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- Google to Add Status Update Feature to Gmail [Analysis]
- Google to include Walking Tours of Stores
- Civilization Beta Tests on Facebook in June
- Referring Readers to Scobelizer’s Latest Post
- Apple iPad vs. Adobe — what’s going on and why Adobe is playing the porn card…
- Apple’s Lesser News of the Day… VOIP on the iPhone
- Google Reader Improves: Monitor any Website… and Blackberry Tip
- Most Over the Top Wedding Save the Date [Video]
- First Phone to Dual Boot two OSs… Nokia’s N900 [video and implications]
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The Wall Street Journal and Mashable are reporting that Google will soon roll out a “status update” feature to Gmail similar to Facebook and Twitter. This is BIG news and “Make Gmail Social” (which appears in the Mashable headline) is now a trending topic on Twitter.
It looks like Google Street View will be expanded so that people can virtually walk into stores near and far. Apparently Google has sent camera crews to New York City and San Francisco to shoot images of the inside of various stores. This is in the unconfirmed rumor stage though Read Write Web claims to have a photo of Google in action. See below:
Ok, seriously, there are a lot of guesses about what Google’s got up its sleeve. I suppose Google Maps will simply include a “Enter this store” link which could be the gateway to virtual online shopping. Another way to monetize this service is to show increased foot traffic due to the presence of virtual tours on Google Maps and sell the service to retailers.
I have to admit, this is kind of weird. So, are they going to knock on my door and ask to shoot pictures of my dirty laundry next?
[via ReadWriteWeb]
Get ready to see your Facebook stream flooded with Sid Meier’s Civilization Network, a sequel to his popular Civilization franchise. It will begin beta testing in June. Sid has hinted at what players can expect in the game:
No need to reinvent the wheel, right?
While I have been covering the Google vs. Apple war, I haven’t been discussing the Google vs. Facebook war that is apparently brewing. I recommend reading Robert Scoble’s post today:
There’s a slew of blog posts the past couple days about Apple’s decision not support Adobe Flash on it’s upcoming tablet, the iPad. Things got interesting today. Adobe employee, Lee Brimelow, fired back with a blog post that really shows off Adobe Flash… and it’s use on porn sites. Apparently, the blog post was short lived but below is a screenshot:
Apple has approved the first VOIP app for the iPhone which enables voice calls over a 3G data connection. iCall is the first VOIP app to be allowed into the App Store but expect a flood of new apps. Obviously, Skype for the iPhone will rank among the most popular of the VOIP apps.
Curiously, it is unclear whether the Google Voice app will ever be available on the iPhone. Google Voice currently uses traditional land lines to route calls. Apple has rejected it from the App Store claiming that duplicates the phone’s existing functionality and would confuse customers. Arguably, VOIP apps duplicate the phone’s functionality as well. I suggest that neither would actually confuse customers but would rip profits from AT&T. The Google Voice vs. Apple showdown is before the FCC now.
In the future, Google Voice may become a VOIP service. As I relayed back in November, Google acquired Gizmo5, a VOIP outfit, and will integrate Gizmo5 technology with Google Voice. When this happens, Apple may have no choice but to approve a Google Voice app. In the meantime, Google is coding around Apple’s restrictions and thumbing its nose at the App Store. Google Voice can be accessed via the iPhone browser at m.google.com/voice.
[First VOIP App Approved via Gizmodo]
Ok, so I’m a big fan of just about every Google product. For the record, however, I’ve been critical of the Google Voice team for not implementing certain features and I’ve also ripped on Google Docs. Notwithstanding, Google has hit a home run with it’s Google Reader app. I’ve previously pitched RSS (Really Simple Syndication) readers generally. They allow you to aggregate your favorite websites into a global inbox. Your favorite websites basically come to you when you subscribe to their RSS “feeds.” The amount of time you can save by reducing page loads and clicking around the web is astonishing. Read the rest of this entry »
Nokia’s N900 has been hacked to allow it to boot Maemo (native OS) and Google’s Android. The video shows that the phone is capable of running either OS. It appears that the phone’s internal memory has been partitioned, similar to most dual boot computer setups. The video follows along with some implications.