Move over Firefox I think I’m in love with Flock

I’ve used Firefox for years now, have been with them since they came on the scene way back when Netscape was popular. I never thought I’d come across another browser that I’d like quite as much but I have to say Flock I rather like you! It’s no surprise though due to the fact that Flock is built upon Firefox.

I downloaded Flock 2.03 last month, not sure where I even got it from or why I even downloaded it but today I decided to fire it up again and discovered that Flock 2.5.5 was the latest version to-date.

I had been having problems with Firefox being unwilling to play Winmedia videos and that wasn’t a good thing to have happening.  I have online courses I am taking and if I am unable to view the video then I’m unable to pass the tests which means…well, I’m not getting any where with my courses.

Win media within Flock Browser

After trying numerous things to make the plug in work in Firefox I came across information for Flock and decided to try using it.  After the copying of a few files I fired up the browser and voila!  Flock was working like a charm!

Flock is a Social Media browser and once you’ve tried the features that are related to FaceBook, Twitter and blogging, you may find that you’re “in love” too.

From within Flock I can now easily and simply connect to my Facebook profiles, including the great new feature that allows you to chat with Facebook friends no matter where you are browsing on the net.  Your friends go with you even if you are on a totally different site!  Twitter profiles and email profiles are also all close at hand without leaving the browser or having to search through Bookmarks or type in addresses in order to get to where I want to be.

Using the social Media bar I’m able to open a side bar on the left side of the browser that connects me easily and quickly to my “People Sidebar” – allowing me to view the latest updates for my friends on FB or Twitter.  I can open a Feeds sidebar that allows me to add new feeds, import and export feeds and choose from a number of pre-configured feeds already included.

I can include addresses for various webmail addresses which gives me one click access to all my webmail addresses that I work with…intuitive and easy to manage and set up…perfect for the way I work.  I can also open my “Favorites” in the sidebar or open the sidebar so that I can access all of my accounts and services that I have set up for WordPress, Twitter, Facebook, Gmail, Yahoo, Blogger, Myspace, LinkedIn and many more.

The Drag and Drop web clipboard is very handy…this allows you to drag and drop text, links and images from any website and save them for later.  Very handy for those of you who like to save various info…no more click, click, click, this is all drag and drop fast!

The Photo drag and drop feature allows you to drag images from your computer and revert, crop and rotate images as well as write descriptions for them and then upload them to an account that you set up (such as Flickr) for fast image management and transfers/postings.

Flock Blog Editor

The Blog editor feature is a basic editor that once set up with your account for your particular blog or blogs, makes posting new blog posts a simple 1-2-3 procedure.

The Media Bar that runs across the top of the browser offers you the opportunity to view images in a zoom out window as well as choose from various media stream sites to view videos.  You can also search images on Facebook, Picasa, and videos on Youtube and a lot more.

Flock Media Bar

Setting up Flock was a simple matter of downloading the setup program, and hitting install.  It configured with no problem and the nice thing about Flock is that many of the Add-ins and Plug-ins for Firefox work with it.  I love Sxipper Password manager and after installing it in Flock I simply imported the information from my Firefox and all of my passwords were accessible to me.

Flock streamlines the Social Media scene and allows you to do everything from within the browser making it a simple and smooth process to manage all of your online persona easily and smoothly.

My World Tab

My World is a tabbed window that shows up when you fire up Flock and from it you can do things like search Twitter for trends that are currently popular as well as searches that you wish to save.   You can also view favorite feeds activity and friends activity from this one tab window which provides you with quick and easy “at a glance” info to keep you up to date.

If there is a downfall to Flock it would be the fact that there are few themes that are designed for use with it.  There is one site that I came across that has ported some of Firefox’s themes to suit Flock.  There may be newer themes coming out or they may already be available but the quick search I did didn’t reveal too many just yet.

I like the way the support forum for Flock indicates those questions that have been answered as well as the ones that remain unanswered and includes the number of questions that remain unanswered in a particular subject field.

I haven’t run into any performance problems as yet, the browser works smoothly and quickly and is actually working much faster on my laptop than Firefox has been doing of late.  I have a number of tabs open as well as the media bar and not a single delay.  Even my winmedia feed for my course which usually lags on occasion has run smoothly and flawlessly – a real positive in and of itself. Nothing bugs me more than a laggy video!

Overall, I can see myself getting quite use to using Flock.  If you are into Social Media and want to make it more streamlined and actually a pleasure to navigate…try Flock, you might decide to keep it, if not for your primary browser, at least for those times when you want to move around social media sites more intuitively.

Once you’ve downloaded and installed Flock you can become a “Top Flocker” earning gifts and rewards for referring Flock to others…including friends on Facebook.  I like this referral app because it limits you to 8 friends so it makes you really think about who you believe will actually install the program and give it a try.  You can add additional friends but only 8 at a time.

Personally,  I think I’m ready to move over to Flock full time.

Lex

A beautifully relaxing piece w/guitar

Melt the Christmas rush away with this beautiful instrumental piece including guitar.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

more about "A beautifully relaxing piece w/guitar", posted with vodpod

As the year closes…and a favor to ask

The year 2009 has been a very different one for my family and I as well as for friends of ours.  It’s been filled with hope, optimism, wonder, joy and blessings.  It has also been a year of dualities…sort of the one step forward, one step back kind.  I’ve had dear friends who have also had this happen to them.

…a favor to ask

One good friend is someone who rarely thinks of himself first and who has had many of the one step forward, one step backward events this past year in his life,  so I’d like to bring up the asking of a very special “favor” if I may.

Home safe and sound - HK almost died but Pat McKittrick and his huge heart stepped in to help save him

My good friend Pat has blogged about the near death of his friend’s cat very recently,  now named HK.  Before HK became ill he seemed to have no name other than “cat” 🙂 but an infection recently  threatened HK’s life and the caring staff at the Vet chose to christen him with his new name.  You can read HK’s  story here at Pat McKittrick’s Blog.  I’ve known Pat for a few years now but it wasn’t til this year that we really became good friends.  I’ve come to know him as a very considerate, giving person who will do anything he can for others.  He rarely if ever thinks first of himself and I have never heard him complain or even draw attention to his own personal hardships.  Unless you know Pat extremely well as his roommates do, you would find it difficult to believe that Pat had a care in the world.

His one dream is to set up his own Travel Guide business – something we’ve talked a lot about over the year.  You see, Pat’s been unemployed for almost a year now and although this situation would place anyone into a very stressful mindset, for Pat, when you speak with him or when he interacts with anyone through Social media etc., you’d never suspect that he was in this situation.  He has been trying to save up the $450 fee required to purchase a Travel Guide course so that he can own his own business but unexpected expenses and situations have eaten away at all his savings attempts.  Yet, he did not hesitate to do everything he could to save HK!

It took HK’s getting ill and almost dying to bring Pat to the point where he knew he may not be able to go this alone any longer.  With a vet bill of $650 Pat didn’t worry about how he would survive, instead he worried about how he would be able to pay the bill so that the Vet would release HK and allow the cat to return home to his friend!

This was important enough to Pat that he did something he very, rarely if ever would do … he bared his soul and told his story.

So, my favor?  To anyone reading this, if you are of the donating kind and would like to help Pat pay for the $650 Vet Bill…I would encourage you to send a few dollars Pat’s way if you can.  His plight is genuine, his gratitude is heart felt and you may even make a friend whom you will be glad to have in your life.  Pat is a rare individual in today’s world, with a huge heart, a wonderful outlook on life and humanity, and he is someone who never hesitates to help others even if it may put him in hardship.  Saving HK’s life was Pat’s only focus this past week or so, and then trying to figure out how he would  be able to repay the staff who worked so hard to bring HK back to health.  The documented Vet bill and Pat’s story can be read at Pat’s Blog and you can also view the Vet Bill.  For those who may have a few dollars lying dormant in your PayPal accounts that you would like to donate to this cause, you can also obtain Pat’s  PayPal address at his blog.

For anyone who would like to assist Pat in earning the fee necessary for him to acquire the “Write Your Own Ticket” travel guide business opportunity so that 2010 is the year he achieves the one dream he’s hoped to achieve, you can do so by simply visiting his affiliate link .  Perhaps you’ll find this opportunity one you are interested in as well.

I’m confident that 2010 will be a wonderful year for Pat…as Karma comes to him due to his unselfish desire t0 ensure his friend’s cat did not die.  Any small gift you may be able to give will help Pat reach the monthly goal of $60 he is to pay the Vet every month until the Vet bill is paid in full.  THANK YOU for your gift of generosity and may it return to you in goodness as well!!!!

…and as the year closes

We’ve all weathered the worst (hopefully) of the recession that hit and 2009 appears (to me at least) to have been one of the most “celebrity loss” heavy years in some time.  From long known celebrities like Walter Kronkite to newer celebs like Brittany Murphy, we’ve lost many well known entertainers and public figures this year.

On a personal slant, life during 2009 has been more like a roller coaster than many I can remember.  In our family we’ve had the joy and blessings of the birth of children but we have also had the shocking and unexpected loss of life of those who have been a part of our lives since childhood.

We’ve had the excitement of a successful business and the disappointment of a partnership  failure that now leaves us looking ahead toward a new and even more successful venture yet also leaves us shocked that a person we’ve known for some time has changed so drastically.

I’ve started a new course in life by taking on the challenges and the excitement that comes with a new path as a  Hypnotherapist and thanks to this I and my husband have become non-smokers this year!  In the New Year we have several who want to follow our lead and I’m excited to be a part of the transition.

As 2009 comes to a close, it leaves with each of us many, many memories both wonderful and not, but it also leaves each of us with the knowledge that we have grown in experience just a little more now and what we have learned will walk forward with us into the year 2010.

I firmly believe that 2010 will be a year of changes and growth as well as the continuation of more lessons to be learned.  For some of us we will achieve our highest goals and aspire to our loftiest intentions, for others we may experience our lowest lows or attempt to move forward from our deepest losses….but no matter what any of us may experience through the coming year…it is important for each of us to understand and believe that we are each our own Destiny designers.  We are deserving of great things and when we think great things, we can achieve and become great!

The year 2010 promises to be a year of new starts in my family – my husband is in the process of starting up a new business which I have hoped he would do for some time now.  Our children are grown and beginning to plan their own lives and this year promises that we will see at least one child leaving the nest but perhaps more.

I continue to have many goals set that I wish to achieve and I look forward to 2010 as an exciting and incredibly wonderful year of progress, opportunity and blessings – not only for my family and myself but for everyone I know!

May 2010 be the year that you achieve your dreams, aspire to your loftiest ambitions, obtain your most heartfelt wishes and soar to your highest dreams!  Believe, conceive, achieve – and remember to hold fast to the Secrets of Life!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!

From my family to yours…

Lex

Versatile talent – Paying it forward

I’ve been rather quiet lately, trying to catch up on a number of things before Christmas but today I discovered a Fan Page on FaceBook that lead to a vocalist I’ve heard a number of times and after listening to some of his newer stuff I thought I’d do my little part to help give him a little exposure.

Great versatile music artist!

I’m really glad to see that he is  promoting himself  – for a while he was pretty quiet … this is definitely the direction someone with his talents deserves to go in…with the right opportunity this fellow will be popular and you wouldn’t believe what goes into each of his songs productions…this fellow pours a lot more into them than you might expect.  All I can say is he’s just amazing!

Take a listen and see what you think…I’ve included the link to his music as well as

Brett's fanpage on Facebook

to his FB Fanpage in case you are interested in following him further.  Personally, one of my fave songs of Brett’s is “The Otherside”.  Great beat and lyrics but then all his songs have these :).  Enjoy!

Lex

Su.pr from Stumbleupon – expose yourself!

There are a number of url shorteners out there but leave it to Stumbleupon to make one that is really worth using!

su.pr from Stumbleupon - url shortener with a twist

Su.pr is a tool that allows you to shorten urls as well as post the url to your Twitter account and at the same time exposes your url to almost 8 million Stumbleupon users.

I can see this url shortener becoming popular quickly.

So, if you’ve been looking for a way to get your website or other links of interest more exposed…take a trip over to Su.pr and take advantage of more traffic with less hassle.

Lexxia

Gratitude begets blessings

Ever notice how some days you are “in the zone” of feeling just fabulous and everything you do is awesome and the world is just right in line with everything that you are doing, achieving and being?

No?

Sure you have…everyone has those days when they are just so grateful to be alive that they can’t help but say, “Wow!”

Well, now you can let others know just how grateful you are…every single day.  Gratitudelog.com is a fabulous website that has just reached over 10,000 members and it’s a site where every day you have the opportunity to update your status with a reason you are grateful for something.  People have literally noticed changes taking place in their lives for having done this simple little act of gratefulness daily.

I joined after just running across this site a few weeks ago and thinking, “hmmm that’s cool”.

What it actually allows you to do is to focus on those things, no matter how small, that you have in your life to be grateful for … we all have something to be grateful for but we all don’t take the time each day to focus even a half a second on those things that are magnificent in our lives.  Instead we gripe about what’s wrong – crappy weather, crazy traffic, poor finances, ill health, job losses, war, anger, arguments, you get the idea.

So, why not start each day off with a good intention?  A positive footing…something that allows you to get moving in the right direction every day…the gratitudelog.com is a way to do this.

As a member you are reminded each day to post something you are grateful for…you can turn these notifications off if you wish but I’d recommend that until you are in the habit of visiting the site every day that you keep these notifications on.

It takes all of a few seconds and you may just find yourself visiting more often than once a day…you can make friends, send gifts, cheer people on in their goals, invite friends….

…and best of all, it creates within you a moment of recognition for all things that you truly do have to be grateful for…once you focus on these things you will be amazed at how often you find more and more to be grateful for as you go along in your day.

So, feel free to join the community – it’s free and so far I haven’t seen anyone selling anyone anything!  🙂

Lex