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Netlog's first Brand Integration and Developer Day

Don’t miss our first Brand Integration and Developer Day on April 2 at Kinepolis in Brussels! This is a one-day, free admission event.

The morning is dedicated to developers interested in knowing more about our API, gaming platform and monetization possibilities.

A team of pioneering Netlog and Google developers will be hosting the presentations, as well as an OpenSocial codelab. Registrations start at 9AM.

The Brand Integration Day starts at noon. We welcome creative agencies and media buyers to learn all about leveraging Netlog's Brand Integration Platform.

Launched in the early days of 2008, the Platform allows organisations to engage with our young and vibrant community, and extend that engagement to their audience in a direct, interactive and authentic way.

Key customers will join us to share their successes.

A lot has happened during the past months, and we continue to work on improving our platform – for users and partners alike. We’d be thrilled to see you on April 2 to learn what we’ve done and share some of your thoughts.

So, mark your calendar and start spreading the word! Email us at netlogday@netlog.com if you have any questions.
- 4 martie 2009
Spread some joy this winter holidays season

Social networking has meant that our friendship groups have grown quickly. But when it comes to Christmas and New Year’s Eve, that explosion in personal contact creates a challenge. How can you spread the cheer to all those people?

While some are using video greetings cards, bringing joy through sci-fi art, or hacking Flickr pics, we thought we’d give you some hints at how to use Netlog to spread your seasonal cheer.

Skins
Why not decorate your profile with a Christmas or a winter themed skin? Skins are a way to update the look of your profile with a theme or pictures. We’ve got some wintery featured skins at the moment – take a look! You’ll find them when you click on ‘manage profile’.

Guestbooks
If you’ve got hundreds of friends, you’re unlikely to have the time, money or inclination to send a card to every single one. So why not fly by their profiles and drop your season’s greetings in their guestbook? It’ll make their day to know you’ve visited!

Profile picture
We’re seeing so many people updating their profile pics with photos of them dressed all Christmassy. Dust off that old Santa hat, take a photo of you with your tree or with a snowy frame.

Clans
If you want to make new friends this holiday season, why not join the clans that are springing up to commemorate the festive season? There are loads of discussions going on, from what’s topping Christmas gift lists to the history of the special day. You might learn something!

Events
The end of the year is a time for special occasions. Our events pages are currently full of local gatherings – from town festivals to clubs, music, comedy and parties. Have a look, sign yourself up and get partying!
- 29 decembrie 2008
And Mashable! makes three!

We were just celebrating our MetrixLab Website of the Year award when we got even more good news. Not only has Belgian computer magazine Clickx awarded us with a similar title – but now, we’ve also won the People’s Choice prize for best website at the Mashable! Open Web Awards .

We were up against some really stiff competition, including Platinum Lounge and Twitter , so it’s a really great feeling to get this award. Thanks again to all our supporters!
- 18 decembrie 2008
Netlog wins 2008 Website of the Year!

We did it again! Last month, we were nominated for MetrixLab’s Website of the Year Award in the Communities category for the English, French, Dutch, Italian, German, Spanish and Russian versions of Netlog. And some days ago, we were honoured to win the award for our Spanish and French sites for two years in a row.

We’re hugely grateful to win two consecutive awards – and we’d like to thank everyone who voted for us. Yet again, it’s the nominations from our members that mean the most. The whole team at Netlog is dedicated to making it a fun place to meet people and communicate with your friends, so we’re thrilled you think we’ve done a good job.

The Website of the Year Awards were launched in 2004 by MetrixLab , an independent online market research agency. They are the largest annual ‘people's choice’ website awards.

The organisers explain: “Winning a Website of the Year Award is the ultimate proof that your work is appreciated by your public. It adds value to the success you have already achieved, and will inspire greater loyalty and trust in your visitors and stakeholders.”

What more could we want?
- 18 decembrie 2008
Picture tips for perfect profiles

Now we’re Twitter fans, we’re reading all we can about it.

This post from Guy Kawasaki has some great tips on how to be a good Twitterer.

Our favourite tip? Create an effective avatar. That’s good advice. We suggest that you do the same for your Netlog profile picture.

So, while we’re on the subject of pictures, here are five tips to help you choose a great Netlog profile picture:

1. Make sure people can see you – including a picture of a pet, something from your hobby or even another family member is great, but people want to see you first! Also, ensure that when the picture is smaller, like in your FriendFinder box, you’re still visible. Make sure backgrounds aren’t too busy, or the picture will be hard to see. And don’t forget to smile

2. Choose a picture that says something about you – remember, first impressions last. Think about what sums you up… Do you like sunny days, or do you like the snow? Are you a sporty person, or do you love the arts? Incorporating something personal to you will mean people will feel they know you straight away…

3. Change your profile picture every so often – friends will want to see a new side of you more often, so change your profile picture once in a while. Have you had a great night out, or a perfect holiday? Why not show off in your profile pic… Remember, it’s the first thing people see!

4. Choose whether you want to go public, or stay private – some photographs are for showing to everyone, some are for friends, and others might just be for you. Use Netlog’s privacy features to set the security settings on your pictures to control who, when and how people view them.

5. Use pictures for polling – did you know that Netlog lets you create polls, then use your photos as the answers? Why not ask the Netlog community about which outfit looks best, or who of your friends is the coolest? Just go to ‘polls’ and try it out!
- 11 decembrie 2008
Gearing up for gaming with Europe’s top developers

We have joined forces with top games developers Jadestone and Bigpoint , to bring you innovative new multiplayer games.

Thanks to our use of Google OpenSocial API, the games will be fully integrated within Netlog and you will be able therefore to play games directly on Netlog, without having to create extra accounts, to enjoy an instant gaming experience.

One game available to Netlog users will be Jadestone’s Scarab Solitaire, an Egyptian-themed card game that pits players’ strategy and hand-eye coordination against the clock and other Netlog members. Another, still in the process of development and playable from January 2009, is Bigpoint’s Seafight, a complex browser-based multiplayer game, which offers a 3-D, real-time adventure to Netlog users without the need for additional software.
- 3 decembrie 2008
Growing smarter

We are proud to announce that Daniel Fazekas is joining the Netlog team – another addition to make us feel even more smart, dynamic and international! He is our brand new Product Manager, and joins the already established team of Clement , Davy and Gunther. They all have the mission of improving the Netlog platform by bringing more features that make it safer and easier to use. Daniel is an experienced product and service developer, having mastered the art of narrative brand management as well as that of marketing and engagement metrics. Daniel has a great understanding of consumer insight generation, thanks to an MA in Communication Studies from the University of Calgary , Canada. Fluent in English, Hungarian and German, Daniel likes to get involved in community projects such as theBudapest Complaints Choir which he helped organize last year. Before coming to Netlog, Daniel worked for Yahoo! ,IndexTools and Research International .
- 3 decembrie 2008
We’re Twittering…

At Netlog, we’re keen to try out new ways to make friends online, discuss things we care about and share experiences.

Which is why we’re trying out Twitter. Check us out at www.twitter.com/netlog

We’ll be discussing cool stuff that’s going on at Netlog, events we’re at, new things we’re launching and interesting things we see online.

Oh, and random thoughts when we’re on the move.

If you’re a Twitterer, follow us. We’ promise to follow you right back.
- 30 noiembrie 2008
Heads in the cloud

There has been a lot of chat about how cloud computing – where information is stored in an internet ‘cloud’ – is being championed by the social networks.

Cloud computing describes the saving of information somewhere online, not on your computer or on a disc. After all, do you keep your data to yourself, or do you share it?

People, it seems, are very happy to host their photos, videos and other content on external sites. Studies suggest that these are the best ways to store, share and (come on now, admit it) spy on other people.

So, we thought we’d put some of our statistics out there. Here goes…

• Netlog hosts almost 180 million user photos online
• Our users upload more than 4 million photos per week and view 6 million photos per week
• More than 21 million Netlog members have at least one photo on their profile

Do you have a set of images that you’re proud of? Do you use Netlog for pictures of yourself, or do you publish some of your finest shots so other people can share in the joy?

Actually, the most popular picture tag on Netlog is cool – read into that what you will!
- 29 noiembrie 2008
Netlog launched iPhone app

After launching a new and fully customisable homepage and our own bookmarklet , here’s another application for Netlog and Apple fans: the iPhone Netlog application. From now on, every iPhone and iPod Touch user will be able to have all their friends in their pocket!

Each Netlog user owning an iPhone and iPod Touch will be able to stay in closer contact with friends and like-minded people, leave guestbook messages or check their own messages. Moreover, pictures taken on an iPhone can be uploaded to Netlog immediately. And, for those fond of shouting about what they’re doing, they can include their GPS location in the shout so that everybody knows where they are.

The application is available now from iTunes in Chinese (Simplified), Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian and Swedish and can be downloaded from here.

For owners of different devices who want to use Netlog on the move, the Netlog mobile site offers similar features to the Apple app. Check it out here.

Share the news ordownload the official press release.
- 20 noiembrie 2008