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by hilzfuld on Random, Software, Tech

Google’s Done it Again

After playing with Google’s new browser, Chrome, I can safely say that Google has done it again. They have managed to maintain their “we make products that work” reputation. Chrome is faster than IE, Firefox, and Safari. My initial disappointment due to the lack of a compatible Google Toolbar, has now been corrected. Google designed the browser so that you do not need any add-ons, you can simply type your search words in the browser’s address bar and you are automatically directed to the search results, as if you had searched at Google.com.

All in all, Chrome offers a very nice and smooth experience with an easy-to-use interface. After Google released their Lively service last month, that was, in my opinion, unusable, I got a little worried that Google was headed in Microsoft’s direction, i.e getting too big to make really good products. It seems now, that they are in fact headed in Apple’s direction, which is where all companies should be headed.

-Hillel

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by Aryeh on Random

On Board-On The Ground

Breaking away a little from the tech side of the blog and onto the marketing. I just came across this company called Jumbohostel, who have taken a plane and turned it into a hostel.

The jumbo, which was built in 1976 was in serious need of repair after its company went bankrupt in 2002.

” I was getting ready to expand my hostel business in 2006 when I heard about an old wreck of an aircraft for sale at Arlanda. Since I had for a long time wanted to establish my business at Arlanda, I didn’t hesitate for a second when this opportunity struck”, Oscar Diös explains.

Oscar Diös previously owned and ran the hostel Uppsala Vandrarhem och Hotel.

In December 2007, Oscar received the permits to move his hotel to the entrance of the Arlanda airport, and in January 2008 the plane was moved to its construction site gutted, and the work began. The plane/hostel is expected to be ready by next summer.

I think that this is definitely going to be a major attraction to this noname place in Sweden. It should surely draw plenty of free press because it’s a great story that includes real innovation.

Here are some pictures of the concept design.

– Aryeh

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.1523726&w=425&h=350&fv=]

more about “untitled“, posted with vodpod

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by hilzfuld on Mobile, Random, Software, Tech

Second Thoughts- Hardware vs Software

I know I wrote before that the cellular industry is becoming a software-dominated market, but there are still some signs out there, that I might be wrong about that. Take HTC for example. I remember when, not so long ago, HTC was a no-name generic type of company. They were the type of company that made handsets somewhere in the Far East but pretty much no one heard of.

A lot has changed since those days. HTC started making such good hardware that they have become one of the, if not THE, most dominant players in the cellular world today. They are now making phones for giant corporations like Palm, Google, and Microsoft. So maybe hardware does still appeal to some, and the software trend we seem to be entering, will take some time to really take over the market.

Alternatively, maybe what people are really looking for, is a combination of the two. They want a beautiful piece of hardware that’s form factor makes it easy to operate, alongside a user friendly, easy-to-use interface, and a fast and responsive operating system. Oh yea, and let’s not forget this week’s buzz word, an app store.

-Hillel

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by Aryeh on Mac, PC, Random

More thoughts on Microsoft’s Marketing

In my previous post about Microsoft’s attempt to copy Mac’s add campaign, my point was that they are just lame, but I am going to build on that point to include that Microsoft is totally failing in their attempts to use social marketing. Today, where social marketing is where it is at, one of the largest companies in the world still cant tie their shoelaces. One of the great things about social marketing is that its cheap and effective, if used correctly. Microsoft, on the other hand, would rather spend 300 million dollars on big celebrities to probably make some stupid TV commercials that will draw some attention but are really pathetic. You are one of the most powerful companies in the world and you need Seinfeld, Sarah Silverman, Willie Nelson, Travis Pastrana, Matthew McConaughey, Ralph Nader, Rob Corddry, Stephen Colbert (and even the late Bernie Mac is being considered for the ad) to do your marketing for you?

Get some creativity Microsoft, come on, any idiot can pay 300 million dollars and make an ad. Stop following, and innovate or else the next generation of young Americans who already hate your company will continue to buy other products.

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by Aryeh on Random

I made the switch to WordPress

I am just getting started here with the blogging so I made the swtich early on from Blogger to WordPress.

I think the WordPress layout is easier to use and looks a whole lot nicer, but we will see.

Have a good one,

Aryeh

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by Aryeh on Random

iPhone kills the Bold in Speed Test

Hi All,

In my quest for a new phone, the iPhone wins another qualifying round by killing the BlackBerry Bold in a simple browser speed test. I use the phone pretty frequently throughout the day for browsing, so it’s a deciding factor for me. To top it off, its the old iPhone in the movie, the new 3G should be faster.

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.1497087&w=425&h=350&fv=]

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by Aryeh on Random

“To iPhone or not to iPhone”

Although, in the past few days Apple has admitted that the mag safe adapter is unsafe.They also have come clean about the iPod nano generation one battery – Yes they do explode, WOW it took a genius to figure that out! Not to mention the inexcusable launch of Mobile Me which was and still is a total disaster. Not only did they market that this product was “push email” called it “exchange for the rest of us,” the software does not work to push email at all, rather with a 15 min delay, sounds a lot like pop email to me. This might have been overlooked and downplayed but due to the fact that the service was a total flop with downtime, lost emails and all sorts of bugs, Apple got what they deserved. Almost everyone covered the crappy service that they launched.

Even TechCrunch’s Micheal Arrington posted his rant against the Apple Corporation. TechCrunch is known for being pro Apple and even they have had enough. Then you hear stories like Apple is setting the new standards in customer service and satisfaction which makes you wonder are they really trying to improve or is their PR machine at work.

Back on topic- I am now considering the HTC Dream with Android which is a whole post in itself and maybe the recently released Treo Pro. I would like to stay away from Windows Mobile which is what I’m stuck with now on my BlackJack. The iPhone has really revolutionized the smartphone market but they are missing the boat with missing basic functionality like cut and paste, where again their arrogance is shown by the user base strongly requesting it and the company responding with “it is not on the top of their to do list”. So people like Zac White need to make the simplest apps to help us out- Check out the video:

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.1497015&w=425&h=350&fv=clip_id%3D1562944%26server%3Dwww.vimeo.com%26autoplay%3D0%26fullscreen%3D1%26md5%3D%26show_portrait%3D0%26show_title%3D0%26show_byline%3D0%26context%3D%26context_id%3D]
more about “Cut and Paste for iPhone on Vimeo”, posted with vodpod

Have a good one,
Aryeh

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