Wednesday, March 30, 2011

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Help Me Interview Jack Dorsey Tonight Top
Jack Dorsey is in demand these days. The inventor of Twitter is now back as head of product, while still acting as CEO of his other startup, Square. Tonight, Dorsey and I will guest lecture together at Rachel Sterne’s Columbia Business School course on Social Media And Entrepreneurship . Sterne is also New York City’s chief digital officer, so it should be a social media extravaganza. We’ll be streaming the talk right here on TechCrunch starting around 6PM ET tonight. It’s really more of an interview, with questions from the students and the audience at large. If you have a question for Dorsey, leave one in comments below or Tweet them at me during the event @erickschonfeld . I’ll be asking Dorsey about his new role at Twitter, where the product needs to go from here, how he will balance that with his role at Square, and how he thinks about designing social products in general. The theme of the lecture is “Social Disruption.” Both Twitter and Square are disruptive startups in the media/communications and payments industries, respectively. We’ll get into how each company disrupts the current order of things and creates new value in the process. Square lets anyone accept credit cards, lowering the barriers to creating a business. Twitter lowers the barrier to communication, opening up a whole new way to consume information. I want to know what lessons he’s learned from both experiences, and how the early rough days of Twitter helped him launch Square with so far hardly a hiccup. I also want to know what he thinks about larger players like Intuit rushing in after Square . Got more questions? Add them below. Until then, your homework assignment is to watch this video on how Jack thinks about product design : CrunchBase Information Jack Dorsey Twitter Square Information provided by CrunchBase
 
This Is What Skype 5 For Mac Should Look Like Top
Skype users with any sense of aesthetic justice are pretty much in unanimous agreement that the user interface for Skype 5 for Mac is a disaster. Between the useless coverflow way of scrolling through Contacts, the using of “recently talked to” instead of “online” as a hierarchy for listing Contacts and the irrational hogging of onscreen real estate in the most recent update, I’ve now began to shudder every time I see the message “There is a new version of Skype available.” I am not alone in thinking that the ability to video chat with multiple people isn’t worth the rest of Skype 5 for Mac’s UI hassles. Software Engineer Lucas Matis just wrote a nearly 2,000 word missive on how the new Skype is too confusing for the casual user, and not complex enough for someone more advanced (And why can you no longer send links while in video chat mode?). “At the company I work, we use Skype to communicate. A lot of the people here use Windows computers. More than once, a Windows user walked by my Mac, saw my version of Skype, and said something to the effect of «wow, this looks so much better than the horrible mess we have on Windows!» It seems Skype has noticed that there is a discrepancy in quality between the two versions, and has decided to make the two versions more similar to each other. Unfortunately, instead of making the Windows version of Skype better, they've decided to fix the discrepancy by making the Mac version of Skype more like the Windows version.” Skype itself seems at the least unaware of the problem, recently and flippantly holding a design contest for a custom chat style , which lead to a barrage of comments from angry users like this one: “Please Skype team, don’t move on to add other new stuff when everyone, and by everyone I mean everyone, hates your 5.X version on the Mac. What will matter to have a nice chat window, if no one likes the whole application? As many other people I’m staying with 2.8, and I don’t care about chat windows, or anything else you think will add benefits to the 5.x version, just get rid of that horrible interface!!!” Instead of being content to sit and complain in the comments, designer Matthias Kampitsch decided to take the “customize Skype for Mac” thing a bit further and actually redesign the whole thing (above/below). The result? A cleaner, more intuitive way to use Skype, complete with a global menu bar short cut and an online/offline contacts hierarchy. Consider this a warning, Skype. In the meantime you can get Skype v2.8 back here.
 
With +1, Google Search Goes Truly Social — As Do Google Ads Top
Back in early December of last year, we first reported that Google was toying around with the name “+1″ for an upcoming social product. At the time, we were told it was sort of like Google’s version of the “like” or “retweet” button. Today it officially launches as a way to share Google Search results that you like with your friends — and also Google Ads. To be clear, the version of +1 which is beginning to roll out today is not the toolbar version that we first got a glimpse of in December, that’s apparently a different version that was being tested. This version of +1 actually launching is a small button that will reside next to each and every Google Search result. If you like the result, you click the +1 button and it gets shared with your social circle — and the public (more on that in a bit). The button also works on the ads that appear in Google Search. If you like those and think they can be useful to friends, you can also hit the button there to highlight them. That may sound like something no one would ever do, but the implementation is actually pretty smart. You see, since the pages linked to in Google ads also appear in Google’s regular index, if that page as ever been +1′d as a regular result, it will also show up as +1′d in the ad. But let’s take a step back for a second. Google +1 is an extension of what Google has been doing for a while with Social Search, Google’s Matt Cutts tells us. In their most recent update to that feature, results were surfaced and highlighted when someone in your social circle shared something on a social network, like Twitter or Buzz. “ People really like this aspect of social search ,” Cutts says. At the same time, the current social mechanisms require some work to be useful — you have to explicitly share a link somewhere. You might not want to do that with every link you like. And that’s where the +1 button comes in, it’s a simple way to indicate you like a page and think it might be useful to others. Again, sort of like a “like” button. Cutts wants to be very clear that this +1 data is public. While a big aspect of +1 is sharing results with your social graph, it is also about using that data in aggregate to highlight better results for everyone. For example, on a result that has been +1′d, you’ll see if any of your friends have +1′d it (in a similar way to the current Social Search look with people’s tiny profile icons under the result itself). But you’ll also see that X number of other people that aren’t in your social circle +1′d it as well. This also ties directly into Google’s push to make all Google Profiles public . If you’ve upgraded to the new Google Profile, you will have a new +1 tab that will keep track of all the results you’ve clicked the button for. From here you can easily remove any result as well if you no longer want to publicly indicate that you like it. And when you’re adding +1 to your profile (it will be opt-in at first), you’ll notice that there’s a check box to opt-out of using your +1 information to “personalize content and ads across the web.” The last bit is key there. Ads. Again, you’ll be able to +1 any Google ad you see in results just as if it were a regular result. This is similar to the concept Digg has been using with Digg Ads (ads that you can digg), and sort of like the way you can retweet any Twitter Promoted tweet. Of course, it’s most like the way that you can “like” any ad on Facebook as well. At the end of the day, that’s what this really all comes down to. Whether they’ll admit it or not, Google is at war with Facebook for control of the web. Facebook is coming at it from a social perspective, Google from a data perspective. But the two sides have been inching closer to one another. Facebook isn’t fully doing search — yet . But their social ad play is also a huge threat to Google. Probably even a bigger threat, since that’s the way Google makes the vast majority of their money. And +1 is a big attempt to keep pace with Facebook in that regard. The key that Google isn’t really touting yet is that +1 data can be used to make ads social not just on Google Search result pages, but also across the whole web. If you have a site that runs AdSense ads, it may now feature +1 data in addition to the ad. And these newly social ads require no changes from advertisers, the bidding model doesn’t change at all and as a bonus +1 data will now be included in reports, Google’s Christian Oestlien says. Guess who else would like to do the same thing with ads across the web given the social data that they have? Yep. Facebook. At the same time, Google has had many failures in the social space. And they realized that with +1, they couldn’t afford to have some big hyped-up launch once again. So they’re taking it slow. There will be no +1 buttons for publishers at launch (but they’re coming). There will be no toolbar that spreads across other Google properties (that may be coming). There will be no mobile app or aspect (that it likely coming as well ). The feature itself will roll out slowly and will at first be an opt-in one found in Google’s search experiments area. But make no mistake, this is a massive Google project. And eventually it will hit all users — and not just those logged into their Google accounts. Down the line, Google can envision this +1 data influencing search results across the board, Cutts says. That’s what we call “downplaying” — assuming people use it, the social data is very likely to be the key ingredient to the future of Google Search.
 
5 Reasons To Buy A Nintendo 3DS… And 5 Reasons Not To Top
With the hoopla over the Nintendo 3DS dying down and the hard reality of the thing clear, it’s time to take stock and assess if the 3DS is right for you and/or your family. First off, I’ll say I’m a fan. It’s a wildly fascinating device and the 3D effects are amazing – when done correctly. I believe the 3DS has legs and will maintain sales at a steady clip over the next few years and I also think Nintendo has set a new level of interactivity and creativity in the creation of this new handheld. This isn’t just an upgraded DS, it’s a new handheld console. Let’s go through a few reasons why the 3DS is worth picking up – and a few caveats before you buy. Read more…
 
TechCrunch Disrupt NYC 2011: Get Your Applications In Soon Top
TechCrunch Disrupt is back and in a big way. The conference we launched last year in New York and San Francisco is coming back this year and this time we are going global by adding another destination – Beijing. All three conferences will be packed with the best new startups, all-star speakers, free WiFi, and after parties. The first Disrupt will take place in New York City on May 23rd to 25th, right after our Hackathon on May 21st to 22nd where developers come together to create a product in 24 hours. Like we’ve said before, anything can happen at these events. During Disrupt last year, we launched two dozen startups (the winner was international startup, Soluto ), Charlie Rose kicked off the event by interviewing legendary VC John Doerr, Carol Bartz told Michael Arrington to *ahem* ,  and we even had a real company emerge from our Hackathon, GroupMe , which later went on to raise $10.6 million . You can read about co-founder Jared Hecht’s experience at Disrupt here . If you are building a company or a product that you feel is going to make a huge impact and change the world, we want you to apply. There are no fees to apply or compete, and startups from around the globe are welcome to submit their company or product for consideration. But the deadline for submissions is looming. We will be accepting submissions through Sunday, April 3, 2011 at midnight PST. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Please submit your application  HERE on our Disrupt application site powered by  Producteev . Nowhere else will you find the talent, drive, or passion that we gather at Disrupt.  The relationships people make, the feedback each team receives, and most importantly the recognition and attention each team gets is something you will not find at any other event. Tickets to Disrupt are also on sale now. You can get the best rates here. We will also be doing some ticket giveaways as well coming up with ways to give everyone a chance at getting a ticket.  So keep your eye out for those announcements soon.
 
Twitter's Biz Stone Talks About Awkward Acquisition Meeting With Zuck On Howard Stern Top
After talking to Conan a few weeks ago, and CNN’s Piers Morgan last night, Biz Stone made an appearance on another mainstream media show today: Howard Stern. You can access the interview here. Unlike many of Stern’s interviews, this one was mostly PG-rated. One of the most interesting tales revealed in the interview was the backstory behind Facebook’s offer to acquire Twitter back in 2008 (the story is at the 16 minute mark in the interview). As we know, Facebook reportedly offered Twitter $500 million to acquire the company in the fall of 2008. Biz tells Stern that he showed up at work one day and Twitter employee Jason Goldman (who is no longer with the company) told him that fellow co-founder Evan Williams was waiting for him downstairs in a car. When Stone got in the car, he had no idea that the two co-founders had a meeting scheduled with Mark Zuckerberg to talk about the acquisition. In the car ride to facebook, they casually talked about a possible price, and Stone threw out the $500 million number, which they agreed would be a starting place in acquisition talks. When they got to Facebook, Zuck entered the meeting room and took the only single chair in the room, forcing Biz and Ev to share a small love seat. Talk about intimidating. He said it was awkward from the start. Biz was trying to throw jokes around, and each joke died. “It seemed like he had twelve people in his head,” explains Biz, “He was prepared for every scenario.” Zuck told Ev and Biz that he doesn’t like to talk numbers, but if they told him a number he would say yes or no. The $500 million price was thrown out and Zuck responded with “that’s a big number.” Eventually Biz says there was an offer of a mix of cash and stock but when Ev returned to the office that afternoon, he wrote Zuck a note that they were flattered by the offer but not interested in selling. And the rest is history. Other tidbits from the interview included the story behind how Twitter was formed within Odeo, why Biz is known as Biz (he couldn’t pronounce his first name Christopher as a child, and said ‘Biztopher’ instead) and that he takes a salary (that isn’t terribly large). He also said that Twitter needs to add the ability for people to add a comment to retweets. The entire interview is around 45 minutes but it’s pretty entertaining if you have the time. CrunchBase Information Biz Stone Information provided by CrunchBase
 
Google Chooses Its Fiber-Networked City Of The Future: Kansas City Top
Back in February 2010, Google announced its plans to build out a fiber-optic network for a city in the United States, promising connection speeds around 1Gb/s — 100 times faster than the broadband most people are used to. The announcement led 1,100 cities to apply, and today Google has just announced the winning city: Kansas City, Kansas. For you lucky Kansas City residents, Google has launched an informational page outlining what their plans are (it also provides some background about Google itself). The site’s FAQ says that Google hopes to begin building the network by the end of the year and that service should begin in the first quarter of 2012, with plans to roll out to all communities in Kansas City. Once the service is live pricing will be “competitive to what people are paying for Internet access today” though Google hasn’t yet named the plans. Dont be too depressed if you happen to live somewhere outside of Kansas City, though. In the video below announcing the news, Sergey Brin says, “That’s why we’re rolling out to communities, starting with Kansas City, that are going to give one gigabit of access to every home.” So it sounds like we’ll be hearing about more community launches in the future. And hopefully Google’s roll-out will put pressure on major broadband providers to speed up their fiber roll-outs. CrunchBase Information Google Information provided by CrunchBase
 
Cook And Patzer On Intuit's Growth, The Payment Graph, And Product Focus Top
Last night I caught up with Intuit founder Scott Cook and Aaron Patzer, the founder of Mint who know runs Intuit’s personal finance group. I whipped out my iPhone and did an impromptu interview. Cook and Patzer talk about where growth is coming from at Intuit, how it tries to encourage entrepreneurism, and the “payment graph.” Cook is really excited about SnapTax, the TurboTax iPhone app that lets people do their taxes by snapping a picture of their W-2 forms. The same OCR technology will soon be baked into the company’s upcoming GoPayment apps for accepting checks via photo. Patzer came into Intuit through the $170 million acquisition of Mint . Cook knows the value of injecting entrepreneurial DNA into the larger organization, and he tries to foster that spirit throughout Intuit. Since Intuit bought Mint, it’s kept on growing from 1.7 million to 5.6 million users, and gradually it is being connected with hooks into Intuit’s more established products like TurboTax and Quicken. Off camera I asked why doesn’t QuickBooks offer a similar service to help businesses visualize and organize their expenses like Profitably does with QuickBook’s APIs, and Patzer agreed, “That is something that should be in QuickBooks.” (That is just his opinion, he doesn’t run QuickBooks). In the video, Patzer imagines a Mint-like service which suggests deals on business services to QuickBooks users. Patzer goes beyond that and talks about the idea of a payment graph which tracks relationships between businesses and how much they are paying each other. Before the video, he told me: “People talk a lot about the social graph and interest graph. One third of the economy goes through QuickBooks in terms of businesses invoicing other businesses. Each invoice contains a connection between vendors, suppliers, and customers, and also the price of that connection. Representing the payment graph is huge opportunity and something no other company can do.” At it’s core that is a very interesting idea—to map out business relationships based on payments, with the strength of each tie determined by the flow of money either way. I wonder if it would look anything like social influence graphs that look at who retweets and @replies whom. It is clear that Intuit is still extremely product focussed. I asked Cook what is more important to nail down first, the product or the business model. For Cook, product always comes first: “If you’ve got delighted customers, you can figure out downstream where the money is. If you don’t have delighted customers, stop. Don’t go there.” CrunchBase Information Intuit Scott Cook Aaron Patzer Information provided by CrunchBase
 
Fuze Meeting Brings Multi-Party HD Video Conferencing To The iPad 2 And Android Devices Top
FuzeBox , the developer of an online meeting software, is launching its multi-party HD video conferencing technology for the iPad 2 and Android devices. Previously released in private beta , the software had been updated with support for more devices, an improved user interface, and more multimedia sharing and annotation options. As I’ve written in the past, Fuze’s video technology provides a WebEx-like conferencing service that allows users to share screens and run meetings online. As opposed to its competitors, Fuze promises a sleeker more lightweight interface that incorporates HD video. I’ve tested the technology out multiple times, and not only is Fuze easy to use, but there is little to no latency and features high video quality. With the debut of video capabilities in the newest version of the iPad, Fuze has updates its own technology to support the device and has also added a few bells and whistles. The multi-party conferencing, which works for up to 10 participants, includes support for multimedia sharing (documents, presentations, videos and images), real-time annotation within the conference and activiate a laser pointer within meetings. The company is also introducing French and Spanish support and more international toll-free numbers. And what makes the meeting application unique is that it works across all major platforms including Macs, PCs, iOS devices, and Android tablets. While Fuze has a somewhat unorthodox past, the company has made a big met on video conferencing and meetings software recently, which could pay off with enterprise customers. To date, Fuze has been awarded 23 patents around telephony and collaboration with an additional 42 pending. Fuze is also offering TechCrunch readers 5 VIP Fuze Meeting accounts (a value of $210). The first five readers to email techcrunch@fuzebox.com will receive a free account. CrunchBase Information Fuze Box Information provided by CrunchBase
 

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