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Ning launches! — Ning, also known as the official name for 24 Hour Laundry's project, just launched. I actually had to keep myself from posting early because I was excited about it. Now that I got the word from them with the approval to post, here goes the unveiling.
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The 24 Hour Laundry has closed, and is replaced by Ning — Remember the story of the stealth startup that sucked ? Well, it is now out of stealth mode, and has officially launched as Ning. From their FAQ: … So after being offered a large number of social media applications …

Next Up: Google Office? — There's a Chinese curse: May you live in interesting times. These times must be really interesting for Steve Ballmer. — Microsoft's (Quote, Chart) CEO allegedly said he'd crush Google (Quote, Chart), his company's rival in search, and the lucrative ad business it engenders.
Discussion:
Things That, Mark Evans, PC World's Techlog, Mary's Blog, Om Malik's Broadband Blog, Blog Consulting …, MSNBC, The Stalwart, InsideGoogle, Peter O'Kelly's Reality Check, The Social Software Weblog, Life On the Wicked Stage, Neowin.net, Download Squad, IP Democracy, Channel 9, Microsoft Weblog, PaidContent.org, Scobleizer, iBLOGthere4iM and Internet Home Business
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Google, Sun plan partnership — Sun Microsystems and Google plan to announce a collaborative effort that some analysts speculate could elevate the profile of the OpenOffice.org and Java software packages. — Details won't emerge publicly until Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Sun CEO Scott McNealy …

Sun, Google Form Alliance — Updated: Speculation is rife regarding the new relationship to be unveiled between the computer and search companies. — Speculation is mounting ahead of Tuesday's upcoming announcement of a new relationship between Sun Microsystems and Google …

Google and Sun Microsystems Planning Major Announcement : GoogleOffice? — Google and Sun Microsystems Planning Major Announcement : GoogleOffice? — Sun Microsystems and Google are planning a major news conference on Tuesday, October 4th (today) at 10:30 a.m. PT/1:30 p.m. ET.

Newsgator buying who? NetNewsWire? — Richard asked about who is on the menu for Newsgator? He has many guesses and one of them is right: Ranchero Software, the company behind Mac-a-licious RSS reader NetNewsWire. Sources in Silicon Valley tell me that this deal is pretty much done …
Discussion:
Mark Evans, The Unofficial Apple Weblog, The RSS Blog, Web 2.0 Explorer, rexblog.com and Smalltalk Tidbits …
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Free WiFi equals targeted ads — Commentary: Nothing is free, and what happens to ISPs? — Alert | Reprint — (Editor's note: Bambi Francisco's Net Sense column will now appear twice a week, and she's just launched a weekly video product highlighting key interviews, called The Bambi Francisco Files.
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HP to ship Netscape browser on new PCs — update In a move that harks back to the browser wars, Hewlett-Packard plans to ship Netscape's Web browser on new consumer PCs and notebooks starting early next year. — The agreement, announced Monday, is the first browser distribution deal …

X05: Live in the Next Generation — IGN drills down into the next generation's multitasking interface and finds nothing but gold. Exclusive new details. — October 3, 2005 - In a visit to Microsoft's corporate headquarters in Redmond, Washington, early last week, IGN took a deep …
Discussion:
Major Nelson.com
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OpenDocument could 'turn everything inside out' — A Sun Microsystems executive says the OpenDocument format has the potential to change the world. — Tim Bray, the director of Web technologies at Sun, said at the OpenOffice.org conference in Slovenia late last week that the file format developed …

Search Sites Try to Give Instant Answers — Figuring out what keywords to use for a Web search has always been a challenge. And once you get your results, you have to guess which link will have the answer to your question. Wouldn't it be nice just to type in a regular question and get a direct answer?

Lost Underground? Check Your IPod — Site Offers Subway Maps for Download; Some Cities Claim Copyright Violation — A few months ago, New York-based Web designer William Bright came up with a simple idea: Take digital images of subway maps, slice them into pieces and make them viewable on color iPod screens.
Discussion:
Smart Mobs