Yibu, Content Stacks, and Open Content

Brian Rieger has some very interesting ideas involving open content and mobile devices. His newly opened site Yiibu, as alot of Big Ideas, and I'm sure that I'll understand them as I start reading through the site. One very interesting application of Brian's ideas is this Laszlo "content stack" reader. I'm not sure but I think content stacks are collection of images that are meant to be viewed together in a series which present some rich information. Kinda like those animal flashcards you might have ordered on late night tv for your kids. It's a very interesting idea - using old school technology (JPEG's for goodness sake) to present a brand new idea and distribution scheme.

Check out the Laszlo widget.

secret project: thwak update

I'm working on a sekret project. It's a web-based game, but with quite a bit of "twist". I've got the basic UI working now, and some of the basic concepts. If you want to help me test it out, email me with the subject line "Thwak" and I'll send you a mailing list invite. I think this will be something fairly unique among games...

Visual Studio Express 2005 - for free

Looks like you can download and use forever free versions of Microsoft Visual Studio Express - sounds like something work checking out if you use Visual Basic, C++, etc. etc.

Laszlo releases LaszloMail

I know the folks have been working on this application for quite a long time. The powerful openlaszlo platform has been used to create a new flash-based webmail. In all honesty, even though I was expecting alot from this, I was suprised at how quick and responsive it is - especially for scrolling and updating onscreen.

You can sign up for a test account and give it a spin yourself.

GCDB - Game Company Database

This is an interesting mashup of a game company search engine and Google maps. Type in a geo location and find out what game companies reside near there. See how far you live from LucasArts or Electronic Arts.

Still riffing on Pandora

Last night I had intended to get alot of work done on a project I'm doing in my spare time. What did I do instead? I spent an hour fiddling around with Pandora. After finding a few songs that I really enjoy, I had a great time listening to the things that Pandora thought were similar enough to warrant sending to my "station".

If you are on the fence about trying it out, there's a free version now, and if you give it a few minutes to figure out the very fluid UI, I think you'll find it a rewarding experience.

They seem to be having some connection issues, but persistence pays off :)

Cross Browser Gradient Backgrounds w/out Images

Gradients plus rounded corners are all the rage in web development lately, it seems. Here's a great tip from the SlayerOffice dude (of whom I'm a big fan) to let you do just that - only without images.

Chiptune - when you want your music old skool

If you enjoy retro music such as that from the DemoScene, or from retro games like Mario Bros. you'll really dig this site.

Gee, I really need to progress beyond the "if you like X then you'll like site Y".


*cough*

er, why are you still here? Go listen to some great music from the golden age of gaming...

New Free Version of Pandora!

I just got an email talking about the new v2.0 version of Pandora - which is a killer app for listening to music that you actually like (as opposed to the "most popular" or "based on your friend's choices").

I must say this is one of the most addicting apps you'll run across in the near future. Just find a song you like and start building a station.

From the email:


In addition to many new features (bookmarking, station editing, playlist improvements, etc.), Pandora v2.0 includes a free, ad-supported version. Listeners have the choice to subscribe and stay clear of ads, or use the free service, which will gradually incorporate advertising. What does this mean for you? You can now come back and listen to Pandora as much as you'd like for free--and all the stations you've created remain intact.

Web 2.0 Site Validator

In the spirit of humor surrounding the Web 2.0 meme - there's a new site that lets you check any site for Web 2.0 buzzword compliance. Very nice!

CSS Shorthand Guide

When bytes can equate to dollars spent, every one of them counts. This little guide helps you collapse your style rules into more efficient expressions using "shorthand" style.

Secret Project -- shhh!

I'm starting a secret project! SHHH! Everyone's doing secret stuff these days so it sounded like fun. I think this'll be something very interesting. Interested? Well, if you enjoy casual/indie/online games then drop me an email with the subject line: Thwak and I'll sign you up to the alpha list... SHHH.

Or Click Here

Yahoo maps with a twist - arrrh me heartys!

It is a sign of good design when someone else takes what you have worked on and builds something completely unexpected with it - while still within the bounds of api's etc. This is a great example of what happens when you combine the "flash" aspect of maps with other kinds of flash capabilites. How long before you have a SIM City version, or a magnifying glass you could pass over to view details? Arrr!

Javascript Game Library

This is a great library for creating javascript based games. Hrm....

Openomy - online file storage with apis and tagging

I recently starting poking around with openomy, and I personally think it's pretty exciting. Imagine having a server side storage of files and stuff which you could access via apis, using tagging. Buzzwords aside, this may very likely become a service that rises above the web 2.0 noise with some genuinely useful features.

Why to I keep wanting to call it "openonomy" like "open economy"? :)
It's Oh Pen Ohhh Mee.

NetVibes - DHTML Desktop

With all of the talk about Live.com lately, it seemed appropriate to post a link to one of the better dhtml desktops out there right now - NetVibes. It looks strangely similar to Live.com - which perhaps is merely due to the fact that they are both presenting columns of info in little modules.

Beeline TV - Watch TV Online

One of the "up and coming" things it seems is internet TV. Streaming video is finally becomming somewhat practical. Blah blah, etc. etc. This is a page that has links to tons of free broadast TV via the web.