It's been some time since my last post (just finished with finals, hello summer!) and also a while since I've posted a tech update. Over the past 48 hours, important things happened that will affect hundreds of millions of people, so let's get to it.
Over the past week there was much talk about Google or Facebook buying up the video chat company with some 200 million users worldwide. I would have preferred that Facebook buy it because the benefits would have been greater. The deal would have likely led to Facebook Chat being enhanced with a video Skype option where you can just call others, in browser. Google already has a relatively strong video chat system in Gmail and Google voice is increasing in popularity.
Out of nowhere, and much to my surprise, Twitter blew up with talk of Microsoft making the purchase; CEO's soon followed with the official announcement. As shown in the article attached, Hotmail, Xbox, and Windows 7 users will the the most direct beneficiaries.
Facebook and Microsoft have had major business deals in the past (you can do a web search in Facebook and find "Web results" by Bing) so it won't be long before they hash out a deal to introduce some kind of video chatting via the social networking site.
My concern is what Microsoft will try to do with Skype the program. Integrating the software is great and will surely enhance the Window 7 phone (instead of having Skype as a simple app), improve the huge but less than "sexy" Hotmail, and help Windows in its fight to get more "social" amidst Google's constant failures but this says nothing of what will happen with my (and 200 million others') experience on the program itself. The last thing I want to see is a constant message imploring me to buy everything Microsoft.
I would have preferred it go to Facebook, but with Microsoft buying Skype, it may help level the playing field when it comes to Google's dominance in search, phone market, and email.
Meanwhile, the conglomerate named Google has just opened its invite-only software called Music Beta. I'm waiting to get my invite to use the software (will come in a week hopefully) and can give you more time, but its a clear move by the company to sprint ahead of Apple's iTunes, the world's most used music player.
You see, many have demanded it, and even more are now expecting, that Apple will release a new version of iTunes that allows you to access your music from anything with an internet connection. Most people assume it will come with the new iPhone, and so do I from all the evidence, however the time its taken to establish the cloud network, has allowed Google (and previously before it) Amazon to run their own systems hoping to get ahead.
Here is their introductory video:
As I understand it, it allows you to upload hundreds of thousands of songs (in the beta version) as opposed to Amazon's 5 gb. It would also have the greatest benefit of being pre-installed in every Android Phone and Android slate (and eventually into Google's Chrome laptop).
This is the future of, not only music, but all computers; when they will be as light as a 1 subjective notebook (or lighter) with everything stored up above... in the cloud.
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