May 2008

For years and years, and years, I would prefer to use anything but Outlook as my email client. When Google came out with Gmail, I was hooked on that. Still am, actually.

Microsoft made significant improvements with Outlook with version 2003, to the point where I grudgingly liked it, but still only used it when I had to. With version 2007 it actually started growing on me, but still. Why bother? I have Gmail.

Then two things happened. One, Google opened up Gmail to IMAP Access, and two, I stumbled upon Xobni.

Xobni is a Outlook add-in that even Bill Gates loves. What it does is comb through all the emails you have ever sent and received, and puts the pertinent information into a relational database that shows you, in an incredibly useful way, all the vital facts about your day-to-day communications, who is linked with who, who has sent you what, and when, etc. The way they describe it, it turns your own email into a virtual social networking site.

I take a step back from that statement, because I feel they’re just using “social networking” as a buzz term. I can see what they mean, but, no — it’s still just email. But it’s email where it is very easy to find exactly who it was that Bob was talking about when someone needed to modify widget X, or who was it that sent you that invitation to the Shpongle concert two years ago. Or what was the name of that science fiction writer who, uh, so-and-so was talking about… something Ledbetter?

When you have Xobni loaded, you’re three clicks away from the answer.

It is so useful, that I fully expect Microsoft to buy it and make it part of Outlook. Because when you add Xobni to Outlook, it makes Outlook kick email ass, and I have never used any email client that has been such a pleasure to work with.

Right now Xobni is in invitation-only beta, but I have 5 invitations. Let me know if you want one. First come, first serve.

UPDATE: As of May 5, 2008, it has gone into open public beta and can be downloaded without an invitation here: http://www.xobni.com/download

From GroovyGizmo.com

My current rental car is powered by Microsoft.

If that isn’t enough to strike fear into a mortal heart, I don’t know what is.

The first thing I noticed at the airport last week, climbing into this ugly dark gray Ford Fusion, is a big reset button on the dashboard. My eyes trailed down to a logo next to the gearshift, and they immediately bugged out. “Powered by Microsoft.” WTF?

I looked at the reset button. I looked back at the logo. I kept thinking, “So, what, does this car ‘crash’ and give you the Blue Screen of Death?” I could imagine driving down the highway and having the engine, brakes and steering suddenly lock up for no reason, and me desperately jabbing at the reset button and waiting for the car to reboot as it spins out of control and tumbles off the pavement.

Fortunately, the only thing Microsoft powers is the voice activated sync between the car stereo and your Bluetooth enabled phone, and your iPod (or whatever) plugged into a USB port in the center console.

I’d been playing with it all weekend, and this morning was driving to work and decided I wanted to listen to Bat Out Of Hell by Meatloaf. So I said, per the Microsoft instructions, “Play artist Meatloaf.”

The car made a pleasant tone and a female computer voice responded, “Playing artist Vivaldi.”

What the Hell? How did it get ‘Vivaldi’ out of ‘Meatloaf’? Did it misunderstand me, or did it make a decision?

Do I really want a car that has better musical tastes than I do?

As The Four Seasons began playing, I eyed the reset button, ready to push it. Just in case.

From GroovyGizmo.com