Hotpot = Yelp killer = local recommendation engine powered by you and your friends.

http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2010/11/discover-yours-local-recommendations.html

Yuck. It's so tied into things like your web history (which I have turned off), and other reviews you might have made via Places/Maps. My tinfoil warning lights are going off with this one. Undoubtedly the sheeple will love it.

Quote from: bill on November 17, 2010, 08:11:02 AM
Undoubtedly the sheeple will love it.

not sure, the sheeple hated buzz. This is more mainstream though, admittedly.

As a social network its a bit pants (including telling me I lived in Maine, must get confusing having people outside the US to deal with!) and as a rating system you don't really get anything back, as far as I can see. At least the defaulted 'connect to everyone you ever sent an email to' to off this time. If it does work I suspect a major goal is to get people using their product ratings/review stuff - they also started showing star ratings on adsense for Google Checkout customers yesterday)

Yelp killer? Hell, I'm so out of touch I still use Urbanspoon (which actually works well overseas and even in relatively internet-literate small towns like Fairbanks). I can't imagine why I'd want to plug myself into the borg any more thoroughly than I already have. hehe