Technology The 'Everything Google that isn't Android' thread

[Casey]

Also...don't make the mistake of looking at Chrome as a traditional OS.

[youtube]mTFfl7AjNfI[/youtube]

This is all that millions of people, and particularly people who aren't tech-savvy, need. Hell, I've noticed that web apps are replacing desktop apps that I've used in the past. Damn near 90% of what I ever do on my laptop is through the browser anyway - things like Gtalk (a web app) with video chat have replaced the situations where I previously used Skype.

I use Spotify, which although it's an app, it's essentially a web app already with a lightweight media player built in, because all the content is network content, including how it's displayed. All my productivity is through web apps like Google Wave, Google Docs.

It wouldn't replace my personal laptop because I use it for heavy multimedia editing and music production, but it's a perfect netbook OS IMO and most people don't need that kind of heavy multimedia software, which you wouldn't use on a netbook anyway.

 

[masta247]

Yeah it's for less tech-savvy people - actually it could be perfect for them.
It's just that I hoped to install it on my laptop and use it for my studies/work and thought that it'll also do its job as a desktop OS and install casual programs - I thought it'll be more like a new Linux from Google.
Also, the internet access speed for most people is too low to store bigger files and use more complex apps over the web imo. This OS is said to not install anything on HDD and store EVERYTHING except for its own core files on the web. While it might be a decent idea - the simplest OS ever, I can't picture myself using it.

What I can see though is a huge amount of cheap netbooks with really small SSD Hard drives and cheap hardware just for the internet with this OS (I doubt you'd need a CPU faster than 1ghz and more than 512mb of ram to run on this OS really smoothly considering it contains almost only a web browser, starts in a few seconds, has no registry and the amount of system files running is that low).
Then they could sell them for as low as half of current netbooks' price. That could be potentially awesome.

 

[Casey]

Yeah it's for less tech-savvy people - actually it could be perfect for them.
It's just that I hoped to install it on my laptop and use it for my studies/work and thought that it'll also do its job as a desktop OS and install casual programs - I thought it'll be more like a new Linux from Google.

Also, the internet access speed for most people is too low to store bigger files and use more complex apps over the web imo. This OS is said to not install anything on HDD and store EVERYTHING except for its own core files on the web. While it might be a decent idea - the simplest OS ever, I can't picture myself using it.

What I can see though is a huge amount of cheap netbooks with really small SSD Hard drives and cheap hardware just for the internet with this OS. Then they could sell them for as low as half of current netbooks' price. That could be potentially awesome.

A new Linux from Google = Android.

What's interesting is that Sergey Brin (co-founder of Google) said that he expects Android and Chrome OS "to converge over time".

How this will happen will be interesting to watch.

 

[Casey]

Let's talk about Google Books - Google's initiative to scan and digitally reproduce as much book and magazine content as possible for free.

I just found this really awesome article about Michael Jackson and the making of the 'Bad' album - it was originally published in Ebony magazine in 1987!! How else would I have been able to check out this incredible article if it weren't for Google?

Ebony - Google Books

As you can see, it's a perfect reproduction of what originally appeared in the magazine. Too dope.

 

[masta247]

I found a rare book for maths there! It's awesome (Google Books)

 

[S O F I]

Most books I look up on Google Books are limited preview and you have to buy them.

 

[Casey]

Most books I look up on Google Books are limited preview and you have to buy them.

Yeah, I mean unfortunately that's down to the old-fashioned views of the copyright holders. More and more people will wake up to this method of doing things.....the print industry in it's traditional form is largely doomed.

 

[S O F I]

Also, I can't believe Masta didn't know about Google Books.

This link masta might just make your month:

More Google Products

 

[masta247]

Also, I can't believe Masta didn't know about Google Books.

This link masta might just make your month:

More Google Products

Lol I've heard about it but never really checked. I don't use most Google apps. They often seem useless to me and then when I find out that they're way more awesome than I thought I'm surprised.

 

[Casey]

That's not even a full list SOFI.

Here's a better link:

More Google Products

 

[S O F I]

^lol you dumb dumb it's the same list, just yours is from google.co.uk and mine is google.com

look at the full link.

 

[Casey]

^lol you dumb dumb it's the same list, just yours is from google.co.uk and mine is google.com

look at the full link.

When I clicked yours it only displayed some of the services, but changing the suffix to mine displayed all of them.

from google.com
http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/1425/googlecomproducts.jpg

from google.co.uk
http://img251.imageshack.us/img251/2462/googlecoukproducts.jpg

 

[S O F I]

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/2739/screenshot20100127at601.png

Imageshack - screenshot20100127at602.png

From the link I provided.


It's an ISP/regional thing.

 

[Casey]

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/2739/screenshot20100127at601.png

Imageshack - screenshot20100127at602.png

From the link I provided.


It's an ISP/regional thing.

Ah, OK. I thought it might be something like that. Weird.

 

[Flipmo]

Soon enough Google will be making condoms.

I can see it now ...

*Looking for a hot night? Google your doodle and let the pleasure take over*

 

[THEV1LL4N]

oh yes, i posted that on my profile the other day.

people are amazed that these productivity apps are really by google. google was keyhole then earth adn then made maps into an online service.

google earth is so addictive.

Books is great. last year i found a lot of good material. my main problem with that is that they want us to reference jornals more than books and so scholar comes into play here - which is also great.

the birmingham city council's search facility is powered by google and so are other websites. its good to see they have these services so that they can offer the best navigation experience.

 

[Casey]

A First Taste Of What The Google Tablet’s Interface Will Look Like

Last week, the world saw Apple’s long anticipated tablet device, the iPad, for the first time. In the aftermath since that announcement, a few things have become clear: it will be great for some people, but its apparent lack of flexibility (at least in its first iteration) may leave something to be desired. It’s increasingly looking like the best alternative will be Google’s Chrome OS, which is clearly on a collision course with the iPad. And tonight, we’ve come across some very impressive mockups of what Chrome OS may look like on a tablet form factor.

The photos have been posted to the official Chromium site (Chromium is the open source project behind Chrome and ChromeOS). And while Chromium is not actually part of Google, it appears that these mockups were put together by Glen Murphy, Google Chrome’s designer. In other words, there’s a good chance that the final version of Chrome OS will resemble this.

It’s worth pointing out that there almost certainly will be multiple “Google Tablets”, given that Chrome OS won’t be tied to a single device. That said, Google is working with select hardware partners to ensure that it runs on devices that are up to its specifications, and there may be one tablet device that is designated as the “Google Tablet”, much like the Nexus One is the “Google Phone”.

Late last week, I wrote a post about how netbooks running Chrome OS and the iPad were on a collision course. Some people took exception to that, noting the iPad was only a touchscreen device while Chrome OS was created to be used with more traditional computing form factors, like netbooks and laptops. But there’s a new concept video that has surfaced on a Chromium Project page that very much shows how the two could and should compete head-on in the touch tablet space.

Again, this is just a concept video at this point, but it clearly shows what the people building Chrome OS are thinking about for future products. Oh, and in case you’re worried that since Chromium OS is an open source project, this is just some random person making these videos that Google is unlikely to use for Chrome OS, they were made by Glen Murphy, a Googler working on Chrome (with a sense of humor).

Clearly, the tablet in this video is bigger than the iPad, but don’t rule out Apple making a larger tablet as well. It’s worth noting that Google’s tablet concept video was uploaded January 25, two days before the iPad unveiling.

For more of a taste of what Google has in mind with these tablets, check out the concept pictures as well. Watch the video below.

[youtube]debO2FroXA0[/youtube]

 

[Casey]

This advert is too damn cute.

[youtube]nnsSUqgkDwU[/youtube]

 

[Shadows]

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Google said Wednesday that it will start testing a new broadband network that will deliver speeds of more than 100 times faster than traditional broadband.

The Internet search giant is aiming to link up with states and municipalities to build and test a fiber-optic network that will offer download speeds of about 1 gigabit per second, according to a blog post on the company's Web site. Google said that speed would be fast enough to download a high-definition, full-length feature film in less than five minutes.

The company said the network would offer wire-line service directly to consumers' homes at "a competitive price." The network will be built by Google (GOOG, Fortune 500), but consumers will be able to choose their service provider. Google expects the test will provide its service to at least 50,000 and potentially up to 500,000 people.

"Our long-term vision is to see a better, faster Internet," said Minnie Ingersoll, product manager of Google's high-speed broadband initiative. "When everyone had dial up, we couldn't imagine what broadband speeds would be like. By increasing speeds by 100 times faster than what's offered today, we can create opportunities for services that we won't even be able to envision now."

Buzz on broadband
The news had open-Internet and broadband proliferation advocates buzzing. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski and Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., both said in statements that they hoped Google's test would help usher in a new era of ultra-high-speed Internet access to increase America's global competitiveness.

"Big broadband creates big opportunities," Genachowski said in a statement. "This significant trial will provide an American test bed for the next generation of innovative, high-speed Internet apps, devices, and services."

Google put out a request for information to interested communities on Wednesday. Ingersoll said she hopes Google would be able to identify which community will be the test subject, but added that there was no immediate timeline for when the test network would be up and running.

A strong response to Google's search (no pun intended) has already begun: Facebook groups are beginning to pop up, urging Google to pick their communities, including groups from Buffalo, N.Y. and Chapel Hill, N.C.

This isn't the first time that Google has tried its hand at providing Internet access. In 2006, the search giant launched a free mobile broadband network in Mountain View, Calif., using small WiFi radios hanging on lampposts throughout the city.

Ingersoll said there are no plans to deploy the service beyond the test bed, but it hoped that a successful network test would help spur deployment of similar high-speed networks from other Internet service providers.

"What the government is doing and other providers are doing is great, and we applaud it, but we think there's more innovation to be done," she said.

Google's desire to see improved Internet speeds is part of its strategy to keep users on the Internet, accessing its Web sites, and clicking on the ads that its sells.

"Since Google's products and services are used by people connecting to the Internet, if people don't have constrained bandwidth ... that means they'll spend more time on Google and other Web sites as well," Ingersoll added.

Analysts say that no matter what Google's intentions, the service will likely be disruptive to the status quo.

"One thing's for sure: This is a big kick in the anthill," said Yankee Group analyst Benoît Felten. "It likely has broadband network operators shaking in their boots."

Source: CNN.com

100x faster than broadband. FUCK

 

[THEV1LL4N]

i hear about google broadband a while back. it was only a rumour then. i hope it makes its way into the uk.