Webware

Is Flickr video right around the corner?

The one holdup with Flickr's otherwise extensive photo hosting service is the 2GB monthly limit imposed on Pro members that's stymied many actual pros from using Flickr as an archiving service for their super high-resolution shots. Today that limit has been lifted, along with bumping the upload limit for free users from 20 to 100MBs per month. They're also pushing printable gift certificates for Flickr Pro memberships with a code that will upgrade standard accounts. The certificates can be e-mailed or printed out in a foldable greeting card format. Our only question is why the change now? … Read more

Avoiding the Office

As a Webware reader, chances are that you're already curious about using a computer without having to install pricey, boxed software. It's easy to give no-strings-attached, browser-based applications a spin, but old habits die hard--especially when it comes to word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation applications that you might use daily.

As the 2007 edition of Microsoft Office reaches stores at the end of January, there's little doubt that it will remain the most popular software of its kind, but Office is not a one-size-fits-all package. More than a handful of competitors encroach upon Redmond's territory, with … Read more

Buy the right ceramic dolphin using Buddy Shopping

Collaboration and shopping are two things that often go very wrong during the holidays. With families spread across the country, joint gifting gets that much harder. For example, this morning, my brother sent me a concerned e-mail about what to get our parents for the holidays. Historically, this is an event that almost always ends in a frantic rush with too much money spent on a gift that ends up sitting in a closet the minute we leave the house. Buddy Shopping is a new collaborative tool that combines screen sharing and instant messaging with a dash of social networking. … Read more

Veotag adds to emerging trend of 'deep-tagging'

Yesterday, I wrote about Gotuit's SceneMaker, a new tool for "deep-tagging" YouTube and Metacafe videos: pointing out notable moments within clips, and even splicing them so that portions of a longer video can be shared. The larger concept of deep-tagging is, to me, really interesting. In 2006, we saw an explosion of tagging functions just about everywhere, but is something like SceneMaker an indication that regular tagging just isn't enough?

It's a likely possibility. Because, as I learned at last night's New York Web 2.0 Social Networking Tech Meetup, Gotuit isn't the … Read more

Takkle.com, social networking for jocks

The once-seemingly-vast gulf between the sociable jock and the computer geek (think Revenge of the Nerds) seems to be shrinking faster by the day. Last night at the New York Web 2.0 Social Networking Tech Meetup (wow, that's a mouthful), I met a few of the guys responsible for Takkle.com. In short, it's a social networking and media site geared toward those involved in high school sports: players, coaches, and fans. Takkle's been getting a fair amount of positive buzz since its Monday launch, thanks in particular to a partnership with Sports Illustrated's "… Read more

All-you-can-eat Skype...yum!

Skype announced today a new all-you-can-eat SkypeOut plan for U.S. and Canadian customers. For $29.95 per year, you can make unlimited SkypeOut calls to mobile phones and landlines within the U.S. and Canada. Even better, if you sign up for the plan before Jan. 31, 2007, you get a 50 percent discount so you only pay $14.95 for a year of unlimited SkypeOut calls, plus 100 minutes of SkypeOut credit for international calls. If you're like me and don't make even $14.95 worth of SkypeOut calls each year, you can still opt to … Read more

If you can hum it, Nayio might find it

This morning, the music software and remixing company Nayio is launching its Humming Search feature in the U.S. This tool is supposed to be able to identify songs by listening to you hum a few bars. (It works on Internet Explorer only, as far as I can tell.)

I think it's a great idea. If you hear a catchy tune on the radio and it gets stuck in your head, and you don't know the artist, Humming Search could save your sanity. Plus, it's cool.

Or it would be if it worked. I tried humming several … Read more

Present for free with Spresent and a Web browser

Do you need PowerPoint (or Keynote) to create presentations? Perhaps not. There are several good Web-based solutions, including the newest (to us), Spresent. This online presentation service lets you quickly create decent presentations that you can deliver from any computer with a Web browser.

Spresent competes with other online apps such as Thumbstacks and Zoho Show [see comparison]. What sets Spresent apart is its slick Flash-based user interface and tight integration with other Web services. Need a picture of a mountain or an octopus to go along with your bullet points? Spresent has built-in Flickr browsing, which pulls up previews … Read more

Wrike harnesses e-mail for collaboration

The collaboration service Wrike is rolling out today. It's an online task database for groups, with a special power: You can enter shared tasks just by e-mailing people and copying to wrike@wrike.com.

That is about the easiest way I can imagine to create and assign tasks. It's even easier than using Outlook's own Tasks list, which actually is not a bad task manager for small work groups (it's awful, though, if you're trying to work with somebody who's not on your Exchange server).

I also like the way Wrike signs up new … Read more