Technology As Innovator

Overall

Why would I want to use a Vietnamese web service

1. Connection speed, especially for video streaming
2. Local opportunities

What would drive me away

1. Security, including revelation of my account information and spam
2. Careless design
3. Immature communities

Networking

Professional Networking

I’m favoring CyVee because opportunities are real and more closely intact.

LinkedIn is terrific, but opportunities might come at a lower pace.

Social Networking

I’m currently very happy with Facebook.

If faceViet or yobanbe want to get me, they have to provide

1. Professional theme
2. English interface
3. Strong personalization options.

Social News

It’s a pity I prefer utilizing my RSS Reader over social news sites such as Digg. Therefore, no remark just yet.

However, the news sharing platform of CyVee looks nice and could be very useful in promoting company brand like the way Tim of TRG is doing.

Additionally, if Vietnamese service provider can create something like StumbleUpon, it would make a hit and I’ll definitely consider.

Photos Networking

Picasa has everything I need: 1Gb free account, folders, tagging and an uploader.

Is there a local site focusing on photos networking?

Music Networking

I’m enjoying sharing music on imeem. I am more into English songs. I like new age, hard rock and symphony and I’m not sure whether nhacso, Zing mp3 are rich of such genres.

Video Networking

Youtube is absolutely wonderful. I am amazed by its fast connection speed and stability.

Therefore, I don’t have the plan to move to Clip.vn just yet.

Mobile Networking

Has any Vietnamese vendor invest in this area?

Blogging

I am maintaining my different blogs on self-hosted WordPress, Yahoo! 360 and Windows Live Spaces.

If local blogging providers such as ngoisaoblog, blog.com.vn want to attract me, they would have to ensure:

1. High SEO compatibility
2. High security, including spam protection and splog tracking
3. Backup options and standard-compliant import/export functionalities
4. Permalinks

Instant Messaging

My clients in the US are using MSN Messenger. Most of my friends are using Yahoo! Messenger. For conference, Skype is just wonderful.

I don’t feel the urge of switching to Zing chat.

Email

Apart from professional emails on my domain, I use a Gmail account to access Google services and a Yahoo! email to make it easier for my friends.

Any company is investing in providing free email service in Vietnam?

Portal

I use my portal for work purpose and netvibes is still number one.

Zing looks very nice, but I’d rather having something customizable.

e-Commerce

I’m not having a real need of C2C e-Commerce, so no comment on this.

Map

A vote for diadiem, simply because I need to find ways in my local areas.

Entertainment

I’d rather go out playing sports than wandering online, so good luck socvui, hihihehe and so on

Conclusion

In conclusion, the 2 local web services that I utilize are CyVee and diadiem

CyVee give me real local opportunities and diadiem is definitely more useful than its Google counterpart.

For others, if they can bring me real values I’m seeking…

Preview

First time

I first used personalized homepage in 2001 with My Yahoo! At that time, Yahoo! was still more of directory selection and fewer web services of other vendors existed. I did not utilize much of its functionalities.

Google

Catching up with the blossom of Web 2.0, Google releases Personalized Google Homepage. With one Gmail account, you can have your own homepage, enriched with many gadgets, ranging from news, language learning sites, entertainment, technology, living etc and even a web-based wiki(RSS) reader. Google always does an excellent job in leading the web service provision.

Yahoo!

Yahoo! is speeding up to scramble back the market from her rival. New My Yahoo! offers new gadgets and newer themes. Though still not as rich as Google’s, Yahoo! has seeded the competition in this newly revived service.

Microsoft

Live.com advances! Microsoft never disappoints their users.

Netvibes

Meanwhile, netvibes, a customizable Web 2.0 start page service launched beta. Exploiting Ajax & CSS power, the GUI of netvibes with bold fonts and harmoniously colored layout looks even nicer than Google’s.

Pageflakes

This is another name to mention. Pageflakes is a neat and tidy homepage.

Conclusion

My prediction focuses on total new online business opportunities exploiting this new trend. Interstitial advertisement may as well metamorphose into more evolutionary forms; new Web 2.0 monopolism would arise.

At the end of the line, I am waiting for the next boom.

This is a fun story

Once, Chen Stormstout - a marketer who worked for one of the world’s leading FMCG companies - returned to his poor, secluded hometown, and was greeted stately by his relatives.

His uncle rejoiced “We have been poor farmers for centuries. This is the first time our line has ever been this honored by the success of our child. All thanks to Chen. He’s our VIP now. He can be our manager; let’s call our hero Marketing Manager!” The whole family applauded his idea.

Suddenly a niece cheered “No. A Marketing Director is higher, let’s call Chen Marketing Director!” The whole family cheered even louder; they knew a director is someone really important.

Chen’s cousin, who also studied business in the province college, cleared his throat and said pensively “But the Marketing Director still reports to the Vice President of Marketing, PR, Advertisement and Communication. Why don’t we call him Marketing VP?”

Everyone paused for a while when Chen’s aunt interrupted the silence “Boo! When your mother and I went to complain the musty cakes to XYZ, that VP was effusive in his apologies to us. He declares something about customer first and all the stuffs I didn’t bother remembering them all. I see that a customer has even more power; let’s call Chen Marketing Customer“.

Finally the sage in the crowd spoke deliberately “Now, to complete your sophisticated loop, customers are managed by a Marketing Executive, that is Chen. Why name him something fancy, only to make him lose his identity?!”