Happy belated birthday twitter — It was twitter’s 3rd birthday on Saturday, March 21st and here’s a little cupcake to celebrate. Let’s hope for many more fun years of twittering.. I can’t wait to see where this service goes in the next 3 years!

Anyone have any fun predictions?

Today was a preview of the 3.0 software for the iPhone. This is a pretty crucial time because everyone is all up in arms about the Palm Pre and we are just patiently awaiting to see what Apple will do to compete.

Sadly, the release of the new update won’t be available until the summer for us but the developer beta is ready to go for them to start working on those new apps taking advantage of all the new features!

What I’m most excited about is that FINALLY there will be copy & paste. In addition, one the biggest features lacking in mail, is search.. which will also FINALLY be available! These are two such simple features that should have never been left out in the first place.. but I guess that’s Apple’s little way of teasing us along for 2 years. Hoping. Waiting..

For the iPod touch users, it will be a $9.95 update and not all features will be available to iPhone 2G owners like MMS and Stereo Bluetooth.. Keep reading for some keynote highlights from this morning.

APP STORE FACTS:

• 25,000 apps in the App Store.
• 98% apps were approved in 7 days or less. There have been more than
• Over 800 million downloads of all apps total in just 8 months

OVER 100 NEW FEATURES FOR THE CONSUMER!

• COPY AND PASTE!!!! You double tap on a piece of text and it will automatically place a bubble above it with the option to cut, copy or paste the current selection. To bring up the paste option, you just have to double tap again. To make a bigger selection of text, double tap and then drag where you’d like the text to end. You can also drag this text around. To undo a paste, just shake your phone!

• You can now send more than one photo by copying and pasting them into the Mail app.

• Use landscape (wide keyboard mode) in applications SMS, notepad, mail etc.
• New message app supports MMS! (Really, it’s about time) Send and received photos through the network.
• Voice memos that you can record edit, share and email directly from the app
• New calendar support! gcal! Subscriptions, .ics format, exchange
• Stock app added news and more details.
• SEARCH IN MAIL!!! finally! ..and other applications: Contacts, notes, calendar, iPod
• New Spotlight home screen that will let you search all of your applications.
• YouTube improvements!! ratings, subscriptions and profiles!
• Notes sync with iTunes, Shake to shuffle, WiFi auto-login, Stereo Bluetooth, parental controls, call log, iTunes account creation, anti-phishing, meeting invitations and more.

UPDATES FOR THE DEVELOPER:

• 1,000 new APIs: In game voice chat, iPod library access, proximity sensor, audio recorder, battery life, streaming audio and video, data detectors, text selection, UI alert view, shake API and GPS
• In-app purchases: Subscriptions for magazines, additional levels for games, and eBooks. Example, new Sims game — You will be able to buy items directly inside the game from the app store for $0.99 — this is really changing the revenue game for developers!
• Turn by Turn directions apps using Google Maps API
• Peer to Peer connectivity using bluetooth – Multiplayer gaming / sending business cards wirelessly

• With the new SDK, accessory developers will be able to make custom applications that can communicate directly with the accessory. Example: FM transmitter, blood pressure monitor, insulin meter

• Push notification for apps — Alerts appear like SMS, badges show up on the app icon, and audio alerts will be heard in the background. The battery life is said to only decrease by 23% while on other devices using background processes killed the battery life 80% — But still, with over 9 pages of apps and maybe 50% with with push notifications, my phone will last for 10 minutes!

SOME NEW APPS THEY TALKED ABOUT:

Sims 3: You will be able to purchase items directly from the application, playing music from the stereo using your music library.

LiveFire: First person shooter game.. You shake to jump, push-notify to play together with your friends, buy new weapons using real money. This could get pricey!

TouchPets: A social networking app for your virtual dog. Set up play dates using push notification, buy items for your pet like clothes, toys, food!

Leaf Trombone: Much like the Ocarina, but not..

Let me know what you think of the updates! Are you excited? Angry? Happy? Glad? Hoping for something else that wasn’t announced? Let me know!

Apple has released a new choking hazard iPod shuffle with a few new added features that weren’t in the last version. It has text to speech capabilities that will read you the title and artist of the song that’s playing. They’ve moved the controls to the earbuds to make it even easier to use.

Apple says you can use it with your eyes closed.. Maybe I will have to get one and test it out. I’ll go for a jog with my new shuffle keep my eyes shut the entire time!

It’s 4 gigs, can hold around 1,000 songs and retails at $79! I’ll have to have a new contest sometime soon

The only way to stay ahead in this Internet game is to be constantly evolving. You need to be faster, more mobile, and more flexible than your competition. That’s how Google dominates search and Web mail, how Twitter pummels its micro-blogging competitors, and how Facebook has overtaken MySpace.

Facebook knows that its position at the top of the social networking heap is precarious. So, only a few months after undertaking a major redesign, Facebook is bringing some more new hotness to its home page. The news feed that appears on the main page when you log in will soon be replaced with a live feed view that will update in real-time as your friends change their status, add photos, or do anything else. For those who are staring at that last sentence in horror, don’t worry; the new home page will also feature powerful filtering tools that will allow you to block content from particular apps, or users, entirely.
At the top of the page will be a new publishing tool, allowing you to post pictures, status updates, links, and almost anything else that your heart desires, without ever having to leave the new hub.

Facebook ‘pages’ will also be updated to make them more like regular profiles, complete with status updates, which might be an interesting way for companies like CNN to keep people abreast of current events.

On 12 February 2009 175+ cities around the world will be hosting Twestivals which bring together Twitter communities for an evening of fun and to raise money and awareness for charity: water.

Join us by:

• Attending one of the events detailed on the city sites listed on this page.
• Uploading or buying music at Twestival.fm.
• Taking part in the t-shirt design competition.
• Donating to charity: water.

City registrations close at 2359 GMT on Saturday 31 February 2009.

The Twestival is organized 100% by volunteers in cities around the world and 100% of the money raised from these events will go directly to support charity: water projects.

In September 2008, a group of Twitterers based in London UK decided to organise an event where the local Twitter community could socialize offline; meet the faces behind the avatars, enjoy some entertainment, have a few drinks and tie this in with a food drive and fundraising effort for a local homeless charity.

The bulk of the event was organized in under two weeks, via Twitter and utilized the talents and financial support of the local Twittersphere to make this happen.

Around the world similar stories started appearing of local Twitter communities coming together and taking action for a great cause. Twestival was born out of the idea that if cities were able to collaborate on an international scale, but working from a local level, it could have a spectacular impact.

By rallying together globally, under short timescales, for a single aim on the same day, the Twestival hopes to bring awareness to this global crisis.

charity: water is a non profit organization bringing clean, safe drinking water to people in developing nations by funding sustainable clean water solutions in areas of greatest need.

Video by: [iJustine]

Video by: [Karenism]

Right now 1.1 billion people on the planet don’t have access to safe, clean drinking water. That’s one in six of us.

Unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of all sickness and disease, and kill more people every year than all forms of violence, including war.

Many communities in developing nations often have a plentiful supply of clean drinking water just below the ground, but no way to get to it.

This is where charity: water and their partner organizations come in. Drilling a well can cost from $4,000 – $12,000 USD and many living on less than $1 a day cannot afford one in their community, even if the money is combined.

Twestival cities might consider setting a goal to raise enough money from their event to fund a well project in a developing country, starting at $4,000 USD.

We all know that Twitter can be a powerful communications tool. It can connect, mobilize and inform people around the world instantly.

Those of us on Twitter know of its ability to organically create interesting communities from those people who find and follow each other. It is proven from the first Twestival that bringing the Twittersphere together for a special event is not only a memorable night; it has momentum to bring about social change.

This website has been designed as a simple portal where each Twestival city organizer will be assigned their own site to update their event information, post news, blogs, photo and video content.

This site has specifically been established with central controls which ensure that all of the donations go directly to charity: water and event registration is secure.

There will be certain creative restrictions on city sites, especially for those with a web developer on their team; but it was important not to compromise these features due to the scale of this grassroots event.

Feel free to link in social media sites or any other website relevant to the Twestival.

• Phase one: Launch the homepage with a list of cities which have already registered. Over the next day, organizers will be given a password and instruction to upload information to their own city site (start thinking about a first blog post). Please have a bit of patience as we are working as quickly as we can.
• Phase two: All of the cities should be linked up to the homepage. Features to donate, bid on an auction, raffle and other fundraising projects will come online as buttons as they are completed.
• Phase three: On 12 February 2009, Twestival will be working with partners to have live broadcasts of the events around the world.

This site will be the central hub of information and schedule of events with links to Twitter, photosites and video content sites.

• Follow @twestival for updates.
• Contact @amanda for global enquiries.
• See the development blog for technical site updates.

A beautiful happy girl. A loving, caring, always smiling, heart of gold, and a sweet soul.

She will never be forgotten, always be missed, and always loved….

Jeremiah 29:11-God has plans to prosper you, not to harm you, but give you a hope and a future.

Hebrews 13:5-God will NEVER leave you, nor forsake you.

Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted-Mark 5:3

Goodbye for now. Alexx Hudson & Kate Disorbo
5.25.08

We all miss you so much, and always will.
We know you are in Heaven now, looking down on us smiling.

We love you, and always will.