Have you ever gotten a call and don’t recognize the number? Well with Sullr, getting information on that number couldn’t have been easier. Just enter the area code plus the 7-digit number and the caller’s name or business along with an address and map will be instantly provided. Free reverse phone number lookup services, such as this one, do already exist, however none are clean, Web 2.0 powered, and ajaxified like Sullr. In addition Sullr’s works from just about any mobile phone, just visit ‘wap.sullr.com‘ and get the same results.

At this time Sullr’s beta Web 2.0 service only works in Argentina, Belgium, France, Italy and the USA but they are working to add support for more countries. Just bookmark it and it’s sure come in handy!

Update: Spain and Luxembourg have just been added!

Links: Sullr.com
Related: Do Not Call

Only about two weeks after the launch of WordPress 2.0.6 and 2.0.7, the WordPress crew finally pushed v2.1 (aka “Ella”) out of beta. WP2.1, rather than a patch, is a major upgrade from the 2.x series. The blogging engine, which Skatter Tech is currently running, now has a more powerful back-end for administrators to manage content. Although many plugins no longer work for 2.1, we recommend updating since it also includes over 550 bug fixes. The following is some of the major changes implemented.

WordPress v2.1 Features:

• Ajax AutoSave Posts – prevents loosing posts
• Tabbed Editor – WYSIWYG and Raw Code
• Ajax-based Spell Checker for composer
• XML Import/Export – transfer data between blogs
• Search Engine – custom indexing privacy settings
• Front Page – set any page as the main page
• Blogroll – many improvements and changes
• Login – redesigned screen from Shuttle
• Ajax Admin Panel – helps speed up tasks
• Comment Feeds – includes all rather than last 10
• Uploads – management for uploaded data
• Other: Cron support, new APIs, and more

We are pleased with the overall improvments the update brings. Managment and content seems to be flowing much faster than ever before. As we mentioned we are having diffucluties with some plugins, but most of the major ones either already have been updated or work.

Links: WordPress 2.1 ‘Ella’ | Download
Related: Instructions For 2.0.x to 2.1

1) As of 04/26/06 Google Maps now has BETA maps for France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. Google Maps satellite imagery has also been updated with new higher resolution images. Google stated that they plan to continue to expand their coverage to many new areas. A new “Google Maps 2 API” should be available for developers soon.
Links: Google Maps | GoogleBlog Announcement

2) On 04/25/06, Yahoo! released a new free PC “Software DVR” called Yahoo Go TV. This program was re-created based off Meedio TV, a company which Yahoo acquired a week earlier. This product is intended to compete with Windows XP Media Center, TiVo, and even Apple Front Row. Yahoo Go can not only record shows, but can be used to easily access music, photos, videos, and online media. However, the DVR function will only work if you have already purchased a TV Tuner card for your machine.
Links: Yahoo Go TV | Features | Yahoo TV

3) ABC has launched a free online streaming service to watch full episodes of shows such as Desperate Housewives, Lost, Alias, and Commander In Chief. The video is played using Macromedia Flash technology and the live streaming quality is pretty impressive. Unfortunately you will need to sit through 30-second commercials and there’s no way of skipping them. This service is not permanent and is only up for BETA testing. Go ahead and try it out when it’s still free.
Links: ABC Episode Streaming | ABC Home

4) Napster’s Music Store now offers “unlimited” free music. Once registered for a free account, you can listen to any of the 2 million songs in the Napster Music Store for free. The only catch is that you can listen to each song only 5 times and you will be required to purchase the track to save, burn, transfer to portable devices, or listen to it in the future.
Links: Napster | Napster FAQs

5) On May 2, 2006, Mozilla released Firefox v1.5.0.3. The new update includes some major security fixes and a some minor bug fixes. I recommend updating your program as soon as possible. If you already have Firefox v1.5 or above, just go to [Help] -> [Check for Updates] and Firefox will automatically update itself. If you have older versions of Firefox visit Mozilla.org and download the latest version for your machine.
Links: Mozilla Firefox | Release Notes 1.5.0.3

Other News:
New Apple TV Ads Released
Yahoo! Tech Reviews Launched
TiVo Desktop For MacOSX Available
VideoLan v0.8.5 Released

Note: Sorry for the delay in new content, we have been very busy recently and are undergoing many changes. However, expect to see even more quality content from this point forward!

On Wednesday (04/13/06) Google unveiled their latest product, Google Calendar. The new web-based application is open to the public, but is expected to remain in beta temporarily. Google Calendar, code-name CL2, helps track events, schedule appointments, and share them with others. This new service is completely intergraded with Gmail, allowing users to add events mentioned in messages to their calendar or emailing scheduled events to contacts. Google Calendar will also notify the user by email and/or SMS notifications if requested. Since Google Calendar supports iCal standards, it can import content from applications such as MS Outlook.

Main Features:

• Gmail Intergration – send events to contacts or save mentioned events
• Calendar Sharing – create public calendars or grant users permission
• Data Importing – import data from other applications (Outlook, etc.)
• Multi-Calendars – manage seperate calendars for work, home, etc.

Any calendar can be easily shared among others by either giving specific users access or by making it open to the public. The application will even schedule appointments with others not using Google Calendar through email. This new service is amazingly better and faster than both MSN’s and Yahoo’s services, which have existed for many years. Google Calendar will work in both Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox, but not in Safari. I suggest trying or at least testing this new service, as it is completely free.

Links: Google Calendar | Press Release
Related: MSN Calendar | Yahoo Calendar
Coverage: BetaNews | Weblogs Inc | TechCrunch

Google Finance, which started up as a small project in Bangalore, India, and is still a BETA project has finally been introduced to the public today (March 03, 2006). Google Finance helps people find North American stocks, mutual funds, public/private company profiles, financial news, and more data results. Google Finance is very similar to Yahoo! Finance, except that Google offers more content and new ways to present it. For example, the service automatically pulls stories from Google News, which already accesses over 4,500 reliable news sources. Google Finance no longer requires remembering company stock symbols, but automatically forwards searches to the appropriate page. (a search for Microsoft goes to MSFT)

“We hope Google Finance lives up to that aim by offering a fresh perspective on company-related searches” – Google Finance Team

Instead of using pre-generated images to display stock price timelines, Google Finance uses interactive flash powered charts which are fast and easy to use. The charts can be set to display different time periods and will also displays links press releases from that time. Using many algorithms and ratings, the service displays links to blogs about the company. The product also automatically creates profiles from private companies, which competitors such as Market Watch and The Street don’t offer. If logged into a “Google Account”, a portfolio can be created for favorite stocks.

Links: Google Finance | Google Press Release
Recent: Google Mars Lanuched

On Thursday, January 9, 2006, Google publicly announced that they had acquired Writely. Writely is a company that offers a web-based word processing, which allows sharing documents online and collaborating among multiple users. The service does not require any additional software, but instead runs completely from any standard web browser. (AJAX powered) A BETA edition was released in August 2005 became extremely popular, with thousands of signups. No more signups will be allowed until the full transfer onto Google’s servers and protocols is complete. (sign up for the wait list)

Writely has publicly stated that they would keep offering their current services and no features would be compromised due to the acquisition. Since they are part of Google, many new search and collaboration tools with current Google Services will be integrated into the program. Even though saved documents may become indexed by Google’s servers, Writely stated that they would ensure user privacy. This may also be part of Google’s future plan to create a “Google Office” suite to compete with Microsoft Office Live. (google online calandar service expected soon)

Links: Writely | Writely Press Release
Related: Google Blog Annoucement
Recent: Digg Widget | iPod Nano AV

Google Mobile has just introduced a new feature to their service which allows accessing Google News from any cell phone. With the service you can get the latest news right from Google News. The new feature allows full access to the latest Top Stories, U.S., World, Entertainment, Sports, Sci/Tech, Business, and Health categories. The service already offers Web, Image, Local, and Mobile Searches in addition to the personalized homepage service they recently launched. The service is still in BETA, like most Google products, but still works great. Expect to see more features for this service soon. To get to G-News Mobile, type google.com/xhtml into your mobile phone’s browser and hit the “News” link.

Google News for mobile devices keeps you updated on current news articles when you’re on the go. You can access top headlines, browse through news categories, or search for exactly the stories you want all in a phone-friendly format that’s easy to read and navigate. All you need is a web-enabled phone. [From Google Mobile]

Link: Google Mobile News Tour | Google Mobile News
Related: Google Mobile | Google Blog Announcement

Google released a new download manager program that will download and install a set of programs you choose from pack.google.com. Google’s goal is to make life easier to find and install clean programs when you purchase a new computer. The Google Pack will provide items from security to entertainment. On their website you can check the items you like and it will be added to a “shopping cart” and eventually all the items will be added to Google’s download manager (aka Google Updater) and will be installed. All the programs you download through the Google Pack will be the same exact prorgams one would find on the creator’s websites, there will be no Google Ads involved. Google also claimed that they are not paying or getting paid to create this set of programs.

Links: Google Pack | Google Blog Post

The Google Pack Includes:

• Google Earth – previously Keyhole
• Google Desktop – indexes all files
• Picasa – photo organizer
• Google Toolbar IE – search and more
• Google Pack Screensaver – photos
• Google Talk – VOIP and IM software
• Firefox w/ Google Toolbar – autofill and more
• Ad-Aware SE Personal – spyware protection
• Norton AntiVirus 2005 SE – virus protection
• Adobe Reader 7 – PDF reader
• RealPlayer – media player
• GalleryPlayer HD Images – HI-quality images
• Trillian – all in one IM client

Links: Google Pack | Google Blog Post