AdScam/The Horror!

AdScam, as its author/blogger George Parker writes, is “A well intentioned rant about the current state of Advertising, with particular emphasis on Big Dumb Agencies (BDA’s) Because, no matter how bad you think it is, it’s actually a great deal worse!”

AdScam is set purely in the context of advertising in the USA, but the stories, perspectives and characters George Parker chooses to write about (and write off) will find parallels in any BDA, anywhere in the world – Be it London, Paris, Mumbai, Bangkok, Singapore, Seoul or Tokyo! With the exception of Julie… well maybe her too

George’s ‘french’ is not for the weak hearted or “politically correct” ladies and gentlemen. But he’s a bloody good read, and reminds me of the old irreverant glory days of the advertising business right up to somewhere in the early 90s.

AdScam, the Horror! it is recommended daily for those who love advertising, and great free-spririted writing!

My Rating: Concept – It’s a *uckin’ review of our times, dammit, what more do you wanna know? | Design – What design? But I love the little visuals he throws in at the end of every post! | Content – Very addictive!

Check out AdScam here.

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GigaOM

GigaOM.com is an online news and weblog that delivers technology news, analysis and opinions on topics ranging from broadband to online games and Web 2.0 to (what they claim) a monthly global audience of 500,000 consumers and professionals interested in the world of hi-tech!

GigaOM provides a unique combination of in-depth reporting, editorial articles, community opinion polls, and internet market metrics highlight the most interesting startups, products, and people in technology.

GigaOM.com is ranked in the top 100 IT news sites by Hitwise, an Internet tracking service. The site is among the top 50 blogs as ranked by Technorati, and part of C/Net 100 Most Influential Blogs.

The best part is, it’s got all its topics posted and saved separately under different tabs – web, mobile, broadband
 and voice. It’s not exactly like tags and categories, but something like that.

Note: I didn’t have work hard on crafting out my opinion on GigaOM, because I found their ‘About’ page was quite crisp and to the point, minus any puffery -

so I kinda repurposed it here

My Rating: Concept – Bloody brilliant | Design – Very ‘netty’ with all the relevant banners, opinions, cross-linking, cross-promotions, the works! | Content – If you’re even mildly interested in new media and technology, this is the place to be visiting!

Check out GigaOM here

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Innocent Bystanders – “Commenters”, not bloggers!

This is one curiously interesting Blog… err… um… “CommentLog, or Clog..?!” It says on the About page, that the comments posted here are from various contributors “who know each other by commenting at various blogs”.

The result is an easy reading, free-floating array of posts on things which are mainly very “American”. So those outside the US may not get the context, but will find it makes interesting reading nevertheless!

Here you will find interesting stories and comments on ‘the Denver Dude who Decapitated a Duck’, the new victims of Global Warming, and ‘Savage Chickens’ to name just a few from the current lot on the home page.

Innocent Bystander provides a unique, unedited, unbiased look at Americans and American life with a disarming dash of humor.

My Rating: Concept – Unique even though you can debate it’s just semantics (Commenters, not Bloggers!) | The Design – Regular WordPress template | Content – Quirky, Insightful and Witty. Great reading!

Check out the Innocent Bystanders here.

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Jonathan Schwartz’s blog – leadership shows!

As far as CEO blogs go, this one by the Jonathan Schwartz, the CEO and President of Sun Microsystems is one of the best examples I have come across.

In the blog Jonathan provides candid information about the company, new developments, products, reasons behind actions of the company, even addresses rumors, questions and doubts which may exist in various audiences minds.

The amazing thing is not only that he finds time to blog, but that this blog is translated and available in 11 languages – English, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Arabic!

If you are in the IT business, the business of communication, or simply a fan of good, clear writing (and understand technology) this site is worth a regular visit.

My Rating: Concept – Brilliant (and well executed), but niche | Design – Professional, Clean | Content – Very Useful

Visit Jonathan’s blog here.

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Strange Maps

Strange Maps, is well, all about maps - but not about your regular “oh where is Timbuktoo? …oh there it is!” variety of maps.

Strange Maps not only contains all kinds of ancient maps of old empires - like a 1418 map of the world from China, but also has maps that look at the world and situations differently - a cat’s map of the bed, the internet map of the world, the map of the united countries of baseball…

Well why am I wasting your time?! Check out Strange Maps here.

My Rating: Concept – Odd but Interesting | Design – Very Basic | Content – Interesting.

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A Twist of Word and Mind

“Rambodoc is a perineal word twister. And spells badly, too.” So says the Self-Center (about) page of the blogger who churns out A Twist of Word and Mind. His twisted sense of humor  (humour?) and barbspectives on various issues around the world keeps me going back there for more.

My Rating: Concept – Good | Design – what design? | Content – Hehelarious.

Check out A Twist of Word and Mind here.

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World Economic Forum Blog

If you’re interested in Economics, world affairs and the way they define the path of business world over, you’ll love this blog. The World Economic Forum blog was started as an experiment during the European Economic Summit in 2004, and updated daily by Loic Le Meur and the Web Editor of The Forum. Since then it has been a mother lode of information and insights into the issues related to the Forum and World Economics in general.

Of course, during various Summits and Forum meetings, it is updated daily with transcripts and videos of sessions, pictures, news updates, perspectives and everything you wanted to know about what’s happening there.

It has a host of guest bloggers, as well as provides links to various blogs of those who attend the Forum/Summits as part of their day jobs as heads of companies that make up a quarter of the world’s GDP. Yes, you read it right.

The disclaimer is of course “an online journal of views, that do not necessarily reflect those of the Forum”.

Check it out. Read. Learn. Succeed (hopefully!)

My Rating: Concept - Excellent | Design – Could do with a larger, cleaner font size  | Content – A Gold Mine!

Visit the (un)official WEF Blog here.

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Perez Hilton – Allegedly Hollywoods Most Hated Website!

Perez Hilton, to use his own words “is the internet’s most devilish columnist” who’s motto is “I’m gay, but not as big a slut as Paris”.

While the tagline (baseline?) of the site is “Hollywood’s most hated website” it is one of the “people’s most loves ones” getting some of the highest hits per day for any website in the world. Proof that everyone loves a good gossip – the bitchier the better!

It often tends to be crude and crass with its amateurishly photoshoped images and wild headlines about celebrities and their clockwork bloomers (or lack of them) - but hey! that’s what keeps the masses coming!

My Rating: Concept – Bang On! What Men and Women Want | Design – What Design? | Content – Hey, he’s just reporting the facts… or is he?!!

 Gossip Anyone!?! Perez Hilton is here.

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Five

Metamorphofive was a blog I visited regularly – for its curious and interesting lists of 5 things. Yeah, just five things.

Like 5 things in my refrigerator. 5 reasons why i started this blog. 5 all time favorite physical features of the opposite sex.

It would have been great if the blogger could have sustained it. It wasn’t updated often, but still was good enough to be added to my once a month blog-hop.

It’s defunct now. But you can run through the whole blog in about 10 minutes.

Check it out here.

My Rating: JLT – Time Pass.

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Seth Godin’s Blog

 Seth Godin is the author of six or seven bestselling books like Permission Marketing, All Marketers Are Liars, and Survival Is Not Enough. He’s also an entrepreneur and as he calls himself ‘an agent of change’ (you’ll discover more details from links on his blog).

Seth’s Godin’s blog is about… well a lot. But focused around marketing, new media and ideas for change. It is racy, insightful and easily readable as its not loaded with the heaviness one finds in many blogs of ‘intellectuals’ and ‘thought leaders’.

Definitely a ‘daily’ and ’should subscribe.

My Rating: Concept – Cool | Design – Basic | Content – Worth Every Read!

Click to visit.

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