Chris Crum / WebProNews:
Google: Page Speed May Become a Ranking Factor in 2010  —  Algorithm Change Would Make Slow Sites Rank Lower  —  Over the course of 2009, a consistent theme that Google has been involved with is that of speed.  In announcement after announcement, Google has talked about the importance of speed on […]

Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg / Digits:
A Later Ship Date For Nook  —  If you want to put a Nook electronic-book reader under the tree, you’d better move fast — very fast. … Barnes & Noble’s Web site now says that new orders are expected to be shipped on Dec. 18, in time to make Christmas […]

Joe Hewitt:
On Middle Men  —  The Internet has been incredibly empowering to creators, and just as destructive to middle men.  In the 20th century, every musician needed a record label to get his or her music heard.  Every author needed a publishing house to be read.  Every journalist needed a newspaper.

Victoria Ho / ZDNet:
Google: Firms can ‘get rid’ of Office in a year  —  SINGAPORE—In a year, most enterprises will have the choice to “get rid of [Microsoft] Office if they chose to”, suggests Dave Girouard, president of Google’s enterprise division.  —  Girouard, one of the company’s four presidents including …

Mary Jo Foley / All about Microsoft:
Microsoft opens up Windows 7 to advertisers via downloadable themes  —  The same way that it already allows advertisers to buy placement on various Microsoft sites and properties, Microsoft may allow them to extend their brands onto Windows 7.  —  The ads aren’t being foisted on Windows 7 […]

Marshall Kirkpatrick / ReadWriteWeb:
Dolly Parton Says: You Should Try IE8 Webslices!  —  In what’s got to be the most amusing celebrity tech endorsement of the season so far, Dolly Parton has gone on YouTube endorsing Microsoft’s IE8.  It’s got this great webslices feature, you see.  “You’ve got to have Internet Explorer 8 to use […]

Michael Arrington / TechCrunch:
How Google Voice Violates Google’s Own Privacy Policy (Updated)  —  I’ve had a nagging frustration in my otherwise perfect relationship with Google Voice.  The service systematically replaces my friend’s phone numbers with their Google Voice numbers when they call, even when they aren’t calling from Google Voice.

Danny Allen / Gizmodo:
Sleek Vega Tablet with Android 2.0, Touchscreen, and 3G Arrives Next Year  —  I’m psyched to see Android moving into tablets.  Some of the first will be from Innovative Converged Devices (ICD), who say their Tegra-powered 7-, 11-, and 15-inch tablets will arrive through “tier one” carriers in the first half […]

David Pogue / New York Times:
Verizon: How Much Do You Charge Now?  —  Starting next week, Verizon will double the early-termination fee for smartphones.  That is, if you get a BlackBerry, Android or similar phone from Verizon, and you decide to switch phones before your two-year contract is up, you’ll be socked with a […]

Jonny Evans / 9 to 5 Mac:
App Store dejection process - now Rogue Amoeba leaves the flock  —  The App Store rejection process continues to infuriate even long-term Apple developers, and something will have to change - today we see long time Mac developers, Rogue Amoeba, announce they will no longer develop […]