SaaS Archives - Page 16 of 32

The Irony of Contextual Advertising

Posted on October 29, 2007 ·

I fully agree with Ionut: Gmail’s spam filtering is amazingly effective. I don’t really care about how they do it, as long as it works this well.

But there’s a bit of irony in his post on Google Operating System, and it comes from none other than Google: just as soon as he’s done praising Gmail, Adsense serves up ad ad from a competing service: onlymyemail.com.

Funny thing is, competitor or not, Adsense is correct: the ad is as contextual as it can get, since the article was about spam filtering.

Of course it could have been a lot worse…

(P.S. the pic is only for illustration of what I found on Ionut’s blog; I am not running ads here)

Update: Donna Bogatin found another Web Blooper.

Filed Under: Marketing / PR, SaaS · Tagged: adsense, advertising, blog ads, contextual ads, Google, Online Advertising

Desktopized Web-Applications are a Great Convenience

Posted on October 26, 2007 ·

Mozilla Lab’s Prism, which allows you to ‘desktopize’ your web applications – i.e. represent them by a desktop icon and run them in their own window – is generally well received, so I’m really surprised at Josh Catone’s assessment on Read/WriteWeb (one of my favorite sites):

Except for the minor convenience of running oft-used web apps in their own dedicated window and making them accessible via a desktop icon, Prism isn’t really all that exciting in its current form. It doesn’t offer much of a benefit over bookmarks and your current browser window.

Sure, offline access will be great, when it’s here… but don’t underestimate the importance of users’ convenience, Josh!

I love the fact that about the only program need to launch is FireFox – but I often find the browser too restricting. Now that large LCD’s are getting less expensive, more and more of us find ourselves working on 24″, 32″ ..etc screens – the browser does not allow smart use of all that real-estate. For example I like to use different window sizes for different (web) apps, and often want side-by-side windows, which I could not get using FireFox tabs. Launching another browser session was a rather resource-wasting workaround.

I’ve been using Zoho Writer, Sheet and Show in a desktopized form for almost a year now (literally, since the tool Zoho uses is called “desktopize”). The pic to the right shows part of my desktop, with 3 Zoho icons. They all pop up in my pre-set window size and position, and disappear to the system tray, even if I close my main browser session.

If this “convenience feature” becomes more mainstream, with Mozilla, Adobe and whoever else backing it, I believe it will lead to increased migration to Web applications, so I’m all for it.

Filed Under: Personal Productivity, SaaS · Tagged: adobe, Adobe Air, Air, Desktopize, firefox, Mozilla, office 2.0, Prism, Web Applications, web office, webrunner, zoho, zoho desktopize

Simplified Guide to Importing All Your Archive Email Into Gmail

Posted on October 24, 2007 ·

This is now so simple, it shouldn’t even require any guidance… but first things first.

Why would you want to import all your old email to Gmail? Because it gives you an All-In-One, searchable archive. I know there is real demand for this: my blog visitor log tells me, since my old post on the subject, How to Import All Your Archive Email Into Gmail still receives a good 5-600 readers every single day. That means:

people do want to migrate to web-based software (Gmail)
they don’t want to lose their historical “baggage”
so far it has been rather complicated

Now that Gmail supports the IMAP protocol, everything’s changed. My most-popular-ever post is all of a sudden obsolete. Forget all the “Gmail-loader” tools on the Net, most of them did not work anyway, forget even my multi-step process… I’ll show you all you have to do now. I’ve tested these steps with Outlook, but they should work with Thunderbird or whatever your favorite desktop email software is.

Enable IMAP in your Gmail account
Setup the Gmail account in your client software, based on these instructions
This will create a folder structure matching your Gmail labels
Open your old archive.pst files, if any
Drag-and drop all your old email into the Inbox folder in your new IMAP account.
- You can do this across accounts, or even archive files.
- If you don’t want to “move” old email out of the archives, use “copy” instead.
- Instead of Inbox, you can drop old email into any other Folder (create new ones if you like), to match the Gmail labels
Drag-and drop all your old “Sent mail” into the “Sent Mail” folder in your new IMAP account.
Wait patiently – with thousands of emails (my archive goes back to 1996) your upload bandwidth may be the bottleneck.

Voila! Your email is now up in Gmail, all labeled, searchable, with original sender info and dates intact (this was a problem with previous methods).

Happy Gmail-ing

Filed Under: Personal Productivity, SaaS · Tagged: email import, gmail, gmail archive, gmail import, IMAP, Outlook, thunderbird

Gmail IMAP and Microsoft’s Desktop Push

Posted on October 23, 2007 ·

You’ll have to appreciate the irony of this TechMeme screenshot:

Microsoft’s Jeff Raiker defended desktop applications, mocking of Google for “backtrack(ing) on what we’ve been saying and to offer things like Gears in order to be able to be offline and or take advantage of global computing power”, reports Infoworld.

As if to support Raiker’s statement, just minutes earlier the hot item on TechMeme was Google’s Gmail offering IMAP. Yes, it’s there, if you don’t see it in your gmail account, log out and come back again.

Unlike POP access, which is basically a dumb download, IMAP synchronizes your mail folders (not just the Inbox) with your online account, and your read/unread status..etc are maintained both in the desktop client and online. In fact IMAP is an easy way to sync several desktop clients on multiple machines. (Note: Gmail does not have folders, but I assume labels would take their place – assume only, since I no longer use desktop email software)

Where’s the irony here? IMAP is clearly beneficial only if you use a desktop email client* with your gmail account, which is exactly Raiker’s point. And a bit of a personal irony: for over a decade I was a faithful Outlook user, mocking my friends who used web-based email (typically Yahoo) for their personal accounts. How could they live with such a dumb, slow service?

Well, times change: Outlook grew fat and slow, it needs a cornucopia of software fighting for CPU and memory: virus scanner, desktop search (Copernic), backup (Mozy), sync with other desktops (Foldershare), and who knows what else, all of which need updates that tend to fail … what a nightmare! I ditched the desktop and have never been more productive! I’m using Gmail natively, on the Web, and am quite happy with it, so IMAP means nothing to me. (Apparently I’m not alone, as evidenced by the 5-600 readers my client to Gmail migration guide written half a year ago is still getting every day). For all other productivity needs I use the Zoho Suite. Incidentally, little birdies are singing that Zoho Writer will soon have offline edit capabilities.

Seamless online/offline computing, as it should be.

*Update (10/24). This post was my quick first reaction late last night, when the news first hit (in fact before it became official news). As Marc Orchant correctly points out, IMAP may very well be useful even if you don’t use a desktop email client, as it makes it really easy to use the client software on your mobile devices, and still have a sync’d Gmail on the Web.

Update #2, (10/24): Simplified Guide to Importing All Your Archive Email Into Gmail

Filed Under: Collaboration, Personal Productivity, SaaS · Tagged: desktop applications, gmail, Google, IMAP, microsoft, office 2.0, Outlook, Web Applications, web office, zoho

243

Posted on October 23, 2007 ·

243: That’s my current Technorati authority, which was 313 just before lunch ( two hours ago). 3 months ago it was in the neighborhood of 600, then it went into a free-fall. I’m clearly not the only one, as indicated by forum threads like this:

The canned Technorati answer is that since authority is calculated based on links in the past 6 months, it’s quite possible that old values just naturally dropped off. Most complaints in those threads come from users who participated in some sort of scheme to artificially inflate their link counts: something sophisticated like the 2000 bloggers trick, or circle-link groups, or just mutually getting on blog-rolls ( I hear Technorati re-evaluated blogrolls).

I haven’t done any of the above. Ever. Which means I don’t have large groups of links which should drop overnight. Oh, and my inbound link list is still completely messed up, often showing my own blog posts as inbound links, under a subdomain of my own URL . Something I requested Technorati to fix months ago. If they don’t respond to forum questions, why would they bother fixing bugs? Symptoms of a dying company.

Why do I even care? Technorati Authority in itself is quite irrelevant – but I still use it as a “spam-filter”, when searching on Technorati. I have the default authority level set to ‘some’ and this eliminates the zillions of auto-generated spam blogs, which typically have 0 or 1-2 inbound links. That’s about the only benefit Technorati search still has, otherwise I would have long switched to Google Blog Search, which is faster, more reliable, and also searches comments.

If others have the same habit, within weeks I might not show up on their radar screen, when my Technorati authority reaches zero. (I kinda wonder if it can go negative).

Please, Google, implement link-count filter!

Update: 15 minutes after posting it, it shows 325. Might as well just use a random number generator.

Filed Under: Blogging, SaaS · Tagged: Blogroll, Google, link count, technorati, technorati authority, technorati bugs

Get Out of Jail Faster With EchoSign – Ouch:-(

Posted on October 22, 2007 ·

EchoSign’s Favorite Widget of the Month is by Bailgram.com:

Let’s face it, helping a family member make bail is a traumatic experience. What if instead of going down to some sketchy shop near the courthouse — likely in off hours — you could fill out an application in seconds online? Frankly, it’s harder to think of a much better use of the internet.

Well, Jason, I think I can find a lot better uses of the Internet… But wait, he goes on, encouraging me to jump right in:

…click here and with the EchoSign widget, you can fill out and sign your application in seconds!

Hm… thanks… I’d rather stay out of jail in the first place.

(P.S. I do like EchoSign, it’s a great service, just not planning to get in jail any time soon)

Update (10/23): Hey, $6M covers a lot of bail . OK, that’s my way of saying congratulations, Jason and Team!

Filed Under: Humor, Marketing / PR, SaaS · Tagged: bail, bailgram, EchoSign, jail, marketing

Windows Desktop Search: Microsoft DOES Listen, After All

Posted on October 18, 2007 ·

I wrote about the Windows Desktop Search controversy several times: in a nutshell, under the auspices of installing Live Photo Gallery, Microsoft installed their Desktop Search product on XP systems, without asking for user permission or even bothering to notify users.

I’m glad to report proof that in this case Microsoft listened to their customers (or their own lawyers?):

Windows Live Photo Gallery no longer requires WDS (Windows Desktop Search) to be installed on XP! Again, we heard the grumblings loud and clear, and took action! Once you have installed the update via Microsoft Update and have build 1299.1010 install

There’s more, most importantly ability to easily upload to Flickr, which is no small feat, considering Flickr is now a Yahoo property. I’m wish Google followed suit and enabled Picasa to Flickr uploads. (Hello! Anybody there?)

My previous stories on the WDS controversy:

Filed Under: Personal Productivity, SaaS, Technology · Tagged: desktop search, flickr, Google, microsoft, photo management, picasa, wds, windows desktop, windows desktop search, windows live, windows live installer, windows live photo gallery

Another Mashup Bites the Dust – or NOT.

Posted on October 17, 2007 ·

I already used this title, a little more then a month ago, and it’s no coincidence: back then I wrote about Gmap Pedometer, a handy little Google Map hack that allowed you to calculate the lenth of your planned hike. When all of a sudden Google Maps encorporated the same feature, that pretty much eliminated the reason for this mashup to even exist (although it still does).

It’s that time again: now that Google Maps went social, allowing user profiles, let’s spend a moment of silence in memory or of the mashup that has been doing the same for a long time: Frappr.

And remember: not all mashups get acquired by Google. Some just get assimilated. Resistance is futile.

Update (10/18): In this case I’m glad to be proven wrong: a day later, Frappr is acquired. Also read Read/WriteWeb and Mashable!

Filed Under: Humor, SaaS, Startups · Tagged: Frappr, Gmap Pedometer, google maps, google mashups, mashups, Social Networking

Zonbu, a $99 Green PC that will Cost You $249

Posted on October 17, 2007 ·

Considering how many things did not work out-of-the box on my new Vista PC, HP’s slogan of : “the Computer is Personal Again” is really an insult. And don’t even get me started on Vista, it’s really for IT professionals, not mere mortals.

So of course I got excited reading Fake Steve Jobs (will Daniel Lyons ever be referred to by his own name?) article in Forbes:

“Personal computers were supposed to make our lives easier. Instead, these beasts have turned us all into part-time IT administrators, our lives given over to downloading upgrades, installing patches and updates and drivers and antispyware, decrypting error messages and screaming at stalled applications. Enough!”

He is blown away after a week’s use of Zonbu, a $99 Linux-based “green” PC alternative. From Zonbu’s specs:

Zonbu is a compact, ultra low power mini with all the bells and whistles:

Intel-compatible ultra-low power CPU
512 MB RAM + 4GB flash-based local storage
Graphics up to 2048 x 1536 (16 million colors, 75 Hz). Hardware graphics and MPEG2 acceleration
PC-compatible ports for keyboard and mouse
6 USB ports to plug-and-play all standard USB accessories
Broadband ready: 10/100 Mbps Ethernet built-in

It comes with a set of pre-loaded applications, all auto-updated with a subscription service. PC as a Service? Well, not quite. Although it’s heralded as a “cloud computing” device, it’s really a hybrid, with client-side apps for office productivity, personal finance management, multimedia, photo management..etc. And therein lies the rub – once you start using client applications, your needs will grow, you will hit the limits of the low-end hardware:

“I also found some videos that wouldn’t play on the system, and high-def videos (720p or larger) from Apple’s QuickTime HD Gallery don’t play acceptably because the Via processor in the Zonbu just isn’t fast enough.”

Of course with local apps your storage requirements will also grow, but you only have a 4G flash-drive, so you will likely upgrade to one of the premium storage/synchronization plans. The lowest plan gives you 25GB of storage at $12.95 a month, but it comes with a 2-year commitment. Let’s do the math, $99+ 24*$12.95= $409.80. Your $99 machine is now a $400 unit, payable upfront – and you still need a display and keyboard/mouse. You can get your device without the 2-year commitment (a’ la cell-phones), but then the base price is $249, and you will still likely pay for the monthly storage – what can you do with 2G of storage, after all?

Actually, a whole lot, if you really embrace cloud computing. There are good and mostly free online applications to match the capabilities of the pre-loaded Zonbu apps, and being online, they don’t even have to be updated. (They do, but it’s no longer the users’ problem which is the beauty of Software as a Service.)

Zonbu could have been a nice, inexpensive ~~cloud computing machine~~ Cloudbook – the problem is with the price point and the bundling of subscriptions that offers far less than what you already may have independently. A truly $99 web-computing device would be a major hit, but at current costs it does not seem to be feasible. Will the mobile industry’s service-plan subsidized model prevail here? After all, that’s what Zonbu attempts, it just does not have the right value/price mix.

I suspect cloud computing users will primarily want to select the applications they need, and what box gets them there will become secondary. But I don’t expect online app providers like Google or Zoho to bundle Zonbu-like devices with their business-level subscription plans anytime soon. This is where the analogy to the mobile industry ends: there is a huge installed base of older PC’s and as soon as you abandon the old model of desktop-based computing, these old machine became quite capable devices to handle your online computing needs.

Zonbu is a nice device without a business model for now.

Filed Under: SaaS, Technology · Tagged: cloud computing, Google, green pc, On-Demand, personal computing, SaaS, supbsricptions, thin client, unPC, zoho, zonbu

Recent Posts

Recent Comments