Growing up in the 90s, I used to watch a lot of big technology keynotes (Macworld, et al.).  Sun cofounder Scott McNealy gave one about the time Java was introduced that still deeply resonates with me.  He envisioned a future where programming was easily accessible:  It didn't take an overpriced, poorly communicative engineer to build something for you.  You were empowered to create your own personalized tools, all by yourself.

At the time, AppleScript or HyperCard enabled this in a limited way.  Now we have JavaScript and ActionScript - both are quite powerful and commonly available; however, they can be a bit intimidating and unfamiliar for many people.  These same people can probably scratch their own itches with Excel though. . .

Outright co-founder Kevin Reeth believes that customer service only works if the guys who designed the product are also taking the calls. When you divorce support from creation, you break the feedback loop - the designers lose sight of the users, while the support folk don't understand the product well enough to help them.

 Unsurprisingly, a similar communication breakdown plagues much of the federal bureaucracy.

 Like any good freelancer (who haven't been nominated for Obama's cabinet), I have to pay my taxes quarterly. To do so, I had to register for the EFTPS's online payment system. In the letter confirming my registration, my name is misspelled, alongside a request that I call in with any corrections.

 In an attempt to avoid the IRS's painfully unorganized automated call tree, I called the EFTPS. Making it clear that they are a separate Treasury division, the agent explained to me that while they consume the IRS's data, he cannot push any changes upstream: It would take another half an hour of waiting on hold with the IRS to get this stupid typo fixed. Annoyed, I asked the EFTPS agent if he thought his relationship to the IRS was similar to that between the FBI and the CIA before Homeland Security. Laughing, he refused comment.

Fred Seibert was one of the creators of MTV and Nickelodeon.  He's pioneered Oh Yeah! Cartoons and What-a-Cartoon.  Next New Networks is his current project, where he's trying to become the curator for online video.

I interviewed Fred a couple of years ago, when Next New was just launching.  He pointed out that there's a direct corelation between his personal success and the number of artists he knows.  To keep himself in the minds of animators everywhere, Fred runs Channel Frederator (a podcast of user-created cartoons) and Channel Frederator RAW, a digital watering hole for said animators.

Downtown Los Gatos houses two clubs, literally across the hall from one another. 180 North is free; Mountain Charley's charges a small cover fee. The free venue is often empty - the paid one is always packed.

I switched from Yahoo! Mail to Zenbe when I could no longer stand Y!'s advertising. Yahoo! gets *paid* by our ISP to host our email, but still inundates us with ads. Zenbe provides a much better experience, sans advertising. However, one big question lingers about the service - how will Zenbe support itself?

 The company recently announced it's developing a competitor to Google Apps for Your Domain. They also hinted that the new service will include a few premium features. How did Zenbe's current users react? "Umm, can we get those same features please, but for free?"

 It's one thing for a potential customer to tell you your venture is 'neat.' It's quite another for him to open his pocketbook to you.