Thursday, November 26, 2009

Googland

Googland

[G] Save on holiday shopping

Posted: 25 Nov 2009 07:59 PM PST

Official Google Checkout Blog: Save on holiday shopping

With the holiday shopping rush underway, Google Checkout can help you find great deals this season. Over 900 Checkout stores including TigerDirect.com, BlueNile.com, and Petco.com are offering exclusive discounts of $5, $10, or $20 on what you buy through December 17th.

What's more, it's easy to find places to save as you shop quickly and securely with Checkout. You can either search for products on Google.com and look for the Google Checkout promotion badge, or browse participating stores on our new Checkout deals page. Good luck out there!

Posted by Anita Barci, Product Marketing Manager
URL: http://googlecheckout.blogspot.com/2009/11/save-on-holiday-shopping.html

[G] Alicia Keys Live! on YouTube

Posted: 25 Nov 2009 06:12 PM PST

YouTube Blog: Alicia Keys Live! on YouTube

If you were one of the millions who tuned in to watch U2 perform live on YouTube last month or if you just love music, you should put this in your calendar: On December 1, R&B superstar Alicia Keys will be performing at an intimate theater in New York City in honor of World AIDS Day. We'll be live-streaming the event worldwide and encouraging viewers to donate to Alicia's charity of choice, Keep a Child Alive.

Here's Alicia's special message about the concert and what it hopes to achieve:



This show, presented by American Express, will start at 8 p.m. (ET) on Tuesday, December 1. Tune in here to watch Alicia live and help raise funds for children with HIV/AIDS.

Michele Flannery, Music Manager, recently watched "Song of Mable" by Matryomin Ensemble Mable


URL: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/youtube/PKJx/~3/_Qw5sTJ7QiU/alicia-keys-live-on-youtube.html

[G] Google Search by voice: Now in Times Square!

Posted: 25 Nov 2009 04:36 PM PST

Official Google Mobile Blog: Google Search by voice: Now in Times Square!

If you've been to Times Square in New York City over the past couple weeks, on any day from 12:30-2:00pm or 6:30-8:00pm, you may have noticed that Google Search by voice is powering Times Square's largest combined displays -- the Reuters Sign and the NASDAQ sign. Anyone can call 888-376-4336 and say the name of a business or a location that they want to search for, like "museum of modern art" or "pizza". Then, the query and local search results from Google will appear on one of the two electronic billboards. This is all part of Verizon's "Droid Does" campaign and has been developed in partnership with Reuters and R/GA, a digital advertising agency.

On Black Friday, Times Square's gigantic interactive search-by-voice demo will be running for 20 hours straight. So if you're in the area and have a chance to take a break from your shopping, or if you want to see your next shopping destination displayed on a Google map on the huge signs, give the demo a try and let us know what you think. And for those of you that aren't in Manhattan on that day, you can still watch the action via webcam.

I flew out to New York last week to try it myself. R/GA gave me a behind-the-scenes tour of the setup, and I was impressed by how they pulled this off. A caller's voice is sent through the phone system, directly into a small farm of real Droids running voice search that are connected to the big outdoor electronic displays! R/GA developers made use of the Android voice recognition API just like any Android developer can.

It's been quite a ride for the search by voice team -- from launching on the iPhone about a year ago, to our launches on BlackBerry and Android, and on S60 in Mandarin Chinese, to powering billboards in Times Square. We're thankful for the chance to work on technology that excites us and that can help more of you search faster and more easily on your phone. And we hope you've been noticing the ongoing improvements in the accuracy of our voice recognition. We can't wait to show you what we have in store for next year.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Posted by Mike LeBeau, Senior Software Engineer
URL: http://googlemobile.blogspot.com/2009/11/google-search-by-voice-now-in-times.html

[G] Episode # 3 - Rapid Fire Web Analytics Q and A with Avinash and Nick

Posted: 25 Nov 2009 03:26 PM PST

Google Analytics Blog: Episode # 3 - Rapid Fire Web Analytics Q and A with Avinash and Nick

This is the third video in our recent Rapid Fire series where you share your most burning questions via the Google Analytics Google Moderator site and we answer them!

Generally we want to focus on your questions about key metrics and analysis techniques, but this week we get a little technical.

In this episode we discuss:
  • How to group referrals from common sources
  • How to setup Google Analytics to track multiple web sites and view all the aggregate data in one profile
  • Strategies to track websites that support different languages
  • The value of using Google Analytics on You Tube partner channels
  • Troubleshooting discrepancies in Google Analytics Data
  • Best practices for implementing E-commerce tracking for E-commerce sites
  • Simplifying customizing the date range in GA
  • How to track segments of users who interact with internal referrals/cross sell campaigns
  • Tracking Social Media campaigns



Here are links to resources we discussed in the video:
If you found this helpful, we'd love to hear your comments.

If you have a question you would like us to answer, please submit a question or vote for your favorite question in our public Google Moderator site. Avinash and I will answer your latest questions in a couple of weeks with yet another entertaining video.

Please add your thoughts about the Q&A via comments below. Thanks!

Posted by Nick Mihailovski, Google Analytics Team
URL: http://analytics.blogspot.com/2009/11/episode-3-rapid-fire-web-analytics-q.html

[G] 31 Google Maps tips for smooth sailing through the holiday season

Posted: 25 Nov 2009 11:01 AM PST

Google LatLong: 31 Google Maps tips for smooth sailing through the holiday season

With families coming together, the start of the ski season, and weekly shopping trips becoming acceptable, there's a lot to love about the holiday season. What's that? Gridlocked traffic? Fully booked hotels? Can't find the perfect gift? Oh my, the holidays are rough!

To help kick off your season right, we've put together a list of 31 Google Maps tips for life to help you to save time, look smart, and manage your travels efficiently. Start with the tips that are right for you, based on what type of expert you'd like to become: a Local Expert, Ace Navigator, Global Explorer, or Business Owner. You can try a tip a day for a month, or blast through them all at once.

Here are my favorite tips from each section:

Local Expert Tip #3: Just keep searching
It's rare that you leave the house with only one goal in mind. More often you're heading to one place, like a party across town, but you need to pick up your contribution at the grocery store and get gas along the way. In Google Maps, you can see multiple searches layered on the map all at the same time. When you do two or more consecutive searches, you'll notice a blue bar at the bottom of the left panel. Click on it to expand the widget, which allows you to turn on both searches at once.

The markers on the map are color-coded, so you can tell which search is which. This is perfect for helping you pick the most efficient route to accomplish all your goals.

Ace Navigator Tip #4: Check live and predictive traffic information
Traffic patterns are hard to decipher when you're driving out-of-town. For both highways and arterial roads, Google Maps provides live and predictive traffic information for any day of the week and time of the day, based on past conditions and live crowdsourcing. Plan your departure times to avoid traffic jams!

Global Explorer Tip #6: A page for every place
No matter how far from home your travels take you, with Google Maps on your side you can become an expert even in a foreign locale. By clicking on the "More Info" link in a business listing, easily learn more about any place on the map with information ranging from photos to reviews to store hours. A Place Page is like a webpage for every place in the world, organizing all the relevant information about it. Who wants blueberry pancakes in New York? I've never been there, but I'd now recommend Clinton Street Baking Co, which has the "best blueberry pancakes ever!" according to reviews.

Cross your fingers that the economy is recovering, but even so, holiday shoppers are likely to be on the lookout for bargains. Google Insights for Search shows that searches for coupons are still up. By claiming your Google business listing through Local Business Center, you can create coupons that will appear alongside your business listing on Google Maps. Let Google users print your coupons and bring them to your business, or even show your coupons on mobile phones to attract customers on the go.

Enjoy our new tips for life, and next time you find someone lacking in holiday cheer, just share with them one of 31 ways to save time, look smart, and manage their travels more efficiently, like you.

Posted by Laura Melahn, Product Marketing Manager
URL: http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2009/11/31-google-maps-tips-for-smooth-sailing.html
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