Ajax Girl

The Venice Project, the new online television startup led by Skype founders Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis, has always been a working name for the company. Until today, no one outside the company knew name the company would eventually launch as.

A tip from reader Joost Schreve led us to the domain name Joost.com: if you click the “cancel” button multiple times an unformatted web page pops up with information about the Venice Project. We have subsequently confirmed that this is the actual launch name of the company.

Joost recently entered into a private beta, and screen shots were shortly posted to the web.

The domain name registration information, which can be accessed here, shows that i is currently owned by a Dutch corporation called Oak Grove Corporation, with a mailing address in Curacao.

The strategy of using a code name for a pre-launch company is rarely used. The last high profile example was Marc Andreesen’s 2005 startup Ning, which used the working name 24 Hour Laundry until launch. It makes sense if the company wants to start marketing the product before the first choice domain name is acquired, but it also dilutes the brand name.

Update: The news is out, so the company is releasing more information now. NewTeeVee has just posted screenshots of Joost (compare to old screenshots here):

Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.

Source: TechCrunch
Original Article: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/75731116/

John Resig and team have released jQuery 1.1 which includes a speed upgrade, an updated API, a new homepage, and new documentation including a book in the works.

The community seems to be growing from strength to strength.

New Features

• By all of our counts, jQuery 1.1’s selectors are 10x-20x faster than those in jQuery 1.0.4. This should provide a noticable difference in your jQuery applications.
• Common selectors like div#id, div .class, td:nth-child(1), and div > div are all significantly faster. It’s a complete world of difference. Try them out and you’ll see.
• You can now pass in a function as a value for an attribute or a css property. The function is executed and its return value is set as the value for the property. For example:

  // 1.0 Code
  $(\"a\").each(function(){
      $(this).attr(\"href\", \"/item/\" + this.id);
  }).show();
  
  // 1.1 Code
  $(\"a\").attr(\"href\", function(){ return \"/item/\" + this.id; }).show();

• You can now unbind an event handler from within itself. This allows you to have event handlers that are only bound for a specific number of executions, for example:

  $(\"button\").click(function(e){
      // Unbind the event handler if a specific form is hidden
      if ( $(\"#submitForm\").is(\":hidden\") ) {
          $(this).unbind( e );
      }
  });

• Easily bind an event that will only occur once (this replaces the old .oneclick() functionality):

  // Show a thank you message for a form submission, but only once
  $(\"form\").one(\"submit\",function(){
      $(\"#thankyou\").show();
  });

• You can now set the text value of an element (this is different from .html(), where in .text() all HTML is displayed as text).

  $(\"pre\").text(\"<b>Hello</b>, how are you?\");
  
  // Result:
  <pre>&lt;b&gt;Hello&lt;/b&gt;, how are you?</pre>

• You can now build your own filters, using a custom function. (This was in 1.0, but it wasn’t documented very well.)

  // Find all divs whose parent isn't hidden
  $(\"div\").filter(function(){
    return $(this).parent(\":hidden\").length > 0;
  });

• You can now pass a comma-separated list of selectors to the following filter functions:
  filter, find, not, siblings, parents, children, next, prev. This allows you to do some very cool stuff:

  // Find all radio buttons, or checkboxes, in a form
  $(\"form input\").filter(\":radio, :checkbox\");
  
  // Find the next element that's a span, or a div
  $(this).next(\"span, div\");

Source: Ajaxian
Original Article: http://ajaxian.com/archives/jquery-11-is-reborn-on-its-first-birthday

One of the things that got me excited about Apple’s multitouch UI for the iPhone is the potential for “handmade” shortcuts. I’ll call them trails.

I don’t know how this would work, or where/when you’d be able to do it, but let’s suspend those issues for a second and just talk about the potential.

What if I could make shapes or trails on the iPhone screen to visit a web site, sms someone, or speed dial? Here’s the idea:

In otherwords, make the shortcuts mine. I could make a Z trail to call my dad at his office number. Or an O to call my friend Oliver. Or a spiral to load up The New York Times’ web site. Or create parallel lines with two fingers to open up the sms app and start a conversation with David.

Anyway, just an idea. I’ve always thought squiggles or trails or shapes would be a great personal way to create shortcuts. It’s cool to maybe see that potential made possible with the iPhone’s Multitouch technology.

Source: Signal vs. Noise
Original Article: http://www.37signals.com/svn/posts/195-iphone-trails

Gazprom

Daniel Libeskind’s design for Gazprom City, the future St. Petersburg headquarters for Russian energy giant Gazprom.

Gorillapod

The flexible Gorillapod is a tripod that can attach anywhere.

Acquarium

This crazy home aquarium gives fish somewhere to go.

Source: Signal vs. Noise
Original Article: http://www.37signals.com/svn/posts/193-designed-gazprom-gorillapod-fishtank

David Rusenko told us about his product Weebly, a web site creation utility written with copious amounts of Ajax utilizing an easy to use drag and drop interface.

We’re trying to make a tool that’s easy enough for the majority of web users to use, and guides the user towards creating a complete compliant web site (not just an online word doc).

Weebly is now funded, has moved to the bay area, and we should expect some interesting news coming out from them soon.

Check out the video below, which tells the story better than a few words here. This is the latest of a set of tools that aim to get the average joe to a point where they can have a wysiwyg website editing experience.

Source: Ajaxian
Original Article: http://ajaxian.com/archives/weebly-online-website-creation-tool-using-ajax

Andrea Giammarchi has been working on an online JavaScript editor and debugger.

The online editor combines a possible solution for byte family plugins, a global byteplug namespace object, and a portable Editor panel to test quickly JavaScript and/or html pages.

Features

• realtime debug
  It allows developers to write and test code quickly using document.write, alerts or everything else.
  To view or execute a code, just use CTRL+RETURN or click on debug panel (bottom left), result will be displayed on output panel (bottom right)
  using a dedicated iframe virtual space.
• line points

  Just click one line (number on the left) to mark them

• in-place suggest
  Just click CTRL + SPACE or CTRL + SHIFT with Opera to view a kind of intelligent code suggest.
  For example, if You write “Number.” on area then use CTRL + SPACE You will see every Number dedicated method plus generic Object methods.
  If You press CTRL + SPACE without a dot before area selection, suggest will show You generic or global functions and statements.
• quick and simple load and save operations

  You can cut and paste some piece of code or directly open a file (txt or js) from Your computer.
  You can save working area content too, choosing a name using CTRL+S or after one click on File, Save As.

• simplified JavaScript 1.7 debug
  You can choose to parse JavaScript as version 1.7 (compatible only with FireFox 2.0 or other advanced browsers) choosing Use JS 1.7 on Settings menu.
• popup mode
  You can launch this Editor inside an 800×600 popup
• jhp mode
  You can choose to try my absolutely nonsense or crazy jhp JavaScript library … !!!
• x-html mode
  You can write divs, links, or every kind of markup using <script> … </script> as first piece of area code (with or without JS code inside) to create a page instead of direct script execution

  (i.e. <script type=”text/javascript”>function myfunc(){alert(”Hello World”)}</script> <span onclick=”myfunc()”>test me</span>)

• resizable area
  You can drag the line between working area and debug/output panel to find your favourite size
• extra “code cruncher” implementation
  You can test your code using a “code cruncher” (Crunch - “method” from Extra menu).
  Please view “simple and portable PHP download” point to know more about Crunch methods.
• extra code headers injection
  You can choose to add area code as header. For example, if You need to add a library during debug You can
  load or paste its code inside area and add them as header.
  This code will not be parsed by jsmin and will not be saved as part of script but will be wrote before every other scripts on output panel (every but jhp) then,
  for example, You could add Prototype code and use them as header.

   // extra headers example
  // area content
  function testMe(){
  	document.write(\"useful ?\");
  };
  
  // now click on header - add code on Extra menu and clean the area
  // after that, write this on area
  testMe();
  
  // CTRL+RETURN or a click on debug panel and code will be executed
  	

  Please remember that every time You add code precedent code will not be deleted so You need to use header - clear code to remove all precedent headers.

• extra highlight feature
  You can choose to view on output panel highlighted code version.
  Fast version marks strings, numbers and comments while full highlight parse functions and methods too.
  If You have a big source and a regular PC (without monster CPU) You should use fast version.
  To use a copy of highlighted code You could copy and paste output panel and use this dedicated css example file.
• simple and portable PHP download and / or pack panel feature

  You can save your code that should be parsed with cruncher too and then injected into a portable php 3, 4, 5 or greater file that will automatically
  choose the best way to cache with or without gz encoding even on server that doesn’t have zlib extension enabled.

  • just area code,
    to create a php file without code cruncher (the safest script VS bandwidth option leaving comments and everything else)
  • Crunch comments,
    to create a php file parsing code with basic code cruncher (removes only comments, this is a good script VS bandwidth option)
  • Crunch newlines,
    to create a php file parsing code with medium code cruncher (removes comments and every repeated space replacing them using a linefeed, this is the best script VS bandwidth option)
  • Crunch full,
    to create a php file parsing code with full cruncher options (remove any linefeed and doesn’t take care of potential missing semicolons [can be regressive], this is the best copression option)

  If You want to download your code using code cruncher please enable “Crunch”, choose your favourite method and test your code to be sure that it works correctly.
  If You just want to use this Editor to create these kind of compressed files and these are really bigs (no more than 512Kb on upload and 2Mb on download - my personal choice) please don’t use File and Open process, just cut and paste your code into area (faster and safer for your browser and PC).
  Please remember that created file size will not be the real size downloaded from clients so don’t care about that, just test created php file and have fun

Source: Ajaxian
Original Article: http://ajaxian.com/archives/byteplug-experimental-online-javascript-editor

ShackPrices is a Seattle-area real estate Ajax application written using Rails by Galen Ward and team.

If you do real estate, you need to mashup to Google Maps, but this goes beyond that. It is highly interactive, with lots of live filters and tools, and the back button seems to be handled really well.

Source: Ajaxian
Original Article: http://ajaxian.com/archives/shackprices-rails-based-ajax-real-estate-site

San Francisco based WeatherBill, the service which lets you bet on the weather (it can also be used for insurance), took down their landing page and launched today.

We wrote about the company two weeks ago while it was in private beta. WeatherBill is combining an ecommerce site with a complicated weather forecasting algorithm to sell weather insurance policies to individuals and businesses.

The company is not disclosing the size of their round of funding. However, it includes venture firms NEA and Index Ventures, as well as a number of well known individuals: del.icio.us founder Joshua Schachter, Skype founder Niklas Zennstrom (through his Atomico fund) and Howard Morgan (idealab and First Round Capital), as well as others who declined to be named.

WeatherBill is perfect for small and medium sized businesses who’s businesses are affected by the weather. If a golf course wants to be paid $1,000 per rainy day, WeatherBill will create a policy on the fly for them.

The company was founded by former Googler David Friedberg.

Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.

Source: TechCrunch
Original Article: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/75534133/

I’m finally getting around to playing blog tag after being offline and on vacation, then busy with clients again. Thanks to both Deb Schultz and Lisa Stone who tagged me a few weeks ago, spreading the game initiated by Jeff Pulver. 

So, five things you many not know about me:

1. I’m lucky to have traveled or lived in many parts of the world by the time I was 16, including Africa, Holland, England, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, China, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Hong Kong, Jordan, and Egypt.

2. While I’m a self-proclaimed city girl, I love the outdoors and wild places.  I know how to roll a white water kayak, and I’ve climbed 21 of the 46 High Peaks in the Adirondack mountains. 

3. Before going digital, I spent most my design time as an artist and sculptor dedicated to making art: mixed media installations, time-based installations and objects, metal sculpture, bronze casting, wax and metal work, photography, analog and digital video. 

4. I’ve been a vegetarian for 15 years and take photos of the food I eat.

5. I had a shaved head in college.  Max was there

And, now, I’m tagging the following five people, all of whom are in my feed reader and three of whom I’ve met.  Each is radically different in style and focus, but that’s what I like - an eclectic/hybrid set of influences.

Lawrence Lessig

Mochipopstar

Peter Merholz

Anne 2.0

Mrs. Mogul

[Technorati tags: blog-tag, deborah+schultz, lisa+stone, mochipopstar, peter+merholz, lawrence+lessig, anne+zelenka, mrs+mogul, blogtag, emily+chang]

Source: Emily Chang
Original Article: http://www.emilychang.com/go/weblog/comments/blog-tag/

We first heard about the AOL-TradeDoubler rumors in a comment to a blog post, and it looks like it’s happening. AOL is acquiring Sweden-based TradeDoubler, a performance marketing company, for €695 million in cash, or about US$900 million. TradeDoubler, which is strong in Europe, will complement AOL’s advertising.com, which has made little headway there. The company has about 350 employees.

See here for a translated version of a French article announcing the deal. This is a 9% premium on TradeDoubler’s Friday close price. The board of directors of the company has accepted the bid, and it is now going to a shareholder vote.

TradeDoubler’s revenue last quarter was about US$60 million, with operating profits of around US$6.7 million. 90$+ of the company’s revenues are generated outside of Sweden. The UK is by far TradeDoubler’s biggest market. The company has about US$54 million in cash on hand.

Update: Press Release (in English) is here.

Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0

Source: TechCrunch
Original Article: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/75526035/