Every business plan is wrong

You can now fail faster and cheaper than ever before. So take our advice and get out there. You won’t know what works until you start testing what doesn’t.

Kathy Sierra teaches how to make apps more human

Notes from SXSW, where Kathy Sierra (of Creating Passionate Users) suggests that most web apps have Aspberger’s syndrome, and aren’t capable of totally normal human interaction. Fortunately, she also suggests how to change that and win the love of your users.

Viacom sues YouTube for $1 billion

No news on whether the sum was set by Dr. Evil. This lawsuit will have an interesting effect on the Internet video market.

Kaneva blends Myspace and Second Life

Blending the 3D virtual world most famously offered by Second Life with the communities oriented around music and other interests found at MySpace, Kaneva is looking to shake up the already saturated social network scene.

Speed dating for venture capital

11 Sources of Capital. 10 Companies. 9 Minutes each. That’s right, the speed dating model has been applied to venture capital. If you have an idea or a company that you want to get off the ground, consider applying for the event. Remember: venture capitalists like minty fresh breath.

Can the wisdom of crowds pick the next “Killer Startup”?

Predictive markets have often proven to be more reliable than the wisdom of experts. KillerStarups.com uses Digg-style to harness community opinion on the viability of new web ventures.

Top 5 startups that the Digg community didn’t see coming

An interesting contrast to the premise behind KillerStarups.com, this list demonstrates that sometimes the “next big thing” can sneak in the back door. Don’t worry if you can’t get the Digg traffic you think you deserve, you’re in good company, along with YouTube and del.icio.us.

Social networking goes mobile in a big way

Jambo means “hello” in Swahili, and Jambo.net aims to help anybody with a WiFi device say hello to people around them with common interests or backgrounds. Maybe the person at the table next to you went to your old school, or is a friend of your sister. With Jambo and WiFi you’ll know right away.

Say Everything: The “Net Generation” and privacy

A very well-written article from New York Magazine examining the psychology and sociology behind the success of MySpace, YouTube and other social networks. If you’ve ever wondered why the Net Generation seems so much more comfortable sharing and revealing themselves online, or how the blending of technology and social interaction is affecting our culture, you will love this piece.

The 6 month late inaugural blog post

Entrepreneur and blogger Austin Hill has waited through 6 months of blogging to post his inaugural post, which details a decade of his history, arriving at the beginning of his blog. Interesting story of an entrepreneur’s journey.

Want to chat with Wikipedia’s Jimmy Wales?

Waxxi.us will be recording a podcast with Wales on Thursday, April 5 at 1:30pm Eastern Standard Time. A toll-free number is available for callers within the United States, other locations may direct dial or communicate by instant messenger. Register now if you’re interested, this is going to be huge.

Wikipedia founder’s venture into for-profit wikis

Building on the success of Wikipedia, Jimmy Wales is already watching his for-profit company, Wikia follow a similar growth curve. This article offers some good insight into Wales’ plans to monetize crowdsourced content and his thoughts on community and corporate social responsibility.

Top 100 alternative search engines

Sometimes, just sometimes, Google doesn’t seem to cut it. When you’re after something very specific, you may want to consider trying one of these targeted search engines.

Outside.in lets you explore the web in your neighbourhood

Speaking at our Cambrian Lounge event this past Monday, Don Tapscott discussed the blending of the digital with the local - portable computing, GPS and location-specific information. Outside.in is an example of this phenomenon, letting you search for web content that is generated in your (or any) neighbourhood.

Toolkit for creating your own social network

co-founded by Marc Andreessen, one of the founders of Netscape, Ning.com lets you create your very own social network. Just remember, a network without a clear focus for member interest and passion isn’t going to capture anybody’s imagination.

MyBlogLog bans and then reinstates Shoemoney.com

If you missed this “blogosphere scandal” TechCrunch has a fairly good summary of the events. Banning a community member, especially in a case where he hasn’t violated any terms of participation, is - I’m just going to go ahead and say it - stupid.

Politics and the English language

Guy Kawasaki has posted this fantastic Orwell essay discussing the role of language in shaping our perceptions, thoughts, and even our reality. Another fantastic read on the subject is Lewis Carroll’s “Transposition,” which I have been lamentably unable to find online.

3 week buzz marketing challenge

Think buzz marketing is a mystical process that only a specialist can engage in? Think again! Ben Yoskovitz offers a list of 57 things that you can do to start some buzz.

Are tools making us dumber?

Whatever you need done, there is probably something that will do it for you while beeping in a satisfying manner. But what happens when our tools stop working? Can we still solve our own problems?

Google releases Premiere version of Google Apps

Google Apps is out of beta. Gmail and other Google services, hosted at your own domain. There are free versions for individuals and groups, and paid versions with additional features and support for business.

25 startups to watch

Want to know what’s going to be hot in 2007? Well you’re checking out Cambrian House so you’re off to a good start. These 25 startups should give you the bigger picture.

Trust factor and Web 2.0

As the value of data increases, so too does the trust required to share it with companies and communities. Ensuring our community is protected, and that Cambrian House is a trustworthy company, is very important to us. Have your say in the comments below, how can we ensure you feel safe?

Microsoft is looking for partners

The software giant is looking to partner with more developers and communities to put its technologies into wider use.

• Employers may be responsible for encouraging Blackberry or technology addictions among their employees.

  Although no lawsuits have been filed, a study at Rutgers University finds that employers may be responsible for technology addictions among their staff. Eventually this idea will find its way into the courts, it will be interesting to see how the ruling goes.

• Music execs join Steve Jobs in criticizing DRM, saying it gets in the way of what consumers want to do with the music.

  This is just one more sign that we’re in a world where you have to provide what the community wants or they will find it from another source.

• Tara Hunt’s lengthy chastisement of people who seek to use “community” as nothing more than marketing tool.

  This post illustrates the varying approaches companies are taking to the idea of community, some as enthusiastic facilitators and some merely seeking to take advantage of the “next big thing.”

• Don’t get too attached to Web 2.0, because Web 3.0 is on the way.

  Can’t wait to find out what it will be? Natural language search, machine learning and the semantic web are key elements.

Every weekend we’ll be bringing you a list of cool stories, projects, ideas and startups that you may not have seen. It’s just a little extra service, because we love our community.

Is your boss an asshole?

If you’ve ever wondered whether your boss is an asshole, you’ll love Guy Kawasaki’s handy list. No more guesswork, now you can have a definitive answer. If it turns out that your boss is an asshole, you can start your own crowdsourced business here at Cambrian House.

Yahoo Pipes

Pipes attracted so much attention when it launched earlier this week that the traffic from eager information addicts like me actually took it offline for several hours. Data mashups aren’t new to the tech community, but Pipes offers a fantastic visual interface that allows anybody to combine information without technical know-how.

IMified

Control web apps from your Blackberry (or any other device with instant messaging capabilities) using IMified. Now you can use Salesforce, Google Calendar, Basecamp and several other great apps via instant messengers. IMified is totally self-funded, and looking to tie into APIs from many other popular services.

Update: On Valentine’s Day, IMified “broke up” with MSN because Microsoft wasn’t working with them to support the service. Other instant messaging services are still supported.