jnman

Shared 34 times What if you could decide where to shop, eat or hang out, with a little help from local Google users? It might take you a while to ask them all, so to make it easier we've launched a new effort to send window decals to over 100,000 local businesses in the U.S. that have been the most sought out and researched on Google.com and Google Maps. We're calling these businesses the "Favorite Places on Google" and you'll now start to find them in over 9,000 towns and cities, in all 50 states. You can also explore a sample of the Favorite Places in 20 of the largest U.S. cities at google.com/favoriteplaces. Each window decal has a unique bar code, known as a QR code that you can scan with any of hundreds of mobile devices — including iPhone, Android-powered phones, BlackBerry and more — to take you directly to that business's Place Page on your mobile phone. With your mobile phone and these new decals, you can easily go up to a storefront and immediately find reviews, get a... - jnman

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Shared 23 times If we're in the idea business, how to protect those ideas? One way is to misuse trademark law. With the help of search engines, greedy lawyers who charge by the letter are busy sending claim letters to anyone who even comes close to using a word or phrase they believe their client 'owns'. News flash: trademark law is designed to make it clear who makes a good or a service. It's a mark we put on something we create to indicate the source of the thing, not the inventor of a word or even a symbol. They didn't invent trademark law to prevent me from putting a picture of your cricket team's logo on my blog. They invented it to make it clear who was selling you something (a mark for trade = trademark). I'm now officially trademarking thank-you™. From now on, whenever you use this word, please be sure to send me a royalty check. Another way to protect your ideas is to (mis)use copyright law. You might think that this is a federal law designed to allow you to sue people who... - jnman

Shared 22 times At Google I/O this year, one demo booth stood out above all others: The Holodeck. It was basically eight giant, long screens arranged in a circle that displayed Google Street View imagery. When you stepped the contraption, it was a bit like zooming around outside. Today, Google has taken the time to explain the project a bit, which it now calls “Liquid Galaxy.” Apparently, the reason for the name change is that the booth now displays much more than just Street View. Google has made a modified Google Earth client so that you can go anywhere in the world in the device now. And you can even go to the Moon and Mars with it. “It felt more like a ride than a computer program, something between an observation-deck and a glass-walled spaceship. As a result of this totally seamless, immersive experience, we decided to name it the Liquid Galaxy,” Google writes. While the company notes that this is still very much a 20% project for them, they are “working hard to improve it.”... - jnman

Shared 19 times Abi said: "That makes two of us." Classic line ... - jnman

Shared 41 times Barry said: So it wasn't just me then... I just enemybook'd Eva Mendes after seeing a "suggestion" that I "fan" her - jnman

Shared 19 times Back in March, Google CEO Eric Schmidt caused a little controversy when he was quoted as thinking of Twitter (and the other micro-messaging services like it) as a “sort of poor man’s email systems.” He later clarified his remarks a bit. Tonight, he has joined the service. Current Googlers such as Hunter Walk (YouTube) and former Googlers such as Chris Sacca welcomed Schmidt to the service tonight, pointing to his account, eschmidt0. Yes, you’d think he could have gotten a better name (for example, ericschmidt is currently suspended, and presumably available). But maybe he’s continuing Google’s love affair with 1s and 0s. So what was Schmidt’s first tweet? Like any good Twitter user, he took some time for self-promotion: CNN GPS with Fareed Zakaria on Nov 29th, starts around minute 17; Fareed is a very good interviewer http://bit.ly/6GwGjn His second tweet? Another self-promotional one: WSJ op-ed on newpapers and online news; thanks to the WSJ for publishing !... - jnman

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Shared 21 times What if every store had a bar-code sticker on its window so that you could pull out your iPhone, wave it in front of the bar code and get all sorts of information about that business—the telephone number, photos, customer reviews? Starting on Monday, you’ll be able to do that at up to 190,000 local businesses throughout the U.S. Google has mailed out window stickers with two-dimensional bar codes (aka, QR codes) to the most-searched for or clicked-on businesses in its local business directory. Anyone with a QR code reader in their phone can scan it to call up a Google Mobile local directory page for one of these “Favorite Places,” which generally includes a map, phone number, directions, address, reviews, and a link to the store’s website. (It’s a mobile version of Google Places). Local businesses can also set up coupon offers through their Google directory page, which would turn the QR code into a mobile coupon, and help entice someone standing outside a store to come... - jnman

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Shared 24 times Social search service Aardvark is considering accepting a $30+ million offer by Google, say multiple sources close to the companies (one source says it’s $40 million). The company, which was founded by ex-Googlers, has raised around $6 million in venture capital to date. The company is also talking with other potential buyers, say our sources. And even if no one else comes to the table, they have a difficult decision to make. At least one venture capitalist has offered to put new money into the company at a similar valuation, and the founders may be in a position to sell some of their personal stock in that round as well. So the decision comes down to sell now and take the guaranteed money, or roll the dice and go for the big win. This is a fairly common situation. Automattic (the creators of Wordpress), for example, turned down a $200 millionish offer to be acquired in 2007 and instead raised a new round at a similar valuation, taking money off the table for... - jnman

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Shared 24 times “I put my Kindle in a one-gallon Ziploc bag, and it works beautifully. It’s much better than a physical book, because obviously if you put your physical book in a Ziploc bag you can’t turn the pages. But with Kindle, you can just push the buttons.” [NY Times via SvN] Karin said: Sometimes I feel like the only person who has never read in the bathtub, and has no desire to. But then I hang out with librarians. Rebeca said: That's not a bad reason to get a kindle (or a similar device), but I don't take baths, only showers. Maybe this could work whenever I decide to go snorkeling or diving... and obviously, why would I want to see ocean creatures when I could be reading? [How resistant is the kindle to pressure?] - jnman

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Shared 23 times Criticism, Cheerleading, and Negativity There is the perception, particularly in American culture, that criticism and negativity go hand-in-hand. We understand well the idea of being in favor or something, or against something, but we don’t particularly understand how criticism fits into this dichotomy. As someone with a penchant for criticism, I’ve often found myself misjudged as “being negative” when mere complaint is furthest from my intention. I’m here to explain myself and people like me. Criticism Is Not Negativity The reason a person is critical of a thing is because he is passionate about that thing. In order to have a critical opinion, you have to love something enough to understand it, and then love it so much more that you want it to be better. Passion breeds critical thinking. It’s why criticism as an academic practice comes from a place of deep research and obsession, and why criticism as a cultural product comes from subject matter experts, often... - jnman

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Shared 23 times  Bookmark this on Delicious - Saved by thiagorreis to icons icon resources webdesign free images design library graphics web - More about this bookmark - jnman

Shared 19 times Chung said: ...amazing Em said: Sadly, too true to be funny any more Tom said: Welcome to my Google Reader, "The Oatmeal". Enjoy your time with the Banterist and the Fail Blog. Trotta said: Eis o processo exato de criar um website. channing said: yep. JK said: Hurr hurr dj said: my last name is Boyd, so this is funnier still. - jnman

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Shared 24 times In working with our various clients at New Marketing Labs, we like to start with measurement as it aligns to goals. We’re always excited that people want to work with us, but we also want to make sure their time isn’t wasted by simply “doing social media.” To that end, we start with an understanding of our clients’ goals, and work from there into what kinds of measurements we might come up with to help them with their success. I don’t talk about specific clients (as that’s not part of our contract), but I’ll share the general way we’re going about working with clients in 2010, so that you can get a sense of how we’re doing what we do. (My goal is to open conversations about how social media can be used effectively as part of business communications, including marketing and channel development.) Our 8 Questions In working with clients, I have eight questions that I like to ask to get a sense of what we might be able to do to improve business: How can we fill your sales... - jnman

Shared 19 times Google promised that Chrome would be fast to launch and fast to load web pages, but people predicted it would fail with the arrival of its extensions. Well, the extensions are here (at least for some of us) and surprisingly they do not effect the browser’s performance. And not only that, but playing with Google Chrome Extensions is like child’s play, whether you’ve added a new extension, or deleted one, you won’t need to restart your browser. Extensions are so easy to manage and use that once you have access to them, I’m sure you’ll be looking forward to testing everything in this Cromeextensions Directory. This is what I basically did. I tried most of the extensions, then realized I’m not ready yet to ditch my beloved Firefox, and I’m guessing that you won’t be either. On the other hand, there are some plugins that are worthy of a mention and from that list I’ve culled some cool ones to get you started. If you already have extensions enabled (lucky you), you are... - jnman

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Shared 22 times © All photographs from the permanent collection of Norman Rockwell Museum Norman Rockwell’s rosy illustrations of small town American life looked so photographic because his method was to copy photographs that he conceived and meticulously directed, working with various photographers and using friends and neighbors as his models. “The Runaway” (1958) is one example from the recently published Norman Rockwell: Behind the Camera (Little, Brown and Company, 2009). More about Rockwell’s photo realism, including an image gallery, is currently on NPR’s web site. The Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Massachusettes is also hosting an exhibition, and according to NPR, will put Rockwell’s digitized photographic archive online at the end of the year. © Courtesy of Norman Rockwell Museum © Courtesy of Norman Rockwell Museum © Courtesy of Norman Rockwell Museum © Courtesy of Norman Rockwell Museum © Courtesy of Norman Rockwell Museum © Courtesy of Norman Rockwell Museum ©... - jnman

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Shared 7 times As you likely know, Tiger Woods was in an accident under apparently mysterious circumstances early Friday morning. Predictably, the reports and reactions thereto pertaining varied somewhat in quality and timeliness, and predictably, this has led to paroxysms of futurist glee in some and sullen condemnation by others. Now that the smoke has cleared, we can examine the event, which is certainly worth a little inspection despite its obvious triviality, with a little perspective. I’m not going to speculate on Woods’ injuries, the cause of the crash, or rumors of fights and affairs. I don’t care, personally. But how the information proliferated makes for interesting dissection. And the fun part is that there’s something for everybody’s agenda! Many will choose to ignore or emphasize unduly one party’s role in this drama, but the fact is that it very neatly exposes both the strengths and weaknesses of both traditional and so-called new media. I hope you’re sitting... - jnman