海角大神

It鈥檚 hard for one guy to declare the 鈥渂est of鈥� anything. So here鈥檚 a list that feels more natural to me: the most intriguing devices or fascinating tech developments in 2008. Feel free to add your own ideas in the comments section below.

Coolest device: Apple iPhone 3G
Slick, elegant, and easy to use, you could argue that you don鈥檛 need a laptop if you have one. You can very easily browse the Web, listen to music, make a phone call, play a game, and figure out where you are and how to get where you鈥檙e going. When you鈥檝e done all of that, Apple鈥檚 App Store offers thousands of other things that you can do on the phone. But the best thing about the iPhone 3G is that it gets it right: the feel, the look, the way it works. Which, it has to be said, is something that Apple does better than anyone else. I can鈥檛 say the same about the BlackBerry Storm, surely the year鈥檚 biggest tech disappointment. That smart phone feels as if it was designed by a committee that was not sure why they were all together.

Best use of an existing technology: The Obama campaign
This is not a political endorsement, merely an acknowledgement of Obama鈥檚 brilliant use of technology that has been around for years. By using text messaging and e-mail to reach out and repeatedly touch potential voters 鈥� especially young ones 鈥� the Obama campaign not only brought millions of new voters into the American political system, but also raised a ton of money at the same time.

Most exciting new development: (Tie) Google鈥檚 Chrome browser and the T-Mobile G1
When it comes to Web browsers, I鈥檓 a Firefox acolyte. I wouldn鈥檛 use Internet Explorer if you promised to pay my mortgage for a year. But as much as I like Firefox, I鈥檓 convinced that Google鈥檚 Chrome browser will be the best one available in 2009. Sadly, it鈥檚 only available for Windows. But we PC users seldom get to use something better than you can find on a Mac. So it鈥檚 nice to feel a bit ahead 鈥� at least for a while.

Meanwhile, the iPhone needs to keep a wary eye on the T-Mobile G1 for one good reason 鈥� Android, the open-source system that makes it work. The iPhone is very cool, but Apple has been notoriously proprietary about nearly everything concerning the device. Android threatens to tear down the walls that phonemakers have built and create an iPhone-like experience that鈥檚 open to everyone.

The 800-pound gorilla: Twitter
Do you Twitter? Doesn鈥檛 everyone? Or at least it seemed as if everyone was twittering in 2008. The social networking application that didn鈥檛 even exist before 2006 took off like a lightening bolt in 2008. One reason for the surge was that people realized that you could do more with Twitter than tell people what you were eating for dinner or that you were bathing your cat. News organizations, for instance, now use it as a reporting tool. During the presidential campaign, several well-known political reporters/bloggers would regularly send updates to readers via Twitter. A few times I鈥檝e read that Twittering might even replace blogging itself one day. I think it could. I know that I blog far less and Twitter far more these days.

Most fun device 鈥� Flip video camcorder
Point. Shoot. Edit. Burn. Or post on YouTube. The pocket-size Flip video camera (along with the Kodak Zi6 camcorder) means that anyone 鈥� your grandmother, your 6-year-old cousin, your flaky uncle who still can鈥檛 figure out how to use the remote 鈥� can now shoot video. Then, thanks to the USB connector on the side, you just plug it into your computer, edit it with the camera鈥檚 built-in software, and then make a copy for the world to see.
If you thought there was a lot of video already available online, you ain鈥檛 seen nothin鈥� yet.

Bravest tech act 鈥� 海角大神鈥檚 decision to go primarily online.
Yes, I know. I鈥檓 a columnist for the Monitor, and it鈥檚 a bit like patting yourself on the back, yada, yada, yada. But as a nonstaff writer who has worked in online media for 16 years now, I鈥檝e seen any number of media organizations consider making this bold move but then back away. While some smaller papers have made the decision to move to online already, the Monitor is the first national media company to do so. It is where print and broadcast media are headed, even if most people are reluctant to admit it. But someone has to be first. Kudos to the Monitor for making the leap.