Want to know who Barack Obama’s running mate is? Well, you could wait for the breaking news on CNN. Or set up an RSS feed from one of the major papers’ websites. You could even sign up to receive an email update directly from the Obama campaign.

But if you REALLY want to be the first to know, don’t look for a press conference. Look for a text message.

That’s right — the Obama camp has taken on mobile marketing in a big way, forgoing the traditional media for an approach more reminiscent of American Idol than traditional American democracy by sending a text message to supporters, party leaders and the press with his VP pick. If you want to get in on the action, you can sign up on Obama’s site — or just text VP to 62262.

Reactions to the news have run the gamut here at OMA. Some are raving over the candidate’s close connection to his supporters, others are calling it a simple PR stunt. Personally, I think it’s a clever marketing strategy and a great integration of online, traditional and mobile tactics. Plus, it’s certainly one way to make a clear-as-day contrast between the youth-friendly, web-savvy Obama and his aging, scared-of-the-email rival John McCain. On the other hand, I also think it smacks a bit of trying too hard — something that tends to backfire amongst the youth market. Plus, I’m of the personal opinion that text messages are for making happy hour plans or sharing gossip, not releasing news you expect the public to take seriously.

As you can see, I’m a little conflicted about the whole thing. What do you think? Ingenious, annoying or something else entirely? And how will it effect the polls in November?

Text your vote to…um, never mind. Just leave a comment.

While the RIAA tries to lynch Muxtape.com in the public square, others are finding the true meaning of Christmas by making public music work for them.

The latest album from David Byrne - a collaberation with Brian Eno that’s been in the works for the past 5 years or so - doesn’t hide itself from the online community, but celebrates it. Right now:

• All songs are available streaming on their website
• You can embed a player on your blog or site (as I have done above) to share the album with others
• The album can be purchased now, with the files available for download now while you wait for the disc to show up in the mail

There are so many ways this model is better than the old way of buying records. Right now, I am listening to the album, and I know from listening that it is good and I want to buy it. Years ago, though, I was easily burned by bands that turned out a crap album with one good song.This is the real reason music sharing became so big: Not because people are thieves, but because they knew they only wanted the one good song. Artists and recording executives started to panic because they could no longer make their money from a single encrusted in bad studio product.

So I am thrilled to see Byrne’s new album, but even moreso his embracing of streaming music.

Because guess what, everyone - sharing something for free CAN STILL GET YOU SALES.

Just watch. :)

I got the call from Ellen at about 10:30, seeing if I was going to want coffee later, and if so would I want to hit the Dunkin Donuts that was re-opening today?

Well I always need coffee - it’s one of the few vices you get to keep as you approach middle age.

Besides, I had to see what the new Dunkin Donuts would be like. They shut everything down months ago, shrouded in secrecy. They announced they would be back, in some new incarnation…. some day. It was all very weird. I had a strange feeling I’d show up and there would be masonic symbols on the walls and all of the employees would be wearing special rings and perhaps they’d try to get me to take their personality test…

Instead, what we saw was largely a mimic of several other successful American food brands.

For starters, like Kentucky Fried-in-so-much-damned-grease-you-won’t-believe-that-crap-is-really Chicken, you can see them trying to switch over to an acronym (”DD”) rather than actually saying, “Dunkin Donuts.” So instead of a name that makes people think of donuts, “DD” is going to make them think of large breasts.

Along that same vein, like McDonald’s, they are including items in their menu that have never been associated with donuts and coffee. “DD” now also sells fancy sandwiches, and they have a real coffee station - not just the metal tin of coffee, brewed in 5 gallon at a time vats like they used to be. I myself got a large iced coffee. I was actually asked how I wanted it - a rarity these days, as you are forced to take it like they make it - and had it with cream.

Finally, they are definitely shooting for the coffee house market, and do a lot of what Starbuck’s does: Arty murals, the aforementioned barista station… I thought it was weird that they didn’t put in the comfy couches, as I thought that would have been a natural for chasing Starbuck’s. Perhaps that just wasn’t done at the location I went to. It will be interesting to find out if they put in free wi-fi - if so, they stand a good chance of becoming the popular hotspot they’re hoping to.

They do still have donuts, mind you. I got a dozen for the office, telling the girl, “give me one of everything that’s actually a donut.” That way, I don’t get muffins, I get a wide selection, and I don’t stand there for an hour and a half saying “uh” between every donut choice. Because with their grand opening, there was a LONG LINE.

And anyone who has the audacity to order a dozen of anything, and take their time despite all the people behind them, really, truly, needs to be killed.

Anyway, give them a look and tell me what you think. It may be a bit of a generic look, perhaps not as “bold” as shutting down for several months to rebrand would suggest, but it is definitely an interesting direction they’re taking.

Though I will always think of the 1970s Dunkin Donuts as the way they should be. Dennis Leary and me will probably be the only ones who feel this way, but there it is.

[I should point out there's swearing in the above Dennis Leary clip, but we're all grown-ups, right?]

Looking for more comprehensive Olympic coverage? Check out Yahoo! Sports. With an entire section of their Sports site dedicated to the Beijing Olympics (Opening Ceremonies are Friday, August 8th), you can easily discover content by sport, country, athlete, schedule, medal count and current news (including the U.S. cyclists recently emerging from their plane in face masks), as well as local interest stories focused on the residents and local attractions that gives China its unique cultural flavor.

Yahoo took the opportunity to expand on simply providing Olympic statistics for visitors to follow, which is what some of their competitors have done. Yahoo instead created a one-stop shop for everything Olympics related, as well as delving into the Chinese culture and helping to boost Chinese tourism.

After examining the site, here is a list of my Top 5 Places to visit on Yahoo Sports! Olympics:

1. Homepage. The homepage is easy to navigate and is visually appealing. Here you can search for Olympic coverage, watch the countdown, and easily search through videos, headlines and more. Also here is the My Olympic Watchlist, located on the right of the homepage. Here you can add only the sports you want to be updated on, and you’ll get news, photos, videos, etc. updated throughout the Olympics.

2. The interactive Torch Tracker map. See the journey of where the torch started and where it’s been. Click on the Animate Route button on the right to see the full journey around the world.

3. Summer Games Trivia. Test your Olympic trivia knowledge and try to catch, Shakeyerbooty from Djibouti, holding first place with 25,504 points. Good Luck!

4. Get your 2008 games coverage from your mobile phone. Simply select your country, enter in your mobile phone number, and presto! You’ll have all the Olympics updates to your phone. Or you can log on to m.yahoo.com/2008games in your mobile browser.

5. Unique to Yahoo is how they cater to the International audience. Yahoo offers complete coverage in 12 other countries through local Yahoo sites, including Yahoo Mexico Deportes, Taiwan and France.

So check into Yahoo throughout the Beijing Olympics and learn more than just the stats.

In two weeks, I will be presenting a Webinar on Web site usability. Improving site usability involves modifications to Web site or landing page layout/content/design to allow the visitor to accomplish his or her desired tasks quickly and efficiently (i.e. making life easy on site visitors). Usability can be applied to sites that sell products, collect lead information or just disseminate information.

• Is your site constructed in such a way that is amenable to visitors?
• What changes should your site undergo to improve visitor experience?
• Would you like your site to be reviewed for usability best practices?…for FREE?!?

As part of my presentation on August 13th, I’ll be providing suggestions for several sites from a usability perspective. If you would like your site to be included in this review, please email me at chris at offmadisonave dot com. In the interest of time, not every site submitted will receive a thorough evaluation, but I’ll do my best to work in each of the sites submitted.

Thanks in advance.