Back-to-back mobile news posts !

This time, our Open Source WordPress for BlackBerry app has hit 1.0, and is now in RIM’s App World.

I’m really excited that this release also includes support for video, including support for those who use VideoPress:

More info on blackberry.wordpress.org .

Hot of the presses, joining the iPhone and BlackBerry app, we now have a native WordPress for Android mobile app.

Check out the video below for an overview:

Charlie Brooker nails the problem with lots of TV news segments these days. Simply hilarious — this is a must watch:

I have a feeling Michael Pick is going to leave a comment here

I was interviewed by Connie Loizos of peHUB last week for their ongoing series, “Behind the Screens”:

Beginning a couple of weeks ago, we began shining a light on some of the unknown stars who are adding much of the value to some of Silicon Valley’s hottest companies. Raanan Bar-Cohen easily meets that bar.

You can read the full q&a on pehub.com .

Lots going on today re: Google’s decision to possibly back out of China.

Harry McCracken, a WordPress.com VIP, just posted Exactly Right, Google. Exactly Right with a great summary of what this all means:

For as long as western companies have been doing business in China–under Chinese laws–there’s been a fundamental question that’s been a subject of immense controversy: Are they helping to make China more free, or are they helping the Chinese government prevent more freedom?

Until now, Google has been one of a number of U.S. Web companies that has willingly provided a censored version of its services in China as a prerequisite of doing business there. It’s maintained that providing the Chinese people with access to some information is better than denying them access to Google entirely, and its Chinese search engine has carried a disclaimer that some links are suppressed.

He also mentioned this:

“But I’m very proud of the fact that Automattic, the creators of WordPress and the company that hosts Techologizer, has refused to censor WordPress.com blogs in China”

It’s going to be very interesting to see what happens next.

This is always fun for a stats junky like me

Last year this time I posted my raanan.com 2008 stats, and I’ve previously posted some stats from 2007 about this blog.

So here is a summary for 2009 from the WordPress.com stats on this blog:

Top Posts (based on pageviews):

1. Switched to Google Apps for Personal Ema
2. Quick Tip For BlackBerry Users When Call
3. The Great Sync on OS X: Google Calendar,
4. Upgraded to iPhone 3GS from 3G. Veridct:
5. Mozy Online Backup Service Review
6. OS X: Upgrading and Installing Leopard -
7. Sync Skype Chat History on Multiple Mach
8. Google Apps and Gmail Fix “On behalf Of”
9. Garmin Nuvi 350 portable GPS navigator r
10. http://raanan.com/tag/baghdad/

Nothing too surprising, just more evidence that how-to posts and reviews get a ton of traffic, mainly from search engines. Also interesting that the top 3 posts are actually from 2008. In fact 4 out of the 10 are from 2008, 5 from 2009, and 1 from 2007.

Top Referrers (non search engines):

1. automattic.com/about
2. stumbleupon.com
3. gmailblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/send-m…
4. ma.tt
5. twitter.com/raanan
6. google.com/reader/view
7. wordpress.com
8. twitter.com
9. blackberry.wordpress.org
10. iphone.wordpress.org

One thing about this report was that it was very long tail outside of the top few. Also — we all know this, but I’m not sure it’s widely covered, on just how much traffic stumbleupon sends to sites. Unlike spikes from Yahoo Front page or Digg, which can be massive but are over within hours usually, stumbleupon traffic usually has a smaller spike but it tails off very slowly and continues to drive traffic for months.

Top Search Terms:

1. installing leopard
2. google apps personal
3. mozy review
4. 3g vs 3gs
5. skype chat history
6. raanan bar-cohen
7. comcast blast review
8. iphone stickers
9. dialing letters on blackberry
10. p2 wordpress

Top Clicked Links:

1. google.com/a
2. google.com/intl/en_us/mobile/sync
3. hanselman.com/blog/MigratingAFamilyTo…
4. linkedin.com/in/raananbarcohen
5. flickr.com/photos/raanan/sets/7215761…
6. photomatt.net/2007/06/20/raanan-joins
7. plaxo.com/downloads
8. bombich.com/software/ccc.html
9. flickr.com/photos/raanan
10. faq.wordpress.com/2007/05/23/gmail-mx

So there you have it.  If anyone out there want to hack around a bit, there is an API for the WordPress.com stats system, http://stats.wordpress.com/csv.php,  that I’m sure could produce some interesting stats and trends — would be a great web app.

Happy new Year everyone !

For anyone who played FPS games in the late 90s, Duke Nukem 3D was a big deal, and the sequel was one of the most anticipated and drama-filled, flame-war topics on sites like shacknews.

Wired just posted a story from this month’s magazine, Learn to Let Go: How Success Killed Duke Nukem, with a bit more background on what exactly went wrong with the sequel. In summary:

…the Duke Nukem Forever team worked for 12 years straight. As one patient fan pointed out, when development on Duke Nukem Forever started, most computers were still using Windows 95, Pixar had made only one movie — Toy Story — and Xbox did not yet exist.

Definitely worth a read: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2009/12/fail_duke_nukem/

So what do people think — will this game ever come out ?

Many of the largest WordPress-powered sites in the world such as ones for CNN, GigaOM, and the NFL are hosted on WordPress.com VIP and/or supported by our team through our VIP Support program.

The informational site for the VIP program was getting a bit stale, so we did a refresh and relaunched it just a few hours ago. You can see it at vip.wordpress.com, and be sure to check out the short video where Barry and I chat about all things VIP:

Like many of you I get introduced to at least a couple of people per week via an email into, and probably send out just as many if not more intros to various people.

A good intro goes a long way, and when people hook you up with the right contact at a company, it can save you a ton of time and open up some real opportunities.

Having said that, I’m always amused and sometimes a bit confused by the weird email intro or the odd email intro etiquette that goes on.

So I thought I’d blog a few dos and dont’s that I think are helpful to keep in mind:

Don’t use a real generic subject line like “intro”. Everyone is swamped with email, so it’s easy to just skip a generic email, especially when reading on a mobile device. Do use something like “Company X meet Company Y” or “Person X meet Person Y”. Makes it simple and easy to scan.

Don’t forward a really long and obtuse email thread inserting a new person in at the end with “do you know anyone ?”. That creates work for the person you are asking for help from, and is just messy. Usually reading the long forwarded threads also reveals a ton of stuff you probably should never have seen in the first place. Instead, craft a new clean email.

Don’t ask for an intro to someone but provide no context. If you are asking for an intro, at least provide some kind of hint as to why you want the intro, what’s the angle, and what the person being intro’d should expect. That way you can quickly write up an intro note without having to guess or be really vague.

Don’t keep the thread going on forever with me CC’d.. After I make an intro for someone, I don’t really need to be on the thread as you and the new person decide on a coffee shop and a date, and then change and reschedule it a few times Fine to keep me on there for one back-and-forth so I know the email went through and isn’t stuck in a spam folder. After that, if it’s strategic in some way or an FYI, put me on BCC or just forward one of the notes.

The flip side, do make sure to acknowledge the intro. I have a couple of people who I’ve sent opportunities to, and each time they’ve failed to CC or BCC me – and I’m always following up to see if they got my email.

Anyone else have any tips ?