GrandCentral and Google starting to synergize (is that a word?)

via Mashable ~ GrandCentral the 1 number to rule them all voice provider (and just an all around awesome service) has finally started down the path of integration with Google. You will see in the top right of my blog - a button that was auto generated and installed from inside my settings page of my Grandcentral account. By clicking it you can enter a phone number and it will contact me, complete number privacy and find me follow me, is a very compelling solution for web based calling.

A hearty congrats to Craig Walker, the CEO of GrandCentral on not only the sale to Google, but keeping GrandCentral a separate and growing business inside the Google ecosystem.

Craig - we discussed Canadian DID's at CES in 2005, we really need to get that done! GrandCentral needs some Canadian flavour! I will leave you a message on your GC account.

Cheers.

Paul Potts at the Royal Variety Concert, happy beginning to a great story of 2007

The first time I saw the Paul Potts video on Youtube, my jaw dropped. Here was this ordinary guy who can sing like Pavarotti. The world fell in love with him over the internet and he went on to win the Britain's Got Talent competition.

Since his 'outing' on Youtube, Paul's first album has gone onto sell 2 Million copies and is number 1 in 15 countries.

This is my favourite story of 2007 - Congrats Paul, it is great to know there are people like you out there. When are you coming to Canada to perform?

The Blogosphere loses a bit of its voice

I have never had the pleasure of meeting Marc Orchant - but I have certainly read and enjoyed his writing over the years. Marc was a pioneer and leader in the world of social communications, and this is clearly represented by the 1000's of tribute posts that have been written across the world by his friends, family and people like me whom just respected his work.

My sympathies and thoughts are with his friends and family.

The biggest reason I love my Blackberry Pearl

The Pearl is a fantastic PDA - but the reason I simply won't switch to another platform anytime soon is this:

I am leaving for a 3 day business trip and - I am NOT taking my charger.

End of Discussion - call me when another smart phone can do that.

Live Documents - without the Microsoft Price Tag!

A gentlemen by the name of Sabeer Bhatia (would love to meet this guy sometime), has fired a shot across the bow of Microsoft's stranglehold on the Office workspace. If the name rings a bell, you would be correct in remembering Mr. Bhatia as the creator behind Hotmail, Microsofts free email service. Live Documents is another of Mr. Bhatia's creations and from the outside (I haven't got my beta invitation yet.. grr. apparently they were swamped with applications yesterday) looks unbelievalby cool. It essentially provides shared desktop/web document collaboration (think Google Doc's but actually usable for business) updating and a web based version of Office 2007. This is a big deal, smaller teams will snatch this service up in a heartbeat - and if it is scalable and secure larger companies will follow suit. If you only have to install a toolbar in Office and suddenly can create/share and collaborate on documents for free! it is a no brainer.

The Live Documents team is based out of the IT wonderland of India - looking at the About Us section on the website you can find this little gem..

Statutory Disclaimer: While our products are built primarily around the Microsoft Office suite, Microsoft Corporation was not involved in any way in the development of these solutions and does not endorse them in any formal way. Please see our IP Disclaimer for more information.
(Note: That said, since Sabeer Bhatia is a co-founder, a very small part of the millions that he received from Microsoft for Hotmail.com funded our development efforts - so thank you Microsoft!).

Note to the Live Documents team.. get me in the beta :) hurry...

Razzle.ca - the Canadian Woot! Opens tomorrow

Razzle.ca - a Canadian version of Woot.com opens tomorrow. For those unfamiliar with Woot - it is a 'one day, one deal' site and immensely popular in the US. All products are deeply discounted and only 5$ shipping and handling, whether is is a 50' plasma TV or a 'bag o' crap' which is their version of a mystery gift.

Building a community and interacting with it is smart marketing. Hopefully Razzle lives up to its US counterpart, it is off to a good start as they will be holding some form of lottery where you can win an item just for being part of the community which is quite innovative - I can see being their #1 customer in short order.

Razzle is based out of Montreal - which seems to be growing quickly as a hotbed of Canadian technology and innovation startups.

Good Luck to the Razzle team!

Press Release

For immediate release

Montreal, Oct. 23rd 2007

Groupe Yoda Inc, based in Montreal (Qc), is about to launch the first 100% Canadian deal-of-the-day website, named Razzle.ca.
Razzle.ca is an internet-based store that only sells one discounted product, each day, in large quantities.
Each daily product is available until either it sells out, or the 24 hours ends (at midnight Central time).

Founder of Group Yoda Inc, Ryan Closs, 26, says, 'as the early pioneer of the "One Day, One Online Deal" business model in Canada, Razzle.ca had to distinguish itself from classical online stores, such as Woot (US) or iBood (Europe). That's why Razzle.ca also offers a free-lottery for customers who can't afford buying the daily product. The name of the winner is displayed on the website the following day'.

Razzle.ca is also a web 2.0 community of people who love electronic gadgets and computer components. Members of the community share their opinions and humorous comments on the site's forums.

Director of purchasing, Jean Ellezam says, 'As each deal has a limited turnaround time on Razzle.ca, our daily visitors are into an impulse-buying process when they discover our daily product. It is important to help them doing their shopping around very quickly, and evaluate the real quality of the deal. That's why the website also offers direct links to the main price comparisons available in Canada and elsewhere'.

The website's marketing style is irreverent. Product descriptions often mock the brand of the product, the customers, or Razzle itself. Community users are also invited to do their own research and post their opinions — positive, or negative — on the product's blog.
Creator of the service, Ryan Closs, 26, declared in a past interview, 'our tiny profits should allow us to reach profitability a couple of months before we retire, around 2045'

The website will be launched November the 23rd. Free sign-up is available now at www.razzle.ca

English Contact:
Ryan Closs
info@razzle.ca

To Steve Jobs - Please give me an Ultraportable MacBook

I have finally made the decision to convert to Mac (yay me) - I am 100% confident that with the addition of the new Mac Office suite, all my needs will be met and I can retire my battle hardened Acer Aspire and never be forced to reformat it again.

Looking at what Apple has available today for laptops and with the rumours of an optical driveless ultra portable Mac, I have decided that this is the perfect machine for me. It would be nice if it came with 2G of RAM, an LED back lit display and a solid state (although not a showstopper if it didnt') drive. With the Santa Rosa Chipset this thing should really fly and be an ideal road/carry anywhere machine.

I think I am in the same boat as a lot of road warriors, I want something that is small enough to pull out on a plane (in economy) has great battery life but versatile enough to accomplish all my business related tasks and still do some multimedia. I want the ability to easily work on a desktop in the home office, and have my files synced to provide a seamless computing experience. I don't mind buying two machines, and the concept of an UP Mac might open the door to multiple purchases of other Apple products for a lot of users.

So I will watch anxiously for the new Mac in January and hope that it is the one I have been waiting for.