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Stu Haugen Hi, I'm Stu Haugen. I have created or expanded successful tech startups in both the US and in Europe. I can help you finance and build a successful startup company. For more information on me, click here.

UPDATE: I am currently splitting my time between San Jose, California and Paris, France so feel free to contact me for any opportunity you may have in mind... I am globally mobile.

Je vis et travaille en France depuis 20 ans. Je sais parfaitement négocier en français et j'ai d'ailleurs pu accompagner avec succès plusieurs équipes françaises de direction appartenant aussi bien à des startups qu'à de gros groupes internationaux.

Do you have a strategically focused, compelling business plan ready for investors? Is it in English or French?

Did you know?

  • English is a much more precise language than French.
  • English has 4-5 times as many words as French which means your writing must be very concise!
  • Only 5% of business plans are read beyond the Executive Summary so your plan must be very well written.
Let's talk about how I can help...

“Lazy Sunday,” the Saturday Night Live digital short credited with popularizing YouTube in late 2005, got a sequel Saturday night.

“Lazy Sunday 2″ once again follows nerds Chris Parnell and Andy Samberg as they rap about mundane weekend activities. While in 2005, the day centered around seeing The Chronicles of Narnia, this time it’s the Broadway version of Sister Act.

SEE ALSO: SNL’s 100th Digital Short Packs in Stars and Raunch [VIDEO]

The sequel dropped as Samberg, Kristen Wiig and Jason Sudeikis are reportedly leaving the show.

For comparison’s sake, below is the original version. What do you think of the new one? Let us know in the comments.

More About: andy samberg, Lazy Sunday, snl, viral videos

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Mark Zuckerberg may have just wrapped up the biggest week of his life.

In the span of just seven days, the Facebook CEO has turned 28, taken his company public, become worth almost $20 billion and married his college sweetheart.

On the one hand, thinking about all of those life-altering events happening in such a short period of time makes us dizzy. On the other hand, it should make remembering anniversaries easier!

So if you’re Mark Zuckerberg, how do you share your eventful week with the world? You post about it on Facebook, of course!

We’ve rounded up some of the best photos of Zuckerberg’s very big week.

Mark, from all of us at Mashable, happy birthday, congrats on the IPO and mazel tov on the wedding! As one newlywed to another, I think you’ll agree it’s pretty awesome.

As for next week? Well, if it were us, we’d take a much-needed vacation!

NASDAQ Bell Ringing, Friday




Photo courtesy Facebook Product Designer Francis Luu

Click here to view this gallery.

More About: Facebook, facebook ipo, mark zuckerberg, trending


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May
19

Mark Zuckerberg Gets Married

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In a surprise ceremony, Facebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg married his longtime girlfriend, Priscilla Chan, in a private wedding at his home in Palo Alto, Calif. on Saturday.

Zuckerberg, who just became a billionaire as a result of the Facebook IPO on Friday, reportedly placed a ring on his wife’s finger during the ceremony — the ring, said to be designed by Zuckerberg himself, was described as featuring a “very simple ruby.”

According to the Associated Press, Zuckerberg’s marriage to Priscilla Chan took place in front of about 100 invited guests who thought they were celebrating Ms. Chan’s medical school graduation. It all happened in Zuckerberg’s backyard.

Take a look at Zuckerberg’s personal page on Facebook, and you’ll see the above picture, which Zuckerberg reportedly placed onto his own site as a change of his status after the ceremony.

The couple met while both were attending Harvard, and have been together for nine years.

It was a dramatic day of a big week for Zuckerberg:

NASDAQ Bell Ringing, Friday

Photo courtesy Facebook Product Designer Francis Luu

Click here to view this gallery.

Photo courtesy Mark Zuckerberg/Facebook

More About: mark zuckerberg, trending


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The number of Americans who own smartphones rocketed past the number who own basic mobile phones this year, and marketers have been expanding their mobile budgets at a similarly rapid rate.

One study estimated mobile advertising will be $5.04 billion industry by 2015.

HighTable, a startup social website for professionals, compiled data about the key factors in the growing mobile marketing space in the infographic below.




More About: infographic, mobile marketing


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Touchscreen Icons

Friday marked the much-anticipated Facebook IPO, and boy, do we have have a lot of resources for that topic. Whether you have no idea what an IPO is or you want to know how it might affect you, use our weekly features roundup to catch up.

We’ve covered more than just Facebook, though. This week we also have tips and tricks for Viddy beginners, instructions for live-streaming your wedding and a new episode of Behind the Launch. We’ve also covered socially conscious organizations like Idealist and Keepon, educational Android apps for adults and how social media can help users get internships. We even have a recap of the fantastic events at Mashable Connect.

What are you waiting for? Get started!


Editor’s Picks



Social Media


For more social media news and resources, you can follow Mashable‘s social media channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.


Business & Marketing


For more business news and resources, you can follow Mashable‘s business channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.


Tech & Mobile


For more tech news and resources, you can follow Mashable‘s tech channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, akinbostanci.

More About: Business, COMMUNICATIONS, Facebook, facebook ipo, Features Week In Review, Social Media, Tech


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May
19

Top 10 Tech This Week [PICS]

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Top 10 Tech is presented by Chivas. Access a world of exclusive insider benefits – private tastings, special events and the chance to win a trip for you and three friends to the Cannes Film Festival. Join the Brotherhood.

1. Sneak Peek: Beacon Phoenix Bluetooth Speaker

As speakers get smaller, their sound seems to get bigger. That’s the case with this Beacon Phoenix Bluetooth speaker, a handsome unit available in red, blue and black. We listened to this cute $99 cube, available for preorder next month, and it cranked out some crispy tunes at a prodigious volume despite its diminutive size. In other words, it’s loud.

My biggest thrill was unplugging it and running it on battery power — it felt like there was a whole band standing in the palm of my hand, rocking it with impressive intensity. It hooks up easily to your Bluetooth-compatible device, and the company says the Phoenix’s rechargeable battery will play on for eight hours.

However, because of its tiny size, its bass sounded diminished, although still present. Even so, it might be a worthy companion for a dancing beach trip this summer.

[Pre-orders start next month at beaconaudio.com]

Click here to view this gallery.

The futuristic tech we found this week was so radical, it was getting hard for us to separate fantasy from reality. The week was swarming with future cars, efficient aircraft, brand-new Windows 8 screenshots, yet another peek at the iPhone 5 with its almost-confirmed bigger screen, and even a sexy new way to take a shower.

Yes, it was as if we had our own time machine, jumping into its cockpit and finding faster Wi-Fi, wireless power, and perhaps even discovering everyone in the future will be above-average. Well, perhaps that’s going a bit too far.

SEE ALSO: Previous editions of Top 10 Tech This Week

But you haven’t gone too far; in fact, dear reader, you’ve come to the right place, where we give you a sneak peek into the future with Top 10 Tech This Week.

Here’s last week’s Top 10 Tech.


Series presented by Chivas


 

Top 10 Tech is presented by Chivas. Access a world of exclusive insider benefits – private tastings, special events and the chance to win a trip for you and three friends to the Cannes Film Festival. Join the Brotherhood.

More About: features, mashable, Top 10 Tech, trending


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Authorities in China have cleared Google’s plan to acquire Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion.

If the deal closes, it will be Google’s first hardware acquisition. It will also give the company access to Motorola’s treasure trove of 17,000 patents.

Chinese regulators attached one big condition to their approval, according to the Associated Press: That Android for mobile devices will remain free for at least five years. Google has also received the go-ahead from Europeon and American authorities to move forward with the acquisition.

More About: china, Google, Motorola

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May
19

Show Us Your Eclipse Photos

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On Sunday, May 20, a spectacular astronomical phenomenon will occur when our moon passes between the Earth and the sun. The result for the luckiest of viewers will be an annular (or ring-shaped) solar eclipse. Many others will gladly “settle” for the similarly beautiful partial eclipse.

This type of eclipse occurs less than once a year, but even then it only appears geographically for those in its trajectory. Tecca reports the eclipse will appear full for viewers in locations including Tokyo, Redding, Calif., central Nevada, southern Utah, northern Arizona, and Albuquerque, N.M.

Other locations in the Western United States and Canada and parts of the Pacific will see the partial eclipse. If you’re in the Western U.S., the eclipse will begin on Sunday at around 6:30 P.M. PDT.

At Mashable, we love to see these amazing events, but we especially love seeing them through your eyes. Most recently, we asked you to send us photos of the “supermoon,” and the results were stunning. Now, we want you to send us your photos of the annular eclipse. Simply drag your photo to the widget below, or tweet them with the hashtag #MashEclipse.

Before you get started, make sure you look at Space.com’s guide to safely photographing the eclipse. We’re looking forward to seeing your best shots!

More About: photography, space


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Facebook-world-600

Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin has been the target of public wrath after announcing he would be renouncing his U.S. citizenship and moving to Singapore, a haven where capital gains aren’t taxed one bit. Will Facebook follow in his footsteps by funneling money through international subsidiaries to maneuver around the American tax code?

The recently-gone-public social network could set up small satellite officies in countries with comparatively low tax rates, funneling income through foreign nations so money is never technically earned in the U.S. — and therefore not subject to American tax codes.

Such a move would be completely legal. It’s currently employed by a variety of companies, including Apple, which was the primary subject of a recent article in The New York Times about the practice.

The technique is particularly well-suited to technology firms such as Facebook because the company’s bottom line doesn’t depend on selling tangible goods. Facebook’s network and data are the products being sold, and data pay no mind to international borders, bodies of water or other impediments to international trade.

Facebook’s S-1 filing hints the company may indeed be preparing to send its intellectual property on a tax-minimizing trip across the world.

“Our effective tax rate in the future will depend on the portion of our profits earned within and outside the United States, which will also be affected by our methodologies for valuing our intellectual property and intercompany transactions,” reads the S-1.

Technology firms don’t just benefit from the intangibility of their products, however. There’s plenty of domestic tax subsidies to be enjoyed for doing research and development, or R&D. Tech firms do a lot of R&D in comparison to businesses in other fields, and that drives their effective tax rate even lower.

How low can they go?

Internet companies paid an effective tax rate of 5.9% in 2009, according to an NYU study. By way of comparison, the United States has an official top corporate tax rate of 35%. Car manufacturers and shipping companies paid upwards of 30% in corporate taxes in the same year — the downside of selling heavy, tangible, difficult-to-fit-on-the-Internet products.

SEE ALSO: Facebook Co-Founder: No, I Didn’t Leave U.S. to Dodge Taxes

Facebook did not return a request for comment in regards to this article.

Do you think businesses should be barred from funneling money through foreign subsidiaries? Sound off in the comments below.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, -Oxford-

More About: Facebook, facebook ipo, US, World


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Microsoft has revealed an updated desktop user interface for Windows 8.

“In the end, we decided to bring the desktop closer to the Metro aesthetic,” wrote Jensen Harris, the Director of Program Management for the Microsoft Windows User Experience Team, in a blog post about the changes.

The biggest change in the update is a move away from Aero Glass, a clear-window effect introduced with Vista.

A release preview of the operating system is due in June. In the meantime, you can get a glimpse of the interface in the video above. Harris wrote he expects any change to “bring forward its share of both deep believers and naysayers.”

Do you fit in either category? Tell us why in the comments.

More About: Micosoft, trending, Windows 8

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