SOMEWHAT FRANK

Sun Grid To Offer Public Processing Power

Sun Microsystems is about ready to launch a centralized public Grid system made up of 5,000 CPU sockets, a mix of Ultrasparc and Opteron. The announcement came today (March 21, 2006) via Jonathan Schwartz on the Sun corporate blog.

The Sun Grid service will be charging for processing cycles at a rate of $1 per hour. This is could change the way we look at CPU processing power since it turns it into a billable utility much like electricity. The service will be accessible from network.com and will accept PayPal payments.

I am still trying to fathom the magnitude of Sun's feat and think others will have the same struggle. Therefore, I feel adoption of the Sun Grid may be slow to begin with since it is the first offering of its kind. Not to mention, I am concerned at the potential cost associated with paying for process like any other utility. I guess I do not want to see it get out of hand where processing consumers are being taken advantage of.

For more perspective on the Sun Grid check out these posts by Dan Farber and Clint Boulton.

Google Finance Launches With Sexy Sliders

Google has finally launched Google Finance into public beta today (March 21, 2006) which should directly compete with Yahoo Finance, MSN Money and CNN Money in the finance space. There have been mixed reviews of the service thus far but I think it offers an interesting presentation of news clips and stock performance information. The display offers several unique Flash based sliders to help examine the peaks and valleys a companies performance record. In the screen-shot below I analyze the profile of Google to demonstrate some of the features that differentiate  Google Finance from the competition.

For additional reaction to the Google Finance beta launch check out these write-ups:

• Google Launches Google Finance by Danny Sullivan
• Google Finance Disappoints by Om Malik
• Google.Portal.Finance Launches by John Battelle
• Google Finance - Lots of Flash & Ajax by Mike Arrington
• Google Unveils A New Service Offering Financial News, Data by Kevin Delaney

What do you think about Google Finance?

Yahoo Offers Local News Beta

Yahoo has launched Yahoo News for local area news. The product is still only a beta but is offered from the Yahoo News area. It allows users to select a city and then aggregates local news from a number of mainstream media sources from the local area. Since I am in Chicago this is the page that I see. Unfortunately the beta does not yet offer syndication feeds (RSS or Atom) of the local area content. I am hoping that feeds are added soon.

The Yahoo local news aggregator is ultimately just another bell or whistle to add to Yahoo News product. However, I currently think Topix.net offers a better local news aggregation service since it pulls from more sources, offers syndication feeds for any local area and offers local news content of just about every US zip code.

Gates Keynotes Mix 06, Dines With Arrington

Bill Gates gave the keynote address today (March 20, 2006) at Mix 06, the a 72-hour Microsoft conference taking place out in Las Vegas. According to a report by Richard MacManus, Bill Gates focused on the theme of  rich media through a number of devices and spoke of the release of Internet Explorer 7 (which is now available here) and beyond just the browser (phones and other devices). Bill praise RSS and how he thinks it is very important. Bill also spoke about moving further enhancing the web capabilities of Office 2007.

After the keynote, Robert Scoble gave Mike Arrington of TechCrunch a "big present" or what Robert refers to as a power lunch -  lunch with Bill Gates. Mike has been a champion ringleader for the web 2.0 movement and it appears Bill wants to better understand it. Mike got a few questions in about Office going online but admits he was a bit starstruck and surprised by the lunch guest.

For additional Mix 06 updates check out the video cast from the conference provided by Virtual Mix.

*Special thanks to Robert Scoble and his smart phone for the image of Bill Gates and Mike Arrington

DropSend When It's Too Big To Email

DropSend offers an easy to use solution for anyone who is looking to send large files over the Internet. DropSend allows you the ability to move files up to 1 GB and store these large files online. This could be useful in sending music, video and other file types that hog your hard drive space.

The use of DropSend circumvents the need to setup an FTP account to send large files. Simply brilliant! The best part is that you do not need to be tech-savvy to send large files with DropSend since it is easy enough that anyone can use the service. For example, if my sister had a copy of her wedding video online and it was less than a 1 GB she could send it to my mother without having to setup and use FTP. I think DropSend is a great idea which addresses a big need in the online world.

DropSend was created by Carson Systems. Ryan Carson, founder of Carson Systems, recently spoke at Carson Workshops Summit about creating an enterprise application online on a budget. According to Ryan, Carson Systems launched DropSend with only $30,000 which is almost nothing when you compare it to the amount millions of dollars venture capitalists threw together back in the technology boom of the 90’s. You can download and listen to Ryan for yourself here - it will be worth your while. If you would rather just read than listen you could check out the notes from the session here.

For more information on DropSend check out the Carson Systems blog.

Firefox 2 dot 0 Is Here

With the release of Firefox 1.5.1 still fresh as the morning dew, Mozilla has released Firefox 2.0 alpha. It is not even a beta product and could be very raw so I have opted to wait to try it out on my own computer. David Chartier did try it out though and found it to be a little bit zippier.

Windows Live Arsenal: Microsoft Is Back!

There is so much talk about Google and its products these days that Microsoft may not be the first company that comes to mind when you think of the online space. However, Microsoft has been quietly building an online arsenal and doing so without accusations of being 'evil.'The name of the budding e-powerhouse is Windows Live. I think that Microsoft is back to whole-heartily compete with Google in the online software space.

If you take a look at this chart (or click on the screen-shot below) of all the products Microsoft has on tap with Windows Live, I think you'd be pretty amazed.

I understand that not every product is able to compete with current widely-used Google online applications, but I think that if Microsoft integrates all the services into existing online applications it will be successful in several of these endeavors. Microsoft is not only competing with Google; they also are positioned to take on eBay, Craigslist and Yahoo among others.

Adidas + Computer Tech = Smart Shoes

Adidas, the athletic shoe and apparel giant, has married computer technology with its latest running shoe, Adidas 1. The shoes use a 20-megahertz microprocessor implanted in the sole which collects readings and from the shoe's movements and adjusts the fit of the shoe accordingly.  This is very innovative and according to Adidas communications chief Uli Becker, the Adidas 1 will turn the industry "upside down" saying:

"This is new territory ... that we want to define."

The Adidas 1 is definitely far removed from the days of Reebok Pump which relied on inserting air around the foot to ensure the most comfortable fit.

The shoes will sell for around $250 which is steep for running shoes but you are getting a 40 gram 20-megahertz processor built in the shoe which might make it easier to swallow.

What would I like to see next? I would love to see the ability to upload music and podcasts directly to your shoes from your iPod or other device. The shoes could then transmit streaming music to a set of wireless headphones. This would provide a user the ability to have both hands free while running or working out. I really don't think this is too far off. The shoe player would need to be done correctly in terms of music compatibility with existing players and music libraries so that users can share and play music from whatever service they already use, rather than creating yet another segmented music service with its own rules.

For more information on the Adidas 1 check out the Adidas 1 web site in addition to these articles on WSJ.com and Gizmodo.

DiviCast For Visually Enriched Podcasts

DiviCast, a product currently in a private beta, shows promise for producing enhanced podcasts with embedding images and links. So if you are listening to an enhanced podcast you may see images or links associated to the topic being discussed, on the display of your player, adding a visual element and enriching the experience.

I have been listening to a lot podcasts lately and I think enhanced podcasts would be an awesome feature to spice up the casts. I excited to see this product in action since it would give a podcast listener the opportunity to follow visual elements, thus producing richer communication. Also I could see the addition of images, links and screen-shots to be helpful in adding clarity to a podcast. I am looking forward to seeing DiviCast work in action in a podcast.

Google Powers Nike Soccer Community Site

Google has teamed up with Nike to create an online community for soccer (football) players called Joga. According to the site:

"Joga is an online community created by Google and Nike for anyone anywhere in the world who shares a love for soccer, the world's most popular sport."

This sounds like an online community social networking site. Google has some experience with Okrut but is not known for teaming with anyone to create community sites so that makes Joga's launch a little more intriguing.

Is Google getting into the business of building community web sites?

I would not be surprised if these types of Google powered online communities continue to pop up. Google has the technology and the online presence to generate buzz with anything they put out. Not to mention, Nike - just did it.

For additional blogosphere perspective check out these posts on Inside Google, Micro Persuasion and Google Blogoscoped.

UPDATE: The official Google Blog now has a post about Joga.

Wufoo Online Forms Made Easy

Wufoo is an online custom form creation application that enables the creation of quick and easy online forms. The interface is extremely intuitive and smooth to use. Wufoo is still under development but you can visit the site and play with the public demo. Also check out the screen-shot from one of the forms I set up recently.

I am not sure quite yet how Wufoo forms will be integrated into your own site so I will be interested to find out more how Wufoo plans on easing implementation. I am sure more details will be offered up by Wufoo as its launch date draws closer.

Is Google Looking To Buy Sun?

There has been speculation that Google going to buy Sun Microsystems. These rumors have been swirling since last fall when Google teamed with Sun to work on GoogleOS which is currently in the works. GoogleOS is an online operating system. According to a report by Blogcritics.org, the Sun acquisition rumors are more than just speculation by citing a few compelling bits of information:

• Is Google About to Buy Sun Microsystems?
• Biz/Tech Watch: McNealy Resigns, Google Buys Sun Microsystems?
• Does Personal E-Mail From Sun Exec Reveal Google Is Buying Sun?

I am going to say there is a little of truth at the root of every rumor, so I would not be surprised if Google announces something soon regarding Sun Microsystems. I am anguish to check out GoogleOS since it will be competing with Microsoft's next operating system called Windows Vista (see the latest Vista screen-shots).

Do you think Google will buy Sun?

Digging Up the 'Old' Netscape.com

According to several reports around the blogosphere, Jason Calacanis and AOL are setting up to take on the popular community driven news and aggregation portal Digg, by offering a similar site under the Netscape.com domain. As you may recall, Calacanis came over to AOL in the acquisition of Weblogs, Inc in the fall of 2005.

I think it is some interesting speculation and a welcome site to see an online pioneer web site take on new look. Though, I think it will be an interesting challenge since there are still people who will recall the "old" brand because while it is an "old" brand in online terms, it really is not that "old." Good luck Jason.

TechCrunch Hits Airwaves With Podcasts

TechCrunch, the popular blog network founded by Mike Arrington and Keith Teare focusing on tracking the latest mobile and online technology, has continued to expand the network with the addition of TalkCrunch, a blog devoted to housing a weekly TechCrunch podcast or CrunchCast as I like to call it.

This first episode was put out today focused on online calendar applications and compared them to the soon to be released Google Calendar app CL2 that Mike exposed screen-shots last week on TechCrunch.

I applaud TechCrunch on pulling off its first podcast. Obviously, the cast wasn't perfect audio quality but I am sure the CrunchCasts will improve with time as the kinks gets get worked out. Great job guys!

NCAA Basketball to Go on iTunes

CBS has teamed with iTunes to offer downloads of the NCAA basketball tournament games in a condensed version for $1.99 a game or $19.99 for the entire 63 game tournament. I think that there are going to be some of the March Madness tournament obsessed who will love this offering. Personally though, I will probably not be interested in downloading the games. I have filled out my NCAA tournament bracket though via Yahoo's Tournament Pick'em. I know Duke has had a rough last couple of weeks but I picked them to win the tourney, we will see if it happens.

Who did you pick?