I am officially putting a bullet in this blog. It just makes me feel like a nagging homework assignment that I keep missing. Also, the amount of spam I get on this thing is out of control, even with the help of Akismet (which manages to kill a TON of it) Instead, I am going to start using Tumblr. Why? Blogging is too much work, and Twitter is too little. Tumblr feels just right. So, for now on, fredoland will redirect there. Thanks for all the laughs, the really really silent laughs. Fredo. Ok. I mean it. I’m leaving.

Been using it for a few months.  While in general I love the concept, the reliability of the mail servers and the POP access has been horrendous.  Several times/week I get server time out messages, or just notice mail lingering in my outbox that I thought was already sent.  I’m sure Google will solve this when they feel it is cutting into their ad revenue, but until then, I remain unimpressed.

soot bul jeep

Originally uploaded by super8mm.

so, I just found this pic on Flickr and had to blog it. Soot bul jeep is the best Korean BBQ that I have ever been to. It is in Koreatown in LA. However, the one complaint that we all have is that ther is absolutely no ventilation. Be prepared for smelling like one of the best meals you will ever eat!

Found this funny comic from my colleague Justin here at Bessemer:

Anthony and I had an opportunity to lunch with the legendary Hammer. It was a blast. Hammer is just as energetic as one would expect and is dabbling in new tech entrepreneurship with the same zeal with which he used to do the Hammer Slide ™.

By now, word has probably rippled through my vast readership that I have transitioned over from Flock to Bessemer Venture Partners as an Entrepreneur in Residence.  People ask me what this is all about, so I will attempt to explain in brief.

After founding Flock with Anthony and Bart and doing everything from Marketing, BD, to Finance, the time came for me to try my hand at something new.  Flock is in a good place, has experienced leadership, and a plan for getting 1.0 out.  From my perspective, I could continue to help out when called upon, but did not need to be there day-to-day while the company is in execution mode.

Being an EIR (IMHO) is a great option for an entrepreneur who knows that they enjoy working with a particular investor, but is not 100% certain about what their next venture will be.  The program at Bessemer is perfect for me because it allows me to evaluate new opportunities that come in, introduce the firm to deals I find interesting, and learn about the process that goes into making investment decisions.  I also get to intereact with existing companies in the portfolio and learn from them, as well as help out where I can.  All of this creates an environment in which I have as much or as little interaction as I want with investors and entrepreneurs regarding new ideas that I am thinking through for my next thing.

…they gave me a dose of reality.

So, I was recently explaining to a friend how impressed I was with the search results I was getting from Live.com, the new search offering from our friends at Microsoft. To prove my point, I went to Live.com and was about to do a search when I noticed a promotion: “Introducing 3-D Maps!”. I’m not sure if anyone has tried Virtual Earth from MSFT Live, but it is very cool. In fact, I think most people would be surprised by how well Yahoo, Microsoft, and Ask’s mapping offerings stack up against Google’s these days. Anyhow, I digress…

When I start zooming in on Boston, eagerly anticipating the breathtaking 3-D views of my hometown, I got the following error message when I clicked the 3-D view option (I will type it out in case you can’t read it):

“To use this feature, open Live Local Search in Windows InternetExplorer version 6 or 7. For more information, and to download the latest version, visit the Microsoft Internet Explorer website.”

So my epiphany for the day is this, “$100 million dollars can buy a lot of innovation, but cannot change a culture that fundamentally is not geared towards respecting users.” Google and Yahoo (despite stiff competition from everyone) seem to have the right balance of innovation and monetization (they are businesses after all), tempered with a healthy dose of competition. However, despite those drivers, they both seem to respect users first and foremost; I know this first hand from having worked with both. Microsoft, however, can’t seem to shake its old habits. So sure, Microsoft might have inched forward this month with higher-resolution maps and 3-D rendering, but I will take my maps in 2-D for now and wait until I can get them without an OS attached!

technorati tags:Google, Yahoo, Maps, Ask

Blogged with Flock

Jesse is staying at the lovely Portola Plaza Hotel and asked if he could put off his code check-ins for a day or so.  Why?  Look at the rates they are charging for wi-fi?!?!?  This is insane.  Remind me to never stay there.  File under “screwing over guests who have no other options”.  BTW, for this price, you can get 5 months of EVDO service from Verizon. 

$300 per day wifi on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

technorati tags:jesse, wi-fi, pillage, greed, google

Blogged with Flock

So my last post was my first YouTube video integration.  This time, I am trying out meez.com, one of my favorite new sites.  Meez allows users to easily create a 3-D alter ego that you can embed anywhere, download, or send to mobile or friends.  Check it out!

My son, Geoffrey Jr. takes his first steps. This is also a first for me, embedding a YouTube video on my blog:

Blogged with Flock