google Archive

0

Google Currents Lets People Easily Create Touchscreen Optimized Content

By
Andy Yen
– December 9, 2011Posted in: Technology

Google Currents released yesterday. Basically, it’s a Flipboard-style app on your tablet or smartphone that lets you view your subscribed RSS feeds and content from featured publishers in a more visually pleasing “online magazine format.”

What makes it interesting, though, is that Google is also launching a basic content publishing platform for small publishers (like yours truly) to easily create a touch-screen optimized content portal.

Alongside Google Currents, we’re also launching a self-service platform that gives publishers the flexibility to design, brand and customize their web content. For example, if you’re a small regional news outlet, a non-profit organization without access to a mobile development team, or a national TV network with web content, you can effortlessly create hands-on digital publications for Google Currents.

It’s pretty basic, and you’ll still need to tackle the problem of growing your subscriber base, but it’s an interesting angle of attack nonetheless.

via Official Google Mobile Blog.

Tags: , , , , ,
0

Urkontinent: The Dogfish Head Google Beer

By
Andy Yen
– November 6, 2011Posted in: Technology

Let’s be real here, Urkontinent is as much official “Google Beer” as your batch of homemade cookies is “<The Company You Work For> Cookies.” Instead, it’s basically a bunch of Google employees who like beer getting one of their favorite microbreweries to partner up on a marketing venture.

Still, it’s kinda cool that Google lets its employees leverage the company brand in pursuing their hobbies. I imagine other, more conservative, companies would have put the kibosh on something like this because of some asinine reason like “tarnishing the company name,” or “not worth company resources,” especially with something like beer. So, good job by Google on that. Kudos to Dogfish Head too, for making delicious beer (love the 90 Minute IPA) and for also indulging some nerds in brewing a new beer with their suggestions.

Even though Google’s been sullying its name a little bit with all of the gaffes in product launches recently, I’d still try “their” beer. I mean, it’s not like Google brewed it themselves or anything.

via PCWorld

Tags: , ,
0

Sneak A Peak At Gmail’s New Interface

By
Andy Yen
– October 20, 2011Posted in: Technology

A new video demonstration of some of Google’s planned changes to the Gmail interface has leaked to the interwebs.

It’s nothing mindblowingly different, especially if you’ve taken part in “previewing” the new Gmail look over the past few months, but there’s some welcome new changes such as a display density changing option and a more “conversational” view for message threads.

Don’t plan on dropping your jaw, but do plan on letting out a positive “hmph.”

 

Tags: , , , ,
0

Google Is Serious About Creating A Standard For Social Networking Widgets

By
Andy Yen
– March 27, 2008Posted in: Technology

open social logo
When I first saw that Google, Myspace, Yahoo, and others were forming the “OpenSocial Foundation,” I almost yelped for joy that someone had finally wised up and decided to create One Social Network to rule them all.  Honestly, there are just too many damn networks to be involved in, much less keep track of, these days.

Unfortunately, the foundation’s main goal is not to consolidate social networks. Rather it is to provide developers with a standard for building applications for use on the different social networks.

Much less exciting, I know.

Nevertheless, it’s still a Good Thing. Open standards are what the internet was founded upon, and it’ll make for a better experience for both developers and users.

Predictably, Facebook is not a part of the initiative, probably because they have the most mature and tenured platform for social networking apps already in full swing.

My first inclination is to draw parallels between the iTunes vs Playsforsure battle of Goliath vs the Davids.  However, this battle may not be a similar debacle, as the battleground is for a development standard and I think the developers themselves hold the final say in determining the victor.

Read More [cnet.com]

Tags: , , , , , , ,