cherry-picking from the chrunchies

The most compelling startups, internet and technology innovations of the year – at least according to a weblog ‘dedicated to obsessively profiling and reviewing new Internet products and companies’.

Recently hosting its second annual Crunchies, TechCrunch invited the Internet community to choose 2008’s winners.

Listed below are three of the lime-lighted web services and tools in the selection. My own criteria: usability and looks.

1 – Cooliris – winner of ‘best design’.

Transforms your browser into a lightning fast, cinematic way to discover the web. Search through thousands of video’s, images, and other visuals, via a plug-in ‘wall’.

A stunning way of flicking through search-query results to find that one perfect image. Just downloading the thing had me awestruck: a beautiful visual guide, with arrows and messages to guide you through a 1-minute getting started.

2 – Wuala – ‘best international start-up’ runner-up.

Download the Wuala application, publish your videos, photos, and other files heavy-on-the-bytes files, and share them with whomever you want.

A quick, easy, free way to get things out to people you’d never be able to send via e-mail – and much more user-friendly than Yousendit (http://www.yousendit.com/). Like mane, this is a ‘freemium’ service that’ll give you 1GB for free. To get more storage, you can dish out your credit card.

3 – Sliderocket – in the running for ‘best design’.

A slideshow presentation web-abb, fusing Apple’s Keynote functionality and visuals with the resources of the Internet. Incorporate audio and visuals from the web, and access and present your show from any computer connected to the web.

For nothing, you can create, manage, and store 250 MB’s worth of your slides. For money, you can of course do more.

Have a look at all of the categories and contestants, and see which services and companies won what, by clicking here.

(photos
- The Crunchies 2008 by Laughing Squid