Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has been fined $25,000 by the NBA after using Twitter to complain about league officiating. “Just found out [that I] got fined $25K by [the] NBA,” the always opinionated Cuban wrote/Tweeted Monday. “Nice … [We] can’t say that no one makes money from Twitter now. The NBA does.”

As many sports fans are aware, this isn’t the first time that he has used modern technology to question the competency of the league. During the January 13th meeting between the Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets, he reportedly saw Nuggets shooting guard J.R. Smith elbow opposing small forward Antoine Wright in the head. Feeling that the refs blew the call, the ever present Cuban took it upon himself to personally confront Smith about the incident. He then wrote a sarcastic letter of apology to the player, which was then immediately posted on his blog. The incident earned the Mavericks’ owner a $25,000 fine and a personal condemnation from NBA commissioner David Stern, a noted critic of Cuban’s off-the-court antics.

Needless to say, the situation has gotten people talking. Interestingly, the conversations have more to do with the nature of microblogging and social networking than the so-called “wacky antics” of Mark Cuban. According to some, such as Denver Post columnist and ESPN personality Woody Paige, using modern technology to vent your frustrations is no different than using a telephone to tell a friend about an annoying coworker. “[Social media applications such as Twitter and Facebook] don’t count,” said Paige on the ESPN program Around the Horn. “You’re just trying to have a conversation with somebody. It just doesn’t count.” CNET columnist Chris Matyszczyk tends to agree with Paige, saying that Cuban was merely doing what he does best — speaking his mind to those who will listen. As far as he is concerned, the NBA is trying to “censor him” in order to hide the fact that he is “more intelligent than most of its members.”

Not everyone shares that point of view, however. Many writers, including featured AOL Fanhouse columnist and fellow ESPN personality Jay Mariotti, feel that Cuban has crossed the proverbial line yet again. “It was for public consumption,” said Mariotti. “You can assume that he really didn’t mean it or that he wasn’t sending it to the NBA. But once it’s on Twitter, it’s out there for the masses [to read]. He deserved to be fined.” These sentiments echo those of noted sportscaster Tony Kornheiser, who believes that using social media applications such as Twitter and MySpace to “vent” are essentially no different than writing an op-ed column in a traditional newspaper. According to Kornheiser, the writer is using an established forum to air his or her views. If the writer says something controversial, then he or she should be held responsible. The “newness” of that forum should not be taken into account, as it still a public forum.

And where does Mark Cuban stand on all of this? He blames the media. In a post on his blog, Cuban questions the legality of the original ESPN report, suggesting that the sports giant broke international copyright law by reprinting his Tweets without permission. “I Tweeted to the people who follow me. While I never asked that they not distribute it to other tweeters, I did not give anyone permission to republish my Tweets in a commercial newspaper, magazine or website.” He goes on to ponder the legal ramifications of the “stolen” Tweets and whether or not he should have expected them to remain private in the first place.

All in all, the entire Cuban/Twitter incident clearly illustrates the complexities of web 2.0-based communication. In many ways, these concerns mirror those brought about by the so-called “Napster fiasco” of ten years ago. As with Twitter and MySpace now, Napster was delivering an intellectual product in a way never before seen. When musicians such as Metallica and Dr. Dre questioned the new system, pundits initially focused more on the concept of “intellectual property rights” than on the fact that several million people were pirating copyrighted music. Although it might seem pointless now, it was a conversation that simply had to happen. After all, it was impossible to go after a person for violating “intellectual property rights” when no one knew exactly what those “rights” truly were. We are going through the same exact scenario now, only with hipper, more modern terminology. Once everything is straightened out, stories such as this will be nothing but a blip on the radar screen. In the meantime, however, we here at the Free Line suggest that you watch what you say online. The last thing any of us need to deal with is a $25,000 fine from David Stern.

Most people these days have heard words like “Twitter“ and “microblogging” muttered on their radios or local newscasts. While you might be familiar with the terminology, you still might not know what is going on. “Hearing” about these services and concepts second hand and actually using them are two completely different things. Trying out all of the different microblogging services can be rather time consuming, especially if you’re not familiar with what makes them tick. Luckily for you, we’re here. On today’s episode of Showdown, we start our journey into the world “Tweeting, Plurking, and Shouting” with nothing but an email address and some time to kill. All six services are being test-run by none other than Angela Smedley, herself an admitted “microblogging newbie.” All of her profile pages have been linked below, making it easy for everyone to follow her progress. The official “results show” will be posted on Monday, April 6th.
Service #1: Twitter

Website: http://www.twitter.com
Company: Twitter
Angela’s Twitter Page: http://twitter.com/mantraofdoom
First Impression: “It’s very friendly. It told me that I have a nice profile picture.”
Ease of Setup (Out of 10): 9
Signing Up: Signing up is a fairly easy process. The first thing you encounter is a page of the basics — user name, email, and password. The password box flat out tells you if your password is too weak, which is a nice feature for all of those who still like to use the word “password” as their secret phrase. It then prompts you for your email and address and password so it can scan your address book for names. If any of the email addresses found match those the service has on file, that person or persons will instantly be added to your “following” list. If none of the addresses are found, it asks you if you want to invite those people to Twitter. While it’s a nice idea in theory, the feature is bound to give those concerned about identity theft a reason to worry. After the “email nervousness” subsides, you’re asked if you want to partake in the new (and recently covered) Twitter Suggest service. Several major celebrities and organizations are available, from the New York Times to Ellen DeGeneres to actor/writer/”king of the geeks” Wil Wheaton. From there, it’s all up to you. You can find other users, change your theme, or just start writing. Aside from the “email thing,” setting up Twitter is both stupidly simple and worry free. Whether it can hold under the pressure, however, is another story altogether.

Service #2: Identi.ca

Website: http://identi.ca/
Company: Control Yourself, Inc.
Angela’s Identi Page: http://identi.ca/mantraofdoom/all
Specialities: OpenID support.
First Impression: “Simple.”
Ease of Setup: 8
Signing Up: Unlike Twitter, the Identi.ca sign up page is more traditional, complete with a solid color backdrop and no-nonsense text boxes. After filling out the essentials, it takes you directly to your profile page. In many ways, signing up for Identi.ca feels like signing up for an email box. It isn’t difficult or time consuming; just rather cold and impersonal. That said, if you are looking for something “no nonsense,” or if sites that pile on extra helpings of “that warm, fuzzy feeling” annoy you, Identi.ca is definitely a service worth looking into.

Service #3: Plurk

Website: http://www.plurk.com/
Company: Plurk
Angela’s Plurk Page: http://plurk.com/mantraofdoom/
Specialities: Plurk directly to Twitter; CSS support.
First Impression: “It’s adorable! And I can Plurk directly to Twitter! [Pause] I think that’s the cutest thing that I have ever said.”
Ease of Setup: 7
Signing Up: The first thing you will notice is the overall site design. To put it bluntly, it’s cute. Really, really cute. It might be even friendlier and more inviting than Twitter, which is definitely saying something. The sign up process is simple enough to get through, though you will encounter a few “oddball” options along the way. Although it might seem needless at first, the options, such as the aforementioned “Plurk to Twitter,” will come in handy later on. After sign up page, you are brought to your profile. It is there that you get your first glimpse of Plurk’s secret weapon. Instead of simply “choosing” a new theme, Plurk allows you to design one using CSS script. While this level of customization might be lost on some, it’s perfect for all of those who want their page to be “just so.” All in all, Plurk is at once powerful, yet surprising easy on the eyes — a powerful combination.

Service #4: Zannel

Website: http://www.zannel.com/index.htm
Company: Zannel Inc.
Angela’s Zannel Page: http://www.zannel.com/viewupdates.htm?user=mantraofdoom
Specialties: Multimedia, geotagging, and integration.
First Impression: “Wow … it’s almost exactly like Twitter.”
Ease of Setup: 6
Signing Up: In many ways, signing up for Zannel is a lot like signing up for Identi.ca — cold and impersonal. The only thing that really makes it stand out is the “find your friends” option, which was also found in Twitter. After getting past the boring looking setup page, you are greeted by your start up page. It is there that you see what Zannel is really all about: integration. You can add Zannel support to several major services, including Flickr, WordPress, and Movable Type. This level of integration works well with the overall “theme” of the service, which stresses multimedia interaction over all else. Despite a few innovations, the jury is still out on this one. We will definitely know more in a few days.

Service #5: Soup

Website: http://www.soup.io/
Company: Euphoria GmbH
Angela’s Soup Page: http://mantraofdoom.soup.io/
Specialities: Geared more toward “creative people” such as writers and artists.
First Impression: “Very fancy.”
Ease of Setup: 7
Signing Up: Fitting with the “artistic vibe” that Soup seems to pride itself on, actually signing up for the service is totally optional. If you do decide to sign up, you are taken to a page asking you if you want the service to find your friends. A “manual look up” service is also available for those who, like me, aren’t exactly thrilled with handing out their email information. Once all your friends are found, you are taken to what seems to be a blank page. On the side of the page lies a collapsible menu filled with various tools and options. From here, you can make your white sheet of nothingness into something that truly reflects who you are. Although it might seem like a waste of time, the customizable nature of Soup seems to be tailor made for those who value their creativity and uniqueness. Simply put, Soup is already shaping up to be a rather unique experience. Whether that experience is a “good” one or a “bad” one, however, remains to be seen.

Service #6: Rejaw

Website: http://rejaw.com/
Company: Infoteria
Angela’s Rejaw Site: http://rejaw.com/mantraofdoom
Specialities: In addition to “shouting,” you can also participate in chats.
First Impression: “It’s like Twitter, only more ‘in my face.’ I don’t know if that’s a good way to explain it, but that’s how it feels.”
Ease of Setup: N/A
Signing Up: There is no setup here. All you have to do is enter your email address. After you click on the link found in the resulting letter, your entire account is set up for you. Only after your page is up can you enter your information. As you might have guessed, fixing your profile on your actual page is much easier than filling out a form. Overall, Rejaw seems to have several interesting features available to its users. We just don’t know how to access them yet. Expect to here more about these features (and all of the services, for that matter) next week.

In many ways, joining a social media site is a lot like enrolling in a new school. You start out alone, fresh-faced and nervous, while the people who have been there for a while politely and quietly ignore you. You try to fit in, but you quickly find that it isn’t the easiest thing in the world to do. The thing is, it doesn’t have to be this way. You have the power of Twitter Suggest on your side. Described by Biz Stone as the electronic equivalent to the “staff picks [section] at a book store,” Twitter Suggest offers up a variety of colorful and intriguing characters to follow. By following this ragtag group of eclectic personalities, insiders theorize, users will become more comfortable with the nature and feel of Tweeting. Several of the top users have already signed on to the feature, from politicians (San Fransisco Mayor Gavin Newsome) and computer visionaries (Apple co-founder/celebrity dancer Steve Wozniak) to comedians (Michael Ian Black) and rappers (50 Cent). While it isn’t a long-term way to make friends and influence people, Twitter Suggest is a great way to get the “lay of the land” while virtually hobnobbing with a few celebrities.

A few days back, we reported on Academic Earth, a Hulu-esque video service that features lectures and classes from several major universities. If you like the general idea, but wish there was a more accessible, mobile-friendly alternative available, we here at the Free Line suggest giving YouTube EDU a try. Like the aforementioned education super site, YouTube EDU features the best professors in the country doing what they do best — teach. Several noteworthy colleges have already signed on for the service, including Stanford, MIT, and the Culinary Institute of America. While it doesn’t exactly have the same “ivy covered walls” feel of Academic Earth — being shoulder-to-shoulder with such “low-brow entertainment” as professional wrestlers and Rick Astley tends to damage your credibility a bit — YouTube EDU is perfect way to expand your horizons without ever leaving your house. YouTube EDU is available now for all users.

In other Google-related news, it seems as if their slate of web tools are taking the proverbial “road trip.” In a rather surprising move, the computing giant announced that they will be teaming up with several web hosts to supply on-site support and up-to-date features to its subscribers. The move is based upon the notion that you don’t have to have an advanced computer science degree in order to have the best tools and services the best tools for your site. “It used to be that creating a web page was a pursuit reserved for the truly tech-savvy, requiring a geek’s expertise in HTML, Java, or C++ coding,” writes product manager Rajat Mukherjee. “[The Google Services for Websites project] includes Webmaster Tools, AdSense, Custom Search, and Site Search, making it easier to drive traffic to your site, monetize your site through the Google ad network, and add various search capabilities to help your visitors find information on your site faster.” The Google Services for Website system is available now.

And finishing off the week, vector graphics are finally coming to Google Docs. For those unaware, vectors are the difficult to work with, yet oddly satisfying replacement for pixels found in many computer-based applications. Based upon a little-known online service created by the now-defunct Tonic Systems, the so-called “Insert Drawing” feature makes vectors simple enough for anyone to use. A variety of different objects are built directly into the tool, making it easy to find exactly what you are looking for. Although its fairly powerful for an application of its size, don’t be expecting a full-on replacement to Adobe Illustrator or Flash. From the looks of things, Insert Drawing is better equipped to handle flowcharts than animation. That being said, Insert Drawing is a great way to add a little bit of angle-based spice to an otherwise average document.

Sometimes it pays to be original when it comes to creating new content. The treasure trove of unique, different and, in some cases, just plain weird ideas can mean more to a prospective user than the billions of Twiiter clones ever could. On today’s episode of the Free Line, we take a look at three projects that take “thinking differently” to an entirely new level.

SWiK - In the minds of many, “open source” software is a rather difficult field to grasp. To the uninitiated, the stories and write ups could seem as if they were written in a foreign language. Sure, “they” might know what “sudo root” means, but you sure don’t. Luckily for us, there’s SWiK. SWiK is a combination wiki and search engine that is designed to make the world of open computing seem a bit more accessible to the average user. The site features extremely detailed, well-written selections on a variety of common programs and concepts, from Linux and Konqueror to GNU and Richard Stallman. Easy enough for a beginner to use but powerful enough for the seasoned veteran, SWiK is the perfect place to start your journey into the world of free software.

OldVersion.com – Despite the old adage, change isn’t always good. The new software in question might not be working properly on your computer. The programmers might have felt the need to take away your favorite feature option or feature. It just might even not work at all, period. It’s times like this that you wish you can go back to the way things used to be. Now you can, thanks to the folks at OldVersion.com. As the name implies, OldVersion.com is dedicated to the preservation of the freeware programs of yesteryear. Want the original Napster software from the year 2000? They have it. Are you hankering for a copy of Internet Explorer 2 that was written especially for Windows 3.11? They have that too. While many of these programs are pretty much non-functional, they are still fun to check out from time to time. All in all, OldVersion.com is great for anyone who is feeling a bit nostalgic, “saddled” with an older system that is physically unable to run many of today’s applications, or just feels like taking part in an interactive history lesson.

Married By MySpace – In the annals of time, people have taken apart in some strange weddings. There are some who have had their ceremonies held at a midnight showing of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show.” Others choose to tie the knot while riding their favorite roller coaster. Still others, like legendary Canadian wrestling champion Paul LeDuc, feel it’s best for it all to happen inside the ring. Now its time to add MySpace to that list. In “Married By MySpace,” the new project/reality television show from Fox Media, Disney, and wedding site The Knot, the happy couple agrees to hand their plans over to users of the social network. Everything — the ceremony, the reception, even what the bridal party will wear — will be carefully planned by the MySpace faithful. While it might not be a “classic” wedding, it is something that will be remembered.

Thanks to the fickle beauty that is our broadband Internet connection, we’re cutting things a tad short today. We will be running at full steam tomorrow. In the mean time…

Despite popular opinion to the contrary, not everyone minds getting a full-sized portion of free media with a slice of advertising on the side. According to a new poll conducted by KPMG, roughly 29% of cell phone users in the US said that they would gladly sit through a few digital ads if it meant getting their (legal) music for free. When looked at from a global perspective, the number jumps to a surprising 49%. “[W]e may be seeing a new window of opportunity that advertisers have been seeking for so long,” KPMG spokesman Carl Geppert told WebProNews. “We are seeing sizeable [sic] segments of the mobile marketplace that are willing to… accept advertising in return for free songs… [A]dvertisers may need to examine their business models to accommodate those new growth opportunities.”

In other news, it seems as if the folks at Twitter have decided to switch things up a bit and change their tittle tags. Instead of using the traditional “user name / Twitter” combination that users have grown to ignore, the new tittles now feature their full name — the user name is now surrounded by parentheses — followed by the prepositional phrase “on Twitter.” The reason for the change involves one word: Google. The new titles make it easier for the search engine to find the physical page. More hits leads to better (and higher) site rankings. And as we all know, the better the site ranking, the more exposure the site in question gets. Many within the industry see the change as Twitter’s attempt to be mentioned in the same breath as Facebook and MySpace. The new titles are up and running now.

And finally: At this stage of the game, most people have at least heard about Hulu, the up-and-coming video site that features many popular television shows for free. While it’s great for the times that you want to catch up on The Office, but useless if you’re in the mood for a bit of multi-variable calculus or a two-hour explanation on why some feel that Freud was a hack. Don’t worry, because Academic Earth has you covered. Academic Earth is a new site that features the best lectures the college world has to offer. Several subjects are currently available, from economics to theology to medicine and everything in between, all for free. Now we realize that a site full of theorems, hypothesises, and Thomas Friedman lectures isn’t up everyone’s alley. Still, a brief stop-over in the world of academia doesn’t hurt from time to time. Academic Earth is available now for all users.

Hulu is now the fourth most popular online video site in the US, according to research firm comScore. The much-talked about site gained a staggering ten million users over the course of the last month, bringing their total viewership to a shocking 37.4 million users. Many within the industry say the sharp rise is due to the site’s creative advertising campaign, which features the likes of Alec Baldwin and Family Guy creator/generally controversial figure Seth MacFarlane as alien invaders. Other rankings of note include YouTube (99.3 million users), Fox Media/MySpace (53.7 million users) and Yahoo (41.6 million users).

In other news, Facebook isn’t the only social networking site of note undergoing a drastic design change. LinkedIn, the network geared towards business people and the folks who love them, have recently unveiled their own set of improvements. The first thing that you will notice is the inbox … or rather, the total lack of one. Instead of it looming large over your front page like it used to, the inbox now only appears when there are actual messages to be read. Once inside, you’ll run into the second major improvement — tabs. These are designed to make both reading and sorting your mail a quick and painless experience. The new inbox is just one of many planned improvemnet aimed at increasing productivity and usability. The mailbox of your dreams is available now for all users.

And finally: A slate of classic films have finally received a new lease on life. The folks at Warner Brothers have just put the finishing touches on the “Warner Archive,” a video site that specializes in “forgotten classics.” The Archive features over 150 long out-of-print films made before 1986, such as “Abe Lincoln in Illinois,” the golf-centric silent film “Spring Fever,” and Paul Simon’s “One Trick Pony,” which is more remembered for the song “Late In the Evening” than the actual film. What makes the Archive special is its “on demand” nature. Unlike most DVD-based services of this type, the actual disc is created only after the user orders the film. Not only does this method cut down on labor and storage costs, it makes the concept of “niche entertainment” economically viable. The discs from the Warner Archive start at $20 a pop. Digital versions of the film in question are available for $15.

While the “DVD-on-demand” concept is still considered to be a fairly “recent” idea, it is by no means new. Anyone who has attempted to purchase a high school football retrospective or lesser-known professional wresting DVD in the past ten years have seen the on-demand concept at work. Many smaller video companies, such as Smart Mark Video and Pittsburgh-based Digital Horizons, have built their distribution systems on variations of that very concept. Amazon also utilizes on-demand as a way to sell their severs full of children’s programming from the 1990’s.

Expect to see more on the topic of video creation and distribution on an upcoming episode of the Free Line.

…So you want to start your own blog. Good for you. Let’s see … it says here that you already have a topic and have bought some web space. That’s good. Okay then, what software are you running? What’s that? You haven’t picked out your content management system (aka CMS) software yet? No need to worry. We realize that picking the proper management software can be a bit tricky, and we’re here to help. On today’s episode of Showdown, we take a look at five of the blogosphere’s top software packages to see which one is best for your needs. As always, all of the programs in question were tested by graphic designer/web developer/overall classy lady Angela Smedley on her custom-built, Windows 7 PC.

App #1: WordPress

Site: http://wordpress.com
Company: Automattic
Plugins: Yes.
First Impression: “Five minute install.”
Initial Setup: As we hinted at above, WordPress installs onto your server in five minutes. If you’re looking for installation trouble, you won’t find it here. Everything installed quickly and easily, with nary an error message in sight.
Special Bonuses: The documentation supplied with WordPress not only tells you how to set up the software, it offers up some suggestions on how to effectively write your blog. While most don’t have the need for such advice, it’s nice to know that it’s there.
Ease of Setup (Out of 10): 8
Overall (Out of 10): 8

App #2: Movable Type

Site: http://www.movabletype.org
Company: Six Apart Ltd.
Plugins: Yes.
First Impression: “Congratulations! It’s a blog!”
Initial Setup: While it didn’t match WordPress‘ now-famous “five-minute install,” it was fairly easy to setup and use. When a problem did arise, the official blog always seemed to have an answer.
Special Bonuses: None.
Ease of Setup: 8
Overall: 6
Notes: Make sure that your web server is up to spec before installing this software. As you might have heard, Movable Type is notoriously picky when it comes to compatibility. If something is missing or outdated, the install will not work. End of story. While it isn’t a “bad” system, nothing about Movable Type stands out. It works, but there are others out there that can do more.

App #3: b2Evolution

Site: http://b2evolution.net
Programmer: Francois Planque
Plugins: Yes.
First Impression: “I can do multiple blogs!”
Initial Setup: Insanely easy. Just upload the components to the server and start working. Everything else is automated, even down to database table creation. (You have to supply your own empty database, however.)
Special Bonuses: Photo blogs and link blogs can also be set up.
Ease of Setup: 7
Overall: 7
Notes: The entire “b2Evolution experience” left us confused. By rights, this system should be sitting with WordPress and Joomla at the top of the blog/CMS hierarchy, but for some reason, it isn’t. In fact, we haven’t even heard of it until twenty minutes before starting work on this piece. It’s a shame, because a world-class software package such as this deserves world-class attention. All in all, b2Evolution is a fantastic system for users of any age or skill level.

App #4: Joomla

Site: http://www.joomla.org/
Company: Open Source Matters, Inc.
Plugins: Yes.
First Impression: “It’s much, much more than just blogging software.”
Initial Setup: Installation is hit-or-miss. On the first go-around, the automatic install worked perfectly. The second time, which saw us move to a completely different web server, things got a tad more difficult. Due to an annoying “enable cookies” message, we had to resort a more “manual” approach. Although it sounds like a nightmare, the extra documentation supplied by the company made setup a breeze. Everything installed perfectly, and the mysterious message disappeared completely.
Special Bonuses: An exhaustive collections of add-ons.
Ease of Setup: 6; “A bit more complicated than your standard fare.”
Overall: 9; based solely upon the sheer amount of plugins, tweaks, and expansions available.
Notes: To many web professional, Joomla is the standard that all other CMS systems should be judged by, and it’s easy to see why. While it’s more complex that the others, it also the most versatile. Everything from a simple blog to a full-blown social network can be built off of this system, making it a must for anyone who tends to “dream big” when it comes to website creation. Expansive and dependable, Joomla is definitely worthy of all of the praise that it gets.

App #5: Drupal

Site: http://drupal.org
Programmer: Dries Buytaert
Plugins: Yes, though half of them aren’t exactly available to the public as of yet.
First Impression: “This is different.”
Initial Setup: Easy, in a way. It was after the setup that things started to get hard. (More below.) If you have shared hosting, be careful. Some errors cannot be fixed if you don’t have complete control over your web server. Make sure that you read the documentation thoroughly before attempting to install it.
Special Bonuses: If you know your way around PHP and CSS, you can make this system do what ever you would like.
Ease of Setup: 5
Overall: 7
Notes: We wanted to like Drupal. We really, really did. It just didn’t work on our test server. We tried for hours on end, but it still didn’t work properly. The final straw came in the form of a PHP-induced server error. Despite assurances to the contrary, the system would not allow us to allocate enough memory to the PHP scripts. The result was a variety of errors that simulated a memory leak. None of the suggested fixes/hacks worked for us, mainly due to the stigma it places on shared hosting sites. If you run your own server, you’d be a fool not to give it the old once-through. Everyone else should proceed with caution.

…And the Winner Is – While WordPress and Joomla are our personal favorites, all five systems have their own strengths and weaknesses. It all comes down to taste. With that in mind, we suggest giving them all a try. Who knows … you might find something that really takes you by surprise. And if your favorite software isn’t mentioned here, tell us. We at the Free Line enjoy expanding our horizons as much as you do.

Coupons are coming to a Google AdWords spread near you. According to AdWords tech Christian Yee, the new templates allow the team to “bring the messages from our customers’ offline circulars, to the online world, at scale with Google’s content network.” Each ad template will attempt to replicate the overall look and fell of the traditional coupons, complete with the familiar “cut here” pattern and the oddly large bolded font. At the bottom of the ads lies a coupon code, which the user can redeem at the virtual establishment in question. Alternatively, the ads can also be printed out and used at a variety offline locations. The two new ad templates are available now for all AdWords users.

In other advertising news, Microsoft has made a few changes to the way AdCenter calculates conversion rates. Instead of the “one size fits all” approach the system used to cling to, you now have three wildly different options to choose from: one conversion per click, one conversion per unique URL, and the ominously named “count all.” As with most things of this nature, each option has its own unique set of challenges to the proverbial table. Option one, for example, is the easiest to implement, but is by far the most simplistic. Option two, on the other hand, will give you more of a realistic, complex readout, but setting it up is comparable to exploritory brain surgery. The new conversion methods are available now, but be warned: you have to edit more than a few lines of Javascript. If the prospect of this makes you nervous, it’s probably best that you just stick with what you have.

Elsewhere, the folks at Sony believe they know what it takes to compete Amazon’s surprisingly popular Kindle eReader, and it involves Google. In a statement, Sony announced that all future versions of their “Portable Reader System” line of eReaders will now feature support for all Google Books titles. The deal adds roughly 600,000 books from the public domain to the struggling eReader — over twice as many than currently available for the Kindle. While those within the industry are applauding Sony for fighting fire with fire, many question if the deal really is as important as it might seem on the surface. In the mind of many avid readers, the words “public domain” are synonymous with “old, outdated, and factually inaccurate.” That being said, any content is good content at this stage of the game, even if said content is old enough to be our grandparents.

Moving to the world of social networking for a moment, it seems as if Facebook users aren’t exactly thrilled with the new redesigned site. According to a new survey, roughly 94% say that they dislike the changes and wish that they could go back to the way things used to be. Many of the problems stem from the mass amount of features that were supposedly removed from the service during the update process. Those in charge of Facebook have yet to comment publicly on the matter.

And to finish out the week: Samsung has announced that they will be joining the world of digital movie downloads. The popular mobile phone and electronics manufacturer is teaming up with online retailer Acetrax for the new service, tentatively titled Samsung Movies. There are said to be over 500 movies available for either purchase or rental, including such heavy hitters as “No Country For Old Men,” “The Matrix,” and “The Dark Knight.” Although it is only available at the moment to cell phone users in the UK, Samsung hopes to have the service up and running on a variety of different platforms (and in a variety of different regions) soon.

As many fans of the Free Line already know, there isn’t a social media tool out there that is hotter than Twitter. The microblogging service is so popular that venture capitalists are willing to give co founder Biz Stone large sums of their money … without him even asking for it. Still, not everyone sees Twitter’s success as a “sure thing.” According to Bernstein analyst Jeffrey Lindsay, Twitter is a textbook example of a “pre-business” — a concern that’s tremendously popular with the public, but ultimately doesn’t make any money. When an established firm buys a “pre-business,” that firm hopes that it can “cash in” right away on its new accquisition’s popularity. When it comes down to it, however, these new subsidiaries actually end up losing the parent company money, simply because it wasn’t pulling anything in to begin with. The history books are filled with failed “pre-business” takeovers, from the AOL/Netscape debacle in the late 1990’s to Fox’s purchase of MySpace. While it might seem like good business sense for Microsoft, Yahoo, or Google to swoop in, odds are in would do more harm than good. The “it factor” the company currently touts could also be seen as a giant “red flag” to prospective buyers. If the product isn’t making any money now while it’s popular, what will happen after it becomes completely passe? The only way for a major corporation to avoid these pitfalls, he writes, is to let the Twitter team deal with them themselves. Only then will their true staying power be evident. Says Linday: “[Prospective suitors] should leave it to the original founders develop a business model and if the business survives, consider acquiring it then. Taking on un-monetized services has proven to be a very uneconomic proposition for the Internet players over the last decade. We think that those players who have revenues today would do well to avoid them.”

In other news, all is not well in the land of Google. A privacy group called Electronic Privacy Information Center (aka EPIC) has petitioned the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the computing giant for so-called “inequities in the security safeguards” commonly found in cloud computing. In the open letter, EPIC claims that the private data stored upon the Google server are inherently unsafe and privy to tampering. Until such time that an investigation can actually occur, EPIC is asking for Google to remove all of the services that rely on “cloud computing,” such as Picasa and Gmail. While a small flaw was recently found lurking within their security software, Google says that it has since been taken care of and is no longer an issue. Neither EPIC, Google, nor the FTC have any further comment on this issue at this time.

And to properly finish out our Thursday, we have Contxts. Contxts takes the tried-and-true notion of the business card and moves it to the realm of text messaging. Instead of having to print out loads of cards, the user is simply given a user name and a five-digit texting number. When the user “calls” the number, a digital business card is immediately sent to his or her phone. In addition to the more traditional fare, these digital cards also feature various “web 2.0″ enhancements, including the contact information for various social networking sites. While it isn’t exactly a suitable replacement for the traditional “raised font” business card yet, Contxts is a great addition to any business person’s arsenal, be it digital or otherwise.

The one main disadvantage, if you want to call it that, to our hiatus last week was missing frightful fun of Friday the 13th. Well today, we are going to rectify that little problem with something we like to call “News of the Odd.” So sit back, relax and enjoy your Friday the 13th… five days late, of course.

Anyone who has seen a television news program in the past two years are familiar with the idea of “phishing.” Unlike most underhanded schemers, phishers have an uncanny knack of staying one step ahead of the curve when it comes to fake content. When one “opportunity” dries up, they just simply head to the next “big thing” and hope that people fall for it. Their latest target? Your love of local news. Like most nefarious plans of this nature, the scheme begins with an innocent looking email. In the letter, a panicky (yet unnamed) confidant asks you if you’re safe. At the bottom of the email sits a link to what appears to be a Reuters news story about a nuclear bomb going off near your hometown. What the site actually does is download and install the Waldec virus to your computer. The virus immediately picks up on your IP address, which is why your actual hometown appears in the phony article. While the virus is fairly harmless — if you can call spying and automatic duplication harmless, that is — many feel that the worst is yet to come. When dealing with a situation such as this, we here at the Free Line suggest you do the following three things:

1. Watch what you click. You have no idea what these idiots will attempt next.
2. Make sure that your anti-virus program is running at full vigor.
3. Take a moment out of your day to laugh at the criminals who thought that this was a good idea. Think about it. If a nuclear device really did go off in your hometown, chances are that you wouldn’t need a Reuters article to tell you all about it.

In other news, a criminal in England has found a new way to use Google Earth. According to a report by the London Telegraph, petty thief Dave Berge used the highly controversial mapping service to survey his next targets. Once the proper domicile was found, he would take what he felt was rightfully his — their roofing shingles. Unbeknownst to the owners of the homes, the shingles contain more than their fair share of lead. While the lead isn’t harmful to anyone, it does fetch a tidy sum on the open market. Berge is set to serve a variety of punishments for his crime, including eight months of jail time and a mandatory curfew.

And finally: Security guards for the Philadelpia Eagles aren’t the only people to get into hot water for what they say on Facebook. University of Calgary student Keith Pridgen was sentenced to two years of academic probation after using the social network to bash a rather unpopular teacher. The post, which celebrated the fact that the professor did not receive full-time employment, was seen as “inappropriate” by the university. Pridgen claims that he was merely “exercising his right to free speech” and should not be punished for his statements. Much of the U of C staff sees things a bit differently, however. “We have a culture now where websites are evolving that allow anybody to say anything,” computer science professor Tom Keenan told the CBC. As far as he is concerned, posting such comments on a public forum is not any different to writing them on notebook paper and hanging them throughout the campus. “You know people would tear [the notes] down, but it would still impugn somebody’s reputation, and you can still get sued.” U of C faculty will be meeting with students next week to discuss the controversy and brief them on the school’s Internet policy.