Thank goodness, someone besides Google has just purchased StumbleUpon (according to TechCrunch). I love Stumbling. It's by far my favorite non-work-related way to spend my time on the Internet. Actually, a lot of it is work-related as well, but it doesn't feel like work. So when I saw that StumbleUpon had just been acquired by eBay, and that eBay beat out Google in the bidding, I was relieved! I'd hate to see Google destroy StumbleUpon. (I'm not sure eBay will do a good job of keeping it fresh and wonderful, but I really feel Google would have hampered its growth). At this point, ANYONE but Google is a better choice to acquire StumbleUpon.
Speaking of recommendation sites like StumbleUpon, and Google specifically, Google just announced that they are getting into the "YOU MIGHT LIKE THESE SITES" genre. They've added a tab to the personalized page, and a button on their toolbar that takes you to sites you might be interested in based on your searching history. I have to give kudos to Google for doing this. I personally DON'T let Google record my search history, but if I did, I'd really enjoy these new features for the same reason I love StumbleUpon. I'm not real crazy about the direction Google has been taking lately, and I've come down hard on them a few times, but I have to give them credit for doing something worthwhile this time around (well, assuming it works). 🙂
Cheers to eBay for making a smart purchase. Please don't muck it up!