Today according to Jim:
Google Maps added walking directions (Bloggle, Search Engine Land); rumours surface that Apple could be about to announce a MacBook Touch (incredible?!); Yahoo miss their earnings estimate (surprise, surprise); Google Reader doesn't add new feature.
This may be old news. But its new to me and that, loyal reader, is what counts.
So I noticed just now that clicking a post title in Google Reader brings up the post in its original format. New? I don't know. Do you? I've contacted someone to find out what they. We await their reply!
If it's new (and to be honest I don't care that much) it is a truly great addition. It works very smoothly and quickly and I for one salute the developers who have made this change whether today or months ago.
Jim's update: In an astonishing twist, Dave has made a complete fool of himself because it turns out that this functionality is due to a Greasemonkey script that he amazingly posted about a few days ago. And no, this really wasn't a ploy to bring up that post again..it was a terrible and ridiculous error. Would have been clever though wouldn't it?
Why not subscribe for more hilarious mistakes?
I was informed via a post over at Search Engine Roundtable that Google Maps now has walking directions!
It seems that a few weeks ago there were signs that this was happening for a few users, but I see it now and I assume everyone else does too, since I never get into any of these betas.
Remember: be careful when walking in unfamiliar areas.
Surf Canyon is a plugin for Firefox and Internet Explorer (does anyone use this?) which really does improve on Google's search results in realtime. Using the magic of Ajax, when you perform a search every result will have a 'bullseye' symbol next to it. Click the bullseye and you will open up some recommended results from Surf Canyon. Best of all, you don't move from Google - no new web page. It's worth saying that it also works with MSN, Yahoo and Craigslist.
These results are found by Surf Canyon from the next 10-1000 results in Google. I'm not great at explaining so I'll let Mark Cramer, CEO of Surf Canyon explain for himself...
"When you enter a query and then select a result (by either clicking it or clicking the bull’s eye), our “real-time relevancy” algorithm looks at results 11 to 1000, re-ranks them all “on the fly” and then brings forward the top 3 as “recommendations.” The process is cumulative, so as the user continues to select results, the user model grows and gets more precise enabling deeper digging into the result set. Subsequent pages of results (after “more results”) are all completely re-ranked based on all the behavior that occurred on the previous pages."
It works extremely well, quickly and smoothly. The results are there if want them, but if you choose not to use Surf Canyon's recommendations, your page hardly looks different.
The new version of Surf Canyon was just released (v1.1.2) which includes compatibility with GooglePreview which inserts thumbnail previews of each search result into the SERP for Google and Yahoo. This version also includes a Russian translation and a new weekly contest to win a $25 Amazon voucher. Check the Surf Canyon blog for more information.
Today, according to Jim:
Yahoo settled a dispute that they'd had for a while with some troublemaker called Carl Icahn; Apple reported a 38% increase in revenue and record Q3 profits (and of course I'm delighted for them); TechCrunch want to design and build a web tablet for under $200 and you can help; it turns out that Google are testing a new (disguisting) 'minty green' coloured SERP (which somehow appeared on techmeme).
Before:
After:
Search Engine Roundtable reported earlier of a post over at the DigitalPoint forums where a user had reported seeing a 'minty green' Google rather than the normal blue one I get when I do a search.
Is Google serious about going green? Why 'minty green'? Could it be political? How do you figure out which users prefer?
All these questions are still be answered.
Jim says: "I'm outraged" >:(
For a while we've know that Google were testing a new version of iGoogle. It had been available to a select number of users and developers.
But yesterday, the Google Operating System blog posted a way that everyone can have the new iGoogle page TODAY. I've got a full review but first details on how you can start using iGoogle 2.0 today.
// How can I start using iGoogle 2.0? //
From the Google Operating System blog:
Quick tip to access the new iGoogle:
- go to google.com/ig
- paste this in the address bar:
javascript:_dlsetp('v2=1');
- to go back to the old version, paste in the address bar:
javascript:_dlsetp('v2=0');
Full review after the jump!
Continue reading "What's new in iGoogle 2.0? Check out this review!" »
Photo by Erin MC Hammer
Everyone loves Google (mostly). If you don't here are 100 reasons why you should!
Nearly all are links (Wiki, Google, Google blogs etc). If you enjoy please digg it and share. Thanks to Ross who helped me compile this.
1. 20% time
2. PigeonRank
3. PageRank
4. Gmail
5. Google blogs
6. Google Earth
7. StreetView
8. iGoogle
9. Docs
10. I'm feeling lucky
11. Notebook
12. Free beer @ Googleplex
13. Free Ben & Jerry's @ Googleplex - Trust me on this one.
14. Free food @ Googleplex
15. Summer of code
16. Labs
17. Trends
18. Maps
19. Alerts
20. Google Reader
21. Google Toolbar
22. Matt Cutts (<3)
23. Matt Cutt's blog (<3<3)
24. YouTube
25. Google Web Toolkit
26. Analytics
27. Android
28. The 700MHz auction
29. Lively
30. Language tools
31. Gphone rumours/drama
32. Google Cache
33. Translate this page
34. Feedburner
35. Google Talk
Today's stories through the eyes of Bloggle Jim:
Google reported profits of $5.37 billion last quarter but shares are down 12%; the upcoming iGoogle update will feature full screen Gmail; new figures out show that Google has over 75% of the US search ad market; Gmail and Google Calendar will soon offer offline support.
And finally...you can read the story of the Fail Whale over at ReadWriteWeb (Ed: Watch for news of the Fail Whale t shirt).
Just a week ago (12th June) Greasemonkey Version 0.8 was released to the world and made available at addons.mozilla.org. This latest version brings with it full compatibility with Firefox 3.0. It's a while since I've checked out many Greasemonkey scripts so I thought I'd write a post about what Greasemonkey is and how you can use it with Google. So first...
What is Greasemonkey?
For the uninitiated...from the Greasemonkey blog:
"Greasemonkey is a Firefox extension that allows you to customize the way webpages look and function. Hundreds of scripts are already available for free. And if you're the tinkerer sort, you can also write your own."
How can I use Greasemonkey?
You need to visit addons.mozilla.org, download it, install it, restart Firefox and you're ready to go.
Why do I want it?
Here comes the good part. Coming up are 5 top Greasemonkey scripts that will improve the look, feel and usability of sites all things Google...(All taken from userscripts.org including quotes).
(1) Google Reader: Show Feed Favicons
Not happy that Google Reader shows only the dull RSS icon for your favourite feeds? 1-0 to Greasemonkey...this script brings your favourite icons to Google Reader.
"Automatically decorates the Google Reader subscription list with icons corresponding to the website from which each feed originates. This replicates an effect currently available in other feed-readers such as Bloglines."
(2) Google Account Multi-Login
If you use a shared computer and you get frustrated at having to log back in to your Google account after someone else has used it....or if you just have more than one Google account (or an alias?), then this Greasemonkey script will let you quickly change from one account to the other. Just install the script and at the top right of your screen there will be a drop down box where you can add users. Go here for further instructions and a video.
'Better Gmail' is a combination of lots of useful Greasemonkey scripts for Gmail, made by LifeHacker and is without doubt one of the best extensions you can get. Better Gmail works only with the latest version of Gmail. If for some reason you still love the old one, you'll need Better Gmail 2.
Once you've installed the extension, go to 'Tools' to turn select the 'Better Gmail' option and enable it. There are so many features, and you can read more about them here, but some of my favourites include showing how many unread emails on the tab in Firefox so you can see at glance how many are unread; highlighting emails as you roll over them; hide your spam count; hide labels on your sidebar and the ability to use different skins.
This script adds a 'preview' button to Google Reader posts that allows you to view the real article (as it looks on the website) in Google Reader. That means you can view comments without leaving Google Reader.
(5) Google Adsense Ads Remover
"Removes Google AdSense from all web pages. It also removes toolbar ad and desktop search ad too."
This script seems to work really well. It has been reported not to work on some sites...but some is better than none!
I hope that shows you the value of Greasemonkey and how powerful it can be - it can make your Google browsing experience far better. If you liked this post please digg it, share it or comment - especially if you know any better scripts?
