (myself included), only having it available as a last resort when people refuse to use more civilized forms of online communication. And yet, email continues to dominate much of our online lives. This infographic by our friends at Ccloop discusses the history of email and breaks down the 4 biggest announces: Attachment Chaos The Great Flood Super Spam Forgetful Forwards…

Having the latest shiny new gadget is something that many people strive for. They are the ones who are willing to wait in line, get test samples or beta invites for new technology, and generally consider last year’s model an abomination. They are the early adopters and there are distinct advantages to being one. There are, however, costs as well. This graphic by our friends at SocialCast explores those costs and shows how people who are getting the latest and greatest may be getting a little ripped off in the process. Being an early adopter is often a status symbol, and as with most status symbols,…