Jett Pangan on fans: technology is important to keep them

MANILA, Philippines - The lead singer of The Dawn, Jett Pangan, has learned two things in his 22 years in the music industry: the importance of fans and the vital role of technology to keep their supporters. Speaking before a round table discussion dubbed as “Microsoft Office Icons Campaign," Pangan on Friday said updating their fans is a primordial concern and without technology it would be difficult to do so. Pangan said to keep a constant communication between artists and fans, a “proper medium" must be established. Blogging is one of them. “Blogging is now very important to the music industry. It is one of the easiest ways to stay in touch with our fans and keep them updated with the latest news and schedules," Pangan said. But blogging can be complex. This is why, after trying various applications, Pangan shifted to Microsoft OneNote- an enhancement in Microsoft Word 2007. “There was a time when I used to compose blogs online, and every time I lose Internet connection, everything I wrote would just disappear. After a while I tried a new way — using Notepad. This worked for a while. But when I discovered OneNote and the enhancement in Office 2007, composing blogs for our site became much easier to do," Pangan said. OneNote is one of the enhancements of Microsoft Office 2007 - “the latest productivity suite from Microsoft, which includes redesigned user interface (UI) in its applications such as Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook." According to Marivi Abueg, Microsoft Office Product Manager, OneNote is a “digital notebook" that allows users to easily organize and jot down their thoughts. It is also an efficient way to organize variety of files from text to images to Web, even audio and video recording easily. One of the key functions of OneNote is the feature that allows users to cross-blog their entries to all their blog accounts. “From OneNote, they can then go directly to Microsoft Word to finalize the entry, before publishing it multiple blogs," Abueg said, adding that in “one click," the application automatically updates the sites a user wants to post his entries to. Another application of OneNote that is efficient for Pangan is its “recorder" feature. Through the “recorder" a user can create audio files, “which comes in handy for a lyricist like me." But where does Jett Pangan post his blogs after OneNote? His answer: Windows Live Spaces. Windows Live Spaces is of the components of Windows Live - a set of online services and application that allows users to send e-mails, share applications, photos, instant messaging, among others. It is similar to Friendster, Facebook, and Multiply. But unlike the others, it has more features which includes an online storage called “SkyDrive" that allows users to store any files up to a whopping 25 gigabytes big. Pangan said OneNote and Windows Live are very easy to operate. “You don’t have to be a techie to learn your way around Office 2007 or even Windows Live. Even users with basic background on computers are ready to tap…the news capabilities of technologies," Pangan said. Microsoft Office Icons Campaign is a project which brings together individuals who have made significant mark in their fields and inspired people to pursue their dreams with the help of technology. - GMANews.TV