Getting excited for the Oscars? (Sarah Palin is: she and her family stopped by an Oscars gift suite and were “like locusts” grabbing free swag, including “40 pairs of Aiaiai headphones,” says E! Online. Glitterati Gossip has a preview of what will be in the gift bags). The Oscars are pushing social media this year in an attempt to remain relevant to younger viewers, says Madison+Vine: “Oscar pools and predictions have long been a parlor game that the Academy never harnessed through its online channels, and the ceremony has been notably absent from even its own websites, not to mention the lack of Facebook or Twitter applications to keep viewers engaged online in a real-time basis.” But that’s all changing this year. You can watch the Oscars online at the official site, Oscar.com–and building up to the actual event, they have tons of other video available now, including the trailers for all the nominated films and widgets for making predictions. There’s also an official Academy Facebook page and an official iPhone app; the iPhone Blog has a list of more Oscars-related apps.

CultureMap teaches you how to win your Oscars pool, and here are Popdose‘s predictions. And bloggers have many great party ideas. HowStuffWorks has a sample menu–one dish for each movie (“An Education + Deviled Eggs = An Eggducation.” Bakerella serves up little gold men cookies. Hostess with the Mostess is running an ongoing series on Oscars parties. Twig & Thistle has templates for invitations and even popcorn bags. Bargainist offers great tips for throwing an Oscars party on a budget, Slashfood has Wolfgang Puck’s tips for throwing an Oscars party (he suggests a buffet), and The Nest tells you how to throw a last-minute party.

What are you doing for the Oscars? Let us know in the comments!

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