Entering 2011, My Daily Productivity, Work Apps

After yesterday's post (2011 as the year of The Cloud and The Mobile Office), I was moved to list the apps and tools that I use on a daily basis (... at least as of January 2011!). I am trying to capture those utilities that I use most often. This is in no way comprehensive and is not presented in no particular order. What does your's look like?

- Wordpress: ryanspoon.com and dogpatchlabs.com run on it.

- Vaultpress: backs everything up. simple, great product.

- Evernote: committing to diligently using this in 2011.

- Highrise: committed to using it in Q4 2010... and love it.

- Xobni: makes Outlook better. And I live in Outlook.

- Google Apps: Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Google Chat.

- Skype: solely on the iPhone for international calls.

- Google Chrome extensions: I live on them. These are ones I use regularly: - Evernote - Quora - Goo.gl - Gmail Checker - Google Calendar - Web Clipboard - Google Voice - Google Screen Capture

- Google TV: I might be alone, but I love it.

- Tripit: the more I travel, the more I rely on it.

This of course does not include the list of websites and apps that I use daily... like Facebook, Quora, Netflix Twitter, Pandora, etc.

A New SEO Business Model - Selling Your SEO Data / Logs?

Here are a few of the search engine queries that delivered traffic to my blog this morning: - Dunkin Donuts California - Google Analytics Real Time - Google Analytics Real-Time - Xobni Blackberry - Xobni for Blackberry - Direct TV Commercials - Google Analytics vs Slimstat - How to Synchronize Outlook with Gmail - Sync Google Outlook Contacts - Uninstalling Xobni Problems

If compiled over time and with more specific information (geographic, etc) - this is valuable data. Do you think that Xobni would be interested in the volume or "Xobni Blackberry" queries? Would Google be interested in knowing how many people are looking for real time Google Analytics or having trouble syncing Gmail with Outlook? There are no Dunkin Donuts in California - but I get enough search queries to demonstrate that DD would have a healthy following... they'd surely be interested in that data (particularly if zip codes can be associated).

While my site traffic isn't massive - I have 100,000s of data points like those above. TechCrunch and other larger sites are sitting on far bigger sets of data that would be massively valuable to CMOs, product managers, advertisers, and others. Companies often launch preliminary paid search campaigns to test user appetites for certain keywords and copy... that data could be made available via natural search and effectively reveal user intent, query volume, competition, product strategies, etc.

I am not sure how the marketplace for this sort of information would work - obviously user privacy needs to be respected and it's technically complicated. I also wonder if this opens up an ad marketplace. For instance, would a web analytics company want to advertise on targeted pages where traffic arrives from the query "Google Analytics Real Time" or "Google Analytics vs Slimstat"? The impression volume likely won't be high - and it would require a long tail of content - BUT the CPMs would be very high.

My Xobni Love Affair is Sadly Over as it Doesn't Play Nice with my Blackberry

I've written before about how innovative and useful Xobni is (and can be).I've also written a great deal about how important the mobile net and connectivity are to me.

Apparently the two don't coexist very well (as of now). My Blackberry has been unable to connect and sync via the Blackberry Desktop software (version 4.3). I tried numerous times to fully uninstall and reinstall the software, but to no avail. Considering that the sync always crashed on the calendar function, I decided to try removing Xobni from my system (running Outlook 2007)... and everything ran smoothly.

And with that, an important point is raised: A plugin built on email usage and social connectivity - however awesome it may be - relies on the system that enables those connections.

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Why Can't I Sync Google Calendar, Contacts With Outlook?

Earlier, I wrote about how Xobni made Outlook better, but failed to make my email universally better. And I've actually been wanting something to tie my e-content together long before Xobni launched.  I have three computers, six email accounts, a blackberry and information spread throughout them. When I left eBay, I spent way too long transferring my e-rolodex to Gmail. Why Gmail? Because I live on my blackberry more than any other device, and Google's mobile releases are terrific on the berry. That solved part of the problem - but still isn't close to enabling active syncing between even my Outlook and Google accounts.

Why does Google treat my calendar, email and contacts as distinct properties? Isn't that why Outlook is so powerful? And why can't I turn on an extension through Outlook to actively sync through those Google properties?It kills me.

And I know that plugins exist to do some of the discussed actions - but I don't need 10 different plugins (especially when I haven't found one that works well).

Xobni - Improves MS Outlooks, but Better Watch Out for RIM, Blackberry

MS Outlook has so many shortcomings (ie search!) - but for those of us who live on it for work, the biggest struggle is its inability to easily navigate through contacts, conversations and trends. Xobni tries to tackle those issues as a data-driven plugin for Outlook.

Xobni has been well received by the blogs and among everyone I've interacted with (although not a single person has pronounced their name, inbox spelled backwards, the same... which spells branding trouble). And while Xobni is off to a good start, there are still a few shortcomings that I hope that team is working on:

* Customization: I want to change the look, the amount of content displayed and the default content buckets. Currently, nothing is customizable... a bad sign for any supposedly-viral, consumer based-company

* Move beyond Outlook: Like most people I know, I have multiple email accounts -corporate, personal, personal businesses, etc.... and they all live in different destinations (outlook, gmail). I want a service that will operate between my email accounts and providers. I'd pay big for that too...

And the best solution for that killer app lives on my blackberry. Think about it - it houses every email I send / receive, all of contacts, all of my phone calls and sms'es... My blackberry has the data necessary to create my own social network using my communication behaviors across numerous accounts and mediums.

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