05.06.06
Posted in Software and Web Apps at 9:00 pm by Administrator
A very cool looking new product for web developers, the demo creations look great, and I’d love to work with this product to create some more interactive portals, but the current price will keep this out of our product development toolbox for a while… The site says prices subject to change -perhaos one day it will be in the hundreds instead of thousands…
From http://www.backbase.com/start/
With Backbase AJAX software, developers can create more user-friendly web applications in record-time. The Backbase framework has many user interface controls and code samples, and advanced development tools. It is optimized for .NET, Java, PHP and other languages. Backbase supports all main web browsers, without the need for a plug-in. Please take a look at our demos and whitepapers, or download the Community Edition.
Permalink
Posted in Software and Web Apps at 4:18 pm by Administrator
A very cool looking new product for web developers, the demo creations look great, and I’d love to work with this product to create some more interactive portals, but the current price will keep this out of our product development toolbox for a while… The site says prices subject to change -perhaos one day it will be in the hundreds instead of thousands…
From http://www.backbase.com/start/
With Backbase AJAX software, developers can create more user-friendly web applications in record-time. The Backbase framework has many user interface controls and code samples, and advanced development tools. It is optimized for .NET, Java, PHP and other languages. Backbase supports all main web browsers, without the need for a plug-in. Please take a look at our demos and whitepapers, or download the Community Edition.
Permalink
Posted in Podcasting / Podcasts at 3:56 pm by Administrator
Well, we have been working to create a similar project, and I am glad to see that other people have had and are wokring on the same idea, usually that means it is a good one. I think that there is room in this space for several call in podcast channels, just as there is room for several talk shows in each radio market. TechCrunch / Michael Arrington likes the idea, so we will continue development and will keep tabs on the new podcast at waxxi as well…
From TechCrunch:
I think Tracy Sheridan’s Waxxi is a great idea: a scheduled podcast where people can call in and participate (Frank Gruber has more). The kickoff podcast is with Naked Converstions authors Shel Israel and Robert Scoble, on May 20, 2006 at 10:30 AM PST. If you would like to participate, register on the Waxxi homepage and you will receive a toll free number to call and a participation code. I do not know if there is a limit on the number of participants.
I have some unanswered questions about how the podcast will be handled. With a large number of participants anyone’s chance to actually talk much will be extremely limited. And I hope they will have some form of moderation to allow the host to keep control of the conversation (this is how public company earnings calls are handled - you press a button if you would like to ask a question and the host chooses you at the right time). A party line with dozens or hundreds of people would just be a mess. Also, Waxxi will have a simultaneous chat/im session running with the podcast. This is a great idea - and I hope that the transcript will be available along with the podcast (what we really need is a way to listen to the podcast with the IM archive rolling along at real time as well, but that would require the buidling of specific client software, something I don’t see suggested from the Waxxi site.
There are other experiments in this area as well. Skype just released a new product called Skypecasts, which allows moderated Skype calls with up to 100 participants. Although Skype does not have a record call feature, there are third party services that allow this (minus the simultaneous chat IM, though).
And Podserve has taken a different approach - allowing people to create feeds that a group of people, or anyone, can contribute to. They call it social podcasting.
Read the whole article and comments at TechCrunch - click here.
Permalink
04.26.06
Posted in Podcasting / Podcasts, Software and Web Apps at 6:40 pm by Administrator
From Podcasting News:
Sony has introduced an update for the PlayStation Portable, version 2.70, that adds support for downloading podcasts to the device for playing offline. Previously, the PSP only supported streaming media content.
It appears that Sony is avoiding use of the term podcast, though. In their information, podcasts are called “RSS Channels.”
The update lets PSP users save audio podcasts from an RSS Channel (podcast feed) onto Memory Stick Duo media. Version 2.70 also adds support for Macromedia Flash Player 6 content.
The PSP now supports saving podcasts three ways:
* Select only 1 item to save - Select the item that you want to save, and then select [Save] in the options menu.
* Save items within a channel - Select the channel that contains the content you want to save, and then select [Save] in the options menu.
* Select multiple channels and save items within those channels - Select the channels, and then select [Save Multiple] in the options menu.
A sample podcast and tutorial is available at the PlayStation site.
The update is for customers who own PSP (PlayStation Portable) system model number PSP-1001 sold in North America. The update is a free download from the Playstation site.
Permalink
Posted in Podcasting / Podcasts, Software and Web Apps at 6:34 pm by Administrator
App Streamlines Converting Video for Web, iPods, PSPs
From Podcasting news -
Unfortunatley it appears thatt his app is made for the mac and no PC / windows version is currently available…
Digigami today announced it is shipping MoviesForMyPod/PSP 1.0, a batch movie converter that is designed to make it easy to convert a collection of QuickTime videos for delivery to Web, Video iPod 5G and/or Sony Playstation Portable (PSP) devices.
“Most Podcasters and internet sites (including video.google.com) are currently offering two distinct downloadable movie types in order to serve both the Video iPod and Sony Playstation Portable (PSP). Yet both devices utilizes the MPEG-4 SP file format.” said Digigami CTO, Gen Kiyooka. “What we have done is taken the sheer simplicity of our program and added the necessary magic in order to create one output MPEG-4 movie file which plays perfectly on both devices. So you can offer a single movie file on your web site which syncs and plays flawlessly on both devices. We continue to use Apple’s MPEG-4 encoder because in our tests, the encoder produced superior audio quality.”
MoviesForMyPod/PSP a Universal Mac OS X binary, and is also designed from the ground up to be multi-core aware, to take advantage of single, dual and quad-core CPUs, Intel or PowerPC.
MoviesForMyPod/PSP is designed with the video prosumer or professional in mind. According to Digigami, “Podcasters will enjoy the fact that QuickTime metadata is preserved when making podcast movies. And internet webmasters will find their job simplified by the automatic creation of PSP thumbnail files.”
System Requirements
MoviesForMyPod/PSP requires QuickTime 7.0.3 (or higher) and iTunes 6.x (or higher).
Intel, PowerPC G3, G4, or G5 Macintosh Computer with OS X Tiger (10.4 or higher)
Pricing and Availability
MoviesForMyPod/PSP is free to individuals, podcasters, students, educational users and small “sole proprietor, less than three (<3) employee” business. Corporations pay just $89.00 under an honor license system. The free version is offered without technical support, and the paid version includes Digigami technical support services.
Download here.
Permalink
04.21.06
Posted in Software and Web Apps at 11:32 pm by Administrator
Everyone wants to be msypace, exactly why, I wonder if they even know. Most startups going into this “myspace” wanna be area are doomed for certain failure, but the details pointed out a tTechCrunch today show how AOL could easily use it;s existing databse to create a myspace like zone on the web that already has friends lists propagated, which may actually get both of AOLS feet into the “space” realm quickly.
TechCrunch leaks news of AOL’s so called “Myspace Killer”
An excerpt:
I’ve done some digging, though, and it appears that a “MySpace Killer†is exactly what AOL is trying to build. From what I am hearing (and which isn’t contradicted by Ted above), AOL plans on building a social network on the back of AIM, which will pre-populate your AIM friends as your social network friends as well. So the key AIM integration will be to pre-build relationships into the new service.
The service will launch at AIM.com, and individual user pages will be aim.com/[username]. Functionality will be similar to MySpace - with blogging, photo and music widgets available for integration. Also, third party companies are being approached to build widgets (similar to Live.com widgets) that can be integrated into the pages using AOL’s I Am Alpha API.
Read the whole article and comments at TechCrunch.
Permalink
Posted in Marketing, Software and Web Apps at 11:28 pm by Administrator
Stylehive gets rave reviews at TechCrunch; for it’s style.
Stylehive is a social bookmarking site that is focused on shopping. I believe that there is promise in this space, which includes the just funded Kaboodle, as well as Wists and the upcoming Plum. Why? Because 80% of online shopping is “research†and only 20% is actually “buyingâ€. Stylehive addresses the 80% piece of the market.
Stylehive, designed by Emily Chang and Max Kiesler at Ideacodes, is also a visually stunning site - just check out the home page. They are focusing specifically on hot designs and trends.
Read the whole post and comments about stylehive at TechCrunch.
Permalink
04.20.06
Posted in Marketing, Podcasting / Podcasts at 11:54 pm by Administrator
Podcasts Surpass Radio Stations Worldwide; Podcast Demand Growing Faster Than Supply - From Podcasting News
The number of podcasts managed by FeedBurner, a news feed service provider, now exceeds the total number of radio stations in the entire world, according to Rick Klau, FeedBurner’s VP of Business Development.
Podcasting is also one of the fastest growing technologies of all time. The number of podcasts feeds managed by FeedBurner is growing 15% per month. The number of subscribers, though, is growing even faster, at a rate of 20% per month.
According to Klau, “Podcasting is outpacing the speed of adoption of the last ‘most successful consumer product launch in history’.”
More Podcasts Than Radio Stations in the World
FeedBurner has been seeing 15% growth per month in the number of podcasts that are published:
————-
“FeedBurner recently surpassed a major milestone of 44,000 podcast feeds under management, which, according to the CIA World Factbook, exceeds the total number of radio stations worldwide,” notes Klau.
The Podcast Audience is Growing Faster Than the Podosphere
Recent reports of podcasting’s death appear to have been premature.
FeedBurner’s numbers show podcast circulation growing at bubble-blowing 20% per month. “Today, there are more than 1.6 million aggregate subscribers to FeedBurner-managed podcasts,” adds Klau, “and this number has more than doubled in the past six months.”
————-
Podcast Adoption Rate Makes it a Successful Technology
Podcasting’s adoption rate makes it a success, according to Klau. “Back in 2000, the DVD format, just 3 years old at the time, was declared the most successful product launch in consumer electronics history, outselling the VCR five to one. Using these statistics as a benchmark, in less than two years, the number of podcasts available online is tenfold that of DVD titles in nearly half the time.”
It’s Not All About iTunes
Some podcasters have started to focus their promotion efforts on iTunes, because of the popularity of Apple’s iPods. FeedBurner’s numbers, though, suggest that podcasters that focus exclusively on iTunes may be missing out on as much as half of their potential audience.
“Since we recently started tracking podcast downloads within feeds, we’ve also seen the ratio of downloads to subscribers average 2:1, suggesting a significant secondary market for podcast listenership beyond just the feed’s subscribers,” according to Klau. This confirms what many podcasters have noted, that they often have many more downloads than they do subscribers.
FeedBurner’s numbers reveal “a number of podcast directories generating a sizable amount of traffic” for podcasts,” notes Klau. This suggests that getting listed in top podcast directory sites can be a major source of listeners for podcasters.
And, while iTunes is the most popular podcast client, 43% of the subscribers to FeedBurner-managed podcasts use other podcast clients.
Klau’s comment’s on the expanding podcast universe are posted at Burning Questions, FeedBurner’s official weblog.
Permalink
« Previous entries · Next entries »
