Check out Mini-Techmeme for simple mobiles or Techmeme Mobile for modern smartphones.
4:15 PM ET, December 5, 2009

Techmeme

 Top Items: 
David / TmoNews:
Google Phone To T-Mobile?  —  Let me just preface this post with a total rumor disclaimer, to be read only with serious grains of salt.  —  That being said, information has been passed along to me in a very James Bond type way from a trusty ninja who has yet to lead me astray.
Brad Stone / New York Times:
Apple Strikes Deal to Buy the Music Start-Up Lala  —  SAN FRANCISCO — In the most recent sign that Apple is looking at alternative ways for people to store and play their digital music, the company has agreed to buy Lala, a four-year-old start-up based in Palo Alto, Calif., a person with knowledge of the deal said Friday.
RELATED:
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
Confirmed: Apple Buys Music Service Lala, at a Fire Sale Price
Matthew Garrahan / Financial Times:
The rise and fall of MySpace  —  In summer 2005, having spent the best part of four decades ­building a newspaper, film and television empire, Rupert Murdoch decided that the time had come to get serious about the internet.  As founder and chairman of News Corporation …
Kevin Kelleher / GigaOM:
Does Google Even Understand What News Is?  —  The art of verbal self-defense can be tricky.  Ramble on while defending yourself against critics, and you can expose yourself to new criticisms.  For a recent and clear case study in this misstep, look no further than Google's own Eric Schmidt.
Thanks:atul
Ross Miller / Engadget:
Barnes & Noble's Nook gets a brief and early hands-on  —  Thanks to a very generous anonymous tipster, we've gotten a number of hands-on pics of Barnes & Noble's soon to be released (for some) Nook e-reader.  The impressions we've been given, however, weave a tale of a laggy Android interface …
Matthew Rivera / Digits:
Spot 10 Balloons, Win $40,000  —  If you look up and see red weather balloons this weekend, take note.  You've unwittingly entered into a social experiment. … The Defense Department's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or Darpa, launched 10 balloons, each eight feet wide …
Stephen Baker / Business Week:
Beware Social Media Snake Oil  —  Hordes of marketing “experts” are promoting the value of wikis, social networks, and blogs.  All the hype may obscure the real potential of these online tools  —  For business, the rising popularity of Facebook, Twitter, and other social media Web sites presents a tantalizing opportunity.
Discussion: broadstuff and Glass House, Thanks:atul
Rita Chang / AdAge:
Don't Create an IPhone App for the Online Buzz Factor  —  App Chatter Doesn't Build Brands, Long-term Engagement Does  —  NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — For all the love that marketers show iPhone apps, these micro-utilities and tools actually generate surprisingly little buzz in return.
Google Public Policy Blog:
When sources disagree: borders and place names in Google Earth and Maps  —  Collecting and sharing the most accurate information about place names and borders is a tough task that every map maker faces.  The first sources are the nations themselves, but when neighboring countries claim overlapping territories …
CW31:
‘Accidental’ Download Sending Man To Prison  —  SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ― A local man is likely to go to prison for years after he says he accidentally downloaded child pornography onto his computer.  —  Matthew White, 22, said he was surfing for pornography two years ago on Limewire …
David Sasaki / MediaShift Idea Lab:
Democratizing the Geography of Information  —  As little as a year ago Google Maps had no geographic information about San Javier La Loma, a small working class neighborhood on the outskirts of Medellín where the ConVerGentes group of the HiperBarrio citizen journalism project is based.
The EtherPad Blog:
Google Acquires AppJet  —  We are happy to announce that AppJet Inc. has been acquired by Google.  The EtherPad team will continue its work on realtime collaboration by joining the Google Wave team.  —  For Current Users and Customers:  —  What will happen to my account?  Will I still be able to use EtherPad?
RELATED:
Glenn Fleishman / TidBITS:
EtherPad Shuts Down after Google Acquisition
Discussion: TechCrunch
Chris Kanaracus / Computerworld:
Study: MySQL use to drop under Oracle ownership  —  Survey finds that Oracle ownership would blunt demand for Sun's open source database  —  IDG News Service - Usage of the open-source MySQL database is set to decline if Oracle succeeds in buying the software's owner, Sun Microsystems …
Discussion: The Register and New York Post
 
 Archived Page Info: 
This is a snapshot of Techmeme at 4:15 PM ET, December 5, 2009.

View the current page or another snapshot:


 
 Techmeme Sponsor Posts: 
Meta:
Open Source AI: Available to all, not just the few  —  Meta's open source AI enables small businesses, start-ups, students, researchers and more to download and build with our models at no cost.
Tribe AI:
Build AI products that matter  —  Tribe AI helps organizations rapidly deploy AI solutions that have real business impact.  We bring together world class AI talent and tooling to drive differentiated results.
Zoho:
CIO challenge 5: Can we find an effective solution that also minimizes operational costs?  —  Welcome to the next and final installment of our CIO series!  After what feels like a thousand cups of coffee …
Hamming:
Make AI Voice Agents trustworthy  —  Hamming AI automatically tests AI voice agents and continuously monitors them in production.
Sponsor Techmeme
 
 See Also: 
Techmeme: site main
Techmeme River: reverse chronological Techmeme
Techmeme Mobile: for phones
Techmeme Leaderboard: Techmeme's top sources
 
 Subscribe: 
Techmeme RSS feed
Techmeme on X
Techmeme on Mastodon
 
 
 More Items: 
Aaron / YouTube Biz Blog:
Hit the mark with Video Targeting
Discussion: WebProNews and Mashable!
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
CrunchPad Litigation Imminent
Jared Newman / PC World:
Experts Not Surprised By iPhone Malicious App Report
Discussion: New York Times, Thanks:thepimpofsound
Seth Rosenblatt / The Download Blog:
Google Chrome now bundled with Avast
 Earlier Items: 
Rich Miller / Data Center Knowledge:
DoD: Cloud Will Save Us ‘Hundreds of Millions’
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Lachlan Cartwright / The Ankler:
Sources: MSNBC renewed Rachel Maddow's contract early this fall, but with a pay cut; MSNBC bosses' plan to shake up daytime and weekend programming

Caitlin Huston / The Hollywood Reporter:
Internal memo: Hearst Magazines president announces layoffs as part of a decision to “reallocate resources” to “continue our focus on digital innovation”

Jon Brodkin / Ars Technica:
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced she will leave the agency on January 20; she was the first woman to be confirmed to lead the agency

 
Sister Sites:

Mediagazer
 Top news and commentary for media professionals from all around the web
memeorandum
 What US political commentators are discussing online right now
WeSmirch
 The top celebrity news from all around the web on a single page