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Filed under: Mozilla, Beta, Browsers

Mozilla Weave gets faster, adds Fennec support on WinMo in .5 release

I've been using Weave for a while now to stay on top of my browsing syncing chores. While it's still in beta, Weave has already come a long way since its initial release.

Yesterday, Mozilla Labs debuted version .5. The most noticeable change? Weave now stays out of the way while you're actively browsing in Firefox, waiting to go idle. On a mostly bare Firefox install (the only other addon I have installed is Personal Menu), Weave .4 caused the occasional performance hiccup. So far with .5, it's been smooth sailing.

The official blog post also reports improved performance in uploading and downloading - which I also noticed when setting up Firefox on my office system. While I can't provide an exact time, I'd estimate that it took roughly half the time to sync my profile from scratch as it did with .4.

Weave .5 also supports password and passphrase changes, handling for bookmark tags and smart folders, and adds support for Fennec on Windows Mobile. OpenSolaris users are now able to get in on the fun as well.

If you install Weave and you're concerned about security, you may want to head to its preferences screen and take the check out of the "automatically connect" box and choose not to remember your Weave password when you sign in next time.

Filed under: Google, Beta, Web

Google Calendar gets "labs" section, Gmail Tasks graduates from labs

Google Calendar Labs
Google is fleshing out its personal information management offerings. First, the company announce that Gmail Tasks has graduated from Gmail labs and is now available to every Gmail user whether they want the feature or not. And now Google has also added an experimental "labs" feature to Google Calendar.

At launch, there are just 6 experimental features for Google Calendar users. You can:
  1. Add a background image
  2. Attach Google Docs to a calendar appointment
  3. Display a World Clock
  4. Jump to a date int he past or future using a drop-down menu
  5. See when your next meeting is
  6. Show which of your contacts with shared calendars are free or busy right now
More features are reportedly on the way.

Keep in mind, these are experimental features, which means that Google may change or remove some of the options in the future. But some may eventually graduate to full fledged Google Calendar features.

Filed under: Business, Web services, Microsoft, Social Software, web 2.0

Screenshot of Microsoft "TownSquare" - Social Networking at Work

Microsoft TownSquare

We mentioned Microsoft TownSquare today, the new offering from Microsoft for internal social networking and document sharing, and we have a screenshot for you to check out.

From what we can see it looks like you get a steady stream of activity based on employee which is really, really cool and helpful, along with an RSS feed to track the activity. From a project management standpoint, this is a huge.

We'll keep an eye out for more info and keep you up to date. Is this something you would want to use at work, or would it creep you out?

Be sure to check out Microsoft Office Labs too.

Filed under: Utilities, Google, Social Software, Beta

Google Talk Labs edition released, adds group chat and more

Google Talk Labs edition is a new desktop version of Google Talk that borrows some features from the online Google Talk Gadget, including the addition of Group Chat, emoticons and more.

Google Talk Labs edition also adds new desktop notifications from Google Calendar, Orkut, and Gmail.

Unfortunately, it skimps on a few of the desktop features, and seems more like an intermediate step toward a full-featured desktop Chat application rather than its fulfillment. The most notable missing features are voice calling and file transfers. If you need those, you're better off with the original Google Talk client.

We hope that, in the near future, Google can round up all of its Chat features into one application. Until then, you'll have to pick and choose which features are important to you, and download or use the appropriate Google Talk service.

[via Daily Apps]

Filed under: Business, Design, Developer, Internet, Web services, Yahoo!

Location based photo browsing with Yahoo Zurfer

yahoo zurfer location based photo browsing

Zurfer is straight out of the Yahoo! Research Berkeley facility. This handheld application is a location based photo browser. What it is in basic terms is Flickr for your mobile device.

The Zurfer application is currently being developed in the Yahoo research labs, and will -- when loaded on mobile phones -- showcase photos taken around you based on current gps co-ordinates. You can also pull in the latest photos from friends, take photos and add them to your Flickr collection, and perform searches in Flickr for images using the mobile software.

The Zurfer application is in testing phases, and could quite possibly contain bugs, so download at your own risk. It is available, and has been tested on Nokia S60, Motorola RAZR V3X and a few other devices.

Filed under: Audio, Internet, Web services, Google

Google launches GOOG 411

google launches goog 411Google has announced a new labs project, a free 411 service. The Google Voice Local Search is an experiment, but it aims to get users fully automated access to local business information.

The GOOG 411 service holds the same information that would typically be found on Google.com, but for times when you just cant get to an internet connection and all you have access to is a cell phone or home phone, this is your next best bet.

The service is free to use, and Google does not charge businesses for connecting customers to them. It is still in an experimental form, and only available in English in the US, for US business listings. To try out the service, dial 1-800-GOOG-411 (1-800-466-4411) from any phone.

Update: Download Squad's Brad Linder put GOOG 411 to the test, and here's the result:

goog 411.mp3

Filed under: Internet, Web services, Google

Google launches Custom Search Engines

http://www.google.com/press/Google launched a customizable search engine today. This is a program where both individuals and organizations can build a search that will produce results that accommodate their audience requests better, in no time at all. Not only will the searches be tailored to website visitors with prioritized results and the ability to allow other user contribute to the search index, but the results can be monetized with Google AdSense. Thus displaying advertisements where site owners can make money. The customizable search engine will also be modifiable so that it is branded for users specific applications. Google built the Custom Search Engine to make it easy for anyone to create a search engine about their favorite topics.

In order to begin creating a search engine, users go to http://www.google.com/coop/cse/ and select the websites or pages they would like to include into their index under their Google Account username. Users can then have the opportunity to restrict or increasing ranking for results. And in order to better fit the engine into their website, users can customize the look and feel.

Some examples of the Custom Search Engine can be seen at JumpUp.com, and RealClimate.org.

Filed under: Fun, Text, Windows Mobile, Microsoft, Social Software

Microsoft's SLAM

SLAM What is SLAM, you ask? As with many Microsoft product names and government programs as well, SLAM is an acronym that stands for Social Location Application Mobile. Why that makes any sense, I don't know, but the idea is a mass-mobile messaging application out of Microsoft Research Labs. It endeavors to take SMS to the next level on mobile devices. There are many such services within the Web 2.0 bubble, most still in beta. This SLAM idea from Microsoft takes advantage of smart-phones, and especially those that have a unlimited data plan. Microsoft's software will SLAM your wireless bill if you don't have an unlimited data plan, because the service will allow groups to broadcast SMS messages to members including picture messages. Imagine all the bandwidth you would use up if this service went prime-time. Consider this Microsoft's stab at the social SMS broadcasting market (if there is one, I doubt it will go much of anywhere). I could see the use for it, as the website mentions, you could take a group to a movie and be able to instantly ask if everyone has arrived yet, or where everyone wants to go after the flick for dinner. Useful maybe, but in any case the service still isn't quite ready.

Filed under: Business, Internet, Web services, Microsoft, Social Software

Microsoft's social network Wallop

microsoft social network wallop
The MySpace competition is huge, and social networking is a giant place in today's online world. It's taken some time, but Microsoft is almost ready to launch their social network. Wallop has been around the Microsoft campus for awhile now, hiding down deep inside the MSN labs. Earlier this year Microsoft has decided to spin Wallop off as its own company, headed by Karl Jacob, the founder, and funded by a couple of VC companies. The difference between Wallop and all of the other social networks out there is that Microsoft's version introduces forms of personal expression into the mix. Developers and Designers can sign up for a special program to design and sell interactive flash widget like modules, like backgrounds, animations, toys, games and mini applications, that Wallop users can buy and add to their sites.

Unfortunately at the moment, Wallop is by invitation only, and I don't have one yet to test it out. So if anyone has a spare....or if anyone has had some experience using Wallop, we would all love to hear about it.

Featured Time Waster

Graveyard Shift - zombie-busting Time Waster

With Halloween fast approaching, it's a great time to get in some practice defending your territory against zombies. In Graveyard Shift, you take aim at zombies and other creepy-crawlies, blasting them into splatters of cartoony green guts. It's a casual first-person shooter, and it's very easy to get the hang of - use the mouse to aim, click to fire. Graveyard Shift has at least 15 levels, and it might even have some secret stages I haven't unlocked yet. They key to getting good at Graveyard Shift is learning to use ...

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