KTRU in Seattle
A sight for sore feet…
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LCC’s John Lehmann at Ignite Dallas
Congratulations today go out to Language Computer’s own John Lehmann, who brought the house down at last night’s first-ever IgniteDallas.
His 5-minute talk (“Changing the Way the World Looks at Information”) looked at how a new generation of content mashups are transforming how people work with information on the Web. Here’s shaky-cam video of his talk:
Extreme closeups of his slides are shared after the jump…
Tags: extractiv, ignite, ignitedallas, language computer, nlpCompanyDallas Announces New Pricing for Startups
CompanyDallas is looking for a few good startups. The Richardson-based coworking spot announced today that they’re letting startups work out of their offices for the low price of $500/month. (No word yet on what they define as a startup, or whether there’s an upper bound on the number of people you can bring in for $500.) Pricing for individuals remains the same: $250/month.
Quick Comment: 5 Sites Better than Google
Just a quick comment on Harry McCracken’s provocatively-titled post “Five Sites That are Better than Google“. His picks? Bing, Aardvark (now Google Aardvark), Wolfram|Alpha, Twitter, and Siri.
For the moment, let’s leave aside the question of what makes a site “better” than Google (other a conceit to attract clicks like mine). And while we’re at it, the elevation of Bing or Twitter (or heck, any of these five sites) to the rarified stratum that Google occupies. (It is Fox News, after all.)
What got me blogging was the fact that he singled-out three Q&A services: Aardvark, Wolfram, and Siri. Tell us, Harry, what makes these sites better than Google?
[Aardvark] works well when you’d rather get quick advice from a few real knowledgeable people than scour Google results for relevant links on a question such as “Should I buy a mountain bike, a road bike, or a hybrid to ride around San Francisco?”
Wolfram|Alpha calls itself a “computational knowledge engine,” but I think of it as a 21st-century equivalent of a thick, fact-packed paperback almanac. It’s a vast repository of knowledge skewing towards the mathematical and scientific that you can explore by entering questions.
[Siri]’s a “virtual personal assistant” that uses voice recognition, your GPS location, and links to local information and services to respond to requests you speak into an iPhone 3GS.
The answer? Their ability to deliver precise bits of information — without having to “scour” Google results. That’s also where he sees value in Bing:
[With Bing Travel], You can enter dates and locations for plane tickets or hotel stays, then get a grid of results that you can further refine — to direct flights only, for instance, or to hotels with swimming pools.
Despite the attention-grabby headline, I love articles like these because it suggests conscious is changing regarding Web search. While traditional search engines aren’t going away anytime soon, consumers are beginning to see value in services which can get you to the content you’re really looking for — or, at the very least, can hook you up with experts who can help you get on the right track.
What’s particuarly interesting about Aardvark, Wolfram, and Siri is that they’re all providing access to information that has been created — and vetted — by humans. Vark is brilliant because it lets you ask questions to your social network en masse — without having to wait for anyone friend to pick up and tell you “I have no clue.” Siri makes sure you don’t have to search Yelp or Gayot or yes, Google, to be able to find if Boom Noodle closes at 8 or 10 pm on Sundays. Wolfram saves you the trouble of trying to cram the latest Information Please almanac in your pocket.
Yes, all of this information is great. And yes, I use all of three of these services every day. But truth be told, I find all of them a little unsatisfying: I’ve got so many more questions that these services can’t answer. Here are just a few that I thought of this morning while watching the Winter Olympics:
- What’s Sidney Crosby’s number?
- What country did the Winter Olympic sport of skeleton originate in?
- Who is the fastest female luger? (And where can I meet her?)
Like I said, I’m an enthusiastic user of Q&A services. (And yes, I’m building one of my own.) But I want these services to be transformative: to do things that I could never do myself (even if I had the time and energy). Don’t just improve access to data sources that I could likely manipulate myself. Give me access to knowledge that I could never have.
I know, I’m impatient. And lazy: I could probably spend time pouring over search results to find my answer. Or go to Wikipedia. But I want what Harry wants: content at my fingertips. I may be more greedy than Harry, though: I want all of it.
Tags: q&a, semantic search, siri, Swingly, wolframalpha
Interview: Matthew Titsworth of CompanyDallas
I was able to squeeze in a quick interview today with Matt Titsworth, the manager of the CompanyDallas coworking facility. Although he’s a physicist by training, Matt’s also an ardent supporter of all things coworking, and he does a really nice job running one of the best coworking spots in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
Andy Hickl: Tell me a little about CompanyDallas. What exactly is a coworking spot, anyway?
Matthew Titsworth, Company|Dallas: A coworking space is a shared office for start-ups, freelancers, and entrepreneurs. It’s also a community where folks from different backgrounds can come together and be introduced to new people with different backgrounds. It’s a new way to work. As to Company|Dallas? Company|Dallas is awesome. We’ve got a great and eclectic group of members from all over the spectrum who do quite a variety of different things.
More from Matt after the jump…
Tags: companydallas, coworkingQuick Q&A on Extractiv
I had so much fun writing up my answers to Mark Johnson’s panel questions that I thought I’d put together another “mock” interview — with myself.
This time, I’m going to be tackling some of the more popular questions we get regarding Extractiv. As a brand-new start-up (only about 8 weeks old), we’re still finding our strengths, but I thought it’d be safe to share a little more about who we are — and what we’re trying to do under the Extractiv name. Want to know more? Write us at support@extractiv.com; we’d be happy to answer any questions you might have (or to show you a demo)!
(As always, the views expressed on this blog are mine, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Language Computer or Extractiv or its subsidiaries or parent companies. Well, until we get the Extractiv Blog put together and start blogging there in earnest, that is.)
Interview after the jump…
Tags: extractiv, Quick Extractiv Q&A, semantic webRecap: Future of Semantic Search Panel @ Web 3.0
I had the good fortune on Thursday to be a part of a panel on semantic search at the Web 3.0 Conference. The panel was organized Mark Johnson(Bing/Powerset) and featured the likes of Connie Kenneally (TextWise), Will Hunsinger (Evri), Tim Musgrove (TextDigger), and yours truly (LCC, Swingly, Extractiv, etc.).
Mark put on an absolutely great panel. In addition to being one of the most knowledgeable people in our industry, he’s a natural-born moderator and a talented discussion leader. He’s got great journalistic chops too: definitely not one to shy away from asking the tough questions.
Since I wasn’t able to capture video of the panel, I thought I’d try to recreate my side of the discussion. Here are some of the questions that Mark asked — and the gist of the answers I gave. (Or would have given.)
More after the jump…
Tags: panel, semantic search, Swingly, web 3.0