In the last few months, Facebook became “open,” with its open API for developers to build programs within the community. Users may now select from thousands of applications to add to their profiles. However, this action did not make Facebook an open community. For Facebook to become truly open and innovative, Facebook needs to allow applications, websites, and companies to easily export data and content out of the community.

At the DEMOfall Conference, I voiced my dislike and warned the companies of Facebook applications. These programs dilute profiles and a user’s ability to efficiently find information. Most recently and not shockingly, we saw that only a few applications are reaching a critical mass. The API, while being utilized, is not creating exceptional applications that are being adopted in mass, and thus is not creating value for the average user.
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Spreadshirt’s Open Logo Project 1.6 has reached its final stage. The contest has started August 27th and will end next week by announcing the winner and as such Spreadshirt’s new logo. These grand finalists are still in the running to replace the old logo shown on the right.

1. First Prize: A MacBook Pro + €3,000 cash ($4000) cash. Plus promotion as a designer in Computer Arts, Computerlove and on Spreadshirt.
2. Second Prize: A Wacom Cintiq 21UX Tablet + €1,000 cash ($1300).
3. Third Prize: Epson 3800N Duplex Laser Printer Or Adobe Creative 3 Web Premium + €1,000 cash ($1300).

All designs except the winning remain the designers’ intellectual property. Where others have failed, the Open Logo Project is a good example of how to organize an open design contest. OLP 1.6 has put nice prizes on the table, and the result will be a nice logo as well. As in YGWYPF or You Get What You Pay For. Read the rest of this post >

Together with the X PRIZE foundation, Google has launched a new, ground-breaking competition: the Lunar X PRIZE Competition. Unlike Google’s fun video contest, the new crowdsourced competition is a little more serious. It concerns…

A global private race to the Moon. Grand Prize: $20.000.000.

The Google Lunar X PRIZE will be awarded to the team that can soft land a craft on the Moon that roams for at least 500 meters and transmits a Mooncast back to Earth. The Grand Prize is $20.000.000 until December 31, 2012; thereafter it will drop to $15.000.000 until December 31, 2014, at which point the competition will be terminated unless extended by Google and the X PRIZE Foundation.

In order to keep competitors interested, there will be a second prize of $5 million, awarded to the next team to land on the moon by the end of 2014. There will also be bonuses awarded for lunar landers that complete certain tasks, such as roving, finding water, or surviving the fortnight-long lunar night. The aim of the competition is to challenge engineers and entrepreneurs from around the world to develop low-cost methods of robotic space exploration. As such, the competition is an unprecedented crowdsourcing initiative.