By John Gruber
WorkOS launches auth.md — an open protocol for agent registration.
Linked List: February 1, 2008
Friday, 1 February 2008
- Google Executives Lavish Praise on iPhone in Conference Call ★
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Saul Hansell:
For a company that is busy building its own cellphone operating system, Google shared a lot of love for the iPhone on its earnings-related conference call today. The most heartwarming story came from Sergey Brin, the company’s co-president, who said that he uses an iPhone himself.
Don’t hold your breath waiting for Tim Cook and Steve Jobs to sing the praises of Android.
- Terry Semel’s Hollywood Ending ★
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Dave Pell:
I keep imagining a 2001 Help Wanted Ad that goes something like this: “Most popular and promising internet company looking for a new CEO to come and re-direct the company into a giant shithole. Compensation includes a permanent suite at the Fairmont and $500 million.”
That’s basically the role Terry Semel stepped into at Yahoo.
- Tweet Scan ★
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Real-time Twitter search; very well done. Weird that Twitter itself doesn’t offer this. (Via Andy Baio.)
- Hardball ★
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Kara Swisher on how Microsoft plays ball:
Sources at Yahoo tell me that Microsoft made its most recent overtures right after Yahoo announced its earnings Tuesday and then told Yahoo execs they had two days to respond or Microsoft would go public with the offer.
When Yahoo balked at the heavy-handed tactic, guess what? Microsoft went public.
- Microsoft and Yahoo’s Shotgun Marriage ★
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BBC business editor Tim Weber:
If Yahoo agrees to the deal with Microsoft, it will be a shotgun marriage, but it will be Google holding the shotgun.
If Yahoo’s management says “yes, I do”, it will be an admission that its attempts to turn around the company have failed. [...] For Microsoft, however, this is the deal that could break it. Making the offer is an admission that Microsoft’s management has been scared by the success of Google.
- Tristan Louis: ‘Non-Obvious Winners and Losers in Microsoft-Yahoo Deal’ ★
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Good analysis from Tristan Louis on the repercussions for the rest of the industry if Microsoft succeeds in acquiring Yahoo. (Also worth noting: Louis is looking for a new job.)
- Rick LePage at PMA: ‘Whither Aperture?’ ★
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Rick LePage, from this week’s PMA conference:
What’s most interesting to me is the shift in attitudes and usage. People aren’t actually excited about an Aperture update; it’s more of a “will it be significantly better” type of vibe. And photographers aren’t saying that the Adobe competitor, Photoshop Lightroom, is a better product. No, what I’m hearing is that neither Aperture nor Lightroom has taken hold with this crowd. At least three photographers I spoke with said that they bought both products, and that they aren’t really using either one.