Just found a pretty awesome little post over at ReadWriteWeb.com all about JotYou and the amazing little WHERE Widget that basically lets you wait to get an SMS message until you’re physically at our around a specific location.  How is this useful?  Simple really…say you are all out of milk and don’t want to forget to pick it up on the way home from work; using JotYou enables you to get an automatic text message when you are beginning to drive by the Grocery store, no more forgetting.

Head over and check out the pretty awesome article all about JotYou and get your fill of it’s life-simplifying goodness.  After you’re done, log back into your WHERE account and add JotYou to your list of WHERE Widgets.  Trust me, you won’t regret it.

I do not know exactly how to fully describe how insanely COOL I think it is when I see a map of the planet that actually Looks like it’s from space. Toss on top of that real-time night/day displays where you can actually see where it’s dark, see where it’s light. Yeah, rad. Now, add on top of that, real-time updating of people using WHERE and loving it, yeah, I’m hooked.

I don’t know why it’s so addictive, but whereVision is just that, addictive. I can’t stop watching people from all over ping the service and see what they are using, why they are using it, and just where they find themselves on this planet. Head over to WHERE.com and click up at the top where it says “whereVision” and witness the radness that is our planet, and those living on it.

Here’s a little screenshot to show you what you’re in store for, I don’t know why but I friggin’ dig it.

Official Press Release time again this fine Wednesday afternoon! Check out how cool it is that uLocate and WHERE have helped Buddy Beacon’s functionality be completely extended and now rocks about 100% more than it used to, which is HARD to do.

Pretty awesome friends, pretty awesome indeed. Scroll down for the Press Release Love:

uLocate Communications Enhances and Extends Buddy Beacon™ Functionality

Revolutionary friend finding service offers cross-carrier interoperability on five mobile carriers, as well as applications on iPhone and Facebook

Boston, MA - February 13, 2008– Today, with the release of a new version of Buddy Beacon™, uLocate Communications introduced the world’s most advanced location enabled mobile friend finding service. With Buddy Beacon, users can choose when to share their location, and what they are up to, with their friends. Buddy Beacon is the first location enabled friend finding application that is interoperable between multiple carriers.

In addition to cross-carrier interoperability, the Buddy Beacon platform allows users to update their location and status on leading online social networking sites, including Facebook. As a compliment to this feature, uLocate has also unveiled a Buddy Beacon application on Facebook. This functionality extends the Buddy Beacon user experience beyond mobile devices.

“Historically, consumers who use mobile friend finding applications have been limited to interacting only with other users who share their same carrier,” said Scott Ellison, VP of Mobile and Wireless Communications at IDC. “With Buddy Beacon, uLocate has removed this limitation by providing a friend finding product that transcends the single carrier barrier. Additionally, the introduction of cross-platform functionality with online services, such as Facebook, provides the potential for viral adoption of the application. uLocate has clearly emerged as a leader in the mobile friend finding space.”

“Helio has always been committed to providing our members with innovative ways to communicate with their trusted circle of friends,” said Greg Hayes, Head of Convergence at Helio. “The new Buddy Beacon experience provides better context for location sharing, enhances ease of use and creates new occasions to publish location as a social networking activity. We know that our members will benefit from the enhanced capabilities that we have developed in conjunction with uLocate.”

“Consumer adoption of Buddy Beacon has been remarkable. We are delighted to now offer the service across numerous carriers and the iPhone, as well as extend the service functionality to the web,” said Walt Doyle, CEO of uLocate Communications. “Buddy Beacon is a revolutionary application that offers a new way to interact with your friends and keep them updated on where you are and what you are up to. We plan to continually advance the functionality and availability of the service in the months ahead.”

For more information, or to get Buddy Beacon on your phone, please visit www.where.com/buddybeacon.

About uLocate Communications Inc.

uLocate Communications is the market leading developer of location based applications. In addition to developing location based applications for strategic partners, uLocate markets and operates WHERE™ and Buddy Beacon™. WHERE is the leading location based application platform that offers consumers access to a library of over 60 location based widgets on multiple operators in North America. Buddy Beacon is the world’s largest mobile friend finding solution that lets consumers leverage the power of location based technology to connect with their friends. For more information, please visit: www.ulocate.com.

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Contact:

Dan Gilmartin

VP Marketing

uLocate Communications, Inc.

dgilmartin@ulocate.com

617-502-3100

Happy Monday friends! Great news comin’ down the pipe this fine February Monday, looks like WHERE’s parent company uLocate just made an absolutely awesome acquisition! I’ll let the official press release do most of the heavy lifting talking, but bottom line is, this acquisition should be unreal, and lead to many more exciting and innovative advances!

Here, for your viewing pleasure, is the official press release from uLocate, check it out, then head back over to WHERE.com and play around with all your amazing WHERE Widgets!

Team and technology to enhance and extend the reach of uLocate products

Boston, MA - February 7, 2008 — Today, uLocate Communications announced that they have acquired Zync, a Boston based start-up that develops predictive web-based technologies that provide users with recommendations for local events and activities based on the preferences of like-minded individuals. Combined with uLocate’s award winning location based mobile products, these technologies will accelerate the delivery of next generation mobile and web applications. The Zync team will play an integral part in this convergence by joining uLocate’s existing team of mobile and location based service experts.

“We have reached a major inflection point in the evolution of networking,” said Brad Rosen, co-founder and CEO of Zync. “The worlds of mobile and the Internet are finally colliding, enabling a new breed of compelling applications and user experiences. With WHERETM and Buddy BeaconTM, the uLocate team has demonstrated market leadership with products that will impact the way people use location based technology to enhance their everyday lives. This acquisition offers the Zync team an opportunity to work with a world-class company at a critical time in the market. We couldn’t be more excited.”

Rosen joins uLocate as Vice President of Products. In this role, he will leverage his 15 years of experience in product development, and his successful track record of growing early-stage companies, to guide product strategy and drive consumer usage for uLocate’s products.

“Since launching in April 2007, our product WHERE has brought over 50 location based applications to market and launched on six North American carriers,” said Walt Doyle, CEO of uLocate Communications. “We are now ready to begin the next chapter for our product development strategy. Zync’s web based technology, and their team of experienced individuals, will allow us augment our mobile accomplishments by creating a new type of location based consumer experience.”

About uLocate Communications Inc.
uLocate Communications is the market leading developer of location based applications. In addition to developing location based applications for strategic partners, uLocate markets and operates their own services, WHERE™ and Buddy Beacon™. WHERE is the leading location based application platform that offers consumers access to a library of over 50 location based widgets on multiple operators in North American. Buddy Beacon is the world’s largest mobile friend finding solution that lets consumers leverage the power of location based technology to connect with their friends. For more information, please visit: www.ulocate.com.

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Contact:
Dan Gilmartin: 617 502 3100
uLocate Communications, Inc.
dgilmartin@ulocate.com

Thinking of buying a GPS unit, GPS enabled phone, or some other kind of snazzy new GPS device this year?  If you’re like, oh, the whole rest of the world, that answer might be a very big Yes and with Tax Return Time just around the corner, who knows, you might have some extra cash to drop on some fun new tech.

So, with all the new product, all the new tech, all the snazzy fancy gadgets, where do you turn and what do you look for?  Glad you asked, I just found a pretty sweet and short article with 4 tips on what exactly to look for and questions to ask yourself when you find yourself in the market.  Head over and check out the article, but here are their 4 tips:

• “Do you want a handheld device or one designed primarily for use in a vehicle? Some vehicle units are portable, but not as convenient as handhelds.
• Do you want an add-on unit for your car, or the more expensive factory-installed unit that utilizes the vehicle’s dashboard controls?
• Instead of a separate device, would you rather have a cell phone that offers GPS service for about $10 a month extra?
• If you want to buy an add-on GPS unit for your car, consider how easy it will be to hide it from potential thieves when you leave your vehicle unattended. “

Great tips!  My advice is simple, get a phone that you can slap WHERE on and really make the most out of your snazzy new GPS phone.  With all our widgets, there’s really no going wrong!

Every so often I read some little bit of news that just absolutely makes my day.  Now, the fact that the whole wide world is getting a whole lot more technologically advanced doesn’t make a lot of people happy, but one thing that is not debatable about the shift…it’s bringing everyone a lot closer and distance a lot more meaningless.

That said, I just found some news that mobile internet service in Africa is gearing up to see a gigantic boost.  That’s right, coverage and availability in Africa will drastically rise, allowing cell and mobile internet connections in places that previously were dead space.  While this is good news for a lot of people, the price points still put the service very much out of reach for many African citizens.  According to the article:

“Analysis from growth consulting company Frost and Sullivan predicts that Africa’s demand for mobile Internet access will increase between 40% and 50% between 2006 and 2009. It is thought that this expansion is due to the continent’s lack of sufficient fixed line structure and the reduced cost of handset and mobile internet service prices.”

Whatever the case may be, this is just one of many signs that the world is advancing towards realities we never thought of.  Before you know it, there will not be a single place on the planet where you can not make a phone call, shop online, or visit WHERE.com.  Insane.

Sometimes, an official press release can say it a heck of a lot better than I could…well, at least a lot more straightforward and without the sass. Nevertheless, this one is rad, and worth all your attention so lend me your ears, eyes and brains and check this out:

Popular friend finding service to be run by leading publisher of mobile location based applications

Boston, MA - January 10, 2007– Today, uLocate Communications Inc. announced their acquisition of the Buddy Beacon™ name from Helio LLC. Introduced by Helio in partnership with uLocate in 2006, Buddy Beacon leverages location based technology to allow users to share their location from their mobile device so they can more easily connect with their friends. As part of the agreement, uLocate will continue to work with Helio to operate and innovate on top of the Buddy Beacon service currently available to its members. This acquisition solidifies uLocate’s position as the leading publisher of mobile location based services.”Helio turned to uLocate to develop the technology behind Buddy Beacon,” said Walt Doyle, CEO of uLocate Communications. “The rapid adoption of Buddy Beacon by Helio’s members has demonstrated that consumers are ready to use GPS technology as a method of connecting with their friends. When integrated with WHERE™, our leading location based application platform, we are confident that the Buddy Beacon user experience will be unparalleled by any other mobile friend finding application in the market.”"uLocate has been a great partner to work with as we developed the Buddy Beacon concept into a leading location sharing service,” said Greg Hayes, Head of Convergence for Helio. “We look forward to continuing to work with uLocate to build on Buddy Beacon, further leveraging their location based services expertise.”

“Mobile Location Based Services, and GPS applications, are at the forefront of the industry’s mind,” said Brent Iadarola, Global Research Director for Mobile and Wireless at Frost and Sullivan. “When you combine their acquisition of the Buddy Beacon name with the additional technology and distribution power of their product WHERE, the world’s leading location based mobile application platform, it is clear that uLocate is a key company to watch in this exciting space.”

For more information on uLocate Communications, Inc. and Buddy Beacon, please visit www.ulocate.com.

About uLocate Communications Inc.
uLocate Communications is the leading publisher of mobile location enabled applications. In addition to developing mobile LBS applications for strategic partners, uLocate operates WHERE, the world’s leading mobile LBS application platform which is currently available to subscribers on numerous wireless operators.

About Helio
Helio is a joint venture between SK Telecom, one of the world’s most advanced wireless carriers, and Earthlink, the next generation internet service provider. With advanced mobile services, exclusive, high-end, beautiful devices and smart pricing on a nationwide high-speed 3G network, Helio is built for consumers who have mobile at the center of their lives. www.helio.com

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Contact:
Dan Gilmartin: 617 502 3100
uLocate Communications, Inc.
dgilmartin@ulocate.com

This week’s WHERE Widget of the Week is actually going out to two people I’ve never met, but feel like I know pretty darn well because of their weekly podcast Diggnation. That’s right, this week’s widget goes out to you Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht, seeing as though your month of calling off beer is almost at an end.

There you have it, this week’s WHERE Widget of the Week is none other than Brewery Finder. What does this have to do with Diggnation you might ask? Simple. If you have watched you’ll know, if not, I’ll fill you in…each week along with their video podcast, the boys test out a different beer while they read over the weekly top stories from Digg.com. They decided to take the entire month of January sober, and seeing as though it’s over this week, I thought they might need help finding their nearest brewery. Ok, realistically they probably won’t need help at all, but nevertheless, this one is for you guys.

The widget, according to our site, basically has this description: “Because it’s always 5 o’clock somewhere, use Brewery Finder to find the closest brewery to quench your thirst.”Log into your account, drag Brewery Finder onto your phone and who knows, if you’re in the San Fran area, you might just run into the guys!

While this is not exactly about GPS, Widgets, or heck, even WHERE for that matter, this is about the mobile industry and it is just a sign of the times absolutely changing…for the mobile warriors out there, for the better.

This “sign” is the simple fact that for all you DirecTV customers out there, you can now program, and schedule recordings on your DVR back at home using nothing more than your phone.  Yeah, you heard me right, you can program recordings from a mobile website that your cell phone can access and not have to worry about missing all your precious shows.

Straight from the DirecTV website, here’s what they have to say:

“RECORD SHOWS ANYTIME, ANYWHERE
Tied up at work? Stuck in traffic? Got some downtime while traveling? With DIRECTV’s DVR SCHEDULER you no longer need to be at home to program your DIRECTV Plus® DVR. This free and easy-to-use feature will let you schedule recordings from any computer or mobile phone anytime, anywhere, so your shows are ready to watch whenever you are.”

So now I’m at an impasse…do I celebrate the changing of the times to allow for this advance, or do I weep openly that Television is now so dramatically accessible?  I know not.

This little gem of news should come as no surprise, but November 2008 is rapidly approaching, and that means ELECTION Time is too.  I don’t know what you believe, I don’t know which way you vote, and to be frank, I don’t really care because that’s your business.  What I DO care about, is no matter which way you vote, you stay informed, and make an intelligent decision based on all you learn.

Lucky for you, me, your mail man and all the rest of us, WHERE Is going to help out!  That’s right, this weeks WHERE Widget of the Week is Eventful Politics.  What it does, according to our site, is simple: “November 2008 is fast approaching. Eventful Politics keeps you informed of political events in your area. “

So, whether you’re a Republican, Democrat, Independent, Demopublican or Republicrat, I don’t care…get informed, get to the local election events in YOUR area, and cast your vote.  We must be the change we wish to see in the world, right Gandhi?