Top Ten Videos at youtube mike downes as 3 July 2018

New playlist here called, 'Top Videos in the last 28 days curated 3 July 2018.

Tips on Google Apps Drive Docs Keep Mobile Desktop

For no real reason at all, I found myself making a few help videos yesterday on using Google Docs, Keep and Translate.

It's in my nature to see something of interest and share it, helping people to learn.

I have made many more videos on Google stuff, will add more to playlist - for the minute here are the five.

House keeping the mike downes Google and YouTube Channels

All of us have been online for years now -- and in that time we collect links and vanity URLs. Some we use every single day and some we let fade like the horizon in a rear view mirror. I've a set of three that double to six (or treble to nine).

How to Start a Blog for Police Officers

Police Officer blogs are not new, but we're now in 2016 and with that comes the realtime web - which makes it faster and easier than ever before to get your message out.

Twitter seems to be by far the choice for Police and Law Enforcement (for named officer accounts). It's quick, easy and fits in your pocket.

PC Alan Conran Essex Police UK Twitter Album @PCAlanConran

If you click this image, it will open a lightbox album
or if on mobile/tablet click here for photos app

This is a theory post. It will show how making a public google photo album will make thirty eight images and two videos show up in a Google Search.

Of course they are not the same image URLs on twitter - they are a copy stored on Google.

Social Video using webRTC and what's Google got to do with it?

read this slide then read it again .. thank you

Gossip Myth Science Engineering - I wonder how long I can get through this post without sending people to uncontrollable sleep?

So I joined blab.im eleven days ago and there were two types of people in there - those jumping happy periscopers who were broadcasting alone and have now found face to face video friends and the noisy bunch of google hangout bashers.

Google on Twitter 50 Official Accounts Examined

image credits at base of post

In the beginning there was Google and soon after Google on Twitter. And if you believe that you may believe anything.

In reality, we Google founded 4 Sept 1998, Twitter launched 15 July 2006 and @google on twitter created 10 Feb 2009.

The kind people at google have an official google twitter directory - we have 162 official accounts (and a few missing ones like @googleplus, @googlestore or @projectfi).

Martin Van Buren that's Who at 103% is an astounding success

In many ways, making at 30 second video sounds as easy as writing a four line poem. And it is.

Then, when you realise you have 1,025,109.8 words to choose from - life suddenly takes a sharp turn. It matters little, but you'll see what I'm getting at by saying..

There was once a poet, who spent the day at his desk. A maid asked him how the day had gone. He replied, 'I have written seven words.'

The Mike Downes Media Custom Search Engine

This box will help you find posts from seven of my sites. To compare a search, I've made this example of googling, mike downes media audience retention, to perform this search below, just type 'audience retention' .. Feedback welcome ..

Find Google Help Fast - What do 87 shares and 36,000 views tells us?

On 9 Feb 2014, I made a simple post at Google+ as I was fed up giving people the same links over and over again. It had this slide and text:

Find Help for Google Stuff fast There are 519,000 results athttps://support.google.com so to find ANYTHING by googling 1, Support 2, 3, .. like support youtube comments or support blogger domain .. This is the No1 way I find stuff .. #googleit #support #help

I have an altruistic rule with myself than I find or

A slide I made from watching a YouTube Help Video

create something useful to me, then it will probably be useful to others. But there's catch - the really useful stuff, goes unnoticed by 99% of the people.

One example is the brilliant series of +YouTube Creator Academy videos made recently. They have like tiny views compared to what they should be getting. Take a look at the last six videos with +Rachel Lightfoot and +Yury Polnar where views are 1,331 to 2,722. 

What I'm getting at here is the busy life we lead, the uncontrollable urge to click on something when we shouldn't and the irresistible temptation to walk away, when we know we should stay. Bottom line, a video (or post) gets a million views in a day or just a few.

I never ever post anything for the views - I do it usually, to teach somebody something. It's a bit like my own FAQs - I want to be left alone, so if I can help people answer themselves - great.

It took a day to get 80 shares and I declared give a person a fish and you feed them for a day; teach a person to fish and you feed them for a lifetime.

My Take Away When people get stuck, they often panic a bit, get fed quickly and become impatient too. Even if one person reading this could just stop and think - Google, support and read the results - I will be very happy.

Autonomy Did I tell you about the friend I had in teaching who had the latest iPhone? She showed me the latest features are how wow it was. But when she was late for a city centre appointment - she was late, defaulted to what she knew and rushed to find a copy of the local AtoZ Map. We all know the iphone and google maps would be there faster than she could say OK Google .. 

Assessing a Project's Success by the Out of Office Auto Reply, the Birthday Paradox and Speed

It maybe that time of the year in the UK when last minute vacations are taken just before the children go back to school - but, are you really ever contactable these days?

For me, the message is pretty clear. If I have to send to someone's email and get a bounce back out of auto office auto reply, I make a mental note: Give Up and Move On.

Kenilworth Castle on Google Street View Much to see Much to Learn about our Heritage in the last Thousand Years

UPDATE: Two Castles Run 9 June 2013

I'm delighted you can see the splendour of Kenilworth Castle in the glory of Street View.

The tour starts at the car park, past the ticket office, down the Causeway and onto Mortimer's Tower.

What's super valuable is the tour round the Curtain Wall which was once the site of the Great Mere.

Kenilworth Castle, Warwickshire, England, UK is the lead image I use in all Mike Downes Media. For me, it represents the last one thousand years and how far we have come.

One of the questions I always ask myself, What would the medieval people have done (with Media)? How did it work back then? What can we learn from them and apply today? You don't need to be Robin Hood to figure out how some people think they have all the power and the peasants have none. 

This blog's readership is far and wide. Nine nine percent of the visitors to whatsinKenilworth will nevet visit the Castle, but thank you Google for making it available in this way. 

Links: Kenilworth Castle at: Wikipedia .. English Heritage and this site (with footpaths).
Google Image Search.

View Larger Map

Mike Downes Teacher Broadcaster Google+ Hangout Specialist

Mike Downes Teacher Broadcaster Google+ Hangout Specialist
google.com/+mikedownes | mikedownesmedia.com | mikedownesmedia@gmail.com

Note: By making this public post, should anyone scan my print card as a Google Image Search, they find me. I will also make one blog post to do the Same. Notice, I do not include a phone number, who needs one of those these days..

Kenilworth resident hailed as Google+ hometown hero

Google has recognised Kenilworth resident, Mike Downes as a hometown hero for making the most of the Internet to chat with over 20,000 people from around the world, including Olympic Champion, Usain Bolt, Spice Girl, Mel C, and Radio 1 presenter Reggie Yates. 

Through Google+ Mike has participated in more than 1,500 Google+ Hangouts - internet-based video chats – with academics, athletes, scientists and celebrities to discuss topics ranging from astrophysics to Team GB’s fantastic efforts at the Olympics.

Google’s recognition of Mike as a hometown hero comes after he helped Interpol, police in the UK and Canada to set-up pages on Google+ so they could hold live-streaming press conferences through Google+ Hangouts. Mike recently helped Interpol and Toronto Police to set up a press conference on Google+ during the search for a Canadian serial killer that fled to Berlin.

Mike has also worked with media organisations including KOMU TV in the USA, to teach them about using Google+ Hangouts on Air – live streaming mobile video - as a tool for reporters to file stories from remote locations.

It’s hoped that Mike’s use of Google+ will inspire others in Kenilworth and Warwickshire to get online and begin connecting with like minded people across the world.

Mike Downes said: “Google+ gives anyone the ability to connect with people who share similar passions and interests at the click of a button.”

“I have been on Google+ for a little over a year now and I’ve already connected with over 20,000 people from across the globe. There is no reason why businesses and individuals in Warwickshire can’t set up a Google+ and begin ‘hanging out’”

“My experience of Google+ has been fantastic as it allows me to connect with people locally and from across the globe”.

Anoek Eckhardt, Communications and Public Affairs Manager at Google said: “Mike is a great ambassador for Google+. His interaction with thousands of people from across the world to share knowledge, advice and learn together highlights the collaborative power of Google+.”

“We hope others from across Kenilworth and throughout Warwickshire follow Mike’s lead to connect and Hangout with family, friends and like minded people through Google+.”

Today over 400 million people have signed up to Google+. Google+ also has a very strong photo community, over 3.4 billion photos have already been shared.

You can connect and Hangout with Google’s hometown hero, Mike Downes on Google+ here .

To chat with Google+ hometown hero Mike Downes, please contact the Google Press Office at press-uk@google.com or 0207 031 3130

Google+: Sarah Hill's Broadcast News Hangouts with full Audio Transcript

Google released a video today featuring Sarah Hill and many more people who I've come to call my friends since my involvement with the News in Missouri. 

It's no secret to reader's of my stream at g+ (and this blog) that Google Hangouts have changed my life forever.

Little did I know in July 2011, when I sat on a sofa forcing myself to learn what Google Plus really was and how to use it, it would lead to this. I've seen things and gone places that I could never have dreamed of.

For many who have not experienced it before, it seems odd that a webcam, a headset and a microphone can do that. We are a year on now and my passion for Google Plus and what Hangouts can achieve is only just starting. I know Sarah feels the same.

Here is the audio transcript edited for you to read. By reproducing it here, makes it Google Searchable. That's a lesson for another day. 

0:07 Sarah Hill: My wheels are constantly turning about what might we be able to do in our news broadcast.
0:12 Sarah Hill: It all has to do with providing an accurate record, and being a resource for
0:19 people who reach out to us.
0:21 Sarah Hill: In our business, sometimes we think that we need to give you information, information,
0:27 information - and we’ve kind of forgotten the fact that that we need to listen.

0:32 Chad LaFarge: What Sarah’s doing is she’s gone from traditional news reporting format,
0:36 where there’s a person standing on the screen and they throw news at you - to a format where
0:40 people can come in and join the conversation. from your home you can log in...
0:44 Chad LaFarge: ...Sarah gives the news and says, “Chad what do you think about that”
0:47 Sarah Hill: It’s essentially a hybrid newscast that combines social media with TV.

0:52 Kim Beasley: Sarah does something that’s really unique. She has a earbud in each ear.
0:56 In one ear she’s listening to her producer.
0:58 Jen McMillen: You’re about a minute from headline.
1:00 Kim Beasley: In the other ear she’s listening to us.
1:02 Kim Beasley: Sarah what are you talking about today.

1:04 Kim Beasley: As she’s reporting the news, she’s hearing our feedback. Sometimes she
1:08 incorporates that into the newscast.
1:10 Jen McMillen: Standby. Headline.
1:10 Sarah Hill: If you guys could help me with the mute button.
1:18 Floor Director: Three, Two, One.
1:21 Jen McMillen: Go.

1:22 Sarah Hill: Hey Gang, I’m Sarah Hill welcome to U_News. Chad Lafarge you have an announcement
1:25 regarding your muckraking here in town.
1:26 Chad LaFarge Yeah, the muck ruckus that we talked about last Monday has moved.
1:29 Producer: Sarah top story on the website. E Coli strain.
1:31 (Guest: ...its in honor of.. .)
1:33 Sarah Hill: Okay. Guys.
1:34 Michele Spry: Yeah?

1:35 Sarah Hill: Two more reports of the same strain...
1:38 Kent Collins: The host or anchor for a show using social media...
1:41 Kent Collins: ...Is like the only air traffic controller on duty in New York or Chicago....
1:46 Kent Collins: ...It’s Mind Boggling.
1:47 Kim Beasley: No longer will news stations have to have someone on the scene of breaking news.
1:51 Kent Collins: People who are unhappy about the condition of a street in their neighborhood.
1:55They now are significant contributors to a story.

1:57 Sarah Hill: As news organizations we are realizing that we need to come down from that mountain
2:02 that we’ve placed ourselves on, and listen to people.
2:05 Chad LaFarge: I don’t want for my kids to be sitting there in front of the TV, having
2:09 the news thrown at them and not have a say. I want them to have the feeling that they
2:13 can contribute to that conversation.
2:14 Sarah Hill: There’s beauty in giving people a forum, and allowing people to share their stories.

 

How to Search any Site Using the Chrome Browser

I use Google's Chrome Browser, it's fast and works brilliantly with g+.

Here's how to search a specific site (like whatsinKenilworth.com) - just press TAB.


CLICK in address bar (to place cursor there), press Space Bar and then TAB..type your search.


This site has a few thousand pages, find what you are looking for with this search.

Slide above shows before, during and the site results window.

And the slide on the right is how this post appears at g+

U News from Columbia, Missouri launches this week with a UK link: +Mike Downes

Sarah Hill in a News Hangout

Today, will see the launch of a brand new style of News presenting - U News from Columbia, MO. I'm delighted to be invited as one of the regular co-hosts on the show which will link Kenilworth to the USA.

Sara Hill is a News Anchor and eight time Emmy award winner reporter with KOMU-TV in Columbia, Missouri (Central, USA). She has started a brilliant new project using the hangout feature of Google Plus. This allows Sarah to present the news in the normal way, but talk with nine other co-hosts in the video hangout using the laptop at her side.

The show will live stream in the UK at 10-11pm (4-5pm Central Time in the USA) weekdays from www.komu.com/streaming-newscast. Sarah will be in the studio with co-hosts local to Missouri, national and the rest of the world - including me.

To find out more, I'll let Sarah tell you herself by video. At the base of this post is my video reply from Kenilworth Castle which is now at the KOMU-TV U News.

That's all for now, find Sarah and Mike at Google Plus as: +Sarah Hill and +Mike Downes. There are many other valuable people in this project - I'll be highlighting them in future posts.

Google Plus has arrived

+Mike at Google Plus

For the last six weeks, I've been developing a +Mike Downes Google Profile. This blog was started in the days when Google offered no such platform.  

If you have not seen what G+ can do, head on over and see what it can do. Google Plus only opened it's doors on 28 June 2011 in a trial stage. The platform now has 25 million users worldwide.

The Power of a Google Account and where it can lead

Every project starts by unlocking all Google has to offer with a free Google Account. Often, this is a simple Gmail (Googlemail). 

From there, you can open up everything from Photos (Picasa), Videos (YouTube), Publishing and Blogs (Blogger), Word Processing and Spreadsheets (Docs).

And that's not forgetting the many Google tools we take for granted like Calendar, Maps, News, Shopping, Books and Translation.

For me, it's like stepping into a music shop where you can see all the instruments, you can hit some piano keys and strum some chords, but to play in harmony takes a bit more practice, some hard work and maybe some expert training.  

Here at infotelligentia, we can help you make sense of it all and create something worthwhile and individual original enough to know it's your voice and not just another one in the crowd.

Links: Google Account at Wikipedia and Open a Google Account

Gmail is not just about Email, it's about so much more

It's hard to believe Gmail was launched just seven years ago (April, 2004) although Email has been around for over 40 years in early forms. But these days, it's not just about sending and receiving electronic messages. Gmail (and other accounts) offer instant messaging (chat), video and audio calls and many tools that help speed up communication with everyone.