tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72467592024-02-03T12:25:18.333-06:00Creating BuzzA look into what companies, products and technologies will/are the buzz.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.comBlogger80125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1168537137991784812007-01-11T11:38:00.000-06:002007-01-11T11:39:06.766-06:00Create Buzz Has MovedWell the site I use to blog, Blogger.com, has changed some things so that means I have to change with them. My new site will be <a href="http://innovationbuzz.blogspot.com">innovationbuzz.blogspot.com</a>. From what I am told this blog and my new blog will merge in the future. We shall see. <br /><br />Side note <a href="http://www.blogger.com">Blogger.com</a> is owned by Google.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1168537020142493932007-01-11T11:36:00.000-06:002007-01-11T11:37:00.160-06:00$20.65 billion Spent Online in 12 Days - How Much Did Your Company Get<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">This years <span>online</span> holiday sales stats are pretty impressive and companies should take note. Companies that depend on the holiday season for huge revenues need to evaluate their <span>online</span> marketing strategies and <span>allign</span> them with where their consumers are buying. The first 48 days of the holiday season approximately $20.65 billion dollars were spent <span>online</span>. This is an increase of 25% over last year. <TABLE bgcolor="#5a739c" border="0" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1" width="350"/><TABLE bgcolor="#5a739c" border="0" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1" width="350"><TBODY><TR bgcolor="#fa5d00"><TH colspan="3"><span style="font-size: x-small; color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: verdana,lucida,arial,helvetica;">Top 12 Days of 2006 Holiday E-Commerce Shopping, November 1 to December 18 </span></TH></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffe084"><TH align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Rank</span></TH><TH align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Date</span></TH><TH align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">E-Commerce Spending (Millions)</span></TH></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">1</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Wednesday, December 13</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$666.9</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">2</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Monday, December 11</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$660.8</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">3</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Monday, December 4</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$647.5</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">4</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Friday, December 8</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$638.2</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">5</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Thursday, December 14</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$634.4</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">6</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Wednesday, December 6</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$630.06</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">7</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Thursday, December 7</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$629.4</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">8</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Friday, December 15</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$623.9</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">9</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Tuesday, December 12</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$619.8</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">10</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Tuesday, December 5</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$612.3</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">11</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Tuesday, November 28</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$608.2</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffffff"><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">12</span></TD><TD align="left" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Monday, November 27 - "<span>Cyber</span> Monday"</span></TD><TD align="center" valign="top"><span style="font-size: x-small;">$607.6</span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffe084"><TD colspan="3"><span style="font-size: x-small; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Note: Ranked by dollars spent, non-travel retail spending, excludes auctions and large corporate purchases </span></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#ffe084"><TD colspan="3"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Source: <span>comScore</span> Networks</span></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><br/> <br/> <p>As a company you need to either bring an <span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Search_engine_optimization">SEO</a></span>/<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Search_engine_marketing"><span>SEM</span> </a>(search engine optimizer / search engine marketer) person in house or outsource the work. As more consumers shift their buying habits <span>online</span> you need to be there when they search for your products.</p> <p>A larger strategy for any business would be to incorporate your PR, traditional advertising and <span>online</span> advertising. A prime example of this is say you sell blue widgets and you happen to get mentioned on the Oprah's show or even something smaller such as an industry magazine. With 75% penetration of broadband in US homes a consumer wanting your blue widget will at some point go <span>online</span> to search for your blue widget. If you competitor comes up first in the search they may click on their site first. And purchase the blue widget from them.</p> <p>Now lets say the blue widget buyer finds your site first but does not buy at that time but finds out one of your resellers is in his city and goes there to purchase the blue widget. Perfect! Now this type of sale is harder to track but not impossible.</p> <p>In the end you need a strategy for your <span>online</span> marketing or you will be missing growth and missing sales.<br/> </p> <p style="text-align: right; font-size: 8px">Blogged with <a href="http://www.flock.com/blogged-with-flock" target="_new" title="Flock">Flock</a></p></div>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1168033136462447672007-01-05T15:38:00.000-06:002007-01-08T13:06:13.336-06:00Google Talk and Music<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p><a href="http://www.google.com/talk/"><img alt="Google Talk" src="http://www.google.com/talk/images/talk_logo.gif" border="0" height="57" hspace="2" vspace="0" width="120" /> </a>I recently found out that you can show your friends what music you're listening to via <a href="http://www.google.com/talk/">Google Talk</a>. When you play a song in iTunes the track information is displayed below you name. This information is show normally were your status is displayed.</p><p>You have to download the stand alone version. The Google Talk within your Gmail does not support this but your track will be displayed within in your Gmail. After you download the software your name will appear at the top of the talk window with an arrow next to word "available" expand that menu by clicking on the arrow. Then pick show current music track. It only supports <a href="http://www.itunes.com">iTunes</a>, Windows Media Player, <a href="http://www.winamp.com">Winamp </a>and Yahoo Music Engine. </p> <p>In a perfect world it would support <a href="http://www.pandora.com">Pandora </a>b/c I tend to switch between Pandora and iTunes. It is a fun little feature for Google Talk. It more or less allows you to discover new music via your friends. The beauty of this is that it is built in to my instant messenger which contains most of my friends. I don't have some new program that is obtrusive that I have to convince my friends to use so I can see what music they are listening to.<br /></p> <p>One example of this is <a href="http://www.ilike.com">iLike </a>which is an add on for iTunes. It is a good idea but not perfect. iLike also has put my iTunes on the fritz. Everytime I close iTunes it gives me an error.<br /></p> <p style="text-align: right; font-size: 8px;">Blogged with <a href="http://www.flock.com/blogged-with-flock" target="_new" title="Flock">Flock</a></p></div>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1167922737776615132007-01-04T08:58:00.000-06:002007-01-04T08:58:57.790-06:00AudioSnacks - User Generated Tours<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p><br/> <a href="https://www.audiosnacks.com/home.aspx"><img alt="Llama Header Ears" border="0" height="24" id="Llama_Header_Ears" name="Llama Header Ears" src="http://audiosnacks.com/HeaderImg/as_header_03.jpg" width="218"/></a><br/> <a href="https://www.audiosnacks.com/home.aspx"><img alt="AudioSnacks.com: Podcast and MP3 Audio Tours for Travel, Museums, and More!" border="0" height="99" id="Llama_Header_Logo" name="Llama Header Logo" src="http://audiosnacks.com/HeaderImg/as_header_05.jpg" width="214"/></a><br/> <br/> <br/> "<span>Wouldn</span>’t it be amazing if no matter where you were in the world, you had an “in” – someone to show you around and clue you in to the local knowledge?"<br/> <br/> </p> <p>I recently met a great Chicago entrepreneur, Michael Salvatore, who recently launched <span><a href="http://audiosnacks.com">AudioSnacks</a></span><a href="http://audiosnacks.com">.com</a>. <span>AudioSnacks</span> is a site that has audio tours for great locations around the world but with a twist. All the tours are user generated so if you have some cool hot spots in your hood then you could record a tour for people to listen to when they visit. All you have to do is upload it to the site. Plus you get cut in on the action. The writer of the tour sets the price and the prices are <span>reasonable</span>. Some tours are free.</p> <p>I know the initial reaction is that some tours must suck but that is not the cas. All content is reviewed and there are a set of guidelines. To get a feel for it there is a <a href="http://www.audiosnacks.com/CreateSnack.aspx">Training Page</a> that breaks it down.<br/> </p> <p>I see <span>AudioSnacks</span> as the travelers cool friend that knows all the cool spots that your don't find in <span>Frommers</span>.</p> <p><br/> </p> <p>I have another post for the future about Michael's <a href="http://www.unclejohnproject.com/">The Uncle John Project</a>. Which is a <span/>photography site with a unique story as to how the prints came back to life.<br/> </p> <p style="text-align: right; font-size: 8px">Blogged with <a href="http://www.flock.com/blogged-with-flock" target="_new" title="Flock">Flock</a></p></div>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1167920549934492022007-01-04T08:21:00.000-06:002007-01-04T08:25:54.483-06:00The Next FireFox<div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><h1><a href="http://www.flock.com/"><img alt="Flock: The Social Web Browser." src="http://www.flock.com/themes/flock/images/logo3.jpg" height="104" width="212" /></a></h1><p>I am obviously not a heavy blogger but if you are or you just want a browser that allows you to easily upload photos, easily blog, easily connect with other people then <a href="http://www.flock.com">Flock </a>is for you. This is my first post using Flock's built in blogging tools. It automatically signs me into my blogger account and lets me easily add photos to my post. Very simple. I am sure there are more tools but I just haven't had a chance to read about them.</p> <p>The other tool I have used is the photo uploader tool for Flickr. It is a drag and drop function thats lets me bulk upload photos into my Flickr account but I stay in the browser and don't have to sign into Flickr. Because the browser does it for me.</p> <p>The other nice features are similar to Firefox in that you can open multiple tabs, import your bookmarks, RSS feeds etc....<br /></p> <p>It is still pre- 1.0 but it appears to be stable and can only improve.<br /></p> <p style="text-align: right; font-size: 8px;">Blogged with <a href="http://www.flock.com/blogged-with-flock" target="_new" title="Flock">Flock</a></p></div>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1167327249998459082006-12-28T10:30:00.000-06:002006-12-28T11:34:10.676-06:00Chicago Startup SceneThe Chicago startup scene is growing and there are some great organizations helping these companies grow. Here are a couple of my favorites<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://techcocktail.com/blog/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 98px; height: 68px;" src="http://www.linkedin.com/img/groups/techcocktail/techcocktail_small.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://techcocktail.com/blog">Tech Cocktail</a> is a fairly new organization, like the others listed here. They have had 2 events and the third is scheduled for January 25, 2007. These events usually consist of networking, some demos, giveaways and free booze. I attended the first event and a wine company provided free samples. The companies that attend are all over the place (<a href="http://www.feedburner.com">Feedburner</a>, <a href="http://coastr.com/">Coastr</a>, <a href="http://grubhub.com/">Grubhub</a>, <a href="http://www.gapersblock.com/">Gaperblock </a>etc...)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.chicagobeta.com">Chicago Beta</a> is self proclaimed as "...for founders, entrepreneurs, developers, revolutionaries, designers, and other people who are currently involved in (or want to join) a web 2.0 start-ups." I would have to say this is true. At each meeting companies can give pitches and at the last meeting some tips were given. Networking is the main thing that goes on at their meetings.<br /><br />Lastly is <a href="http://www.businesspov.com/">Chicago POV</a>. This site produces some great video journalism focused around the Chicago business scene. I met Mark Scheffler one of the guys that runs the site. He is a former writer for Chicago Crains and Chicago Tribune Magazine. Great guy and was truly interested in reporting on the Chicago business community that does not always get attention.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1166204881716201392006-12-15T11:36:00.000-06:002006-12-15T11:48:01.736-06:00Web 2.0 What is PossibleI ask my developer friends what is possible with the new Web 2.0 features out there. I have gotten some very good answers but coming from the visual generation the best answer was <a href="http://script.aculo.us/">Script.aculo.us</a>.<br /><br />As the wiki explains "<b>script.aculo.us</b> is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JavaScript" title="JavaScript">JavaScript</a> library built on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prototype_Javascript_Framework" title="Prototype Javascript Framework">Prototype Javascript Framework</a>. script.aculo.us provides dynamic visual effects and user interface elements via the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Document_Object_Model" title="Document Object Model">Document Object Model</a>."<br /><br />Script.aculo.us' motto is "it is all about the user interface, baby!" They offer a java script library which is a great reference for for all things Web 2.0. My favorite part is the <a href="http://wiki.script.aculo.us/scriptaculous/show/Demos">demo section</a>. This section is great for visually seeing what types of features are possible. As I brainstorm for new features for a site these demos are perfect to see what is possible. Most of the demo's you have used but it is good to see them all in one place. <br /><br />I highly recommend Script.aculo.us for anyone looking to add some Web 2.0 features to their site.<span style="font-weight: bold;"></span>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1166203868312377292006-12-15T11:18:00.000-06:002006-12-15T11:36:26.443-06:00Google Organic Search New Feature<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=3&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ginoseastrollingmeadows.com%2F&ei=9tSCRff-N4qWgQLBvoFN&usg=__Mh6zxyglBZKt61meOiX9cwVcyXU=&sig2=nzDHuwwbycoA6sZrp294FA"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=3&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ginoseastrollingmeadows.com%2F&ei=9tSCRff-N4qWgQLBvoFN&usg=__Mh6zxyglBZKt61meOiX9cwVcyXU=&sig2=nzDHuwwbycoA6sZrp294FA" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Google has integrated their maps into their organic search. The example I use is searching for Gino's East, a pizza joint in Chicago. Click on this link and checkout the 3rd or 4th organic result<br /><a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=86F&q=gino%27s+east&btnG=Search#"><br /></a><span style=""><span id="mbl3"><a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=86F&q=gino%27s+east&btnG=Search#"><img src="http://www.google.com/mb/plus_sm.gif" title="" class="ch" style="height: 12px; width: 12px;" align="bottom" height="12" width="12" /> </a><a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=86F&q=gino%27s+east&btnG=Search#" onclick="return false" class="mblink">Map of 1321 Golf Rd, Rolling Meadows, IL 60008</a><br /><br />Then click the + sign and a Goolge Map expands showing the location. This is a great use of Google Maps as well as provides some functionality without leaving the page. It is simple. This has not been integrated for every restaurant but I believe the feature was just added.<br /><br />A great site that preaches simple design is <a href="http://37signals.com/">37Signals</a> which has great blog called <a href="http://www.37signals.com/svn/">Signal vs Noise</a></span></span><span style=""><span id="mbl3"><br /><br /></span></span>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1166142499920916732006-12-14T18:06:00.000-06:002006-12-14T18:29:10.560-06:00T-Shirt CrazeThis is the second edition of craze the first covered <a href="http://create-buzz.blogspot.com/2006/02/growing-sneaker-craze.html">sneakers</a>. Below I will breakdown some of the online t-shirts that are very popular in some cirlces.<br /><br />I will start with a local Chicago company that is growing like gangbusters, <a href="http://www.threadless.com/">Threadless</a>. Threadless takes the community scene and applies it to T-shirts. You can submit your designs and vote on designs as well. They have tons of cool shirts and our always coming out with new ones. Here is a current one I like called Homework Evidence<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://threadless.com/product/690/Homework_Evidence"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://www.threadless.com/product/690/minizoom.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Next up is <a href="http://www.threadpit.com/store/home.php">ThreadPit</a>. They are what people would call more sophomoric humor. The example below is one of the few without a sexual reference.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.threadpit.com/photos/all_styles/215.gif"> <img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://www.threadpit.com/photos/all_styles/215.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://imaginaryfoundation.com/index.php?pagemode=index&type=Mens%20T"><br />Imaginary Foundation</a> is my favorite. They sell other items but their shirts and prints are what I like. They use quotes that I find very interesting and I would descibe the shirts as a mix of trippy and Mony Python. Here is a sample<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://imaginaryfoundation.com/image.php?uid=D3F46E"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://imaginaryfoundation.com/image.php?uid=D3F46E" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Others</span><br /><br /><a href="http://www.wornby.co.uk/">Worn By</a> recreated shirts that were made famous from a picture a star was in. One example is Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys wore a shirt that said Venice on it. Other shirts involve Keith Richards, Muhamed Ali, The Grateful Dead and Sonny Liston.<br /><br /><a href="http://robatabrand.bigcartel.com/">Robata Brand</a> is constantly sold out but their shirts have an artistic flair to them. Very cool but hard to find.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1165588064553788462006-12-08T08:14:00.000-06:002006-12-08T08:28:05.046-06:00Sites to Kill Time AtGoing off that last post I thought I would share some of the website I go to when I need or want to kill some time<br /><br /><a href="http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/40255643/">Line Rider</a> Create courses for a sled to travel through. This description does not do it justice. See the post below.<br /><br /><a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/simmons/index">Sports Guy</a> Bill Simmons is the hilarious writer of this page. He mixes pop culture with sports. One of my favorites is the article on the <a href="http://espn.go.com/page2/movies/s/simmons/020830.html">Karate Kid Trilogy</a>.<br /><br />Any video site is an obvious choice <a href="http://video.google.com">Google Video</a> and <a href="http://www.youtube.com">Youtube </a>are the big dogs.<br /><br />And lastly is <a href="http://www.zingfu.com/index.php#gimme">Zingfu</a> this site allows you to upload photos and implant them in hilarious scenes. The process is real simple. For example see if you can find my bulldog<br /><br /><div><a href="http://www.zingfu.com?zing=45521e98aae81" target="_new"><img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/zf_msthumb/45521e98aae81.jpg" width="428" height="300" border="0" alt="ZingFu"/></a></div>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1165587276673386682006-12-08T08:09:00.000-06:002006-12-08T08:14:36.676-06:00Time Killer<span style="font-weight:bold;">Warning </span>if you go to this site you will waste atleast 20 minutes of your life. <br /><br />Now that you have been warned <a href="http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/40255643/">Line Rider</a> is the greatest work time killer. It is so simple yet so addicting. I sent it to my family and one actually spent over an hour on it.<br /><br />To get a feel for what is possible check out these amazing Line Rider courses.<br /><br /><embed style="width:400px; height:326px;" id="VideoPlayback" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=-3289828455192017532&hl=en" flashvars=""> </embed><br /><br /><embed style="width:400px; height:326px;" id="VideoPlayback" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=4244628205511437846&hl=en" flashvars=""> </embed><br /><br />If you want to see more search Line Rider on Google Video, Youtube or any other video site.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1165586530603459702006-12-08T07:53:00.000-06:002006-12-08T08:06:55.756-06:00iPhone InfoThe supposed beans have been spilled about the new iPhone from Apple. Kevin Rose tells some of the specs on his show Diggnation. He doesn't say anything that wows you but you have to presume with Apple's name on it will be designed really well.<br /><br /><embed style="width:400px; height:326px;" id="VideoPlayback" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=-3463346182677886862&hl=en" flashvars=""> </embed><br /><br /><br />Other supposed rumors around the phone are that Apple does have a patent application submitted to the Patent Office for the phone and that they have trademarked the name iPhone. All of these rumors will be proved or disproved this winter at <a href="http://www.macworldexpo.com/live/20/">Macworld</a>.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1159450353390367452006-09-28T08:19:00.000-05:002006-10-09T05:35:03.106-05:00New Sites of InterestIt has been a long time since my last post and I have reasons why but nothing to interesting. I am going to cleanup my links because some either are dead blogs or the sites no longer interest me. Below are a few blogs and sites I have been reading regularly and that will probably replace the broken links or bad blogs in my blogroll.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.37signals.com/svn/">SignalvsNoise</a> - A blog written by the guys at 37Signals. They have created some great products for collaboration and organization. Their designs are simple and that is essentially what their blog is about. Very informative and gets you thinking about the design of your site, company or life.<br /><br /><a href="http://blog.guykawasaki.com/">Guy Kawasaki's Blog</a>- He is the guru for startups. His book the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/explorer/1591840562/2/ref=pd_lpo_ase/002-3571099-6296019?">Art of the Start</a><a href="%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FArt-Start-Time-Tested-Battle-Hardened-Anything%2Fdp%2F1591840562%2Fsr%3D8-1%2Fqid%3D1159449919%2Fref%3Dpd%5Fbbs%5F1%3Fie%3DUTF8%26s%3Dbooks&amp;tag=ripitdigitalm-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325%22%3Eart%20of%20the%20start%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=ripitdigitalm-20&amp;amp;l=ur2&o=1%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20%21important;%20margin:0px%20%21important;%22%20/%3E"> </a>is the bible for startups and his blog is a great addition to his book. The blog stands without the book but by reading the book you get more out of the blog.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.uncrate.com/">Uncrate </a>- This is the Buyers Guide for Men blog. They search the internet for the latest and greatest gear, gadgets, cars and music. I check this once or twice a week. Other sites similar to this would be <a href="http://www.coolhunting.com">CoolHunting.</a><br /><br />That is it for the moment but I will updating my book list and attempting to write more frequently.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1138999966541186312006-02-03T14:38:00.000-06:002006-02-03T14:52:46.573-06:00The Growing Sneaker Craze<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/6062/436/1600/trainer.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/6062/436/320/trainer.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>In the past I have written about Nike's customization site, <a href="http://www.nikeid.com">Nike ID</a>. Which allows you to pick out all the colors for your shoes and the cost is similar to the versions off the shelf. And Nike keeps adding different shoe styles and recently added the Nike Air Max series, which I love and will be getting a pair of 90s soon.<br /><br />But the flip side of this is a whole sneaker culture that has always been around but is slowly leaking into popular culture. It all revolves around expressing your own personality and doing that with something that no one else or very few people own. So below I have listed a bunch of links to customized sneaker stores, sneaker magazines, sneaker blogs (one guy is selling his collection a pair at a time) and many other sites devoted to sneakers.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.nortberlin.com/index.php?event=products.showHome">Nort</a> - located in Berlin (i think) and they sell some very nice sneaks<br /><a href="http://www.kicksclusive.com/">Kicksclusive</a> - a Sneaker Culture Magazine<br /><a href="http://www.vintagekicks.com/other/?">Vintage Kicks</a> - sell vintage sneaks<br /><a href="http://www.soleredemption.com/">SoleRedemption</a> - sneaker blog<br /><a href="http://freshnessmag.com/v4/">Freshnessmag</a> - culture blog<br /><a href="http://www.coolhunting.com">Coolhunting</a> - hunts down all that is cool<br /><a href="http://www.stapledesign.com/jeffstaple/">To Darrin Hudson</a> - sneaker/personal blog in which the guy is selling off his sweet sneaker collection. Hope you are a size 10.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1136763612062443502006-01-08T17:30:00.000-06:002006-01-08T17:40:12.106-06:00CES TidBits<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.engadget.com/media/2006/1/zp80_1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;" src="http://www.engadget.com/media/2006/1/zp80_1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.sonos.com">Sonos</a> has announced a cheaper version of their amazing multi-room digital music systems. The new version is going to cost $350 and is setup to be on the market this spring. <a href="http://www.sonos.com/news_and_reviews/press_releases/2006/pr_010405_zp80.htm">Press release</a> with more details. If you can't afford a big <a href="http://www.request.com/products/audio.asp">Audio Request </a>system this is the next best thing.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1136762065023590282006-01-08T17:05:00.000-06:002006-01-08T17:14:25.063-06:00CES TidBits<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/6062/436/1600/Parrot-RNB.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/6062/436/320/Parrot-RNB.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.parrot.biz/products/index.php?id=rhythmnblue">Parrot </a>has a nice bluetooth car stereo that it appears to have all the bells and whistles you would want. Voice activation, bluetooth, plays MP3s, reads ID3 tags, displays last calls and much more. Did not search to see where you could purchase one but one was on Ebay for $350. Crutchfield stepup and start carrying this.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1136434463220102612006-01-04T21:52:00.000-06:002006-01-04T22:16:27.283-06:00Digital MagazinesThere is talk of <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2003-05-07-thin-screen_x.htm">digital paper</a> and these sites are the precursor to <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2003-05-07-thin-screen_x.htm">physical digital magazines</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.magwerk.com">Magwerk</a> - is a free site but only has 3 magazines at the moment.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.zinio.com">Zinio</a> - They appear to be the main player in the field. All the majors are with this site like Business Week, Readers Digest, Playboy etc... They have a huge catalog of magazines and also have text books stated as being cheaper. Checkout the free trail. You actually subscribe to these magazines or can buy one time issues.<br /><br />The subscription cost seems to be close to the cost of a physical subscription. You would think the digital cost should be extremely cheap seeing as no paper, ink or shipping was used. Plus the added value to advertisers is huge. You can click on ads to get more info and such. Which allows advertisers to know who is clicking, how long they are on their ads and I am sure a bunch of other added value. I hope the cost either comes down or becomes free.<br /><br />I am a subscriber to <a href="http://www.techreview.com">MIT Technology Review</a> and they recently announced a shift in publishing more of their content online and will have more in depth content in the physical print. They have a long explanantion of their reasons on their website.<br /><br />All in all a great start for digital magazines.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1136346759949936882006-01-03T21:05:00.000-06:002006-11-13T11:38:58.443-06:00NetworkingFor those of you in the "know" these companies are old (always good to refresh your memory), but they are companies I have wanted to post on but have not had the time.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.meetro.com">Meetro</a> - It is tricky to explain but it is a social networking tool that tells you who is in your radius. It literally tells you who is in close proximity to you and then you can start instant messaging with those people. All by choice and most people have a profile.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.linkedin.com">Linkedin</a> - I have used this in the past and have actually had great results. It is a networking tool but more business oriented. So lets say you needed to meet someone that knows about widgets. This is the place to go. They recently added a job listing that is great because it tells you if you know someone that works at that company or are networked through someone else who works at that company. Best way to start here is by getting your network (friends, family etc) to signup and the rest flows from there.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.meetup.com">Meetup</a> - A great place to find people interested in the same things you are and then actually meeting them face to face. I am not sure how popular the groups are but I have been to the Chicago Bulldog Meetups and they are great.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1133663130360362482005-12-03T19:58:00.000-06:002005-12-03T20:25:30.373-06:00Perfect Match = TIVO + RFIDTIVO has applied for a <a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=7246759">patent</a> to use RFID along with TIVO. This will allow TIVO to know who is watching and change the settings to fit that user. In the patent application TIVO talks about a user going to a hotel and the hotels TIVO recognizing the user from the RFID.<br /><br />Now my main gripe with TIVO has always been that their recommendations for what they think I want to watch always suck. Which I can't blame them for sucking because I TIVO shows, my fiance TIVOs shows and so does my brother. So this creates a mishmash of Oprahs, football, the history of Rome and basically a bunch of shows not connected in any manor. The TIVO does not know that 3 people are deciding what to record. The RFID system can easily fix this issue. So TIVO would be able to know who is specifically watching TV and make recommendations for each person.<br /><br />The system has other benefits like parental controls when little Jonny is in charge of the clicker. My only question is where will the RFID chip be on the user. My wallet, my shoe, my underwear. I am guessing your underwear is the best place because you should always be wearing them. But this is not practical.<br /><br />Lastly I have been on a recent quest to form the end all and be all recommendation website. The information TIVO would receive from the RFID system would help create very specific and useful recommendations on what to watch. Now if this information is combined with the data Amazon has for you, combined with the data from your credit card company (I know privacy issue but stay with me) combined with the DVDs and CDs you already own. A recommendation system so precise and accurate could be created for an individual. The commercials you see would be specific for you, the TIVO recommendations would be good, you could get emails about sales at stores you like or coupons for products you like, when a new CD or DVD comes out that you would like you would know, when a concert is coming to town that you would like you would know etc... The recommendation applications are endless but to be great recommendations a large amount of data about the individual would be needed. This is post is going off track so I will write more later about the recommendation mega site.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1130425738697170812005-10-27T09:47:00.000-05:002005-10-27T10:11:11.926-05:00Music Recommendation RadioThe <a href="http://www.pandora.com/">Music Genome Project</a> is finally happening over at <a href="http://www.pandora.com/">Pandora</a>. Pandora allows you to enter a song or artist then it will create a radio channel of streaming music based on what you enter. The software allows you to add other artist or tracks to a channel to get your channel more focused. <br /><br />The music genome project has been going on for 5 years and appears to be onto something. Unlike other recommendations they actually go deeper than just recommending music that others buy compared to what you buy. Pandora looks at the actually song. <br /><br />"We ended up assembling literally hundreds of musical attributes or "genes" into a very large Music Genome. Taken together these genes capture the unique and magical musical identity of a song - everything from melody, harmony and rhythm, to instrumentation, orchestration, arrangement, lyrics, and of course the rich world of singing and vocal harmony. It's not about what a band looks like, or what genre they supposedly belong to, or about who buys their records - it's about what each individual song sounds like."<br /><br />This is obviously more labor intensive but I am currently using my 10 free hours and I am very pleased with the channels they have created. There is a subscription fee after the first 10 hours but it is very cheap, $36 for the year. <br /><br />If you like music and want to be introduced to some new music that is similar to what you like this is the place to go. At the very least take advantage of the 10 free hours. <a href="http://www.Pandora.com">Pandora.com</a>Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1128102007827770042005-09-30T12:24:00.000-05:002005-09-30T12:42:34.763-05:00New BookI am currently reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?link_code=ur2&camp=1789&tag=ripitdigitalm-20&creative=9325&path=tg/detail/-/1591840880/qid=1128100750/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1?v=glance%26s=books%26n=507846">The Search: How Google and It's Rivals Rewrote The Rules of Business and Transformed Our Culture</a>. The title is a bit long but it summarizes the book. I have not finished the book but I am compelled to write about it. It goes over the history of search and was interesting because I knew nothing of how it evolved. Besides the history it goes into how Google specifically has and is changing the way culture and businesses use the internet. I know a little about how Google makes money, ads(<a href="https://www.google.com/adsense/">adsense</a>), but I did not know that Google did not have money making business model until 2001. Think about it, it is now 2005 and they are swimming in money, stock currently priced at $314. (Side note supposedly they will never split their stock ala Warren Buffett)<br /><br />After reading the first half, my mind has been racing with how to utilize what Google is offering but also examine where things are going. Google has some big things in the works. A current rumor is that Google is going to offer <a href="http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,68920,00.html?tw=wn_8bizhead">free wifi</a>. They also recently launched <a href="http://www.google.com/talk/">Google Talk</a> and <a href="http://earth.google.com/">Google Earth</a> (very cool and free satellite mapping system).<br /><br />I highly recommend the book to any businessman or to anyone curious about why Google is so big.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1127265594009585112005-09-20T19:50:00.000-05:002005-09-20T20:19:54.016-05:00Taste the Future of Digital Content in Your CarIf you have read my blog at all and from my visit history there are two of you, you know that I like the future of delivering content on multiple formats. And now this is coming to the car.<br />First is the car stereo that does the normal stereo things like AM/FM, CD, CD-R/RW, RDS, detachable face etc.... but this <a href="http://www.drgadget.co.uk/product.php?xProd=759&xSec=1">one</a> (not totally sure who makes) can play MP3's from either a USB drive, SD memory card or MMC card. No you say that's cool and all but how do you navigate, well the screen reads the tags (ie artist, album, genre etc...). Not sure about the user interface but it has the potential to be friendly. Here is another <a href="http://www.pixmania.co.uk/uk/uk/114326/art/h-b/ca-5555-cd-mp3-usb-car-ra.html?rd=1#">link </a>with a better pic and it appears the company is called H&B. For those of us in the US there are some on Ebay.<br /><br />Speaking of Ebay search <a href="http://www.phatnoise.com/">Phat Noise</a>. Phat Noise, from what I can find, appears to be the leader in digital media for the car. Their devices essentially allow you to loadup your Phat Noise cartridge/hard drive with your MP3's then take the cartridge to your car and dock it with the Phat Noise System. Then you can access your MP3 collection in your car. They have several ways to install the system in your car. One is in CD changer slot in your trunk and the other is in overhead storage (see <a href="http://www.phatnoise.com/products/v3/index.php">mobile media</a>). The list of features goes on voice searching, video options, multi zones ......<br /><br />With the Phat Noise I could see myself putting my Tivo to Go on the cartridge for long car rides, or loading it with some podcast hence turning the podcast into my radio.<br /><br />Obviously there are design issues with each system but you can see the future from these. Digital content is the future and the two places we will want it most are in our homes and in our cars.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1123557275796863462005-08-08T21:50:00.000-05:002006-11-14T02:43:35.350-06:00New Angle on Making Cash From BlogsI stumbled upon a site called <a href="http://chicagouncommon.com/">Chicago Uncommon.</a> Essential this photographer is utilizing her blog to A- get exposure to more people and B- sell her prints online. These pictures are impressive. The creator of Chicago Uncommon is not an amateur but an amateur could easily create a similar blog.<br /><br />The bigger idea is not that you can make money off a hobby but that you should look beyond the normal avenues of creating revenue. Advertising is not the only way to create money from a blog or any business. Look at Amazon. The obvious (and probably largest) revenue stream is from direct sales on their site. But Amazon is making some nice side coin on their associates program. You can post Amazon ads on your blog or site and get money every time a person clicks on that ad and makes the purchase. So you as the owner of the site get paid a % but Amazon gets the sale with little to no work on their side. Your site or blog is creating the exposure. Your visitors may never have known Amazon sales flat screens or whatever. Amazon looked outside their "normal" revenues and created the associates program.<br /><br />Never settle for "normal"!Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1121219772938069382005-07-12T20:34:00.000-05:002005-09-21T15:24:51.490-05:00Have an Idea and Want Some Help!!!Every has an idea for a business but are not to sure if it is up to snuff or you don't know what to do next with the idea, well the <a href="http://www.businesspundit.com/">Business Pundit Blog</a> has created the <a href="http://www.thebusinessexperiment.com/">The Business Experiment</a>. "The Business Experiment is a site meant to explore three concepts: wisdom of crowds, open-source business, and the distributed nature of work. "<br /><br />This is the real deal. The are seeking out sponsor and have a plan to distribute the ownership. I did not read the whole site but I am intrigued by the idea. I have an idea book that I am always scribbling down nutty ideas in. My only issue with submitting an idea is of course getting it stolen, yet in my short existence I have come to the conclusion that I am not the only person in the world that has thought of these "ideas". A plan, execution, commitment and hard work are what turn ideas into businesses.<br /><br />Sorry if that was a little too "Successories" but if you have an idea sitting around and you have not done a thing with it in months seriously consider throwing it into the contest. The worst that happens is the idea goes back and sits in your idea book but the best that could happen is you get to start creating a business from your idea. Translated means you have a job, are starting a business and are part of a cool experiment/contest.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7246759.post-1118858147949378722005-06-15T12:35:00.000-05:002005-06-15T12:59:23.493-05:00Death to the CD!! WellllllThis <a href="http://www.blogmaverick.com/entry/1234000000038844/">post </a>from the <a href="http://www.blogmaverick.com/">Blogmaverick </a>is old (April 2005) but very interesting. Cuban argues that the CD is starting its decline into the same pit the eight track, cassette tape and record are in.<br /><br />I agree whole heartily and wish the death would come sooner so we all may enjoy our music with more freedom. The music industry, as always, is still holding on to old when the new holds far more potential for them. Especially in profits. Digital music cuts the physical medium out of the cost(CD, tape, vinyl...). This means no producing CDs, no creating labels, no jewel cases etc.... Digital music cuts the shipping out of the cost, cuts the physical space need to store and sale the CDs by a huge percentage. Content could be sent over the internet or hold the content on terabyte drives in the store and update the content weekly. Which from what I know the music industry prefers the terabyte drives holding the content in store or where ever.<br /><br />Cuban expands much more on this topic and I actually have been researching this topic for the past year. In the end we will see digital music kill the CD. It is undecided which format(MP3, WAV, AAC) will be the uniform choice but no matter the CD is going to the pit of useless mediums.<br /><br />Consumers will be able to get music at home from their computers, at the airport at downloading stations, at the mall, at concerts (<a href="http://www.emusic.com/about/pr/20040628.html">Emusic</a> ), at 7-11, you name a place you have wanted to hear a song and you could conceivably be able to get that song. The movie industry should go this way as well but that is a post for another day.Greghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12268873940125582816noreply@blogger.com1