I have to admit when I first read that a URL shortening service managed to get $2M in funding I was bewildered. How on earth will the investors get any return on that I wondered? But the article (on ReadWriteWeb) goes on to explain why very convincingly (although most of the people commenting on it totally...

Hot on the heels of the MySpace and Silverlight partnership, comes Facebook’s partnership with Adobe (via TechCrunch). Called the ‘ActionScript 3.0 Client Library for Facebook Platform’ (and I thought Microsoft had boring names!), the API allows developers to build applications that connect the...

As I write this it’s less than an hour until April Fools’ Day starts here in Sydney, Australia. I’m actually looking forward to the inevitable batch of lame jokes. Everyone knows (well, almost everyone) that anything odd sounding is likely to be a prank, and so the enjoyment is in who can come...

Douglas Bowman, who Google gave the title of Visual Design Lead, is going to work for Twitter. This was rumoured a few weeks back on Valleywag and FastCompany, but appears to have been confirmed yesterday by Spencer Ante. We’re looking forward to Part 2 from Douglas, following up his Part 1 from just...

Ars Technica (who I love reading by the way) have a surprising piece on kids using Microsoft Surface. Surprising because it seems as though the writer has only just cottoned on to the fact that Microsoft is making a big push into the education sector. For those interest I covered some of the Surface...

Thanks to Long Zheng you can view a promo of the coming Windows Marketplace for Mobile experience. It looks pretty good actually, although the guy doing the voice over did sound a tad cheesy. (The screenshot on the right is taken from the video on Long’s site.) The selection process, rating system,...

This is good news, although probably not for the lawyers involved who may have been getting ready for a long running case. Microsoft and TomTom (who make the in-car navigation devices that we all seem to be needing these days) have come to a resolution over the patent infringement cases raised recently. Reading...

There’s no doubt that Silverlight is powering ahead in many circles. As Ars Technica reported earlier, the latest development along those lines has Silverlight and MySpace working together. MySpace is now allowing developers to host Silverlight applications on the MySpace Open Platform. From the MySpace...

SEOmoz has a really useful set of tools and links for those of you working on the SEO aspects of your site. It’s called the Internet Marketing Handbook and it is a free resource. I’d rate it as one of the best collections of internet marketing and SEO tools I’ve come across. The tools cover: Link...

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been hearing a lot of requests for developers lately. Seems as though despite what the media might be reporting, there are a lot of companies still hiring. Case in point: Microsoft. Although they had to initiate some layoffs earlier this year, that hasn’t stopped...

You’ll be shocked (NOT!) to learn that Twitter is growing at a massive rate. Stats last month put the growth at over 1300% for February (compared to a year earlier). You can read all the latest numbers over on the Nielsen site (which I came across via the TwistImage blog). For me the two most interesting...

There’s a huge batch of performance improvements coming in Office 2007 SP2, especially for Outlook users. This Microsoft Outlook Support article details the enhancements. Gains in general performance, storage algorithms and user interface are top of the list. As are a ton of bug fixes. Even just...

LifeHacker has a nice little tip for how to use Google Reader from within Outlook – if you are that way inclined Personally, I’ve been using FeedDemon for over 4 years now, and still love it.

Tim Heuer has posted a simple WordPress Silverlight plugin that allows you to easily host a Silverlight app in WordPress. Download it from Tim’s site here (I’ve deliberately not linked to the download file itself in case Tim updates the plugin).  

You’ve probably read about the Computer Tan site – a hoax site with a good message: skin cancer is a big problem, so be careful. If nothing else, read the FAQ on the site. It’s a crack up.

Ars Technica reported on the ‘accidental’ TechNet page detailing the Windows 7 RC release coming. The page (since taken down) details how the Release Candidate will be available in May 2009 (and not expire until June 2010). This adds further weight to a July release of Windows 7, noted back in February...

I have literally spent half a day getting to the bottom of this error, so I’m posting my findings here in the hope it saves someone else having to do the same. Bottom line: it’s your microphone settings. I’ve been using Camtasia for years now and never had a problem. Yet, all of sudden today it...

I was a little disappointed to read Microsoft’s Developer Strategy for the Next Generation of Windows Phones. Unveiled last week, this PressPass piece indicates that Microsoft will be sharing 70% of sales revenue with developers for any Windows Mobile 6.5 applications sold through Windows Marketplace...

Perhaps you missed this little gem: Photosynth Map Explore. I hope not, because I think it represents an interesting insight into the future of location. A little while back I was underwhelmed with Photosynth, but I did look forward to improvements with location being tied in. Photosynth Map Explore...

I’ve been wondering what’s next after Twitter. Where are all the cool kids heading these days? After all, it has become so mainstream now that the inevitable transformation from intimate community to marketing broadcast is all but complete. The vibe on Twitter has changed. Yes I know, that’s what...