Google has quietly begun to compete with everyone’s favorite message board, craigslist, via the new Google Base. Google is taking it up a notch, though, with photos for just about everything, from personals to blogs to coupons. Time will tell how popular Google Base becomes, but I think many of us are already very attached to craigslist for the very reason Google became popular in the first place: Its simplicity, community, and ease of use. I think Google will be hard-pressed to create the sense of local community that craigslist has achieved. Whereas craigslist grew out of a community in San Francisco (its offices are a block from our old apartment in the Inner Sunset), Google is now an international behemoth trying to go backward. I’m a big fan of Google in a lot of ways and Google Base is fun, but it’s no craigslist. All that and craigslist doesn’t have advertising.
If you haven’t already seen Google Video, here’s a sampling of some of the best I’ve seen so far:
If you missed the Gmail holiday login page, here it is for your everlasting enjoyment:
While we’re at it, here’s my current Gmail usage for historical perspective:
I was using only 201 MB on April 1, 2005, so I’ve more than tripled my usage in just under nine months.
Last night I watched a great Frontline documentary about how we Americans eat too much and don’t exercise enough. It was hosted by Stephen Talbot, the guy who played Gilbert on Leave it to Beaver and is himself struggling with weight loss and eating healthily.
Two years ago today we were in Lexington, Kentucky and had spent the day at Graceland.
