"After a bit of thought on the matter it seems to me that this offering from Google will cause heart palpations amongst the operators of services like those at JS Kit and MyBlogLog. These services allow publishers who have limited interactive functionality on their sites to add social features like members, comments and ratings. Membership, comments and ratings seem to form the backbone of the Google Friend Connect service. In that sense this new offering could very well make future growth prospects much harder for the companies I mentioned above. Most people familiar with blogging know MyBlogLog which was acquired by Yahoo. JS Kit is a much smaller, independent company. http://js-kit.com/" - Rob Safuto
"I'm not sure what to make of Friend Connect at this point. I've added the site to my Google profile which I have been cultivating for the last few months via Google Reader. The community widget that you have in the sidebar looks very similar to the ones that MyBlogLog users have on their sites. I will be interested to hear how the use of this feature impacts your site traffic and engagement." - Rob Safuto
I found these pictures that are more than three years old on a digital camera that I just retrieved from a moving box in my basement. I recorded an audio podcast at the event. Have a listen if you've got a moment and are craving some New York City fun. http://www.newyorkminuteshow.c... - Rob Safuto
How much instruction could they possibly provide in one hour? Seriously. I think that the "Everything You Need To Know" part over reaches just a bit. - Rob Safuto
They should have titled it "An Overview" but "Everything You Need to Know" probably just sounded catchier. They are planning to cover: * An overview of the Drupal content management system, framework and community
* A discussion on Drupal's philosophies on content management and software architecture
* A review of the evolution of the content management system
* How to leverage and participate in the Drupal community - Laura Norvig
"In your post you state that, "I believe that we to realize that we need a massive works project that will build out a fully planned nationwide power grid system; not just a collection of individually controlled grids." Exactly how does gutting the entire North American electric grid make it any more reliable? You make a leap from the 2003 blackout to the Brattle Group Report to the need for a massive public works project without making a coherent argument as to how the project improves the reliability of the grid. It's the same poorly constructed argument that we've heard frequently in recent months if only from politicians, journalists and activists who have zero experience with power systems or electric markets. A bit of education on power systems and electricity markets is required in order to speak authoritatively on this topic. Rather than take up any more space in your comments I'll just say this. The sky is not falling. A massive public works project is not required. What's..." - Rob Safuto
Amazon CloudFront is a web service for content delivery. It integrates with other Amazon Web Services to give developers and businesses an easy way to distribute content to end users with low latency, high data transfer speeds, and no commitments. - Rob Safuto
via Bookmarklet
I like the looks of this new service from Amazon. - Rob Safuto
I've been using Star Office (aka Open Office) on my laptop for quite a while now. Unfortunately I've found it hard to collaborate with my fellow MBA students and even open files from the University because Office 2007 is pretty much the standard. On another note the Amazon price was much better than the price at the Microsoft site. - Rob Safuto
What started out as a mad dash to extract energy from the ocean's waves and tides has slowed to a marathoner's pace — complete with a few water breaks and sprained ankles along the way. In the past three years, more than 100 preliminary permits have been issued nationally for wave- and tidal-energy projects, and nearly 100 more are pending approval. But only one has won a license to operate — a small wave-energy development off Washington's northwest coast. - Rob Safuto
David Crane, President and CEO of NRG Energy, Inc. today joined some other members of the United States Climate Action Partnership (USCAP) in Washington, DC, to urge federal support for cap-and-trade legislation. "Over the past 100 years, American capitalism has been the most powerful, creative and dynamic force on earth. That force now needs to be channeled to confront climate change which, in turn, requires government action in a language that American business understands," said Crane. "That language is price. Without a price on carbon, carbon abatement will not happen." - Rob Safuto
"But they tried to use the human voice Neville. They tried to be funny and engage the community using a viral video that was obviously not meant to be serious. Motrin was met with a small, but vocal and angry mob that lacked a sense of humor. There are a lot of people involved in "social media" who need to get over themselves and some of these so-called "mommy bloggers" are among those who need to get a grip. The message that is sent loud and clear from "social media" to brands is this one. By all means engage us. But if you dare engage us without consulting us first. If you dare step into our realm without the wisdom of our counsel and the coin of our acceptance then we will make you pay a price. The offended parties represent something akin to a clique in the corner of a high school cafeteria. They're definitely not professional communicators or the spokespeople for the world of social media." - Rob Safuto
In Coles County, economic developers and others who back the FutureGen clean-coal project have waited for Election Day for months, hoping a new president would breathe life back into the out-of-favor project. - Rob Safuto
The cost of offshore wind farms has continued to soar, Centrica said, leading the company to review the economics of its £4bn wind power investment programme. The spiralling costs of offshore wind threaten to derail the government's renewable energy plans, which rely heavily on offshore turbines because of the difficulty and delays in obtaining planning permission for onshore wind farms. - Rob Safuto
"In the next few weeks, we will be announcing a series of detailed measures, including a target for each French region to install at least 300 MW of solar photovoltaic generation capacity. We will also be launching our geothermal energy programs in regions like the Ile de France [around Paris], Alsace and in the Rhone-Alps, which we abandoned in a moment of madness," Borloo said. - Rob Safuto
One of the UK's largest wind farm projects is in doubt after the credit crunch has forced a backer to pull out. Statoil, the Norwegian oil giant, is now looking for a new joint venture partner to help develop the £700m offshore wind project off the Norfolk coast. If built, the 108 turbines would provide enough electricity for the homes of a city the size of Cambridge. - Rob Safuto
The cost of offshore wind farms has continued to soar, Centrica said, leading the company to review the economics of its £4bn wind power investment programme. The spiralling costs of offshore wind threaten to derail the government’s renewable energy plans, which rely heavily on offshore turbines because of the difficulty and delays in obtaining planning permission for onshore wind farms. - Rob Safuto
Gamesa is in the process of expanding. The company is clearing land outside its plant to make more room to store the 7-ton fiberglass blades that are half-a-football-field long. The growth doesn't stop there. Gamesa spokesman Michael Peck told WJAC News that the company would like to build more factories in the area -- ones that can make all of the turbine parts that are now shipped in from overseas - Rob Safuto
Nissan announced that buyers of its upcoming all-electric cars might have the opportunity to lease the high-voltage lithium-ion batteries separate from the cost of the car. - Rob Safuto
"It looks really good Neville. So good that I've signed up for an account with IntenseDebate! The support by Automattic and the fact that you can easily integrate previous comments definitely lower the risk of switching for many bloggers. This is not good news for Disqus." - Rob Safuto
VICTORIA has become the first Australian state to pass carbon capture and storage (CCS) legislation. The State Government's `Greenhouse Gas Geological Sequestration Bill' will enable the onshore injection and permanent storage of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The Bill is expected to take effect on 1 January, 2010. - Rob Safuto
The U.S. wind industry installed about 1,400 MW of new wind capacity in the third quarter of the year, bringing the total installed capacity to over 4,200 MW in the year and over 21,000 MW overall. Some 8,000 MW more are under construction for completion this year or next year. Over 7,500 MW is likely to be installed in 2008. - Rob Safuto
PPG Industries Fiber Glass Products Inc. plans to create 120 new green jobs in Shelby, North Carolina according to press release issued on November 7, 2007. The new jobs will pay an average wage of $32, 183 annually. - Rob Safuto
company that makes blades for wind turbines has put plans to add 300 jobs at its Newton plant on hold, citing the struggling economy. TPI Composites has delayed plans to add the jobs and expand the plant that opened in September. - Rob Safuto
