Another Friday means another tour of the blogosphere. What were people writing about this week?

Tiff Chow shares some beautiful iPad sketches by Ryan Smith. It’s amazing what you are able to achieve with a little bit of creativity and a fun piece of technology. Believe it or not, all that art was drawn just using an Apple iPad!

Jeff Cutler offers a poignant discussion on whether or not social media is a waste of time. Those “in the know” are well versed in the realms of Twitter and Facebook, but does the average consumer pay attention to these alternative marketing channels?

Ed Lau has decided to broaden his horizons just a tinge. He has just launched a new food blog where he will document many of his culinary adventures, not only in the Vancouver area, but also all around the world. From authentic Japanese tempura in Tokyo to pricey burgers at DB Bistro Moderne, he eats… and blogs!

Taylor Lindstrom makes a very important point about why your blog doesn’t make money. You have to remember that while guys like Darren Rowse do make some money from their blogs, the blogs are not their primary sources of income. A popular blog and a profitable business are not necessarily the same thing.

Zac Johnson lets us know about an interesting new development. Apparently, Philadelphia bloggers now need to get a $300 license to continue blogging for profit. It doesn’t matter if you only make pennies on your blog. Will this trend extend to other parts of the country too?

Hop on board the blogosphere train as we make our way through quite the varied set of blog posts!

Buzz Bishop likes to think that he stays on top of the world of technology, but it seems that world may not be so sanitary. Do you realize that your iPhone is disgusting? Many cell phones are breeding grounds for nasty little things, harboring all sorts of environmental bacteria.

The Simple Dollar offers a very honest and open blog post about how the site works. It’s clear that Trent is making money from his blog, but he’s also quick to remind us that he is nowhere near getting rich from running that money management website either.

About:Blank reveals something that you may not want. You know how KFC has that sandwich where the buns are replaced with pieces of fried chicken? Perhaps you should take a look at the KFC Skinwich instead. It features five fried chicken skins, American cheese, and some bacon.

Vance Sova shares his less than favorable experience with trying to install Windows 7 on a Mac. It’s supposed to “just work,” but that’s not exactly how his ordeal panned out. Not even the Apple Care “geniuses” were of any help, despite multiple calls and multiple visits.

Jennifer Mattern reminds all of the freelancers in the audience about the inaccuracy of certain common perceptions. More specifically, web writing can indeed pay as well as print writing. You don’t have to end up in a newspaper or magazine to land the big bucks; you just have to know where to look.

What did the blogosphere have to offer us this week? Let’s see!

Shelly Tucker recently went on a short vacation, but she didn’t choose to eat in the safest and most tourist-attracting of places. Instead, she went where the locals eat to find the “Pollo al Horno” at Sol Food. That looks delicious!

Gus Fosarolli waited in line. And then he waited some more. But at long last, he got an Apple iPhone 4. By and large, he’s been very happy with his new smartphone and he has not suffered from any of the “death grip” issues that seem to be plaguing many other users.

Joseph Planta has been at his game for quite some time and now he’s able to celebrate sixth anniversary of On the Line, his online interview segment on The Commentary. In the “clip show,” he goes through many of his favorite guests over the years. Despite having several appearances on the show, Michael Kwan sadly goes unmentioned.

Sunday O’Brien has a guest post up on The Urban Muse, shining light on how we can make our writing more interesting. Remember that blue is boring, but azure is alluring. Instead of pink, try writing about fuchsia, magenta, or coral.

Darren Barefoot makes an observation about how Americans treat their soldiers and how this treatment is diametrically different from how, say, Canadians treat their armed forces. What is it about American culture that changes that kind of perspective?

Another work week has come and gone, so it’s time to tour the blogosphere once more. Let’s see what they’ve had to say.

Rebecca Bollwitt lets us know about a special fundraising effort that won’t cost you an (extra) penny. All you have to do is buy the Robson Street Hefeweizen or Brockton IPA from Granville Island Brewing and 25 cents will be donated to the Pacific Parklands Foundation. They raise funds for special projects in regional parks.

Ed Lau is always up for another food adventure, so based on a Twitter recommendation, he recently found himself at Finch’s Tea and Coffee House in Gastown, Vancouver. While there, he was able to enjoy quite the delectable sandwich, even if it felt like he stepped back in time to get it. Those chalkboard menus are so charming!

Dough Roller is all for legitimate ways to make some extra money and to save some extra money, but his most recent exploit has him feeling terrible. That’s because he feels he effectively stole $45 from Costco when the cashier failed to ring in a couple of items. Would you go back to the customer service counter to confess?

Jennie Yuen had quite the fun day when she took the opportunity to go on the Purdy’s Chocolate Factory tour. If you’ve ever wondered how those chocolate hedgehogs make it into those boxes for sale at retail outlets, her post is definitely worth checking out. Why not go on the tour yourself?

Buzz Bishop was over in Argentina recently, so he’s letting us know about six foods (and drinks) that we should all try when down in Buenos Aires. From steak (lomo) to malbec, there’s always something interesting to try.

What did the blogosphere have to offer this week? Let’s find out!

Tyler Ingram reminds us that Whistler isn’t just for winter sports. He went up recently for some summer sightseeing and there was certainly a lot to see. From the impressive mounds of snow that remain unmelted to the juvenile black bear beneath the chair lifts, the Vancouver area resort town is well worth a visit.

Chris Bibey realizes that working from home has its benefits, but it also has its pitfalls. That’s why he outlines some of the time wasters that you’ll want to avoid. Are you taking too many breaks or checking your email too often? That time could be better spent in a more productive manner!

Michael Collins has a thing or two to say about the difference between fluff and interesting content. Just about anyone can have a blog these days, so how do you avoid filling your site with fluff? Develop a passion for many topics.

Matt Mullenweg is widely acknowledged as quite the successful online entrepreneur, having been recognized as one of PC World’s top 50 people on the web. He also knows why intelligent people fail. It’s not for a lack of smarts, certainly, so what is the one major factor that’s missing in their lives?

RT Cunningham shows us how societies are changing all around the world. In the Philippines, for instance, dogs are now mostly used as pets. However, as recently as the 1990s, having dogs as food was quite the common delicacy. There’s still an underground market for it, but that is shrinking rapidly.

Ready for another quick spin around the blogosphere? Here we go!

Tyler Ingram has discovered a very interesting new feature that will surely help with his photography exploits. After watching Hell’s Kitchen, he learned that he can tether with Lightroom and his Canon 7D digital SLR. This way, the photos show up immediately on his laptop, rather than waiting to be transferred the old fashioned way.

Thursday Bram asks a poignant question for both the online professionals and the more casual users in the audience: Are you backing up your computer? Considering the amount of data we use these days, from documents to pictures, it’s easy to forget that your computer’s primary hard drive can fail and that data could be lost forever.

Damien Riley isn’t in it for the fame. He isn’t in it for the fortune. In fact, he’s well aware that you’ll likely keep your head down as a teacher and receive very little in terms of pure recognition for what you do. And he’s okay with that, because the small victories that he achieves each day make it all worth it.

John Biehler is pretty stoked. After all kinds of rumors and hullabaloo, Netflix is coming to Canada. The exact details of the video streaming service have yet to be announced, but Netflix has indicated that it will not be doing its DVD/Blu-ray rental by mail service north of the 49th parallel. It’s all about streaming movies and television shows into our living rooms. Expect to see it this fall.

Jeremy Lim introduces us to a childhood chum who is still pursuing his dream. While Jeremy moved into the photography realm, Scopez is actively engaging in his career in music as a hip hop artist. They went on a photoshoot and the resulting pictures are pretty amazing. They gravitated toward dumpsters, but the images turned out great.