Pokenize is a service for creating micro-campaigns with Poken technology.

A service that allows organizations, events, advertisers to brand the Poken experience from top to bottom.

Loading a friend with out Poken'ing that friend. When you preload a Poken with a "friend" that friend essentially swaps social business cards without having to Poken the individual. This service is only for promotional campaigns.

Yes.

1. is it another social network ?

no. poken is a tool for social networking that can be used across many social networking platforms. we do not want users to have to change social networking sites, or to have to re-connect with all their friends. there are many great applications available on existing social networking sites, and we believe users should continue using the ones they are used to. Poken will simply tie into any one of your social networking accounts and make it easier for you to connect with new people, by letting you connect immediately when you are physically in their presence. we want to save you the hassle of having to search for new friends later, when you're sitting in front of your computer. your time is better spent socializing in the real world, or using great tools online to improve your social life.

2. what is the advantage of using a poken to connect with my friends and new contacts?

our core offer is built around some very simple new concepts that bring a whole new dimension to your social networking:

• you connect to people in the real world, when and where you meet them: what's more natural than linking up with a new friend on the spot? don't scribble your email address or phone number on a paper napkin or search for them later on Facebook. just 'high-four' to connect instantly
• poken is your social business card. scrap the paper business card! your poken card is far more comprehensive. rather than handing out a piece of paper that shares just your basic contact information such as company, address, phone, and email, with poken you can include your social network profiles as well. when you associate a social network to your Poken identity that social network's favicon appears on your poken card. if you are connected to your friend on that social network, then they can click the favicon link to instantly view your social network profile. if you opt not to be connected on that social network, then they will simply see the public-search version of your profile
• we record the time at which you connect to people. and since you're connecting in the real world, it's a valuable piece of information that lets you view your networking chronologically. so, when you're wondering what's-the-name-of-the-person-you-met-two-weeks-ago-when-you-were-with-bob-at-his-cousin's-party, instead of tediously going through your whole alphabetical list of contacts, you can simply "scroll back" to see who that person was.

3. why do I have to carry around an extra gadget? isn't there some way to do this in my phone?

sort of but not really. since the beginning of mobile phones and PDAs there have been myriad proposed solutions to easy sharing of contact information or "replacing the business card." to show our age, several members of Poken's staff fondly remember beaming vCards in infrared between our Palm Pilots back in the day. however, nothing has ever emerged as a standard for a couple of reasons. the first inhibitor has been hardware/OS/application fragmentation--basically different phones often can't talk well with others. recently there have been more and more hardware/OS/application-independent phone solutions for contact exchange via BlueTooth or visual codes. however, these also have not really caught on. we believe that it is because the user interfaces too unwieldy, requiring the user to type in codes, launch applications, etc.

our solution is meant to address these issues by providing an extremely simply mechanism for contact exchange: the high-four. it is natural and it mimics the way we interact with other humans every day. the security is built into the hardware so there are no codes to enter and no risk of someone stealing your information. it requires a small, extra hardware device to carry around so we've designed that device to be cool and fun--something we hope you would like to carry around with you anyway. perhaps we're tilting at windmills by trying to create a social replacement for the business card, but we really think we're on to something!

shenanigans! what's with all the pokenite and pokenverse type words?

no, we're not trying to drive you crazy. these weird terms, or pokenisms, are real words we've co-opted for our world or made up entirely. we do this for a couple of reasons. and not one of them involves being intentially cutesy.

one, you know how when you say a word over and over again, it loses meaning? completely stops making sense ? that's been happening to us. a lot. we were saying "poken" about a thousand times a day. it was like that scene in being john malkovich where he goes inside his own head: "poken poken poken Poken poken poken poken..." it was completely driving us pineapples*.

so, we decided to save as much sanity as possible (everything's relative; we do work at a start-up with as many native tongues as employees) and create terms that would help us differentiate people, functions and actual things from one another in a shorthand we could all understand. to that end, we offer the poken glossary.

poken |pōkən|
verb [trans.]
to touch two poken devices together, exchange data and make, keep and cultivate human connections.

noun (plural same) trademark
1. any poken product: pokenSPARK ™, pokenPULSE™, pokenHUB™; the poken website: wwww.doyoupoken.com
2. the actual company behind the whole thing. when Poken is written with a capital "P", we're talking about Poken S.A., all official and whatnot.

pokenaut |pōkənôt|
noun
an employee of the Poken™ company. whether based in our hq in switzerland, our u.s. office in california or a wandering head of sales, these are people that get a paycheck from Poken S.A.

pokenati |pōkənätē|
noun
resellers, promoters and evangelists of poken. these are the brave men and women investing lots of their own resources to expand the pokenverse. they can be found at events, manning their webshops, sneaking sparks into the hands of celebrities and extolling the virutes of the hub in a speech or blog.

pokenite |pōkənīt|
noun
people out in world, connecting, socializing, networking, setting off those little green glows and using the online hub to manage it all. this would be where you guys come in. and us, we're pokenites, too.

pokenverse |pōkən vərs|
noun
anyplace where poken is- where the poken live, where people are connecting online or in person using poken, the poken website or member hub

high4 |hī fôr|
noun
1. an act of connecting, greeting or impending separation in which two people touch each other's poken together, provoking a green glow and mutual bond of connection;
2. a gesture of celebration in which two people slap each other's palms with a finger folded, honoring the morphology of our little friends.

verb ( high4) [ trans. ]
greet or celebrate with such a gesture.

*pineapples |pīnapəl|
adjective
completely insane :

sometimes, things get messed up, you get a little punch drunk after lots of long hours or a situation just gets plain weird. as gwen stefani and the harajuku girls sang, "this shhhhh is bananas. b-a-n-a-n-a-s." that happens everywhere. only, in french, it's not as fun, when something is totally out of whack, to say "wow. c'est bananes-" it's so soft and nice and doesn't convey what's happening. it's far more satisfying, as a native english speaker or pop culture fiend to say "wow. c'est ananas. a-n-a-n-a-s." for you non francophones, ananas are... yep, pineapples.

these prices are pineapples, arturo went totally pineapples when ac milan lost to juventus.

oh, also:

noun
a large juicy tropical fruit consisting of aromatic edible yellow flesh surrounded by a tough segmented skin and topped with a tuft of stiff leaves.

1. i received my new poken, now what?

you are holding your shiny new poken in its little box in your hand, great! Now all you have to do before you can set off pokening with people is activate it. take the poken out of its box and pull the body from its hand. you will see a tiny piece of plastic sticking out of the USB end of the poken hand. pull out this plastic, and you will see a light flashing at the wrist of the hand - your poken has been activated and is now ready to 'high-four'!

you can poken, meaning connect to other pokens right away after activating your poken - you don't necessarily have to create your account on poken.me beforehand. (cf. can i poken with people, even though i haven't created an account on the website yet? in our faq for more info)

2. can i poken with people, even though i haven't created an account on the website yet?

sure thing! you can start using your poken as soon as you've activated it (cf. I received my new poken, now what? in our faq for details). you can then start pokening right away. your poken will store all the new contacts, which will be uploaded to your account once you've registered on doyoupoken.com. until you've registered your friends will only be able to see an "unregistered" card in their timeline.

3. how do i poken with someone?

pokening with someone, meaning exchanging your social business card data with another person, is very easy. both of you should hold onto the body of the poken so that the other half of the poken, its hand, is free. both pokens need to 'look' at each other. put the two poken hands together for about 2 seconds without moving. this should already be enough to exchange contacts. you can check whether you have pokened successfully by taking the pokens apart again after the 2 second 'touch'. if there is a green light glowing in both poken hands, you have pokened! the green light continues to glow for about 5 seconds, so you shouldn't miss it. if the light flashes red, this means that the data exchange has not succeeded. maybe you moved the hands too much when touching the other, or you pokened too quickly again right after pokening with someone else. in any case you should wait until no more light is flashing (green or red) before pokening with someone. to stop the palm from glowing, just press the button once.

4. how do i upload my contacts from the poken onto my computer?

the USB connector of your poken lets you easily upload your new contacts to your poken account. it is recognized by all computers as a standard USB memory stick with a few files on it. you do not need to install any software on your computer. you only need to plug your poken into a computer that is connected to the web. depending on the OS (operating system) that you use (Mac OS, Windows, Linux) the "Start_Poken.html" may or may not launch automatically. if not, simply double-click the "Start_Poken.html" file that appears on the poken drive.

5. what are the minimum required specs for a Mac or PC to use poken?

operating system:
Windows XP/Vista
Mac OS X 10.4 or newer
Linux

browser:
Internet Explorer 7+
Firefox 3+
Safari 3
Chrome

javascript enabled
cookies enabled

1. how do two poken exchange data?

the poken devices use a proprietary RF (radio frequency) communication interface. this interface was designed to use very low energy both in standby as well as whilst transmitting data.

2. does the poken run on battery?

yes, the poken runs on a Lithium CR1632 battery. due to the low cost of a poken, it is not possible to use rechargeable batteries.

3. how long does the battery last?

in regular use, your poken's battery should last approximately six to eight months. if you use the light show effect (cf. what is the light show for? faq section) a lot or connect to hundreds of people every month, you may need to change it sooner.

4. how do i change the battery of my poken?

to change the battery, use a small flat screwdriver to delicately pry apart the top and bottom halves of the poken hand. replace the battery using the same type (Lithium CR1632) and gently snap the shells back together.

5. what do the different lights in the poken hand mean?

there are the following light modes in your poken: a green, red and orange glow, plus the 'light show'.

the green light appears when you have successfully pokened with someone, meaning exchanged your social business card data.

the red light appears when the two poken couldn't successfully exchange data. you will have to wait for the red glowing to stop (or simply press on the glowing button once, then the glowing will stop, too), then you can retry to poken the other person.

the orange light appears right after you have pokened with someone but only have space left for 4 or less additional poken contacts.

the 'light show' appears when you press the button in the poken hand for a couple of seconds. it doesn't hold a specific purpose except for simply entertaining with its groovy lights (and at the same time it will also tell you if the battery still works ;-) )

6. what is the button in the palm for?

the button is the main communication channel for you and your poken. the poken lets you know if it has successfully pokened with another poken through the different lights glowing (cf. what do the different lights in the poken hand mean? faq section). additionally, you 'communicate' with the poken device through clicking the button:

• click the button once if you want to stop it from glowing red/green, so you can continue pokening right away
• click the button twice to put your poken into 'ghost mode' (cf. what if i'm not sure i really want to poken with someone, but i don't want to deal with the awkwardness of refusing to poken? & how to...ghost someone? faq sections)
• press the button for a couple of seconds to enjoy the colourful 'light show' and ensure yourself that the battery and diodes are still working.

7. what information is stored on the poken device?

there is no personal information stored on your poken. the only thing contained in your poken is a random number we call a "poken ID" and some encrypted codes that relate to other poken you've pokened.

8. how many contacts can be stored on a poken?

loads! your pokenSPARK can store 50+ contacts and the pokenPULSE is up to even more. each time you successfully poken the little palm will glow green. it will blink red if you did not poken successfully, in which case, just wait a few seconds for the glowing to disappear and try again. once you exceed the maximum of contacts a poken can hold, the poken palm will glow red each time you poken (note: this is different from when it blinks red to let you know that you did not connect successfully). each poken contact after the maximum number will be saved, but it replaces the first contact stored on your poken. not so cool... so just avoid all that and upload your contacts before exceeding the limit and you can be sure not to lose anyone.

9. is there additional storage space on the poken USB stick i can use?

yes, pokenPULSE has additional storage space of 2GB.

pokenSPARK does not have additional storage - it is read-only. a 1GB key is simulated, but in reality the key contains 16KB of memory, and these KB are used to store your pokened contacts and the firmware.

10. i've lost my poken, what now? can the finder access my data?

by default you will be prompted to provide your password each time you insert your poken into your computer. if someone else plugs your poken into their USB port, without your password they cannot do anything with it. even the contacts you've accumulated in your poken are safe: they are encrypted using a very advanced encryption method and are only accessible in your account. furthermore, since you've already uploaded your previous contacts, your data is safe and sound. you can simply get a new poken and, when you register it, link it to your previous account (cf.how to ...connect multiple pokens to one account? faq section). you'll be all set to keep socializing as if nothing happened. additionally, under 'devices' in your poken account, you can mark your poken as lost and write a message to whomever finds it and plugs it into their computer.

11. what if i'm not sure (yet) if i really want to poken with someone, but i don't want to deal with the awkwardness of refusing to poken?

no worries. that's why poken have two modes: "normal" and "discrete." your poken is in normal mode by default. every time you poken by simply touching two poken hands together in a "high-four" greeting you share your poken card. to switch your poken to discreet mode (and avoid awkwardly telling people you don't want to poken with them), just double-press your poken's palm. "ghost" is selected by default for your poken's discreet mode. any pokening you do within the next 30 seconds will only share a ghost card. when the contact you've ghosted uploads their poken contacts to their new friends list they will only see a ghost card and they will not know to whom it belongs. you, however, will see their public card, as you normally would, and can at that point decide whether or not to accept them to your list of contacts. if you do accept them, then your public card will replace the ghost card in their new friends list.

1. how many poken designs are there?

there currently are 18 designs out of the core collection of the pokenSPARK™. our SPARK collection also includes the obama design and the east london collection by ustwo™ as limited editions. the pokenPULSE comes in 12 urbanpop designs, curtesy to gabygaby.

2. who designs the poken?

we've worked with various designers on the different poken designs. some were done inhouse and some were done by external artists. please check out the product section to learn more about the external artists who designed the limited editions.

3. can i customize the design of my poken?

we're all about you customizing your poken. add a sticker, cover it with star dust... let your imagination run free, and bling it out!

if you are a company who is interested in possibilities of a bigger corporate partnership, please refer to the partner site of our homepage to get in contact with us.

4. are there any poken accessories?

not yet, but there is some interesting stuff in the pipeline... stay tuned.

1. what is the difference between pokenSPARK™ and pokenPULSE™?

the most striking difference is of course the different design & shape. also, pokenPULSE™ has additional 2 GB storage space. but all in all, pokenSPARK™ and pokenPULSE™ is your social business card. period :-)

please refer to the product section to get all the info.

2. are pokenSPARK and pokenPULSE compatible?

yes! absolutely. you can use a spark together with a pulse without thinking about it twice.

3. is there a conference badge version of the poken?

we have tested a demo version at the Lift conference in geneva/switzerland this february. it is definitely something we will develop further in the future. but currently we are fully dedicated to perfecting our core product offering, both on and offline.

1. my poken keeps glowing red when i try to poken with someone

the most common reason for this to happen is the fact that you don't keep the two poken still enough when you try to connect (cf. how do i poken with someone? faq section). wait until the poken palm stops glowing, and try again. if it keeps glowing red every time you try pokening with a certain poken, try pokening with another one first (if possible). sometimes it works afterwards with the 'reluctant' other poken, too. if this still doesn't help, it might be that your poken is defective and we will have to troubleshoot with our engineers. please write an email to info@doyoupoken.com with a description of the troubles you have been encountering. hopefully we will be able to get your poken functioning again. otherwise, you will be asked to send in your defective poken hand, and we will send you a new poken.

2. my poken doesn't connect to my poken account

in order to make sure that your poken connects to your poken account and uploads all the new contacts you have collected while pokening, you have to insert your poken into the USB drive on your computer. either a web browser window opens automatically and you can log into your poken account directly. or if a web browser does not automatically appear, make sure you double-click the "Start_Poken.html" file that appears on the poken drive.

if you do not enter your poken account in the two above-mentionned ways, but log in directly through the douyoupoken.com website, your poken will not be connected to your account and you will not be able to transfer your newly collected contacts.

there is a simple way to check whether your poken device is connected to your account: in the pokenHUB (your poken account), you will see a 'detect' box with a pokenSPARK on the top right of the page: it the poken is connected, the poken palm will glow green.

3. the people i pokened with don't appear in my 'new friends' list

there can be two reasons for this to happen: either you have not properly pokenend/connected with the other poken and have thus not exchanged data (cf. how do I poken with someone? faq section) or your poken is not connected to your account in order to update your 'new friends' list (cf. my poken doesn't connect to my poken account faq section)

1. ...connect multiple poken to one account?

it is very easy to add another poken to your account. just enter the poken device into your USB port. depending on your computer settings, either a web browser window opens automatically and you can log into your poken account directly. or the web browser does not automatically appear - then you have to double-click the "Start_Poken.html" file that appears on the poken drive. once you logged into your poken account as you usually do, the new poken device is automatically linked to it. you can check the different poken that are linked to your account under 'devices'.

the number of poken you can link to your account is not limited, you can add as many as you like!

2. ...ghost someone?

the 'ghost' function allows you to pass on a blank/ghosted poken card to someone you don't want to share your details with, but don't want to tell him/her that directly (cf. what if i'm not sure i really want to poken with someone, but i don't want to deal with the awkwardness of refusing to poken? faq section). you can decide later on when synchronizing your poken with your account whether you want to accept this contact in the 'new friends list' (in which case your ghosted card will appear as a normal card in the contact's friend list) or if you still want to refuse him/her.

3. ...switch between my different identities?

there used to be the possibility to switch between different identities that can be passed on when pokening with someone. due to usability issues this function no longer exists. by default, each poken device contains one card. if you go to settings in your pokenHUB and enable multiple cards, it then allows you to store more than one card on your device (up to 5). you can select which cards go on the poken by checking the boxes for each card. each time you poken now, all the checked cards will be shared. the only way to define which card is shared is through the pokenHUB now, not through clicking the palm of the poken.

4. ...lock a poken if it is lost/stolen?

if you have lost your poken or if it has been stolen, you have the possibility to 'lock' it in your account and it will no longer be accessible.

go to 'devices'. press the blue 'mark lost' button, and it will be locked. you may also write a message to the person who finds it. don't forget to add your email or phone number as a way to contact you. you can activate and de-activate the device as many times as you want.

5. ...interact with a contact who has LinkedIn and Hyves, whereas i have MSN and Facebook?

well, it's just like languages: if you meet someone who speaks some other languages, you try to find a common one for your conversation. in your poken account you will see your new friend's poken card showing the social networks to which he belongs. if you'd like to interact with him using the tools that Facebook provides, we make it easy for him to open a Facebook account. if you prefer to use the tools MSN provides, we make it easy for you to be connected to him on a new MSN account.

what we bring are a few tools that help in this first interaction with new friends:

• you can see all the networks your friends are on (if they chose to list them), and you can instantly "connect" to them on those networks
• if many of your friends are on a network that you are not a part of, then you'll see it and you can open an account with that network to more easily connect with those friends. chances are you've been missing out on something!