Now you’ve got your head around blogs, park that as we’re on to the next big thing: comment tracking. The phrase is my invention (in a futile bid for cultural buzz word fame) but it’s a convenient shorthand for describing the world of CoComment, an online service for collecting in one place all contributions you make to conversations across the web. It tracks comments on your comments and, for bloggers, captures all their extra-blog activity on their own pages.

Leading French blogger, Loic Le Meur, hails this as a new dawn for commentators, who could end up as influential as TV pundits.

His closing comments on the importance of online conversations in consumer choice are a wake up call for brands.

Technology has been leading the way in social media for some time. I’m not talking about your PC, Mac or handheld device that allows you to poke your friends any time of the day or night. I’m referring to the way big tech brands, such as Dell and Nokia, have invested in social media marketing campaigns.

This is, no doubt, due to the incredible growth in tech bloggers during the early days of web 2.0. Where it’s usually the automotive industry who receives great acclaim for pushing the boundaries of marketing, tech was in there first this time. Of course they had an unfair advantage by playing on their own, familar ground without even having to move from their desks.

Despite the incredible growth of this area, some have risen to the dizzy heights of what could be classed as mainstream. Blogs such as Boing Boing or Gizmodo attract huge audiences along with recognised authority in the blogosphere. So what happens when you make one mad? They tend to be quite vocal about it as 118 118 have just discovered following the recent ’padded lamposts’ PR stunt. Ok, maybe not mad. More embarrassed for falling for such a stunt. But don’t worry TechDigesters, you weren’t alone. Even ITN thought it was 1st April.