That possibility’s got the blogosphere all "a-twitter," pardon the pun. Earlier this week, Google activated its Twitter account and all Tweets broke loose. As of Friday morning, Google had more than 26,000 followers. Google is using Twitter!

The speculation is that, in a move similar to its purchase of YouTube, Google is interested in buying Twitter. Now, Google didn’t buy YouTube for its video capability-or at least not primarily. Google acquired YouTube in large part for its search tools. And it has paid off. Last summer, ComScore reported that YouTube’s search traffic for August surpassed Yahoo’s, which dropped some 5 percent in traffic from July.

Twitter, too, has enormous search potential-just take into account its roughly 3 million visitors a month. All those eyeballs make a huge potential customer base. And that’s something that Twitter hasn’t been able to capitalize on: The site has not (yet) turned its popularity into profits.

Twitter has become a phenomenon in recent months, with users responding to a simple question: "What are you doing?" That’s not too far afield from the Facebook prompt: "Username is " Coincidentally, Facebook recently offered $500 million for Twitter, an offer that was rejected.

Twitter users log into the free service from their computers or cell phones to share thoughts, or "tweets." Subjects can be personal or businesslike. Corporations increasingly are using the service as a way to keep in touch with their customer base. Considered a "microblogging" site, it shares many social networking attributes and users can follow what other people tweet about in their network posts.

Recent reports said Twitter founders are looking at taking an "initial stab at making money" by April. By then we’ll know whether that plan includes Google. Stay a-Twitter.

Source: Channel Web

Sony’s big news announcement at CES involves a very tiny package. But don’t call it a netbook. Sony spokesfolk were adamant that–even though the newcomer packs an Intel Atom processor and 2GB of RAM–this superslim P-series computer is a lifestyle machine. The distinction sort of makes sense, too: At the $899 starting price that Sony expects the unit to command when it ships in February, it had better do more than be small.

Small it’s got down: Weighing 1.4 pounds and measuring about 1 inch thick, the pint-size PC can slide snuggly into a coat pocket or purse. But inside the P series are such impressive components as a 60GB hard-disk drive (you can invest in a 64GB or 128GB solid-state drive if you prefer), a battery that promises 4 hours battery life (8 hours with the optional battery upgrade), 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Qualcomm’s Gobi chip set for wireless broadband. That’s on top of what you’ll find inside any computer that sports an Atom processor: two USB ports, a headphone jack, a display/LAN adapter connection, a Webcam with built-in mic, an SD Card slot, and a Memory Stick card slot. Technically, I think that outdoes the MacBook Air. And all of this goodness sits inside a slim, screwless case that will be available in several colors.

On the same day that the 150-year-old Rocky Mountain News announced that it was shutting down effective Friday for lack of revenue, Google News confirmed its plan to sell AdWords placement on its Google News searches.

The ads, which officially debuted Thursday, work as AdWords usually do, serving up pages related to the search terms (rather than news results from specific publications). Josh Cohen, a business product manager for Google, described the results as "similar to what you see on regular Google searches or Google Book Search."

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Thinking about starting a business? Make sure you’re cut out for it first.

In this bleak economy, lots of people are contemplating striking out on their own — whether they’re frustrated job seekers or people who are already employed but getting antsy about their company’s prospects.

For some people, entrepreneurship is the best option around, a way to build wealth and do something you love without answering to somebody else. But it’s also a huge financial gamble — and some people, unfortunately, will discover too late that it’s not the right fit for them.

Building a successful business can take years filled with setbacks, long hours and little reward. Certain personalities thrive on the challenge and embrace the sacrifices. But it can be a hard switch for someone who has spent years sitting in a cubicle with a steady paycheck.

So, how can you figure out whether you’re suited for self-employment? We spoke with entrepreneurship researchers, academics and psychologists to come up with a list of questions you should ask yourself before making a big leap. Entrepreneurs, of course, come from all sorts of backgrounds, with all sorts of personalities. But our experts agreed that certain attributes improve the odds people will be successful and happy about their decision.

Keep in mind that any self-analysis is only as useful as the truthfulness of the answers — and most people aren’t exactly the best judges of their own character. So, you might enlist a friend’s help.

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