The Weekly Web Wrap

Some things that caught my attention this week:

Definr: a super-fast dictionary based on WordNet 2.0 that sizzles by caching 25,000 words in memory. You could describe it as Google-like because Definr’s interface is simple, white and it works very well. Not sure how it’s going to make money – there’s no sign of advertising or sponsorship on the site – or whether it has a shot at carving out a niche in the online dictionary market, but it is pretty cool. For more details, check out Read/WriteWeb.

- If you want a free, easy-to-use photo-editing tool, check out Picnik. It’s operates a lot like Apple’s iPhoto. A particularly nice feature is it works with photos in Flickr, Facebook, Photobucket, Picasa, Webshot, as well as your computer. There’s a premium version for $24.95 with more bells and whistles.

- Traditional media may not really get the Web yet but CBC Radio’s Search Engine is becoming a must-listen for many people. The latest show had a feature on an Australian economist, Dr. George Barker, who popped up all over the blogosphere after the Canadian government issued a report that suggested P2P file-sharing had no impact on music sales. Barker suggested otherwise. Surprise, surprise: it turns out Barker was hired by the Canadian music industry to do a report refuting many of the Canadian government’s assertions. Barker failed to disclose this fact in any of his comments.

- BusinessWeek had an intriguing story look at the future of Skype, suggesting that eBay’s going to see if gauge the success of some new strategic initiatives being launched by Skype before it decides whether to sell the business. There’s one suggestion that eBay could use Skype to sell digital content such as music, video and software. So far, however, Skype users have demonstrated little interest in doing anything other than making free phone calls and instant-messaging.

- For anyone tired of using FeedBurner’s subscription chicklet, check out this alternative, Feed Count 1.2.

- I’m intrigued by Big Brown Box. It’s literally a big brown box where people are encouraged to send stuff in to fill it. Everything in the box is then auctioned to the highest bidder, or traded for something. Totaly value of stuff in the box right now is more than $18,000. I love the About the Big Brown Box: It’s big, it’s brown, it’s a box.:stuff to put in the big brown box.

- I finally got to play with an iPhone for the first time last night. It’s very sweet, and the Wi-Fi functionality is extremely appealing given Canada’s data prices are outrageous. It will be fascinating to see how Rogers prices the iPhone when it eventually gets to Canada. Last time I checked in with Rogers about a launch date, they danced around the question.

- IE7 has been out for a year now. When’s the new and improved IE8 coming out?

Technorati Tags: Apple, Photography, Skype, Wordpress