Archive for May, 2007

Mahalo’s launched a closed DMOZ

Wednesday, May 30th, 2007

Warning: this is a lousy post. I’m exhausted after consecutive 14 hour days at the office.
Back when the Internet was new and fresh, Yahoo changed the world with its human powered search index. Time marched on, Yahoo went algorithmic, and the human-index torch was taken up by DMOZ: The Open Directory Project. DMOZ was, and… »

Posted in News and Opinions | 3 Comments »

Interesting: Google’s Animated Homepage

Wednesday, May 30th, 2007

MSaleem of Pronet Advertising points Diggers to Google.co.kr - Google’s *animated* Korean homepage, originally nabbed by Greg at SEL.
Check out the rollovers! Will the wonders never cease? Has Google identified a legitimate cultural design vector, or is Korea just a convenient, innocuous place for experimentation outside of Google’s core… »

Posted in News and Opinions | No Comments »

I’m aghast at Palm

Wednesday, May 30th, 2007

Foleo arrghhhhhhhh. I can’t help but be curmudgeonly when this sort of craziness is what’s making the news.

Looks too big to be pocketable.
Overlaps with laptop usage scenarios.
NO CONNECTIVITY - what are they thinking? Requires a phone = mostly expensive, slow connections.WiFi/Bluetooth/Cellpairing - that’s better.
Another layer of synchronization: Desktop syncs to smartphone. Smartphone syncs to Foleo…. »

Posted in News and Opinions | 2 Comments »

I’m becoming a curmudgeon

Wednesday, May 30th, 2007

…and its because of stories like the acquisition of Last.fm by CBS. There was a time when companies either adapted, or went out of business: it was a good thing, like the process of ecological succession that keeps forests healthy - old businesses made way for new, the rotting remains of their business models… »

Posted in M&A | 5 Comments »

A Suggestion for TechMeme: Split into bigbusiness & grassroots by indexing stock price

Tuesday, May 29th, 2007

I love Techmeme, visit it all the time. But more and more, it seems to be getting stormed by “big” stories from Google or Microsoft, leaving the other happenings of the Tech Blogosphere hanging off the bottom, unnoticed.
So - I have a proposal for Gabe: map story keywords to stock prices. If the dominant keyword… »

Posted in News and Opinions | 3 Comments »

Motorola Take Note: Apple shows how to do a brand launch

Tuesday, May 29th, 2007

Rumours are swirling about iPhone 2.0 already.
Note to Motorola: When you launch what will be a high profile product, have your follow-up in the wings and ready to go for 6 months after the initial launch to keep brand momentum on your side. Don’t launch something and then leave it to die in the marketplace… »

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Any-Port Wireless Web for your docked yacht

Tuesday, May 29th, 2007

Here’s a business model I love: pick a beautiful location, provide wireless internet access for a premium. Any-Port is on it, serving the yachting community of the Mediterranean and Carribean:
This popular anchorage spot [Villefranche-Sur-Mer in Southern France] for everything from private yachts to cruise ships is an ideal spot for a picnic lunch or a… »

Posted in Business Models | No Comments »

JamJunky - Song Writing and Independent Music Sharing Gone Social

Monday, May 28th, 2007

Friend of TechFold James Thomas today launched his latest project: JamJunky - a tool & community for songwriters. Allen at CenterNetworks beat me to the punch, with JamJunky coverage here. JamJunky provides a means to organize your work (lyrics, tab, mp3’s), and a forum to solicit feedback - from a select group, or the whole… »

Posted in Site Profiles | 2 Comments »

When AdSense Fails

Monday, May 28th, 2007

For all Google’s algorithmic awesomeness, the AdSense crawler still has the incredible ability to suck at keyword analysis. Take, for example, the awesomely popular Desktop Tower Defence game. Check out the AdSense placements:

Yes, that’s an ad for some type of antenna tower, because the page says “Tower” on it in a number of places.
Meanwhile, the… »

Posted in Business Models, Emerging Tech, News and Opinions | 4 Comments »

Engagement - 4 tips for Startups & Established players: using digg, del.icio.us, technorati, and google to build your community

Monday, May 28th, 2007

Companies on the web (speaking in terms of 2.0 startups here) can be sorted into two categories - those that actively engage their communities, and those that don’t.
I base that on my first 2 month’s experience blogging here. Some reviews have been actively commented on over time by the company reviewed - take a look… »

Posted in News and Opinions | 8 Comments »