Anything But Coffee

It seems like nowadays, every time a new website is launched that has any form of search focused on it everyone wants to call it “the next Google”. This happened with Wolfram|Alpha, Twitter and is now happening with Bing.

I recently read a blog post called The Next Google by Seth Godin; whom of which I usually enjoy his posts but this time I have to disagree.

Now the fact that people jokingly refer to Bing being an acronym that stands for “But It’s Not Google”, is ok with me because Bing is not just a normal search engine. It was not designed to be a Google Killer and its intended purpose is not to be a typical search engine where people just get a list of 10 results to a keyword or phrase that they searched on.

Taken from the Microsoft official media release:

Bing is specifically designed to build on the benefits of today’s search engines but begins to move beyond this experience with a new approach to user experience and intuitive tools to help customers make better decisions, focusing initially on four key vertical areas: making a purchase decision, planning a trip, researching a health condition or finding a local business.

This is why Bing is considered a “Decision Engine”, not just a search engine.

Microsoft is not trying to make it the next Google. Everyone else is calling it that, Microsoft is not. There are similar features to a search engine,  just like every search tool but the whole user concept is different.

When Wolfram|Alpha was launched, everyone was calling that a new Google, until people realized that its not intended to be used as a search engine but as a knowledge engine to find out answers to specific equations and aim to collect and curate all objective data; implement every known model, method, and algorithm; and make it possible to compute whatever can be computed about anything with the goal is of building on the achievements of science and other systematization’s of knowledge to provide a single source that can be relied on by everyone for definitive answers to factual queries.

The same goes for Bing, you have to look at it not as a search engine and don’t treat it as such. Use it for what it is intended for and then make your decision on what you will call it.

Randy Home Bing, Decision Engine, Microsoft

Well it was bound to happen. Apparently this was just confirmed from IGN’s live blog of the 2009 E3 video game conference that coming this fall you will be able to access Twitter posts and Facebook from your XBox Live dashboard.

Taken from the IGN Live Blog:

(11:44:19 AM): Announcing Live Party so that your avatars will sit around a virtual TV and watch it. Looks like a lame version of Mystery Science Theatre. Announcing a partnership with Facebook. Felicia Day on stage from The Guild.

(11:45:35 AM): Season 3 of the guild is coming this fall… Showing off Facebook on Xbox 360. Same kind of windowed browser as the rest of the Xbox interface. Can use friend linker, that shows XBL and FB friends in the same list.

(11:46:30 AM): Can view photos from yourself and your friends off your Xbox. Can view them in slide show mode. In fullscreen on Xbox. Can also browse status updates on your Xbox.

(11:47:34 AM): Facebook Connect is on there as well, which lets you posts screens and texts in real time. Will work for the new Tiger Woods PGA Tour. In addition to Facebook, Twitter will also be available through XBL.

(11:48:28 AM): Looks like you can view other people’s Twitter posts, and you can post from Twitter right from your Xbox. Updates instantly. Twitter and Facebook will be coming to Xbox Live this fall.

This should make for a very interesting experience. Considering Microsoft , Google and Yahoo are all trying to buy Twitter in hopes of gaining the title of “the best search engine” and the release of Bing.com being launched today; look’s like Microsoft is really making a huge step forward in trying to gain control of the market again.

Twitter will soon have 10’s of millions of users, plus the millions of people on Facebook combined with the ability to merge these social sites to their XBox Live account, this may lead to a new rise in popularity with Microsoft’s search presence.

Randy Home, Sex E3 2009, E3 video game conference, facebook on xbox, twitter on xbox, xbox live

I recently just moved to a new apartment and just got my cable and internet turned on.

First off I’d like to say that coming from using Direct TV as my cable provider to now having to go with Charter Cable is a huge difference. Direct TV is just better!

Direct TV’s guide layout is much more user friendly and easier to read; Charters is scrunched together and an ugly lavender type of color with out ever showing any more information about the show other then the name.

Plus the remote from Charter is just so not ergonomically correct… I miss my Direct TV!

Sorry about that, this is supposed to be about the show Daisy of Love on VH1 not my hatred of Charter. So anyway, now that I have my cable set up last night I was trying to learn the new channel layout and came across Daisy of Love. I’ll admit I watched her on Rock of Love and something about her kinda grew on me so figured I’ll check out her new show see what its all about.

To no surprise, the cast of the show was made up of nothing but camera happy douchbags. I was caught off guard seeing 12 pack from I love New York on here but then he opened his mouth and it all made sense.

Anyway here is my run down and understanding about what is going on so far. I guess this was episode 5 of this season and already Daisy was an emotional mess because someone named London decided to leave the house. This upset all the now sensitive douchbags because they all love her so much after spending a couple days with her and some felt betrayed over her strong heart break with London leaving.

This episode they had to design a photo shoot for the cover of her new single, I have no idea what its called. I could probably look it up but then I’d never get those minuets of my life back and for what; not like it really matters right.

The first team did a retro Hollywood style shoot making Daisy up in a pseudo Marlyn Monroe fashion, which she looked very beautiful. That was until good old 12 pack decided to make it a photo shoot about him. Lets face it man, you are never going to make anything of your self more then a D list or under celebrity, so may as well milk it for all that he can.

The second team decided to make it a more rock out crazy style photo shoot. The shoot was going well until this uber Douchbag named Fox decides that because he is a “Hair Stylist” he is going to kick out the professional hair and makeup person and take over. And then Fox decided to jump in the shoot and make it all about him.

Somehow, after Daisy chose team 2’s photo as the winner, Fox is named MVP and wins a 1 on 1 date. It must have been his powers of douchbaggery that persuaded her.

The best part about this date was when she actually tried to have a conversation with Fox. Sadly Daisy comes off as a an air head most of the time. This may be an act or it may be her, who knows. But compared to Fox she seems like a Harvard professor.

There is so much more about this show I could get into but for now this is enough. This was only the first half of the show, there’s a whole 30 min more of crazy ass stuff I can get into. I’m sure I will in a while, but if you feel the need check out Daisy of Love on VH1 and see for yourself.

Randy Automotive, Home

At first glance at the beautifully formed butts of these women playing cricket in Panama you almost can’t believe your eyes. And there very well may be a reason for that. After the initial shock and awe, let’s take a closer look at these images.

Now ignore the faint watermark of someones signature across the images but look closely at the edges of their hips and thighs. You notice the slight difference in the grass background compared to the rest of the grass, it’s slightly bent. This is noticeable in the 2nd image with the grass and the mans shoe as well as with the the fence background in contrast to the butts in the last image.

Now either the butts of these beautiful women are so amazing that they are actually bending spacetime or this image has been touched up in Photoshop to slightly improve their butts. You decide.

Randy Home, Life photo manipulation, photography, Photoshop, pictures, sexy butts, sexy images

Once upon a time, back in June of 2007, I came across a tiny little micro-blogging site called Twitter.

Twitter wasn’t much of anything at this point in time; think of it as a freshly hatched baby Blue Jay, brand new to the world but with a ferocious appetite and incredible urge to spread its wings and fly.I wasn’t too sure of the purpose or benefit of joining Twitter but I decided to anyway (follow me on Twitter).

As with any young website it’s membership was small and the functionality wasn’t always working at it’s best. And the fact that it was practically unheard of outside of the social networking community, it was hard to enjoy the point of the site, which is to communicate with other people.

Seriously, whats the point of tweeting all day long if there are no members to read them and interact with?

So like any good social networker, when trying to do my part and spread the word of Twitter, I often received a look of confusion and the comment “WTF is Twitter” became a part of my daily life. I had a couple friends who would at least humor me and signed up but the most common reaction from everyone was “this is stupid“.

Now from my experiences with early days of MySpace, Facebook, Friendster and as an internet marketer, I knew the potential that Twitter possessed. All it needed, just like the little baby Blue Jay, was some nourishment and time to learn how to spread it’s wings and fly.

Oh My, Look How Twitter Fly’s

Twitter slowly started to gain its popularity through word of mouth, social networking, bloggers, tech-websites and TV shows like G4 TV.

Then suddenly, out of no where, around October 2008 Twitters popularity exploded. Mainly due to the very public exposure to the media and masses in general from its use during the historical presidential elections. Every News channel you went on you would hear them mention Twitter. Some knew what it was while others had no clue but everyone was talking about it. Twitter became part of daily vocabulary for any news or talk show. Celebrity’s joined Twitter, public officials and even the Republican party decided to join.

Steven Colbert was even the first person on TV to make a controversial issue in reference to the site by using the past tense form of the word Tweet to Twatted on the Today Show, which sent the censors into a frenzy trying to decide if Mr. Colbert just committed an FCC violation or not.

The Future is Twitter

In just under 3 years of Twitters creation it is now the 3rd most popular social networking site on the internet with a membership of approximately 5,979,052 and monthly visits of 54,218,731 at the time of this writing. Twitter has worked its way into our public consciousness, and has done something that no other internet property has ever been able to do; successfully bridge the gap between the real world and the internet:

• For the first time in history of the internet and television; thanks to News agency’s such as CNN, MSNBC, FOX News and so on; a news anchor can make a statement and be able to get a real time response from a viewer thousands of miles away and be able to respond back in a matter of minutes all to the benefit of everyone watching.

• Celebrities can now offer a little bit more of a personal connection between them and their fans, allowing their fans to know aspects of their daily life without any real intrusions into their privacy.

• Companies and corporations are now able to connect more with their target audience and get real time feed back and offer special Twitter promotions to their followers.

It’s truly amazing to see how such a once thought of as insignificant website such as Twitter would actually be responsible for changing the direction of the internet and the world.

What’s even more amazing is that Twitter is able to accomplish this with only 140 characters at a time.

Randy Home micro-blogging, Social Networking, twitter

With all the talk about Bank Bailouts, Credit Card Bailouts and Big Corporation Bailouts, there is one section of our country that is curiously being overlooked when it comes to desperately needing a bailout, Student Loans.

I recently came across this Facebook Group Cancel Student Loan Debt to Stimulate the Economy and agree with it 100%, this quote pretty much sums it all up:

“There is a lot of sympathy for homeowners who were victims of predatory lending; at least a mortgagee can file bankruptcy.

Many University students were only eighteen years of age when they signed on for enormous debt from which they can never recover. Where is their protection from predatory lenders?”

In our county higher education is prized and pounded into our head from Kindergarten. We teach our children that without a college education they will have to struggle to survive and will never live a wealthy, successful or happy life.

But what they never mention, until after the fact is how much a college education actually costs and that there is no guarantee that a college degree will grant you a high paying salary to allow you to live the American dream.

Speaking from experience, I can honestly say that my college education; apart from giving me a Bachelors Degree, has also thrown me into debt, lowered my credit score, has made it impossible to establish any new credit and has made living a happy life almost impossible. Even though I have 2 jobs and literally 75% of my total monthly income goes to payback student loans, I am getting taxed on these and still giving all the earned wages back to the Government; which is basically paying them twice, all while I still have to pay my other bills and find a way to survive.

So now myself, like many other American’s must be asking why is our United States Government throwing billions of tax payer dollars at Big Corporations who are directly responsible for their own financial crisis and ripping off the citizens of our country, but no one is willing to help college graduates who are only doing what the leaders of our country have asked of them to do, get a higher education?

Student Loan Bailout

I, like many others, feel that if there was a Student Loan Bailout, then our economy would improve faster then any other bailout proposal so far.

The lending companies would get all their money back; the money that goes to paying student loans would be saved in our banks or spent back into the economy, people would be able to pay their credit card bills, car payments, mortgage payments; people would be able to have extra money to invest in the stock market, small business or housing and rather quickly our recession would be on it’s way to being turned around.

Even if you do not owe any student loans, I ask that you join Cancel Student Loan Debt to Stimulate the Economy because this is something that we all will benefit from.

Why should the big corporation multi-millionaires who are responisble for our recession be the only ones who get assistence when the hardworking American people are the ones stuck with the bill?

Randy Home Cancel Student Loan Debt to Stimulate the economy, facebook, recession, Student loan bailout

Lady GaaG is at it again, just proving why we love her so much.

Besides being a talented piano player, songwriter, singer and fashionista, Lady GaGa shows us another reason why you can’t help but like her.

In a time when the social norm and trendy Hollywood dictate the direction everyone should dress, Lady GaGa goes her own way, bringing her own sense of style to; well frankly a cookie-cutter Beverly Hills 90210 and The Hills look to today’s fashion.

Say what you will about Lady GaGa, lets face it, she has talent.

Shes responsible for many club favorites, has written songs for Akon, Fergie, Pussycat Dolls, Britney Spears and New Kids on the Block and is bringing back  a sense of style that has been missing from the music industry for a very long time.

Image courtesy of TMZ.com

Randy Home, Sex Lady GaGa, Music

Men, are you looking for a wrist watch that will catch everyone’s eye and set you apart from the crowd? Tokyo Flash may be the website for you.

Lets face it, if you are looking for what’s new in gadgets and fashion you have to look to Japan and the same goes for men’s watches. Whether you’re trying to stay on the cutting edge of watch fashion or you just want that next conversation piece at the night club these are the watches you want.

These Japanese wrist watches beautifully mix fashion and digital technology to a level not often seen in America. Using high quality materials and advanced technology, these fashionably futuristic wrist watches make use of sharp angles, negative and positive spaces and beautifully colored lights that resemble the neon signs of the Tokyo skyline.

But these watches don’t just sit there looking pretty. Replacing the traditional numbers along with the hour, minuet and second hands for digital dots, bars and lights, telling time will never be the same.

Don’t worry, you don’t have to be a member of Mensa to figure out what time it is.

Most of these men’s watches are fairly easy to tell time with by using certain colors or placement of the lights to represent the hours, minutes and seconds. It’s just a mater of learning which light bar and dot represents which time unit.

And yes, each watch comes with instructions in English explaining how to read the time and as an extra bonus, downloadable instructions are offered directly from the Tokyo Flash website along with visual examples as well. It may take some getting used to but with just a little practice, you’ll be telling time in no time.

Randy Home Jewelry, men's watches, Tokyo Flash, watches, wrist watches

Ahh Twitter, such a wonderful new form of global communication, a new step in bringing the world closer together and more connected to each other.
Makes me proud to know that someone has decided to use Twitter for good instead of evil and feels the urge to use his electrical engineering abilities to create a Chair That Tweets His Farts.

If you feel the need to follow his tweets, you can do so here.

Randy Home twitter

So my friend accidentally ran over a cat for the first time the other day. Needless to say he was very disturbed over the situation and felt it would be best to get through this trying time by creating a flash re-enactment of the Kitty Crunch accident. The animation and voice sync needs a little polishing up but still pretty funny.

Randy Home Kitty Crunch, Video Blog, VLOG, Youtube