Browser plug-in enables recording, retrieval, and analysis of Web behavior
Hooeey is a plug-in for Firefox and Internet Explorer that retains a user’s Web browsing history separate from the actual browser and across both browsing tools. All sites visited are saved in a central location, can be shared with others, re-purposed into analytical tools, or turned into a slideshow for posting or distribution. Users choose from three privacy levels for their content: private (no sharing), public (sharing with invited friends), or community (sharing with all Hooeey users). Several other safeguards have been put into place to assuage privacy concerns: site tracking can be turned off with one click, users can delete individual sites easily and, most important, data stays on the user’s computer until he or she chooses to upload it to the Hooeey site.
Tracking one’s path on the Web has been a need since the browser’s inception, and the history feature on Firefox and Internet Explorer has evolved significantly to meet this demand. While we believe more functionality is needed, we won’t go so far as to crown Hooeey the victor in this crowded market, that includes Google’s Personal Search and Web History features.
There are features we like about Hooeey: the ability to shut off tracking for one or two sites, then quickly resume; local storage until the user chooses to upload; the ability to track history from multiple computers in one place; and the variety of analytics available. But better organizational options need to be offered, as well as a much more sophisticated search function. As it stands now, we were left staring at an endless list of URLs to tag and sort into folders.
Founder and CEO Rajeev Purnaiya previously founded CyberBazaar, India’s first and largest Web conferencing company. After selling CyberBazaar to WebEx, he became managing director of WebEx India until mid-2005. But his experience alone is not enough. Hooeey needs to build up its team – more than one executive is needed to compete against Google – and put more money into development.
Solid revenue awaits in an enterprise version, but the Bangalore, India company has no engineers devoted to it yet. If Hooeey wants to compete effectively in the popular sector of social bookmarking, it needs to get serious and start bulking up – in hiring, product design, and marketing.
