Anger and Video Games: A Winning Combination
Combining aspects of things that people already enjoy is one of the best ways to make an impression on a market without having to be completely original or creative. For the past couple of months, there has been a surge of such activity in the form of ‘angry' video game reviews. These reviews combine aspects of life that many males (and some females) enjoy, including ranting, nostalgia, cheap Photo shopping, and dirty humor. Taken together, these form a "review" of a classic video game. The reviews have the taste level of an episode of Family Guy, but also have the marketability, as well.
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I Remember When Spam Came in a Can; Now It’s in my Cell Phone
It finally happened to me; I was hit with my first spam message via my cell phone. I was foolish enough to believe that spam stopped with email, but luckily I was prepared for this eventuality and deleted the message without opening it. This is my first word of advice for anyone who receives one of these dastardly messages. Merely opening the message may result in charges being sent to your cell phone.
Text message spam has grown to amounts of 1.1 billion last year, according to recent reports. The cell phone spam problem has been something that has engulfed countries such as China and South Korea for years now (sigh…they are always ahead of us in technology!). According to the CAN-SPAM Act passed in 2003, this should be illegal, but I have my doubts as to how many of these spammers are going to be caught. However, after some exhaustive research, I have come up with a five-point plan for combating requests for purchases of fake stocks and penis pumps. Continue reading “I Remember When Spam Came in a Can; Now It’s in my Cell Phone” »
The Microsoft Surface is Bound to Surface Eventually
When I was young, I had a computer that displayed two colors, puke green and black, and I was happy with it. I could type papers and play a second-rate version of Jeopardy. It was all that I really needed. Years later, I have a laptop that displays countless colors that I can bring with me wherever I feel like I need a computer. Soon, as early as Spring 2008, I will be able to have a computer where I least need it: my breakfast table.
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Don’t Kid Yourself; One Day Google Will Own You Too
Writing about Google, Inc. hits close to home, quite literally, as I am a past townie of Lenoir, North Carolina, which will soon become Google’s latest data farm. As I walked around my hometown a week ago, I began to wonder what the town would look like when the median income of the citizenship raises by $20,000. Moreover, I began to wonder just how much Google actually owns in the world. After some delving, I was shocked to learn that the company is only a few smart business deals away from owning Heaven itself.
Google currently owns over 520 domain names, ranging from ones of which you have already heard to ones that you likely never will. But do not kid yourselves, Google still owns them, and they always will. I predict that in another year, the number will reach approximately 1000 domains.
The company’s slogan has been “Don’t Be Evil” for some time now, although the company learned a sour lesson when dealing with its search engine in China. Unfortunately for the company, evil and big business sometimes go hand in hand. I personally do not blame Google for making the choices that it did, but I do believe that the setting of itself on such a seemingly high moral pedestal is bound to draw criticism until the moniker is dropped. Giving in has never been Google’s strong suit, however, and for good reason. If they had given in to the dark side, they may not have been elected Fortune Magazine’s Top Business for which to work, despite criticism from past employees of ageism and sexism.
If owning a large list of domains, being the top business for which to work, and being “not evil” were not enough, Google also simply owns a lot of…stuff. Some of its most recent acquisitions include YouTube, Tonic Systems, and even a 5% stake in AOL. Most recently, Google acquired DoubleClick, a company that provides Internet ad serving services. The deal was finalized on March 11, 2008. The types of tech that Googles embraces into its corporation are so varied that it leaves me scratching my head at what Google couldn’t acquire.
Lenoir is not going to be known for making great furniture much longer; it is going to be known for googling. You might as well familiarize yourself with Google’s Corporate Homepage; after all, they will own you one day.