The Alexis Ohanian Book

English: Alexis Ohanian, one of the founders of reddit, as he speaks about his experience getting reddit from a startup to one of the top competitors in User-rated news and networking. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I am reading the book. It is a must read. It is thoroughly enjoyable even if you don't much care about tech or tech entrepreneurship.

I borrowed it from the New York Public Library. I guess the guy did not make any money off of me. Look, Ohio Man, I am used to reading stuff for free!

Google Books Deserves To Get Life

Image via CrunchBase

Just like sane countries force broadband providers to share their pipes with competitors, Google Books should be made to share its content to other online distributors, and authors of the books should get their cut, but the idea of getting in the way of digital books is plain stupid. Why deprive humanity of the treasure trove?

Google urges end to authors' digital book lawsuit

its ambitious plan to build the world's largest digital book library .... Google has said it has scanned more than 20 million books, and posted English-language snippets of more than 4 million .... authors actually benefit because the database helps people find and buy their books ..... a "de facto monopoly" to copy books en masse without permission and served to "further entrench" its market power in online searches. ..... Among the libraries whose works have been scanned are those of Harvard University, Oxford University, Stanford University, the University of California, the University of Michigan, and the New York Public Library .... The United States, Amazon.com Inc and Microsoft Corp had been among those to raise antitrust concerns about the settlement.

Paper books should feel odd. Digital books should be the norm. Digital copies of all books current and past should be available. Why do you want to get in the way of authors penetrating markets?

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Republic Wireless, Galaxy Nexus And Tardiness

I have a laptop I bought a few months back for 330 dollars after the rebate. I think I want a $79 Kindle to borrow books from the New York Public Library. And I think I have decided on Republic Wireless to be my first smartphone. And that is it. That will be enough gadgets. I am a Dell, Walmart kind of guy.

They said they will be out. But then you go to their website and they say sorry, get in line, we will email you when we have more. So no soup for you this year.



No Republic Wireless phone in sight. $19 a month is cheaper than even the prepaid basic phones. For me it is the wifi part that gets me. A smartphone is a small computer. It needs to be running on wifi. What I would have really liked is a Galaxy Nexus on the Republic Wireless network. But if it is between the phone and the network I am going for the network. Only the line is so long. Take that iPhone.

Why don't they just manufacture more phones? I mean, if they are making money when they sell phones. Why not just make more of them and make more money?

Galaxy Nexus Has Competition

Eureka Moment: The Local Library On Kindle

Cover via AmazonI just found out that the local library is on Kindle.

The Next Web: Amazon launches Kindle book-lending service with 11,000 US libraries

Then I proceeded to download the free Kindle app for the PC. It looks swell on my computer.

Then I went to the New York Public Library website and found out Kindle is nowhere to be seen. I can't get the library books on to my Kindle, at least not yet. I went to the Queens Library website. And I found out the same thing.

I guess news travels faster than reality.

Once this comes to be it will be like Spotify for books. So we got books and music covered. Will someone please do the same for movies? Or I might as well go ahead and pay Netflix some money.

I grew up in Nepal. We are kind of underdeveloped.

Your Local Library On Kindle
Me: Author
My Dream: A Netflix For Books
A Netflix For Books Needed

Top Android Apps

Image via CrunchBaseIn The Market For A Smartphone

Facebook, to share photos.

YouTube, to get into video blogging in a big way.

Gmail, Google Voice, to work.

Twitter, to report on things, especially when at events. Hashtags rule.

Notice how my top choices are going to be to create content so people can view them on their big screens. I tend to have a bias for apps that are device agnostic. You can tell I am a HTML5 kind of guy. (Adobe Was Always Going To Do HTML5)

My top mobile apps are going to be Hashable, FourSquare and FoodSpotting. I don't eat out much. I am not that rich but, more important, I am scared for my health. But once in a while I do want to dive into the ethnic diversity of NYC cuisine. I think FourSquare can be a great networking tool.

Other than creating multi-media content on the go, I want to network like crazy. The next 1,000 people I'd like to get on a first name basis with are mostly in the NY tech ecosystem. And there the smartphone can come in handy. I particularly like Hashable. Connecting with someone on Twitter is less pressure than exchanging phone numbers and email addresses.

New Business Card On The Way

Your Local Library On Kindle

Cover via Amazon9 To 5 Mac: You'll be able to borrow Kindle books from 11,000 libraries, says Amazon

ReadWriteWeb: Check Out Library Books on Your Kindle: the announcement from Amazon this morning that it is launching a Lending Library "later this year" that will let Kindle owners check out books from their local library..... participation of over 11,000 libraries in the U.S. ..... the ability to actually make margin notes in your library books. You'll be able to take notes, store them privately - in other words, the next library patron won't see them - and then access them again should you check the book out again or purchase it in the future

This is huge. This kind of made my day. Does this mean all of the New York Public Library will be available on Kindle? That is pretty awesome.