Like Wow Dude! surfing the tasty waves of technology.

Bill Gurley is part of the team over at Benchmark Capital. He writes a fantastic newsletter called Above the Crowd. This months newsletter focuses on the Mobile Internet and it's an excellent read. I highly recommend & encourage anyone interested in the evolution and economics of high technology businesses to subscribe to it.

Posted by: - Mark - 1:55 PM
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Tuesday, July 22, 2003

ScubaToys.com

ScubaToys.com - I'm not a diver. I just love this company. I first read about them in Business Week. What I find interesting about this company is that they are a dive shop, in Dallas Texas. Last time I checked, Dallas wasn't exactly a scuba mecca. But they're doing great. Better than great! And the reason is clear. They're internet savy. They "get" the net.

And they're not just an e-commerce site. For instance they've got an "Ask Joe & Larry" column where divers can email them questions. They answer all questions and post the good ones on the site. They've got web cams in the store and for their dive pool. If you call them and ask them how big a dive watch looks on your wrist, they will put one on and hold it up to the web cam for you to see. They also created ScubaPics.com where divers can post photos and then you can vote on them. And they have plans to offer e-learning tools in the future.

And this is a dive shop. That's what's so amazing to me. I love seeing technology put to good use. And if you question whether this is good use or not. Just look at their sales growth.

Posted by: - Mark - 4:35 PM
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Monday, July 21, 2003

I am guessing that it is ice cream?

Need a break from this crazy Monday? Play a round of 20Q.net. It uses artificial intelligence that it gathers every time someone plays. So it gets smarted with every round. Play a round or two. It's wild. It just figured out that I was thinking of ice cream. Oh, and you can use the Anonymous Login if you don't want to sign up.

Posted by: - Mark - 12:57 PM
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Saturday, July 19, 2003

The Starbucks Card

Are you familiar with Starbucks prepaid cards? It's basically like a gift card. It looks like a credit card and comes in different dollar amounts. But what sets this card apart is that they account for 1 out of every 10 transactions at Starbucks stores. And they can be reloaded with cash. Online! Just go to Starbuck's website and use your credit card to add more value to your existing Starbucks Card. They say that one in five card holders registers online. This allows users to replace lost cards, reload their current ones, and view transaction histories.

But here's where it gets really interesting for those of us that live at Starbucks! They are partnering with Visa. Each purchase with your Visa card will earn you coffee credits at Starbucks. No more waiting a year or two to earn enough airline miles with your Visa. Now you won't have to wait long at all to get your rewards. Truth is, if you use your Visa on a regular basis, you may never have to pay for another cup of java at Starbucks again.

A quick summary from the August edition of Business 2.0 Magazine.

Posted by: - Mark - 10:53 PM
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Friday, July 18, 2003

Business lessons from the donut and coffee guy

What a great read. Check out kottke.org and read about the donut & coffee guy!

Posted by: - Mark - 1:32 PM
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Tuesday, July 08, 2003

About Me...

Name: Mark

Email: likewowdude [at] gmail [dot] com

Location: Currently in Raleigh, NC. But only because my job is located here. I grew up in Florida and my wife grew up in Hawaii. And although we find the Raleigh area to be a beautiful place, it simply isn't a place that we can call home. The Winters are way too cold and the beach is too far away.

So What's This Site All About: I try to stay current on the latest business and technology trends. I subscribe to a handful of magazines (Inc., Fortune, Business 2.0, Popular Science, Fast Company, Money) and I actually read them from time to time. When I find articles that spark my interest, I post a quick blurb about them. So a lot of my content is just a summary of the articles that I've enjoyed reading. But I also spend a good deal of time surfing the net and when I come across interesting things I'll post a blurb or two about them.

What's Up With The Name? Haha... it is what it is. It's just a name. But it does serve to set an accurate tone. I'm an easy going, laid back type of person.

What else? Well, my wife and I adopted a little girl from China in January of 2005. You can read about it on our Adoption Blog. And I run a Christian community site called manna cabana with my friend Mike.

Posted by: - Mark - 11:03 PM
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The First Post!

The official first post of the "Like Wow Dude!" blog.

Posted by: - Mark - 12:10 AM
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Thursday, July 24, 2003

Above the Crowd