June 2010 heralds the coming of WordPress 3.0, an exciting release as WordPress matures from a blogging platform to a Content Management System ( CMS).

Although it has long been possible to mold WordPress to function as a CMS, version 3.0 will make this even easier.

WordPress users will welcome the greater flexibility for widget placement and the ability to create custom post types. I can see many corporate users going gaga over the MultiSite functionality, technology coming from WordPress MU, that will mean a central administration area for mulitple WordPress sites, something you could only do on WordPress.com.

Here's a great 18-slide slideshow on what's coming in WordPress 3.0

LOST, the final episode of this iconic TV drama broadcast last night in the US and at 5am here in the UK. Having watched LOST for 6 years I wasn't about to miss the live finale!

Although many on twitter and facebook found the finale disappointing I found it pretty good; The writers were obviously not going for a huge, big-bang of a message, one that would unlock the mystery of the island in one fell swoop.

And the reason is simple - the story was always about the human condition and this condition being what it is there is no single answer that unlocks the mystery of life for everyone at the same time. Viewers who really tried to understand the concepts in LOST will have walked away with a better understanding of themselves, hopefully.

For me there were two messages; the first a simple one and the other a metaphysical one:

Simple

Life is about positive relationships. That's it. In a nutshell. Think about your own life and what really matters. What's the big picture of your life? Is it being a decent loving person who cares about loved ones and family? Or is it about that job where you can make the most positive impact on those around you? A big salary? Volunteering your time to bring education to the poorest areas of the world? Inspiring others to be bigger than themselves in some way? All of these have one single lynchpin - positive relationships. Yep, even the 'big salary' option :) Of course, the reality is that not everyone is of this mindset and even some who are aware go about it the wrong way. But for all of us on this tiny rock there is only one thing that transcends all the simplistic, petty issues we trudge through every day - building better relationships with our loved ones, be they family, friends, neighbours etc - even though we don't all know it.

So, spend some time today talking to your loved ones. Pick up the phone and speak to them just for the hell of it; no particular reason necessary. Your life, and that of others will be instantly enriched, in the only way that is at all important. It is only in relationships that we'll find true knowledge.

Metaphysical

Hang on to your hats, this may get bumpy. I believe in life after death i.e. reincarnation. Although I'm a very scientific person in my thinking I also accept that there is something way bigger than I will probably ever understand. There have been too many coincidences in my life for me not to feel there is more than this single instance of being.

So, life after death. We naturally attribute the most importance to our 'life' i.e. this life, the one currenly being lived. And as an extension we believe this to be the more important part of the journey for the spirit - however, what if death is the true journey and every 'life' is just a pit-stop to pick up some more knowledge/understanding of our true purpose?

[SPOILER ALERT] In the final scenes everyone is gathered at the church (a church that is multi-religious as declared by the window with symbols from all the major religions) to have a final meet & greet before they 'leave' i.e. they are getting ready to 'let go' and 'move on'. Going back to my simple message above, all the characters had their own issues and demons that they were dealing with when they came to the island and together, sometimes united, sometimes opposed to one another in fatal ways, they experienced 'life' together and learnt something of themselves and their true purpose, before dying. It was away from the island, living what they thought were their 'true lives' that they realised they were already dead! They had learned all they needed to in this life (on the island) and they could now move on to continue the true journey i.e. what we call 'death'. LOST no more, as it were.

How's that for a roller coaster ride :)

LOST, you will be missed.

What is personal branding? It’s the process by which you market yourself to others, whether you’re looking for a job or establishing yourself as an expert in your field or even just posting tweets on Twitter. It’s what you’re seen to wear in online photos, what your ‘voice’ on the Internet sounds like, what your personal web site talks about, what your Facebook page is all about – basically the ‘digital’ you.

In this ever-connected world, everyone is a brand, and this gives each of us great power and opportunity to really sell ourselves. If you use social networks or blog or participate in online forums then you are already in the public eye to some degree. Anyone can Google you and find out all kinds of information by reading your tweets, your blog posts and the conversations you’re involved in anywhere on the ‘net. 
Of course, the flip side of this is that if you’re not active in the digital realm then your personal brand profile is going to be pretty small and in today’s world that’s probably going to work against you in the long run. The Internet has enabled transparency and the less transparent you are the less desirable you become, especially as other personal brands around you become more prominent.

The question is, is your personal brand Positive or Negative?

Today practically anyone who is likely to interact with you at almost any level of your life is going to Google you and find out everything they can. Employers already do this, as do recruitment agents when checking on potential matches for jobs. If you want someone to collaborate or partner up on a project they’re going to check out the ‘digital’ you first for suitability.

What many people don’t realize is that almost anything they put out on the Internet is likely to remain available to view for all posterity. This includes Facebook posts, Twitter tweets, comments on blogs, personal videos on Youtube and Vimeo – anything and everything, and if even some of that stuff is ‘bad’ it’s going to work against you to some degree. As Gary Vaynerchuk likes to say, “your grandkids are going to be able to check out everything you’ve ever done”! A good example of how negative content can come back to bite is when a few Virgin Atlantic staff were laid off last year for making derogatory comments about their employer on their Facebook pages.
So you want to make sure everything you do in this digital landscape is positive. Anything that can be found out about your interactions need to show you in the best possible light.

Do that and you’re already on your way to building a strong personal brand.

When the world's third largest retailer adopts a web technology you sit up and pay attention.

Tesco's Online Academy, www.TescoAcademy.com, a web site to help train its 400,000 staff, utilizes a mashup of Joomla and Moodle.

Read more about this Case Study on the developer's (Kineo) site