QR Codes will soon become commonplace. It will be second nature for anyone with a mobile phone to scan codes and get information. If you want to be ahead of the curve and exploit the nascent buzz of QR Codes then now is the right time. South Africa has 100% mobile penetration (49-million population) with smartphone internet-enabled phones consistently on the rise and, therefore, the capability to scan codes. Now compare that with a "banner" ad on Facebook that will ...

Facebook has launched Friendship Pages at which online pals can stroll virtual memory lanes that chronicle what they have shared at the world's top online social networking service.The pages contain public comments and Wall posts between pairs of Facebook friends; pictures in which both are identified; events they indicated they would attend together, and other joint activities memorialised at the service."A few months ago, I began a small project to build a page devoted to friendships. A few interns and ...

Supporters of Brazil's presidential run-off candidates are plugging into the Internet as never before, using online posts to highlight the campaigns -- and to spread or deny rumors swaying voters.The web has become a battleground where those backing front-runner Dilma Rousseff, the ruling party candidate, and those behind former Sao Paulo governor Jose Serra, are locked in a war of words, photos and videos.The two candidates seeking to succeed outgoing President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Sunday's run-off are ...

It's good to know that the people who are running the City of Cape Town are keeping their eyes on the social media scene.Four days ago, a YouTube video surfaced that showed an iceberg off Cape Town's famous Clifton beach. The video was subsequently claimed by Liqui-Fruit as part of it's Summer Meltdown campaign, but not before someone placed a Hunter's cider on the iceberg in an apparent hi-jacking.Now the people who manage Cape Town's water, lights, traffic ...

The internet contributed 100-billion pounds (about US$155-billion dollars) to the British economy last year, about 7.2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), a report showed Thursday.The sector is bigger than the construction, transport or utilities industries in Britain, according to the study by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), which was commissioned by the British arm of internet giant Google.The research also predicted that by 2015, the British 'Internet economy' is likely to grow to 10 percent of GDP, eclipsing the ...

China is set to trump the US to take the number one spot for the fastest supercomputer ever made in a survey of the world's zippiest machines.Tianhe-1, meaning Milky Way, has a sustained computing speed of 2 507 trillion calculations per second, making it the fastest computer in China on a list published Thursday.But it is also 1.4 times faster that the world's current fastest ranked supercomputer in the US, housed at a national laboratory in Tennessee, according to the ...

Marketing via mobile is a powerful way to expose people to a brand, and to get them to interact with it. Consumers want something from the sites they frequent on their mobile phones, while brands want to achieve something from their mobile marketing.You hit the marketing sweetspot when you manage to match these two sets of desires.What do consumers want from their mobile phones?• Social networking • Email and instant messaging • Music • Games • Content • News and information • Simple and secure paymentsWhat do brands want from mobile?• Ability ...

The Russian state plans to revamp its computer services with a Windows rival to reduce its dependence on US giant Microsoft and better monitor computer security, a lawmaker said on Wednesday.Moscow will earmark 150 million rubles (US$4,9-million) to develop a national software system based on the Linux operating system, said Russian deputy Ilia Ponomarev, confirming an earlier report in the Vedomosti daily."The devil is in the details," said Ponomarev, a computer expert, adding those details would be hashed out during ...

Days of speculation are at an end after Liqui-Fruit and its advertising agency, Liquorice stood up and claimed responsibility for the Cape Town iceberg spotted off Clifton Beach on Monday morning. Earlier today, the South African fruit juice company released an adaptation of the original video with digitally added pieces of fruit on the iceberg, and copy which read "The end of global cooling....the start of the Liqui-Fruit summer meltdown.", and ending with a link promoting the Summer Meltdown on ...

Social network pioneer Myspace unveiled a redesign on Wednesday targeting the "Generation Y" younger audience as it seeks to regain ground lost to Facebook.Myspace, which Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. bought for US$580 million dollars in 2005, said its new website and products are intended to "redefine the company as a social entertainment destination for Gen Y.""This marks the beginning of an exciting turning point for Myspace," chief executive Mike Jones said in a statement."Our new strategy expands on Myspace?s existing ...