Microsoft has started a new site specifically aimed at reaching out to startups at microsoftstartupzone.com (10 bucks to those who can guess what the site's called).

It links up all the various Microsoft resources spread across its many web presences together on one site, making it a one-stop-shop for startups who want to check out Microsoft technologies. To be honest though, I think if you're a startup, you've already decided what technologies you're using based on what people you have (unless you're starting a startup without any technical people at first).

Nevertheless, it's nicely designed, and quite helpful at pointing out resources, plus the blogs are interesting, those obviously a bit biased towards Microsoft technologies.

The partner program's quite in depth too - didn't know Microsoft poured that much effort into developing partners. More importantly, if your startup enrols in their Registered Partner Program (which is free), you become eligible for the Microsoft Action Pack for one year. The pack includes basically everything you need to run your startup, including 10 licences for Office 2007 (with everything), 1 for Dynamics CRM 3.0, 1 for Exchange 2003, 1 for SQL Server 2005, 10 for Expression Web (their Dreamweaver competitor), 10 for Vista Business and licences for many of their server products too. I assume you have to pay to renew the subscription after that (but if so, it'll probably be for a reduced rate anyway). This is great for startups who are just finding their feet and need some help.

Check it out, and keep it in the back of your mind so if you do decide to use Microsoft technologies, you know where to get the free stuff

UPDATE: Maybe it's not new after all, as Don Dodge (one of the Microsoft guys behind it) blogged about it a year ago. I wonder why Telligent are saying it just launched this week in this blog post. Maybe the site got updated with Community Server?

I've obviously missed the Happy New Year bandwagon already - being 18 hours late for an event is probably unforgivable in the blogosphere - but stuff that, Happy New Year!

The blogosphere also doesn't seem to like holidays that much either, with Google Reader telling me I have over 100 posts to read in my 'usual daily reading' group. I don't want to link-blog here, but the sheer amount of stuff that I've accumulated means I have to break the rule here, so forgive me . Here goes -

• Mashable's compiled a list of the top social networks of 2006 [via benbarren], with your obvious ones like MySpace, YouTube, digg, but also some up and coming ones too that I've never heard of like Twango and ProtoPage among many, many others. The list really highlights the massive amounts of duplication out there among social networks, so its no wonder that so many don't make it.
  
  Here's an idea - how about open-sourced web 2.0. Make a web 2.0 site open-source so that anyone can contribute and make it better without them having to create their own. Obviously, there needs to be a staging site to ensure that the actual data is kept safe and private, and there will be issues with forks, disagreements over features and direction etc. But maybe this will result in larger and more successful communities more quickly, and one that caters for the community better.
• Microsoft has created a ruckus with its Christmas spirit, dishing out free laptops to 'influential' bloggers. They're 'supposed' to return, sell and donate, or award it to someone after they've reviewed though, so its not really a present, but damn it, I still want a new laptop for nothing, even if its for a 'limited' time!
• Mashable has a review of a social network that's essentially 'MySpace for mums'. Is there really a market for this? I mean, I can't imagine my mum knowing, let alone wanting to spend time on this. That said, she does work, so maybe its for stay-at-home mums or the next gen younger mums. Its a niche I suppose that will grow in the future.
• Another reason for me to play Xbox 360 - Worms HD is coming out on XBLA! Until they screwed it up with Worms 3D, it was one of my favourite games, so let's hope this is a return to the original.
• Techcrunch profiles a new site called Hey!Watch, which is essentially an online video conversion tool. Being able to offload the processing to someone else and having them notify me when its done while I do something else is intruiging, as is the YouTube video downloading functionality. The fact that it can output to various formats, and its all available to developers over a web service API is even better. With all these web versions of traditional desktop apps, maybe a Web OS isn't that far away after all...
• We all know the iPod as a music/video device, but how about something more? Mashable has posted about a new service called Mogopop that lets you string website content, audio, video together and upload that on to your iPod. You can share and download other people's compliation too. Not owning an iPod I'm not sure how it works, but it looks like an interesting idea.
  
• Uh oh, Google's losing emails. I use Gmail a fair bit, with over 11000 emails (mostly forum notifications, and mailing lists), so the incident begs the question - is there a backup option available for users?
• And finally, here's a novel advertising idea to advertise anti-dandruff shampoo. I'm not sure if the people using it were very happy with the results, but its witty and smart.

I still have a few more things to post up, but this post has gone on for long enough so have fun with the stuff I've posted up above, while I catch up and get some more stuff up later. Hang in there - 2007 has just begun.

P.S. That structure in the photo isn't the Sydney Harbour Bridge - I'm a Melbournian, come on! I believe its part of the roof from Telstra Dome; my brief searches on flickr (CC only) aren't turning up much else - all I get are damn Sydney ones Where are the Melbournian flickr-ers with NYE pics?