Quoted: After all, the idea behind BookCrossing.com is simple. You drop off a book in a public place. Or pick up one someone else left behind. Eventually the whole world becomes one big, free library. More than 600,000 people engage in “catch and release” missions worldwide. I wanted to be one.

Quoted: During a lengthy interview at the corporate campus, Eric Schmidt, Google’s chief executive, touched on managing amid rapid technology change.

Quoted: Seattle social networking startup Blue Dot is scrapping its name and repositioning the service -- now dubbed Faves.com -- so that people can create a ...

Quoted: Faves.com Asks Just How Social is the Web?

More than 36 percent of Web users "highly trust" the information they receive from friends and acquaintances in their online social networks, according to a new social Internet survey by Faves.com, a social discovery and bookmarking site. The same survey found that 34 percent of respondents visit a social networking site at least weekly.

Quoted: Even though online advertising is growing fast, that growth is being stunted, industry executives say, because nobody can get the basic visitor counts straight.

Quoted: A new company, LifeAt.com, is putting a local spin on social networking, creating password-protected Web sites for apartment buildings and housing developments.

Quoted: Google and some of the Web’s leading social networks are teaming up to take on the new kid on the block — Facebook.

On Thursday, an alliance of companies led by Google plans to begin introducing a common set of standards to allow software developers to write programs for Google’s social network, Orkut, as well as others, including LinkedIn, hi5, Friendster, Plaxo and Ning.

This sounds pretty cool.

Quoted: There's no place like home: G.P.S., on your wrist. The watch, which costs about $500, is made by the Finnish company Suunto. Inside its highly engineered 2.7 ounces are a multitude of functions for the thoughtful navigator, including an altimeter, electronic compass, thermometer and barometer, all meant for people who want to know not only their exact place in the world, but also the prospects of any sudden change in the weather.

Quoted: From Gaza to Lebanon, the conflict over Israel has once again flared up into major violence, with civilians being the overwhelming majority of the victims. ... Urge the U.S. to put a stop to the attacks on Lebanon and Gaza. Show the world there is a principled Jewish voice that opposes the collective punishment of an entire people.