Keeping with the Jones

It is difficult to keep up with the development of new technologies and the ways in which leading edge companies and consumers are utilizing them. Here are a few resources that may help.

http://business2.blogs.com/business2blog/ is great reading for the latest ideas in technology and business.

www.slashdot.org. The website promotes itself as "news for nerds, stuff that matters".

www.pbs.org/cringely Someone mentioned site as belonging to the "nerd" of the "nerds". Bob Cringely fits that description and delivers good insight into the future of technology.

http://my.yahoo.com After you register, you can build a page that aggregates news feeds on most topics, including technology and real estate. This is a great way to consolidate the information that you want.

There are many more and we'll share them with you from time-to-time.

iPhone acceptance

In its 13th bi-annual teen survey, PiperJaffray surveyed 500 high school students at 11 different schools, asking each about their interest and buying patterns in portable digital audio and online music.

Nearly 85 percent said they were already familiar with the Apple device, and of those students, 25 percent said they'd be willing to buy one at the previously announced $500 entry point.

Light up my sign

After dark most real estate signs become ineffective. One company has a solution. Lights for real estate signs. Visit www.ListingLight.com

Domain names

It was several years ago that many catchy domain names were purchased. Experts familiar with such domain names are reporting that many of these "catchy" are now back on the market.

Part of the reason is that many real estate professionals are leaving the industry and surrenduring the domain names. In many cases they are just letting these names expire.

Use one of the many registrars on the market and check for the names that interest you. Find out if those names are available or not. There is a website www.JustDropped.com that list names that are soon to return to the pool of available names.

YouTube real estate

Someone suggested using YouTube to post real estate videos. A quick check of "orange county real estate" at www.YouTube.com yielded some results.

- a few postings dealing with specific properties - virtual tours

- many postings that were advertising and customer testimonials

- Orange County exists in more places than California

Using YouTube to post such videos - whether they be testimonials or virtual tours - is an easy to use tool. It's convenient for visitors, too. This is a trend that will grow quickly.

Do YouTube yet?