While it appears the article has been locked before someone could update it to include that she also ate cats I think this is a good example of how the wisdom of the mob is not always correct.

Oracle EMEA has launched a pilot Web 2.0 program where a character called ‘The Oracle Node” can do a search on the entire OTN website for content you are interested in. This was created and aimed at developers to help encourage registration and downloads on OTN.

The program has a strong web 2.0 aspect with details about the Node on many of the networking websites. Since this is a pilot program, we thought you might be interested in getting involved with the project by suggesting new sources of information, building up and spreading of the Node virally. We welcome your feedback, suggestions and ideas you may have to help improve the Node.

Go ahead, click through and form your own opinion… All I can say is what the hell is Oracle thinking? If you can stomach the orbiting pod long enough to navigate to the end of one of these paths you’ll be faced with a sliding wall of nausea which may somehow contain some relevant information, but with no discernible organization.

I have come up with two acceptable explanations… Someone at Oracle just finished a class on Flash and needed a project, or someone at Oracle just finished a study on motion sickness and needed a project.

You can grow a beautiful garden out of a pile of shit, but it’s hard to see anything fertile about iamthenode.com at this point.

As I wrote on InternetEvolution recently, it’s time we start treating the Internet like every other utility.

Using the utility model, an ISP could charge for the maximum bit rate available (many already offer several maximum bit rates at graduated prices), then a reasonable price for each gigabyte used. To simplify the user experience and reduce concern about overages, it makes sense to include a generous amount of leeway with the service — say, 200 Gbytes — but it will be essential to give the user a way to monitor how it’s consumed.

Ideally, enough bandwidth and storage would be included with the basic plan to more than satisfy the typical user, including allowance for downloading a reasonable amount of video and audio. (For reference, movies available on iTunes tend to run just a bit over 1 Gbyte.) With packages in the hundreds of Gbytes, the average user’s Internet experience and usage pattern is unlikely to be affected at all. But customers should not hesitate to stay up to date on their system updates and virus software.

Check out the full article and feel free to comment on Internet Evolution or here and let me know what you think!

Update: As Gary points out in a comment below, this is a very USA-centric view. I know internet rates and billing policies vary quite a bit around the world. Please leave a comment if your area already has bandwidth restrictions and let us know how it’s working out!

That’s the idea I explored in my recent article for Internet Evolution.

At the same time, smart phones like the iPhone have crossed over from being business tools to consumer products. Indeed, they are quickly becoming the mobile device of choice.

And why not? More than just phones with PDA functionality, these devices have now become full-fledged platforms. Web browsing, chat, email, and games are their core competencies, and applications for them are just getting more interesting from there.

Read my full article for more of my thoughts on how these new devices and services will shape our lives in the near future.

Online content distribution has exploded over the past 10 years, but the entertainment industry has been slow to embrace this new means of doing business. Even now, as the music industry is finally starting to adopt the new model, they continue to apply artificial restrictions to content distribution, making it harder for people to purchase and use their content legitimately.

Check out the full article on Internet Evolution.

In a Web 2.0 era where a prospective employer is more likely to Google your name than to check your references, what is your online presence saying about you?

A surprising number of people still seem to fall into one of two categories when it comes to posting their profiles online: they either indiscriminately post everything about their lives, blissfully ignorant of how it may affect them in the future, or they avoid putting their name on anything online, blissfully ignorant of how an online presence could help them. If you fall into either of these categories it may be time for a change.

Check out the full article on www.internetevolution.com and join in the great discussion on the topic.

OK, so 8.0 isn’t the greatest rating ever, but given that they take into account relevance of content (relevant to what I don’t know) and frequency of updates (there is no April) I’m pretty happy with it.

Now, if you’re interested in the best technology blogs around, check out their Technology Blog Directory. Many of the top picks are focused, professional blogs, not like the crap you’ll find here. There’s some great stuff to check out though and in general I would agree with their rankings.

The Oracle ACE Program is designed to recognize and reward members of the Oracle Technology and Applications communities for their contributions to those communities. These individuals are technically proficient (when applicable) and willingly share their knowledge and experiences.

The program comprises two levels: Oracle ACE and Oracle ACE Director. The former designation is Oracle’s way of saying “thank you” to community contributors for their efforts; we (and the community) appreciate their enthusiasm. The latter designation is for community enthusiasts who not only share their knowledge (usually in extraordinary ways), but also want to increase their community advocacy and work more proactively with Oracle to find opportunities for the same. In this sense, Oracle ACE is “backward looking” and Oracle ACE Director is “forward looking.”

The ACE award seems like a great way to recognize and encourage people to contribute to the Oracle community as a whole. ACE directors additionally commit to being involved in their local Oracle community, posting to the Oracle forums and a handful of other community-centric activities.

There are currently 159 people in the Oracle ACE program and if you frequently surf for Oracle information you’ll recognize many of the names (e.g. Doug Burns, Steve Karam and Tom Kyte, just to name a few.) I’m thrilled and honored to be part of the program and plan to keep contributing where I can!

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Enter DeesInBox.com. Dee handpicks the best forwards to post on DeesInBox.com including jokes, stories, funny videos and pictures.

The site is great! You can go to the site anytime you need a little distraction (instead of being distracted when others send you forwards,) follow along through RSS, leave comments, and if you really must send something to all your friends, you can send a link instead of forwarding bunches of pictures.

Check out DeesInBox.com any time you need a good laugh or to catch up on the latest jokes, forwards and viral videos.

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With that in mind, there is no way I could pass up posting this commic:

Next time someone asks you what a SQL injection is you can point them at this, then explain nicely.

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