The Best New Thing

My friend showed me this great new service from Google over the weekend...

She told me that if you text Google (46645) and put in a search term they will email you back the results. This works best if you are trying to find a store or restaurant. (Go to the Google site to see what Google Mobile is capable of - local listings, flights, weather, driving directions, glossary, movies, sports...much more)

The charge is only how much it costs you to send and receive text messages.

So let's say you are looking for "Baja Fresh, Miami FL" - text that to 46645 and within a few minutes you will get back a list of Baja Fresh restaurants in Miami FL. I just tried it out and got back from Google (in less than a minute) the two locations (in Brickell and Coral Gables), with their full addresses and phone numbers. Amazing!

Try it out - it is way cheaper than calling 411 and it is fast and easy!

Swim across the Atlantic

This is hilarious, the people at Google have a great sense of humor.

Here is Google map/directions from New York to Paris. Step 23 - Swim across the Atlantic Ocean - 3,462 miles. Yup just a hop, skip, jump and swim away!

Thanks to my friend anna for sharing this with me.

Attn: Contributors

Blogger has required that I upgrade Getting To Maybe and use the newest version of the Blogger program.

What does that mean? I am not really sure if the blog will look any different (except now we can use "labels" - YAY!). But all of the contributors must now create a Google Account in order to create new posts. Please don't think that I kicked you off the contributor's list - this was all done by the hand of Blogger. You are all still very welcome to continue to post, but all you have to do is create a new login with a Google account in order to do so.

Sorry for the inconvenience and please email me if you come across any problems. Thanks!

P.S. - I am already liking the new version of Blogger - easier spell check (doesn't think the word "blog" is spelled wrong anymore) and easier publishing. That said I have only used the new blogger for about 10 minutes. I still haven't been able to get the picture uploading to work, but that might just be a "pop-up" issue. And this is strange but you can actually choose the date and time that your post is published (or says it was published). And yes, that includes back-dating. Interesting.

Cyber Monday!!!

So did any of you wake up at 5 am and get in on those great sales on Black Friday*? Oh, you slept in? So you think you missed out completely on those insane bargains?

Think again.

Today is Cyber Monday!!! (Also known as Black Monday) Today is the official kick-off of the holiday online shopping - and some websites offer great deals. If you can find them please share them here - and I will link to some I have already found as well.

So far I have found most websites have free shipping, very low shipping, or spend a low amount (like $50) and get free shipping.

Many websites have online coupons. Before you go spending at any website make sure you do a quick google search for online coupons. Many coupon websites will give you the code to enter in at checkout and you can get all types of discounts. In the past I have used online coupons for shopping at Dell.com and Perfume.com. Check out Deal Catcher (which has every type of store imaginable and lists the best deals at those stores), Daily Deals, and Coupon Mountain. If those don't work for you just google the name of the store with the words "online coupon" following it. Most stores have online coupons all year round and special coupons just for today so don't miss out on the deals.

Many online stores have teamed up with Google to give you more discounts. If you sign up for Google Checkout, you can store your credit card information with Google and check out at many online stores without entering in your information over and over again. If you use Google Checkout you are eligible for more discounts at those stores.

Target has free shipping on more than 25,000 items and a bunch of deals. You can get a 32 inch LCD HDTV for $899. Actually they have too many sales to list here - just go check out the site and you can find a lot on sale.

Staples is offering many items at more than a 50% discount. LCD monitors, office chairs, copiers, printers, and more.

Sephora has a free gift if you spend more than $50 - a bag with 8 deluxe samplers: Oscar Blandi Luce hair treatment, L 'Occitane verbena salt scrub, cleansing cream, Peptide Intensive treatment, Lancome Mascara, Urban Decay Lip plumper, Smashbox soft lights, and Make Up for Ever eye pencil. (Coupon Code: CIRQUE9)

Although Walmart is often a source of controversy, you have to admit their stuff is cheap. And right now you can get most items shipped for 97 cents. Get a 42 inch LCD flatscreen for $1,198.00 (you may have to pay shipping on that one), 19 inch LCD with DVI input computer screen for 149.87, 3 PS2 games for $25, a Starbucks coffee sampler/holiday basket for $18.22 and tons of toys, dvds and electronics at discounted prices.

Who else is joining in on the deals? Home Depot, Sports Authority, Dell, Best Buy, Crate & Barrel, Sam's Club, Amazon.com, Office Depot, Macy's, Nordstrom, JC Penney and Sears.

(*And for those of you who think Black Friday isn't real or doesn't have cheap stuff, you have never been to Target on Black Friday to see piles of boxes of electronics at a quarter of its normal price being sold out very quickly)

Want To Waste 5 Minutes?

Play this game where you see how quickly you can pick out the right logo of frequently visited websites such as Amazon.com, Google, YouTube, Netflix and more...

I think I scored around 9% - taking into account it took me a few minutes to answer all of them and I got about half wrong.

(Link and Picture from Boing Boing)

Who is this Man?

He was on various stages around Lollapalooza. Calexico. The Flaming Lips. The Shins. (He even ended up on the Jumbo Screen during the Shins.) And according to Danya he closed out the set for The New Pornographers. He dances like a GOD! Does anyone know who he is? Please help me!!!

****UPDATE****

By doing a small google search for dancing guy lollapalooza - I found out his name is Beatle Bob (his real name being Robert Matonis). The nick name came from his childhood days in Catholic School when he was caught reading a Beatle's fan magazine and the Nun called him "Beatle Bob."

He somehow has made a name for himself in the St. Louis music scene and gets on stage at every major show. He is both loved and hated by the music world. There are websites asking him to "sit down" and there are articles celebrating his life story. People try to describe his unique dancing style - but they find it is beyond words. He does however have one signature move - the "bowling move" - where he slides one foot behind the other while simultaneously executing a windmill arm sweep.

Some say that if Beatle Bob is at the show - you picked the right band. I guess I was lucky to see Beatle Bob on 3 stages!

I have to say that although he was a bit distracting during the show I still enjoyed his dancing - he seemed to bring some energy that made everyone want to do the "Beatle Bob" and let loose to the music!

Searchably Friendly Wiki Of The Day

The most important word of the decade.

another reason to delete those cookies!

If you're concerned about your privacy in a world that is growingly more reliant on the Internet everyday, read on. I'm not particularly paranoid about my information being available for the government or individuals to see, but then again, unless it's confidential information like my social security number, the biggest threat I can imagine is being embarrassed when sees how many gossip sites I look at instead of news or educational sites.

Anyway, apparently if you don't block cookies, Google will keep track of every search you ever conduct until 2038. That's surprised me, I must admit and also concerns me b/c who knows 20 years from now where any of us will be and what searches may come back to haunt us? On the surface, the cookie cache doesn't seem to be especially threatening, but it's obviously ripe and vulnerable to abuse and misuse.

In light of a new federal anti-pornography law in the works, the government has subpoenaed records from AOL, MSN and Yahoo as well so it's not just Google. But considering that Google is the search engine giant, the subpoena ramifications for Google are obviously much greater. This in itself poses a privacy threat, naturally, but what if such information about who searches for unsavory or highly humiliating sites gets in the hands of the wrong people? Where else can that information go and who else can use it?

Just off the top of my head, I can imagine how this cache could be used to target pedophiles and such. In that case, well I suppose the end justifies the means, although there must be better ways of accomplishing the same without violating the privacy of innocent and unsuspecting individuals in the process.

Stick It To The Man!

Many office and public computers have restrictions that keep the users from accessing certain sites.

Want the loop hole? Here is an example to see this site:

http://www.google.com/translate?langpair=en%7Cen&u=www.gettingtomaybe.blogspot.com

http://www.google.com/translate?langpair=en%7Cen&u=____________________ (fill in website here)

So stick it to the man and see all the websites you want to!

Oh and if that doesn't work try the UK version of this same loop hole:

http://www.google.co.uk/translate?langpair=en|en&u=____________________ (fill in website here)

(Thanks Boing Boing)

The Brrreeeport Buzz

The buzz this week on the internet revolves around a website called Technorati (a blog search engine) and a crazy word - "Brrreeeport"

A guy who refers to him self as the "Microsoft Geek Blogger" (I think he works for Microsoft) has put a challenge out there for the blogging world. If you go onto Google and type in "Brrreeeport" you won't get a single hit. Go to Google's Blog Search, and you get 315 hits! But go to Technorati and type in "Brrreeeport" and you get 331 hits! And now our blog will be added to that list just because we made a post about brrreeeport. This challenge is going to show which is the best blog search engine - and so far Technorati looks like it is just a little bit ahead.

Hey this is kinda fun....

brrreeeport. bRRREEEport? BRRREEEPORT! Brrreeeport.

(Thanks Best Week Ever for sharing the Brrreeeport buzz!)

Even google is doing it

How Google Fights Power Consumption


I LOVE IT!

Men Are From Google, Women Are From Yahoo

We have all heard the saying "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" - but in this modern world, the differences between the sexes stretch into every realm of life, including the internet.

On the Internet, as in life, men and women have different motivations for doing what they do. According to a recent report from Pew Internet and American Life, women view the Internet as a place to extend, support, and nurture relationships and communities. Men tend to see it as an office, a library, or a playground--screw the community, this is about function not family.

Read on...

Netscape - The Problem Solver

Are you sick of Internet Explorer? Seriously, we have been using the internet for so many years now, don't you think it's time that the browser change with your needs? IE seems so outdated, simple and one dimensional. I want a browser that has a lot of options and is easy to customize.

After my recent frustration with Google, I decided that it may be Internet Explorer that is the problem. So I downloaded Netscape's browser - and let me tell you, I am impressed.

Here are some of the perks:
- Already built in toolbars for email, searching, news/weather/local maps/movies/yellowpages
- Built in AOL Instant Messenger
- You only open one window - then each time you want to see another website tabs are created for each new site - which means quicker and easier loading.
- Built in pop-up blocking
- Built in auto-fill options
- The built in search toolbar gives you five search engines to choose from (google, netscape, aol, ask jeeves, and yahoo)
- You can add one click shortcuts to your toolbar for websites you like to visit often
- Plus it imports all your settings from Instant Messenger - so don't worry about setting up your bookmarks again

So if you have found yourself bored with internet browsing and are looking for more try out Netscape!

Oh and by the way - Google works now!

Google?

After posting a million times about how much I Love Google - it has finally turned against me!

For the past few weeks I have not been able to load Google on my work computer - and it is driving me insane!! I type it in - hoping to search for something really really important (of course) and then I get "cannot find Google."

What??!! Don't tell me you don't know what Google is! Soon you will be owned by Google and you better start loading it now or you will suffer the consequences later!

The Google Cheat Sheet

When I am on google's mainpage I often look at it and think there must be some type of shortcut I can use to refine the search in some way.

Well finally I have come across the Google Cheat Sheet.

This page gives you all types of shortcuts, including:
- how to search terms and exclude a specific word from the search
- how to find a definition
- how to search synonyms of the word you typed in
- how to search within only a specific website
- hwo to search a range of numbers, prices and months
- how google can be a calculator

Why We Love Google (I Should Start Numbering These)

Google Click-to-Call

We're testing a new product that gives you a free and fast way to speak directly to the advertiser you found on a Google search results page – over the phone.

Here's how it works: When you click the phone icon, you can enter your phone number. Once you click 'Connect For Free,' Google calls the number you provided. When you pick up, you hear ringing on the other end as Google connects you to the other party. Then, chat away on our dime.

We won't share your telephone number with anyone, including the advertiser. When you're connected with the advertiser, your number is blocked so the advertiser can't see it. In addition, we'll delete the number from our servers after a short period of time.

Cool! Now you don't have to look up the advertiser's phone number - just click and it calls! Yet another reason to love Google and the Internet

(let's just rename the internet to google already!)

Thanks Digg for the link.

One Reason We Love Google...

...the cool logos!





And now you can check out Google Logos Through the Ages.

Enjoy. Courtesy of Boing Boing.

The Dream Has Come Alive

I know you are an avid reader of this Blog - so you MUST remember when I posted about the $100 Laptop....right?

Well, the dream has come alive. The prototype has been built by the "One Laptop Per Child" not-for-profit group, it has corporate sponsors like Google and Advanced Micro Devices and it actually is pretty cute!

Is this gonna be like the new Ipod or something?

UFO's

"UFO Maps overlays Google maps of the US with sightings data from the National UFO Reporting Center."

You would think the Western states would be heavy on the sightings - but it looks like the North East wins! Oh those crazy North Easterners!

(Boing Boing hooks us up with today's link)

Google Moon

We all love Google Earth, which is a program that allows the user to see satellite images of any place on the earth (a lot of fun if you haven't tried it already) - you can get close enough to see individual streets, homes and buildings - and sometimes a blurry person walking down the street

But now......Google MOON!!

This doesn't work the same way as Google Earth - there are just a few basic satellite photos that you can zoom into

My suggestion (for a good laugh) is to zoom in as far as you can (towards the plus side) and see what the moon looks like up close (and is really made of)