Donna Summer passed away on May 17, 2012 after a private battle with lung cancer. She was only 63. Donna Summer is more than just the "Queen of Disco"; she was an archetype for what we know today as a "Diva".

In honor of Donna Summer and her legacy, the DJs at Slacker Radio have created a Donna Summer Tribute station:

www.slacker.com/station/donna-summer-tribute

This station can also be found in the "Slacker Spotlight" station category anywhere that Slacker is available - on all major smartphones, the iPad, Sonos wireless systems and on the web at http://www.Slacker.com.

By Evie Carter - Senior Account Manager

Health and the environment are important and current issues affecting our country today. You could even say the US has had some bad PR around obesity rates and pollution. Here in Santa Cruz we are a very active, environmentally conscious community. Personally it is one of the reasons I love living here. Don't get me wrong, I’m not munching on granola and patting patchouli oil on or anything, but it’s nice to live in a community that thrives on surfing, skating and of course bike riding.

Today is National Bike to Work Day. Santa Cruz celebrated last week before the AMGEN Tour of California race came through, but today is the nationally recognized day to leave your car at home and hop on a bike.

USA Today reported more than 200,000 people bike every day in New York City. Granted New York is a tad bigger then Santa Cruz but I’d like to think we have some good participation as a community. To paint an even bigger picture, as a nation less than 2% of Americans cycle daily - obviously we've got some recruiting to do.

A few of us at 43 PR are regular bike commuters and I wanted to take today as an opportunity to highlight why.

Terry Koh, intern extraordinaire, is regularly seen with his bike rolling into the office. Terry said the main reasons why he bikes to work is because it saves him gas money, reduces mileage on his car and is a great form of exercise.

“And it makes for a neat, eco-friendly way to get around a small town like Santa Cruz,” said Terry. “It is eco-friendly which is huge in SC. I also enjoy knowing the fact that after work, I don't have to get into my stuffy, hot car and drive home. I can simply bike home leisurely on the handful of bike trails throughout town. Depending on the situation, I even find myself getting home faster on a bike than I would have if I had driven in a car.”

David Rose is the newest addition to our stellar intern team and a regular bike rider.

“I ride my bike to work because it's fast, fun and free,” said David. “I like riding my bike to work because it wakes me up in the morning.  Also, it's pretty much all downhill from my house to work and who doesn't enjoy coastin'?”

As for myself, I started slowly implementing bike commuting into my daily routine about a month ago. I had two motivations: physical activity and saving money. I’ve also found that it is a good way to clear my head before and after work and somehow I feel like it ties me a little deeper into the Santa Cruz community. I also like the idea that I am polluting a little less by riding.

According to the Santa Cruz Bike to Work website, “Autos are the single largest source of U.S. air pollution. Short trips are up to three times more polluting per mile than long trips. When bicycling is substituted for short auto trips, 3.6 pounds of pollutants per mile are not emitted into the atmosphere.”

43 PR prides itself on being based in beautiful Santa Cruz, California – actually we are located downtown, right in the heart of the city. Living and working in Santa Cruz is a unique and great experience and seeing it from two wheels makes it all a little sweeter.

Peel has just announced a major update for Android users! The interactive app provides a new way to answer the age-old question, “What’s on TV?”

Peel recommends shows for users based on the programs that they already enjoy. Android users can now create and view Favorite Programs and Guilty Pleasures lists. The update also features a new social aspect where users can easily stay up to date with the latest shows that everyone is talking about by finding and following friends.

New users have the option of creating a Peel account or simply logging in with Facebook, which makes integration fast and simple. Peel also allows users to connect with fellow TV viewers so that they can discuss recent airings and speculate about future episodes with the fans that care the most. The Peel Smart Remote App is well designed, easy to use and available for free at the Google Play Store.

Say goodbye to searching for the remote or finding batteries and have total TV control from your Android or iOS supported device with Peel.

MusicBunk, a new social music app for iPhone and Android, launched on Wednesday.

Creating a more social experience around listening to music on your mobile device, MusicBunk offers instantaneous, effortless and social music discovery. Giving users access to their friends' iTunes music libraries, MusicBunk allows users to share music with friends, have discussions based on what they are listening to and easily purchase new tracks to add to their personal music libraries, all from their mobile device.

Here are the links to download the app, and a fun video that the MusicBunk team put together:
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.skplanet.musicbunk
iPhone: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/musicbunk!/id493779594?mt=8

Tuesday Slacker Radio launched the Shawn Hook Showcase, a radio station programmed and hosted by the breaking artist.

While in Toronto during Slacker Canadian Music Week 2012, Slacker was introduced to Shawn Hook. Impressed with his talent, Slacker invited him to the Slacker studios to program his own station, providing Shawn the opportunity to share his music with Slacker's millions of listeners.

Shawn performed several acoustic tracks in the studio and then selected hundreds of his favorite songs for the station, while recording personal stories and candid commentary that can be heard throughout the station.

Here is the direct link to the Shawn Hook Showcase, which can also be found in Slacker's "Artist Showcase" station category: http://www.Slacker.com/station/Shawn-Hook-Showcase

Slacker has also created a collection of videos from Shawn's time in the Slacker studios, an impromptu performance of his single "Every Red Light" and additional CMW 2012 performances. Check out the playlist here: http://bit.ly/ShawnHookSlackerRadio

On Tuesday, NeighborCity and its new service AgentMatch, was featured in the New York Times as a new service that is changing the way consumers select real estate agents to buy and sell their homes. Although many similar services have received scrutiny for containing inaccurate data and falsely obtained listing information, NeighborCity's CEO, Jonathan Cardella, assures that the site uses real time data provided by partner brokers and legitimate third-party data collectors.

NeighborCity, over the years has become a popular destination for those looking to buy or sell within the home market. The new AgentMatch service provides a performance score for real estate agents all over the country. These scores are based on various levels of criteria including number of properties sold, number of days the properties have spent in the market and the difference between the asking price and the selling.

"Until now, the data necessary to make an informed decision was unavailable to the general public,” according to NeighborCity CEO, Jonathan Cardella. "Having the right broker can mean the difference between a transaction being successful or financially disastrous. Our goal is for our customers to avoid those pitfalls and experience the benefits that come from working with a top rated professional."

If you would like to know more about this topic and NeighborCity, read here:http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/01/new-battle-on-providing-real-estate-agent-performance-data/

DailyTekk is a widely used resource for those looking to incorporate more technology into their lives. Over the years, they have become a trusted resource for the tech community.

Every week, DailyTekk releases a comprehensive yet thoroughly curated list of 100 industry or genre defining tech tools.

DailyTekk also introduces readers to the latest and greatest tech startups, gadgets and apps. This comes in the form of profiles and features, interviews and reviews. In the most latest top 100 series review, 43PR was announced as one of the top tech friendly PR firms around!

Earlier this week, Social Dynamx launched the industry's first scalable social customer care platform. Social Dynamx's solution, in conjunction to legacy CRM methods, offers support to larger enterprises and customer contact centers to manage and prioritize the millions of social conversations floating around the web.

More than 70 percent of tweets to companies today go unanswered. If you think that percentage is scary - only 5 percent of Facebook wall posts on brand pages ever receive a response. With thousands and thousands of brand related talk buzzing around the net, it has become quite difficult to control and direct the massive influx of these social dialogues. This is where Social Dynamx comes in - here are some highlighted platform features:

·       Role-specific interface for agents, supervisors and managers
·       Automated prioritization and matching
·       SLA-driven analytics
·       Advanced conversation management
·       Enterprise-scale workflows across distributed teams
·       Continuous self-learning
·       Pre-built enterprise ecosystem integrations (CRM, Listening and Knowledge)

To learn more about Social Dynamx and their revolutionary customer care platform - read here: Social Dynamx Social Software Targets Call Centers or Social Dynamx Joins Facebook Customer Care Market
 

Qualcomm Atheros, the networking and connectivity subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, announced the launch of both the Killer Wireless-N 1202 high performance Wi-Fi module with Bluetooth connectivity and the Killer E2200 high performance gigabit Ethernet controller this week. The two products are designed to provide unprecedented performance and advanced control by automatically classifying and prioritizing gaming, video and audio network data to provide a superior, uninterrupted online entertainment experience.

The Killer Wireless-N 1202 high performance, 2x2 MIMO Wi-Fi module introduces Bluetooth for the first time, providing users with the ability to play online games or stream media while simultaneously having Bluetooth connectivity, essential for online gamers who have Bluetooth-enabled peripherals. The Killer E2200 high performance Ethernet controller is an adaptive Gigabit Ethernet controller that offers better online gaming and online media performance than standard Ethernet solutions.

Both the Killer Wireless-N 1202 and the Killer E2200 offer superior performance for all online applications through Killer’s exclusive Advanced Stream Detect technology that identifies and prioritizes all network traffic. This ensures important applications that require high-speed connectivity, such as online games and video chat, get priority over less-important traffic such as incoming email or system updates. All Killer technology ships with the exclusive Killer Network Manager, giving users the power to set priorities for all network applications, increase or reduce the bandwidth each application uses, or block an application entirely – all in a unique graphical interface.

The Killer Wireless-N 1202 high performance Wi-Fi module will be available in May. The Killer E2200 high performance Ethernet controller is available now.

Slacker Radio has just launched The Wanted Showcase. This station is hand-programmed and hosted by the members of The Wanted, offering a very personal listening experience for fans of the UK pop group. When you tune in to the station, you'll hear tracks from their debut EP, acoustic live performances, the band's favorite songs and exclusive commentary by The Wanted including:

- the Coldplay song they plan to cover
- Max's favorite band of all time
- on touring with Jessie J
- and more

To listen to The Wanted Showcase, which can also be found in Slacker's "Artist Showcase" station category, visit this direct link: http://www.Slacker.com/TheWanted.

This station is also accompanied by a behind-the-scenes video of the making of The Wanted Showcase, which can be viewed here: http://youtu.be/vcAlsd7j-jw