It’s practically a tradition to follow a post like this with a good old-fashioned flame-war where everyone reveals his or her own sense of inadequacy. In order to save time I’d like to encourage you to stop reading now and skip to the bottom and start doing that right away; that way I can continue by typing Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet and get away with it. Disclaimers: I have left out Motribe, my own company, because I think ...

Mark this day down in your calendar. We have crossed the threshold -- less than one year to go until it all goes up in smoke. The Mayan Calendar predicts the end of days on 21 Dec 2012. For obvious reasons, this is quite a big deal to many people, and will affect your decisions on whether to upgrade your phone now or later, pay off your debts, ask that girl out etc…etc… What do you do when you need ...

My search for answers had brought me a long way from home. Online expert and the subject of EMPIRE: How to Succeed with Nothing but Passion, Great Ideas and a Wealthy Family, (which I ghost wrote, but don’t let him know I said that) Dunlop Fantasia had sent me on this quest. "Find out what’s going to be big in 2012," he said, bloodshot eyes staring over his Gucci sunglasses. "You're going to Brazil, I hear great things are happening ...

Although New Year's resolutions might be viewed with an air of scepticism these days, it's always worth aiming to start the year on the right foot. If you don't want to do anything as extreme as ArLynn Presser's quest to overcome her agoraphobia and meet all her Facebook friends, there are still a few things we should all consider. DO 1. Take time to do a clean out of your contacts. Make a break with those you're no longer in touch with, ...

The past few years have been about building an infrastructure that improves the chances of the technology startups in Africa to succeed. Seeing this buildout in action in 2011 was exciting, but it should be recognised for what it really was: a setup for 2012 and beyond. You see, all those labs and hubs around the continent, the startups and the media coverage? They’re all about getting attention and increasing the awareness of the pent-up startup potential in Africa’s technology space. ...

Renowned rapper Kanye West launched a rant of epic proportions on Twitter. His 86 tweet dispatch covered a number of topics including his love of fashion to his quest to change the world. Perhaps the most ambitious tweet -- from an artist not exactly known for modesty -- expressed his desire to "pick up where Steve Jobs left off". We can collectively effect the world trough design.We need to pick up where steve jobs left off— Kanye West (@kanyewest) January ...

Since its announcement, Timeline has been one of Facebook’s most talked about new features. You might think, therefore, that it was probably in development for ages. It's a reasonable thought, but it's wrong. In an official blog post, Facebook engineer Ryan Mack revealed that the majority of work done on Timeline took place in just six months. Perhaps more impressive, however, is Mack’s assertion that "Timeline started as a Hackathon project in late 2010 with two full-time engineers, an engineering ...

Ignore all the rubbish about "serendipitous experiences" that Mark Zuckerberg wants you to have. Forget about his notion of "frictionless sharing". The first iterations of sharing content or experiences seamlessly on Facebook are all wrong (witness the horrible real-time “ticker” that does not sit comfortably above "chat"). But, Facebook got one thing very, very right. Its Timeline was the single biggest innovation in social media over the past few months. Sure, the New New Twitter changes everything, but the two spaces ...

As 2012 dawns, Memeburn decided to take a look at what lies ahead for three of the biggest names in social media this year, and what each of their individual overarching strategies might be. Twitter -- Going mainstream In 2012, Twitter will continue to stealthily build towards its IPO -- unofficially penned for 2013. The microblogging juggernaut has seen significant staff turnover in the last six months for two apparent reasons. First, with the aim of having the right people at the ...

The streamers have all been cleared, the champagne -- if there's any left -- is flat by now and you're contemplating the excesses of the festive period. Yup, it's a new year and we all know what that means: resolutions. We all know resolutions are difficult to keep. You need all the help you can get. Being of a technological bent, Memeburn decided to point you in the direction of a few apps designed to keep you on the straight ...