HodgePodge for July 3

​Here’s a brief look at some interesting stories we’ve read this week, delivered a couple days early because of Independence Day. We call it HodgePodge.

Social Landscaping

Just when you were thinking perhaps social marketing was maybe getting simpler, Mashable has the details on the latest “Conversation Prism” (or, as Jon calls it, the social media peacock chart) from industry analyst Brian Solis. That’s a lot of logos.

Make Money. Live Better.

For the second year, Walmart is holding a contest that offers entrepreneurs a chance to get their products on the shelf at the megastore. Who needs Shark Tank?

What Part of Speech is that?

A decade ago, LEGO was on the brink of bankruptcy, so how did they reclaim their exalted position in the industry? Here is a great Diane Rehm interview with David Robertson, author of “Brick By Brick: How LEGO Rewrote the Rules of Innovation and Conquered the Global Toy Industry.” I’m betting it would have been easier if they hadn’t lost the little instruction book that came in the box.

After Sunset

Information junkies everywhere were sent scrambling by Google’s announcement a few months ago that they were shutting down Google Reader, by far the most popular RSS reader. Over at the New Yorker, Matt Buchanan takes a look at what might replace it. I’ve switched to Feedly, for what it’s worth.

Get Wired

What’s inside your cup of coffee? (Maybe that’s not the kind of thing you want to know.)