Blog :: Avalon Media Lab

Rock ‘N’ Roll Allstars

2 Apr 2012

One of our clients, Glenn Hughes, has joined a recently announced, 11-piece supergroup, Rock ‘N’ Roll Allstars, comprised of Gene Simmons of KISS, Joe Elliott of Def Leppard and many others. They will tour South and Central America this Spring.

Joining Hughes, Simmons and Elliott in the massive band will be Matt Sorum, Duff McKagan and Gilby Clarke (Guns N Roses), Steve Stevens (Billy Idol), Sebastian Bach (Skid Row), Ed Roland (Collective Soul), Mike Inez (Alice In Chains) and Billy Duffy (The Cult).

www.rnrallstars.com

The project was the brainchild of Matt Sorum and promoter Gabe Reed.

“We thought it would be a really great idea to put together a band of some of our favorite musicians from the history of rock. I think it’s going to be exciting to go see the hits of Kiss, Guns N’ Roses, Def Leppard, Billy Idol, The Cult and Alice In Chains. That’s where the vibe came from.”

The tour will begin April 19th in Asuncion, Paraguay and play mostly in capital cities throughout South and Central America. The last stop on the tour will be May 6th in Caracas, Venezuela.

Tour Dates

APRIL

19th – Jockey Club – Asuncion, Paraguay
21st – Metal Open Air Festival – Sao Luis, Brazil
23rd – Club Geba – Buenos Aires, Argentina
27th – Explanada Monumental – Lima, Peru
28th – Coliseo General Ruminahui – Quito, Ecuador

MAY

1st – Mundo E – Guatemala City, Guatemala
3rd – Stadium Suprisa – San Jose, Costa Rica
4th – Figali Convention Center – Panama City, Panama
5th – Hipodromo De Los Andes – Bogota, Colombia
6th – Campo De Futbol Universidad – Caracas, Venezuela

For updates and more, pay them a visit @ www.rnrallstars.com

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Raspberry Pi

In: Technology

26 Mar 2012

Raspberry Pi computer in action

The Raspberry Pi computer is just a small green circuit board about the size of a credit card – but it is hoped that it will get thousands of school children interested in programming.

Created by a group of scientists and developers who wanted to improve the state of Britain’s computer science curriculum, the device contains a processor similar to the one used in many smart phones, a memory chip, an HDMI port for a video display, an Ethernet port to connect to the internet and a couple of USB ports.

After plugging in a keyboard, mouse and monitor, children are able to use the Raspberry Pi‘s open-source software to write their own code.

It will cost £22 (approx. $50), with the first 10,000 on release having been funded largely out of the pockets of the scientists behind the charitable Raspberry Pi Foundation.

Rory Cellan-Jones of the BBC met the foundation’s executive director Dr Eben Upton to find out more.

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The iPad Driven Thirsty Bear

In: Entertainment| Mobile| Technology

19 Mar 2012

An amazing new self-serve bar concept

The Thirsty Bear is a pub in London, United Kingdom, that features Apple iPad driven self-serve beer tap(s) at your table. It also offers a full range of other beverages, such as a growing cocktail list, plus an ever expanding menu of food and even music; all available via your table or bar from their built-in iPad’s.

A novel concept and one that is sure to prove popular in major cities throughout the world over the next few years.

Operated and founded by The Robot Pub Group; they have deployed Apple iPad based displays on each table allowing you to place orders for food and drinks; to surf the Internet; to select tracks on the bar’s Jukebox and to do something you possibly didn’t think of (though you probably did): buy Beer that you can then instantly dispense from the tap on your table!

When in London for business or pleasure and this being the first iPad touchscreen-operated bar in the city, you should pay it a visit!

www.thethirstybear.com

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New Facebook Timeline : What You Should Know

In: Facebook| Social Media| Technology

12 Mar 2012

The new Facebook Timeline has been creating quite a stir recently, and all the more so ever since Facebook started rolling out the previews for the new Timeline for fan pages.

This will inevitably lead to a ton of posts on the subject, but in true social media fashion, too much time is going to be spent on the details rather than discussing what matters.

The Timeline Cover Photo

One of the biggest aesthetic changes coming to the new page layout is obviously the Timeline Cover Photo.

The first thing you need to know is that the photo is 850 x 315 pixels in dimension.

That means if you’re going to use a Timeline photo, it should be around that size.

It also means that these photos are HUGE on page, and take up some major screen real-estate:

Best to make it pretty!

This can be intimidating to do for some: many folks don’t want to hire a graphic designer for a Facebook photo, and many aren’t familiar with Photoshop themselves.

Also be aware, there are some important things about these photos that you need to know…

Facebook Timeline Cover Photo Rules & Regulations

Yes, Facebook is trying to enforce quite a few rules with these photos.

This is going to be hugely important in your Facebook marketing efforts, because the rules are pretty strict (and very anti-promotional).

Here’s a rundown of the important ones regarding Timeline Cover Photos…

Timeline Cover photos may NOT contain:

* Price or purchase information, such as “40% off” or “Download it at our website”
* Contact information, such as web address, email, mailing address or other information intended for your Page’s About section
* References to user interface elements, such as Like or Share, or any other Facebook site features
* Calls to action, such as “Get it now” or “Tell your friends”

The “banning” of calls to action is a specifically important one for folks building their pages and marketing on Facebook.

It’s also important to keep this in mind when remembering the next important change…

No More Facebook Landing Pages

That’s right, Facebook landing pages are dead, or, at least to a certain extent they are…

What’s really going on is that Pages can no longer display one of their custom applications as their default landing tab that non-fans first see when they visit.

They can still have these custom applications, but they now cannot be set as the default; the Timeline will always be the default page for all users.

This was likely done to stop the use of the “Like Gate”, or hiding something people wanted behind the landing page, forcing people to “Like” something when they wanted access.

Some have called this an essential part of landing pages, others have decried it as a shady tactic with no long term engagement benefits.

If you were using the landing page to highlight important content, you are in luck though, thanks to the next essential feature…

Pages Can “Pin” Posts for 7 Days

Pages now have the option to “Pin” posts to the top of their Timeline for up to 7 days, highlighting the more important content you’ve posted and allowing it to garner more exposure.

This is done by simply selecting “edit” on a piece of content from your Page, and then selecting “Pin to Top”.

A “Pinned” post will have small ribbon in the right hand corner to signify it as such.

This could be very useful for big brand announcements, for new projects, and for pieces of content that you’ve published that are starting to pick up speed.

It can also be used to “put your best foot forward”, pinning the best content that you’ve posted during the week.

Changes To the “About” Section

The “About” section has always been available for Facebook Pages, but now it’s getting featured more prominently.

Now at the top of your Timeline, there are two different versions available so you may need to update soon.

These versions depend on if your business is listed as having a physical location or not having a physical location.

Here are some screenshots that reflect the two types.

Physical Location:

No Physical Location:

Most websites and personal brands will obviously be falling under the latter, but if your business has been listed as having a location (such as if you’ve listed an office space), you will be using the former type.

Application Boxes Featured More Prominently

Applications that were previously tabs on your sidebar are now featured at the top of the timeline as well.

You are able to choose in which order they appear in. Keep in mind which ones are important when placing them on your page for all to see.

You’re old landing page will also live here: you could feature it at the top, but since it isn’t the first thing new visitors are seeing, it will be drastically less effective and less important.

If you have more than four applications, a drop down menu is needed for the rest; remember that when choosing the order, only the first 3-4 will make the “homepage” for your brand’s page.

Your Page Can Create “Milestones”, Telling Your Story

Your Page now allows you to post about past events as “milestones”, helping you create a compelling storyline for your brand.

You can access this from where you would normally post an update, and utilizing this feature will help you make the most of the new Timeline format (milestones also get attention as they allow for big photo uploads).

The first milestone you obviously have to create is the “Founded” milestone, or when your business/band/etc was founded, after that, you can post subsequent milestones normally.