Worth thinking about:

Frucall. Call up from a store, type in a product bar code, get comparison pricing. Like Google's Froogle via mobile. I want this in Skype.

Dandelife's data visualization and navigation. Could this timeline be a useful way to see your Skype conversation history? See threads and connections. Drill down, zoom in, pan across time, see contacts or topics with more activity with greater prominence.

HotCaptcha. Prove you are human. Nope, try again. Which brings me to Skype authentication. Wouldn't it be nice if there was a routine way to tell if a Skype call or IM coming to you was being initiated by a human?

ArsTechnica. Fighting for cafe culture by turning off WiFi. As coffee shops turn into quiet office lounges, nobody dares socialize. Some barristas schedule offline times to foster introductions, smiling, and the happy noises of conversation. 

Jeneane Sessum argues for Relevant Spam™ and the joy of accidental community. The desire for serendipity, of happy accidents, is one of the reasons people check the SkypeMe box and use StumbleUpon. Thanks to Jon Husband for messing up to such nice effect.

Avoid watching:

Soliloquy for Skype on a Summer Sunset. Almost nine excruciating minutes of my winging on the meaning of life and Skype and civilization as I point a webcam around San Francisco Bay and catch the setting sun. Horrible camera work, a few seconds of wind, and oy, the ego on this guy. Proof you should never tell anyone about your first vlog. 

Consider:

Bubblegeneration: Laws of the Post-Network Economy: Strategy is a Commodity. When everyone is a strategist, advantage goes to the creative. Part of my consulting work is as a strategist. In fact my second blog was called Phil Wolff's Journal of Extrapreneurial Strategy and Technology. My comment:

Strategy is about gameplay, viewing the world as scenarios to win, then picking your best moves. If I understand you, you're suggesting not only that everyone is playing chess, but that everyone is reaching grand master status. Of course mastery begins to look like art.

100 years' ago, the ability to use a phone was rare, and conferred comparative advantage in business. Now that everyone has it, everyone has those same advantages and you must do more than be able to dial and answer the phone.

50 years' ago, typing was a rare skill. As it's become comoditized, you'd think those who'd type fastest would be better with computers.

25 years' ago, the tools of strategic analysis were restricted to military officers and a few MBA professors. Today millions of people consider their goals in the context of what other players will do. SWOT analysis is taught in high schools. Risk analysis is an everyday mindset in the online poker culture. And business is a spectator sport.

I'm not sure strategy is completely fungible; not all experts play from the same handbook, carry them with the same personality and soft skills, or share the same insights that frame strategic thought. Perhaps minor league strategy is a commodity, covering the 20% of strategic tools that yield 80% of the value. Mastery could mean applying the other tools well or being able to make new tools when none of the existing ones fit your situation.

It comes down to what you mean by creativity. Strategy driving innovation? Innovation driving strategy? Or sparking the one in a billion shot that creates entirely new ways of seeing the world and kicking over the table?

Coming up next week:

• Webcast of eBay Inc. Q2 2006 Earnings Release. Jul 19, 2006 at 2:00pm PT. 
• Pamela goes from 2.0 to 2.5. First look.
  
• PrettyMay for Skype 1.5 goes into beta. First look.
• WebMessenger Mobile for Skype. First look.
• Skype research week in the U.S. What should Skype learn now?