Anchors, Away: Web Offers Election Data, Minus TV’s Filler
Web sites are gearing up to provide full-bore coverage of the Bush-Gore cliffhanger, as well as the results of every last congressional election, governor’s race and referendum. And unlike the television networks, which must keep as many people as possible glued to the same broadcast, outlets in cyberspace have practically unlimited time and space to [...]
Last-Minute Holiday Shoppers Can Turn to the Wireless Web
Amazon.com www.amazon.com For time-strapped last-minute holiday shoppers, the promise of mobile buying is seductive: You can shop from anywhere — whether it be the doctor’s waiting room or the line at the ATM. Since Amazon.com is the behemoth of online shopping, I tested their mobile site with a friend’s Sanyo cell phone and Sprint PCS [...]
Kozmo’s Gift Service Full of Surprises
I’ve used Kozmo.com (http://www.disobey.com) to order CDs and videos, so why not a birthday present? A few weeks after the online delivery shop launched its gift service, I gave it a test drive. The service’s promise: Kozmo.com will deliver a wrapped gift to a recipient in any of 11 cities in about an hour. So [...]
Luxury E-Retailers Offer Coupons To Woo Shoppers as Economy Slows
Images of galloping polo ponies, chiseled yachtsmen and tousled children play across the screen. Sterling silver bar accessories, vintage watches and posh vacation retreats are just a mouse click away. Need a great evening look for a snowy weekend? In the “Ask Ralph” section, Ralph Lauren declares “nothing is better than a plaid velvet pant [...]
United Fliers Ditch the Coupon Books In Favor of New Electronic Upgrades
The airline has introduced electronic upgrades that enable passengers with full-fare coach tickets to purchase upgrades to first or business class. Previously available in paper-coupon form in booklets of four, the 500-mile upgrades also enable Premier members to upgrade from most published fares. Four 500-mile upgrades cost $200; Premier members can purchase them for $125.As [...]
Online Banks Are Rethinking High Interest Rates, Low Fees
In the beginning, online banks had a simple strategy: With the money they saved by not owning expensive, marble-clad branches, they could offer high-interest, low-fee bank accounts that would bring customers flocking to their virtual doors.
Restaurant Web Site Features The Best Places for Parties of One
The Web site was created by Marya Charles Alexander, a self-described “solo-dining maven” and freelance writer from South Pasadena, Calif., who also edits a newsletter of the same name. The site profiles “solo diner-friendly” restaurants in the U.S. and Canada that offer good cuisine without the company. But solo diners may be disappointed to learn [...]
How Can Buying Khakis Be This Complicated?
HTML clipboardHow can something as simple as chinos be so complicated to buy? Khaki trousers, after all, are supposed to be the fashion world’s answer to vanilla ice cream. Same color and consistency no matter what the brand. Always cool in the summertime. And usually a lot less memorable than the toppings. Like blue jeans, [...]
Some Corporate Sites Are Easy To Navigate, Others Fall Short
Companies have spent millions of dollars jazzing up their Web sites so investors, customers and employees can have instant access to all kinds of information over the Internet and avoid the delays of snail mail and the hassle of corporate switchboards. Marketing materials, product information, financial documents, management biographies and other information once found in [...]
DIVERSIONS
Eeek-mail New at shockwave.com, just in time for Halloween (director Tim Burton’s favorite holiday): the adventures of Stainboy, an odd little anti-superhero who doesn’t talk but always prevails over the hideous things that go bump in the night. The first three episodes of the new Web-only series, which will seem hauntingly familiar to fans of [...]
