Saturday, April 16, 2011

Googland

Googland

[G] Listen to more languages in Google Translate for Android

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 03:26 AM PDT

Official Google Mobile Blog: Listen to more languages in Google Translate for Android

(Cross-posted on the Google Translate blog)

Today we launched an update to Google Translate for Android that allows you to listen to translations in several more languages.

We've dramatically improved the quality of our spoken translations in over 15 languages, including Russian, Chinese and Portuguese, and added the ability to listen to three new languages: Japanese, Arabic and Korean. Text-to-speech is one of the most popular features of this mobile interface. Whether you're learning how to say a foreign phrase, or trying to share information with someone in their language, simply tap the Speaker icon after doing a translation and you'll hear the difference.





With today's launch, Google Translate for Android supports translation between 58 languages and can speak translations in 24 languages. The application works on phones and tablets running Android 2.1 and above. To download Google Translate for Android, scan the QR code below, or visit us on the Android Market.


Posted by Awaneesh Verma, Product Manager
URL: http://googlemobile.blogspot.com/2011/04/listen-to-more-languages-in-google.html

[G] New Google News for Opera Mini

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 03:26 AM PDT

Official Google Mobile Blog: New Google News for Opera Mini

cross-posted from the Google News blog

While the Google News team has been hard at work redesigning our service for smartphones, we've also been thinking about our milllions of users around the world who access the web not from a smartphone, but from a feature phone, using Opera Mini as their browser.

So we have rolled out a redesigned Google News for Opera Mini in all 29 languages and 70 editions of Google News. This includes an enhanced homepage featuring richer snippets, thumbnail images, links to videos and section content without explicit navigation, a convenient search bar, comfortably spaced links and the ability to access your desktop personalization on your phone.

We hope that this will improve the news browsing experience for Opera Mini users around the world, including millions of people using a feature phone as the primary point of access for the web. See it here in the Indian Hindi and Nigerian English versions.

 


So, pick up your feature phone and point your Opera Mini browser to http://news.google.com to catch up on news anytime and anywhere. For more information or to share your feedback with us, please visit our Help Center.

Posted by Arun Prasath, Tech Lead and Dimitris Meretakis, Product Manager
URL: http://googlemobile.blogspot.com/2011/04/new-google-news-for-opera-mini.html

[G] New Google News for Opera Mini

Posted: 16 Apr 2011 01:09 AM PDT

Google News Blog: New Google News for Opera Mini

Posted by Arun Prasath, Tech Lead and Dimitris Meretakis, Product Manager

While the Google News team has been hard at work redesigning our service for smartphones, we've also been thinking about our milllions of users around the world who access the web not from a smartphone, but from a feature phone, using Opera Mini as their browser.

So we have rolled out a redesigned Google News for Opera Mini in all 29 languages and 70 editions of Google News. This includes an enhanced homepage featuring richer snippets, thumbnail images, links to videos and section content without explicit navigation, a convenient search bar, comfortably spaced links and the ability to access your desktop personalization on your phone.

We hope that this will improve the news browsing experience for Opera Mini users around the world, including millions of people using a feature phone as the primary point of access for the web. See it here in the Indian Hindi and Nigerian English versions.



So, pick up your feature phone and point your Opera Mini browser to http://news.google.com to catch up on news anytime and anywhere. For more information or to share your feedback with us, please visit our Help Center.
URL: http://googlenewsblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/new-google-news-for-opera-mini.html

[G] Inside in-app payments with Vikas Gupta

Posted: 15 Apr 2011 08:14 PM PDT

Official Google Checkout Blog: Inside in-app payments with Vikas Gupta

In-app payments technology has been making headlines with the recent launch of in-app billing for Android apps. But introducing this service for Android developers is just the beginning. A team of Googlers has been hard at work developing an in-app payments API for web apps as well. We decided to sit down with Vikas Gupta, Head of Consumer Payments at Google, to talk about what's coming for in-app payments for web applications.

Q: Let's start with an easy one first. You've been at Google for about 7 months now after your company Jambool was acquired last fall. How has the transition been?
A: It has been very exciting to bring Jambool's technology to Google. With Social Gold, we brought a core difference to the online payments world by enabling a seamless, in-app purchase flow. Within a short time here, we are beginning to bring the same frictionless purchase experience to web applications on Google.

Q: What do you see as the biggest challenge in creating an in-app payments product?
A: The challenge with innovating in the payments industry is actually not the payments processing element. It is almost invariably with everything else besides payments such as customer experience, pricing, risk management, identity, receipts, dispute resolution and a lot more. The primary challenge around building a seamless experience is getting out of the way of the customer and letting them get the goods they are looking to buy without ever leaving the application. In-app payments are very much about quick and convenient purchases, and in many ways it requires us to re-think all aspects of a payments platform.

Q: Is this where you see the integration with Google infrastructure improving the Social Gold in-app payments experience?
A: Yes, absolutely. Google does many of these things, such as risk management and identity, at a much larger scale. As we get ready to launch the new API for web in-app payments, we are focused on combining our expertise with Google scale. For example, there are many, many more customers who can purchase items within apps with a single click on Google. Now that is a huge asset that we can bring to application developers.

Q: What do you think matters most to developers looking to implement an in-app payment solution?
A: In-app payments are about enhancing, and not disrupting, a user's experience in an app. Once the user decides to buy, the purchase experience should be as seamless as possible. Besides the truly seamless purchase experience, the in-app payments API should also enable developers full control of the application or game experience. We're very excited to build the new web in-app payments solution in a way that Google users can login and pay with their existing Google account, while always staying within the application.

Web developers interested in learning more about about Google In-App Payments should submit their information. US Android developers can start implementing In-app Billing now.
URL: http://googlecheckout.blogspot.com/2011/04/inside-in-app-payments-with-vikas-gupta.html

[G] Google Apps highlights – 4/15/2011

Posted: 15 Apr 2011 05:27 PM PDT

Official Google Blog: Google Apps highlights – 4/15/2011

This is part of a regular series of Google Apps updates that we post every couple of weeks. Look for the label "Google Apps highlights" and subscribe to the series. - Ed.

In the last few weeks we've improved Google Apps with easier email snafu avoidance, better document and spreadsheet printing, stronger business security features for Android and more. The pace of entire organizations switching to Google Apps also continued to build, and many have shared their stories about moving to the cloud.

Recipient suggestion features graduate from Gmail Labs
We've all made the embarrassing mistake of forgetting to add an important email recipient, or even worse, sending an email to the wrong person with a similar name as someone else. To help you avoid such a digital faux pas, we experimented with Gmail Labs features that could notify you while drafting a message if it appeared you had addressed your message incorrectly. We heard lots of positive feedback about these Labs, so on Wednesday we rolled out recipient suggestion features for all Gmail users. Keep an eye out for the tips that show up beneath the address box!



Pagination and better printing for documents
Google Docs speeds up collaboration right in the browser between classmates and colleagues, but people often want to see how documents will look on paper before actually printing. On Tuesday we advanced Google Docs another notch by adding pagination—the ability to see where page breaks fall. We also made document printing a whole lot better on Chrome. Printing is now a simpler operation right from the browser's "File" menu, and what you see in your browser is exactly what you'll get on paper.



Improvements to spreadsheet printing, too
As of Monday, you can now print spreadsheets from your mobile phone with Cloud Print, building on the mobile document and email printing capabilities we announced earlier this year. You can print from most mobile browsers that support HTML5 to any cloud-connected printer. We also made improvements to spreadsheet printing from desktop browsers, with new options for printing spreadsheet titles, sheet names and page numbers.



Google Cloud Connect for Microsoft Office interface improvements
If your school or business wants some of Google Docs' collaboration magic in familiar Microsoft Office software without upgrading Office or deploying SharePoint®, then we think you'll like Google Cloud Connect. People can work together on the same files at the same time in Word, PowerPoint® and Excel® without the agony of attachments. We recently added 38 new language interfaces and a top feature request: the ability to minimize the Google Cloud Connect toolbar.


Better Android security and productivity for businesses
Last week we treated our business and education customers to three new Android features: storage encryption for Android 3.0+ devices, a streamlined contacts experience that makes it faster to find and connect with people in your organization and the ability for users to locate and secure lost or stolen Android 2.2+ devices without burdening IT administrators.


Who's gone Google?
Since our last update here, over 60,000 businesses have moved to Google Apps. We've profiled quite a few on the Google Enterprise Blog recently, including Boxx Group, South Carolina REALTORS, Just Salad, 3Tailer, and our favorite switch story of all, Contoso.

Thousands of schools, nonprofits and other organizations made the move as well. Welcome to Boise State University, Edina Public Schools, ESSEC Business School, Monash University, Oakwood Junior School, the Georgia Department of Corrections and The Phoenix of New Orleans.

I hope these product updates and customer stories help you and your organization get even more from Google Apps. For more details and the latest news, check out the Google Apps Blog.

Posted by Jeremy Milo, Google Apps Marketing Manager
URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/google-apps-highlights-4152011.html

[G] This week in search 4/15/11

Posted: 15 Apr 2011 05:27 PM PDT

Official Google Blog: This week in search 4/15/11

This is part of a regular series of posts on search experience updates that runs on Fridays. Look for the label "This week in search" and subscribe to the series. - Ed.

This week we made several announcements that help make search faster, easier and more fun, including introducing a new kind of trivia puzzle where using Google is allowed, continuing to enable Google Instant around the world and adding date annotations on recent Google Images.

A Google a Day
This week we introduced A Google a Day, a new type of trivia puzzle where you can test not just your knowledge, but also your search skills using Google. Questions are posted daily on www.agoogleaday.com and in the New York Times above the crossword puzzle. Try your hand at today's question:


Use www.agoogleaday.com to search to avoid real-time spoilers from blogs or Tweets, and follow @agoogleaday on Twitter so you don't miss any of the questions.

Google Images with Date Annotations
Sometimes when you're searching for a particular topic, you want to see the most recent images for that subject. For instance, you might want to find images related to the recent Masters Golf Tournament. Searching Google Images will give you a lot of images related to the Masters, but it's hard to quickly tell which pictures are from this year's tournament.

This week, we're introducing a change that should make finding recent images a lot easier—Google Images with Date Annotations. Now, we'll add date annotations right to the thumbnails of images that were uploaded recently. Try it out on any recent news or event query, such as Charl Schwartzel winning that coveted green jacket.


More Instant results around the world
Bringing the speed of instant search results to new countries, Google Instant is now available for more people around the world. Signed-in searchers in the British Virgin Islands, Ghana, Greenland, Kenya, Lichtenstein, Luxembourg, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa and Uganda will see results faster with Instant, and French searchers will now see Instant results even when signed-out.


Instant Previews update
Last November, we launched Instant Previews, a quick way to get a visual overview of the search results before you click on them. Since launch, we've made a number of improvements that we're excited to share:
  • Flash is now supported—for most previews, we'll render a screenshot of the flash component in the preview, rather than just displaying a puzzle piece icon.
  • Instant Previews is now integrated with Google Quick Scroll. Users who have Quick Scroll installed (either as a Chrome extension or as part of Google Toolbar) can click on a highlighted area within an Instant Preview, and we'll scroll you directly to that section of the page.
  • Instant Previews can now be used on mobile devices, Android tablets, iPads and the Opera browser.
  • Previews support additional result types, including .doc and .ppt files; and video results have a new, playable interface.
Google Search dictionary tool
To help you quickly access definition content, we've brought our dictionary feature into the left-hand panel in search. For example, search for [legerdemain] and you can find its definition by selecting "Dictionary" on the left. You'll also see examples of the word "legerdemain" in context from news, related phrases, synonyms and more. One click on the translation tool brings you to Google Translate for all your bilingual needs. We're also enhancing other dictionary search features, including a refreshed look for your dictionary look-up queries such as "define legerdemain" and "what is legerdemain" in the search results. Give it a try.


New Google News for Opera Mini
We've rolled out a redesigned Google News for Opera Mini in 29 languages and 70 editions to bring people greater mobile access to top stories and news search. This includes an enhanced homepage featuring richer snippets, thumbnail images, links to videos and section content without explicit navigation, a convenient search bar, comfortably spaced links and the ability to access your desktop personalization on your phone. We hope that this will improve the news browsing experience for Opera Mini users around the world, including millions of people using a feature phone as their primary point of access to the web. See it here in the Indian Hindi and Nigerian English versions:



Posted by Johanna Wright, Director, Search Product Management
URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/this-week-in-search-41511.html

[G] Lights, camera, doodle!

Posted: 15 Apr 2011 05:27 PM PDT

Official Google Blog: Lights, camera, doodle!

Charlie Chaplin wasn't just the greatest star of the silent film era; he also wrote, directed and produced more than 80 movies in a career that spanned decades and included such masterpieces as The Kid, The Gold Rush and Modern Times. He scored many of his pictures as well, and on at least one occasion served as an on-set hairdresser.

Chaplin is also one of my creative heroes. Despite being an art-obsessed high schooler preemptively bored by anything in black and white, I borrowed a VHS tape of Chaplin's work from the library on a lark. It's not an exaggeration to say watching it changed my life. I laughed, I cried—I cried from laughter. For the first time I realized the power of visual storytelling.

We sometimes tell small stories with Google's logo, but for Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin's 122nd birthday tomorrow, April 16, the Doodle team created something extra fun. For the next 36 hours the Google homepage will pay homage to Charlie Chaplin's creative legacy with our first-ever live action video doodle.

The simple, silent short film stars the entire Doodle team (with fellow doodler Mike Dutton sporting that famous mustache, hat and eyeliner) and was shot on location in Niles, Calif., the setting of several of Chaplin's early classics including The Tramp. Niles is also home to our advisers for this doodle, the ever-helpful Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum.

True pieces of art, Chaplin's films still feel fresh today even though some of them are nearly a century old. We hope that our homage gets people talking about his work and the many virtues of silent film.



As a bonus, check out some of these fun behind-the-scenes shots:



Posted by Ryan Germick, Doodler, Writer, Director, Keystone Cop
URL: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/lights-camera-doodle.html

[G] Mashups, parodies and lip dubs: Ask a legal expert about Fair use

Posted: 15 Apr 2011 11:01 AM PDT

YouTube Blog: Mashups, parodies and lip dubs: Ask a legal expert about Fair use

The strength of the YouTube community lies in its creativity. Often this takes the form of memorable original content, such as Rebecca Black's recent hit song / music video, Friday.



However, as the Rebecca Black phenomenon demonstrated yet again, this creativity also lies in the community's ability to produce parodies, mashups, and remixes of well-known original content. In fact, if you love Rebecca Black, thanks to the YouTube community's endless ability to riff on popular memes, there are a number of examples of Friday-inspired parodies. Here's one from funnyman Conan O'Brien, which has close to half a million views:







Why are YouTube users like Conan allowed to produce parodies of Rebecca Black's original song?

Fair use.



Fair use is a legal term that grants creators an exception to the strict copyright that the original content owner controls -- in layman's terms, it's the idea that as long as the use is "fair," someone can reference part of someone else's work for parody, scholarly reasons, or more.



What constitutes "fair use" is a complicated issue and one that we get asked about quite often. So we've asked two leading experts from the Stanford Center for Internet and Society, Anthony Falzone and Julie Ahrens, to help answer your questions.



Falzone is the Executive Director of the Fair Use Project and a lecturer in law at Stanford Law School. Julie Ahrens is the Associate Director of the Fair Use Project and also a lecturer in law at Stanford Law School. As litigators they have defended everyone from video game makers, to writers, to artists (including Shepard Fairey) against copyright claims.



Using Google Moderator you can ask Falzone your questions about fair use and vote on other questions. They will answer a selection of the top-voted questions via video and we'll post it on this blog on Monday, May 2. Question submission closes April 21. Ask your questions here!



Will Houghteling, YouTube News and Politics, recently watched "The Path to Prosperity"


URL: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/youtube/PKJx/~3/u9FbjTG7ALg/mashups-parodies-and-lip-dubs-ask-legal.html

[G] Coachella broadcasts live on YouTube all weekend

Posted: 15 Apr 2011 10:00 AM PDT

YouTube Blog: Coachella broadcasts live on YouTube all weekend

One of the biggest music festivals of the year kicks off today, and you don't have to be camping in the desert to catch it.

Starting today at 4 p.m. PT / 7 p.m. ET, YouTube will webcast the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival directly from Indio, California to your computer -- without the 98 degree heat! Thanks to 5GUM, Coachella and YouTube, the world will have a front row seat to over 60 acts being live-streamed all weekend long at youtube.com/Coachella.

Tune in to watch sets by some of the biggest names in music, as well as the bands that have critics buzzing. The lineup is nothing short of astonishing: Kings of Leon. Cee Lo Green. Mumford and Sons. The Strokes. Duran Duran. The National. Nas + Damian Marley. The Black Keys. Ms. Lauryn Hill. The list goes on.

But don't just take our word for it: check out what the bands themselves have to say about why they're psyched to play Coachella, and what acts they're dying to see.



If you miss the live stream, be sure to check out highlights on Coachella's channel next week. And get ready to rock!

Sarah Bardeen, Music Community Manager, recently watched "Coachella 2010."


URL: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/youtube/PKJx/~3/dnc71K4PDes/coachella-broadcasts-live-on-youtube.html

[G] This week's Trends: Black and Beckham

Posted: 15 Apr 2011 07:01 AM PDT

YouTube Blog: This week's Trends: Black and Beckham

Each weekday, we at YouTube Trends take a look at the most interesting videos and cultural phenomena on YouTube as they develop. We want take a moment to highlight some of what we've come across this week:







Check back every day for the latest about what's trending on YouTube at: www.YouTube.com/Trends



Kevin Allocca, YouTube Trends Manager, recently watched "Insane Dude Dancing in Cardiff."


URL: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/youtube/PKJx/~3/BqLBYkwbwNA/this-weeks-trends-black-and-beckham.html
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