Tag Archives: facebook

Facebook “passed over” at the last minute for today’s Apple announcement? I don’t think so.

October 4, 2011 – 8:50 pm

We’ve heard from a source that sometime late last night, Facebook was told that they would not be a part of Apple’s event today. This is nothing new. Companies are told to prepare to go on stage at these events all the time only to get pulled at the last second. It’s just a bit odd that a company as large as Facebook was passed over.

via techcrunch.com

I find this extremely hard to believe. Why would Apple, at an event called “Let’s talk iPhone” want to share the stage with Facebook, arguably a future serious competitor, to announce the release of a Facebook iPad app, which frankly, is not only long overdue, but also does nothing to further Apple’s clear message of new iPhone and Siri today?

If anything, I’d think Apple would want to shove this one under the rug and hope no one noticed that the iPad app wasn’t already there a year ago.

Let Facebook make its own announcement for its own iPad app. I can’t see why Apple would have even considered making this a part of today’s event, let alone cancel it at the last minute. Sounds like a source trying to cover his tracks to me.

Sometimes rumors are just wrong. Like 90% of the other rumors about today.

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Thoughts on Google+ from Andy Ihnatko

July 7, 2011 – 9:40 pm

But these are just personal observations and opinions. Do keep in mind that Google+ isn’t even in public beta yet. I love it, but this might even be partly due to the intensely clubby nature of this highly-restricted invite-only test community. It’s all nerds, or first-circle nerd associates. At this early, limited stage, it’s like Google+ is a social networking service where they won’t let you sign in until you’ve correctly answered a 10-item lightning round quiz of Doctor Who, Star Wars, New Gods, and 1990’s video game trivia.

(I posted that line to my Google+ feed on Saturday.)

It’ll undergo nonstop tinkering before the doors are thrown open to the huddled masses. And when that finally happens, Google+ can finally be judged. That’s when (presumably) we’ll start seeing ads. That’s also when the same marketers and promoters who feel commanded by God to ruin every corner of the Internet will start polluting and gaming Google+ with schemes to get attention for their products, celebrities and scams.

So we all have that to look forward to.

via suntimes.com

Andy Ihnatko points out some of my exact thoughts since I started playing around with Google+. It’s clean; it’s full of juicy content. Devoid of all the lame-brained usual noise you have to sift through on Facebook to get to anything worthwhile. But that’s because it’s early. And it’s a nerd fest. As soon as everyone joins, the ads get turned on, and the spammers show up, you’ll be left with nothing but a near Facebook clone. Does the world really need this? And do we really want to turn over all that data to Google, any more than we want to turn it to Facebook?

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The usual nonsense from tech reporters

November 15, 2010 – 8:44 pm

Facebook seems to be blitzing lately, rolling out product after product, as fast or faster than we’ve ever seen from anyone. Not all of them will succeed, but you can’t say that Mark Zuckerberg and company aren’t busting their asses trying.

Maybe it’s a coincidence or an optical illusion. But it really looks like Facebook is in attack mode — especially moreso than Google — with a strong team and a hunger (and a sense of self-importance) that should frighten anyone in its path.

Today, it’s attacking email. Maybe tomorrow, it will be attacking Google and Apple’s core businesses, like search and mobile platforms. Look out.

via sfgate.com

So Facebook announced some sort of email/IM/SMS integration service today. I’d say more about it, but I honestly don’t think anyone knows more about it yet. Facebook is mum on the details of how it will work.

Given Google’s monumental failure to “revolutionize” email with Wave earlier this year, it’s hard for me to take this one too seriously. At least not until I get some, you know, details.

But that doesn’t stop ridiculous reporters from spewing nonsense like this article I found in the SFGate, which is itself just a rehash of an article in
Business Insider.

Facebook is blitzing lately? Really? Groups. Places. And now a vague enhancement to its messaging services? That constitutes a blitz of new products that everyone should be afraid of?

And since when is blitzing new products into the world, knowing that “not all of them will succeed” a good strategy? That hasn’t worked out too well for Google this year. Just ask the Wave, Nexus One, and Buzz teams.

And Apple should be worried? About what, exactly?

This guy should have stopped after his first sentence, which is the only accurate statement in the article.

Don’t get me wrong; I think Facebook is doing well lately. And I do think that Google should be worried about this service’s impact on Gmail subscribers. At least in the long term, I can see people drifting toward a Facebook messaging system as an alternative to GMail, which hasn’t been given any significant update in years, beyond the priority Inbox.

But what does any of this have to do with Apple? Apple’s email service is part of a paid subscription model, and Apple doesn’t depend on it for any significant portion of its revenue. Ping is certainly suffering from not being tied to Facebook, but it’s not like Facebook has the resources to bring the record labels to Facebook directly, so I assume they’ll work out a deal on that one eventually.

Unless this guy is suggesting that Facebook is going to magically announce a brand new phone platform tomorrow, and that it will somehow be more successful at killing the iPhone than Palm, Microsoft, Nokia, or even Google has been, I don’t think I’d be worried if I were Steve Jobs.

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Various Web site User Satisfaction – some interesting results

July 20, 2010 – 6:18 pm

Google may be suffering from trying to be too many things to too many people,” the report noted. “In fact, when asked what they like least about Google, survey respondents commonly mentioned issues like advertising, overwhelming search results, privacy concerns, and too many special features (like maps and shopping.)

via macworld.com

This article is mainly about Facebook, and the odd paradox that barely a majority of Facebook users is satisfied with the site, and yet Facebook is still growing. I chalk that up to the peer pressure factor; you go where your friends are, and right now your friends are on Facebook. Why they are all hanging out there is anybody’s guess. Why did people listen to the Thomson Twins? Why do more people like Pepsi than Dr. Pepper? Somewhere, someone decides these things, and the sheep follow.

The quote I put up top there about Google is very interesting, too. Funny that the things people complain about most with Google are the only things that make Google money: advertising, links to shopping, etc.) People want a free ride, because that’s what the web has trained people to expect.

Which is exactly why I think Google has a much shakier future than most people realize. It really wouldn’t be hard to imagine the search and advertising business hitting another wall, and all these pet projects of Google’s don’t seem to get them anywhere, financially.

Still, I think unseating Google would be a lot harder than Facebook, with its 64% user satisfaction rate. If Buzz can’t manage to grab some marketshare away from Facebook, considering those numbers, then Google really should give it up on Social networking.

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