Top 10 objectively biggest tech stories of 2009
Ignore all the other lists! As we did last year, Techmeme has distilled its very own Top 10 story list, utilizing headline ranking data archived throughout the year. While we employ a terrific team of news editors to guide our story selection, this list draws on many factors outside our direct influence, making it a … nearly objective sampling of what was important in 2009.
The list is dominated by milestones and turning points at Apple and Google, who have an outsized impact on the rest of the industry. A few truths discovered over the past 12 months: The boundary between a partner and an awkward competitor is awfully thin. Steve Jobs is always a hot topic. And nothing, I mean nothing, gets keyboards clicking like the tantalizing promise of tomorrow's technology.
The Official Google Blog:
Google's announcement that it was creating a cloud-based operating system raised eyebrows and confirmed that Silicon Valley's once-scrappy do-gooder had shifted focus from web search to total device domination. Chrome was an arrow aimed directly at Microsoft's heart -- its Windows operating system -- and a flag-planting arrival of Google onto the desktop. Now if only it were actually released…
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington decided last year to put his pundit opinions to good use and try his hand at creating a dirt-cheap web tablet. His November admittance of defeat, and the soap-opera backstory between TechCrunch and gadget maker Fusion Garage made great fodder for the Cassandras of tech journalism.
The Paperboy / Gizmodo:
The September leak of Microsoft's "late prototype" tablet, er, "booklet" computer made a splash that has had surprisingly few ripples since. The device, named "Courier" (perhaps after the font you used to pad your college term papers?), has yet to be announced.
Max Wang / DigiTimes:
Apple's mystery tablet was rumored to be announced at MacWorld, at WWDC, at September's music announcement, and any other time an Apple executive was giving a public presentation. (The latest rumor has it, now rumored to be called the iSlate, being announced January 26th.) This November headline from laconic Taiwan-based publication Digitimes no doubt broke geek hearts when it predicted that the never-official tablet's never-announced launch date would be delayed.
Apple:
When not speculating on possible products, the tech press speculated on the possible problems of Apple CEO Steve Jobs. His early January admission that he was suffering from a "hormonal imbalance" struck some as less-than-forthright. The skeptics were later validated when a dead-of-night June Wall Street Journal article revealed his liver transplant.
Apple:
Google CEO Eric Schmidt started 2009 as a member of Apple's Board of Directors, but the Mountain View company's creeping incursion onto Apple territory made his departure inevitable.
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
TechCrunch's seemingly speculative post on Google's move to create its own gadget was dismissed by a few naysayers. When Google handed out shiny new Nexus One's to employees, the secret got out. Unboxings and TwitVid sneak peeks followed.
Apple:
When people complained that VoIP service Google Voice wasn't available as an app on the iPhone, Apple initially pointed the fingers at hapless carrier AT&T. When the FCC came calling, though, they changed their tune.
New York Times:
Online auction house eBay finally unraveled their disastrous deal with Skype, selling it to a group including new VC firm Andreessen Horowitz.
Peter Kafka / MediaMemo:
Apple successfully destabilized the music industry, so it seems like the broadcast market is the next worthy target. This tasty November rumor is just that - for now - but one we'd be delighted to see.
Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
Google used a splashy October presentation to announce partnerships with LaLa and iLike, allowing you to use the power of their search engine to find that tune you have stuck in your head.
Bret Taylor / FriendFeed Blog:
Friendfeed, the little startup that could, decided in August that they, well, couldn't, and went from being Facebook's unofficial R&D office to a little more formal agreement.
Droid, iPhone, and Pre: meet the new Techmeme Mobile
Today we're introducing Techmeme Mobile, a new mobile version of Techmeme optimized for popular smartphones. Techmeme Mobile loads much faster on phones thanks to a sparser page format in which tabs and "Discussion" links load on demand. In addition, button-sized headline links make it nicely suited for touchscreens. We've tested it on the iPhone, Droid, Palm Pre and other devices and believe most people on the go will find Techmeme Mobile preferable to Techmeme's standard page.
Techmeme Mobile is available for all browsers at http://techmeme.com/m, but simply browsing http://techmeme.com/ will redirect there depending on your mobile device. If for any reason, you prefer to view the standard Techmeme page, a link at the bottom of Techmeme Mobile will send you there.
Mobile versions for memeorandum, WeSmirch, and Ballbug are available too, again by appending "/m" to the url.
There's an icon for that
Though Techmeme Mobile is a web page, and not a native app, iPhone users can still add a nice icon to their home screen. Just press "+" at the bottom of the browser, then "Add to Home Screen" and Techmeme Mobile will always be one tap away.
We're keeping that older mobile version too
Still using an old dumbphone? Good old barebones Techmeme Mini will remain available, since it's still better for devices with small, nontouch displays. Introduced in 2006, Techmeme Mini dispenses with "Discussion" links to tidy up the browsing experience on the most basic phones.
What do you think?
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Ever since we first plugged human editors into the automation behind Techmeme, we've been improving how we work to make the human/machine combo more and more effective. While technological innovations have contributed to these improvements, smarter and more continuous human editing has played a critical role as well.
Over the past few months three more editors have joined Techmeme's editorial team. They are (with links to their Twitter profiles) Rich DeMuro, formerly of CNET and various TV news outlets, Lidija Davis of The Drill Down podcast, formerly of ReadWriteWeb, and Mahendra Palsule, writer for MakeUseOf.com and a former IT project manager. At this point we're now staffed 24 hours a day most weekdays.
We've created a list on Techmeme's Twitter profile to let you follow the whole team, which also includes Megan McCarthy, Omer Horvitz, and myself. We may not tweet constantly about Techmeme, but we eat salads, and you have a right to know when we do.
New way to get on Techmeme: send tips to Techmeme via Twitter
Have you ever wanted to suggest news stories to Techmeme? Often there are Techmeme readers aware of great stories that have fallen through the cracks, or are taking too long to appear on Techmeme. So I've long wanted to enable news tips, but the question remains: how best to receive them? Though forms or a special email address might work, today we begin by receiving tips over Twitter.
If you've been reading Techmeme, you know all about Twitter, which lets you send short messages to other Twitter users who have opted to "follow" you. It's like blogging but with the immediacy of instant messaging, plus a whole stable of desktop and mobile applications built around the service. While Twitter isn't as mainstream as Facebook, it's already mainstream among bloggers and many people ahead of the curve on breaking news.
Techmeme already posts headlines to Twitter, through Twitter accounts Techmeme, which includes only the bigger stories of the day, and TechmemeFH (Techmeme Firehose), which includes every main headline that hits the site (the clear choice for tech news junkies). But until today the tweets have gone one way: from these accounts.
To send a tip to Techmeme, just include "Tip @Techmeme" in your message
along with the URL of the news story you'd like to appear,
just as Noah Kagan has done here:
Or alternatively, "Tip @TechmemeFH"; either of the two Techmeme user ids will work.
Including titles or even other non-Techmeme user ids is fine, as long as "Tip @Techmeme"
or "Tip @TechmemeFH" and the URL appear somewhere in the tweet.
Tips will be processed through a combination of automated and manual means,
and if you were the first person to tip Techmeme about a story url,
your Twitter id will be credited on the homepage of Techmeme if the story
is posted. The credit will appear beneath the posted headline,
after "Discussion" links. Look for the word "Thanks":
This raises a bunch of questions so it's now Q&A time:
Q: Will Techmeme understand URL shorteners like tinyurl.com?
A: Yep, we'll grab the target URL for the most common shorteners such as tinyurl.com, is.gd, bit.ly, etc. Just avoid the ones that use frames, like ginx.com.
Q: Won't you be spammed? What if someone "tips" Techmeme with a large number of headlines indescriminately, aiming to get lucky with one of them?
A: You should only submit urls if you feel Techmeme would undoubtedly improve should the news appear. Most people only encounter such stories a few times a week. Accounts determined to be spamming will be quietly ignored and never credited for their tips. Also, Twitter accounts created mainly for the purpose of sending tips will be ignored.
Q: Can I "Tip @Techmeme" with my own story?
A: This is acceptable, but only rarely. If you know you're sitting on a remarkable story that Techmeme would be poorer without, go right ahead. In general though, tips to other people's stories appear more credible than tips to your own.
Q: How does Techmeme find these tips?
A: We're using the standard Twitter Search API. Techmeme will promptly find your tips as long as this API continues functioning reliably. To date, we've been encouraged with its performance.
We hope supporting tips will make Techmeme a bit more comprehensive and responsive in the future and look forward to extending public "Thanks" to Techmeme's tipsters. Now don't forget to follow TechmemeFH or Techmeme.
Naturally, you can find Techmeme's Gabe Rivera (warning: entrails pictured in background), Megan McCarthy and Omer Horvitz on Twitter.
Do you remember 2008? Techmeme (still) does, with a chronological top 50 list
If you're like me, you're not happy at all about 2009. As of this evening, no signs of economic recovery have yet emerged, and it feels like people haven't even gone back to work. 2008 in contrast was a year in which we lived like there was no recession. Because we didn't yet know we were in one. At least until our Q4 budgets were already allocated.
We already surveyed the 10 biggest stories of 2008, but as we could all use a heaping second dose of nostalgia today, here are the top 50 headlines of last year, this time arranged chronologically. The headlines tell the tale of a year in which we laughed at Yahoo, only to learn in the end we were all Yahoos. Or something like that. Enjoy!