A buddy of mine who was traveling on business last week knew he was going to miss his annual Passover Seder. Not to worry – while he couldn’t be there in real-time, he simply logged on to OurJewishCommunity.org via his iPad and participated with other Jews worldwide in a virtual Seder.
That got me to wonderin’ – how do some of the world’s most popular religions, in effect, ‘market’ themselves? What are some of the digital tools available online and does going the virtual route somewhat detract from physically being in a place of worship or complement someone’s spirituality?
So I spent a bit of time wandering in the digital desert and came across a number of interesting sites and apps.
Here’s a snapshot (alphabetized -- not listed in any particular order of preference):
Buddhism
Sumi Loundon Kim, the Buddhist chaplain at Duke University and minister for the Buddhist families of Durham, NC, summed up the dilemma of teaching Buddhism to a new generation that uses texting, Facebook, Twitter and other online social media.
“These other worlds exist only through the eyes and mind; there is no touch, no taste, no smell, and very little hearing. As such, virtual worlds present us Buddhist teachers... Read more
'Wireless' Category 
No Mobile Hype Here – Just Claim That Industry is in "Stagnation"
The description is so preposterous that it is noteworthy – a business reporter in a major Canadian newspaper wrote that there is a “sense of stagnation” in the mobile industry.
In the Toronto Star piece http://www.thestar.com/business/article/1157843--tech-s-great-expectations-why-consumers-are-often-neither-shaken-nor-stirred titled Tech’s great expectations: Why consumers are often neither shaken nor stirred, Michael Lewis (no, not the Michael Lewis from Moneyball fame) sought to call out mobile for what he considers small or no advances.
“With the wow factor conspicuously absent from the latest crop of smartphones and tablet PCs offered by vendors including Apple Inc., some experts are asking whether innovation has hit a wall in the post-Jobs era,” Lewis wrote. “The sense of stagnation was reinforced at the recent Mobile World Congress in Barcelona where dozens of smartphones were unveiled by vendors including HTC Corp. and Samsung Electronics in what one blogger called an outpouring of “product spam.”
Granted, the story appeared before Facebook paid $1 billion for pioneering Instagram so that it could be a bigger player in mobile. But where was Lewis when the third iPad was introduced, or when Nokia showed a 41-megapixel phone, or when Draw Something saw 50 million downloads in 50 days?
It would be too easy to suggest that... Read more
Cool use of a QR code
I recently saw this really unique use of a QR code on a limited edition beer from Magic Hat (Magic Hat +-). The QR code is camouflaged in the the design of the bottle label and led to a mobile website where consumers could leave comments about what they thought of the beer:
I like that Magic Hat gave mobile engagement a try here. Their younger audience definitely might have a higher likelihood to know what a QR code is and have a smartphone to use it. However, not everyone would recognize it especially hidden in the label. The fans of the brand that did engage seemed willing to give their glowing opinions of the beer.
Although there is some debate about whether QR codes are just a fad, I like the fact that companies and brands are experimenting with it and even having fun with it. It would be all too easy to put a website url on a beer bottle label. Consumers would more likely have their phones within reach and scan the code than go to a computer to visit the site.
We need more creative applications of mobile interaction and I'm glad I happened to see this one!
Target Content by Device
Armed with smartphones, tablets and laptop/desktop computers, consumers are beginning to use each device to do distinct tasks. And while e-mail, Internet access, search, Facebook, music, photos and gaming are widely used on all three screens, increasingly consumers are turning to specific tools to accomplish specific things.
Smartphones are the all purpose in-motion utility device. The voice/text/audio recording tool replacing watches, alarm clocks, instant cameras, to-do lists, address books, PDAs, gameboys, calendars, weather 800 numbers and soon -- wallets. Tablets are becoming multi-dimensional infotainment centers. And personal computers, which are more likely than either phones or tablets to be shared devices, are serious tools for serious matters and the repository, or gateway to the cloud repository, of our key files and critical data.
The division of labor seems to a function of technical capabilities, psychology, demographics and habits. People are used to doing certain things on the go, like texting, calling, checking e-mail, tweeting, etc. Shopping is a mixed bag. According to PriceGrabber, 1 percent of on online shoppers will buy exclusively using a mobile device and another 45 percent will combine offline, online and mobile to make a purchase. And while the number of these tasks is expanding to include payments,... Read more
