New Zooomr to permit photo sales--once debugged

By Stephen Shankland – March 19, 2007, 1:08 PM PDT The Zooomr photo-sharing site plans major changes, including the ability to let members sell their photos, but the upgrade process has been rocky. (Credit: Zooomr) Photo-sharing sites have added features such as tagging, commentary, ranking and printing. But adding the ability to sell photos injects a little profit motive in the business as well. It also puts the site in more direct competition with stock-photo sales sites such as Getty Images subsidiary iStockphoto. Zooomr will keep 10 percent of revenue from photo sales, the company said on its blog, letting users keep 90 percent. For comparison, iStockphoto keeps 80 percent, unless users sign an exclusivity agreement under which the company keeps 60 percent. Getty also acquired journalism-oriented Scoopt this month, a site that splits revenue 50-50. Zooomr went offline Tuesday for the overhaul to the Mark III version of the site. Users couldn't upload new images, though blog photos hosted on the site were still available. The upgrade was scheduled to be complete Thursday, but on Sunday, Zooomr rolled back to the earlier interface while debugging the new one. "To keep everyone happy and continually uploading images, we've opted to put Zooomr Release Two back up temporarily for a few days while we get all of these Mark III bugs worked out of our system," site programmer Kristopher Tate said in a blog posting Sunday. New search abilities also hampered the upgrade. The new version will let users search for images based on their colors, but even with five servers working flat-out, processing images for the search preparations took longer than expected, Tate said. Zooomr today specializes in photo sharing augmented with support for multiple languages and geotagging, which maps the locations where photos were taken. The new Zooomr version also lifts file-size and quantity limits, the company said on its blog. And it will be endowed with a programming interface, allowing more sophisticated or automated interactions with the site.

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Brand Map in SecondLife

Did you know the above brands were in Second Life? Other than a handful of brands that have graced the page sof NY Times, Wall Street Journal, etc - most have gone unnoticed, and continue to go unnoticed because most brands aren’t harnessing the virtual worlds strategically. A virtual world campaign is more than just ‘build’ - it’s also: position, market, be contextually relevant, easy to find, etc. (source: http://www.kzero.co.uk/blog/?p=430)

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Download of the Day: TeamViewer (Windows)

Windows only: Joining the ranks of Crossloop, iRemotePC and LogMeIn, TeamViewer lets you connect to other PCs for remote access, tech support, file sharing and more.

The tiny setup program give you the option of configuring your PC in host or client mode, or skipping installation altogether (in which case TeamViewer runs without installing anything). I chose the latter option on two PCs: one running XP, the other, Vista. From there I simply entered a numeric ID and password generated by the software, and presto: Instant remote access. In addition to controlling the other PC, I could transfer files and chat with the other user (myself, in this case). By enabling server mode, I was able to switch directions and share my desktop with the other PC--neat for showing presentations, demonstrations, etc.

TeamViewer works around firewalls and promises 1024-bit RSA private/public key exchange and 128-bit RC4 session encoding. In other words, it's pretty secure. It also has at least one advantage over each of the three aforementioned remote-access programs, so if you're interested in connecting to another computer from afar, give TeamViewer a try. The program is free for personal, non-commercial use, and it requires Windows 98 or later. Thanks, Karri! — Rick Broida

TeamViewer

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Researchers create tangible table interface

from Engadget by Donald Melanson Filed under: Misc. GadgetsApparently inspired by some late night bouts of air hockey, a team of researchers at the University of Design in Schwäbisch Gmünd, Germany have crafted a so-called "tangible table" interface that uses a series of pucks to handle all the controls. The system works by using a camera underneath the table to track the movements of the pucks (which are distinguished by marks on their undersides), along with a combination mirrors, infrared lights, and a projector to display the image on the surface of the table. While it so far only appears to be cable of simple tasks like moving, zooming, and rotating, we suspect it's only a matter of time before they realize the true potential of the device and whip up a game of Breakout. Apparently inspired by some late night bouts of air hockey, a team of researchers at the University

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See me, pay me: eBay blends Skype and PayPal

from Blogging Stocks by Beth Gaston Moon Filed under: Products and services, Consumer experience, Competitive strategy, eBay (EBAY), Next big thingOne of my closest friends, Liz, is a speech pathologist for young children and doesn't have much need for computers. I've taught her all about iTunes, wireless networks, and CD burning, but several months ago she introduced me to Skype. Her husband's sister and brother-in-law currently live and work in Tokyo, so the Internet telephony feature has been a lifesaver. They can remain in close contract, even with the 12-hour time difference, and it's free of charge. Plus, there's a visual element unavailable over traditional telecom wires. Earlier today, Melly Alazraki reported that online auctioneer eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), the parent of Skype, has released a new version that incorporates the PayPal online payment feature. Skype users will now be able to transfer money back and forth using PayPal accounts, but this is only the tip of the iceberg. EBAY officials are planning on blending the two services more down the line; a spokesperson noted that "We hope that adding this capability will result in a better, more enriching experience for both Skype and PayPal users, which is crucial to extending our leadership positions in the communications and payments markets." This new feature will make it easier for my friend's sister-in-law to contribute money to her nieces' college funds (did I mention Liz is the mother of triplet girls? No wonder they don't have time to fiddle around with iTunes). EBAY shares are fractionally higher in early trading and continue to fight toward the $35 level. This is the location of the stock's 20-month moving average and is also home to hefty out-of-the-money call open interest in the April and July options series. Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.

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