Polish a what?

Someone once said that you can’t polish a turd, but you can roll it in glitter.

Or am I being too harsh?

View article here.

iPhone Hype Holds Up

Finally, I might actually seriously pitch mobile to our clients in the coming months…

85 percent of iPhone users browse the mobile Web; iPhone is top device for news and information accessed on mobile browser

SEATTLE and LONDON — March 18, 2008 — Six months after the iPhone’s U.S. launch, has the device changed the mobile landscape? According to M:Metrics, the mobile media authority, the answer is yes. Today, the measurement firm reports that the iPhone is already the most popular device for accessing news and information on the mobile Web, with 85 percent of iPhone users accessing news and information in the month of January.

Read more here

My thanks to Publicis Digital (or is it Digitas now??)

Softwarewishes.com

Brilliant idea, and website to enable the collaboration!

As stated on the website

I wish there was a program which did __________ <— You fill in the blank. Software Wishes is a site for people to communicate their needs to software developers. Anyone can post a Project Outline for each software package or new feature they wish existed. It contains a requested license, description of the project, and links to software which is similar, but not exactly what is needed. All software outlines are reviewed before public posting.

Check it out here

The Secret Location

Way too long, so long it’s really annoying, but the premise of the concept is great.

Full screen digital video with on-the fly user interaction.

If only they gave it to an editing studio before publishing!

Check it out here

Under the Radar: Conference

This is one conference in Mountain View I’m very keen to go see.

“Dealmaker Media is announcing a CALL FOR COMPANIES for our twelth Under the Radar one-day event, featuring 32 emerging startups, on November 13, 2008, at the Microsoft Campus in Mountain View, CA”

View the details here.

Wow factor on FullScreen video

Check this out.

Vusion.com has some great video technology.  Exceptional sound and full screen video quality with great load times.

Bring on the death of TV, the integration of the computer with Broadcasting!  Hurry up, we’re ready aren’t we?

Note To Start-Ups: Advertisers Could Not Care Less About Your Site, App or Widget

I’m only 1/10th the way through this article, but thought it was so relevant and right that I had to post it straight away.

I can’t count the number of times people have come into my office off the street (almost literally in some cases) with grand ideas (and I admit, some have been great such as this example) with delusions of total grandeur about how their new site will reap the advertising revenue, and they can within 12 months/24months sit back and sip pina colada’s on some nice little tropical island.

Fact is (unless your in a certain industry starting with P and ending with N) that’s not going to happen.

If you’re a start up, read this.

I mean, read it.

Understand that your start up (let’s now refer to this as “new business venture) will not take 12-24 months to return millions in revenue (even Facebook are trying to get the social media/advertising revenue/privacy balance right).

Unless of course you are that 1-in-a-million idea, then read this first before you come see me, so at least your expectations of reality are in the right spot.  Then we can talk reality and longevity.

Read it here.

(Thanks to Avenue-Razorfish, one agency in this globe I have a LOT of respect for).

Idea Update 2: TomTom

A download this evening of the latest TomTom software for installation onto my trust ONE XL has uncovered the unfortunate (for me) add on being “Cheapest Fuel” prices, which one would expect can be a simple enhancement for them to implement the idea below.

Additionally, on discussion with a taxi drive after a lovely extensive drinking session with industry mates, showed they already have costs incorporated into their pricing for fuel (although how this is managed on a granular daily basis from the constant changes in fuel prices is yet to be discovered…until the next drinking episode!

Idea Update: TomTom & NavMan

A quick check of the TomTom website (global & ANZ) and the NavMan website shows neither have implemented this concept yet.

New Idea: Software for fuel trip costs

Driving from Annandale to Lane Cove today I got caught on the Harbour Bridge in heavy traffic, and during this time I came up with a possible neat software idea.

Simply, a bit of software that you can download and install onto your NavMan or TomTom, and get up to the minute cost report on your fuel consumption based on your speed, trip time and the cost of the fuel at your last fill up.

All you would need to do is put in the $ per litre and # of litres you filled up with at your last fuel stop.

Even better, integrate it with the new Australian “Fuel Watch” system and the NavMan/TomTom will do it for you (you’d still need to put in the # of litres you filled up with).

End users of the software can then accurately guage their cost per trip.

With raising fuel costs, not only here but globally, the need for more granular fuel cost and budgeting is required, so people can determine better if it would be best to catch a train, bum a lift or walk to certain destinations.

A bigger opportunity may lie within professional driving circles (cabbies, truckies et al) where per trip fuel expense can be calculated on the spot, and maybe portions or whole of these costs can be transfered to the user (banks do this very effectively).

All I need now is a programmer to write it, a simple website to sell it, and for me to go see TomTom or NavMan to buy the rights for global distribution.

Anyone like to go partners?

(This idea is patent pending)