Thursday, February 10, 2011

Googland

Googland

[G] IPv6 marks the next chapter in the history of the Internet

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 04:02 AM PST

Google Public Policy Blog: IPv6 marks the next chapter in the history of the Internet

Posted by Vint Cerf, Chief Internet Evangelist

(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog.)

In the same way your phone is associated with a unique number, your computer is assigned a unique Internet Protocol (IP) address when you connect to the Internet. The current protocol, IPv4, allows for approximately 4 billion unique addresses—and that number is about to run out.

This morning the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced (PDF) that it has distributed the last batch of its remaining IPv4 addresses to the world's five Regional Internet Registries, the organizations that manage IP addresses in different regions. These Registries will begin assigning the final IPv4 addresses within their regions until they run out completely, which could come as soon as early 2012.

As the last blocks of IPv4 addresses are assigned, adoption of a new protocol—IPv6—is essential to the continued growth of the open Internet. IPv6 will expand Internet address space to 128 bits, making room for approximately 340 trillion trillion trillion addresses (enough to last us for the foreseeable future).

Google, along with others, has been working for years to implement the larger IPv6 format. We're also participating in the planned World IPv6 Day, scheduled for June 8, 2011. On this day, all of the participating organizations will enable access to as many services as possible via IPv6.

Today's ICANN announcement marks a major milestone in the history of the Internet. IPv6, the next chapter, is now under way.
URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2011/02/ipv6-marks-next-chapter-in-history-of.html

[G] Some weekend work that will (hopefully) enable more Egyptians to be heard

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 04:02 AM PST

Google Public Policy Blog: Some weekend work that will (hopefully) enable more Egyptians to be heard

Posted by Ujjwal Singh, CoFounder of SayNow and AbdelKarim Mardini, Product Manager, Middle East & North Africa
(Cross-posted on the Official Google Blog)

Like many people we've been glued to the news unfolding in Egypt and thinking of what we could do to help people on the ground. Over the weekend we came up with the idea of a speak-to-tweet service—the ability for anyone to tweet using just a voice connection.

We worked with a small team of engineers from Twitter, Google and SayNow, a company we acquired last week, to make this idea a reality. It's already live and anyone can tweet by simply leaving a voicemail on one of these international phone numbers (+16504194196 or +390662207294 or +97316199855) and the service will instantly tweet the message using the hashtag #egypt. No Internet connection is required. People can listen to the messages by dialing the same phone numbers or going to twitter.com/speak2tweet.

We hope that this will go some way to helping people in Egypt stay connected at this very difficult time. Our thoughts are with everyone there.
URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2011/01/some-weekend-work-that-will-hopefully.html

[G] Celebrating Data Privacy Day

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 04:02 AM PST

Google Public Policy Blog: Celebrating Data Privacy Day

Posted by Alma Whitten, Director of Privacy, Product and Engineering
(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog)

It's become a welcome tradition: Today is the fourth annual Data Privacy Day. Dozens of countries have been celebrating with events throughout the week to inform and educate us all about our personal data rights and protections.

This is the first year I've marked this day as director of privacy across both engineering and product management at Google. I've chosen to spend the day in Washington, D.C., where there's a been a lot of robust and productive discussion lately. People from Congress, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Commerce, and industry and consumer groups have been contributing to these important conversations about how to best protect people's data, and we're happy to be participating too. I'm doing my part by bringing my geek sensibilities into a public discussion that we're hosting today. In fact, that's what we're calling it: "The Technology of Privacy: When Geeks Meet Wonks." I'll be joined on the panel by technologists from the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Federal Trade Commission and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. If you can't attend in person, don't worry—we'll be uploading a video of the event later in the day on our Public Policy blog and you'll also be able to see it on the Google Privacy Channel on YouTube.

On this Data Privacy Day, a major focus for Google is on creating ways for people to manage and protect their data. We've built tools like the Google Dashboard, the Ads Preferences Manager and encrypted search, and we're always working on further ideas for providing transparency, control and security to empower our users. For example, earlier this week we launched an extension for Chrome users called Keep My Opt-Outs, which enables you to opt out permanently from ad tracking cookies. And pretty soon we'll be extending the availability of 2-step verification, an advanced account security solution that is now helping protect more than 1,000 new accounts a day from common problems like phishing and password compromise. Right now it's available to Google Apps Accounts; we'll be offering it to all users in the next few weeks.

Data Privacy Day 2011 reminds us that as industry and society are busy moving forward, we face new challenges that together we can tackle through conversation and innovation. We're eager to be part of the solution.

Update (2/1/11):  Here's the video of our panel, "The Technology of Privacy: When Geeks Meet Wonks." Enjoy –

URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2011/01/celebrating-data-privacy-day.html

[G] White spaces momentum continues

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 04:02 AM PST

Google Public Policy Blog: White spaces momentum continues

Posted by Larry Alder, Business Operations Principal

Today we're one step closer to a world with "super Wi-Fi." In an order released yesterday afternoon, the FCC conditionally designated nine companies, including Google, as administrators for a white spaces database and outlined some important ground rules for its operation.

Just last fall the Commission adopted final technical rules on white spaces – the unused, public airwaves that we believe will lead to the next generation of wireless technologies. Before inventors can start to introduce new products and services on these airwaves, the FCC must certify the white spaces databases, which will ensure that different wireless signals don't interfere with each other.

In the coming weeks, the FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology will work with the designated database administrators, including real-world testing to ensure that databases provide accurate results. Last year, we submitted a proposal to build and operate a database, and we plan to be involved in the FCC's process moving forward.

We're excited to see momentum continue on white spaces, and can't wait to see what new technologies will emerge.
URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2011/01/white-spaces-momentum-continues.html

[G] Help wanted: Google hiring in 2011

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 04:02 AM PST

Google Public Policy Blog: Help wanted: Google hiring in 2011

Posted by Alan Eustace, SVP Engineering and Research

(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog.)

2010 was a huge year for Google. Many of our big bets—on mobile, display advertising, the cloud and more—really started to pay off. Amazingly, Android now runs on over 100 devices with more than 300,000 activations each day. Chrome has at least 120 million active users and it's growing quickly. Last year more than 1 million businesses switched to Google Apps and embraced its 100% web approach. And we've made search faster than ever, even whenyou're on the go.

But it wasn't just a growth year for our products—the company grew as well. In 2010 we added more than 4,500 Googlers, primarily in engineering and sales: second only to 2007 when we added over 6,000 people to Google.

I love Google because of our people. It's inspiring to be part of the team. And that's why I am excited about 2011—because it will be our biggest hiring year in company history. We're looking for top talent—across the board and around the globe—and we'll hire as many smart, creative people as we can to tackle some of the toughest challenges in computer science: like building a web-based operating system from scratch, instantly searching an index of more than 100 million gigabytes and even developing cars that drive themselves. There's something at Google for everyone—from geo, to enterprise, to video—with most of the work done in small teams, effectively working as start-ups. (The average number of software engineers on a project at Google is 3.5.) That's why the vast majority of our people stay with us, building their careers and taking on new challenges within the company.

I joined Google more than eight years ago—when we had barely 500 employees and still used Outlook for email and AIM for chat—and while there have been many changes, Google is still the same entrepreneurial company it was when I started, encouraging Googlers to take on big ideas and high-risk, high-reward opportunities.

If you think you want to join the team, check out google.com/jobs.
URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2011/01/help-wanted-google-hiring-in-2011.html

[G] Google Voice and Project CARE

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 04:02 AM PST

Google Public Policy Blog: Google Voice and Project CARE

Posted by David Green, Global Communications & Public Affairs

This past Saturday, dozens of organizations across the region participated in the Winterhaven Homeless Veterans Stand Down at the Washington DC Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

For the second year in a row, Google partnered with Project CARE to provide special Google Voice accounts to homeless veterans. We provided about 500 accounts, giving homeless veterans a phone number that can be put on job applications and resumes, or handed out to family and friends. We've been offering similar services in the San Francisco area for the past few years.

As we mentioned last year, providing Google Voice accounts is a small gesture, but we hope these veterans find the product useful. Thanks again to the Winterhaven organizers for giving us the opportunity to participate.
URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2011/01/google-voice-and-project-care.html

[G] Keep your opt-outs

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 04:02 AM PST

Google Public Policy Blog: Keep your opt-outs

Posted by Sean Harvey and Rajas Moonka, Product Managers

Today we're making available Keep My Opt-Outs, which enables you to opt out permanently from ad tracking cookies. It's available as an extension for download in Chrome.

Why have we developed this feature?

Recently, the Federal Trade Commission and others have expressed interest in a "Do Not Track" mechanism that could offer users a simple way to opt out of personalized advertising. Advertising companies that are members of the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) already let you opt out of tracking for the purposes of personalizing advertisements, and many online advertisers and trade associations have also joined a major self-regulatory effort to enforce a uniform privacy icon for ads, as well as opt-out guidelines.

There are more than 50 companies that are members that offer opt outs via these programs, including the top 15 largest ad networks in the U.S. Some, like Google, enable you not only to opt out, but to tailor the personalization of ads by specifying what types of ads you're most interested in seeing.

However, the industry has faced a recurring technical challenge with these opt-outs and controls. If you clear your browser's cookies, all customized settings — including these opt-outs — are lost. Another challenge is that sometimes new companies offer opt-outs, so you'd have to check frequently to make sure you're opted out of what you want. A better "Do Not Track" mechanism is a browser extension that means you can easily opt out of personalized advertising from all participating ad networks only once and store that setting permanently.

We've been working on addressing these issues for awhile. Nearly two years ago, we engineered a solution for Google's ad system. We made available, for all major browsers, a downloadable browser plugin that enables you to permanently opt out of Google's advertising cookie, even if you deleted all your browser's cookies. We've also built granular cookie controls into Chrome directly, and integrated Adobe Flash Player storage management into these controls. We've also modified Chrome's incognito mode to ensure that it applies to "Flash cookies" in addition to regular cookies.

Today we are building on this work, and that of others, by allowing you to permanently opt out of ad tracking from all companies that offer opt-outs through the industry self-regulation programs. Keep in mind that once you install the Keep My Opt-Outs extension, your experience of online ads may change: You may see the same ads repeatedly on particular websites, or see ads that are less relevant to you.

Importantly, we've designed the extension so that it should not otherwise interfere with your web browsing experience or website functionality. This new feature gives you significant control without compromising the revenue that fuels the web content that we all consume every day.

More to come

We're working to make this feature available for other browsers, too. We've also decided to make the code for this extension available on an open-source basis, so that other developers can let us know if there's a bug, or even extend the code's capabilities if they want to. We're excited by the speed of innovation in online privacy and look forward to seeing future developments.
URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2011/01/keep-your-opt-outs.html

[G] The Technology of Privacy: When Geeks Meet Wonks

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 04:02 AM PST

Google Public Policy Blog: The Technology of Privacy: When Geeks Meet Wonks

Posted by Jenna Wandres, Public Policy Communications

Our privacy online depends a lot on the technology we use. So what better way to mark Data Privacy Day than to hear the latest in technology and policy from the people who have a deep understanding of how information gets transmitted and protected online?

Come to Google's Washington, DC offices for a panel discussion about how privacy affects technology and vice versa. This discussion won't linger on policy alone. Instead, it will focus on engineering and the mechanics behind the best practices of online privacy.

Moderator:
Kim Hart, Reporter, Politico

Panelists: 
Peter Eckersley, Senior Staff Technologist, Electronic Frontier Foundation
Ed Felten, Chief Technologist, Federal Trade Commission
Ari Schwartz, Senior Internet Policy Advisor, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Alma Whitten, Director of Privacy, Product and Engineering, Google

Friday, January 28, 2011 
Panel begins at 10:00 AM 
Google DC 1101 New York Avenue, NW 2nd Floor
Entrance on Eye Street Washington, DC


URL: http://googlepublicpolicy.blogspot.com/2011/01/technology-of-privacy-when-geeks-meet.html

[G] Recent change to the email service resulting in more deliveries ending up in spam or bulk folders

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 01:25 AM PST

The FeedBurner Status Blog: Recent change to the email service resulting in more deliveries ending up in spam or bulk folders

Issue: We recently changed our email delivery service so that the "from" address contains noreply+feedproxy@google.com instead of a custom publisher email address. This change was part of a larger effort by FeedBurner to combat spammers who might take advantage of this service to fool readers by using spoofed addresses.

Unfortunately, one of the reported side-effects has been that some email clients are categorizing mail from this new standardized "from" address into their bulk/spam folders.

We are in the process of rolling back this change. Once complete the "from" address will again use the address field found in the Communication Preferences section of the Email Subscriptions service page.
URL: http://feedburnerstatus.blogspot.com/2011/02/recent-change-to-email-service.html

[G] Boutiques.com reveals the fashion trends on everyone’s mind

Posted: 10 Feb 2011 12:49 AM PST

Official Google Blog: Boutiques.com reveals the fashion trends on everyone's mind

Since we introduced Boutiques.com last November, we've been busy developing new features that we're proud to unveil as New York Fashion Week hits the runways.

More of the boutiques you love
We're welcoming hundreds of thousands of stunning new boutiques, including those from designers Helmut Lang, Michael Kors, Billy Reid and Thakoon.

Trend data to excite designers and fashion enthusiasts alike
Over the past few months, we've watched usage of Boutiques soar. Shoppers aren't just creating their own customized boutiques, they're enthusiastically taking our Stylyzer Quiz and sharing what they "love" and "hate" about products while browsing. As a result, we've gained a unique, aggregate view into the latest fashion trends—a reflection of what shoppers think and feel about the colors, silhouettes, patterns and prices of individual products from across the web.

So today we're unveiling Designer Analytics, a tool that enables our design partners to benefit from this collective knowledge—giving them insight into how their products are searched, shopped and loved. With easy-to-understand data visualizations, Designer Analytics shows what colors, shapes and patterns are most loved and hated broadly (in categories such as shoes, dresses and handbags) and even down to how specific items are performing. Designers can also see how their stats compare to brands like them. Designer Analytics is available when logged in, and looks like this:


We're also launching a public version called Trend Analytics that gives curious fashionistas a view into the latest, site-wide fashion trends. Using aggregate data from both Boutiques.com and Google Search, it shows the hottest colors of the season, the most-loved products and the must-have trends.



New boutique features to help you express your style
We're adding some enhanced features for boutiques, including a photo gallery and video upload (celebrity, designers, blogger and featured boutiques only) to give more opportunities for people to express who they are and share their unique point of view.


A Fashion Week giveaway game to put your fashion acumen to the test
We're also kicking off a fashion trivia giveaway game, called Sartorial Pursuit, which you can play anywhere via SMS/Twitter. Each hour during fashion week, you'll find a new multiple-choice trivia question that ties into our trend analytics and features designers and products on the site. Follow the game on our Twitter account @BoutiquesStyle to answer quiz questions from home for a chance to win stylish Fashion Week prizes.

Posted by Abigail Holtz, Product Manager
URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/boutiquescom-reveals-fashion-trends-on.html

[G] Join us for Google’s Think Mobile Event Live Stream

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 09:03 PM PST

Inside AdWords: Join us for Google's Think Mobile Event Live Stream

The rise of the mobile web is driving one of the most dramatic consumer behavior transformations in history. Billions of people are using their smartphones to search for information, consume news, watch videos, interact through social networks, and engage with advertising every day. So what does this mean for mobile marketing?

Tune in and find out what Mary Meeker, Partner at Kleiner Perkins, and Google's Dennis Woodside, SVP of Americas Operations, and Jason Spero, Head of Americas Mobile Advertising, have to say about the future of mobile and what marketers can do to better connect with the mobilized, modern consumer.

The live stream will start on February 10, 2011, at 1:05 pm EST, and you'll be able to watch from your desktop computer or mobile device. Please register for this virtual event by visiting the Think Mobile Live Stream page.

Following us on Twitter? Use the #thinkmobile hashtag as you're watching the event.


Posted by Nathania Lozada, Inside AdWords crew
URL: http://adwords.blogspot.com/2011/02/join-us-for-googles-think-mobile-event.html

[G] More control and flexibility with the new Billing tab (UK only)

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 09:03 PM PST

Inside AdWords: More control and flexibility with the new Billing tab (UK only)

We're announcing the launch of our new Billing tab in the UK. Based on your feedback, we upgraded the tab to give you more control over when and how much you're charged with the new 'Make a payment' functionality. Those of you on automatic payments get charged whenever you reach your billing threshold on or after 30 days, but in addition to that, you can now make manual payments to delay the automatic charge. Although some of you already have the new Billing tab in your accounts, we'll be rolling it out to all advertisers in the coming months. The upgrade doesn't require any action from you - your billing method and form of payment will stay the same.

Now, on to the improvements. What can you expect from your updated Billing tab?

  • Get more control. Choose to initiate a payment to your account at any time and use any form of payment available with your country and currency settings.
  • Make payments directly from your billing summary page. You can do this by clicking the "Make a payment" button.
  • Switch between automatic and manual payments. You now have the option to use either one.
  • Add multiple forms of payments and switch between them. Add as many forms of payment as you want to your account and switch between using them at any time.
  • Use different business and billing addresses. Your business address doesn't have to match your billing address. Plus, each form of payment can have a different billing address.
  • Access improved help content. There will be improved help content in the new Billing tab and Help Centre.

In addition, the below changes in terminology will be reflected in your upgraded Billing tab. But keep in mind that despite the name changes, these billing methods will function the same as they did previously.

  • Postpay is now called "automatic payments." We'll automatically charge you only after your ads accrue costs.
  • Prepay is now called "manual payments." You can make payments to your account whenever and in whatever amount you like. Your ad costs draw from those funds.
  • Direct debit is now called "bank account." Your funds will be debited from your bank account.
  • Bank transfer is now called "funds transfer." You can make payments by transferring funds to Google's bank account.

For more information on the new Billing tab, please visit the FAQ in the AdWords Help Centre.


Posted by Nathania Lozada, Inside AdWords crew
URL: http://adwords.blogspot.com/2011/02/more-control-and-flexibility-with-new.html

[G] Live online course on ‘Top Tips, Tools and Techniques for AdWords bidding and budgeting’

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 09:03 PM PST

Inside AdWords: Live online course on 'Top Tips, Tools and Techniques for AdWords bidding and budgeting'

This week's tutorial on the AdWords Online Classroom (UK) will cover all things bidding and budgeting-related to help you maximize return on your advertising spend and make the most of your AdWords account in 2011!

Are you getting the most out of your target market? Are you appearing on the first page of Google? Are you losing conversions due to budget? If you're not sure then we'd highly recommend you tune in as we'll be discussing impression share, first page bids and how to get the most out of your budget. We'll also cover 'Burst Strategy', helping you to 'burst' through the auction at the right time, and how to ensure your account is structured for success.

This live course is presented by AdWords Specialists and is appropriate for all advertisers wanting to maximize return on ad spend. It will take place on Wednesday, February 9th, 3pm - 4pm GMT, 7am-8am PST.

If you're interested, make sure to sign up now!

Posted by Nathania Lozada, Inside AdWords crew
URL: http://adwords.blogspot.com/2011/02/live-online-course-on-top-tips-tools.html

[G] Think with Google: What We Learned in 2010

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 07:40 PM PST

Official Google CPG Blog: Think with Google: What We Learned in 2010

It's no secret that today's consumer is online more than ever before! In 2010, we conducted over 60 research studies with the help of partners such as Compete & OTX to better understand how consumers are utilizing the web--and to help you reach them! From all of this research, we learned some pretty cool facts. For example, did you know Google provides the most dating site search referrals1? Or that 25% of new vehicle buyers utilize the mobile web during their research process2? Neither did we. Watch this video to see some of the coolest (in our minds!) insights gleaned in 2010!

Embed:

Sources: 1Google & Compete Personals Study 2010. 2Google & Compete Automotive Buy Flow Study 2010.
URL: http://google-cpg.blogspot.com/2011/02/think-with-google-what-we-learned-in.html

[G] Geotagging photos with Panoramio and Google Latitude

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 06:50 PM PST

Google LatLong: Geotagging photos with Panoramio and Google Latitude

[Cross-posted from the Panoramio Blog]



It is 9 a.m. and the thermometer shows -15°C. I have a Nexus S with Google Latitude in my left pocket and my new Lumix LX-5 in the right one. I am in Davos and I am ready for a fantastic day of skiing when I decide to use the new feature of Panoramio: geotagging photos with Google Latitude.



Panoramio is a community photos website that enables digital photographers to geo-locate, store and organize their photographs -- and to view those photographs in Google Earth.



Google Latitude allows you to share your location with friends and view their location on a map. When enabled, Google Latitude History allows you to store your previous locations and this allows you to match your photos with the locations stored in Google Latitude History.



By combining Panoramio and Google Latitude your photos get geotagged automatically as the time stamp of the photos is matched with your location record in Google Latitude History. To use this feature you need to explicitly enable it in your Settings page in Panoramio. With your permission, Panoramio will access your Google Latitude History to find out your location at the time when your photos are taken, so make sure the time in your camera is correct and it matches the value you entered in the Panoramio Settings page.



Using Google Latitude while skiing allows you to find your friends when you get lost on the slopes, and at the same time it allows you to focus on taking nice photos not worrying about the location where you are taking them.



Mapping photos within the city is normally not a problem as you can easily remember street names, points of interest, etc. It is much more difficult to do it in the countryside and that is why I decided to give the feature a whirl while skiing in Davos:






Thanks to Google Latitude, my photos were geotagged just after uploading them in Panoramio. The day was great, snow was perfect, weather was amazing and when I arrived home my photos were already geo-positioned.



For more information about this feature please check our help content and as always we will be happy to hear your feedback in the Panoramio forum.


Posted by Gerard Sanz, Panoramio Community Manager
URL: http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2011/02/geotagging-photos-with-panoramio-and.html

[G] Take a trip to the Super Bowl with Google Earth

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 06:50 PM PST

Google LatLong: Take a trip to the Super Bowl with Google Earth


We're two days away from one of my favorite events of the year, the Super Bowl (and I'm sure I'm not alone!). I'm one of those fans who starts watching football during pre-season and can have entire weekends ruined if my team loses. For me, the Super Bowl is the culmination of hours spent glued to the television and more hours doing post-game analysis (read: arguments) with fellow football enthusiasts.

However, what I love most about the Super Bowl is the tradition around it. It's a time when friends and family get together and stuff their faces with nachos and beer, argue about who they wish were performing at halftime and watch the two best teams in the league slug it out for the storied Lombardi trophy. Even the commercials are good!

Unfortunately, not all of us can have the luxury of being at Cowboys Stadium – site of Super Bowl XLV – for the game, so we thought we'd offer users the next best thing: the Cowboys Stadium in 3D for Google Earth. Watch the video below to fly to Arlington, Texas and see the stadium in 3D.



You can also visit the stadium in Google Earth by searching for "Cowboys Stadium, Arlington TX" (make sure the 3D layer is turned on). Or, click here to see the area in your browser with Earth view in Google Maps.

We hope you enjoy the game as much as we will. Oh, and go Packers!

Posted by Gopal Shah, Google SketchUp team

Update: Go Steelers! -Nicholas Whitaker, Chief Steelers Evangelist
URL: http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2011/02/take-trip-to-super-bowl-with-google.html

[G] It’s Groundhog Day!

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 06:50 PM PST

Google LatLong: It's Groundhog Day!

[Cross-posted from the SketchUp Blog]

Today is the 125th anniversary of Groundhog Day – a tradition in the US and Canada when a weather-predicting woodchuck named Punxsutawney Phil tells us how long winter will last. Every year on February 2, a group of local dignitaries hold a ceremony at Gobbler's Knob, about 2 miles outside of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Just after sunrise, Phil emerges from his burrow in front of thousands of spectators. The legend states that if Phil sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter. No shadow means there will be an early spring.

Punxsutawney Phil in Google Earth

This year, Phil emerged at 7:25 AM and did not see his shadow! Despite the major winter storm stretching across 2,000 miles of the continent, it sounds like we'll be enjoying an early spring!


You can check out Gobbler's Knob by entering the coordinates 40°55'48.65"N, 78°57'27.53"W into Google Earth or by clicking here to see the area in your browser.
Posted by Zach Moore, 3D Data Specialist
URL: http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2011/02/its-groundhog-day.html

[G] Google Hotpot now on Google.com and around the world

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 06:50 PM PST

Google LatLong: Google Hotpot now on Google.com and around the world

[Cross-posted from the Hotpot Community Blog]

Back in November, we introduced Hotpot, a new local recommendation engine powered by you and your friends. Using Hotpot is simple: you rate places on google.com/hotpot—restaurants, hotels, cafes—and add friends on Hotpot whose opinions you trust. Then the next time you perform a search, Google will serve up personalized results, listing places based on your tastes, as well as recommendations from your friends.



We've watched Hotpot grow and change over the last couple months, and today Hotpot is really going places: to a Google search box near you and around the world.

You can now enjoy Hotpot recommendations in your regular search results on Google.com. So say you're looking for a restaurant in Barcelona. Go to Google and search [restaurant barcelona]. If a friend has rated a particular restaurant, you might see their rating and what they had to say about it—as well as their name and photo—directly beneath that restaurant's listing. To see all recommendations by your friends, click "Places" on the lefthand side of the page, and choose "Friends only." Remember, you'll need to be logged in to your Google account in order to see recommendations.


Seeing place recommendations based on your tastes and those of your friends across more Google searches will make results more relevant to you and maybe lead you to discover a new gem. If you don't have Hotpot friends yet, you can invite them to share all the places they love with you by using the "Friends" tab on google.com/hotpot.

But Hotpot will only be half the fun if you can't share it with all your international friends. So starting today, we're making Hotpot available in 38 new languages—including Chinese, French, German, Italian, Korean, Polish, Russian and Spanish—allowing people to share their favorite places in their native language.

Start rating and sharing recommendations with Hotpot everywhere, anytime: at google.com/hotpot, on Google Maps, using Google Maps for Android with an easy widget, and on our new iPhone app.

Happy rating!

Posted by Lior Ron, Product Manager
URL: http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2011/01/google-hotpot-now-on-googlecom-and.html

[G] YouTube livestreaming, direct from the runway

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 10:02 AM PST

YouTube Blog: YouTube livestreaming, direct from the runway

We're pretty sure there's a lot more to life than being really, really, ridiculously good looking. But in the meantime it's Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, and we'll be bringing you the hottest shows from New York, streamed live from Lincoln Center on YouTube. Maybelline and YouTube will be bringing you both Fall Fashion Week and Spring Fashion Week coming in September 2011.



YouTube will live stream 3-4 shows per day for each day of New York Fashion Week (February 10-17, 2011). From Carolina Herrera to Herve Leger to Narciso Rodriguez, all the hottest designers' shows can be watched live, starting tomorrow.



Supplementing the live stream will be a content gallery featuring the hottest moments and highlights from this year's Fashion Week events: runways, designer interviews, and parties. The content featured will come from a select number of top premium fashion partners and will be representative of the diverse range of content and partners we have on the site. We will feature "best of" clips from established editorial voices in the fashion world like Vogue (Style.com) and Nylon Magazine (Nylon TV), as well as homegrown YouTube gurus like our "Haul Girls" (JuicyStar07, AllthatGlitters21).







Visit www.youtube.com/liverunway and experience Fashion Week like never before. Tune in tomorrow, February 10 for our first live stream.



Lee Hadlow, Ad Programs, recently watched, "Lego Zoolander: The Walk Off."


URL: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/youtube/PKJx/~3/-vpGWrVnYJA/youtube-livestreaming-direct-from.html

[G] Dialed up: the rapid launch and growth of Click-to-Call

Posted: 09 Feb 2011 09:08 AM PST

Official Google Blog: Dialed up: the rapid launch and growth of Click-to-Call

This post is the first in our series profiling entrepreneurial Googlers working on products across the company and around the world. Here, you'll get an in-depth look at how one of our most successful mobile advertising features was launched by one and a half engineers in a matter of months. -Ed.

I'll always remember my first cell phone—a big, black brick that was really only good for making calls. While technology certainly has advanced since then, I still appreciate the speed of connecting to people and businesses instantly over the phone, something that I found harder and harder to do when I searched, for example, for the number of a restaurant to make a reservation.

So in June of 2009, a few engineers and I pooled our 20% time and worked to develop a prototype of what would eventually became Click-to-Call for smartphones, an ad unit that makes it easier for people to connect to a business by phone, rather than through a website.


Building the feature was the easy part; essentially, we developed an ad extension that allows advertisers to include a phone or location in their campaigns. However, it was launching it to advertisers that posed the biggest challenge.

With new products like Click-to-Call, we often choose to launch in beta, and incrementally roll out the features to a small subset of users, usually beginning at a 1% test and increasing from there. With Click-to-Call, we'd developed a mobile feature that we wanted to launch as soon as possible, but since mobile advertising was much smaller at that point—then with only about one-sixth as many search queries we get today—we calculated that it would take nearly three years to roll out to 10% and around 10 years to actually launch it. At that rate, the feature would likely become antiquated long before it ever officially launched.

So I decided not to follow the usual process and took a risk, choosing to launch to 50% of Google's mobile advertisers within the first week. In my view, there was simply no other way to collect enough feedback in a short period of time so that we could quickly iterate based on feedback. Thousands of advertisers—an unprecedented amount for a brand-new feature—were on board to try it out, and with a few engineers and some pretty massive spreadsheets, we started to see real results. Within a month, we had the magical ingredient—momentum—and from there we were collecting enough feedback to be on track to bring the feature to all advertisers in a matter of months.


This is one of the reasons I work at Google. Google gives me freedom to experiment, ownership of my ideas, and amazing resources and support. We built Click-to-Call in June 2009, began testing it in July, and had it up and running for all advertisers in January 2010. One year later, Click-to-Call ads on both search and the Google Display Network are generating millions of calls every month on mobile phones and driving strong performance for advertisers.

If you're interested in exploring some of the most significant trends in mobile, you can watch our Think Mobile livestream this Thursday, February 10 at 1:05pm EST, where we'll discuss why it's "not too late for businesses to still be early" in this space.

Posted by Surojit Chatterjee, Senior Product Manager, Google Mobile Ads team
URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/dialed-up-rapid-launch-and-growth-of.html
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)