The blogging revolution has infected the self-improvement and self-help industry with the publication of a brand new self-improvement magazine-cum-weblog, Daily Self-Improvement. Known otherwise as DSI, Daily Self-Improvement can be found on the web at http://www.daily-self-improvement.info.

DSI is the very first self-improvement website that is built completely on a blogging platform (Movable Type). The self-help magazine has all the features that define a weblog: commenting, trackbacks, archiving, RSS syndication and so on. Indeed, blogs have became such a potent force that blogging has entered the "unsexy" self-improvement industry.

"By building DSI around a blogging platform, it saves me time and effort in managing and archiving the large volumes of information that DSI generates everyday. It also helps greatly in encouraging greater interaction between me and my readers through the commenting and trackback features, something which is pretty much non-existent in most self-improvement websites today," said Micheal Sim, editor-publisher of Daily Self-Improvement.

"Also, I can deliver information to readers via RSS feeds - something which my readers appreciate greatly due to the ease of using RSS aggregators."

"I strongly believes in the power of blogs, that it will change the business world greatly. And that includes the self-improvement world," he added.

Published daily by editor and publisher Micheal Sim, the Daily Self-Improvement success magazine is a must-read for anyone seeking personal and career success. Every issue of DSI contains the following departments: Editor's Notes, Self-help Article of the Day, Self-Improvement Resource of the Day, Inspiration-Motivation, Motivational Inspirational Quotes, Self-Improvement Elsewhere, and Must-have Personal Development Products.

Having a branded product isn't enough these days for the truly affluent. Apparently, there is a new trend in fashion where rich customers are seeking out unusual, personalised products that suit their wimps and fancies. Luxury brands from Gucci to Goyard are tapping on this new trend and offering personalized touches that allow customers to choose the color, fabric and even inscribe a personal, handwritten message on the lining, according to the New York Post.

This spring, Giorgio Armani will introduce the "Giorgio Armani Atelier" program for clients willing to pay upward of $40,000 for a one-of-a-kind evening gown. Such personalized services are "a direct reaction to the saturation of the market by some labels, which have sought to impose the 'must have' accessory upon everyone," said Gaetano Sallorenzo, Armani's U.S. president of sales and marketing. For the truly inspired, the possibilities are endless. Verdura, a jeweler founded by an Italian Duke in 1939, recently mailed its latest catalog composed entirely of one-of-a-kind pieces such as a $115,000 sunburst brooch.

Read: Anything Won't Do [NYPost]

Would you like to be a DJ and mix music (in the form of ringtones)? Now you can, with RingRanger. RingRanger's UK ringtone site allows users to mix their own tones which the site plans to sell to other visitors. Ringtones will sell for £1.50 ($2.80), which is certainly at the low cost end of the ringtone sector. The people who create the ringtone mix are expected to get points for each sale, which can be redeemed for a range of prizes.

RingRanger's "DJs" can mix hundreds of loops, sound effects and rhythms to create their own custom ringtones online in seconds. Templates for Hip Hop, Techno, and more are even provided. Apparently, with RingRanger, any novice can mix music; no musical knowledge or DJ experience is required.

Read: Mix Your Own Ringtones [The Mobile Technology Weblog]

According to the Adverblog, interactive agency Zugara has created a new site for Reebok. RBK Streets is a cool site where users can hang around, interact with the environment to discover Reebok's shoes and an impressive range of goodies. Adverblog thinks that this branding initiative is positive:

The site works for branding, since it ties in sport, lifestyle and music under the RBK banner. It also presents a promotion featuring 50 Cent and a contest where you can create your own mix, upload it, and 50 Cent will judge it. Furthermore, there is a loyalty-type program for RBK. As the user plays the games and interacts with the site, he/she earns 'street cred'. There is a contest each month where the person with the highest street cred amount wins. Additional cred is earned the more a person plays either the DJ game in the 40/40 Club (S. Carter area) or in the Alley-Opp game at the Above the Rim Court.

Read: Discover the RBK Streets [Adverblog]

If you want to take phone personalization a step further and create your very own branded cell phone, you've got to check out Customizedphonecovers.com. The UK-based service allows you to upload a maximum of three images, specify what finish and design you like, and you'll receive a laminated, scratch-resistant metallic cover for your mobile phone. You can come up with an original design, select from the art gallery, or use a photograph or monogram; any design will do! Each customized mobile phone cover costs about $8.

Read:
Mixed Signals [Daily Candy]
Customized Phone Covers [Popgadget]

Ripe Digital Entertainment, based in Los Angeles, said this week that it will launch its video-on-demand service, called RipeTV, on Jan. 17. In its first major deal, the company said it will unveil its VOD channel the same day to Comcast's more than 8.5 million digital cable subscribers and via the cable provider's Web site.

Like the music cable channel MTV, Ripe wants to turn viewers on to short, 3- to 5-minute videos. But instead of music, Ripe will cast a wide net of entertainment programming to males ages 18 to 34, such as big surf riding, "Jackass"-like stunts and beauty contests.

It will also aim to appeal to the digital generation--whose members are growing increasingly accustomed to getting content how and when they want it--with more than 1,500 hours of on-demand programming. Comcast subscribers will be able to watch RipeTV's free videos anytime with fast-forwarding, pause and rewinding features.

Read: I want my RipeTV? [CNET News.com]

Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft are trying to out-do each other in the search engine war. With these search giants in the limelight, how on earth are young start-ups with new search technologies going to compete successfully?

Find out in a Fast Company interview with founders of new start-ups which are re-defining the very notion of online search. For example, one of the start-ups mentioned, Pluck, has a new search technology called Perch ("persistent search") which is forever fetching things on eBay, news sites, shopping sites and elsewhere, much like a personal-clipping service. Even Google can't beat that!

Read: Fast Talk: Search Them [Fast Company]

If your company wants a big customer turnout on the day of a big sale, what can you do? Well, you may want to learn from Target which is launching an interesting marketing campaign that is an intriguing combination of viral promotion and telemarketing, according to Adrants.

Target is insuring attendance to its two day sale November 26 - 27 by letting shoppers, on November 17, sign up to receive a wake up call on the day of the sale. Visitors to Target's Wake-up Call website can view videos and choose their caller from a list including such odd characters as Darth Vader, some cheesy heartbreaker, a tween diva, a helpful construction worker, Dennis the rooster or Heidi Klum.

Read:
Target Wake-up Call
Target Promotes Two Day Sale With Wake Up Call [Adrants]

The Reynolds and Reynolds Company, the leading provider of software and services to the automotive retailing industry, has launched Mobile Service Advisor, a powerful new software tool connected via a Tablet PC and wireless network. Mobile Service Advisor is designed to speed up service department repair order processes and help improve the customer experience.

Mobile Service Advisor, an integrated extension of the new Reynolds ERAXT dealer management system, enables dealership staff to access critical customer, vehicle, service, and operational data. With the ERAXT tool, service advisors can greet customers, perform thorough vehicle inspections and efficiently write-up repair orders; and electronically capture and print customer signatures - in front of the vehicle rather than from behind a counter.

"Mobile Service Advisor allows retailers to spend additional time focusing on the customer in the service drive rather than traveling to and from their work station for information," said Rob Leary, director of Fixed Operations for Reynolds. "Access to ERAXT and the dealership's network significantly reduces customer wait time during the repair order write-up, helping to improve customer satisfaction."

As an extension of the ERAXT system, Mobile Service Advisor connects service advisors to the system enabling them to review information including vehicle service history, manufacturer campaign and recall information and more. The streamlined repair order process allows the service advisors to quickly identify necessary services, provide estimates, and receive the customer's electronic signature without leaving the vehicle. This solution also enables service advisors to complete a vehicle inspection and record the condition of the vehicle's exterior and interior. This feature helps to reduce fraudulent shop claims and capture additional service revenue.

"Mobile Service Advisor is a powerful tool that has greatly helped our service departments," said Darren Eagle, Partner, John Eagle Dealerships in Dallas, Texas. "By being out at the car with customers, advisors are able to provide better service and save the customer a tremendous amount of time. Mobile Service Advisor allows us to save an average of nine minutes per customer. This gives advisors more time to talk with customers and to suggest additional repairs and maintenance."

Leary explained, "Mobile Service Advisor allows the advisor to consult and sell additional services where it makes sense - at the customer's vehicle. Both the customer and service advisor benefit from the time savings and the ease of business it enables."

Read: Mobile Service Advisor Brochure (PDF) [ReyRey.com]

It's a great idea for those seeking God's guidance via handheld devices: California-based start-up BiblePlayer is offering free downloads of the Bible for use with Apple Computer's iPod.

The brainchild of Los Angeles-based programmer Pablo Mendigochea, BiblePlayer offers three different text versions of the Bible that can be read on the iPod's screen using the device's "Notes" function. The company also markets a deluxe version of the product, which features MP3 audio readings of the Bible on CD-ROM for $29. Either product can be used with any third- or fourth-generation iPod.

Combining the use of the iPod with the Bible highlights the gadget's potential as a conduit for e-books. Digital books have long been eyed as a potential market for growth, but they have largely failed to catch on. Despite the relatively small amount of screen space available for reading text via Notes, Mendigochea believes that people are ready to embrace the iPod as an instrument for viewing e-books.

Read: Take me to the river, but don't get my iPod wet [C|Net News.com]

According to the New York Times, more retailers are rushing to take advantage of what has become a $17 billion market for room furnishings designed to appeal directly to school-age youths.

It is a market, said Michael Wood, a vice president at Teenage Research Unlimited, that has "really exploded in the last two years." And instead of leaving furnishing decisions to their parents, older teenagers and their 8- to 14-year-old sisters and brothers - called "tweens" by retailers - are proud, insistent even, about making those decisions themselves. Last year, teenagers and tweens spent an average of $386 each to decorate their own rooms - more than double the figure of a decade ago, according to Wonder Group, a youth-marketing company in Cincinnati.

Read: A young market that is growing fast [New York Times via IHT]

A BBC news article reported that Nokia is planning to try out a wireless ticket system on German buses. Early next year travellers in the city of Hanau, near Frankfurt, will be able to pay for tickets by passing their phone over a smart-card reader already installed on the buses. Passengers will need to own a Nokia 3220 handset which will have a special shell attached to it. The system would reduce queues and make travelling easier, said Nokia.

Read: Mobiles double up as bus tickets [BBC News]

How would it feel like to sleep in a Web House? What is a Web House anyway? Designed by London firm m3architects, the Web House indeeds explores the changing nature of the house within the fabric of London. A description on the Royal Institute of British Architects website:

The design tackles the notion that the optimum 'site' for a building is a flat piece of unencumbered land. With the scarcity of available building land in London, large blank gable ends, exposed service cores or plant rooms in the City can represent 'brownfield' sites. Getting 24-hour use out of a site is our objective. After the office workers go home, the residents of the Web House come home.

The Web House can be constructed anywhere. Hung from bridges, strung between buildings, straddling roads or railway lines. On this occasion it is hung from the side of an office building in Old Street.

The inflatable skin is brought to site on a 3m x 3m x 3m pallet with the structural cabling. The cabling is hung from hooks fixed back to the structure through the joints in the cladding. The skin is dropped into the net and inflated. The structural core is dropped in through the top of the skin and acts as the structure to the floors. The structural core also houses the utilities and supports the kitchen units and wc functions.

Access and services are shared through the existing office core and an additional wall climber lift is provided.

Read:
Web House Project Page
Life on the Edge [Iconoculture]

Popular and experienced wedding coordinator Valerie Lehman gives bold but constructive wedding advice daily via her website. She has recently launched a major expansion to offer a free live wedding advice chat room.

As a major expansion of her current free wedding advice website, Valerie Lehman will now provide free wedding advice live in her new wedding advice chat room. Valerie will be available for free wedding consultation every Sunday evening at 5:00pm (pacific standard time) starting November 7th, 2004. Visitors can ask questions of Valerie or simply view the lively conversation.

This is a good business idea simply because Valerie can establish her authority as a "wedding expert" very efficiently and cheaply online - and hence gain more clients!

Orthodox Jews are forbidden to work, write, drive or perform other activities from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday to keep the Sabbath holy. Cooking or fire lighting are not allowed too in the home, including its modern equivalence - the use of electricity.

A bit inconvenient for Orthodox Jews, but there are people who view this inconvenience as a money-making opportunity. One of them is Jonah Ottensoser of Star-K. He earns a living by guiding companies like General Electric, Electrolux, and Viking in building Sabbath-compliant appliances and products. Since he was hired seven years ago, Ottensoser has helped design Sabbath modes for more than 300 types of ovens and stoves, and dozens of refrigerators.

This certainly makes good business sense; in the US alone, there are 900,000 Orthodox Jewish households (and millions throughout the world). Increasingly, tech companies are acknowledging cultural and religious values which would allow them to tap emerging overseas markets as well as become more competitive in domestic niche markets.

Read: The Geek Guide to Kosher Machines [Wired]

UK mobile operator, 3, has just announced that it will launch Britain’s first large scale video mobile dating service. Read how Daily Telegraph reporter Nic Fleming's mobile video dating experience turned out.

I am not normally big on beautification but, after all, I do have dates with three women in the next few hours. It is only halfway through polishing my shoes that I realise how superfluous that is because I am going video mobile phone dating. This involves two people chatting and perhaps flirting while watching live footage of each other on the screens of their mobiles. That is the theory, anyway.

Read:
Video dating can be great but you have to find the right signals [Daily Telegraph]
3's video dating stunt [Tech Digest]