Q-bits

In a classic case of one-upmanship, like in I’ll do you one better, Yahoo just released its own web analytics application to rival that of Google. As a long-time (and satisfied) user of Google Analytics and web analytics in general – this site is running on one – what is instantly attractive in Yahoo’s offering is the promise of almost real time turn around, and access to raw data. Google normally needs 8-12 hours hours to display your current statistics.

Yahoo Analytics is based on IndexTools, which Yahoo recently acquired and now has quickly put to good use.

Mozilla want to set a world record of sorts on June 17 by encouraging a record number of downloads of the latest version of Firefox. It is hosting a worldwide Download Day to mark the official release of Firefox 3. The number of total unique downloads will be tabulated and submitted to the Guinness World Records organization for evaluation and potential inclusion in the Guinness World Records. There is no existing record for most software downloaded in 24 hours, so Mozilla has a good chance of being the first to appear in Guinness.

Mozilla is encouraging users and enthusiasts to participate by downloading Firefox 3 on the day of its release. Those who have nothing better to do tomorrow or wanting to take a break from saving the world or feeding the hungry can to show their support by signing up and pledging to download at the Spread Firefox web site.

The latest high-profile casualty in the continuing struggle between an individual’s freedom to write and big business right to “fire your ass” for writing outside the workplace is TV producer Chez Pazienza from Atlanta, Georgia.

But in a weird twist to the story, the firing was done by no less than CNN, champion for free speech and ground-breaking TV journalism. Or are they really? Pazienza, a producer of a CNN morning show, claims he was fired summarily probably not because he was writing but because of what he was writing about.

So now that he’s out of a day job, what’s a die-in-the-wool blogger got to do. Blog about, it of course. Which is whet he did just right here.