They tried to get investors to fund a map application that they wanted to make, but it’s a good thing they didn’t. When Google opened up its mapping API it made Maponics’s Flash-based idea less appealing. - After Google came out with its product, Maponics shut down its Flash-based product. The first company he founded failed, but now Darrin Clement is running a multi-million dollar mapping business that he founded and bootstrapped. How did he go from having to close down his previous company to winning so many customers at this one?

Have you noticed how some entrepreneurs look at getting funding as the ultimate sign of success? Not only is funding not the finish line, but the mistakes you make when you get investors can cost you when you finally do get to the finish line and are ready to sell your company. Brandon has done stints as an operator at all stages of the funding cycle, and at Soros Private Equity, investing over $70M in technology deals. Brandon Watson came to Mixergy to talk about how he raised money for his startup, how he grew it, and why he had to sell it. The two most powerful points

When you meet someone, don’t you Google them to see what the Internet has to say? Funding-Forum Interview Reputation Management podcas Doesn’t everyone do that to you too? In this program, Andy Beal talks about how to protect your reputation online. Andy is the publisher of Marketing Pilgrim, the founder of Trackur, and the author of Radically Transparent.

Don’t worry, we didn’t either until today when he opened up a little bitchfest on the BarCampLA Google group . We aren’t sure exactly what they did, but it sounds like they helped startups get funded or throw parties or something. Thanks for joining us for Great Moments in Google Groups, till next time. ...Tags: Don’t know John Pratt ? The exchange was funny enough to make HackerNews under the title “ How not to promote your new startup “. Certainly an appropriate title

Don’t worry, we didn’t either until today when he opened up a little bitchfest on the BarCampLA Google group . We aren’t sure exactly what they did, but it sounds like they helped startups get funded or throw parties or something. Thanks for joining us for Great Moments in Google Groups, till next time. ...Tags: Don’t know John Pratt ? The exchange was funny enough to make HackerNews under the title “ How not to promote your new startup “. Certainly an appropriate title

One reason is that these individuals frequently appear as the missing link--a shortcut to the expertise, or funding or connections we need. Another reason is that we question "who would be brazen enough to take my $3,500 to prepare paperwork that would virtually insure my funding?" Google. The recent economic turmoil has witnessed the destruction of many businesses and jobs. At the same time, new opportunities are cropping up everywhere.

Search engine giant Google announced Tuesday that the firm is funding a number of University research projects, including a group of researchers at UC San Diego, a researcher at UC Santa Barbara, and a researcher in Los Angeles. Google said that the firm is awarding a total of $5.7M as part of its Google Focused Research Awards, to Among the 12 projects, which include 31 professors at 10 universities, are one on the use of mobile phones as data collection devices for public health an environmental monitoring, which includes Deborah Estrin at UCLA; work on energy efficiency in computing, which includes Fred Chong at UC Santa Barbara; and another grant focused on energy efficiency in computing to Tajana Simunic Rosing, Steven Swanson and Amin Vahdat at UCSD.

Irvine-based startup YouMail has just gotten a new competitor: search engine giant Google, which launched a significantly comparable service to YouMail's voice mail services. The venture backed startup--which has scored funding from the Tech Coast Angels and VantagePoint Venture Partners--appears to have significant overlap to Google's new Google Voice services. Google, Google, YouMail offers a voice mail service which allows cell phone users to preview their voicemail messages in email or on the web, convert those voicemails to text, and provide personalized phone greetings to callers, depending on who is calling.

San Diego-based OpenCandy , which develops software and services to monetize downloads of open source software, said today that it has added Joe Kraus of Google Ventures to the firm's board of directors. The firm has raised funding from Bessemer Ventures, O'Reilly Alphatech, as well as Reid Hoffman of LinkedIn and other angels. Tags: opencandy executive software download Kraus is the co-founder of Excite and Jotspot. OpenCandy said that Kraus was an early investor in the firm.

Woodland Hills-based ReachLocal , which helps small businesses buy search engine advertising, has inked a strategic alliance with Google in the United Kingdom, the firm announced today. ReachLocal said that it has become an "Authorised Reseller" of Google's AdWords in the UK, through its UK site, ReachLocal UK . ReachLocal is venture backed by VantagePoint Venture Partners, Rho Ventures ReachLocal opened up its UK office in London in November, as it looks to expand internationally. The company already provides similar services in the United States, and also recently opened an office