Yahoo and Google to turn their e-mail and instant message systems into something closer to social networks. Both companies figured it was futile to take on Facebook and MySpace directly. So they rushed to develop new ways for their users to trade news, photos and so on with the people already in their address books and buddy lists.

The winner of that race is…Microsoft.

Thursday, Microsoft announced a complex new version of the Web sites and PC software that use the Windows Live brand. Over the next two months, the company will introduce dozens of upgraded features involving its e-mail, instant message, calendar, blogging and other services. It will also add some entirely new functions, including group collaboration and photo sharing.

A lot of the effort has gone into weaving the functions of social networks throughout many of these services. For example, the service has a “what’s new” feed, modeled after the Facebook news feed, that can publish short comments by users as well as links to when they take certain actions, like publish new photos. The feed will be displayed on the instant message client and on new profile pages for users. And after you send an e-mail to people who use the new feed, you will see their most recent updates.

Microsoft is also reaching out to draw in information from other sites. Users can add updates from their accounts on services like Yelp, Pandora and Flickr into their “what’s new” feed. They can also bring the list of their friends on other social networks into Microsoft’s new contact manager, called Windows Live People.

“There is not going to be one provider of software and services for the scenarios that are interesting,” said Chris Jones, a Microsoft vice president for Windows Live. “People will be members of many social networks. They will use many different sites to share, different e-mail providers, instant message providers and different types of devices. And in the end, the service that has value will be the one that helps them make sense of it all.”

Yahoo and Google, of course have all sorts of features that let people communicate and share information and photos. Google’s iGoogle personal page and an upcoming revision to the Yahoo home page offer ways to display information from various other sites. But for now, Microsoft offers a more unified approach to collecting information about people from a range of sites and using it in different ways.

Microsoft is not creating many ways to get information out of its systems, however. It doesn’t have the equivalent of Facebook Connect that lets people see their friends on other sites. And it is not enabling social applications from third-party developers on any part of this sprawling set of sites.

Mr. Jones said that the Windows Live profiles are meant to be simple, but they can have links to pages on MySpace or other sites that do allow applications. He said the company would eventually develop methods to export some of the data it keeps about users to other sites.

In addition, Microsoft is updating its SkyDrive service that stores files on its server and Windows Live Sync (formerly know as FolderShare) that keeps copies of files identical on two separate computers.

Microsoft takes a lot of heat, much of it deserved, for its plodding nature and overly complex software. Since the services haven’t been introduced yet, I can’t tell how well these new Windows Live features work. But the fact that the company is the first to actually introduce social networking features to its e-mail is a sign of Microsoft’s discipline, or maybe the lack of resolve at Google and Yahoo. Or both.

In the old days I used to carry a laptop with an overhead digital projector. And sometimes a portable printer. I looked like a mercenary walking in. I still on occasion use the projector. But not much…same goes for my sales collateral, presentation, brochure, letterhead, portfolio and media packet.

First off it’s so much easier. I don’t arrive at a client’s office needing a baggage cart. I show up with my notepad, digital camera and recorder; all fit nicely in my pockets. I don’t carry a phone onsite since I am not an obstetrician or plumber. In fact I walk in with what appears to be just me because it is just me.

Sometimes they give me a quizzical look as if to say ‘didn’t you forget something?’ But unless they specifically ask, I don’t specifically tell. If we are at a conference table, I take out my pen and my small paper notepad and put it directly in front of me. To one side I lay my pocket recorder, and to the other my trick digital camera which I take from my shirt pocket. I’m not totally low tech…

I then take out my business card or maybe several if we are in a group. I lay them on the notepad. By this time more than a few in the room are watching and wondering what I will do next. Maybe perform some sort of magic trick and up will pop a laptop and projector and sales portfolio packet. As we do the obligatory handshakes and settle in, I slip my card across the table to my hosts. And smile.

“Do you have a resume or client list we can review?” is often the first question since they don’t know what else to ask.

“No,” I answer, “both are provided by Google and Yahoo.”

“Really?” they ask with raised eyebrows, “do you have a special deal with them?”

“No, just Google or Yahoo my name in quotes” I reply.

“And your resume is online?” they continue.

“No, just my history and work.”

At this point someone is curious enough to open up their laptop. They Google or Yahoo my name and look up, nodding their head affirmatively. What they see is what I have done. I could compile one myself in a resume format but why bother. My footprint or search results go on page after page. Depending on Google’s algorithmic moods, it can go on for dozens of pages.

As they click down the pages their eyes scan my article topics and they can see I write mainly business articles but also personal development, humor, sports, motivation and politics. I tell them my websites are simply self publishing blogs that store and house my article archives.

If they continue to scroll they will see many different websites where my articles are posted. All types of industries; auto, construction, health, real estate, pet care and even a few not so PG sites fortunately pretty far down the list…ha. Some political sites, some personal development sites and even an inspirational site or two. And a few radical ones, a few right wing ones and a few Jesus ones.

The advantages for me are many. First I don’t look like a salesman warrior loaded down with gadgets and briefcases inspiring fear as I prepare for battle. If I need a promo sheet, I have one folded up in my pocket just in case. I can use the wasted set up time to chat or start asking questions.

Second, I have a very cool business card that is simple, direct and just the right colors. It’s me. Third, they will never hear my cell beep or catch me stealing a glance down to see who called. What an insult. Fourth, I don’t distract everyone by looking for an outlet and setting up my gear. Ten years ago I would set up a mini office to impress. Today I don’t set up anything to impress. Google and Yahoo are nice enough to do that for me.

There’s an old sales tactic that asserts if you can get the prospect to do something active they become more involved and more likely to buy. Doing a simple Google or Yahoo search isn’t much but it is active. It’s also something they can do when I leave or whenever and wherever they wish. It’s something they can duplicate anywhere and something I have no direct control over. Because of all this, it’s credible. And (in)credible

Another important point to note is that I have a clean record. Not even a divorce, knock on wood. So by boldly stating ‘Google my name’ it shows that I am confident that no prison record will pop up. Unfortunately this tactic is not a good one if you do have a prison record…

If you Google my name you will find articles of mine in the London Daily News but no record of my being an inmate at San Quentin. That’s because I have had articles in the London Daily News but have never been an inmate at San Quentin. A simple Googling proves both. Thank you Google and thank you Yahoo for making my life so much easier.

You ever try to get a three prong plug into a two prong outlet without an adapter?

All of us are hip, on-line and Internet-savvy. But we don’t know the beast.

This is the core message of Bill Ganz, the president and CEO of next-step search engine ROCKETInfo Inc. (OTC:RKTI). It is a search technology company in the spirit of Google and Yahoo!, but with a new approach to the delivery of results, news and business information.

The growth potential for ROCKETInfo is remarkable: Just the business process management (BPM) aspect of this industry, including software, services and maintenance, will grow to $6.3 billion annually by 2011, according to a report by Forrester Research, an independent technology and market research company. Analysts project a growth rate for the BPM sector of up to 35 percent annually.

ROCKETInfo does two things very well for businesses of all kinds: It is provides search engine services and is a content server that delivers targeted and relevant content such as news and financial information. The software has been designed to automate the process of defining, collecting, analyzing and delivering relevant, current news from an international pool of reputable news, media and other sources.

It is essentially publishing monolith of potentially gargantuan proportions.

Ganz’ homily: “The nexus of the dot.com era afforded a lot of ideas that were funded and what’s happening right now is that these ideas have worked. Things are now better, faster and cheaper if you understand your media and technology.”

Ganz said that exploring ROCKETInfo’s services is much like waking up in a new world. Internet users who have become used to searching for information with providers like Google and Yahoo, he said, get millions of results per search, much of them segregated into paid-for categories. The problem is, most of this information is neither wanted nor needed. ROCKETInfo’s proprietary software filters the junk, the ads, the spam, and delivers only the desired content.

He added that, like Google and other popular search engines, ROCKETInfo provides an advanced Boolean search, but with a higher IQ – the search engine can be trained to discern the quality of information it gathers. Ganz said that for businesses, this means profound changes for gathering information on competitors, and especially in media monitoring.

“In today’s economy, the gold standard of currency is intelligent, dynamic and real-time information and knowledge management,” Ganz said. “The truth is, people are looking for information that is relevant – for us, about us.”

In one of its most popular applications, Ganz said, ROCKETInfo delivers RSS news to the desktop, and especially to the investment industry. His system parses out information where it’s wanted, from a growing database of 80,000 sources, including 16,000 publishers, plus 30,000 blogs and podcasts.

“Simply put,” he stated, “we’re similar to what TiVo (which finds and digitally records select television broadcasts on demand) does for television, except we do it for the Internet.”

“A ROCKETInfo search,” he said, “specializes in news that is happening right now. We don’t store news like Google, Yahoo, MSN, Alta Vista, Ask – those other large search companies – because we believe that news happens, that decisions you make now in your business and personal life today, are your future.

“It’s the speed, immediacy and the breadth of information that we deliver to our clients. We provide this learned data to you, metaphorically, in a box with a bow on it. We deliver it to your desktop, website, e-mails or newsletters – this is synthesized, refined data.”

The reason ROCKETInfo is so fast is because of how it decides to refine the information and how fast it decides to refresh it. Its web services are an integrated collection of technology layers based on the proprietary Rocket Enterprise Server platform. The technology stack is comprised of collection, storage, search, analysis and delivery layers.

“We choose to refresh so quickly and search our databases so frequently because the speed of the information matters so much in the sporting world, the investment world and the business world. Speed matters. The time latency is the liability.”

Ganz describes ROCKETInfo’s search capabilities with a drilling metaphor: “Google offers a two-mile-wide search that is three inches deep. ROCKETInfo,” he said, “offers a three-inch hole that goes two miles deep.”

Founded in 1998, ROCKETInfo, Inc. has its headquarters in Newport Beach, Calif., with research and development operations in Vancouver and Toronto and professional services in Ottawa. It claims over 95,000 registered users and RSS Reader / desktop downloads and more than seven million monthly searches. It has a staff of 17, plus many consultants and contractors.

Currently trading at 24 cents, ROCKETInfo has reported a market cap of $12.46 million, which demonstrates incredible upside potential for the ground floor investor.

ROCKETInfo has 41.21 million shares outstanding.

This article is intended for information purposes only, and is not a recommendation to buy or sell the equities of any company mentioned herein. It is based on sources believed to be reliable, but no warranty as to accuracy is expressed or implied. The opinions expressed in the article are those of the author except where statements are attributed to individuals other than the author, in which case the opinions are those of the individual to whom they are attributed.

Google News and Yahoo News are the biggest automated news aggregators online. Millions of news junkies across the world read these news sources on a daily basis. If you want major exposure and publicity for your blogs, Google and Yahoo are where you want to be.

You will drive HUGE traffic to your blog plus you gain instant popularity from readers across the world! This is another great way to showcase your expertise and credibility to mass audiences.

Before you can submit your blog URLs, make sure to sign up for both a Google and Yahoo account (sign-ups are free!)

How Google News Works
Google “crawls” news sites and gathers articles. Headlines are crawled based on algorithms/certain factors: how often and the particular site where the story appears.

Google taps into more than 4,500 English-language news sources worldwide. There are NO human editors associated with selecting articles. They solely rely on online news outlets and online publishers to determine which stories have the most prominence/relevance. Google News consists of top stories and eight sections: World, Nation, Business, Sci/Tech, Sports, Entertainment, Health and Most Popular.

? Currently, Google News does NOT accept single articles or RSS/Atom feeds.

? Submit blog URL – You have to answer a few questions first before you submit your URL. Google reviews your blog to determine if it’s suitable for inclusion. They will notify you if your blog is accepted or if they need additional information. They cannot guarantee that your site will be added to Google News

? Google News Help Topics provides further information and tips for publishers.

How Yahoo News Works
Yahoo also gets millions of visitors to Yahoo News each day. Yahoo News works similar to Google News. There aren’t human editors picking out top stories. Main stories (that you find on Yahoo News front page) are generated by content partners. Internal search stories are found via the Yahoo News indexing.

? Fill out the Yahoo News source form. Yahoo asks you to fill out some preliminary questions. You also need to be able to “pitch” your blog. Yahoo asks you why you recommend your blog so make it sound good!

? Yahoo News will determine if your blog is suitable for inclusion – they will contact you if your blog is accepted.

How to Get Your Blog Accepted

The competition is stiff when applying to Google News and Yahoo News, and many blogs are rejected. However, there are some publishing tips to keep in mind when creating/writing your blogs.

? Original content – Unique content wins every time! Remember to make your content SEO-friendly and add relevant keywords. Don’t duplicate content on your blogs!

? More than one blogger/author – Content from one writer alone won’t do the trick – include guest bloggers/writers or ask another blogger to join you!

? Response time – Server response time (Bots look for pages they can index quickly and that load quickly for readers)

If Google News accepts your blog, Google suggests adding sitemaps to your blog. Sign up for Google Webmaster Tools and add sitemaps via the tools section. This is the easiest way to promote web traffic and for spiders to efficiently crawl your blog.