08.30.07
What’s in a Web 2.0 Name?
So what’s in a web 2.0 name? A lot seem to go for vowel less names, but how about Dr Seuss style names?
Muppet Mobile Lab appearing at Epcot for a trial run
Keep your eyes and ears open while visiting Epcot the next few weeks. Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his assistant Beaker are have been spotted around Future World in their new Muppet Mobile Lab.The lab is there for a few weeks of testing. It’s unknown whether it will move on or become a permanent part of one of Disney’s Orlando parks.
Click here for more pictures.
Orlando Attractions Magazine » Muppet Mobile Lab appearing at Epcot for a trial run
Here’s a video of the new mobile labs:
technorati tags:muppets, disney, epcot, muppet mobile lab
08.29.07
Nokia’s iPhone
It was going to happen sooner or later & to be honest, who can blame them. Nokia are coming out with a phone that is remarkably similar to the iPhone:
When pressed during the Q&A about the striking similarity to the little Cupertino device, Anssi Vanjoki — Nokia’s Executive VP & General Manager of Multimedia — said, “If there is something good in the world then we copy with pride.”
Engadget – Nokia’s iPhone — no, seriously
We just need to see how well it performs and competes once people can get their hands on it. If they’re going to try and imitate, they need to do it well.
Technorati Tags: nokia, iphone, touch screen, mobile phone
Apple launches TV service in UK
Fans of US TV will be able to download episodes of Lost, Desperate Housewives and Ugly Betty as Apple launches its video downloads service in the UK.
Initially 28 series will be available with Apple promising more content soon.
There is currently little UK-produced content, although ITV, Channel 4 and the BBC all offer their own download catch-up TV services.
Unlike the BBC, Apple will charge iTunes customers £1.89 per episode for their favourite shows.
BBC NEWS | Technology | Apple launches TV service in UK
TV programmes were one thing the UK version of the iTunes store was really lacking in to make a video iPod and when it comes out, an iPhone, worthwhile.
Although many people are saying it is lacking in UK content, I’m quite pleased to see some US content as it offers programs that may not otherwise be as easily available. If UK content can slowly move on (as has been promissed), over time, then this will just enhance the service. As a big user of some of the catch-up services from the BBC and Channel 4, it may even be worth purchasing some episodes to allow myself to watch them on the move.
08.28.07
UvMe – Social Marketing
Everyone has the dream of being able to earn money online, but not many people achieve this dream. One thing a lot of us are involved in though are social networks – so how about if the two were mixed together?
UvMe is aiming to do that by creating a platform which is more like social marketing. You earn money by playing games against other users, then by referring friends who can do the same. The larger your network grows, the more money you earn.
Although not launching till late September, early October pre registration is available for free at the moment with videos available to explain the site to you, as well as the opportunity to see how the system works.
Site features include:
* Tournaments where each player pays a small fee and the winner takes all
* A uni-messenger interface that can list contacts from MSN, AIM, Yahoo and GoogleTalk
* A blog platform
* RSS feeds
* Other Social Networking Tools
The parent company has been involved with MLM for 5 years and has invested a 7 figure sum of money into promoting uVme.
A linked site that may be of interest is Andy Baileys blog who is a veteran affiliate of the parent company and holds the position of Group Coordinator and has been promoting for the company for 3 years.
Please Note:
This post is sponsored by UvMe
Technorati Tags: social networking, uvme
08.27.07
Yahoo! Mail now offers free text messaging to mobile phone numbers
Yahoo! Mail just launched new features that make it a little easier for contacts to stay in touch. The first is the ability to send instant messages from Yahoo! Mail to mobile phone numbers, the second is the ability to IM contacts in Yahoo Messenger and in MSN Live Messenger from Yahoo! Mail. There are also customizable themes and key shortcuts.
read more | digg story
Technorati Tags: yahoo, yahoo mail, sms, im
08.26.07
Cinderellabration! at Night
Saw this on Flickr & thought it looked cool. No other reason really.
Technorati Tags: disney, cinderella castle, fireworks, cinderellabration
08.21.07
Google Video Adjusts Refund
Earlier this month I made a post about the closure of google video and how they were only refunding customers who had previously purchased something, with only $5 of google checkout credit.
It looks like they’ve heard all the feedback (similar to that of what I made) and have decided to change their mind.
When your friends and well-intentioned acquaintances tell you that you’ve made a mistake, it’s good to listen. So we’d like to say thank you to everyone who wrote to let us know that we had made a mistake in the case of Google Video’s Download to Own/Rent Refund Policy vs. Common Sense.
To recap: we decided to end the Google Video download to own/rent (DTO/DTR) program, and are now refocusing our Google Video engineering efforts. The week before last, we wrote to Google Video DTO/DTR program customers to let them know that videos they’d already bought would no longer be playable.
We planned to give these users a full refund or more. And because we weren’t sure if we had all the correct addresses, latest credit card information, and other billing challenges, we thought offering the refund in the form of Google Checkout credits would entail fewer steps and offer a better user experience. We should have anticipated that some users would see a Checkout credit as nothing more than an extra step of a different (and annoyingly self-serving) kind. Our bad. Here’s how we’re hoping to fix things:
* We’re giving a full refund — as a credit card refund — to everyone who ever bought a video. We’ll need you to make sure we have your most recent credit card information, but once we know where to send the money, you’ll get it.
* You can still keep the Google Checkout credit that you’ve received already. Think of it as an additional ‘we’re sorry we goofed’ credit.
* We’re going to continue to support playing your videos for another six months. We won’t be offering the ability to buy additional videos, but what you’ve already downloaded will remain playable on your computer.
Official Google Blog: An update on Google Video feedback
I personally think that this is a much better offer & should have been what was offered in the first place. Especially with the full refund part which is what should have been made available.
The only question lies with, if they’re able to continue to support the videos for another 6 months, would it hurt them to support them indefinitely?
technorati tags:video, refund, google video
08.19.07
Steve Jobs’ Grave
What would go along with this?
I like some of the flickr comments:
iDied
“Just one More Thing”
Technorati Tags: igrave, ipod, steve jobs, comedy
Disney’s High School Musical 2 Smashes Records
Disney seems to have hit a winner with it’s High School Musical. The success of the first film seemed to catch them off guard, with them rushing to get elements of it into it’s theme parks very quickly in order to cash in on the success. These were then slowly sorted out and became a more polished feature within the parks.
Now they’re hitting success again with the second movie as High School Musical 2 set a record for the most watched basic cable broadcast ever. 17.2 million people tuned in to see if Troy and Gabriella would stay together and exactly how bad Sharpay could be.
The Premiere for High School Musical 2 was held at the Disneyland Resort. They distributed the following video podcast of the event:
Technorati Tags: disney, high school musical, film, musical, disneyland, premiere