Yourminis...

Sounding deceivingly like another site dedicated to skimming profits from the Ipod phenomenon, Yourminis has in fact nothing to do with that (nor does it have anything to do with the mini Entemann's powdered donuts...).

Instead Yourminis is a site giving you the ability to take your personalized Google start page to the next level. It combines the Vista side bar, the Mac widget thingy and all the neat things Web 2.0 has to offer.

Their clean and stylish ajax interface allows you to organize your widgets minis on your personal space. Everything from searching ebay or amazon to playing mp3s, from text editors to RSS feeds, from Rotten Tomatoes movie reviews to even access to your box.net files. Each mini has its own style and character, giving a comfortable user interface. And for the anal perfectionists out there, it even displays a grid when you're dragging the minis around.

Subtle neat thing they're doing? Allowing you to test out the service without signing in. Given my serious commitment issues, this is a neat chance to give this site a whirl, before giving them my email address!

What do I want to see on it? A mini for Pandora, then I would definitely use this as my start page and never leave.

This might become my Bloglines for everything-else-other-than-RSS-feeds.

25 Start-ups to Watch!

Here's a fantastic index card-style summary of what CNN Money thinks are the up and coming start-ups.

Debrief to follow soon in an update!

Entrepreneurship Week @ Stanford

For those interested in entrepreneurship, Stanford University hosted the National Kickoff of EntrepreneurshipWeek USA. One of the speakers, Stephen Jurvetson particularly inspired me with his talk on entrepreneurship. Here's some of the things that stuck out in my mind (and what I think):

• Dynamic Duo - Successful ventures have often worked well with a dynamic duo, notably (of course) Jerry Yang and David Filo (Yahoo!) and Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Google). My experience has always shown me the Dynamic Duo model works well for any endeavor, having each other to bounce ideas back and forth and to support each other through the tough times.
• Infectious Enthusiasm - If the entrepreneur is passionate about something, it radiates outward and spreads to others, whether it be to use the product or service but maybe even also to work on it.
• Be Humble - No one likes to work with a know-it-all. As a matter of fact it doesn't matter if it's working with someone or talking with someone about your idea, you never know what valuable feedback or advice they might be able to offer.
• High-growth market - You're looking for that high-growth market to conquer! The clean technology revolution is a great example of a market that will show explosive growth soon!
• Anchor Point - It's important for an entrepreneur to understand his strengths and weaknesses and know exactly how he can contribute to an idea; essentially: what can you do that no one else can, or what do you know that no one else does?

Dell Ideastorm: Consumers in the driver seat

Exactly one week ago, Dell launched a brilliant new customer service initiative called "Dell Ideastorm." It's essentially a massive forum where any opinionated, Internet-saavy user can logon to post, vote, and bash suggestions for how to improve Dell's services. Forums like this are not new, but I have rarely seen a company so open with its customers.

Among the top requests:

1. Provide Open-Source Alternatives for Operating Systems, Word Processors, Internet Browsers, etc. Some people have argued that the minority of computer geeks using Linux and its variants do not make a big enough impact on the bottom line to be worth marketing to. But after seeing the voting numbers on the site, even if they are skewed, I find it hard to believe that Dell should ignore the masses clamoring for a pre-installed Linux box.
2. Barebones systems for ease of upgrading. The boom times of the computer industry are over, just about everyone has a computer or two or five in their homes. But where one trend ends, another begins, and people are now looking for cheap systems that can plug into existing hardware to replace broken components. Like a computer with no monitor and no keyboard and no operating system that can just be used as a standalone upgrade.
   
3. No more overseas tech support. Three things are needed for good tech support: 1) They fix it. 2) They fix it fast. 3) They treat you with respect while fixing it. With the delays and miscommunications from overseas call centers, 1) and 2) are not met by Dell's current customer service. Time for a change.

For any Dell owners out there, if any of these things seem like "common sense" to you, you are absolutely right. They are common complaints that have been around for years. But the cool thing is that all of this information is out in the open. It changes the game. Before, where the CEO was captain and commander of his ship, he/she alone would determine the direction of sailing. Now it's the whole consumer community that can request services of a company. And suggest ideas for new product directions, new services, and even marketing. This is why Dell's Ideastorm is amazing. It's completely broken down the barriers between a big company and its end-users, allowing consumers to truly guide the direction of a large company.

My favorite post:

Have Michael Dell in the Dell Commercials
"It would be really cool to have Michael appear in a commerical where the customer is shown ordering a system on line. Cut to - The door bell rings - Customer opens the door and Michael is standing there with their system.
YOU GOT A DELL!!"