ET Conversations

Edge Theory Conversation 13: Louis Gray joins my6sense

admin — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 04:32:42 +0000

Louis Gray, blogger extraordinaire, joins my6sense as the company’s vice president of marketing, and first US employee. Chris Saad plays the role of journalist and tries to find out the news behind the news.

Edge Theory Conversation 12: Google Me Rumored to Challenge Facebook

admin — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 06:46:38 +0000

With Digg’s Kevin Rose tweeting out a rumor that Google is planning a social networking alternative to Facebook called “Google Me”, the rumor mill around Mountain View is in full force. Louis Gray and Chris Saad discuss whether the Web needs a stronger alternative to Facebook, and if Google can be as strong in social as they are in more data-driven markets.

louisgray.com: Google Me This, Google Me That. Can Google Me Trump Facebook, Or Will It Fall Flat?

SF Weekly: Is Google About to Launch a Facebook Killer? Kevin Rose Says So.

Also noted:

The Official Microsoft Blog: Microsoft By the Numbers

louisgray.com: Author: Zuckerberg has “Total Control” Over Facebook

Chris Saad calling ‘Bullshit’ on Facebook’s data portability

Listen to the podcast by clicking Play below

Edge Theory Conversation 11: Evo Vs. iPhone – should you switch?

admin — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 05:39:08 +0000

Louis Gray and Chris Saad discuss the HTC Evo and Android’s momentum in the marketplace iPhone 4.0 and WWDC loom.

Tune in to find out their verdict.

Listen to the podcast by clicking Play below

Edge Theory Conversation 10: On Location Services’ Use, Social Impact… and Defining Cheating.

admin — Tue, 11 May 2010 00:00:20 +0000

With the world of location based services, including Foursquare and Gowalla, getting a lot of discussion of late, especially as news comes that Facebook will soon check in with its own offering, Louis Gray and Chris Saad discuss the purpose today’s services serve, and how we both leverage Foursquare – the current app of choice.

Are these services here to stay, and should they be used to show all of one’s comings and goings, or just major points of interest? Chris argues Foursquare should be used in a social way, while Louis is enjoying checking in from the mundane places in life. Meanwhile, we debate the true nature of “cheating”, and whether it is acceptable or not.

Much of this discussion stems from Louis’ recent post: Are You Filtering Checkins to Enhance Your Image?

Referenced in addition to Foursquare, Gowalla and Facebook are Twitter, Stalqer and The Cadmus. Chris is an advisor to Stalqer.

Listen to the podcast by clicking Play below

Edge Theory Conversation 9: HP Buys Palm and Doubles Down on WebOS – Smart?

admin — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 05:26:41 +0000

Louis Gray and Chris Saad talk about HP’s $1.2 Billion acquisition of Palm and their announcement that they will ‘Double Down’ on WebOS.

Is it smart for the company to bet on WebOS or should they instead move to Android, Windows Phone 7 and ChromeOS? How can a Wintel vendor really compete or differentiate with Apple?

Chris laments the loss of the HP Slate, and we talk about whether having closed hardware with open software is the right way to go. All this, and much more in another Edge Theory Conversation.

Listen to the podcast by clicking Play below

Edge Theory Conversation 8: Twitter breaks into iPhone and Blackberry market, Risks developer relations

admin — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 02:54:20 +0000

In Edge Theory Conversation 8, Jeremiah Owyang and Chris Saad discuss Twitter’s latest moves to fill their own holes. Have they irreparably hurt their developer relationships, or will the community just move up the stack? What is Twitter’s ultimate goal and are they on the right track?

See also:

Listen to the podcast

EdgeTheory Conversation 7: Is iPad Mania Fully Justified?

admin — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 07:13:40 +0000

EdgeTheory Conversation 7 is about the big news of the last week – Apple’s latest digital device, the iPad. While millions of words and thousands of articles have already been written about the iPad, there’s always more to find, especially as the product spends more time in the hands of early adopters. In fact Louis Gray purchased two!

He and Chris Saad talk about whether the closed nature of the iPad (when contrasted with open standard solutions) is something we should be avoiding, and where the iPad fits in a world of laptops and the iPhone.

Are users getting screwed by needing to buy multiple versions of applications with the iPad’s debut? And should it be a mobile device, or a fully functional computer? We talk about this and much more in another EdgeTheory Conversation.

This show mentions @arrington @leolaporte @scobleizer @dewitt

EdgeTheory Conversation 6: Is Personal Branding Sanitized and Non-Authentic?

admin — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 08:11:55 +0000

In EdgeTheory Conversation 6, Louis Gray and Chris Saad talk about message framing, and our potential loss of authenticity through selective sharing.

In the social Web, we talk a lot about being transparent and open. But many of us are limiting what we say online to a specific topic. We’re sharing links and associating with people who share our viewpoints, and possibly avoiding hot-buttons like politics, in favor of talking about technology and tools. Is this the right thing to do, or have we gone too far in terms of being willing to share who we really are?

Referenced Posts:
Paying Attention: I am pro life
LouisGray.com: A Big 2010 Trend: Disaggregation and Social Network Focus

Referenced Products:
Flavors.me

EdgeTheory Conversation 5: Twitter’s Firehose and Emerging Business Model

admin — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 05:14:44 +0000

Louis Gray, Chris Saad and Ben Parr have a conversation about Twitter’s new API partnerships and its implications for their revenue, the developer and user communitis and APIs. Is their approach competitive or cooperative with the community? How is their model likely to change over time?

This show mentions @al3x, @rsarver, @parislemon, @ev, @paultoo, @kfury, @btaylor and discusses Buzz, Pubsubhubbub, Facebook, FriendFeed and Twitter.com

EdgeTheory Conversation 4: Buzz’s Mixed Focus of Content Creation and Collection

admin — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 20:12:00 +0000

Google Buzz, only a week old, is gaining a lot of visibility, and is seen as Google’s most direct attack against social upstarts Facebook and Twitter. Some really like it. Others are up in arms about perceived privacy violations. Louis Gray and Chris Saad discuss whether Buzz’s clear mimicry of FriendFeed and other existing sites missed a new opportunity to innovate – and become a true social network aggregation tool, including aggregation of gestures. Did Google make a mistake, and not really invent anything new with Buzz, making it immediately an also-ran?

Companies discussed include: Google, Google Buzz, GMail, Google Reader, FriendFeed, Facebook, my6sense, ReadBurner and Seesmic.