Vertical Scope, the Canadian-owned giant that touts a whopping 30 million unique monthly visitors amid its 300-plus web properties, according to its Google Analytics report March 2011, announced yesterday via Twitter that rumors of its acquisition of what is purportedly the largest off-road website upon the web, Pirate4X4.com, were in fact true, adding to its massive portfolio of automotive, powersports, power equipment, sports, action sports and technology websites.

Early in the year, Race-Dezert.com was approached for the purpose of initiating an advertising campaign. A fraction of the initiative was unconventional and something I had yet to see upon the web. I wanted to park a brand's Facebook and Twitter widget in the direct line of site and embed it above the fold of editorial and community-created forum content. The conventional banner ad was a no-brainer. But the direct engagement social widget advertising was a request that seemingly fell upon death ears.

Here's what we're browsing today. For those looking to hookup with some slick social applications, this post may not be the best of the best. I don't even think it ranks amid the top 100. There may be some nuggets of note. And it may even be worth a read. Or perhaps I'm burned out on the latest and greatest Twitter apps that don't own up to the fervor. Nevertheless, here's where I wasted my time today. Proceed at own risk. And enjoy.

It was inevitable. I called it out the day I left. I understood full well, as managing editor (or "Managing Partner" =), who was taking reigns and how little they understood the dynamics of the industry and the core lifestyle of its community. It may have taken two years longer than I and many others had anticipated but it's official. Advastar Communications gave up Off-Road.com, selling it to (perhaps) a more formidably savvy web publisher, which appears geared to make gains on its investment straight way after squeezing the trigger. Off-Road.com, the once off-road industry mega site that was rumored to shut down its doors and even its web servers, sold to VerticalScope.

Do I stream? Do Ustream? Well, if you're considering launching a web cast that seeks to stream a live audio or live video show, then Ustream is an excellent platform to place your web streaming efforts into. I love the social media channel for its compartmentalized embed options, which can be easily tailored to your website's design layout. If you're not familiar with Ustream, a decent place to begin delving into how the platform works is found within the embedded video upon this page.