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General Software Discussion / Re: Two New Internet Explorer 7 Reviews
« Last post by mouser on October 22, 2006, 11:44 AM »i just posted about your tool renegade: https://www.donation...index.php?topic=5894
The Renegade PayPal Batch Encrypted Button Generator lets you quickly generate encrypted PayPal buttons to use on your web site so that you can securely accept PayPal and credit card payments online.
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While creating a single encrypted PayPal button is easy, creating many is a tedious and boring job. If this is something that you need to do with any regularity, the PayPal Batch Encrypted Button Generator can save you a great deal of time.
You only need: A PayPal account, A properly formatted CSV file with your products, Just load the CSV, login to PayPal, and click the “Create Button” button
Finding free music on the internet is a difficult process. Between the commercials, quality, selection, and features, it may seem that nothing will suit your needs. This article will review three of the most popular internet music providers: Pandora, Last.fm, and Yahoo! Music.
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While Yahoo! ranked the highest in overall features, the commercials and song limit were enough to make me switch to another music provider. Pandora has become the provider I use most for my internet radio. Last.fm has great features on their site and a community building around it, but that has not been a significant enough draw to pull me away from Pandora.
Be among the first to try ATC2K, the ultimate self-contained action cam. Weighing in at half a pound (with batteries), this hands-free action cam delivers full color digital video in 640 X 480 VGA at 30 frames per second.
ATC2K works seamlessly with most video editing software. Expandable up to 2GB, with a built-in SD card slot, ATC2K mounts easily on helmets, bikes, race cars, dirt bikes and more. Wipeouts in a white out? No worries, ATC2K is water-resistant. Play hard, record everything!
In the most recent essay, titled “The 18 Mistakes That Kill Startups”, Paul identifies (as you might expect from the title) the common causes of startup failure.
I’d like to focus on point is #17: Choosing The Wrong Platform
I agree with Paul that picking a wrong platform can indeed sometimes kill a startup, but I’m not yet convinced that this is always the case. History is replete with startups that picked what were widely considered to be the “wrong” platform and still survived to tell the story (and make a ton of money in the process). ..
But, this is not my primary point of contention with the article. Little harm is done by identifying wrong platform selection as a potential mistake that startups should try and avoid (in fact, I think it helps to raise awareness of the importance of this decision). My issue is with how Paul advises startup founders go about actually picking a platform.
Paul Graham: “How do you pick the right platforms? The usual way is to hire good programmers and let them choose. But there is a trick you could use if you're not a programmer: visit a top computer science department and see what they use in research projects.”
I agree with the first half. A great way to pick a platform (if you’re not a programmer yourself) is to hire great programmers (not just good ones) and let them choose. But, I don’t think visiting a computer science department and seeing what they use in research projects is an effective strategy. Here are my issues with this particular approach:
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Welcome to the official online archive of Computer Gaming World magazine, where you can read and download digitized versions* of the first 100 issues of the magazine, beginning with the first issue in November 1981, and then see covers of all the rest of the magazine's run through the final issue in November 2006.
Founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe, Computer Gaming World began life as a small, self-published, independent magazine for the then small community of computer game hobbyists (it was, in fact, the first magazine dedicated to the hobby), but grew over the years into one of the most important and powerful media voices in all of digital entertainment, thanks to its strong editorial voice and reputation for tough but fair reviews.
From its earliest days, covering games for the Atari and Apple II systems, through the recent era of blockbuster titles for high-end PCs, CGW has always been known for the expertise, passion, and talent of its editorial staff, from Johnny Wilson to Scorpia to Loyd Case and more, and this archive is dedicated to them. Have fun, and don't forget to save!
Extra special thanks to Stephane Racle, whose extraordinary scanning effort made all this possible. And don't forget that CGW has been reborn as Games for Windows: The Official Magazine. Check it out online at gfw.1up.com. (coming soon!)



We believe a fork is necessary, and justified, both to allow regular people a place to work under the direction of experts, and in which personal accountability--including the use of real names--is expected. In short, we want to create a responsible community and a good global citizen.

IE 7 is a huge improvement over IE 6. There is evidence of really good effort and innovation here - but there are also traces of the old IE that just do not fit. It seems like the IE team was pressured to release the tool (because of what Firefox is bringing out) before they had a chance to rethink and redo everything. Hopefully the shortcomings will be cleaned up in IE 8 - and that we won't have to wait another five years before it comes out!
The bigger question is how does IE7 compare to Firefox 2.0 and is it enough to hang on to IE's huge market share? This is a tough question to answer... but in terms of performance, cohesiveness of features and availability of add-ons - Firefox 2.0 is in better shape right now.
Internet Explorer 7 is an absolute no-brainer: If you use Windows, you should almost certainly upgrade immediately: IE 7's security features are top-notch and its functional improvements are nicely designed and greatly appreciated. For the short term, certain people may run into occasional Web site compatibility issues with IE 7, but I think those problems will fade quickly. Certainly, most major Web sites have already been upgraded to work correctly with Microsoft's latest Web browser. I've had a field day in the past making fun of IE, but with IE 7, the browser has finally turned the corner. This is one product that Microsoft should be quite proud of. My only question, really, is what took them so long? Seriously, download it now. Highly recommended.

Why does Google dominate search? Brand. Google’s original search brand is so successful that they can’t even get people to use their vertical searches, e.g. Maps, Images, Video, Books, even when those tool better serve users needs. Use of Google’s core search is no longer a function of whether Google is better (in many cases it’s not). People use Google the same way they use P&G products – out of brand loyalty and often just out of habit.
Why did YouTube beat Google Video? Brand. Notably, it’s the community that defined the YouTube brand as much as the technology. Ultimately, it was the strength of the brand — and Google Video’s inability to compete with the brand’s dominace — that drove the acquisition. What makes the top blogs so successful? Brand. Again, community is a key driver, which you can see in the active comments on successful blogs. In many cases, blog brands are built around individuals, but they are brands nonetheless.
Why were Weblogs Inc. and Gawker among the first successful blog media companies? Because they built brands. I’ve heard Jason Calacanis say the reason he didn’t aggregate existing blogs, as Federated Media is doing, is that he wanted to own the brands.
Why is Yahoo the largest portal? Brand. Why do so many people shop at Amazon despite the proliferation of online shopping alternatives? Brand. Why is Digg so popular? Brand — again, a community-defined brand, but a brand nonetheless.