What's new and next in technology

FRESNO, Calif.

You knew Facebook was everywhere when your mom friended you, but while /*Mark Zuckerberg*/'s social network is big now, what's next?

"The beauty of social media is its always changing," Lisa Alvey said.

Alvey is the social media manager at Fresno Pacific University and the co-founder of the Fresno chapter of the Social Media Club.

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Links to social networking websites:
www.qwiki.com
www.quora.com
www.getglue.com
www.color.com

Link to Best Buy tablets
www.bestbuy.com

Link to Hi Tech Home
www.hitechhome.net

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She sees Facebook and Twitter as the main platforms for social networking for the next several years, but others are grabbing her attention. Like Qwiki.

It's like Wikipedia but instead of just text and links you also get videos, photos and blogs all in one place.

"You type in Disneyland and it's going to bring up this mash up of videos and pictures and blogs and you'll get all of it in one blog."

Quora.com is a social form of a knowledge market. You ask a question about anything from politics, to travel, to computers and people answer.

GetGlue.com is a social network for entertainment. Users check-in on GetGlue to share what they are watching, listening to, and reading with friends; get fresh recommendations; and earn rewards from GetGlue partners. GetGlue shares all kind of information from tweets, videos, pictures, articles and blogs. The website remembers these things and then starts showing things it thinks you might like.

Social networking is also taking over your smart phone.

The app called Color is a new mobile social network

It shares your images, video and comments with anyone who comes within 50 feet of you.

You instantly see their updates and they see yours without passwords or friending.

"We're going to expect our community to join us in this conversation. Whether its a text, or a tweet or a blog or a sentence or a full story," Alvey said.

Which device you use for your social network is also changing.

"Anything that you wanted to do and things you never thought you could do, you can do on your cell phone," Matt Labrot said.

Labrot is the mobile device expert at the Best Buy in Clovis. He sees tablets taking over the mobile world.

Most cell phones and all tablets have front facing cameras for programs like Tango which allows you to call people face to face all over the world.

But despite all the technological advances in mobile devices, Matt says one thing remains the most popular.

Apps are going from the little screen on your phone to the big screen in your home.

"Let's say you want to make reservations to a dinner. You go to an app called Dine Out," Jay Cobb said.

Cobb owns Hi-Tech Home. He uses an iPad to control everything inside and out.

How can he do that? Most new appliances and entertainment systems now come with an IP address, giving him control of the curtains, air conditioning, security system and televisions.

"So, it's telling all these IP addresses to do certain things, whether it's on off, dim, schedule, that sort of thing."

It costs anywhere from a couple of a couple hundred dollars to several hundred thousand dollars to upgrade your home.

Technology is changing by the second. How fast you want to go is up to you and your wallet.

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