lijit - Search Based On Your Content
August 22, 2008
lijit is a new search application designed for publishers, which, with the advent of applications like Twitter, blogs, Facebook, etc… we all are to some degree.
lijit enables you to add a search widget (er.. wijit) to your site or blog and return results based on your network of content. For example, if someone searched this site through the lijit search (very top right) for “Community Crush” (shameless plug I know, you might experiment with “Wordcamp” too and get a lot back) you would get results from all of my content sources (Facebook, twitter, this blog, Linkedin, stories I’ve dug, …). In another tab, you can see search results from my “network” or sites that I follow and/or trust. Of course you can get plain ol’ web results too or you can get results that are specific only to this site.
The idea is that it aggregates all of my content and trusted sources so you can find it in one place while still differentiating between my content (in the case of me) or content from my network.
It’s a clever idea and one which should do well. I’m going to continue testing it for a while but if all goes well I’ll remove the default search for this site and use only the lijit wijit.
I learned about lijit at WordCamp 2008 while talking to Aaron Brazel who is now working with lijit.
lijit has also secured $7.1M in Series C funding so they should be araound and doing well for sometime. I’m looking forward to seeing how this grows and evolves.
If you’re a WordPress user they also have a lijit search plugin with integrated statistics to replace the default WordPress search. I’ll be pluggin that in shortly. Note: ***This plug-in is only available for those WordPress users with versions 2.3-2.6.***
Do some lijit searches and let me know how it works for you.
Updates From WordCamp 2008
August 17, 2008
I’m in San Francisco with one of my business partners Martin for WordCamp 2008 (see my BlackBox WordCamp post for an overview). For anyone who is a WordPress user or developer here are some highlights and links from the event. All of the links open in a new window.
SEO Tip: Use Multiple RSS Feeds (for each category)
Plugins:
SEO Title Tag
WP-Sticky or Adhesive
Progressive License
Operator : Firefox Add On
Link Love from WC 2008:
redmonk.com - open source analyst firm
http://redmonk.com/sogrady/ - stephen o’grady
revolutiontheme.com : Premium WordPress themes from Brian Gardner
http://markjaquith.com/ : code animal
http://getsatisfaction.com/ : syndicate your profile
technosailor.com : Aaron Brazell
ma.tt : Matt Mullenweg, founder of WordPress
SEO Rapper : Charles Lewis
Do the Page Rank: From the SEO Rapper
Quotes:
“Find the intersection of commercial and open-source interests.” - Stephen O’Grady
“I just bought one of your themes. But what is WordPress? ” - Brian Gardner on a support e-mail he received.
“WordPress.org now drives 2,604,288 blogs and is increasing by thousands a day.” - Matt Mullenweg
FYI:
Version 2.5.1 and higher is secure. If you are on a lower version, UPGRADE!
Other good coverage from WordCamp 2008:
Sneak Peek at “Crazy Horse” The next generation of WordPress
TechQuest from the Metroplex Technology Business Council
April 30, 2008
I’ve been looking forward to reporting to you on the Metroplex Technology Business Council, a new program for large tech companies in the DFW area and small businesses & entrepreneurs that has just gone live.
The program is called TechQuest, and it’s a way to match up entrepreneurs, small-med businesses, grad students & professors, and just about anyone who has a good tech idea with large companies who are looking for solutions. The first partner company is Texas Instruments, and they have listed dozens of technology areas on the MTBC website that they are interested in and would like to receive solution ideas from individuals and companies (solar, nanotechnology, wireless, home automation, many many more). MTBC volunteers will screen the applications, help the presenter to clarify their “pitch”, and schedule a meeting with the appropriate person at the larger company, in this case, TI. The possible outcomes of this matching could be supplier-vendor, licensing, creating a new start-up company, or all sorts of partnership opportunities. This is a very unique program to get people in front of high-level company executives that they might not otherwise have the chance to meet.
The process as simple and fast as possible: just read the sought-after tech areas, and send in an email application answering 2 basic questions.
If successful, it isn’t hard to imagine this model being replicated elsewhere. As corporations, particularly in tech, continue to seek creative and innovative ideas it was only a matter of time before they formally started to reach beyond their walls. If you are an entrepreneur or “idea person” who can also take their idea to at least a prototype phase or detailed explanation, this could be a tremendous opportunity.
For more information visit their website at http://www.metroplextbc.org/.
For more news on the MTBC see the Dallas Business Journal article here.
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