Twitter

In our weekly link rundowns, I usually try to present three great links you may have missed.

But this week was strong internet.

Five.

• For your next love letter or grocery list or PUT DOWN MY SANDWICH note, wouldn’t you like to use the actual letterhead of Elvis Presley, Albert Einstein, Winston Churchill, Johnny Cash, or whatever Robot Salesmen Ltd is? Thing: Letterheads of famous people
• Most articles about How Google Works are actually about How Much The Author Likes Google. Leave it to Wired to dig into how Google’s system of algorithms, basically a machine made of robots made of math, learned that when a human types hot dog, the goal is almost certainly to see something like this, not something like this. Thing: Exclusive: How Google’s Algorithm Rules the Web
• You’ve already made your mind up on how you feel about this link from Reason. Thing: Everyone Who Knows What They’re Talking About Agrees with Me
• The way people freaked out about Napster, claiming it would end the music industry, is similar to the way people freaked out about VCRs killing the movie industry. Similarly, the way people freak out about sharing personal location information on Foursquare/Twitter is similar to the way people used to freak out about answering machines and listing wedding notices in the local newspaper. Thing: Regarding Foursquare and PleaseRobMe (SIDE NOTE that proves how NEVER SCARED we are: In all the PleaseRobMe hysteria, I up and joined Foursquare myself, and so did Ben. You ain’t a crook, son.)
• Recently the Guardian ran a series of writing advice lists by successful writers. NY Mag distills them all into a single top ten. Thing: The Best Writing Advice of the Best Writing Advice

Also, regarding this post’s stupid, stupid title: here’s proof Johnny Cash would’ve loved Foursquare…

• Anil Dash shows how Twitter’s much-worked-up-about Suggested Users List is actually nothing of consequence: Life on the List makes it clear that even though Anil gains “100 new followers every hour” thanks to the List, almost all of these are first-and-only-time users, robots, or zombies. Nobody Has a Million Twitter Followers extends the survey beyond Anil’s site, demonstrating why the Suggested Users List should work at a zoo and stop bothering people*, as it plainly offers no value to any woman, man, child, or organization that could ever exist.
• You didn’t see this coming, but we’re about to kind of talk about Miley Cyrus. Now. Specifically, how “Party in the USA” is more of a Jay-Z song than a Michael song, no matter what Miss Cyrus’ editor would have us believe. “We are post-racial to the extent that an incredibly elaborate set of determinations has got us to the place where a song can be at once entirely dipped in the language of hip-hop and come out of the river shining of country grammar.” Miley Cyrrrrrrrrrus.
• You thought the Amazon was being deforested due to overexpansion and quests for riches. Of course not! We were just trying to find El Dorado all this time, which it seems, has happened. El Dorado, of course, was the legendary city whose kings took turns dumping a lot of money in a hole. Told you we found El Dorado.

* -

Microsoft’s Bing recently announced a search deal with Twitter. They’ve created a new page meant to show hot topics on Twitter. Here’s what that page looked like at 10:22pm, October 21, right after the Bing-Twitter deal went public:

Microsoft’s Windows 7? Really? “Thong Song” makes sense — it was being performed on Glee at the time. Modern Family was on, and the next Angels vs. Yankees game was around the corner. But that many people were chattering about Windows 7? If they’re buzzing about a Microsoft venture, wouldn’t it more likely be Bing itself, given the day’s news?

Here’s Twitter’s official Trending Topics block at the same moment, 10:22pm:

There’s Glee, “Thong Song,” baseball, dumb Kanye jokes… nothing about Windows or Microsoft.

And, for a third-party perspective, here’s Twitscoop’s hot trends cloud, also from 10:22pm, same night:

Thong is on fire right now! The Phillies are playing as we speak! REPORTING LIVE FROM THE INTERNET: Isn’t anybody as excited about Microsoft Windows 7 as they are about Cougar Town??

The Moral Moment

Clearly, Windows 7 is not actually hot on Twitter at the moment. It’s not presented on the Bing page as an ad, but what else to call it? If Microsoft wants to advertise Windows 7 on their Twitter page, that’s fine. But this kind of thing just makes them look old and out of touch. What happens when the unsatisfied Windows 7 users start piping up? Think their tweets will appear on Bing.com?

The Bing commercials are right: it’s not just a search engine. It’s a Microsoft ad.

• Even Slim Thug is feeling the recession:

  The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
  Slim Thug Feels the Recession
  www.thedailyshow.com
  Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Ron Paul Interview

• Drew Carey bids $1 million dollars for @Drew Twitter handle… but it’s for a fantastic cause.
• Barack Obama wins the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize, NBA MVP Award, Tony Award, 2010 Nobel Peace Prize…