Products galore...Zazzle's latest

It's 1:30AM Pacific Standard Time right now, and I'm at work at Zazzle, as are many others, overseeing the latest release of our website. We're really excited about this one! Why? See for yourself! You can now customize all these different products:

T-Shirts
Bags
Hats
Aprons
Ties
Zazzle Custom Stamps
Greeting Cards
Note Cards
Postcards
Posters
Canvas Prints
Framed Prints
Photo Prints
Photo Enlargements
Mugs
Travel Mugs
Steins
Mousepads
Photo Sculptures
Magnets
Keychains
Bumper Stickers
Round Stickers
Buttons

Many other features have also been added (image categories, private album sharing, optimizations, etc)

18 Startup Mistakes

Found this article by Paul Graham through Digg, and I thought it was interesting. It details 18 mistakes that cause a startup company to fail.

Here's a quick summary list. Read the article for details on each one.

1. Single Founder
   
2. Bad Location
   
3. Marginal Niche
   
4. Derivative Idea
   
5. Obstinacy
   
6. Hiring Bad Programmers
   
7. Choosing the Wrong Platform
   
8. Slowness in Launching
   
9. Launching Too Early
   
10. Having No Specific User in Mind
    
11. Raising Too Little Money
    
12. Spending Too Much
    
13. Raising Too Much Money
    
14. Poor Investor Management
    
15. Sacrificing Users to (Supposed) Profit
    
16. Not Wanting to Get Your Hands Dirty
    
17. Fights Between Founders
    
18. A Half-Hearted Effort
    

Although some of these are pretty obvious, you'd be amazed how many companies make these mistakes.

Bubble 2.0 - Now with more staying power!

SFGate.com published an article comparing the late '90's dot-com bubble, to the current Web 2.0 boom. Some quotes of interest:

Startups now tend to sell themselves to bigger firms, rather than have an overly hyped initial public offering on the stock market.

I think that's good. The stock market is too volatile to build foundations on.

A new emphasis on social networking and connecting people, rather than e-commerce, which was foisted on consumers before they trusted the medium.

Very well said. Many people define "Web 2.0" as the social Internet. The new thinking is more about what you can DO on the 'net rather than what you can BUY. A good step forward.

However, there are warnings as well:

The big challenge remains figuring out how to wring money out of all the people using the Internet

Let's face it. A company has to make money to be viable.

This article is a good read.

Blogger beta issue

I just recently upgraded my blogger account to use the new beta software. Because of this, all my old posts have been marked as new again, and if you use an RSS reader to view this blog, you may have received a flood of new messages that are not really new.

Just sayin'.

AJAX parody t-shirt

This is my latest Zazzle creation! Get the t-shirt now!

Buy.com fiasco update

Well, it took a week and several emails and one PayPal complaint later, but I finally got a refund from Buy.com. In the interim, I ended up buying a nice 32" LCD HDTV from Costco. It's great!

Also, all the other stuff I needed (wall mount, HDMI DVD player, cables) I ended up ordering from various places online that take PayPal, and guess what...the payments made it through no problem!

So I will never use Buy.com with PayPal again. They seem to have an issue with their PayPal integration and will cancel your order in 3 hours if they don't think they have the money. Sons of bitches.

Buy.com should be called TakeMyMoney&CancelMyOrder.com

First, let me just say DO NOT USE BUY.COM. In case you missed that, DO NOT USE BUY.COM! Ok, now let me explain what happened.

I've been in the market for a 32" LCD HDTV and found a nice one for a great price at Buy.com. I also needed an articulating wall-mount for it, and I figured I'd also throw in a new DVD player with HDMI capabilities. I was able to find all of that, plus an HDMI cable, for just over $1000 at Buy.com.

Great price for all that gear! I'm sold! And, they also take PayPal, where I keep the money I make from online ventures. This is what happened next:

Step 1, add all items to cart. Check.

Step 2, checkout using PayPal. Check.

Step 3, verify my PayPal payment on PayPal's site. Check.

Step 4, wait for products to arrive!

I thought everything was Kosher and I would receive my merchandise in about a week. Sweet! But three hours later I get this in my email:

Dear Buy.com Customer,

This is to notify you that you did not complete your order #xxxxxxxx in which you selected PayPal as your method of payment. To complete your purchase please:
1. Log into your Buy.com account
2. Click on the order number for which you want to complete the payment transaction.
3. Click on the "Change payment method or re-submit to Paypal" link.
4. Select PayPal from the drop down and click on "Resubmit Information".

Hmmm. Maybe there was a glitch. Ok, I'll re-submit. Of course, when I re-submit, PayPal gives me an error saying "You have already paid for that item." Ok, at least PayPal is smart about it.

A few hours later I get an email from Buy.com stating that my order was cancelled.

So I send Buy.com an email asking why they cancelled the order, and they respond with a form letter stating they never received payment from PayPal. Then, to my surprise, BUY.COM SENT A REFUND TO MY PAYPAL ACCOUNT! Ok, if they never received payment, how can they refund?

In any case, I still gave them the benefit of the doubt and decided to place a new order, since I had my money back anyway. So I followed the steps once again. And of course, in a few hours, I get the same email as before, stating that I need to complete my order!

Then a little while later, the order gets cancelled AGAIN, with the same explanation that they never received payment from PayPal. Except this time, I NEVER GOT MY MONEY BACK!

I have PayPal records stating that Buy.com got paid. And I have records from Buy.com stating that the order was cancelled for non-payment. So where is my $1000?

At this point, I called Buy.com. I explained the situation and they said that the case has been sent to their main office for investigation, and that I should have my refund shortly. Ok, when I get my money back, I'll just shop somewhere else.

A day passed with no money. So I call again. I get the same explanation, so I asked to speak to someone in the main office. They said no. THEY SAID NO! They are not authorized to give out any information about their main office, and that I would have to wait 3-5 days for a resolution!

So here I am, out $1000, waiting for a refund from Buy.com for an order they cancelled on me, and PayPal saying the money was sent. Where is the money? It seems to be stuck somewhere in cyberspace, although I tend to believe Buy.com has it at this point.

So what did I learn from this fiasco? Don't shop ay Buy.com, especially if you use PayPal. You know what? Forget that. Just DON'T SHOP AT BUY.COM PERIOD.

Ok, rant mode temporarily off...for now.

More Zune news: Form vs. Function

Jake Ludington's MediaBlab blog just published some pictures comparing a Zune device to an iPod. The iPod, of course, is sleeker and more stylish, having been built by the masters of form, Apple. The Zune is noticably blockier and bigger.

This may come down to the age old form vs. function debate. The Zune specs out with more features than iPod (Wi-Fi, FM radio, etc.), but the iPod looks better and still has enough features for most people. So is Microsoft's Zune an iPod killer? Well, that all depends on whether you lean towards form (iPod) or function (Zune). My guess is that at first, early adopters and techies will buy the Zune for its cool features. It may even catch on beyond the tech arena to some degree. But Microsoft has an uphill battle against Apple to topple the iPod's dominance in the marketplace. They need to pretty it up, because, let's face it, humans are vain creatures who like to look cool.

Zune matches iPod pricing

Microsoft has announced Zune pricing and availability. 
Gear Factor has more...

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Zune Pricing Announced

Finally, Microsoft has disclosed the salient details about the Zune music player. It will be released Nov. 14 and will cost $249.99, matching the price of Apple's 30GB video iPod. Similarly, when Zune Marketplace goes live on the same day, it will charge $.99 per song, just like iTunes.

Since a price war won't be waged as some expected, it seems Microsoft is relying on Zune's limited music-sharing capability, as well as the Zune Pass subscription -- which will let users listen to any of the Marketplace's approximately 2 million songs for $14.99 per month -- to drive people to the new music player. Users will also have the option of purchasing tracks with Microsoft Points, which lets them add money to an account, a system that's already used in the Xbox Live Marketplace.

[Via Yahoo!] 

 

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    Feed Title: Gear Factor
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iPod vs. Zune SMACKDOWN!

Found this on Digg. I'm kinda rooting for the Zune :-)

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iPod vs. Zune SMACKDOWN!

BBSpot takes it to the streets, throwing Chuck Norris, a Ford Excursion, and promises of everlasting health against the reigning champion of MP3 players and its scrappy challenger from a small company known as Microsoft. Lets get rrrreeeaaaady toooooooooooo rrrrruuuummmmbbblllleee!

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News Feed Source
    Home Page: http://digg.com/
    Feed Title: digg
    Feed URL: http://digg.com/rss/index.xml

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    Link: http://digg.com/apple/iPod_vs_Zune_SMACKDOWN
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Funniest Weird Al video in years!

Attensa...RSS done right

If you're like most tech geeks I know, you spend the better part of your morning reading your favorite blogs and RSS feeds (including, of course, this one). Until now, I've simply been going to my Google homepage to read my favorite feeds, then opening my Outlook to get my email.

Well now, Attensa has converted me to using their wonderful FREE reader...because it integrates fully with Outlook, and includes an IE toolbar and Firefox plugin for easy feed management. And now I can get my news just like I get my email...all in the same client, with pictures and links all intact. Yay!

Need a job? Here's the top 10 programming languages you should know

eWeek posted an article called 10 Programming Languages You Should Learn Right Now, based on "picking the brains of Web developers and IT recruiters". So if you're looking for a Web job, peruse this list and pick up some books.

With the new buzzword being "Web 2.0", it's no surprise that AJAX and JavaScript are both on the list, even though the J in AJAX stands for JavaScript.

At least I've dabbled in a handful of the languages listed (PHP, C#, AJAX, JavaScript, and VB.Net)

Add this Zazzle gadget to Google!

So I created my first Google Gadget today. It's a Flash Panel for the most popular Zazzle products. This is it below:





Click the button above to automatically add it to your Google homepage!

Coming Zune...but I want it NOW!

I want one. It's cool. It's hi-tech. It's coming Zune! Microsoft's new Zune specs out better than iPods (built in Wi-Fi, FM radio, social music sharing, supports MP3, AAC, h.264, and WMA). Engadget posted information about Microsoft's Zune announcement today. Is this an iPod killer?

Zazzle vs. CafePress

Let's vote, people! If you like Zazzle and have an eBay account, you know what to do!

Of course, if you prefer CafePress, well, then, you don't really HAVE to vote if you don't want to ;-)

Six degrees of...well just about everything!

WARNING: Time-waster Web site! So just how does Monty Python relate to Albert Einstein? Do bananas and network attached storage have anything in common? How can you link zits with airplanes?

Omnipelagos can tell you! Just enter two search terms, and the site finds how they can be linked. Even the most obscure terms usually comes up with a connection.

And yes, it can find links to Kevin Bacon, too.

Firefox-like search for IE!

Ever wish you could search web pages inline, like Firefox does, when using Internet Explorer? Well, with Inline Search, by Core-Services, you can! This nifty little add-on provides IE users with a much more useful search facility, and it works for IE5.5 and higher. Now I'm suddenly not so jealous of my Firefox colleagues :-)

How much is that Vista in the Window?

C|NET News announced today that Microsoft has published its pricing for Windows Vista, and expands testing to over 5 million "tech enthusiasts".

Pricing for full retail versions of the software will be Windows Vista Ultimate, $399; Windows Vista Business, $299; Windows Vista Home Premium, $239; and Windows Vista Home Basic, $199. Start saving up now!

Wolfblood - My senior thesis short movie

I just uploaded my senior thesis movie to Google Videos. It was made in 1992 at Syracuse University, Newhouse School of Public Communications, and is based on a short story by Angela Carter. This video is 11 minutes long.