Top Items:
Robert Scoble / Scobleizer:
Steve Ballmer still doesn't understand social networking — A few years ago I wrote to Microsoft's leadership and asked them why they weren't involved in the new Web 2.0 space. I got an answer back that was about 2,000 words long and included the words "business value" 13 times.
Discussion:
TechCrunch, loose wire blog, innonate, Bokardo, Silicon Valley Blog, Leveraging Ideas and Smalltalk Tidbits …
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Gemma Soames / Times of London:
Ballmer: Facebook risks being 'a fad' — The Microsoft chief says that Facebook's appeal could fade - after being linked to an investment that would value the site at $10 billion — Steve Ballmer, the Microsoft chief executive, believes that the craze for individual social networks …
Peter Kafka / Silicon Alley Insider:
Microsoft: Yep, New Zunes. And DRM-Free Music? — Our spy in Seattle (actually, 20 minutes or so outside of Bellevue) tells us that Microsoft did indeed show off new Zunes today - a $149, 4 gig version and a $199, 8 gig model, both of which use flash memory, and an $249, 80 gig version that uses a hard drive.
Discussion:
Valleywag, Engadget, Wall Street Journal, Geek News Central, Mashable!, Daring Fireball, Gizmodo and BetaNews
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Jeff Leeds / New York Times:
Microsoft Updates Its iPod Competitor — Microsoft has revamped its slow-selling Zune digital music players and created a MySpace-style social-networking site in its drive to compete with Apple's market-leading iPod player. — In large part, the Microsoft moves announced Tuesday …
Ryan Block / Engadget:
Microsoft's new Zunes: officially in 80, 8, and 4GB sizes — We love a good non-mystery around here, and Microsoft's new Zunes are about as un-mysterious as they get. But we also love a good product refresh, and now that the cat's officially out of the bag we can really dig into the new Zunes …
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Todd Bishop / Todd Bishop's Microsoft Blog:
Highlights: Microsoft overhauls its Zune lineup — Microsoft released details of its new Zune devices Tuesday. They're due for release in November. Analysts say some of the new features are interesting, such as wireless synching with the PC. But Microsoft is playing catch-up to Apple's iPod …
Discussion:
CrunchGear
Ryan Block / Engadget:
Microsoft beefs up Zune music and community experience — As we noted in our Zune launch post, with the new Zune announcements, Microsoft intends to do more than just launch hardware. The Zune crew has apparently done a complete overhaul of the Zune desktop software so it's no longer …
Discussion:
Channel 9
Eric Bangeman / Ars Technica:
First RIAA trial gets under way with jury selection, opening statements — Duluth, Minnesota — Capitol Records, et al v. Jammie Thomas (the name of the suit changed after the RIAA dropped the sole Virgin recording from the case) got under way this morning in Courtroom One of the Federal Building in Duluth.
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Eric Bangeman / Ars Technica:Sony BMG's chief anti-piracy lawyer: "Copying" music you own is "stealing"
Discussion:
Digg
Henry Blodget / Silicon Alley Insider:
Google to $2,000 a Share? — A reader complained that we've been nothing but negative of late—recession, Microsoft, Yahoo, newspapers, music, dying TV ads, etc.—so we'll brighten your afternoon with some rip-roaring positivity. — Remember a couple years back when some analyst floated …
Discussion:
Valleywag
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Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
Google To $2000/Share? Somebody Muzzle Blodget — Henry Blodget made his name by predicting outlandish price increases for Internet stocks in the late nineties. A lot of people lost a lot of money (or, all their money) by listening to his recommendations.
Discussion:
mathewingram.com/work
Martin LaMonica / Webware.com:
Adobe expands online services, woos designers with Thermo — Attendees at Adobe's Max developer conference check out Thermo, the code name for a design tool that enables designers to construct Web applications without writing code. — (Credit: Martin LaMonica/CNET News.com)
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Newsosaur / Reflections of a Newsosaur:
Brain drain — As if the mainstream media didn't have enough trouble navigating the uncharted realm of digital innovation, they are losing many of the young, technologically astute employees who could be their guides. — "What am I doing here?" a talented young designer and programmer working …
Discussion:
O'Reilly Radar
Victoria Shannon / New York Times:
Microsoft to Increase Ad Business — Steve Ballmer, the chief executive of Microsoft, vowing that the company's $6 billion plunge into the ad business two months ago was not just an experiment, said today that advertising would become 25 percent of the company's business within a few years.
Brad Stone / Bits:
Bubblewatch: The Industry Standard is Coming Back — As if we needed any more evidence that the bubble is back in Silicon Valley, technology media company IDG plans to revive that hallmark publication of the dot.com era, the Industry Standard. — I hear that IDG has hired San Francisco …
