By Emeka Aginam
With social media  becoming  increasingly popular with the growth of social networking as a channel of communications,   Microsoft Anglophone West Africa recently  hosted its quarterly Blogger’s Brunch in Lagos for some prominent bloggers and journalists.

Held at the Microsoft office in Lagos, the  Blogger’s Brunch was  an interactive social media forum specifically tailored and designed for Nigerian Bloggers, IT savvy social media enthusiasts and Microsoft, to share concepts, tools and experiences on blogging in Nigeria.

Blog posts, sharing of videos, pictures and information, among others were some of the  social networking sites that the participants shared ideas

This has been evident by the rapid growth and global popularity of social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and video sharing sites such as YouTube.

Earlier in her opening remarks, Ngozi Ife Anene, PR and Communications Lead, Microsoft Anglophone West Africa, who hosted the event told the participants that  “Microsoft recognizes blogging as a major medium for web-based communications and this is one way of bringing the major players together.

“At our last forum, we had bloggers tweeting and their followers asking questions during the event which were responded to in real time. A practical example of how we use web-based technologies to turn communications into interactive dialogues” she said.

The highpoint of the Blogger’s Brunch were the presentations on Microsoft Windows 7 and the recently released Internet Explorer 9 by Wale Olokodana, Technical Account Manager Microsoft Anglophone West Africa.

“Internet Explorer 9 is designed to be the most trusted browser because it has a robust set of built-in security, privacy, and reliability technologies that keep users safer online”, he said.

In his presentation, he further stated that Internet Explorer 9 takes advantage of the power of modern PC hardware to improve all-around Web browsing performance.

According to him, it  integrates with Windows 7 to deliver a clean visual experience and an increased viewing area, allowing sites to shine.

The browser controls, he said  are reduced and presented in a way that allows users to see their web content first and foremost.

To wrap up the event, Shina Oyedina Microsoft Developer Consultant and Dele Akinsade, Technology Lead Microsoft Anglophone West Africa, gave detailed presentations on developer tools and showcased Windows 7 phone which will soon be available in the Nigerian market.

“This is exciting. New technologies from Microsoft give blogging a new perspective and I am so pleased to be part of this initiative. There are so many great features and applications to work with” Gbenga Sesan, Executive Director Paradigm Initiative Nigeria and a renowned blogger, told the participants at the event.

Their presentation featured Yalla Apps, a new Windows Phone application which enables developers, especially in the Africa and the Middle East, submit applications.

Also in attendance were Loy Okezie of Techloy, Enajite Ovueraye of Bella Naija, and Emeka Aginam, Assistant CyberLIFE editor of the  Vanguard Newspapers. Internet entrepreneur and IT enthusiast, Oluniyi Ajao, joined the Bloggers’ Brunch from Ghana via webcam using Skype.