Netizen

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Yahoo Facebook Search Alliance Would Be Interesting

I think this is the most intriguing move by Marissa Mayer since she took up leadership at Yahoo. But so far this is just a meeting between two powerful women in tech.

I have long advocated Facebook should go into search. And I thought from day one Yahoo outsourcing search to Microsoft was a mistake.

Facebook's Search Option
The Facebook Search Engine
Facebook Could Do Well In Search

This move is audacious. I'd be interested to know what kind of timeline we might be talking about.

But it would be a mistake to think of this in terms of a political alliance. When Yahoo and Microsoft teamed up, two plus two did not equal four. They together lost share to Google.

This is about if you can innovate. I think these two might be able to.

Marissa Mayer: Biographical Details
Marissa Mayer's Gameplan
Marissa Mayer: Photos
Sheryl Sandberg: New Yorker Profile

Yahoo! plots alliance with Facebook in new search deal

Facebook has already said it plans to boost its web search facility, with founder Mark Zuckerberg noting that the social network is “pretty uniquely positioned to answer the questions people have”. ...... Yahoo!, which started life as one the first major search engines but is now dwarfed by rival Google, would benefit from Facebook’s vast army of more than 1bn users. ..... Working with Facebook would also allow Yahoo! to piggyback on the social network’s brand cachet to help it recruit top-tier computer programmers ..... An alliance between Facebook and Yahoo! will pose a major threat to Google and stands to reorder the hierarchy of the world’s biggest technology companies. A senior figure likened Yahoo!’s position to that of a minority party in a hung parliament, with the power to act as kingmaker by choosing another party with which to align itself. ..... she and Ms Sandberg, who is also a former Google executive, are expected to use their combined might to launch a serious competitor. ..... Google dominates the market with around a 66pc share. Bing has had some effect at the edges, with just under 16pc of all searches taking place on the platform.

Google-Dish Wireless Service: Can't Wait

Voice is data. Simple truth.

Google-Dish wireless service is a go, plans for 2013 launch being hatched

Google plans to make the service data-only with voice and SMS only being used as VoIP services, likely with Google Voice. Google of course already has its ISP feet on the ground with its Fiber rollout on the Stanford Campus and its just-opened Kansas City network....... Google is launching its Glass head gear next year and would benefit from total control of the network. Without full control, Google is seeing its Voice and Wallet services being blocked by carriers, specifically AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile

Children Of God (Nepali Documentary)

Friday, November 16, 2012

Pando Daily Looking Good

I just read this post: Ravikant: AngelList is Craigslist for entrepreneurs.

The number one thing I noticed was Pando Daily, the blog.

It has come a long way since I last checked it out. The design is so good. It used to be in a sorry shape. I thought back then my person blog's design was better than what Pando Daily started out with.

Now it is top notch. It is outstanding. It just might be the best design of any of the tech blogs. Wow.

Zynga's Mobile Woes

It is like you spent your prime learning Newton's theory of gravity, then someone, or something, comes along and says you need to be learning the Theory Of Relativity. That is how mobile is. I guess "getting" mobile is not easy.

Has Zynga Faced A Paradigm Shift?
Zynga: Could It Reinvent Itself?
Zynga Recipe
Zynga Morale
Zynga And Mobile
Zynga Fixes
Zynga Getting Hammered

Behind Mark Pincus's Bid to Save Zynga

Mr. Campbell, a technology veteran who has coached Silicon Valley CEOs such as Steve Jobs and Eric Schmidt, had been called in by Zynga investor and venture-capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers to advise Mr. Pincus as the social games company's stock plunged and some of its online games lost traction. Some Kleiner Perkins partners warned Mr. Campbell that he might not make much progress. .......... Pincus was open to advice. Mr. Pincus "was discouraged" ...... He "felt terrible about what was happening; he felt the turmoil." ...... The 46-year-old CEO has remained outwardly positive while Zynga's troubles have played out publicly over the past few months. ..... He was grappling with internal strife, including executive defections and confrontations with employees. ....... the CEO, who owns 50.2% of Zynga's voting control and has previously worked with outside consultants to improve his management skills, is trying to remake himself as its leader by ceding more control to deputies and improving communications. ...... "rapid change in player habits and social technologies have dictated fundamental changes at Zynga. And when businesses change, it's inevitable that some people will choose to leave." ...... Mr. Gordon said Zynga had failed to prioritize mobile development and found that its online games didn't easily translate to smartphones' smaller screens. "Mobile turned out to be more different than anyone expected, in terms of monetization and also user experience" ........ In May, at an off-site meeting in Monterey, Calif., with 100 senior employees, one group led by product director Jonathan Liu confronted Mr. Pincus over morale. Mr. Liu said he told Mr. Pincus that Zynga needed a clear strategic vision. ...... Mr. Liu, who added that he was "almost yelling" at Mr. Pincus at the meeting. .... and reorganized the mobile division so that it was integrated into every gaming studio and not a stand-alone unit. He also pushed harder into new businesses, like real-money gambling. ..... also filled his calendar with product meetings ..... switched his main phone from a BlackBerry to iPhone ..... Employee departures became rote ...... When Zynga notified employees of their extra equity, many received just several hundred options spread across a multiyear vesting schedule, while others got a larger amount. Some employees asked if they could refuse the grant, which they viewed as an insult and a pittance ...... Pincus has focused on improving his communication skills ........ "Project Whistle," a program to connect top executives with Zynga employees. The group has run more than 30 meetings over the last two months where executives discuss Zynga's strategy and answer questions from the crowd. ..... delegation skills. Mr. Pincus has been known for dominating discussions and focusing on details such as the font choice or color scheme of games

Zynga's CEO Almost Broke Down In Tears Over Company's Downfall

employees berating him about the company's lack of a strategic vision and poorly thought-out schemes to boost morale

Now David Ko Is Essentially Running Zynga

David Ko, an executive who has championed Zynga's push into mobile and transformation of its Facebook-oriented franchises like FarmVille and Mafia Wars into multiplatform gaming experiences that cross both Web and mobile, has gotten another promotion in the process...... the troubled maker of social games shuffles management every few months, as it tries to adapt the company to a rapidly changing world where mobile rules..... Ko's been a key part of that transformation, pushing Zynga to buy Newtoy, the maker of Words With Friends, and OMGPOP, the maker of Draw Something...... Ko now oversees Zynga's strategic planning, international expansion, and infrastructure........ Ko also has oversight for all of Zynga's game development, with Zynga's top game-development executive, Steve Chiang, reporting to him. Chiang and Ko had previously shared oversight for Zynga's studios, with both reporting to Pincus. ..... Steve Chiang is now Zynga's president of games, overseeing all studios and reporting to Ko

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Talk About Pulling Your Own Weight

Nanotube Muscles Bench 50,000 Times Their Own Weight

Carbon nanotube yarns powered by light or electricity can run motors, flip a catapult, and lift impressive amounts of weight. ..... lifting loads as much as 50,000 times greater than their own weight .... Artificial muscles might be used as actuators in robotics and surgical tools, and drive tiny motors and flywheels. The nanotube muscles can be powered by electricity, but they also contract in response to light and certain chemicals. And they work at temperatures as high as 2,500 degrees Celsius, an extreme that reduces other strong actuating materials to a molten puddle. And unlike previous carbon nanotube muscles, these materials require no packaging or battery-like electrolytes to function. ..... Individual carbon nanotubes are stronger than steel, highly conductive, have great optical properties, and so on .... One problem is the tendency for nanotubes to form spaghetti-like tangles, where each point of tube-to-tube contact can compromise strength. But over the past few years materials scientists have been learning how to straighten out these tangles and build large, useful things