Is anyone actively using Google+ yet? I have 20 or so people in my circle but only a few colleagues are active and messaging me. There was a lot of buzz within the first 3 weeks of the Google+ debut, and in that time over 20M people signed up. According to hitwise though, there has been a dip in traffic the last few weeks leading to the blogosphere insisting that the hype is wearing off fast and that the tool will fall to the same fate as buzz and wave.

In my opinion G+ won’t catch on in terms of usage anytime soon. There are just too many social networks we are currently using–the main of course being FB and Twitter. Google+ looks like it has tried (and failed so far) to become a hybrid of the 2.

Despite it’s shortcomings I love that it can be used as a surveillance tool as a member of my circle has pointed out.

According to Lifehacker “You can use Google+ Hangouts as an on demand remote camera viewer. First, create a second Google Account, and put the alternate account in its own circle. Then, start a hangout with just that circle. When you want to checkup on how everything’s going along in your house, you can just join the hangout with your alternate account, and you should see what’s happening”.

Though this is perfect for disocvering who keeps putting the milk back when it’s empty I don’t advise using as your main source of home security.

For information on how to setup a hangout click here.

Think you can balance the budget better than our politicians? Try it with Deficit Hawk, a new app only available for Android.

You can make over hundreds of combinations of spending cuts and tax raises to see how each choice affects the country’s deficit. The app uses real data from the Congressional Budget Office to show accurrate #’s. Do you think the retirement age for SS should be raised? Higher taxes for the wealthy? Cuts to homeland security? Give it a shot….see if you can do any better.

Above is an outtake from 1994 of NBC’s “Today” show which reveals some confusion as to what the “internet” actually is.  We have come a long way since then. Don’t be too hard on them though, folks. Today we are so reliant on the internet to obtain information. We are quick to Google things that we aren’t familiar with. How could they figure out what the internet is without the internet?

Tired of teaching your mother how to create an email list over the phone?  Well, Google has created a tech support care package that you can customize for your parents. You can teach your parents how to copy and paste, take a screen shot, spell check, etc.  by sending them a digital care package complete with pre-made videos created by Google. To send your mom or dad a tech support care package click here.

The Mother of All Funk Chords is the best meme that I have come across.  Created by Kutiman as part of his project ThruYOU, The Mother of All Funk Chords is a mash up of several different YouTube videos that blend together to create one funky sound.  Even after the seeing all of the auto-tuned songs from Auto-Tune the News, Kutiman’s work still remains my favorite.  Check it out!  For more Kutiman videos check out his YouTube channel here.

Ever think about getting a tattoo or wonder what one might look like on you? You can check it out via Yota (Mobile provider based out of Russia). Though there are a lot of different elements to this campaign, the centerpiece is an interactive experience at a mock tattoo parlor.

The tattoo you create can be placed on your body through your webcam or if you can select an arm, back, neck that might look likes yours and put it there. Nice social integrations as well. If you ever wanted to impress your girlfriend or scare your mom…without spending the money…the site is worth a visit.

Stumbled across this video of today’s kids being introduced to yesteryears video games and technology (in french with English subtitles). Warning: if you are afraid to feel old, do NOT view the below video.

A new URL shortener allows you to see Justin Bieber’s face on any website.  Just click here and enter your desired URL into the field, press enter, and a new URL will show up inside Justin Bieber’s mouth.  Copy and paste the converted URL into your browser.  Pictured above is Bieber on www.targetcasttalks.com.  This technology seems pretty neat to me!  Whose face would you like to plaster on your favorite websites?

My favorite sport hands down is college football and it’s worth noting my favorite team (Army!) just won their first bowl game since 1985…in fact 2010 happened to be their first winning season since 1996…I digress.

It’s interesting to think about the proliferation of bowl games in the last 15 years. In 1995 20 bowl games were played whereas in 2010 35 bowl games will have been played. All you need today to launch a bowl game is a few million to offer as a payout to 2 schools, and a stadium agreement. I’m shocked we have yet to see the Facebook Bowl but thanks to the power of advertising we have been lucky enough to witness the GoDaddy.com Bowl, The Capital One Bowl, The AllState Sugar Bowl, The Vizio RoseBowl, The Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl (why a company that produces helicopters needs to sponsor a bowl for branding purposes I’m not sure), the Meineke Car Bowl, Little Ceasars Bowl, and the absolute best…The Beef ‘O’ Bradys Bowl.

FastCompany just put out an article on some CFB infographics surrounding bowl season.  So many bowls, so many strange names but we can expect more of the same as long as ESPN continues to promise 25 :30 spots to corporate sponsors during their game. Maybe one day the NCAA will dissolve and with it most of the ridiculous sounding bowls. Until then, the only CFB game worth watching is on the 2nd Saturday every December.

Beat Navy!

I had to post this video as it such an amazing story and really demonstrates the power of viral video…and the kindness of human nature.

Ted Williams has an incredibly gifted radio voice but unfortunately was overcome by substance abuse. While panhandling in the streets of Columbus OH, he crossed paths with a reporter from the Columbus Dispatch. Within a few days the video has over 11M views on YouTube, press coverage in every major news outlet and Mr. Williams has been offered jobs by the Cleveland Cavs as well as the NFL….all from the below video.