A professor of mine started up a new concept of Venture Capital. “Community Powered Capital” he described it as, and he named it VenCorps.

It’s a neat idea and I see a ton of potential in it. Why? Because if executed in the way I imagined it’d be something I’d get addicted to. Of course that’s not the case… but I’m [this] type of person… so instead of moan and move on, I somehow feel compelled to figure out how to make it better.

One week later, I present the following report to my prof, in hopes to improve it. He was flattered and sent the report to some employee’s at the company. I got an email back saying thanks and that the ideas are being put in consideration and many of them are planned. I figured I might as well let you folks see it.

*I hope he’s not pissed I put this up here*

I don’t have statistics for you, but what I do have is a few personal experiences. In some cases these are viewed as viable sources (eye witnesses) so you have to trust me on this one.

While I don’t have a PHD in the web, I do have a lifetime of knowledge on it. And that is a fact, at least to me. I don’t remember a time before computers, and I don’t really remember a time before usable internet. I hopped on the train early too, I mean, I can take claim to being the first generation of hopelessly annoying script kiddies. I started making websites back when no one was really complaining about IE, and if they were it was because they were Netscape users (not that I wasn’t).

The point of this is, that I’ve used the web for a while… and during that “while”, I’ve surfed. Yup. I did it, not the outdoor kind either. I’ve surfed the inter-webs since… well since we got it.

Since… Hmm… maybe “since” is the wrong word. Maybe I’m looking for “til”. Yeah, I think that makes more sense.

I’ve surfed the web til Google Chrome came along.

Since then I’ve stopped. Until then I could wander through the web forever. I would float from tangent to tangent. Since then I can’t.

It’s scary in so many ways and here is how Chrome did it.

Browsers are like your windows to the web…

… and because people are ever so resistant to change … each browser has a monopoly over web viewing for each viewer.

For example:

IE users don’t see many of the amazing things that developers have made because IE sucks

FIREFOX users don’t see all the content that can only be displayed in stupid IE (same goes for every other browser)

CHROME users DON’T SEE THE WEB

BAM! Bold that. Underline that. Draw a star beside it if you want to pass the exam. I’ll even repeat it. Google Chrome users don’t see the web. For the people who don’t understand I’ll reword it.

If you use Chrome, you probably are looking at 70% less web than your pre-Chrome days.

Think about it. No really, think. It’s the new tab page. The greatest feature for new users. Oh man! What a time saver! BAM BAM BAM, seen all my favourites… now let’s see the rest.

Well what happens? Eventually you get stuck on those 8 (used to be nine sites) and you only use the others when specifically needed. Think, really… think. Or maybe you noticed it already. It’s scary right?

Here were the sites I used to check (pre-chrome):

Gmail, Facebook, Digg.com, this blog (ego i know haha), Twitter, Youtube, Wikipedia, Smashing Magazine, amazon, flickr, as well as many many other social networking sites or tutorial sites.

Go ahead ask me… What about post chrome?

Here were the sites I now check (post-chrome):

Facebook, Gmail, 3 of my personal sites, my University site, Google analytics, and twitter.

… and ontop of that… two of those sites are both google sites.

Although great, fast, and simple. Chrome has re-created bordom.

I find myself more than often being bored in front of the most powerful information system known. This never happened on Firefox. This never happened on IE.

Even though I know I’m not surfing around anymore, I don’t know how to start again. I only go to youtube when linked, or Wikipedia when curious about a specific subject. I honestly don’t know how to surf.

Maybe it’s a mix of Twitter’s link sharing, and Chrome’s secret ability to trick your brain into thinking the web is only 8 websites.

What do you think? What was better?

Was the web better before or after Chrome for you guys?

Post your reply in the comments!

You may now do so from your favourite mobile phone! Yeah!

That’s right, you’re favourite website… that you’ve never heard of… is now mobile! Check out the screen shot to the right, then check it out on your mobile phone!!!

As the slogan says, get read for:

A More Dense Version of Stupid

It’s been talked about, It’s been rumoured to come. But this is it here. The storm has been brewing with out us knowing… and this is the first full “cloud” that’s been formed. Things will change because of this. Mark my words… nothing will be the same on the web again.

Bold words, bold predictions. But with Google wave there is no need for most people having conventional computers. It has word processing, image hosting, email, anything and everything a user needs without them even knowing they are online. The changes are so fast the google team is considering slowing down the speed of the application to make it less distracting.

Will it be used? Doubtful. Will it become as big as twitter, or facebook, or email? No. Will it change the entire way developers look at the web? It already has.

And that’s the big point. It’s not that it will directly change the computing world, it’s that it will spawn things that will. People will see Google Wave as the start of something new.

Repeat: You are looking at an HTML browser

Watch the video’s after the jump.

But the Question is: Do you think you’ll end up using Wave when it arrives? Reply in the comments below!