RSS for Outlook

Since I'm an Outlook user, I'll definitely be checking this out:

NewsGator is a "news aggregator" that runs in Microsoft Outlook. It allows you to subscribe to various syndicated news feeds (such as weblogs, news sites, etc.) and have news from these sites be delivered right into your Outlook folders. [_Go_]

The shocking thing to me is that the company doesn't seem to have a blog!

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Scoble on Corporate Weblogging

Well worth reading.  The reader's digest, condensed version is below.  But you should still read the full version. [_Go_]

1. Tell the Truth.
2. Post fast on good news or bad.
3. Use a human voice.
4. Make sure you support the latest software / web / human standards.
5. Have a thick skin.
6. Don't ignore slashdot.
7. Tak to the grassroots first.
8. If you screw up, acknowledge it.
9. Underpromise and over deliver.
10. If Doc Searls says it or writes it, believe it.
11. Know the information gatekeepers.
12. Never change the URL of your weblog.
13. If your life is in turmoil and / or you're unhappy, don't write.
14. If you don't have the answers, say so.
15. Never lie.
16. Never hide information.
17. If you have information that might get you into a lawsuit, see a lawyer before posting but do it fast.
18. Link to your competitors and say nice things about them.
19. BOGU.
20. Be the authority on your product / company.
21. Know who is talking about you.

Feel free to print out the above version and keep it handy (why do you think I took the time to create this?) but read the full version.

Note: Why didn't I comment on these specifically?  Because Robert said it pretty much perfectly.  Go read the original.

9:41:08 AM      Google It!   comment []    IM Me About This   

Worth Reading: Language Centric Software Development

Joe's done a good job on this short essay:

Think of a really good piece of software, a program that is either really popular, has a really fanatical following, or is just your personal favorite.

I predict that the program you chose has a scripting language embedded in it. That's it. That simple. I'm right aren't I? Mere coincidence? No. [_Go_]

If you've been doing software engineering for years and years then you'll probably agree with his points.  If you're an engineer with a product manager who doesn't understand why you need to enhance your product with a language then this might help.  And he asks a really good question at the end:

Think about how many languages you know. Personally I program in these on a weekly basis: C, C++, HTML, XML, XSLT, CSS, Perl, JavaScript, and several tiny languages of my own devising...

How come I can easily switch among 10 languages with out missing a beat yet I can't retain the object model for Word?

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FontBitch no More!

Wah Hoo!  Ben Hammersly, Bitworking and Stargeek are Font Bitches no more.  Thank you.  Jeremy will be pleased.  Clearly posting that reference to Font Bitch and coining the term is my contribution to blog dom.  Sigh ... So many more bitches to go.

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Bandwidth Report

Andy King, author of Speed Up Your Site: Web Site Optimization, something I meant to blog about and lost track of, now is offering "The Bandwidth Report", which talks about trends in connectivity:

Broadband breaks 30% for first time in December. 67.5% of US home users connect at 56Kbps or less. [_Go_]

Recommended (there's a lot omre here than just that one quote.  Look here for example).

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Bye Buffy... Sniff

Sad but true -- the Buffster herself will not be returning next year.  Nor apparently will the show although there is a rumored spin off coming.  What will Tuesday night without Buffy be?  Vampire free perhaps but no where near as happy. 

After seven years, the series will be over at the end of this season, said its star, Sarah Michelle Gellar (news).

"'Buffy,' in this incarnation, is over," Gellar told Entertainment Weekly magazine for its March 7 issue, her eyes welling with tears.

(Don't read if you don't want a small spoiler) [_Go_]

Keith has a bunch of good Buffy links.  [_Go_]

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Good List of Spam Tools

Here is a good list of anti-spam tools.  While I'm clearly biased towards my own product (Inbox Buddy), this is a good comprehensive list with many more tools than just our own.  My thanks to Kaitlin Duck Sherwood for adding us to the list.   [_Go_]

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