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May 11 2012
Why Microsoft Is Being Left in the Dust
Alex Goldfayn’s new book is called Evangelist Marketing: What Apple Amazon and Netflix Understand About Their Customers (That Your Company Probably Doesn’t). He is CEO of the Evangelist Marketing Institute, a marketing consultancy with clients that include T-Mobile, TiVo, and Logitech. Follow him @alexgoldfayn.
There are now a number of companies — Apple, Google, Amazon, and others — that have Microsoft in their rear-view mirrors, disappearing quickly on the horizon in a cloud of dust.
That kick of dust in the company’s face is being emitted by Apple’s iPhone and iPad, Amazon’s Kindle, and Google’s search and cloud domination. Microsoft’s own wild lunges into various technology segments are also contributing considerably to it being left behind. Take the company’s recent acquisition of 18% of the Barnes & Noble Nook e-reader for $605 million in cash and future guarantees. This was a move to compete with Amazon, but can it really compete?
If you want to know why Microsoft’s share price has been flat for 11 years while Apple, Amazon, and Google shares have soared, this is why. Microsoft is not innovating aggressively. It is not leading categories or blazing trails. No, it’s acquiring aggressively as a shortcut to innovation. That isn’t working. Its own history suggests as much.
Microsoft Has Not Capitalized on its Partnerships and Acquisitions
Last year, Microsoft announced a broad strategic partnership with Nokia, presumably to use Windows operating systems and software on Nokia’s smartphones. This was 15 months ago. But last week, a report found that Apple and Samsung generated 99 percent of the profits in the mobile phone category. Nokia, which once enjoyed more than half of all mobile phone profits, made zero.
In 2009, Microsoft acquired a 10-year license to use Yahoo’s core search technology, which later became the Bing search engine. Today, Google’s search market share is a dominant 66%, with Microsoft’s Bing a very distant second at 15%. After spending billions building and marketing Bing, Microsoft is barely visible in Google’s rear-view mirror.
Finally, what of Microsoft’s Skype acquisition a year ago? It’s too early to tell, but here’s a fact worth noting: The Wall Street Journal reports that 85% of Microsoft’s revenue comes from Windows and Office software. The rest of it? Barely a blip.
And so, Microsoft is proving, like many have before it, that acquiring companies outside your core competencies are recipes for failure. Remember when Cisco purchased the Flip video camera, at the time one of the most popular consumer electronics products on the planet? How did that work out? In 2010, HP bought Palm for $1.2 billion, but we haven’t seen any industry-altering smartphones from HP.
Conversely, consider Apple’s acquisition of Siri: a technology that immediately and profoundly complimented and enhanced its iPhone. It fit obviously and very successfully.
Microsoft Does Not Need to Compete with Amazon
Another major problem with Microsoft’s acquisition of the Nook is that there is simply no need for it to compete with Amazon. This is like Best Buy focusing all of its efforts on its ecommerce site while neglecting its one major competitive advantage: its brick-and-mortar stores. This is also like Research in Motion spending a year building its atrociously received tablet, the PlayBook, while neglecting its core competency of Blackberry smartphones.
Microsoft dominates the competition in computer operating systems and software. Computers are dying, right? And yet, in May 2012, there is no Microsoft Office for tablets and smartphones. Millions of iPads and Android tablets are being adopted in corporate environments, and most of those customers would be happy to spend $70 on Microsoft Office for each device. Except, it does not exist.
I can only guess why: because with its many categories, acquisitions and partnerships, Microsoft is physically incapable of putting its full focus behind converting its desktop products to mobile devices.
Microsoft is Going Wide, Not Deep
Which brings me to the third and final big problem with Microsoft’s Nook play. It is keeping with the strategy of going as wide as possible. Microsoft is not, and cannot be, all things to all people. In fact, no company can.
Here’s the truth: The wider you go, the more priorities you focus on, the less chance you have to be successful. But when you go deep, you can dominate. (See Apple, and Amazon.) When you go deep, you can continue perfecting. You become the world’s expert on a certain specialty. Apple is seen as the world’s expert on smartphones and tablets. Amazon is the accepted leader in online shopping and electronic reading. It’s because these two companies relentlessly focus on their strengths, saying no to nearly everything else. No. That’s a word Microsoft should consider trying out before it gets left in the dust permanently.
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, JasonDoiy
More About: apple, contributor, features, Google, microsoft
‘Obama Gay Marriage’ Google Searches Spike 459% [INFOGRAPHIC]
President Obama’s mid-week announcement instantly made waves on social media such as Twitter and Facebook, but it’s also taking Google search by storm, too.
Web searches for “Obama + Gay Marriage” saw a 459% spike on Wednesday evening after the president announced his changed position. According to Google, “gay marriage,” “same sex marriage” and “supports gay marriage” were the top three queries for web searches about Obama on Wednesday.
SEE ALSO: Obama Supports Gay Marriage, ABC Breaks News OnlineObama’s announcement followed Vice President Joe Biden’s weekend endorsement of gay marriage, which caught the administration by surprise, and North Carolina’s passing of Amendment 1, which put a constitutional ban on gay marriage in the state.
Reports indicate that President Obama intended to announce his changed position, which he has previously described as “evolving” ahead of the Democratic National Convention in early September. Obama pointed out that his reversal is a personal opinion, and he believes that states reserve the right to set their own course on gay marriage.
Gay marriage is now poised to become a wedge issue in the 2012 race to the White House. Obama’s likely Republican opponent, Mitt Romney, believes that marriage should take place between a man and a woman. National polls have indicated that the American people are approximately split on the issue, with about half supporting and half opposing gay marriage — although there is some leeway in civil unions and other legal benefits, such as hospital visitation rights.
Thumbnail image courtesy of The White House
More About: 2012 presidential campaign, barack obama, gay marriage, Google, human rights, Politics, US
May 10 2012
Reddit Users Ask a Google Employee (Almost) Anything
In response to a Reddit user asking for someone from Google to do an AMA, which is their version of a Q&A, a software engineer from Google has been answering questions about working for the company.
He agreed to answer questions, but made it clear that he wouldn’t violate his NDA. He also made sure to note that he was speaking for himself, and not as a representative of Google.
The anonymous Googler, who works out of the Kirkland engineering office, answered questions about company culture, how to get a job there and Google+.
IAmA Google employee. AMAA.
SinSha: What was the application process like? What does Google look for in an employee?
My application process started with an internship, which involved submitting a resume and passing two phone interviews. From the internship I did a “conversion”, which involved several more interviews plus the feedback from my internship.
If you want to know what Google is looking for, I suggest you read Steve Yegge’s blog entry.
Chachbag: Do you solve most of your problems at work by Googling them?
A surprising number. It’s kind of scary. :)
IHateWaffles: forgive me this seemingly shallow question, but I’ve read so many Googlers talk about Google, yet the one thing I never hear about is the ladies at Google. What’s the % of women you work with as a software engineer, does Google hire any hotties? Thanks :)
I don’t know what the percentage is. I work with some extremely talented women, though.
JayP812: Why do so many of the logo doodles honor little-known artists? Just a trend I noticed.
Who do you think makes the doodles?
danheinz: Do you use google+ or Facebook more often?
G+. I don’t use Facebook any more. The signal/noise ratio got too low for me.
But that’s a personal choice of mine and I can see why others might not make the same one. The stuff I share gets to the people I want to share it with, and that’s what is important to me. shrug
chiisana: Some people, myself included, feels that Google, the company, is making a huge mistake pushing Google Plus into people’s faces right now. And instead of becoming relevant and or remotely near successful, it is actually hurting Google’s public image. What are your thoughts on Google Plus project, and the marketing approach taken by the company?
Would you complain that Google is pushing Google into people’s faces? Don’t think of Google+ as the page at http://plus.google.com. It’s a common social layer for all of Google. Once you realize this, you’ll see why it might feel like it’s being “pushed in your face”. How many Google products do you use that are social in any way (i.e. involve relationships with other people)? I’ve stated above why I think having that common social layer is important/good.
As for the marketing approach, I don’t really have any comment since I don’t really know anything about it :P
GrinningPariah: As someone who works for Microsoft, “sup”. :P Always interesting to see how the other side lives. From what I heard, you guys can expect about the same pay, better perks, but to work harder for them. Which brings me to my first question!
Is it considered taboo in Google culture to go home at 5pm, like it is a lot of places in the software industry lately?
Also, do you “drink the kool aide” and get behind Google products even when they are not so well received? As a follow up, how do you feel about G+?
And finally, what do you think of other company’s efforts to step to Google?
I don’t think it’s taboo to go home at 5. I sometimes go home much earlier. My personal policy is that if I realize I am being entirely ineffective (say, I’m overly tired or having a bad day, or just not in the groove), I won’t waste my or Google’s time by sitting and staring at my workstation – I go home. On the days where I’m in the groove and making great progress, I’ll keep working from home in the evenings (because I want to).
I don’t usually personally promote products I’m not actually excited about. I actually really like G+ for what it is. Products have to be social these days, because the internet and the web is about people now, not just documents. So without G+, all Google products would have to either have no social features, or each have separate friend lists. Neither of those is acceptable.
Competition is good. I’m a user too, remember? One of the awesome things about the web is that the hurdles for competition are so low, so everyone keeps everyone else on their toes. Ultimately we wind up with better products.
liucifer: What’s the dress code like?
I don’t think we have one. I think it falls under the other codes, primarily “don’t be a jackass”.
But I’ve seen folks in suits, kilts, pajamas, sweats, etc.
Penroze: How many hours a week do you work?
How many hours a week does the typical Googler work?
Years ago I heard they even put software problems on the bathroom stalls. Is this still true?
I don’t know how many hours a week I work. I think it varies. But probably around 40, on average. More when I’m more excited about work. Less when I’m not.
I don’t know about the typical Googler, but we try hard to get people to strike a good work/life balance.
I haven’t seen software problems, but we do post all kinds of useful advice. Sometimes it’s advice about software practices like unit testing. There’s one that’s been there for a while now trying to tell me all about what the liver does.
choompaloompa: What is the use of Google products like inside Google, like would it be acceptable to submit a report or document using Docs or have a professional long distance meeting over a hangout?
Extensive. If anyone submitted a report or doc with something other than Docs, they’d get funny looks and probably get mocked mercilessly ;) We use hangouts all the time. We really believe in “eating our own dogfood”.
globalsunshine:Is it true that Google (and most software companies) don’t like older people? It seems like there is only a small population of software engineers over the age of 40. Do you know what happens to them or is this just a myth?
Google actually has an internal group just for older folks (along with all sorts of other demographics). From what I understand, they do everything they can to prevent anyone from being discriminated against due to age. But I don’t work for HR so I can’t give you a very detailed answer.
hoteljuliet: How much “brainstorming” time do you get in a day?
It varies a lot depending on what phase of a project I’m in. For a while last year, I spend like 90% of my time brainstorming. Today I spent 0%, since I was just trying to get some code checked in.
choompaloompa: Does anyone work from home or is it compulsory to work at the office?
Tons of people work from home. If you can do your job, there’s no real requirement on where you are. Of course, there are advantages to being in the office – face to face time with coworkers, being able to be in a meeting in person, etc. But there’s no requirement that you be in the office at any time.
themailmanC: How encouraged is daytime (or anytime) napping?
There are napping pods specifically designed for that purpose! Many offices also have quiet rooms where you can go recline way back in a comfy chair and nap.
shakensunshine: That sounds really awesome. I wish my office had that. How comfortable are those napping pods?
I don’t use them. I sleep in the massage chairs ;)
Google Can Prioritize Its Products in Search, Says Legal Expert
Can Google and other search engines prioritize self-promoting results in search — and still enjoy constitutional protection under the First Amendment?
Yes, according to a report commissioned by Google from professor Eugene Volokh, an expert on constitutional and Internet law who teaches at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Google has quickly expanded outside the world of search over the past decade, now offering popular products in email, social networking, mapping and other services which often appear in search results on the site. Other search providers, such as Yahoo and Microsoft, also offer myriad other services that appear prominently in search results — for example, Bing Maps.
Google denies prioritizing their own products in search results for an unfair business advantage, arguing they appear in search results because they’re either the most relevant results or because they offer data relevant to a search query. Someone searching for an address, for example, would likely be interested in a map of that spot, says Google — so a Google Map gets embedded into search results.
However, Volokh’s report says that if they ever chose to actively prioritize their own products in search, the practice would fall well within the limits of constitutional protection.
“Even if it is assumed that Google engages or plans to engage in … prioritizing, that prioritizing would constitute the legitimate exercise of Google’s First Amendment right to decide how to present information in its speech to its users,” Volokh wrote.
Some Internet users fear that Google and other search outlets have been or are planning to modify their search algorithms to promote products owned by each respective company, despite the company’s insistance of the opposite. Such users also worry that such tampering would lessen the value of search results. If results aren’t delivered organically, they argue, how could they be trusted to be accurate?
Google encountered blowback when it introduced “Search Plus Your World,” which adds information from Google+ to web search results.
However, Volokh’s report compared search results to the editorial decisions made every day at newspapers and magazines — choices granted First Amendment protection.
“Google, Microsoft’s Bing, and Yahoo! Search exercise editorial judgment about what constitutes useful information and convey that information — which is to say, they speak to their users,” wrote Volokh.
“In this respect, they are analogous to newspapers and book publishers that convey a wide range of information from news stories and selected columns by outside contributors to stock listings, movie listings, bestseller lists and restaurant guides.”
SEE ALSO: Google Probe: Meet the FTC’s Secret WeaponGoogle is currently under an antitrust investigation by the Federal Trade Commission on exactly this subject. The company has denied any wrongdoing.
“We use data sources that are our own because we can’t engineer it any other way,” Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt told the Senate Judiciary Committee last year. “I disagree with the characterization that somehow we were discriminating against [competitors].”
Do search results deserve First Amendment protection? Can a report on the subject commissioned by Google be trusted? Sound off in the comments, and read the full report here:
More About: Google, Search, US
Want Your Startup Name in the Dictionary? Choose Wisely
The English language is constantly evolving. Experts at Merriam-Webster and the Oxford English Dictionary perennially add words that have been invented and accepted in our daily lexicons. The practice can be controversial, however, since it sometimes involves removing other, older words entirely.
For instance, the term “cassette tape” was recently extracted after it was deemed unnecessary and redundant. Both “cassette” and “tape” were in the dictionary already, and the words naturally refer to each other.
Lit majors and writers may get emotional when certain words disappear, but the practice nonetheless reveals where our language is heading. When examining recently added words, it comes as no surprise that many of these words are tech-related.
In particular, for a brand to gain entry into one of the world’s foremost dictionaries it must be deemed a universal, generic term. Take “Xerox” for example. The brand name is so common that it has since become a verb, as well: “Sheila, xerox that memo for me, would you?”
SEE ALSO: 10 Sassy Brands on Social MediaYou’ve probably noticed that many startup names, especially those in the tech industry, appear rather strange at first. What did you think when you first heard about a little website called Twitter? Admittedly, using a word potentially associated with caffeinated agitation was a little risky.
Startups intending to make a splash walk a thin line during the naming process. If successful, brand name chatter can help drive awareness and fuel much-needed buzz. So, how should a startup go about creating an orignal, memorable name that will perhaps earn a place in the pantheon of iconic brands?
David Placek, president and founder of Lexicon Branding, knows a thing or two about brand names that stick. He and his team have created several extremely well-known brand names, such as BlackBerry, PowerBook, Pentium and Swiffer, to name a few.
Placek shared three things to keep in mind when creating a new brand name. First, be distinctive. Coining a new word will help set a brand apart, and may even help a business move more quickly through the marketplace. “Think of Java or BlackBerry,” says Placek. “Both are food-related, but when applied to technology brands, they suddenly take on new meaning.”
Second, the word should be catchy and interesting. “Twitter invented a new routine of communication, and so they necessarily invented a name that signals innovation,” says Placek.
Finally, Placek believes the name should sound positive. “The name Twitter is light and easy, and has a nice blend of letters,” he says.
So, how do other tech brand names fare? The Name Inspector blog has compiled and organized a list of companies by their linguistic tendencies. Site creator Christopher Johnson divides well-known websites into groups, like “Real Names,” “Blends” and “Affixed Words.”
One particular naming convention caught our eye. Many startups have chosen to use the “-ster” suffix, as in Flixster, Friendster, Napster, Dogster, Feedster, et al. Placek maintains this convention is an easy way to “indicate action.” The original usage can be traced back to 1936, to a word you may not realize also doubles a brand name: Dumpster. The Dempster brothers played on their last name, and the term became the industry term for a “standardized metal waste container.”
To better understand how brand names are entered into dictionaries, we touched base with Peter Sokolowski, editor-at-large for Merriam-Webster, Inc. We wanted to know if brands like Google are close to gaining entry.
“Before a brand name can be entered in the dictionary, we usually look for evidence of generic use: Kleenex, Dumpster, Q-Tip, Jeep,” says Sokolowski. “As a verb, ’xerox’ means ‘to make a photocopy,’ not ‘to use a Xerox-brand machine.’ Google is a bit different, since it usually does mean ’to use the Google search engine.’”
Brands like Google aren’t quite at the Xerox level yet, although we reckon they are close. Yahoo and Bing, as well as some other niche search engines, still have enough market share that the verb “to google” isn’t yet ubiquitous. That is, the verb refers to the process of using the Google search engine, not to searching in general.
The same goes for “facebooking,” “tweeting” or “youtubing,” says Sokolowski. “Obviously ‘facebook’ as a verb is specific to that one site. The same could be said for ‘youtube.’ The model for these words is ‘google’ (as a verb) and not ‘xerox.’”
If Google still has a ways to go, then your startup has even further. But Placek has some advice for startups, citing two quotes that guide his own work. First, from Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes: “A man’s mind once stretched, never goes back to where it was.” And second, from author George Orwell’s essay Why I Write: “Good prose is like a windowpane.” Both speak to the power language has to enhance our perception, and both suggest that time spent envisioning a great product name is not spent in vain. In fact, Placek believes we should be dedicating more time to this part of the process.
“Fundamentally, a name can do a lot for you,” Placek continues. “It can add several dimensions. It’s the beginning of your story…It can make a great product move in the marketplace more efficiently, and then it can become a stronger brand, in the end.”
As prevalent as brands like Facebook, Google, Twitter and YouTube are in our daily lives, they’ve not yet reached the pinnacle of brand success: becoming verbs unto themselves. But we predict a few of them just might make the jump in the coming decades.
Which tech brand names do you think will eventually become so commonplace that they reach contemporary dictionaries? Let us know in the comments below.
Image courtesy of Flickr, missha, Xavier Encinas, Kalexanderson
More About: branding, features, Google, language, Literature, Startups, trending, Twitter
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Bing Reinvents Social Search and Discovery
The New Bing
Click here to view this gallery.
Bing has been reinvented, offering enhanced search results that tap into the power of social media. Microsoft has done this by pulling people out of search results and putting them in their place: A right-hand social column that will eventually include Facebook, Twitter, Google+ Quora and LinkedIn integration, as well as people who may know something about your most recent Bing query. It even offers a way to ask questions on your favorite social network, directly through Bing.
It’s something of an about-face for the Number 2 search engine, which up until earlier this year has been slowly but surely integrating Facebook information (like “Likes”) directly into Bing Search results. This update is actually Phase 2 of a major overhaul. Bing quietly rolled out the first part last week. It stripped away the right column of results information (leaving a large white well) and moved a more concise “Related Searches” to a small middle column. Facebook Likes results integration remained, but appeared as a more subtle, gray thumbs-up next to the result, and there was a lot of white space on the right.
Starting today, some of Bing’s reported network of 100 million users will see a new column filling that space: The “What Your Friends May Know” social sidebar. For now, the sidebar only works with Facebook, but even with just that one network, the level of integration is quite intense. To see the new pane at work, you have to sign into Facebook and install the Bing App in Facebook. With that done, your social pane will be filled with recent Bing activity that’s also been shared on Facebook. When you enter a search query in the Bing interface on the left, the pane will also display a list of Facebook friends, and topic experts who might be able to assist with your query.
Bing Exec Derrick Connell told me the goal of the new Bing is to “surface people, not web pages.”
In the social pane, there’s also an “Ask friends…” with a small Facebook icon next to it. Here, you type a question possibly related to your search. When you click within the field, a link icon appears next to your search results on the left; click any of them to add them to your Facebook posts. You can also ask those experts and friends to assist in your search. A tiny person-plus icon appears next to each of them. Click one (or more) and they will get a notification about your query.
How does Bing build these “Friends Who Might Know” lists? Microsoft execs explained they’re leveraging as much publicly available data as possible from Facebook (for now) and soon Twitter and other networks. Inclusion in the list is not necessarily based on something you posted about the topic. The sidebar includes people you know through your social networks that have, say, posted a photo about the topic, liked a certain relevant topic or searched for a similar topic in Bing, and people you don’t know, who are, for example, known Topic Experts and Enthusiasts (identified by Bing). All of them could be considered helpful in your quest for knowledge. Conversations revolving around a query topic are viewable through the social pane — you just hover over the activity and a small box will slide out to the left with the original post. You can add comments in any conversation in the activity pane or see the conversation in the slideout.
Not all public posts on these social networks can be scrapped in, so Microsoft turned, first, to its close friend Facebook. Thanks to that close relationship, Microsoft gets “a set of public data that’s part of the fire hose deal with Facebook,” Microsoft’s Connell told me. In fact, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was, according to Microsoft, shown the project and liked it. He was even happy to see the other social networks in the mix.
Eventually the Social Sidebar will add Twitter data. Microsoft says it has access to at least 6 months of publicly-available posts.
Google+ content should make an appearance, too, though it will only be what Microsoft can scrap in. It’s unlikely Google will ever agree to share its private network data with Microsoft. Google is heavily invested in deep integration between Google+ and its own search engine, having launched Search plus Your World earlier this year.
Despite all the new guidance from friends and experts, Bing still wants to help search users with more-targeted results. So it’s taking that somewhat sparse second column and introducing “What Bing Knows” or snapshot (Get it? The first column is “What the Web Knows,” The second column is “What Bing Knows” and the third is “What Your Friends Know”). This well won’t fill up for every search — instead, Microsoft identified four key areas of where it can help: Restaurants, Hotels, Movies and Events and People. The results in this area will include action items like restaurant and hotel reservations. In People, Bing will search across multiple social networks help you find the right person. These features were not available to test at press time.
Microsoft’s goal with all these changes? One, to clean up Bing. The company admits the page was getting too cluttered — it had assumed Web pages would be getting taller and thinner, when in fact, everything is getting shorter and wider. However, one of the key reasons for the change was to “stop corrupting the [search] experience with people,” said a Bing exec. That might also be a subtle dig at Google and its people-populated Search plus Your World. Bing execs also repeatedly said they think users want people — not Web pages — to help them.
There was also some direct criticism of Google. Microsoft execs said the difference between Bing and Google is Microsoft’s product is open while Google’s is closed. When Google’s “Search Plus Your World” Launched, Google faced some criticism for not surfacing Twitter and Facebook results. Bolstered by Bing’s 300 million entities in its database, Microsoft execs contend that its approach is more valuable than Google’s “pure semantic-based model” because it offers pure search information, letting users get info from topic experts. Additionally, Microsoft includes structured data around core topics that are of interest to the broadest set of people.
But Does It Work
I’ve been running the new Bing for a few days now and can report that it more or less works as advertised. First of all, the search results interface is the cleanest I’ve seen it in years. Yes, it looks almost Google-like. I tried a bunch of searches like “Barcelona,” “Tesla,” and “Broadway.” In each case, my “Friends Who Might Know” field in the Social pane filled up with people who had, for instance, posted photos of Nicola Tesla, or “Liked” the “Broadway League.” I was able to blend links and questions in the open field above and then post directly to my Facebook page, along with notifications to my individual friends and experts. No one has answered yet, but those seeing these queries were part of a fairly small beta group.
I noticed, by the way, that when I put in multi-word queries, I got few, if any, “Friends Who Might Know” results.
In Facebook, I did have to install the Bing App. It defaults to sharing your posts with Everyone. If you do a lot of searching, you may want to dial that down a bit.
If you’re usually logged into Facebook and often turn to friends for, say, travel or buying advice, this could be a useful tool for you. Microsoft contends that this is a natural way to find answers. They do not want to reinvent the web, Bing execs explained, “We don’t have to own it to surface it. The beauty of the Internet is you don’t have to be a social network to surface people, you don’t have to be a hotel to surface reservations.”
You may not see the What Your Friends Know or Social Sidebar in Bing for a while — Microsoft said it’ll be rolling this out slowly — but starting today you can visit http://www.bing.com/new to sign up for availability notification.
With this update, the competing search philosophies are clearer than ever. Google sees the world as a deep blend of data, people and activities, all of which can be mined simultaneously for a rich and useful experience. Bing sees a more structured world, where social interactions, while extremely helpful, are kept a safe distance from the core results you desire. Which approach is right? Let us know what you think in the comments.
For more details, check out the video where Microsoft explains the Bing update.
Video: Bing Originals: Search goes social
More About: bing, Facebook, Google, microsoft, Search, Twitter
Today’s Top Stories: Spotify Matchmaking Apps, Facebook App Center
Welcome to this morning’s edition of “First To Know,” a series in which we keep you in the know on what’s happening in the digital world. Today, we’re looking at three particularly interesting stories.
Spotify Launches Two Matchmaking Apps
Spotify has partnered with dating websites Tastebuds.fm and Fellody.com to launch two new apps: Tastebuds and Fellody. The apps will let you find potential romantic partners based on your taste in music. You can find the apps here and here.
Gooogle Overhauls Google+ iPhone App
Google has launched a new version of its Google+ app for iPhone, bringing a completely redesigned interface, improved photos and profile pages and pushing the +1 button to the top of the posts.
Facebook to Launch Its Own App Center
Facebook has announced it’s building an app center, letting developers sell their apps for the first time. The app center will become available in the “coming weeks,” both on the web and in Facebook’s iOS and Android apps.
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, mattjeacock
More About: Facebook, features, first to know series, Google, mashable, spotify
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Sci-Fi Google Glasses Will Let You Take Pics Like This One [VIDEO]
You know those futuristic augmented reality glasses Google‘s been developing? A Googler recently posted a photo showing more of what you’ll be able to do with the sci-fi spectacles.
Google launched its Project Glass on Google+ last month, sending techies and futurists into a minor hysteria. The glasses — which don’t actually feature lenses, according to preliminary photos released by the company — will project augmented reality images into wearers’ field of vision. So when you wake up in the morning, for example, you’ll see weather forecasts, appointments and online correspondences projected in front of your eyes. Google has already released a concept video for the devices, and posted shots of people modeling early designs (see gallery below).
SEE ALSO: Google Glasses: Would You Wear Them? [POLL]
But this week, the world got another small glimpse at what the Google glasses will be able to do. Sebastian Thrun, a computer scientist and Google Fellow, posted a photo to his Google+ page of himself twirling his young son around in a circle. The shot shows a perfect point-of-view composition, with Thrun’s arms and son in clear focus as the background grass blurs. It’s not clear how he took the picture — a voice command? Eye gesture? — but the shot does indicate some pretty cool capabilities for the gadgets.
The New York Times reported in February that the glasses may be available to the public by the end of this year for roughly the cost of a smartphone — indicating they are meant to be a consumer product. But a Google spokesperson told Mashable last month that the glasses going on sale in 2012 is “extremely unlikely.”
What kind of P.O.V. shots would you take with Google glasses? Let us know in the comments.
Stephen, Google engineer
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Thumbnail image via Sebastian Thrun.
More About: Google, project glass
May 09 2012
New Google+ iPhone App Improves Pics, Elevates +1 Button
Google just overhauled its Google+ iPhone app. Whereas previous updates had been primarily concerned with adding functionality (like video-chat “hangouts”), this time the search giant says it’s all about the “sensory” experience.
Google describes the Google+ 2.0.0.558 update (that’s really the version number) as taking full advantage of the mobile experience.
“We’re not interested in a mobile or social experience that’s just smaller,” Google’s blog post reads. “We’re embracing the sensor-rich smartphone (with its touchable screen and high-density display), and transforming Google+ into something more intimate, and more expressive.”
The entire interface has been reworked from top to bottom. At launch, the app still takes you to your stream, but every post in that stream now puts photos front and center, with larger, crisper type on text. Importantly, text now overlays the top of photos, saving space. Instead of changing your stream with a swipe, you now tap the “All Circles” menu to change your stream’s view.
Click within a post, and the photo or video fills the post, with any accompanying text beneath, links in bold blue text. You’ll also the +1 button prominently in the top corner of any post — it stays there no matter how deep you scroll.
The profile and photos pages have changed the least, getting updated with the same fonts as the rest of the system, which appears to be some form of Helvetica.
The iPhone version is rolling out today, and Google says an Android update is coming within the next few weeks. No word on the mobile site, or whether the Google+ will ever get the full iPad-app treatment — though this “immersive” update seems a no-brainer for that platform.
What do you think of the Google+ update? Let us know in the comments.
BONUS: The Secrets of Google+ Brand Pages
1. Access Your Brand Page
Once you've set up your brand page, you access it through your personal Google+ profile.
On your home page below your name and avatar pic is a drop down menu.
Open this menu to see your page, click on it to access it.
Click here to view this gallery.
More About: apps, Google, iphone
May 07 2012
Google+ Releasing ‘Hangouts on Air’ Feature to All Users
Google+ on Monday announced it would gradually roll out its “Hangouts on Air” feature to the masses over the coming weeks. The feature lets you broadcast live sessions for anyone to watch — just like Barack Obama did in January.
Hangouts on Air can be posted on your Google+ stream, YouTube channel or website by checking “Enable Hangouts on Air.” It also allows you to monitor the number of views, record the live session and share it.
The feature previously was available only to a small group of broadcasters starting in 2011. Google touts the creative Hangouts those people have produced such as live concerts from a living room, classes anyone can attend, town halls with politicians and roundtables about any topic, among other sessions.
“So if you have something to say — as an aspiring artist, a global celebrity, or a concerned citizen — you can now go live in front of a global audience,” Google engineering director Chee Chew wrote in a blog post.
SEE ALSO: Google+ Hangouts Get Furry: Now You Can Chat With Cat and Dog Masks [VIDEO]To learn more about Hangouts on Air, watch the videos above and below.
More About: Google, google plus hangouts, Live Stream, Social Media, trending, video chat
May 06 2012
Iran Lashes Out at Google Maps Over Gulf Nomenclature
Iran is harshly criticizing Google for what it feels is a disrespectful omission in Google Maps.
The country’s government is angry because Google Maps does not label the body of water known in Iran as the Persian Gulf. Others refer to it as the Arabian Gulf.
A senior Iranian official blasted Google in a statement on Saturday, threatening that the company risks losing credibility in the Middle East.
“Google fabricating lies… will not have any outcome but for its users to lose trust in the data the company provides,” Deputy Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Bahman Dorri said according to Iranian news reports.
Before Dorri made that official statement on behalf of the Iranian government, resentment about the omission had been brewing among many of the country’s citizens, the BBC reported last week. Upset Iranians say that, up until a few days ago, Google Maps labeled the area as the Persian Gulf.
A Google spokesperson told the BBC that Google Maps does not label every place in the world, but could not provide another example of a major location going nameless.
The large body of water in question is connected to the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea. It separates Iran, to the north, from Saudia Arabia, the U.A.E. and other Arab countries to the south. It has long been known as the Persian Gulf, but in recent years some Arab states have sought to rebrand the waterway as the Arabian Gulf.
Google’s response here so far appears to be one of studied uninvolvement. Do you think Google should leave the gulf nameless, stick with Persian Gulf, or perhaps use both names? Let us know in the comments.
More About: Google, Google Maps
Google Translate Beat Boxes When You Type This Gibberish
From “do a barrel roll” to “let it snow,” Google’s been known to have some whimsical tricks up its sleeves.
Now, you can enjoy some a cappella, sung by Google Translate.
If you insert the below nonsensical string of characters into Google Translate, set the “to” language to German and press listen, you’ll hear a beat boxer. Just copy and paste to try for yourself.
pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk
Have you heard anything unusual by listening to Google Translate results? Share your findings in the comments.
BONUS: 10 Hidden Google Tricks
Gravity
Enter "Google Gravity" in the search bar. Hit "I'm feeling lucky" (if you have Google Instant enabled, it's on the right hand side of the suggested searches). Then watch your world fall down.
Click here to view this gallery.
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, CGinspiration
More About: easter eggs, german, Google, google translate
May 05 2012
Google Could Face $10 Million Fine For Tracking Safari Users
Google may see the costliest repercussion from its alleged Apple Safari privacy breach coming from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
The FTC may fine Google more than $10 million for violating Internet privacy according to Bloomberg, citing “a person familiar with the matter” in its report.
“We will of course cooperate with any officials who have questions,” Google spokesman Chris Gaither told Bloomberg.
The Mountain View-based company was caught tracking user activity on mobile Apple devices. The search giant is accused of violating federal laws and user privacy by installing cookies and trackers onto default Apple Safari browsers.
SEE ALSO: Google Caught Tracking Safari Users: What You Need to KnowGoogle allegedly bypassed Safari settings with a software trick, maneuvering around the Safari limitations on third-party tracking using “special computer code.” The Wall Street Journal first reported the Google Apple Safari tracking in February.
The code was first spotted by Jonathan Meyer, a researcher at Stanford University’s The Center for Internet and Society. Meyer described the “Safari Trackers” in a blog post.
Google removed the Safari code after the WSJ report was published. In Google’s rebuttal, the company said it was only trying to get the Google “+1″ button on many different websites. They said the code was not collecting any personal information from users at all.
How will a hefty fine affect Internet privacy for users? Tell us in the comments if you think the fine will persuade more companies to abide by privacy laws.
More About: apple, Google, ipad, iphone, privacy, safari
May 04 2012
Google News Gets Deeper Ties to Google+
Google News has a new look, and it’s not just cosmetic. Besides adding larger thumbnail photos that dynamically expand when users click on topics, the news-aggregating service now has stronger ties to Google+.
In a blog post about the change, Google says “Many news stories inspire vibrant discussions on Google+, and today we’re starting to add this content to both the News homepage, and the realtime coverage pages.” The feature brings Google+ conversations from your circles, journalists and other “notables” right to the Google News homepage. It can also be turned off if you just want to see headlines.
Google News also now has buttons for users to get “realtime” coverage on a topic. If you’ve ever clicked through on a Google News topic in the past, you may have been frustrated by the seemingly random selection and organization of the stories presented.
SEE ALSO: Google News Fooled by April Fools’ Day Prank“Realtime” presents the topic stories in a more organized way. Once you click on it, you’ll see news articles about the story at the top, listed more or less chronologically. Below that, in-depth articles, opinion pieces and “highly cited” posts are presented under their own headings.
Finally, every topic now gets a similar treatment on the main Google News page, with a top story, more headlines, in-depth/highly cited articles, and a large thumbnail. For topics other than the first one, however, the user must click a button to expand the topic to see anything other than the top story.
What do you think of Google News’s new look? Have your say in the comments.
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, gmutlu
More About: aggregators, Google, google news
Google Doodle Pays Homage to Artist Keith Haring
Today’s Google Doodle is a tribute to Keith Haring, an artist who rose to prominence in the 1980ies, leaving a strong mark on the pop culture of his time.
Haring was born in Reading, Pennsylvania on May 4, 1958. His father was a cartoonist, and Keith was interested in art from an early age. He studied art at The Ivy School of Professional Art in Pittsburgh, and he later moved to New York City, continuing his studies at the School of Visual Arts.
Just like fellow artist and friend Jean-Michel Basquiat, Haring was inspired by graffiti art. His bold lines and vivid colors were one of the most recognizable traits of the eighties aesthetic, especially music.
Haring often collaborated with musicians: he painted Madonna’s jacket for a performance of her song “Like a Virgin,” and the body of Grace Jones for her music video “I’m Not Perfect.”
Haring died on February 16, 1990 from complications due to AIDS. He was only 31 years old.
The Christmas Google Doodle
Each package gets larger with a mouse-over, and a click on it returns search results pertinent to a specific country or the particular items featured in a scene. This one is from December 24, 2010.
Click here to view this gallery.
More About: Google, google doodle, keith haring
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eBay to Open Large Tech Office in NYC
eBay announced its plans to open a large office in New York City Thursday, making it the latest Silicon Valley-based company to bring new tech jobs to the Big Apple.
eBay will open a technology center located at 625 6th Avenue in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood this fall. The office will include the Hunch team, a site eBay acquired in late 2011 that makes recommendations based on user preferences, and will also house more than 200 people in the next few years.
The office will be focused on building eBay’s recommendation technology and data analytics.
SEE ALSO: How eBay Is Getting Back to Its Social Roots“There is a great trend propelling tech forward in New York, which started when Google opened up a large office there,” Chris Dixon, general manager of eBay New York and co-founder of Hunch, told Mashable. “We will be hiring new people and looking at expanding positions in the future. We are very excited.”
In January, eBay opened a new tech center in the Seattle area, which is focused on data mining.
The move comes just one day after Microsoft announced it will be opening a research lab in New York City. Meanwhile, Facebook announced in December that it would open a New York engineering office.
Do you think New York could be the next big mecca for tech companies? Let us know in the comments.
BONUS: Microsoft Research: Bringing Sexy Back
Microsoft: The Garage
This is the famous Microsoft Garage. It actually has two giant garage doors. It's also a place were Microsoft encourages free-form, grassroots invention.
Click here to view this gallery.
More About: ebay, Facebook, Google, hunch, jobs
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May 03 2012
YouTube Google+ Button Gets a Wil Wheaton ‘Rageface’
Likes and dislikes are the social capital of YouTube. Great videos garner hundreds of thousands of Likes. Unloved ones receive almost as many dislikes.
This lucre, so easy to give out but so hard to earn, is what drives YouTube content creators and many of its visitors. It’s shorthand that makes transparent the good, the bad and the ugly video. If that simple pair of thumbs up, thumbs down buttons were to disappear or — worse yet — be replaced, some people would be very, very unhappy.
We know this for a fact now — because actor, author and ubergeek Wil Wheaton made what he called his “rage face” and launched a full-on, profanity-laced rant on his blog and Tumblr when he discovered that the traditional YouTube “Like” buttons had been replaced with one large Google+ Like button.
Wheaton, who says he likes Google+, wrote:
“This is just as bad as companies forcing me to ‘like’ something on Facebook before I can view whatever it is they want me to “like,” Wheaton continued, “Just let me thumbs up something, without forcing me to “upgrade” to G+, you d–kheads.”
Wheaton’s point was that Google seemed to be steering people toward its nascent social networking platform whether they wanted to use it or not.
I did some investigating, but couldn’t recreate the button, whether or not I was logged into Google+ or any of my YouTube accounts. In the meantime, I posted a public question in Google+ to Google’s Bradley Horowitz about Wheaton’s rage-filled post and if this was just a test. I also asked him to elaborate on the importance of leveraging all the eyeballs on Google’s other services to grow Google+.
Some Google+ members chimed in. One noted that he hadn’t seen the new button, while others argued about whether or not it made sense for Google to make changes anywhere that might help propel Google+ forward.
Horowitz didn’t respond, but a Google spokesman eventually did:
“We’re always experimenting to help users find, watch and share the videos that matter most to them, on YouTube and across all of Google’s products including Google+. Depending on user feedback, some of these experiments may become options for users and some may not.”
It’s a clear indication that what Wheaton saw was an experiment and possibly nothing more. Considering how few people saw the Google+ Like button on YouTube and Wheaton’s very public reaction, it’s unlikely we’ll ever see that button again.
Even so, the question remains: What can and should Google do to make Google+ as popular and pervasive as Facebook? The company has already publicly stated that with Google+ it’s actually building Google 2.0, meaning that it’s the hub for everything Google does, including Search, Gmail and YouTube.
Integrating Google+ with Google’s far more popular and well-established services is the most obvious path for success. So we may not see that button in that space again, but we’ll certainly see a lot more of Google+.
How comfortable are you with the Google+ification of Google’s services? Will it make you any more or less likely to use the Google’s social platform? Tell us in the comments.
More About: Google, Wil Wheaton, YouTube
Google Pledges $200 Million to Market Premium YouTube Channels
Google, which has already pledged $100 million to create a slew of premium video channels on YouTube, announced on Wednesday it will sink another $200 million into marketing them across its various ad networks.
The company will use YouTube, the Google Display Network, and other formats to promote the channels, according to a YouTube rep. Google also threw a big bash in New York Wednesday night featuring Jay-Z, Julie Stiles, Jennifer Beals, Virginia Madsen and Flo Rida to make some noise about the channels during the TV network upfronts, the annual event in which network execs and media buyers converge in the Big Apple to sell ad commitments based on the upcoming fall season. In addition to the new marketing heft, YouTube is planning a programmable channel guide to make finding such premium content easier.
YouTube announced the premium channel program — which includes channels from Ashton Kutcher, Amy Poehler, Shaquile O’Neal and The Wall Street Journal, among others — last October. The move was seen as a way for Google to better monetize YouTube since such premium content is more advertiser-friendly. In addition, tools like Apple TV level the playing field for YouTube by bringing it to TV as another alternative to network and cable programming.
“We will fish where the fish are in a mighty big pond,” Google VP-content Robert Kyncl told attendees at YouTube’s upfront event Wednesday night, according to Advertising Age. “If you want to lead, join us now for the next seven years. We can build audiences together. We can build brands together.”
What do you think of YouTube’s new premium channels? Have you checked them out? Let us know in the comments.
Image courtesy of iStockphoto, GiorgioMagini
More About: Google, Marketing, YouTube
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May 02 2012
Bing Takes on Google With Simple New Design
Microsoft’s search engine Bing has done some heavy spring cleaning as a part of an effort to de-clutter its search result pages — and the new design looks a lot like Google.
Bing rolled out a new look that is designed to help users get results faster than ever. But the seamless design bears a striking resemblance to Google Search’s simple layout. See below.
“Over the past few months, we’ve run dozens of experiments to determine how you read our pages to deliver the link you’re looking for,” Sally Salas, principal group program manager at Bing, said on its official blog. “Based on that feedback, we’ve tuned the site to make the entire page easier to scan, removing unnecessary distractions, and making the overall experience more predictable and useful.”
SEE ALSO: Despite Bing’s Rise, Google Still Dominates Search [INFOGRAPHIC]In addition to faster page-load times and more relevant search results, Bing tightened the header and removed the “left rail” related-search section, making it easier to find the information and links you want.
It also enlarged the space between lines to increase readability and optimize the page for touch devices.
Bing said it is working on updating its search page even more in the future.
“We’re not finished, ” Salas wrote. “Today, we’re also testing out some new ideas for the homepage, including a larger version of the popular daily image. If you happen upon the homepage changes, please let us know what you think.”
What do you think of Bing’s new search results page? Do you think the site looks too much like Google? Let us know in the comments.
BONUS: 12 Mysterious Google Maps Sightings
1. The Badlands Guardian
This natural formation in Alberta, Canada is known as the Badlands Guardian and looks strikingly similar to a native American wearing a headdress. If you look close enough, it looks like he's wearing a pair of earphones, but that section is actually a man-made road and oil well.
Click here to view this gallery.
More About: bing, Google, trending
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May 01 2012
Mashable, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+ Win Their First Webby Awards [EXCLUSIVE]
The Webby Awards may be in its 16th year, but there’s no shortage of websites and services to recognize for the first time — and Mashable is proud to announce it is among them, and in some very good company.
The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences has chosen Mashable as best business blog of the year. Other first-time winners include Pinterest, which gets the Webby for social media website, while Google+ gets the People’s Voice nod for social media.
Spotify gets the award for music app of the year, while white-hot photo-sharing app Instagram will be honored as the Webby Breakout of the Year.
Another first-time honoree: Bjork, who gets the artist of the year award for her album Biophilia.
The IADAS executive committee, featuring more than a thousand web luminaries, votes on the main award in each category, while a record 1.5 million votes were cast around the world for the People’s Voice choices.
Some more highlights: Facebook gets a brand new award for helping to foster social change around the world; Dropbox wins best web service, as well as the Webby for the website with the best practices; Epicurious wins best lifestyle website; Factcheck.org wins best political website.
The Webbys’ full list of winners will be revealed 7am ET Tuesday morning, but Mashable got an exclusive sneak peek. Check back later for the full list — and a big thank you to everyone who voted.
More About: 2012 Webby Awards, bjork, Google, instagram, pinterest, spotify, webby awards
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