Google gets into holiday shopping

I am always out there on Black Friday, amongst the masses. It's become a bit of an annual event. I have yet to engage in Cyber Monday, and maybe I should. It's evidentally quite the enormous deal. Microsoft beat Google to the punch, which is rare, by launcing Bing Cashback. However, Google has now counterpunched. They set up a special "Checkout Deals" page "where you can get discounts on products purchased using Mountain View’s Internet payment system"

"Savings range from $5 to $20 and involve hundreds of participating stores, including Buy.com, Petco and Toys”R”Us."

This is another intelligent move by Google. They always seem to get it right. Even when they are late to the party, they still adroitly jump in, and promptly do it better than anyone else. No wonder they are so good.

plato's Forums

An idea so smart, I cannot believe nobody had invented it yet--Plato's Forums. This new technology will function as a direct way for companies and journalists to communicate with each other. It will cut out the middle man, like PR firms, and allow for that interaction. This will, ideally, lead to better communication and less miscommunication. It's a great way for companies to get their message out, and a fabulous way for journalists to easily get in touch with companiies they are writing about. The planned launch is the Spring of 2010. It could really revolutionize this industry, and be a win-win situation.

Celebrating another momentous anniversary

November 9th--ring any bells? Well, for those in the computer world, it sure does. On that date, 2004, Firefox came into existence. there is a nice little summary of their evolution on techcrunch. The author loves the browser, and he traces the developments that led to its creation, starting with the rise of the Mozilla browser. Then he details its demise and the elevation of Internet Explorer, concluding with the advent of Firefox. It's compelling history,and interesting to note how much many internet-related things change so very much in such a relatively short period of time. It's also a good luck at the competition amongst the browsers, and an ode to Firefox, a reminded that competition drives innovation in the tech world. And, often, we benefit.

voicemail revolution ?

Voicemail has remained fairly static and unchanged. Now, however, there is possible improvement. Hullomail, a blackberry app, has all voicemail messages stored by the user. Then, "after signing up with HulloMail, the user configures their number (either on the handset or through their carrier, depending on both) to forward to HulloMail whenever a call goes unanswered. After a caller records their voice message, HulloMail encodes it into an MP3, tucks it into an e-mail, and sends it off to the user’s e-mail inbox." This also makes sharing a voicemail with friends so much less onerous--all one needs to do is hit "forward."

Also, Hullomail plucks only your voicemails from your inbox, not all the superflous excess. Furthermore, it has "automatic contact sync (both Google Contacts and those locally stored on your BlackBerry), one-click callback, and greeting customization to name some of it."

"Both the HulloMail service and application are free of charge – the company plans to make money with premium services at a later date. The app, compatible with the BlackBerry Tour, 8900, and Bold, should be available shortly at http://www.hullomail.com/, and will roll out onto the BlackBerry App World shortly thereafter."