Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Googland

Googland

[G] New Name and New Badges for Authorized Consultants

Posted: 03 May 2010 08:15 PM PDT

Google Analytics Blog: New Name and New Badges for Authorized Consultants

Your friendly neighborhood Google Analytics Authorized Consultant program is getting a new costume and superhero name, though their powers will remain the same. (Read: we are renaming the program and with that comes a shiny new logo - we think of our partners as superpowered).

Our partners are now called Google Analytics Certified Partners. Here's the new logo:


If you are looking for help with your Google Analytics account, look for companies that display this Google Analytics Certified Partners logo. Companies displaying this logo have met our rigorous requirements demonstrating a level of expertise, agreed to our terms and conditions, and have proven experience to work with you.

Yes, we've made them jump through hoops because it's important that we vet the best to service you. We don't take it lightly because optimizing your Google Analytics account is serious business. So, whether it's a quick consultation, help with an implementation or tracking a campaign, or long term support or training - look for companies that display the new logo. The new logos include a "Click to Verify" element that takes you to a listing on our partner page for more information.

You can find the latest list of Google Analytics Certified Partners here. The new logo is part of our plan to produce consistent naming and badging for all Google product partner programs.

Posted by Eva Woo, Google Analytics Team
URL: http://analytics.blogspot.com/2010/05/new-name-and-new-badges-for-authorized.html

[G] Shawn Pearce on FLOSS Weekly

Posted: 03 May 2010 08:15 PM PDT

Google Open Source Blog: Shawn Pearce on FLOSS Weekly




Recently, the Google Open Source Programs Office's Shawn Pearce appeared on FLOSS Weekly for the show's 118th episode. FLOSS Weekly was started by Leo Laporte and Open Source Programs Manager Chris DiBona in 2006, and in 2009 it was nominated for a Podcast Award in the Technology/Science category.

Shawn is the creator of JGit, a reimplementation git in Java, and he spoke to hosts Randal Schwartz and Randi Harper on version control systems, including Gerrit Code Review, JGit, EGit, and Git.

By Ellen Ko, Open Source Team
URL: http://google-opensource.blogspot.com/2010/05/shawn-pearce-on-floss-weekly.html

[G] Target CPA Bidding: A new way to meet your ROI goals with Conversion Optimizer

Posted: 03 May 2010 05:20 PM PDT

Inside AdWords: Target CPA Bidding: A new way to meet your ROI goals with Conversion Optimizer

Today we're announcing a new enhancement to Conversion Optimizer: Target CPA Bidding. With Target CPA Bidding, you can set a bid that reflects the average amount you'd like to pay for a conversion rather than the maximum you're willing to pay for it.

We launched the Conversion Optimizer in 2007 as a tool to improve your campaign ROI. Conversion Optimizer studies your conversion tracking data and automatically adjusts your bids for each auction. Over the past few years, we've been pleased to hear from a number of you that you've seen significant ROI improvements after implementing the Conversion Optimizer. In fact, analysis indicates that, on average, those of you who use the tool experience a 21% increase in conversions along with a 14% decrease in CPA.*

This latest update to the Conversion Optimizer was made in response to your feedback. We've heard from many of you that you're more accustomed to thinking in terms of a target or average CPA when it comes to managing your online advertising (as opposed to the Max CPA bids which the tool has historically required). We hope that having the additional Target CPA bidding option will make it even easier for you to boost your AdWords ROI. Of course, if you're happy using Max CPA bids with your Conversion Optimizer campaigns, then there's no need to make any changes to your campaigns.


To enable Target CPA bidding, visit the Settings tab in your account, select 'Focus on Conversions,' and click 'Advanced Options.' Note that the Conversion Optimizer is only available for campaigns that have implemented conversion tracking and have received at least 15 conversions in the last 30 days.

Posted by Emily Williams, Inside AdWords crew

*This analysis compares the performance of Conversion Optimizer campaigns over the course of a year with a control set of campaigns and represents the average impact of Conversion Optimizer. The actual impact will vary from campaign to campaign.
URL: http://adwords.blogspot.com/2010/05/target-cpa-bidding-new-way-to-meet-your.html

[G] Google Mail is becoming Gmail in the UK

Posted: 03 May 2010 05:20 PM PDT

Official Gmail Blog: Google Mail is becoming Gmail in the UK

Posted by Greg Bullock, Software Engineer

As a Brit, my friends and family often tell me they're miffed that they get an @googlemail.com address instead of @gmail.com. Today I have good news for them: Google Mail is soon becoming Gmail again in the UK.

If you already have a Google email account in the UK, you'll soon have the option to switch your existing @googlemail.com address to the matching @gmail.com one, but you're also free to stick with @googlemail.com. And starting later this week, anybody who signs up for a new account in the UK will get an @gmail.com address. Since "gmail" is 50% fewer characters than "googlemail," we estimate this name change will save approximately 60 million keystrokes a day. At about 217 microjoules per keystroke, that's about the energy of 20 bonbons saved every day!

We'll be making this transition over the next week, and will update this post as the changes roll out. So to Aunty Pamela, Uncle Maurice, and everyone else in the UK, welcome to Gmail!
URL: http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/google-mail-is-becoming-gmail-in-uk.html

[G] Google Ventures: Year one

Posted: 03 May 2010 03:38 PM PDT

Official Google Blog: Google Ventures: Year one

When we launched Google Ventures last March, we wanted to honor Google's entrepreneurial roots while tapping into the wealth of human and technical resources available at Google Inc. to build a unique venture fund. Rather than looking for investments that would simply be strategically useful to Google, we aim to invest in best-of-breed ventures in a wide variety of fields. Our fund's calling is to generate a financial return while supporting entrepreneurs who are creating transformative ventures. In doing so, we try to bring to bear Google's resources to support them in that mission.

The job is fairly straightforward: we want to find outstanding entrepreneurs and start-ups, perform thorough and careful due diligence with the help of the combined experience of more than 20,000 Googlers, and then do everything we can to help those companies grow and succeed. To do so, we're building a team of seasoned entrepreneurs, subject-matter experts and investors committed to this goal — above all else, we want to provide more than dollars to our investees. From product launches to code reviews, from help with communications to UI design and beyond — there are a lot of areas where Google's collective experience might be helpful to a start-up.

We recently revamped our website, where you can find out more about the people that make up the growing Google Ventures team as well as information on the 10 currently announced portfolio companies.

Google Ventures is an expression of our optimism in the future and the belief that looking for, supporting and fostering innovation is worthwhile. We don't know where the next great idea will come from, but with the help of many Googlers, great co-investors and a growing team, we're going to keep looking while working to help entrepreneurs succeed.

Posted by Bill Maris, Managing Partner
URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/google-ventures-year-one.html

[G] Celebrating World Press Freedom Day

Posted: 03 May 2010 12:42 PM PDT

Google Public Policy Blog: Celebrating World Press Freedom Day

Posted by Dorothy Chou, Policy Analyst

Today we're joining Internews, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), and others in recognizing the critical, and often dangerous work that print journalists and bloggers do to bring us information from the most inaccessible corners of the world. Groups like these help make it possible for journalists like John Musa, who is covering the first Sudanese election in 24 years, to give a first-hand account of what is happening at the polls.

CPJ just released its 2010 Impunity Index, which shows where legal systems have failed to protect journalists against violence and murder. When crimes like these go unpunished because government officials refuse to prosecute, the heightened risk of reporting chokes off news and information flow for citizens, amounting to de facto censorship. Just last week Freedom House released its 2010 annual report on freedom of the press, citing "broad setbacks to global media freedom."

In response to growing threats, we were glad to hear that Congress passed the Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act last Thursday, which will shine a light on the practices of foreign governments and the fundamental importance of a free, independent media. We're hopeful that Congress will continue to stand up for the free flow of information across all networks in all forms of media, a fundamental building block of democracy and human rights.

URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2010/05/celebrating-world-press-freedom-day.html

[G] Not merely tilting at windmills — investing in them too

Posted: 03 May 2010 12:42 PM PDT

Official Google Blog: Not merely tilting at windmills — investing in them too

On Friday we made our first direct investment in a utility-scale renewable energy project — two wind farms that generate 169.5 megawatts of power, enough to power more than 55,000 homes. These wind farms, developed by NextEra Energy Resources, harness power from one of the world's richest wind resources in the North Dakota plains and use existing transmission capacity to deliver clean energy to the region, reducing the use of fossil fuels. Through this $38.8 million investment, we're aiming to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy — in a way that makes good business sense, too.

To reach a clean energy future, we need three things: effective policy, innovative technology and smart capital. Through our philanthropic arm Google.org, we've been pushing for energy policies that strengthen the innovation pipeline, and we've been dedicating resources to developing new technologies, including making investments in early-stage renewable energy companies such as eSolar and AltaRock. Smart capital includes not only these early-stage company investments, but also dedicated funding for utility-scale projects. To tackle this need, we've been looking at investments in renewable energy projects, like the one we just signed, that can accelerate the deployment of the latest clean energy technology while providing attractive returns to Google and more capital for developers to build additional projects.

A clear windy day at the Ashtabula II wind farm

We're excited about this first project investment because it uses some of the latest wind turbine technology and control systems to provide one of the lowest-cost sources of renewable energy to the local grid. The turbines can continuously adjust the individual blade pitch angles to achieve optimal efficiency and use larger blades with 15 percent more swept area than earlier generations, allowing capture of even more wind energy for each turbine. The control systems for these wind farms are also advanced and dynamic, allowing for remote 24/7 monitoring and operation to ensure maximum turbine up-time and power production. A couple of us got a chance to climb 80 meters up one of the 113 turbines to see firsthand how the rotating blade motion goes through a gearbox to turn the generator that makes the electricity. The climb to the top also provided a great view of the entire wind farm (don't worry — we all had harnesses and turned the turbine off!).

My colleague Matt takes a rest after the 80-meter climb

We look forward to finding more opportunities to invest in renewable energy projects that use the latest technologies to push the envelope for delivering low cost clean energy. We'll let you know what we find.

Posted by Rick Needham, Green Business Operations Manager
URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/not-merely-tilting-at-windmills.html

[G] New reset cookie functionality on Google Apps

Posted: 03 May 2010 12:42 PM PDT

Official Google Enterprise Blog: New reset cookie functionality on Google Apps

Google Apps provides businesses with seamless, secure access to information regardless of device. You can check your email or consult your calendar, sites, and documents from any web-enabled device anywhere in the world with an Internet connection.

The ability to access your data from virtually anywhere enables higher productivity, but just like traditional systems that don't run in the cloud, security concerns can arise if a user loses a computer or mobile device that can access their sensitive information. Fortunately, when users store data in Google Apps, they do not need to keep it on the device itself. Starting today, administrators can also easily invalidate a user's active connection to Google Apps services from the Google Apps control panel.

More specifically, administrators can now reset a user's sign-in cookies to help prevent unauthorized access to their account. This will log out that user from all current web browser sessions and require new authentication the next time that user tries to access Google Apps. Combined with the existing ability for administrators to reset user passwords, this new feature to reset users' sign-in cookies improves security in the cloud in case of device theft or loss.

If you have any questions about this feature, please check out our help page.

The security and privacy of our customer's data is paramount so stay tuned for more security features on Google Apps.

Posted by Will Smit, Software Engineer, Google Apps
URL: http://googleenterprise.blogspot.com/2010/05/new-reset-cookie-functionality-on.html

[G] Introducing Google’s 2010 Anita Borg Scholars & Finalists

Posted: 03 May 2010 12:42 PM PDT

Official Google Blog: Introducing Google's 2010 Anita Borg Scholars & Finalists

The Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship, established by Google in 2004, honors Dr. Anita Borg, a computer science pioneer who dedicated her life to changing the way we think about diversity and technology. Now in its seventh year, her namesake scholarship continues to support under and post-graduate women completing degrees in computer science and related areas, recognizing and encouraging the next generation of technical leaders and role models.

This year, we're awarding 62 scholars and finalists in the U.S., 17 in Canada and 91 in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. In addition to receiving academic scholarships, all of our winners will be invited to participate in all-expenses-paid networking retreats featuring workshops, speakers, panelists, breakout sessions and social activities at Google offices. See below for a full list of winners and the institution they currently attend.

In the coming months, we'll be announcing winners for the Australia and New Zealand Scholarships. And we've introduced some other big changes for 2010: for the first time, we're awarding Anita Borg Scholarships to students in Sub-Saharan Africa and to high school seniors in the U.S. Later this year, we plan to introduce the first-ever Anita Borg Scholarship in Asia.

For more information on the Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship and other Google scholarship opportunities, visit our scholarships page.

Congratulations, 2010 Scholars and Finalists!

U.S. Scholars

Aditi Goyal, Stanford University
Adrienne Felt, University of California-Berkeley
Angela Oguna, University of Kansas Main Campus
Anna Molosky, Carnegie Mellon University*
Bonnie Kirkpatrick, University of California-Berkeley
Boya Xie, East Carolina University
Carla Villoria, Texas A & M University
Carrine Johnson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology*
Daniela Rosner, University of California-Berkeley
Erika DeBenedictis, California Institute of Technology*
Fan Zhang, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Floraine Grabler, University of California-Berkeley
Jill Woelfer, University of Washington
Karthika Periyathambi, Stanford University
Kristi Morton, University of Washington
Kyle Rector, Oregon State University
Lauren Stephens, Massachusetts Institute of Technology*
Lydia Chilton, University of Washington
Madeline Smith, Ithaca College
Maithilee Kunda, Georgia Institute of Technology
Micol Marchetti-Bowick, Stanford University
Moira Burke, Carnegie Mellon University
Nalini Vasudevan, Columbia University in the City of New York
Natasha Nesiba, New Mexico State University*
Samantha Ainsley, Columbia University in the City of New York
Sheri Williamson, George Mason University
Shilpa Nadimpalli, Tufts University
Sneha Popley, Texas Christian University
Svitlana Volkova, Kansas State University
Therese Avitabile, Brown University
Valeria Fedyk, Stanford University*
Victoria Nneji, Columbia University in the City of New York*

*High school senior — planned matriculation at university listed

U.S. Finalists

Adriana Lopez, New York University
Anne Neilsen, University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Cassandra Helms, Colorado State University
Christina Brandt, Cornell University
Emily Shen, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Esha Nerurkar, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Farzana Rahman, Marquette University
Jana Zujovic, Northwestern University
Jessie Li, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Juliet Bernstein, University of Washington
Lirida Kercelli, Carnegie Mellon University
Marayam Ramezani, DePaul University
Maryam Aziz, Montclair State University
Michal Rabani, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Michelle Burroughs, Carnegie Mellon University
Minlan Yu, Princeton University
Miray Kas, Carnegie Mellon University
Natalie Yudin, Rice University
Pallavi Yerramilli, University of Pennsylvania
Rachael Harding, Carnegie Mellon University
Rachelle Fuhrer, University of California, San Diego
Razieh Nokhbeh Zaeem, University of Texas at Austin
Riddhi Mittal, Stanford University
Sanjana Prasain, University of Washington
Sonia Haiduc, Wayne State University
Wei Chen, Carnegie Mellon University
Yang Shan, Carnegie Mellon University
Yi Gu, University of Memphis
Yinian Qi, Purdue University Main Campus
Zeinab Abbassi, Columbia University in the City of New York

Canada Scholars

Allaa Hilal, University Of Waterloo
Barbara Macdonald, University Of Waterloo
Dana Jansens, Carleton University
Ioana Burcea, University Of Toronto
Michelle Annett, University Of Alberta

Canada Finalists

Audrey Corbeil Therrien, University Of Sherbrooke
Constance Adsett, Dalhousie University
Inmar Givoni, University Of Toronto
Jasmina Vasiljevic, Ryerson University
Jennifer Woodcock, University Of Victoria
Jignasa Shah, Dalhousie University
Margareta Ackerman, University Of Waterloo
Nazish Bhatti, Concordia University
Phillipa Gill, University Of Toronto
Rachel Zhang, Queen's University
Veronica Irvine, University Of Victoria
Yanyan Zhuang, University Of Victoria

Europe, Middle East and Africa Scholars

Adi Shklarsh, Tel Aviv University, Israel
Alexandra Jimborean, Université Louis Pasteur Strasbourg, France
Andrea Francke, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland
Arlette van Wissen, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Birgit Schmidt, Graz University of Technology, Austria
Christina Pöpper, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland
Christine Zarges, Technische Universität Dortmund, Germany
Ekaterina Shutova, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
Elena Tretyak, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia
Estrella Eisenberg, Bar-Ilan University, Israel
Hilary Finucane, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
Hind Saddiki, Al Akhawayn University, Morocco
Irina Makhalova, Moscow Institute of Electronic Technology, Russia
Katayoun Farrahi, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland
Lavinia Basaraba, Politehnica University of Timisoara, Romania
Limor Leibovich, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
Maria Francesca O' Connor, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
Maria-Camilla Fiazza, University of Verona, Italy
Melanie Ganz, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Monika Schubert, Graz University of Technology, Austria
Nina Kargapolova, Novosibirsk State University, Russia
Ntombikayise Banda, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
Nuzhah Gooda Sahib, Queen Mary, University of London, United Kingdom
Oana Tifrea, Free University of Bozen · Bolzano, Italy
Pinar Yanardag, Bogazici University, Turkey
Ruzica Piskac, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland
Samreen Anjum, Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, Qatar
Silvian Gitau, University of Cape Town, South Africa
Sinini Ncube, Rhodes University, South Africa
Sus Lundgren, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden
Susanne Pfeifer, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Tatiana Starikovskaya, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia
Yael Amsterdamer, Tel Aviv University, Israel

Europe, Middle East and Africa Finalists

Afsaneh Asaei, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland
Aia Hassouneh, Birzeit University, Palestinian Territories
Alissa Cooper, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Anastasia Tkach, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia
Anastasia Shakhshneyder, Technische Universität München, Germany
Anna Astrakova, Novosibirsk State University, Russia
Anna Dehof, Saarland University, Germany
Anna Zych, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland
Annemarie Friedrich, Saarland University, Germany
Archana Nottamkandath, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Charlotte Ipema, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands
Ching-Yun Chang, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
Claudia Rosas Mendoza, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain
Claudia Schon, University of Koblenz-Landau, Germany
Efrat Mashiach, Tel Aviv University, Israel
Elzbieta Dlutowska, University of Wrocław, Poland
Eman AbdelSalam, Alexandria University, Egypt
Eva Darulova, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland
Floor Sietsma, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Grace Mbipom, University of Manchester, United Kingdom
Hildegard Kuehne, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany
Ifeanyichukwu Ekeruche, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Ioana Verebi, Politehnica University of Timisoara, Romania
Ivonne Thomas, Hasso Plattner Institute, Germany
Janneke van der Zwaan, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands
Julia Preusse, University of Magdeburg, Germany
Julie Rico, University of Glasgow, United Kingdom
Karolina Soltys, University of Warsaw, Poland
Laura Zilles, Technische Universität Kaiserslautern, Germany
Lene Mejlby, Aarhus University, Denmark
Lina AL Kanj, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
Lucy Gunawan, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands
Maria Mateescu, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland
Maria Karoliina Lehtinen, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
Marije de Heus, University of Twente, The Netherlands
Marleine Daoud, University of Stuttgart, Germany
Mary Baraza, Busoga University, Uganda
Maysa Nouh, Birzeit University, Palestinian Territories
Meyyar Palaniappan, Technische Universität München, Germany
Min Bao, Linköping University, Sweden
Mounira Bachir, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France
Naama Tepper, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
Nga Nguyen, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Nino Shervashidze, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Germany
Olga Streibel, Free University of Berlin, Germany
Reem Mostafa, Alexandria University, Egypt
Rehab Alnemr, Hasso Plattner Institute, Germany
Rikke Bendlin, Aarhus University, Denmark
Ruth Rinott, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel
Sarah Greenfield, De Montfort University, United Kingdom
Sarah Niebe, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Saskia Groenewegen, Utrecht University, The Netherlands
Sophia Wadie, American University in Cairo, Egypt
Svetlana Olonetsky, Tel Aviv University, Israel
Sylvia Grüener, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Germany
Tamar Aizikowitz, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
Viviana Petrescu, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland
Zsuzsanna Püspöki, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Hungary

Posted by Beate List, EMEA University Programmes
URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/introducing-googles-2010-anita-borg.html

[G] "Made-to-order” results with Google Site Search

Posted: 03 May 2010 09:47 AM PDT

Official Google Enterprise Blog: "Made-to-order" results with Google Site Search

Recently, we showed you how Google Site Search Themes can help you customize the look and feel of your website's search engine with just a few clicks. We know it's just as important to be able to quickly and easily modify the format of search results so they appear exactly as you'd like.

With Google Site Search's new data rendering features, you can enable the return of search results in whatever format you'd like. You can control the size and position of images, personalize the attributes that are shown, insert lines of metadata into search results, and much more.

You can find more about the technical implementation details on the Google AJAX API blog, and can add Google Site Search to your website by visiting google.com/sitesearch.

Posted by David Gibson and Nicholas Weininger, Software Engineers
URL: http://googleenterprise.blogspot.com/2010/05/made-to-order-results-with-google-site.html
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