Google has released its first product which could challenge Microsoft in its own manor.
The big idea is to get corporations to subscribe to its online corporate software bundle which includes office software over the interweb.
Google Apps Premier Edition, which was released today, has an online e-mail, calendaring, messaging and talk applications as well as a word processor and a spreadsheet.
Unlike the free version – which has been ignored by the great unwashed public for a while – the Premier Edition has a few bells and whistles that make it more useful for medium and larger sized businesses.
For $50 per user, a year, Google Apps Premier Edition has programming interfaces that businesses can use to integrate it with their own applications.
It comes with 10GB of storage for ad-free Gmail as standard, service agreements that promise 99.9% uptime, and “always on” tech support.
If a business can cope with its data being stored at Google then it is possible for it to give ten users an office product for the cost of one Office professional seat.
On the down side, it lacks a presentation tool and only has limited contact management capabilities. You also have to trust Google a lot and you can probably buy a Linux install for all the applications you can eat for about the same price.
Original URL: http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=37784
Posted in Google, Internet, Software | No Comments »
Entertainment giant Viacom is to provide TV programmes and films to much-hyped online video service Joost.
The deal includes programming from MTV Networks, BET Networks and film studio Paramount Pictures.
Joost was founded by Niklas Zennstroem and Janus Friis, the men behind Skype, and is pitching itself as a broadband video network.
Earlier this month Viacom asked YouTube to remove 100,000 “unauthorised” clips from the service now owned by Google.
The terms of the deal between Viacom and Joost were not made public but the service will have “free access to thousands of programmes and channels not readily available on the web”.
The agreement reflects the growth of interest mainstream media is taking in online delivery of video.
Similar services
Services such as iTunes and websites from networks like NBC and ABC are turning to the web to offer programmes and films.
In the UK Channel 4 was the first of the main broadcasters to offer a video-on-demand service, while the BBC and ITV plan similar services for later in the year.
The content Joost will receive from Viacom is aimed at a younger demographic, with programmes such as Laguna Beach, Beavis and Butthead, Real World and Punk’d on offer.
Joost is still in a beta – or test – form, allowing users to give technical feedback to the developers.
The company recently announced a version of its software that will allow it to run on Apple Macs as well as PCs.
Janus Friis, founder of Joost said: “We built this platform from the ground up, with companies like Viacom in mind.”
“We’re extremely pleased to be working with Joost, and couldn’t be prouder to be a key partner in the launch of the next generation in broadband video technology,” said Philippe Dauman, Viacom president and chief executive officer.
There are also reports that Joost is in talks with British broadcasters ITV and Channel 4.
Original URL: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/technology/6379595.stm
Posted in Internet | No Comments »
Alexadex
Have you ever played Alexadex? It’s a virtual share trading game with a difference… you buy and sell shares in websites! Alexadex is specifically designed around the site Alexa, who provides information on the web traffic to other websites. Alexa collects information from users who have installed their “Alexa Toolbar,” allowing them to provide statistics on web site traffic. Alexadex uses these statistics, to give each individual website a price per share. Therefore if the popularity of the website goes up, the price of the shares will go up and (assuming you have purchased those shares) your total portfolio value will increase. Alexadex has been open for 2 years and has gradually rised in popularity. It has thousands of members and is ranked at 3,187 according to Alexa.
Alexa Share
In August 2006, the world was introduced to Alexa Share. A similar idea to Alexadex, there was a new competitor in the share trading game market. Alexa Share had a much more colorful interface, something that Alexadex lacks, and a few more features (most noticeably, the ability to make your portfolio private). In the first few months of opening Alexa Share had a few bugs, but people were positive about the game and helped the owner of the site fix them up.
Alexa Share also encourages communication between its members, features include a private messaging system, group message boards and a forum. At one point they also had an IRC chat room. The site is ranked at 44,030 in the 6 months its been open.
itsdEx
itsdEx opened in May 2006 and took a slightly different approach to the share trading game. Unlike Alexa Share and Alexadex, it is mostly “Web 2.0″ with some nice design effects and good use of AJAX. The creator labelled the site as “social trading” as it plays the role of a social network as well. itsdEx offers many features that neither sites have, including members get their own blogs and gallery. Also share prices are calculated differently, and you can apply different strategies to the game. itsdEx is ranked at 52,302.
So what is the best site?
Although Alexadex is the most popular (and original) site, there a constantly numerous complaints about bugs and lack of updates. The owner of the site rarely makes changes to the site and seems to have lost interest in it altogether. Some people are also losing interest in the game and are moving over to Alexa Share and itsdEx.
Alexa Share is a nice site and is very stable, although it is said to be easier to “arbitrage” on it. However there are some rules over the site, and the owner is constantly on top of things and also helps enforce these rules.
itsdEx is the most fun to play and also provides the most detail on statistics, however it’s theme and use of AJAX are a little bit buggy and sometimes inappropriate. Also there seems to be too much content and can get a little confusing.
Me personally? I am a fan of Alexa Share and find it the best site to play on, so head on down there and lets battle it out 
Posted in Internet | 1 Comment »
