It's time for our annual predictions post, in which the ReadWriteWeb authors look forward to what 2009 might bring in the world of Web technology and new media.

Looking back at our 2008 Web predictions, we got some of them right! "The big Internet companies will [embrace] open standards" (Google, Yahoo and others did this); "Mobile web usage will be a big story in 2008" (check!); "Web Services platforms will be a fierce battleground" (Microsoft Azure and Google App Engine were released and AWS grew). We also got some wrong, including most of our acquisition picks! Digg, Twitter, Zoho ...

Bid Amount: $1,200

Earlier today, ultra Twitter master Robert Scoble called Twply a spammer. Twply basically takes any "@" reply messages on Twitter and sends them to your email. It's hard for me to call Twply a spammer because they ask each user if they want to send out a marketing message about their usage of Twply. Blogger Mathew Ingram says he selected the "no" option but the twitter message was still sent. I do believe that the language that Twply used on the marketing selection (sample screenshot below) was poor and could be considered confusing.

Update: Alex Hillman notes in the comments ...

Yesterday Mike Arrington took us off the rails and into the idiot land. Listen, I’m as egotistical as the rest of them. I can say “follow me” along with the best of them. According to Loic Le Meur and Mike Arrington, founder of TechCrunch, I have more authority than either of them because I have more [...]

What were the top social media sites of 2008? ComScore came out with its worldwide traffic stats for November a few days ago (so these don't include December). They are a mix of social networks and blogging platforms. Blogger, the orange line in the chart above, still rules the roost with an estimated 222 million unique worldwide visitors in November (up 44 percent from November, 2007). Facebook, the blue line, is on pace to pass it soon with 200 million unique visitors (up 116 percent). (Note, though, that this is more than the 140 million active users Facebook itself ...

They have gained notoriety over the years but now scientists have taken the edge off the shark's fearsome reputation with a new study that claims they have 'wimpy' bites.

One of the most fun and rewarding byproducts of operating this blog has been to connect with entrepreneurs looking to improve their product and gain early feedback. Sometimes, I can help by doing more than just spreading the word about services I like, but get the opportunity to take time to suggest new product features, point out what I consider to be flaws, and suggest how they can better adjust to address competitors. In the majority of cases, this takes place ad hoc via e-mail or phone. In rarer cases still, I find a working relationship with an individual and ...

By now, you are all probably sick and tired of seeing my “Thank you.” or “Thanks, you guys.” or “Thank you for your kind words” in the Tsavo, Sean Percival and my new gig at Twirlit’s threads. I truly am grateful to everyone for sharing on FriendFeed and even Twitter but can’t find the right words. [...]

Yesterday Tsavo Director of Content Sean Percival announced on his blog, "Yea I hired Mona Nomura and you didn't. :P". Known by some as the "Queen of FriendFeed", Mona will be blogging for the company's new property Twirlit, "a women's site that focuses on beauty, fashion, food, celeb gossip and more".

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Nomura has worked as a product manager specializing in software. Otherwise she is a big influencer in social media, particularly on Friendfeed, where people cluster around her promoted items.

Earlier this fall, we covered Sean Percival getting hired as Tsavo's new Director of Content ...

I haven't posted anything here in about eight months, mostly because I've just been very busy, but also because:

• Blogging is too hard
• I post a lot of things over on FriendFeed, which is easier, and I'm lazy (and you really should subscribe to my FriendFeed if you find anything I post here at all interesting)
• I got tired of my blog posts. When I read them, there's something I don't like.

Nevertheless, I sometimes want to share something more than a FriendFeed message or interesting link, so I'm going to give it a ...

A kind of frat house for modern-day mad scientists, NYC Resistor is a collective of inventors, tinkerers and noncriminal hackers.

The end of the year is typically a time for prediction posts. We have our own thoughts on what we expect the future to bring (which we will publish this week), but in this post we'll take a look at what some of our friends are discussing about the Web. While not everyone offers a prediction for 2009, we hope their wishes for the future of the Web and their thoughts on what's important right now inspire thought and discussion.

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Chris Brogan Looks Forward to a 'One Ring' Profile

After asking some of the Web's brightest ...