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Looking back on Demo 09: Hope springs eternal

Last week's Demo 09 conference in Palm Desert, Calif., reminded me of my high-school reunions. The people were familiar but the energy level wasn't quite what it used to be. And like those reunions, there were lots of people who didn't show up.

Demo, which has been around since 1991, is a place for companies large and small--but mostly small--to announce new products. While some products this year were from established companies like Qualcomm and Symantec, most came from start-ups or very small companies that have been laboring in obscurity.

They come to Demo hoping to be … Read more

Lessons from Demo on surviving recession

PALM DESERT, Calif.--How does one measure the effects of economic meltdown?

At Demo 09 here, there are two ways, one that's obvious, yet hard to see, and another that is both obvious and visceral.

While Demo for years has featured about 65 to 70 companies, this time around there's just 39. Everybody knows that, but it's hard to actually see it. The main ballroom where Demo presentations are held is packed, with every seat at every table full. But that's an illusion: the wall at the back of the room has been pulled in dramatically … Read more

Podcast: MySpace promotes OpenID

At a Tuesday afternoon panel at the Demo conference, representatives of MySpace, Google, Facebook, and Plaxo explained how they are working to create a more open environment so that people can take their identity with them as they migrate from one social-networking site to another.

While we're not yet about to see Facebook let people log on to its site with their MySpace ID, or vice versa, we are starting to see more cooperation among sites. MySpace ID product lead Max Engel speaks with Larry Magid about MySpace's efforts, including collaboration with AOL.

Demo panel previews new power monitoring initiatives

PALM DESERT, Calif.--At Demo 09, new conference honcho Matt Marshall led a panel where three companies showcased their new technologies to save power, and with it, they hope, the planet.

Google's Thomas Sly started by comparing buying power to what it would be like if you bought groceries without an itemized receipt--just one bill when you left the store. Google's goal is to collect and help distribute the data on power use, which, Sly says, will encourage people to consume less.

Google is currently in a test with about 100 devices that track power use, and that … Read more

Podcast: Foxmarks changes name, adds services

Larry Magid of CNET and CBS News talks with James Joaquin, CEO of what was Foxmarks and is now Xmarks. The company is best known for the Firefox extension that backs up and synchronizes bookmarks. That product now also works on Internet Explorer and Apple Safari allowing users to synchronize between browsers and computers. The company also offers a free bookmark backup service as well as web access to bookmarks, site suggestions and ability to share bookmarks.

The best and worst of Demo 09

PALM DESERT, Calif.--The Demo conference was small this year. Only 39 companies presented, down from the usual 60+ at this show. The audience was smaller, too. But there were some good companies here, and some solid business models. Senior writer Daniel Terdiman and I came up with our seven picks from this conference.

Always Innovating's Touch Book (story): Yes, it's just another Netbook. But the removable keyboard and touch-screen interface make it an attractive product, and its ARM CPU and custom Linux build earn it geek points. Might be a little too expensive to be an impulse … Read more

Jadoos offers a single sign-on widget

PALM DESERT, Calif.--We've all heard of the promise of single sign-on, but to date, the concept has yet to make serious inroads. It's still mainly a concept with potential.

But the idea makes sense: giving users a way to log in to all the sites they use without having to have a different set of IDs and passwords for each. Since many Web users are busy and easily distracted by everything going on in our lives, only having to remember a single ID and password would be immensely valuable.

At Demo 09 here Tuesday, a Sunnyvale, Calif., … Read more

Podcast: Innovative netbook with removable touch-screen

CNET and CBS News tech analyst Larry Magid speaks with Always Innovating's Maria Victoria about the company's Touch Book touch-screen netbook. One unique feature is the ability to remove the screen and take it with you to use as a touch-pad or leave it in place to use as a netbook. The company has adapted a version of Linux to provide an iPhone CoverFlow-like interface for launching programs.

The company claims it will get up to 15 hours of battery life.

At Demo, it's all about content discovery

PALM DESERT, Calif.--Six of the fifteen companies pitching at day two of the Demo 09 conference are focused on discovering content for consumers.

Ensembli gathers up info from around the Web based on what you tell it your interests are. It looks very, very easy to understand and use. It learns from your behavior what kind of stories and what sources you like, and refines what it presents to you as you use it more. It's one of the few new Web services I would recommend to my mother. See review.

Evri also helps readers find and track … Read more