Jerry Yang is officially resigning as CEO of Yahoo. “I believe the time is right for us to bring in a new leader — someone who will build on the important pillars we’ve put in place and who will take the reins on the critical decisions our company faces,” writes Yang in the official Yahoo blog. Despite his status as co-founder of the company, many within the industry feel that it was his leadership that was holding them back. Under his reign, Yahoo has burned through millions of dollars and let go hundreds of employees. Some are optimistic that Yang’s departure will help revive the now “dead as a doornail” merger talks with Microsoft. According to Yang, he will go back to his old position as “Chief Yahoo” and board member once a suitable replacement is found.

In other news, Google has started adding text advertisements to Google Finance. The ads, which currently sit in the top right hand corner of the page, are the latest in a series of moves designed to bring a little extra revenue. According to Business Product Manager Nick Fox, however, these ads have more to do with content expansion than profit. “Whenever we make changes like these, we carefully evaluate users’ reactions to ensure we’re holding true to our basic principles: that ads by Google should always be relevant and useful,” he writes on the Official Google Blog. “By ensuring that we show the right ads at the right time to the right people, we’ll add value for users too.” Expect to see ads such as this appear on many Google services in the near future, including Image Search and Google News.

In other advertising news, ad network VideoEgg is expanding its reach to the iPhone. Usually confined to the world of social networking, the VideoEgg is unique in the sense that it employs a variety of multimedia tools into its advertising. The ads are expected to work similarly to their social counterparts — a small banner or graphic will appear, enticing users to find out more. Like its big brother, the VideoEgg will only charge clients for iPhone ads that are fully engaged. VideoEgg’s new ad platform for the iPhone will be launched “soon,” possibly in the next week or so.

Elsewhere, SketchUp, the Google app dedicated to all things three-dimensional, has received an upgrade.The new and improved SketchUp 7 features easier object scaling, custom templates, and a ton of other tools designed to please any three-dimensional designer. Those close to Google believe that the new software will aid in the development of several projects, including Google Maps and the upcoming Google Ocean. Unlike most Google-based programs, SketchUp 7 is available in both free and a “for profit” Pro versions.

Finally: Your email account is about to get much more social, thanks to Zenbe. Instead of forcing you to create a new email account, Zenbe consolidates all of your existing accounts into one giant, web-based inbox. It then presents your messages to you in am original, yet distinctly “web 2.0,” fashion. You can also perform a variety of social tasks without ever leaving the service, including checking up on Twitter and Facebook accounts. Zenbe users also have access to ZenPages – a group of tools designed to get both you and your employees organized and in-sync with each other. Easy to use and maintain, Zenbe is perfect for anyone who wants to see what an email program can really do for you and your business.

The folks at AOL are planning to shut down its Video Upload service due to budgetary concerns. Considered by many to be AOL’s answer to the likes of YouTube and DailyMotion, the site featured the standard mix of user-generated content and light copyright fraud. Those behind the doomed site are directing users to video partner Motionbox. Other services receiving the axe from management are online backup system XDrive, social storytelling site BlueString, and AOL Pictures. The closing has absolutely no effect of AOL Video, which is dedicated to so-called “profressional video outlets” such as Hulu. At press time, AOL Video Upload last day will be December 18th.

In browser news, both Firefox 2 and the Gecko 1.8 rendering engine that it is based upon will be sent out to pasture as well. Mozilla officials site the release of Firefox 3 as the primary reason for the move. It should be noted, however, that discontinuing support does not necessarily mean the death of a program. Unlike services such as the AOL Video Upload, which will ultimately disappear after the switch is pulled, users and programmers will still have access to both the browser and the engine. They will just not receive any official security updates from the Mozilla team. The last hurrah for Firefox 2 and Gecko 1.8 will be sometime in December.

Elsewhere, Google Docs might not be as popular as once thought. According to a poll conducted by Clickstream Technologies, 1% said that they use the online office suite on a regular basis. By comparison, 51% of the 2400 users surveyed said that Microsoft Office was their software package of choice. These findings mirror the statements of Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer, who recently scoffed at the notion of Google Docs becoming a legitimate threat. “We get more competition from OpenOffice and StarOffice,” Ballmer said in his keynote address at the Gartner, Inc. Conference. “People try Google Apps, [but] they don’t use it. It’s primative… You can’t even put a footnote in a document!”

It seems as if the business of spamming has fallen on some “tough times,” so to speak. According to a report in the Washington Post, spam volume has decreased by 66% since Tuesday. This is largely due to the shutdown of McColo, one of the recognized “leaders” in the spaming industry. It is believed that McColo was at one point responible for three-quarters of all of the junk email sent to users. Sadly, many expect the “industry” to stabilize once the displaced spammers find a new outlet for their special brand of useless nonsense.

Finally, we have Ping.fm. On the surface, the Ping.fm service doesn’t appear to be anything that special. As any fan of the Free Line knows, there are literally dozens of programs and webapps that allow you to modify your favorite social service accounts without actually visiting the site. What sets Ping.fm apart from the others is the simple fact that it’s not a program at all. The service actually uses an interesting cross-section of popular sites and services to connect to a variety of web 2.0-centric services, from social networking pages to microblogging clients to bloging platforms.Thanks to Ping.FM, telling your “virtual fanbase” what you have been up to has never been easier to do.

Microsoft’s Live.com web portal has gotten a distinct social makeover. The new site now contains many “standards” of the social networking trade — custom profiles, messaging ability, blogging, and more. The folks at Redmond say that the service will eventually be connected with fifty content partners. While the move seems a bit odd coming from a more “traditional” company like Microsoft, it’s not all that uncommon for search sites to embrace social media. As some of you may remember, Yahoo attempted to do something similar a few months ago with their Profiles. The new, web 2.0-flavored Live.com is online now.

Twitter has officially hit the monumental “one billion message” milestone. The billionth Tweet is thought to have occurred sometime Wednesday. According to data supplied by social archival site Popacular, it took roughly two years and three months for the microblogging service to reach that level. By comparison, instant messaging services from Yahoo, AOL, and Microsoft hit the billion message mark on a near daily basis. The people behind Twitter have no comment at this time.

Despite reports to the contrary, the use of social networking in business is still considered to be fairly controversial by many CEOs. According to a poll conducted by Burson-Marsteller and industry periodical PR Week, 29% said that using social media is an effective way to communicate with employees, consumers, and shareholders. An equal amount also claimed that using social services didn’t help their businesses at all. Moreover, only 18% of those surveyed have actually used social media services to inform their shareholders. While the jury may still be out concerning the use of web 2.0 technologies, most agree that the use of “web 1.0″ has indeed helped their business. Nearly 71% say their website is the best way to interact with others.

In other social networking news, MySpace has officially released the MySpace Primetime Application (or MPA for short), a new app designed to take their video offering to the next level. The MPA allows users to quickly find videos from not only MySpace TV, but Hulu as well. Once the desired video is located, users can then post it onto their pages, just like always. “Video on MySpace flows throughout the network as there are multiple entry points where videos can be discovered,” MySpace Vice President Jason Kirk told WebProNews. “We believe the 76 million US users spending four hours on the site every month, and the advertisers that rely on our ad-solutions, will be happy with the flexibility of this application.” MySpace Primetime Application is available now.

And finally, there’s Happenr. Happenr is a so-called “events search engine” designed to tell you what’s happening on the continent of Europe. The engine scours several diverse databases and the cultural calendars of over one-hundred cities, all in an effort to keep your hypothetical itinerary as “up to date” as humanly possible. Results can be displayed in English, German, and Dutch. To top it all off, the Happenr API is available for free on the site, meaning that other sites can tap into its interesting European goodness. Happenr is up and running on a PC near you. An iPhone application is also in the works.

Despite rumors to the contrary, Microsoft has absolutely no interest in purchasing Yahoo. “We made an offer, we made another offer … We moved on,” said Microsoft executive Steve Ballmer at a business event in Sydney. “We are not interested in going back and re-looking at an acquisition. I don’t know why they would be either, frankly.” The rumors of a combined Microsoft-Yahoo entity began swirling around again after Google pulled out of a proposed advertising deal last week. These comments contradict those of Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang, who said that Microsoft was “still their best option.” Microsoft originally offered shareholders $47.5 billion dollars for the beleaguered search service last May.

In other Microsoft news, there’s BizSpark. BizSpark is an amalgamation of web services designed to get your website up and running. While it isn’t exactly “open source” like MySQL, Microsoft is doing something fairly out-of-character to entice startups into using their service — giving three-year subscriptions away for free. Aside from the subscriptions, users also have access to Redmond’s small army of tech support. Designed with the “promising young startup” market in mind, BizSpark is perfect for anyone who wishes to get their online business a major league boost.

According to pollster site SquareTrade, the iPhone is the most reliable of the three major smart phones available today. Out of 15,000 mobile devices tested, the iPhone has a 5.6% failure rate. By comparison, 11.6% of all Blackberry and 16.6% of all Treo devices have failure issues. By far, most “first year” problems are linked to input problems, usually a touchscreen or a keyboard. SquareTrade expects the iPhone failure rate to jump to around 9% within two years.

In other news of the “cell phone” variety, Nokia is joining the microblogging game. The”Beta Labs” wing of the cell phone giant has released Friend View, a new service that will allow you to leave short, Twitter-style messages from both your phone and your personal computer. Unlike Twitter, Friend View has an surprising GPS element built directly into it. When a user posts a message, the location of the poster will appear on a map. Despite the innovation, early reviews of the service have been mixed. Friend View is available now from Nokia Beta Labs.

And finally, Brian Wallace of Mashable.com has an excellent article up explaining how to get the most out of business social networking site LinkedIn. “Using LinkedIn, I’ve trained small businesses to spread their wings and get connected with companies that they might otherwise have thought were beyond reach,” he writes. Throughout the relatively short piece, Wallace explains the basics of LinkedIn, including sending messages and performing background checks, simply and easily. While it barely scratches the surface on what LinkedIn can do, the article is great for all of those who wants to start “networking” the web 2.0 way.

The proposed advertising partnership between Google and Yahoo is no more. Google sites the initial reluctance of federal regulators, as well as the possibility of several high-profile legal battles, as the primary reasons for the collapse. “It’s clear that government regulators and some advertisers continue to have concerns about the agreement,” writes David Drummond in the Official Google Blog. “Pressing ahead risked not only a protracted legal battle but also damage to relationships with valued partners. That wouldn’t have been in the long-term interests of Google or our users.” Under the terms of the deal, Yahoo would have had the option of using Google-based advertising on their various sites. Yahoo officials have yet to speak on the issue.

In other Google news, the search giant has taken steps to upgrade Google Groups. The new and improved Groups search now gives users the option of searching the entire Internet for the content that they are looking for. Previously, users were limited to searching Google Groups. The results will not only contain when a particular thread was started, but how many replies it received. Some industry insiders suggest that the move is the “first step” in embracing social networking functionality, similar to Yahoo and AOL. The new, “forum friendly” Google Groups search is available now.

Finishing the Google trifecta, we have Gmail Backup. This handy little program starts by taking an “image” of your account in order to compile all of the necessary information. The backups are then converted into .eml files, the format of choice for all Microsoft email prorams. While it isn’t exactly a glamorous program — email backup is somewhere between “watching paint dry” and “pumping gas” on the (un)official “tedious things to do list” — it does its chosen duty amazingly well. Gmail Backup is available now for all three major operating systems.

Elsewhere, a potentially dangerous flaw has been found in Adobe Acrobat Reader. According to a report by development house CoreLabs, a hacker can insert malicious Javascript code into a harmless looking PDF file. When the user opens the file, the hacker can easily attack the user’s system. Officials at both Adobe and CoreLabs stress that only the 8.x (especially the 8.1.2 release) of the Acrobat Reader is at risk. Those still using the older 8.0 software are stressed to update their readers as soon as possible.

Finally, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales has a few interesting things to say about the state of web 2.0. According to Wales, many social services that inhabit the Internet are, at best, basic and infantile. The biggest culprits, he says, are online video sites such as YouTube. “If you look at almost everything on YouTube, it’s individuals doing videos, either funny cat videos, or drunk girl videos seem to be quite popular there,”Wales told online news organization Breibart.com. “What we haven’t seen yet in video is large-scale collaborative projects. Imagine what we could get if we could get 100,000 people thinking about collaborative video efforts to create documentary films, or comedy, or art, or who knows what?”

Google is the undisputed king of search engines in the month of September. According to a poll conducted by Neilsen Online, around 8.1 million searches were performed, giving it a 59.7% share of the market. While impressive, the Google market share actually went down by .3% from the previous month. The biggest gainer this time around is Windows Live Search, which grew 1.1%. Microsoft’s favorite search engine came in at a solid third, with 953,000 searches and a 11.8% market share. Other notables include Yahoo (second place with 1.46 million searches and a 18.1% share), AOL (fourth place with 335,000 searches and a 4.1 share), and Comcast (seventh place with 52,000 search and a .6% share).

In other seach-based news, Yahoo’s so-called “Open Strategy” has gone live. The service, also known as Y!OS, lets users share applications and data in ways that most Yahoo users never considered. The new system will also add a level of “social interaction” that will permeate throughout the search engine and its related services. “As of today, developers can start using our newly available data on their own web sites and even start deploying new applications into Yahoo,” says Open Strategy chief Jay Rossiter. “We’re anxious to see what developers out there have up their sleeves and what [the end user will] do with it.”

In social networking news, the folks behind Facebook are planning to give their beloved service a major overhaul … with a twist. Instead of working during office hours, the techs are going to do it the old fashioned way — with an all-nighter. “Every few months, our engineers unleash their talents in one epic, all-night coding session,” writes Pedram Keyani in the official Facebook blog. “Dozens of Facebook engineers create working prototypes of projects that they always wanted to build but couldn’t ever pursue during their regular hours.” In addition to their ideas, the engineers will be working on some of your ideas as well. Deadlines for the suggestions are noon (Pacific Time) on Monday, November 3rd. Facebook’s Hackathon XI will go down Wednesday, November 5th.

Elsewhere, a specialized version of Microsoft Office is coming to the web. The so-called “Online Office” will allow users to read, create and edit a variety of files without leaving the safety of your browser. Surprisingly, the new web suite is not built upon Microsoft’s Flash competitor, Silverlight. Instead, the programs operate upon a solid bed of HTML and Javascrpt, similar to Google Apps. “What’s great is that this provides a consistent Office experience when and where our customers want it, regardless of whether they are accessing their Office documents through the PC, phone, or browser,” said Senior Vice President Chris Capossela in a press release. At press time, the web-centric version of Office is scheduled to work in Safari, Firefox, and Internet Explorer.

Finally: LinkedIn, the social network designed for the business-minded, is getting into the “proprietary apps” game. Unlike the widgets available MySpace and Facebook, each LinkedIn InApp is comprehensively reviewed and tested before it is deemed worthy for release. In theory, the approval process will limit (or even eliminate) the proliferation of so-called “junk apps.” Users are also limited to having “only” fifteen apps on their main profile page to help reduce clutter. The first batch of InApps widgets are available now for all LinkedIn users.

The folks at Microsoft are the latest in a long line of tech firms putting their chips on the OpenID project. For those unaware, “OpenID” is based around the theory that having one login ID for several sites is intrinsically better than having proprietary IDs for each site. Many analysts see addition of Windows Live users — all 400 million of them — as a major victory for the emerging web standard. While Microsoft might be the biggest company to embrace OpenID, it isn’t the first. Other notable firms that have pledged their support for the service include Yahoo, Technorati, and WordPress.

Pollster and security company FaceTime Communications has a few interesting things to say about social networking use in business. According to the report, roughly 79% use social networking and video sites at work for specific, “business-centric” reasons. In addition, 51% of those surveyed said that they visit social sites at least once a day. LinkedIn is by far the most popular social networking site among business people, with 62% saying that it is their favorite service. YouTube comes in second, with a 55% user rate.

In related news, video services such as YouTube have a new group to thank for their unparalleled growth — women. Roughly 54% of women over twelve said that they have watched at least one online video in the past month, a 9% increase from 2007. Men still lead the pack at 58%, but the gap is shrinking. “It appears the prevalence of streaming video online among younger males may be approaching a ceiling today,” Ipsos Media director Adam Wright recently told WebProNews. “The other demographic groups are driving the audience growth here.”

In other news, Kwanzoo is promising that even the smallest of quizzes can boost overall advertising revenues. The little startup claims that they can produce results ten times greater than traditional banner ads, and is using the success of partners Meebo and Glam Media to prove it. Kwanzoo is based around the idea that people are more likely to click on something that is interactive and fun than “boring” and traditional. Site owners can choose from over 50,000 questions for their own personalized “quiz widget,” or they can write their own. Kwanzoo is up and running now.

Finally, a few new Gadgets are coming to a Gmail account near you. New additions include a simple Calendar viewer (complete with so-called “meeting alerts) and a full-featured search engine geared towards Google Docs. “Gmail Labs has been a really fun way to easily try out new ideas and get some of our pet feature requests implemented quickly,” writes Gmail engineer Dan Pupius. “We wanted to take this to the next level.” The new Google Gadgets are available now, with many more to come in the near future.

The line between traditional journalism and social media sites appears to be blurring slightly. According to a poll conducted by Bulldog Reporter and TEKgroup International, Inc, around 75% of journalists interviewed said that they use social media sites to research their stories. This is an almost 8% increase from the previous year. 38% also mentioned that they visit sites such as MySpace and Facebook at least once a month to supplement their research, up nearly 10% from 2007. While the use of “modern” methods might be gaining in popularity, there is still something to be said about tradition — 76.3% say that they prefer getting their news fix by reading their local newspapers.

Google Analytics, the online darling of marketers the world over, has officially been updated. The buzzword for this update is definitely “customization.” Analytics users can now make their own custom reports, break their user statistics down into easily manageable groups, and create animated charts based upon their data. The service is now also compatible with AdSense, allowing users to keep track of their related data in real time. Google also announced the creation of a new API, which will let developers create widgets and plug-ins. The new and improved Google Analytics is online now. The API will be “coming soon.”

Hot on the heels of the big Wal-Mart music store relaunch, we have Lala. Simply put, the folks over at Lala are trying to take the idea of “online music” into new and exciting directions. Instead of buying traditional, downloadable tracks right off the bat, you purchase a streaming, browser-based version of the track (or “web song,” as they call it). Each web song can be accessed an unlimited amount of times and cost ten cents. You can then “upgrade” the chosen track to full MP3 status for 79 cents more. Even after upgrading, the web song is still available to you. Highly original, Lala is perfect for anyone who likes to have a choice when it comes to how they want their music to be delivered.

Elsewhere, famed photography firm Fujifilm is trying their hand at photo editing.  Similar to web apps such as Flickr and Photobucket, SeeHere aims to take the imperfections out of your photography. Unlike the others, SeeHere attempts to keep things as simple as possible. While this is good news for the less “technically inclined,” experienced users might find the overall system to be a bit lacking. Those looking to import files from services like Photoshop Express and Picasa will have to look elsewhere as well. On the plus side, SeeHere boasts free, unlimited storage space and a variety of printing options. Fujifilm SeeHere is available in both as a downloadable Windows program and as a web application.

And finally: Every now and again, even the best of us need some help getting motivated. For that, we here at the Free Line suggest giving Noomii a try. Noomii is a social network designed to get you up and working vigorously on your dream project, or projects, if you prefer. What sets this social service apart from the myriad of self-help programs out there is the innovative “pair coaching system.” Immediately after you sign up, you are paired with another user. You and your new found partner take turns helping each other out. Easy to use and even easier to keep up with, Noomii is great for anyone who wants to see how motivating a social network can truly be.

It seems as if Yahoo has decided to give social networking another try. Instead of creating an add on site such as the now defunct Mash, the Yahoo team decided to make the entire service a social experience. The first section to receive a makeover is the all-but-forgotten Yahoo Profiles. “This new profile [system] is not intended to be a new social destination on Yahoo,” writes Vice President Jim Stoneham. “Rather, our plan is to integrate ’social’ as a central dimension into the services you use every day.” The new Profiles page is available now to all registered users.

In other news, the world of graphic heavy display ads is finally coming to Google AdWords. Called the Display Ad Builder, the new service lets you make a smart looking advertisement without spending a lot of time or money. The ad can run on the entire Google Content Network, including in YouTube videos and in-game marketing situations. Easy to use, the Display Ad Builder is perfect for anyone who is growing tired of the traditional, text-only scene that AdWords usually provides.

Elsewhere, scientists have discovered that using the popular search engines such as Google and Yahoo might be better for your brain than reading a book. According to a new study on aging brains from UCLA, users who chose to surf the Internet had twice the amount of activity in cognitive centers than those who chose to read. “[The] results are encouraging,” says Professor Gary Smalls. “Internet searching engages complicated brain activity, which may help exercise and improve brain function.” At press time, neither Google nor The Association of Literary Scholars and Critics have chosen to comment on the study.

Despite what you might have heard, you don’t need a fancy degree or an internship with webtoon maestros The Brothers Chap in order to make elegant Flash files. Nope … not while Wix is around. Wix is a new online Flash editor that lets you create stunning animations and websites with just a mouse click. You can mix and mash YouTube videos, drag and drop images into a stunning layout, and even create simple menus. Unlike most Flash content, files created in Wix are completely search engine friendly. While it won’t exactly give you Homestar Runner,  Wix based Flash files are the perfect way to add a little “spice” to your existing site.

And to finish off the week, blogger extraordinaire Chris Brogan has a few tips on how to grow your blogging community. Twenty-five, to be exact. Brogan’s advice ranges from the simple (use Twitter) to the thought provoking (”Keep your eyes on the STRATEGY of what you’re doing”). As always, these words of wisdom are just one man’s opinion. “If this all works for you, great,” He writes. “If not, as always, I want you to give your thoughts. You probably know better than me.”

Google is the number one search engine in the US yet again. Google has secured a staggering 62.2% share of the market in the month of September, according to research company comScore. While it is impressive, Google’s number is actually down 0.8% from August. Coming in at a distant second place is Yahoo, which clocks in at 20%, up 0.4% from the previous month. The biggest gain came from the Google-powered Ask.com, whose numbers rose 0.6% to 5.4%. Other engines listed include AOL and MSN Live Search.

Go Daddy is going social. The popular web domain registrar has released SmartSpace, a new service designed to give even the most technophobic users a shiny site with a distinct web 2.0 flavor. Seen by many as a cross between MySpace and iGoogle, the service lets users of all skill sets upload pictures, create chat rooms, and stream video with relative ease. “There is definitely potential for this service, considering that so many businesses have yet to create an online presence for themselves,” writes WebProNews contributor Chris Crum. “Anything to ease the transition to the Internet is sure to be a welcome tool.” While it’s not necessarily “free,” SmartSpace is an easy, low-cost way to modernize you company’s web presence.

Despite the nerve wracking state of the economy, many deserving projects are still finding willing financial backers. JS-Kit, a promising little start up dedicated to the creation of website-based tools called “widgets,” has received roughly $3.6 million from tech savvy Altos Ventures. Other Altos-sponsored companies include online outsourcing agent Accolo and game developer Outspark. At press time, JS-Kit is planning to use the new found capital to expand their engineering department.

In other news, we have Orbitfiles. The general idea behind Orbitfiles is simple — six gigabytes of storage space for free. Files loaded to the service can then be tagged, shared, or hidden completely from view. Multiple files of the same file type can also be zipped, in order to save 0space. While some might take issue with the service’s fifty megabyte upload limit, Orbitfiles is perfect for anyone who needs a online safety deposit box for their most important files and documents.

And finally: As many long-time fans of the Free Line can tell you, a first page ranking on Digg can bring in a huge amount of traffic to your website. In an interview with the London Times, Digg found Kevin Rose explains  how you can make your first page dreams a reality. According to Rose, it all boils down to eight rules:

1)  Watch the news.
2) Be passionate.
3) Do your research.
4) Go niche.
5) Be sensational.
6) Get geeky.
7) Name drop former presidential candidate Ron Paul. (”I don’t understand this one,” says Rose.)
Write lists.

Interesting and engaging, this interview is full of helpful advice for people of all skill levels. Thanks to Rose, anyone can be a true front page superstar … just like Ron Paul.