Crimespotting: Like watching youtube but more interesting.

Internet Eyes has come up with novel way to get someone to pay attention to Britain’s 4.2 million security cameras. Sure, it's "crowdsourcing," but if you get beyond the overused, misunderstood and already annoying term, not to mention the privacy issues it brings up, it is a pretty cool way to prevent the classic "asleep at the wheel" security guard situation that is in almost every Three's Company episode. If you see a crime and report it you can make big pounds.

adiFIT™ toddler sneaker sizing.

The adiFIT™ sizing system by adidas ensures a perfect fit for small feet. A removable insole in each shoe has lines indicating where toes should and shouldn't be for a proper fit. Why? Because you can't always get a straight answer out of a three year-old about how his Superstars feel. But when you can see for yourself, you know. Alas, even this good of an idea is not photographed or merchandised anywhere on the shoe-shopping crazy web. And when you open the box, it's hardly celebrated with a hang tag. It has a ™ so somebody must have known they were onto something. I think I have to take my own photo tomorrow of it and repost. It's a real difference and a missed opportunity. I figured at least Zappos would have done something with it. Nope.

Goldfish can survive immediately in Amsterdam tap water.

The water here isn't full of chlorine or fluoride, so I guess while it's not saving your teeth from cavities, it's also not killing you child's new pet. Makes setting up an fish tank way easier than having to wait a few days. The aquarium shop I learned this from has been in business since 1895, so I believe them. Plus, the Dutch know their shit about water.

The-Unlimited-Data-Across-All-European-Countries Plan that doesn't exist.

If it were true, it would be a "best idea." But there are no unlimited data plans across Europe. Why wouldn't Vodafone or T-Mobile offer something like that? They have networks in all the countries. Let's put it in American to get some perspective here. The way things are now, it's like this: you live in New York and have to do business in Washington for a few days. Your data charges run you into the thousands of dollars because you used your phone in DC the way you normally do in NY. That's what it's like if I go to Paris on London. Is this some EU regulatory thing or are the carriers just gouging businesspeople because they can?

One way to get around the beverage cart.

I flew Virgin America this summer and while most people commented that the aircraft looked like a nightclub, the best part of it for me was the way you ordered food. You order and pay via the touchscreen on the seatback in front of you. So your order comes when you order it. Not when they decide to clog the aisles for an hour with beverage carts. The other really cool thing is that you can instant message with people in other seats using the touchscreen. Certainly useful for when get seated apart from your group or if you need to communicate with a colleague who you'd rather not to spend the whole flight next to. Or you can always try it to send a clear message to the kid in the row behind you who's kicking your seat.

A picture is worth a thousand dollars.

I have an account with USAA only because my dad was in the service. They are a great insurance company and supposedly a good bank. Thing is, they don't have any branches. So to deposit checks I would have had to mail them to Texas. This iPhone app released over the summer is one of the best uses of the iPhone's camera I have ever seen. All you need to do is take a photo of your check and, voila, it is deposited into your account. After all, that's what the bank does anyway. Then the iPhone app sends it right to USAA. No tellers. No ATM. No banks. Of course checks are a ridiculously antiquated form of money transfer. Funny how a modern piece of technology can make them convenient once again. For a day or two.

Daffy's truck is on its way.

I don't know how long this has been going on, but it's new to me. Daffy's, the discount fashion retailer in New York, is using Twitter so customers can be notified when a truck full of new designer stuff is on its way to their stores via the Daffy's Truck Tracker. Everyone knows the best time to get to Daffy's, Century 21 or the Barney's Warehouse sale is before all the good stuff has been picked over. This is one of the best uses of Twitter for a brand/retailer that I've seen. At least for today. Kudos to the guys at Johannes Leonardo, Daffy's agency. I am assuming they are behind it because they are smart guys and I believe ad people have the bandwidth to suggest something like this. It is likely that this effort (minus the live tracking map) cost less than a Daffy's clothes hanger to get started.

Twelpforce a.k.a. Twitter Help Force.

I didn't really get what Twelpforce was from the TV ads for Best Buy. I got that they had lots of knowledgeable employees. But then I read about it in the New York Times and I find it an most cool and functional use of Twitter for a retailer. Basically, Best Buy is paying their knowledgeable employees to share their knowledge not only on the sales floor of the big box electronics chain, but via Twitter, too. I have already asked a few gadgety questions of them and got several fast replies. There is no Best Buy in The Netherlands. But thanks to this, I can get answers in English and will return the favor next time I am stateside by buying a memory stick or something from them. Nice one, Best Buy and Crispin Porter+Bogusky.

Coke Zero has Coke's taste therefore...

I love this Coke Zero Facial Profiler Facebook thing. Not because of the technology behind it. But because they frontloaded it in a way that makes complete sense. It is not a technology in search of an idea. The logic is crystal clear: If Coke Zero has Coke's taste, then someone out there may have your face. Coke will own the face profiling thing from here on. Because Coke Zero's whole idea in the rest of its communications is It's possible that Coke Zero tastes like just Coke. I don't even care if they find another person with my glasses, white eyelashes and the beginnings of a double chin. And I don't even know if I will go back to check. The job is already done. Of course, Crispin Porter + Bogusky is behind this. Anyway, if I still drank soda, I might consider a Coke Zero the next time I was reaching for a Coke.