Lately I've started becoming more and more interested in the business side of social networking - its effects on business, marketing and the like; it's really quite a fascinating social phenomenon.  I think I’ve always had an interest in a number of things in my life – obviously software development (the under-the-hood, nuts and bolts, creative pursuit of developing a solution to a problem) has always been a major interest, but so has business.  Due to the fact that the world is starting to catch up to the fact that computers are “cool” and, therefore, my investment in them has become more marketable and social, my interest in business has grown even further; now to the point where I think I might start blogging on not only topics related to .NET development, but also the business applications of that development in many areas.  

Personally I think the next big “wave” in the world of business is going to be in how it leverages the new social medium to reach, interact with, and learn from customers (current or potential). I think, in many ways, this has already started – companies like Microsoft, Sun and even McDonalds are using RSS in some form or another to reach out to their customers (their communities). It’s all just very fascinating and I think that if we – as developers – can keep our eye on this new and interesting market, we might be able to all profit from it highly. Remember that we have a power that those who pay us do not; if we watch over their shoulders and keep our focus one step ahead, we can be the ones cutting the paychecks.  

          Anyway – if I write enough on this topic I might create a separate blog dedicated to just that so that the focus here doesn’t drift too much. I guarantee I have plenty to write out in the future in .NET development, but I also promise there’s going to be a lot more on the practical applications of that development.