Verecom Web Design Blog

Microsoft sent a nice gift for Facebook users, through the Docs for Facebook (http://docs.com), users will be able to edit uploaded Microsoft Office files.

Facebook and Microsoft signed this cooperation agreements to let Facebook users be able to create, edit and share Microsoft Office documents in order to fight Google’s online file-sharing services.

The website Docs.com, enables Facebook users to log in using Facebook Connect and create, edit Microsoft Office documents, and share with Facebook friends, update status, photos, and the new file will appear in a user’s news feed.

Although Microsoft has not specifically mentioned Google Docs, but this is actually biggest competitor for Microsoft’s Word application. Google’s online documents publisher and collaboration tools are always the nightmare of Microsoft.

Microsoft’s Future Social Experiences, FUSE laboratory project manager Pat Kinsel said, in the current market, there are many other services also allow users to create and edit documents, and many can support file sharing and discussion services. However, only Docs for Facebook can provide full life cycle support services.

The current Docs for Facebook beta testing phase, through the Microsoft Office 2010 Web technology, built on Facebook platform. The goal is to simplify Facebook’s sharing system, from the news and events delivery to the WORD, EXCEL spreadsheet, and PowerPoint presentations and so on.

FUSE Labs manager Lili Cheng stressed in a telephone interview that Docs is a system to help Facebook users to share files as the starting point of the design. She pointed out that the complexity of file sharing technology, but through Dosc, everything is be simplified.
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Through Docs.com, users can create, view, edit and share Office documents, without changing the old method. Even if the user needs to use some of the more sophisticated tools and functions, they can also edit file with Microsoft Office environment.

The goal of Docs for Facebook is obviously to make younger generation of Facebook users to get used to Microsoft Office software, and then they will more willing to purchase software from store. Cheng reminded that this young generation who grow up together with the network may not be familiar with office software.

Perhaps through the Docs for Facebook, the younger generation will accept the Office 2010 systems.

Edited By Henry Lu

Businesses based in Sydney acknowledge the importance of good web design in Sydney to stay competitive and up to date. This has naturally bolstered up the pace of growth and development in website development arena in Sydney. Faced with a swarming crowd of web design and development companies in your region may, however, leave you baffled. Here are a few tips on how to choose your vendor wisely.

Great rates should come secondary to good quality. It is a good idea to associate with a website development company in Sydney with innovative or latest tricks for web designing, development and search engine optimisation.

It is also important that the range of web design templates with Sydney based vendor be comprehensive. It should be competent to handle all industry verticals and various degrees of complexities.

The vendor must focus on every aspect of web site development in a balanced manner. The developer’s portfolio may give you reliable clues to this quest. A look at the websites developed by the vendor for different industries and purposes may assist you at understanding vendor’s expertise at designing an overall satisfactory web identity for you.

Associate with the vendor who develops aesthetically appealing websites that are also convenient to browse and equipped with best of search engine optimisation methods.

Edited By Gary Smith

continued from Web Business Model part 1

Designed to meet the demand
Google is a good example. In addition to operating the world’s largest search engine, in recent years has also committed to providing e-mail, video sharing, word processing, maps, translation and community services and other products, and most of the services are free of charge. After the success of the Internet service, Google began to expand to Chrome browser, Android mobile platform and Google Apps and many other different areas.

With the search engine to collect the world users information, Google understands what users want, and it is generous to provide a variety of information services for them and make users become fans and trust it, and that is a google’s intangible asset. Google never force users to make payment while enjoy the convenience of its services, unless users are willing to use its keyword ads. Or they need bigger Gmail space which is free for 7 Gb space, and can purchase bigger space for only 5 US dollars.

Is to be different
For a good business model, it is not necessarily to use a big market that already exists, but should use logical method to predict its potential of growth, Google’s keyword ads and iPhone applications store are the examples. Therefore an attractive business model, instead to improve original services, but to make completely different ones (Different, not better). When you really make something different, it will attract a number of potential loyal supporters.

Amazon, for a example, as a online bookstores at beginning, then upgrade to a comprehensive shopping mall, and open up business platform to become IT service provider network. It also did not forget its book sell business, and recently been actively expand business to writer brokers and hardware reader to open a new era of digital reading.

Whether Google and Amazon these existing large Internet companies, or Zynga, Twitter, and Wolfram Alpha this emerging forces, the most prominent feature of these enterprises is they are not only information technology innovation, but also their business model are more mature than their predecessors in Internet bubble period, and they are also good at using the power from the users.

Use the power of the masses
For example Facebook invites volunteers to help with language translation. Game development company Zynga, develop a “take three minutes to get started, five minutes to play” online games, Which is different from traditional online game that require users to spend long time to get start. And for only two years, Zynga earned 100 million U.S. dollars.

Some successful business model may be difficult to imitate, but to analyse these companies to how to find right model and consider and implement the market demand, will help to find competitive advantage.

Edited By Henry Lu

It’s all about long term, World’s largest e-commerce company Amazon founder Jeff Bezos says. Ten years ago, when the stock crash of U.S. NASDAQ, the Internet companies have experienced tremendous turbulence baptism, “God opened the new web economy is a joke?” Many people doubt it, but there are many people persist in the conviction that the great potential of online business is coming, Bezos is one, and he is right!

Amazon, overcome the internet bubble slump, had 3.9 billion US dollars revenues in 2002, and 24 billion US dollars revenues in 2009 which grew more than 5 times within 6 years. “People who are always trying new direction will be too concerned about failure. But if the failure can bring success in the future, that the cost of failure are very slim,” Bezos said.

During IT stock market crash, the management guru Peter Drucker commented: “A new type of economy won’t shape without decades ” Decade, the enthusiasm of entrepreneurs in fact did not subside, compare them in ten years ago, they are more pragmatic and use the creativity as a career to manage, but is not like Drucker’s comments, “Many online entrepreneurs are not creating a business, but in playing a stock market gamble.”

During the hindsight, many people think that the Internet bubble is due to the ignorance and crazy, But in fact, the distance of success from these companies are not far, even the previous Internet businesses founder during that year has changed the face of business. Unfortunately some of the company’s business model is not sufficiently comprehensive, or just pure bad luck.

Study after the failure
Many later proved feasibility of product strategy at that time failed due to the environmental and technological immature factors. Services such as PointCast launched in 1996, won many praise with its free services and rich content, however the rapid accumulation of the number of users, the computer processor speed was too slow, excessive bandwidth consumption, and without much commercial interests to find. Which made the PointCast disappeared in the internet sea.

If PointCast or any similar service launched today which has convenient mobile internet and accurate geo-location system, it will be great opportunity to get business from many manufacturer, and then open up a wide internet market potential.

This is a learning, growing, and dynamic society which doesn’t look backward, but should be in line to the successful model. Now no one doubts about web economy, and more and more people keep finding new ways to make money from it. Have a good business idea is not surprising, because lots of people have the same idea, even people move more quickly to make idea come true! Hence we create a viable business model, and it is a ticket to success.

Business model is important not only because it involves a source of profit, but also for company need to consider the marketing, business, research and development, customer service and management factors into account, and put himself to meet the needs of customers and design the most business value chain .

Web business model Part 2

Edited By Henry Lu

Experts predict that social network with geo-positioning services will be the future trend, and this market war will be participated by Google, Facebook and Apple. However, Microsoft Not to be outdone and announced the new integration of Bing search engine, maps and Foursquare social services, foursquare map applications, intended to john this battle.

Foursquare is currently supporting iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, and Plam WebOS platform to urban social services to find friends. Mobile phone users can set their own jurisdictions, and paste a variety of labels to describe this area or to provide restaurant reviews, when a user log in a particular region, the system will automatically advise whether there is a friend recommended a nearby restaurants or services.

And Microsoft Integration Bing and map services to build a Map Apps functions and lets Bing use third-party information provided by the industry to develop a foursquare map applications which will be on-line soon this year. Microsoft said that with Bing foursquare map, users can easily get more local information and to know the recommendation of the local people, and also can interact with the online users in this area.

Many people already familiar with the Google Maps functionality, and now Google is promoting Latitude plan, which based on the Google Maps platform to allow users and friends to share their current location. Google recently launched Buzz social services that allows users to display their location, and it plan to upgrade to with geo-positioning services of Google very soon.

In addition, according to foreign reports, Apple determines to become the geographical location-based services handset developers, and It already applied patent application for a social networking service called iGroups, so that iPhone and other mobile devices can be linked, and provide real-time information sharing.

How is Facebook then? Ericsson (Erricson) survey shows that 60 countries worldwide and more than 200 mobile system operators are actively promoting market of Facebook mobile products; the same time, there are more than 100 million online users are through their mobile devices to use the Facebook services.

Edited By Henry Lu

Speaking of social networking website, many people will immediately think of Facebook or MySpace. But in fact In addition to these friend making, entertainment social networking website, there are more professional or commercial orientation websites, which Among them, LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com) is the outstanding one.

Founded in May 2003, LinkedIn is growing rapidly since past few years, and becomes a favourite website for white-collar and business people to connect and make industry friends with similar business background. TechCrunch reported that according to science and technology media, LinkedIn’s rapidly growing number of members and recently has more than 60 million members registered.

As the Business Social is more important for many professional people, including hiring, cooperation and other business acts require a social networking platform for the coordination of inter-personal, hence make LinkedIn becomes popular. In December last year, the number of members is 55 million, but there are 5 million new members registered during January this year, which shows a strong potential in this site!

LinkedIn actively expand its global market, recently it set up two offices in India and Netherlands, and that it will soon expand the business to the world’s major countries.

Edited By Henry Lu

Google announced the launch of the new search features: Near Me Now, for Android browser and iPhone users to use Google Mobile Search and enjoy this feature.

However, the phone users must first be able to use Google Mobile Search page link below to access the location data set. After that, Google Mobile Search page will appear the search button “Near me now” link. When user clicks the link, the page will return a list of a variety of topics of local places, including restaurants, cafes and bars, or the bank or ATM and so on. Click the menu “Explore right here” will show users bunch of the nearby shops. And this option is only available when users provide accurate location of mobile phones.

Google Operations Engineer John Eric Hoffman, and Jussi Myllymaki explained in their blog posting, “Near me now” feature is designed to help users find information on where they lived, making certain common search, such as cafes and ATMs easier.

At that time Google has also announced other technologies, including Google Goggles and the iPhone and Android supported Japanese voice search. With the growth of mobile computing devices and the popularity of portable devices, Google will keep developing more mobile applications for users.

Edited By Henry Lu

Google plan to change the way of web search, and fight back its competitors.

Google will provide computer, iPhone and Android devices the real-time search results page. It also added a new search technology called Google Goggles, which allows users to upload a picture to search, rather than enter a keyword to query.

Google is expected mobile devices will become a transit point for network activity next year, announced by Google engineering vice president, Vic Gundotra, and chief engineer. Amit Singhal. Singhal describes real-time search is “the most exciting thing in my career.”

Marissa Mayer, vice president of Google search products said that this technology is the future of search engine. This new search engine will help users to find the best answer instead bunch of links. Mayer said, the four directions of Google search technology in future: model, media, language and personalization. New search functions such as voice or image search will be the top priority for the search engine advertisement.

Gundotra also shows the Google Mobile Search can accurately identify many language queries, such as English, Chinese and Japanese. Google translator also supports 51 languages, Gundotra said during first quarter of 2010, our real-time translation function will be available for the mobile device. “Our goal is to support all major languages around the world,” he said.

Google is also planning the geographic search for text and voice information services. Google Maps service is available in the Android 1.6 or above It includes “What’s Nearby” which lists closest place for users who look for services. This service will also be available for iPhone and other Android devices.

Google Goggles represents the starting point for Google to enter the computer field. This service is currently only in the Google Labs, and can only identify a few kinds of objects.

Google is able to do facial recognition, but for privacy issues, it decided to defer to promote the service.

Google Instant Search is made from numbers of social network partners. Google recently signed a search cooperation contract with Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, FriendFeed, Jaiku, and Identi.ca, in order to provide public information in real-time search.

Instant Search is currently unavailable, but is expected to be on-line very soon.

Edited By Henry Lu

For many small to median businesses, it is quite expensive to establish an online conference system. However, we collected 3 web online conference services which have very good service price (You can also advance free trial) to help your business grow.

GoToMeeting

This is veteran online meeting service; users can easily interact with global user for real-time sharing of presentations, demonstration videos, online training, or edit documents together. Through GoToMeeting, the user can use the telephone, e-mail or instant message inviting others to attend the meeting.

Free trial period is 30 days, with unlimited web meeting appointments, during the trial period, limited 15 people per meeting. It costs 49 U.S. dollars per month, or 468 U.S. dollars a year.

WebEx

WebEx have being bought by Cisco, but it doesn’t become a Cisco proprietary services. WebEx offer unlimited web meeting appointments, desktop sharing among users, simultaneous recording, playback video, or VoIP calls. Each session can accommodate 25 users. WebEx and even allows a user to temporarily relinquish control to another user.

WebEx offers 14-day free trial period, the monthly fee is 69 U.S. dollars, and 708 U.S. dollars annual fee will receive a complimentary 1 month to use.

Microsoft Office Live Meeting

Developed by the software giant, Microsoft Office Live Meeting is desktop application based software which requires users to maintain it by themselves. It provides an online presentation, notes, sharing, collaboration and other basic functions.

It offers 30 days free service, and only supports Windows platforms after trial period the monthly fee per user is 4.58 U.S.

Edited By Henry Lu

For the booming market of mobile internet, not only hardware industries, but also many online service providers actively try to grab this market. Yahoo, with monthly 500 million unique visitors not only want be a world biggest global internet portal, but also try to be the integrator of online services and make internet users rely on it completely

During April this year, yahoo announced its new personalised mobile homepage with combination of oneSearch, oneConnect and onePlace which these three online services are used as the search engine, social network and LBS (Location Based Service) for the individual.

According with their own personal preferences and needs, users can add various internet services (including services not belong to Yahoo) into their own homepage, and this service is able to support more than 300 kinds of devices.

Support hundreds of different devices

Marc Davis, Yahoo Chief live action Scientist explains its core strategy of mobile communication:

“We will not focus on hardware or operating system development, but to create a platform, a layer to provide services for thousands business and industries.”

For Yahoo, the “size” is obviously the focus of considerations, and through the strategy of use universal platform to achieve the purpose of provide services for global users. Davis said that Yahoo’s software will be covered by the mobile browser and application software (client) to support for hundreds of different devices.

Yahoo said: through the centralized management strategy by the new executive director Carol Barts, we greatly reduce the time for new product development. And for Asian market, Barts is full of confidence:

“The next five years, there will be masses of users come from Asia this emerging market.”

Now this area is either on the turning point of pc based internet to mobile based internet, or have the low rate of computer penetration. In comparison to Europe and the United States, Many Asia industries still not ready to transfer their advertising budget from traditional media to the internet, which also represents the great potential of the Internet advertising market to be developed in future.

Edited By Henry Lu