Mashable!

Founded in July 2005, Mashable is the world's largest blog focused exclusively on Web 2.0 and Social Media news. Mashable is the most prolific blog reviewing new Web sites and services, publishing breaking news on what's new on the web and offering social media resources and guides.

Black Friday tends to bring out the animalistic side of shoppers looking for great bargains. Smart retailers are hip to the craze, which has been somewhat of an internet meme ever since October, and they’re using the web and social media as platforms to generate even more interest.

Toys”R”Us appears to have found the magic formula for not only building buzz but gaining thousands of Facebook fans by the day. The toy retailer has wisely decided to give their Facebook fans, and Facebook fans only, a full preview of Black Friday discounts, as well as exclusive access to “Mystery Deals.”

Their calculating Facebook maneuver is helping them net hundreds of thousands fans. As they close in on 400,000 fans total, All Facebook is reporting that Toys”R”Us is currently the fastest growing brand on the social network.

Interesting enough, Toys”R”Us is using Scribd to display its 35 page, 120 plus product, Black Friday extravaganza within their Facebook Page. Fans can sift through the discounts, unearth the mystery deals, and of course share their enthusiasm with their Facebook friends.

Toys”R”Us isn’t just relying on Black Friday to encourage community participation and engagement on Facebook though, as they’ve also embedded their entire 80 page Big Book toy catalog as a part of their Page, and are posting in-store redeemable coupons.

This holiday season, social media may hold the key to helping retailers become profitable for the year, and by all indications, Toys”R”Us is doing everything right.

Reviews: Facebook

Tags: black friday, black friday ads 2009, toysrus

The below video wins the Coolest Video of the Day, or perhaps of All-Time, Award: it’s the Muppets taking on Queen’s mega-hit Bohemian Rhapsody.

It’s also a good excuse to remind you that YouTube recently added 1080p support for playing back videos recorded at true high definition resolution.

But really, it’s just a cheap excuse to look at Muppets. Can you blame us? Break on through to the permalink for the video.

[via Wired]

Tags: 1080p, bohemian rhapsody, muppets, video, youtube

Shira Lazar is the co-host of Yahoo! TV’s recently launched “What’s So Funny?“, a daily 3-minute show that takes a look at the funniest moments from last night’s TV lineup and lets viewers vote on their favorites.

The convergence between the small and even smaller screen continues, as some of our favorite TV shows find new ways to engage viewers online. @FOXBroadcasting, @tbsveryfunny, @tntweknowdrama, @lifetimetv, @latenightjimmy and @theofficenbc among others have jumped on the social media bandwagon notifying fans of giveaways, sneak peeks and upcoming shows. Some of the stars who “get it” have also taken Twitter matters into their own hands, using their accounts to not only entertain, but maintain their own personal brand beyond their flagship shows.

Whether you’re simply a fan or love a good laugh, you’ll want to follow these primetime comedy stars who never fail to bring on the funny and lighten up our day:

How I Met Your Mother

@ActuallyNPH

Who: Neil Patrick Harris plays Barney Stinson

Why: After simply existing as @BrosLife, an account impersonating his TV character, the actor finally took the leap to the Twitterverse. Now he tweets while drinking his morning joe and takes pics from the set with other hot celebs.

@alyDenisof

Who: Alyson Hannigan plays Lily Aldrin

Why: The new mom and actress is great at giving fans random tidbits from the set or just calling out her co-stars.

The Office

@rainnwilson

Who: Rainn Wilson plays Dwight Schrute

Why: The comedian’s tweets are like a snippet of a standup routine. His random observations about everything from the Flu-Shot to Obama will have you laughing off-screen too.

@IAmKellyFierce

Who: The character of Kelly Kapoor played by Mindy Kaling

Why: Kelly tweets like only a funny Office lady would — ranting about cleavage and her new girl group, Subtle Sexuality. Oh, and did we mention she’s “super hot”? (Her Twitter page says so.)

It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia

@Danny_Devito

Who: Danny Devito plays Frank Reynolds.

Why: Devito keeps it new school with awesomely random tweets, which include a series of pics he continues to update of his “Troll Feet” in random locations.

@TheCharlieDay

Who: Charlie Day plays Charlie Kelly

Why: If you love the show, then you need to follow the brainchild behind it. He’s just funny and awesome. Period.

Parks and Recreation

@AzizAnsari

Who: Aziz Ansari plays Tom Haverford

Why: Not only is Aziz one of the funniest characters on the show, but his tweets prove that he’s super cool too.

30 Rock

@JudahWorldChamp

Who: Judah Friedlander plays Frank Rossitano

Why: This comedian keeps the physical comedy going with tweets about jogging at midnight and doing kick ass karate moves. He’s also on a mission to be “The Champion of the World.” We don’t know what that really entails, but he does have a twitpic of himself playing ping-pong surrounded by hot chicks, if that’s any indication.

@Realtracymorgan

Who: Tracy Morgan plays Tracy Jordan

Why: It took an online campaign to get Tracy Morgan on Twitter. Now that he’s on, this crazy comic continues to deliver the laughs with tweets that include his random daily activities and bold words of inspiration.

Community

@JoelMcHale

Who: Joel McHale plays Jeff Winger

Why: The host of E!’s The Soup has successfully made the leap to starring in his own scripted comedy, Community. Yes, he does use Twitter to pimp out his own show once in a while, but he deserves a nod because he actually replies to a ton of his follower’s tweets.

Late Night Fodder:

@jimmyfallon

Who: Jimmy Fallon from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on NBC

Why: He’s bringing the digital/techie/geek lifestyle to late night. Expect an inside look at the show with tweets about upcoming guests and where you can see him perform.

@chelsealately

Who: Chelsea Handler of Chelsea Lately on E!

Why: This chick is hilarious and she’s taking over a slot typically dominated by men. Expect her typical dry and dirty jokes mixed in with some fun celeb gossip links. Oh yeah, who could forget a little @chuybravo sidekick action mixed in there too.

@StephenAtHome

Who: Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report on Comedy Central

Why: Get your fix of slanted politics after the show with Colbert’s tongue in cheek tweets.

Keep laughing and follow Shira Lazar (@shiralazar) and her co-host Michael Bachmann (@thebachmann) on Twitter. Plus, you can catch their new daily show, “What’s So Funny“, to see the funniest moments from last night’s TV lineup and vote for your favorite.

More Twitter lists from Mashable:

- Motivational Tweets: 25 of the Most Inspiring Users on Twitter

- Football Tweets: 20 Must Follow NFL Players on Twitter

- 15 Must Follow Comedic Film Actors on Twitter

- Tasty Tweets: 55+ Foodies to Follow on Twitter

- 20 Film and Television Directors to Follow on Twitter

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Palto

Reviews: Twitter, iStockphoto

Tags: actors, comedy, Lists, television, tv, twitter

Just in time to remind holiday shoppers, Amazon has announced an 85% battery life increase as well as a native PDF reader application for the Kindle digital book reader. Whereas the previous battery life topped out at about four days with wireless access turned on, the updated Kindle will run for seven days without needing to be charged.

The native PDF reading support is nice too, since previously users either had to pay a $0.10 per conversion charge or go through several steps in order to convert documents from PDF to the Kindle format used by the eReader. Now PDF can simply be transferred via USB connection or emailed to the user’s @kindle.com email address to be added to the Kindle.

While the native PDF support will also be made available to existing owners of the Kindle (or at least, some of them — Amazon’s announcement doesn’t specify what the requirements are) via a wireless firmware update, the new battery life-infused Kindle will apparently only be rolling out to new buyers.

It’s a couple of minor but nice updates, and a good excuse for Amazon to capitalize on the fact that the holiday season’s other hot digital book reader, the Barnes & Noble nook, is already completely sold out for reportedly the remainder of the holiday gift-giving season. That’s more bad news for B&N, who are also busy fending off a lawsuit from Spring Design over its Alex eReader — which shares some of the key design principles with the nook, a similarity Spring Design says is no accident.

Are you considering picking up a digital book reader for yourself or a loved one this holiday season?

Tags: alex, amazon, barnes & noble, ereader, Kindle, nook, pdf, spring design