Microsoft is planning for the next Windows Live update to offer a social networking features to its various applications such as Hotmail and Messenger.

This move will help Microsoft against competitors such as Facebook and MySpace. The company has hundreds of millions of users of its popular applications but is behind when it comes to social networking sites.

The new version of Live will combine contact lists from Messenger, Hotmail and the blog network Spaces. Users will be able to set up a ‘network’ of people from that list and then allow the information exchange  of their online activity.

For example, within the Windows Live home page, users can have their Twitter messages show up, as well as Flickr photos, Yelp reviews and Wordpress blog entries. When users add new information, such as a photo, this information will be shared with their network of friends, who can then leave a comment. People can also invite friends to join online groups.

Okay, some people will like this. To me, however, it sounds like volunteering to be stalked, and not just Facebook stalked.

Garmin has aligned itself with the location-specialists in the app world – ULocate, integrating Where.com’s software with Buddy Beacon to be compatible with some of Garmin’s products. If you’re not familiar with this software, it shares your current location with those you have dubbed as friends, and viceversa. Of course, this can be integrated with the Facebook app, as well.

What makes Where’s Buddy Beacon software unique, is its ability to operate over multiple networks, allowing users to enjoy the service with friends, whether they use the same carrier or not.

The models that Garmin intends to have supported with Buddy Beacon, as well as the launch time, have not yet been released.

It will be interesting to see if there is a real demand for this, as location-based networking, both online and device based, have somewhat flopped in the past. Personally, I think I’d feel just a little bit too much like dog embedded with a microchip, and doubt many people are comfortable with anyone apart from immediate family having access to their whereabouts at all times. However, as always, the market will decide the success or demise of this one.

The title of this post was originally going to be “Delicious: A Review from a Late Adopter.” But that was four months ago and only a few days after I started using social bookmarking site Delicious. At the time, I found it useful even if lacking in a few areas.

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It’s no secret that I’m a fan of Amazon MP3, but that doesn’t mean it’s perfect. And I’m glad the Amazon MP3 team doesn’t think so either. Here’s a copy of an email I received from them asking me to fill out a survey. Check out some of the more interesting questions asked followed by commentary (after text of the email below):

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TechCrunch made the announcement today that all of its blogs will have the option for you to leave video comments via a service called Seesmic. It’s a powerful idea with a dead simple execution. As a result, comments are now a mix of text and video. Take a look.

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Every once in a while, I receive an email from a friend which doesn’t have a personal message but a link with inspiring thoughts and beautiful pictures intent on uplifting my day. Even though my friend does not share a word in the email, I still appreciate the fact that they thought of me.

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TechConsumer has had its fair share of Digg coverage lately. But for those of us who remember what Digg was back in the glory days, we can’t help but draw attention to its flaws in the here and now.

First, we had our April 1st interview with Digg’s founders discussing priorities and progress and how Digg is just a game. Second, we discussed the Digg paradox and how getting rid of the editor/gatekeeper just creates new gatekeepers.

But today’s topic, for me at least, feels like the most interesting twist on the story of where Digg started as compared to what Digg has become:

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When I first heard about Digg I was quite excited. Digg is a site where you can submit articles, pictures, or other content that you think is interesting. If other people like the story they can “digg it,” and it pushes the story to the top. The content on the front page only contains articles with a lot of diggs.

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When you do things in a crowd with no organization, no plan, and no clear leaders, chaos is usually the end result. And then sometimes the opposite occurs.

A few weeks ago there was a post on digg about being rickrolled. If you are not familiar with what a rickroll is, you can read about this most interesting phenomenon here. Haha! No you can’t. That was actually an example of being rickrolled. You can really read about it here.

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Bite me, Blockbuster Online. Oh, and you too, Facebook.

About three years ago, I signed up for Netflix, Walmart DVD Online, and Blockbuster Online. I wanted to see which interface was better, and who was quicker about sending me DVDs in the mail. Netflix won, hands down.

Blockbuster has recently come out with an interesting idea, however, where you can rent online, as well as in the store. They have been pestering me to “come back” for years, and yesterday they sent me a free month. So I thought, what the heck. I’ll sign up, rent a few, and then cancel after 29 days.

I canceled after one. Here’s why:

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