We host thousands of milestones on xtraxtra.com, and we’re always excited to help users find and share posts from local towns. If you find a milestone from one of your favorite communities, we encourage you to post it on your Facebook wall to share the news with all of your friends.

The easiest way to do this is to “like” the milestone while you’re logged in with your Facebook account (learn how to login with Facebook here). When you view a milestone, just click the “Like” button above a post. Doing this will make the posting instantly appear on your Facebook wall, insuring that your friends and connections can see the news. It’s a great way to spread the news and bring local headlines to your online community.

This is what a milestone will look like on your wall after you click "Like."

You can find additional tips and milestone-related updates by liking xtra xtra. Just go to our Facebook fan page and click “like” to get xtra xtra’s latest news and headlines!

There has been a recent wave of hacking attacks on websites around the world. Sony had their gaming systems hacked, military emails hosted by Gmail were intercepted, and Citibank and Lockheed Martin both fell victim to cyberattacks. As the IMF and Nintendo UK continue to fight off hackers, the rest of us are all starting to wonder if we might be next!

You might be wondering if your online accounts and profiles are vulnerable, but there are a few quick tips that can fortify your online presence and deter hacker attacks. We’ve offered password tips in the past, but here are a few more ideas to keep in mind as you keep your information safe from internet hackers, crackers, and attackers.

• Change Your Passwords Often—If you created an account three years ago, or even three months ago, it’s time to change the password. Create a schedule to change your password on a regular basis so you can stay one step ahead of those who would steal your information!
• Get Up-to-Date on Terms of Use—Review the Terms of Use agreements on your favorite websites. Companies sometimes change their terms of use—even without notifying you first—so you want to make sure you know what the rules and regulations are for your favorite sites. You can visit the xtra xtra Terms of Use at this link; it is always our policy to protect your information and not share it with third parties.
• Update Your Security Questions—You answer security questions like “What high school did you attend?” or “What’s your mother’s maiden name?” to protect your accounts, but sometimes even that information can get out. A former credit card hacker is now offering advice on how to protect your identity, and he suggests using fake answers to the questions (but make sure you can remember the ones you pick!). You could also spell the answer backwards, or substitute other characters for the letters so it is harder to crack (i.e. “B0st0n” instead of “Boston”).
• Be Selective–Don’t provide your personal information and credit card number to just any site. If prompted to have a site save your information for later, say no. If someone is able to break into your account, the last thing you want is for them to have your credit card information, too!

If you have any tips and ideas of your own, share them in a comment below. Remember you can update your xtra xtra account password by clicking “My Account” at the top of the page; you can then change your password by clicking “Change Password.”

Til next time,

CH

We’re glad you enjoy learning more about xtra xtra, and we hope that we are able to answer all of your questions. If you want to find out more about the site, or if you’re looking for a quick and easy way to tell others about xtra xtra, I hope you’ll check out our new e-brochure.

Click the image below to page through this quick guide to all things xtra xtra. You’ll find tips, FAQs, and other vital points to help make the most of your xtra xtra experience!

Click the image to visit the e-brochure!

Til next time,

CH

On this date in 2004, Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook from his Harvard dorm room. If you’ve seen “The Social Network” or read a magazine in the years since, you probably know where the story goes from there, but you also know that the site redefined the way we connect with one another.

We want to celebrate this milestone by reminding you about our Facebook pages and the ways we use Facebook to improve the user experience.

• Login with Facebook: If you want to comment on a milestone or create a posting of your own, remember that you can login with your Facebook account. Just click “Login Using Facebook” at the top of our homepage to get started. It’s the simplest way to get started.
• Pages: We hope all of you “like” our page on Facebook. It’s a great resource where you can track our latest giveaways and updates, find great milestone-related trivia, and participate in fun conversations and questions of the day. You can also befriend Xtraxtra Milestone to connect with more of our users and find the top stories of the day.

• Share Posts: Once you’re logged in, you can “like” xtra xtra postings and share them on your wall using easy tools. Learn more about these by revisiting this blog entry on Facebook tools.

We look forward to connecting with you on Facebook, and we hope you’ll continue to “like” what you see on xtra xtra!

Till next time,

CH

Yesterday, Steph and I went on an adventure to UMass Boston. We were invited as guest speakers in a social media course, so we explained how we use social media tools at xtra xtra. We talked specifically about Facebook (you’ll remember we have a fan page and the friendly Xtraxtra Milestone account), Twitter, and blogging.

This was an exciting afternoon for us, and we really enjoyed talking with the students and sharing the ways they can use these tools to promote their own projects. Below you’ll find our presentation that offers an overview of xtra xtra’s social media presence. Find out how we use these tools both within our site and as interactive marketing strategies, and be sure to connect with xtra xtra on your favorite social media sites by using the links above!

We’ll be back on Monday with links to the UMass students’ blogs, so stay tuned!

Best,
CH

xtra xtra features the latest tools and tricks for sharing your milestones with friends and family. You can post milestones to Facebook and send them via email, and now we’ve added the newest goody from our friends at Twitter: the Tweet button.

It’s similar to the “Add To Wall” tool you use for sharing on Facebook. The Tweet button is a quick and easy way to share content with your Twitter followers. Simply click the Tweet button on the page you’d like to share and log in to your Twitter account. The milestone will be placed in a textbox that you can then personalize with your own words.

Here’s an example of the final product. I used the Tweet button to share my niece’s birth announcement on Twitter.

It’s easy to get started if you already have a Twitter account. Visit xtraxtra.com, find some milestones, and start sharing. You can also follow xtra xtra on Twitter at @xtraxtrawebsite.

Till next time,
CH

Are you one of the 150 million people who’s logged into Twitter? We are, so we were especially interested in the results of the recent Digital Future Study. The survey directors asked micro-bloggers if they’d ever be willing to pay for Twitter, and zero percent said yes. It’s a startling figure, and it’s sure to make many web companies hesitate as they consider how to make money off great online tools.

You enjoy lots of free services on the web. Email hosts, web browsers, and social media sites are only a few of the tools that we can rely on without losing a penny, so what happens when once-free sites start talking about new fees? Do you stay and pay, or would you walk? What are you willing to pay for, and where do you draw the line?

xtra xtra is a free site where you can read and create customized announcements. It’s a helpful tool for keeping you connected to your favorite communities, both past and present, and you get to keep your wallet in your pocket. xtra xtra will remain a free resource as more news sources turn to pay walls for extra cash.

Social media has become a part of our daily lives. We use online resources to stay connected to family, friends, and business associates. So tell us… What tools do you use on a regular basis? Are there any that you’d be willing to pay for? Where is the line when it comes to paying for online content?

Till next time,
CH

When we built xtra xtra, we knew that we wanted to connect people to their communities, but we also knew that we wanted xtra xtra milestones to reach beyond our site. With over 400 million users, Facebook is an unstoppable force online, so we decided to make it easier for you to share your milestones with your “friends” over at Facebook. Take a look at these simple-to-use tools and head over to xtra xtra to try them out!

• Facebook Connect: It’s tricky to keep track of dozens of usernames. If you don’t want to create a unique xtra xtra account, you can get into xtra xtra with your Facebook login information. Simply click “Login with Facebook” in the upper corner of the page and get started right away.

• Add To Wall: Once you’re logged into the site through Facebook Connect, you can quickly share milestones on your Facebook wall. Find a posting you’d like to share and click the “Add to Wall” button. This will take the posting straight to your wall so you can share it with all of your friends.

• Like It: You can use this feature even if you’re not logged into the site. If you’d like to give a milestone your “thumbs up,” click the “Like” button beneath the milestone title. This will let your friends know that you found something cool at xtra xtra.

We’re staying on top of the latest tools and trends so xtra xtra can continue to enhance your online experience. Stay tuned for more, and “like” us on Facebook if you’d like to continue learning more about xtra xtra!

Best,

The xtra xtra team

These days the internet is a part of everyday life, but it’s easy to forget the days when it was a novelty. As part of a web company, I am naturally a bit curious about how people think about the internet, so I asked some of our friends and followers to think back to their earliest memories of life online. Needless to say, a lot has changed!

Here are a few of our favorite responses… Read more

A few weeks ago, Facebook changed things up by eliminating the “Become a Fan” button and inviting users to “Like” different businesses and pages. The change kicked off an effort to put the “Like” button on pages across the web, and Facebook is optimistic that the new feature will soon expand the network’s reach online.

Many people are starting to wonder if the new feature is working as well as Facebook had hoped. There’s been a recent jump in users trying to delete their Facebook profiles, and sites like Gizmodo.com are aggressively encouraging people to delete their accounts for the sake of privacy after introduction of the new “Like” button.

xtra xtra is no stranger to Facebook. We have our official business page and a unique account that lets us talk directly with our fans and supporters. We know that millions upon millions of users visit Facebook every day, so we allow posting to the Facebook wall while also offering Facebook Connect to help more users access xtra xtra and share milestones.

We like Facebook, but like many others, we wonder what will happen next. Mashable.com is doing a poll to see who prefers the “Like” button over the old “Become a Fan” option, but we want to know what you’re thinking about Facebook these days. Are there other social media tools you prefer, or are you a Facebook fan for life?

Let us know in the comments below!

Till next time,

CH