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  • You cant win them all

    New review up at TechCrunch covering Twitbin. Mixed results in terms of comments, some people love it, some think it shouldn’t have been reviewed.

    I’m a conviction writer, if I write about something I’ll do so for two reasons: 1. because it’s topical, and in the case of TechCrunch because it’s in the scope of the sites coverage or 2. because I like it. The later is an interesting one because there’s a smorgasboard of Web 2.0 related products I could be covering: the number of clones and variations on a theme is insane. Of course the way things are covered is a little bit more formal at TC than here, so I couldn’t really say what I’m about to say now.

    Twitbin is cool.

    It’s not perfect (opening links on a new page is annoying) but I was borderline in terms of giving up on Twitter, I just didn’t have the time nor inclination to be continually flicking back and forwards to it, now it’s inline in Firefox (the 22″ monitor helps) it’s no longer a burden or pain to use.

  • Two cool Australian blogs you’re probably not reading

    Sydney Daily Photo and Melbourne Today. Both photoblogs posting 1 photo from Sydney and Melbourne respectively every day. It’s a simple idea that just works, and in the case of Sydney Daily Photo it brings back a lot of memories for me, the author has had a strong focus on shots from The (Sutherland) Shire this week, the place I spent my childhood to 21 in growing up. If I had more time I’d consider doing something similar myself, the Panasonic FZ50 I bought a couple of months back makes for some amazing shots. Recommended.

    Note: both are available as part of the Top 100 Australian Blogs feed OPML download.

  • Nearly time to give up on News.com.au

    P-LEASE!

    news

    A storm in a tea cup beaten up to be the leading news story. Lets see: Channel Ten new Kate had suffered from a still birth, but she’d CLEARLY told them it was in the past, and that she was over it. Big Brother re-runs a housemate task from the first series, caring for a (plastic) baby. Kate goes mental, BB withdraws the task (the right decision). Now it’s a sadistic ratings grab? We don’t have a News Corp tabloid in WA, but if we did I’d stop buying it, and I’m sick and tired of this rubbish at News.com.au as well. Thank god for the Sydney Morning Herald as the quality alternative.

  • Digg uprising leading world news?

    Top of the front page at News.com.au, Australia’s leading News site, being the combined homepage for all of News Corp’s Australian Newspapers:

    digg

    Interesting that Digg becomes the No. 1 story in a world full of wars, death and destruction. No front page coverage from the SMH or ABC at this stage.

  • The Digg Revolt of 2007: a renaissance in listening to users

    Something amazing happened today on Digg. After a long time ignoring the complaints of users, indeed even alienating many top contributors, the folks running Digg, in particular Kevin Rose actually listened, and responded. True, it was only after banning users and stories about the HD DVD key that the decision was made, but it’s still notable none the less. Will the Digg Revolt of 2007 result in a renaissance in listening to users? maybe, and hopefully it will at Digg, but others should also take note: corporate arrogance towards the user base shouldn’t have a place in Web 2.0, and companies that continue to act in this old fashioned way can now look at a case study of what collectively users can say and do when you won’t listen to them.

    In the mean time: get across to Digg and joining in the Digging fury…I’ve never seen stories with that many votes on the front page 🙂

    digg

  • Google on Oprah

    Via SEOBlackHat:

  • The only decision, is never to shop at Retravision Bunbury again.

    It probably serves me right for gloating about getting a bargain. 2 weeks later and my Sony HD TV still hasn’t arrived. When I agreed to buy the thing the salesman told me 2 days. After I handed over the money I was told 1 week and a bit, Thursday to be precise. So I wait at home Thursday (last week) for it to arrive. Nothing. I ring them Thursday 3pm, I’m told it will definitely be there the next day (Friday). So I ring Bunbury Retravision at 10am Friday, am told that yes, TV is on the truck on the way to me. Wait all day for the delivery. Ring at 3:30pm. Told again that the TV is on the delivery truck and will be with me very soon. Mind you, Thursday I’d packed up the old TV and put it away, ready for the new TV, so at this stage I’ve only viewing TV via small sets (to this day). 4:30pm Friday I get a phone call from the original salesman: the TV still hasn’t been shipped to Bunbury. I flip, big time. He offers me a free DVD player for my inconvenience. I accept but I still want the f*cking TV, he promises that it’s on its way, Monday, Tuesday at the latest.

    It’s now its Tuesday, no phone call, no delivery, it’s now exactly 2 weeks since I paid for the thing, in actual folding cash based on a good price and despite the fact that EVERY OTHER electrical retailer had the TV in stock, and could have it to me the next day. So I ring Retravision at 4:30pm, they’ll get back to me, they call 15 minutes later, cant say when the TV might get here, manager will call me in the morning. I’ve rung The Goodguys Bunbury, they haven’t offered as good a price, but they’ve got the TV is stock. Even if it ends up costing a couple of hundred more, if I can have it there and then…

    The story will continue tomorrow. For now, Retravision Bunbury: NEVER, EVER AGAIN. The only decision is to shop elsewhere with a retailer with staff that don’t lie continually for a living.

    BTW: feel free to link to this post with the words Retravision Bunbury. I’m already the 1st result in Google for The Goodguys Bunbury, lets see if we cant make Retravision Bunbury have the same result 🙂

    Update: phone call this morning from Retravision: maybe Friday, maybe next week on the TV. I got my money back, drove less that 1 km down the road to Good Guys, asked them to match the price, and walked out with the TV which is now setup and in my TV room. The Manager rang to apologise, I accepted the apology but I’ll still be hesitant to ever shop there again.

    Tags: ,

  • Fred for President

    fredNot many Australians would have been following this, but I’ve been watching for a while now, for those who have missed it, Fred Thompson, best known to Australians as the District Attorney Arthur Branch on Channel Tens Law and Order franchise, who also just happens to be a former Governor of Tennessee, is considering putting his hat in the ring to be the Republican candidate for US President in 2008. The latest here at Politico. From an outsiders perspective (ie non-American) there’s something somewhat appealing about him running, his character on Law and Order is said to be based on his actual persona, a number of the profile pieces and interviews I’ve read seem to suggest he’s a straight talker, although having said that he’s on the right in terms of the Republican Party, saying really stupid things such as the VT Massacre would have been avoided had Virginia allowed people to carry guns on campus (more guns is the solution? WTF?), and yet as a character he holds the promise of a Regan Presidency, one of substance and decisive measure. One to watch.

  • Another expert says Human Made Global Warming is a crock

    This speaks for itself:

    The United States?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ leading hurricane forecaster said Friday that global ocean currents, not human-produced carbon dioxide, are responsible for global warming, and the Earth may begin to cool on its own in five to 10 years.

    William Gray, a Colorado State University researcher best known for his annual forecasts of hurricanes along the U.S. Atlantic coast, also said increasing levels of carbon dioxide will not produce more or stronger hurricanes.

    He said that over the past 40 years the number of major hurricanes making landfall on the U.S. Atlantic coast has declined compared with the previous 40 years, even though carbon dioxide levels have risen.

    Gray, speaking to a group of Republican state lawmakers, had harsh words for researchers and politicians who say man-made greenhouse gases are responsible for global warming.

    ?¢‚Ǩ?ìThey?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re blaming it all on humans, which is crazy,?¢‚Ǩ¬ù he said. ?¢‚Ǩ?ìWe?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢re not the cause of it.?¢‚Ǩ¬ù

    More at HotAir.

    I’m just waiting for someone to blame man kind for the Global Warming on Mars, I really am 🙂

  • E-Gold soon to be no more

    Looks like the chaps behind E-Gold are in a spot of bother:

    “Three owners of online payment processor E-Gold and an affiliated company have been indicted for money laundering and related crimes for allegedly allowing sellers of child pornography, operators of investment scams and other types of criminals to send and receive payments related to their misdeeds.”

    I think I had an E-Gold account briefly either in the late 90s or early 2000ish, never used it, always thought it was a bit dodgy, and just as well I never used it.

    Having said that I’m not opposed to alternative forms of paying online, just that the promises of it all being “backed by gold” always sounded like a scam to me, and the transaction fees for converting E-Gold to cash make the exhorbitant currency interchange and transaction fees PayPal charge look like a walk in the park.