April 2007 Archives

I decided to test Zypsy ("We search the web for you when you are away from the computer") and have them search the web for 2006 election results. I asked them, "In the 2006 election, what percentage of the vote did Democrat Ted Kulongoski receive in the election for Governor of Oregon?"

An hour passed.

Then my phone buzzed. The text message read: "698,562; 50.8%. In future, please use our service for shopping questions. thanks."

I'm not sure I can find a way to pose every question as shopping-related. Is there an alternative? Who else will search the web for me when I am away from the computer?

There are bunch of new things you can do with your phone and your voice.

• Send an email or text message.
• Do research.
• Get free 411.

Jott: You call 877-568-8486 and leave a message. It is transcribed and sent to the person of your choice. I think the transcription happens in India. Sometimes the transcriptions are a little shaky. It's a good idea to speak slowly and clearly, and spell names. To get started, go the site, create an account, and upload contact info for the people you might want to Jott. After that, it's all from your phone. Free.

Zypsy: You call 650-669-2229, and leave a voice mail, asking a question. Zypsy's wordy but descriptive tag line is, "We search the web for you when you are away from the computer." So, ask them the kind of question that can be answered on the web. Five or ten minutes later, you receive a text message with their response. No setup required. Free.

1-800-GOOG-411: You call and say what business or type of business you're searching for. Google searches for your answer, and will directly connect you for free, or text you the info. No setup required. Free.

I feel like I've only barely scratched the surface in using these. Especially Zypsy. It has the potential to be useful in such a huge range of situations. Anyone got good ideas of how to put these to use?