Igloo has some funny new Sandwich videos to lighten your day (and maybe convince your boss and/or IT to upgrade your intranet to something more human). Check them out:
(You can also get a free 30-day trial and bring back Cake Fridays here.) Sponsorship by The Syndicate.
Marissa Mayer:
I’m delighted to announce that we’ve reached an agreement to acquire Tumblr!
We promise not to screw it up. Tumblr is incredibly special and has a great thing going. We will operate Tumblr independently. David Karp will remain CEO. The product roadmap, their team, their wit and irreverence will all remain the same as will their mission to empower creators to make their best work and get it in front of the audience they deserve. Yahoo! will help Tumblr get even better, faster.
While most acquisition statements have similar language, Mayer’s statement about “not screwing it up” is unique and refreshing.
Tumblr CEO David Karp echoed this statement in his post:
Before touching on how awesome this is, let me try to allay any concerns: We’re not turning purple. Our headquarters isn’t moving. Our team isn’t changing. Our roadmap isn’t changing. And our mission — to empower creators to make their best work and get it in front of the audience they deserve — certainly isn’t changing.
While David’s comments will probably best be remembered for this “fuck yeah” signature, they line up with Mayer’s.
Can Yahoo succeed in keeping Tumblr vibrant and healthy? My guess is yes. Like Jim, maybe I have the wrong impression of Mayer, but I think her under direction, Tumblr (and Yahoo) might just be okay.
Linus Edwards:
The most infamous computer code named after a famous person was the PowerMac 7100, code named Carl Sagan. When Sagan heard of this code name he was so offended he actually sued Apple, even though the code name was strictly internal and never publicly advertised. Apple’s team subsequently added new code names for the PowerMac 7100, including BHA (Butt Head Astronomer) and LAW (Lawyers are Wimps).
The rest of Linus’ article is great, but the PowerMac 7100 story always makes me smile.
Burn.
“Memphis is in the United States. You’ve got this idol over here it’s huge. They’ve turned this guy into an idol. They worship and serve him more than they do the living God,” said Westboro member Shirley Phelps-Roper.
Hm.
I’m surprised it took this long, actually.
My friend Bradley Chambers has a new project out.
$4.99 gets you an hour of screencasts as .mp4 files or wrapped up as an iPad-ready iBook. They’re all well done, and Bradley is a great teacher.
If you’ve been Evernote-curious or want to get more out of the app, be sure to check it out.
Mat Honan:
The soft, froggy voice startled me. I turned around to face an approaching figure. It was Larry Page, naked, save for a pair of eyeglasses.
If you read one thing today, make it this article.
Matthew Panzarino:
Yesterday, during the Google I/O keynote, Google announced that it had hit 48B downloads of apps on the Google Play Store. During the same keynote, the counter on Apple’s site ticked over to 50B App Store downloads.
But there has been some question about how exactly the two companies tabulate their numbers.
Turns out, that Apple and Google count them in a very similar fashion. Here’s Panzarino again:
Both Apple and Google tabulate unique downloads of apps per user account. This means that they count only one download of an app no matter how many devices that you install that app on after you purchase it. Neither company counts updates in its app download numbers. These are purely single downloads from their stores.
If the two numbers are really on even footing, that’s great news for Android.
Reuters:
Dell, the subject of a takeover battle between the activist investor Carl Icahn and the company’s billionaire founder, reported a 79 percent slide in profit as personal computer sales continued to shrink.
“We just don’t want to screw it up.”
Handsome.