When Al Gore first created the internet (hard wink, everybody), we’re pretty sure the plan was for Big Brother to collect your data, not Silicon Valley titans. Now Google, the company that mainly tends the gates to the web’s vast array of information, is stepping up to its “Do No Evil” motto, and making encrypted search the norm — for account users. While Gmail’s long had SSL set as a default login, good ol’ Joe Public’s had to specifically access Mountain View’s dedicated encrypted search page for anonymous surfing privileges. No longer, as Gmail users signed in to Goog’s suite of web services will be automatically redirected to https://www.google.com where their searches and results will be hidden from prying eyes. The protection doesn’t extend out to web advertisements, so those specific clicks will deliver the same metric-relevant info that helps marketers optimize their hyper-targeting. Any of that put you conspiracy theorists at ease? Good, now you can open those curtains again.
Google encrypts search for users, paranoiacs unsure how to respond originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Oct 2011 13:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Google’s South Korea offices have been raided by federal authorities once again — this time, over alleged antitrust violations. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Korean Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) stormed Google’s Seoul offices on Tuesday, amid claims that the company unfairly stifles competition by making its search engine the default option on Android handsets. South Korea’s largest mobile search operators, NHN and Daum Communications, filed a complaint with the KFTC in April, claiming that Android is “systematically designed” to discourage users from switching to different portals, and that Google excludes competitors by delaying OS certification for phone manufacturers that attempt to pre-load devices with other search engines. Similar charges, as you may recall, fueled an FTC investigation in the US, where anti-competitive allegations have been flying around for a few months, now. Google neither confirmed nor denied that yesterday’s raid took place, but a spokesperson said the company would “work with the KFTC to address any questions they may have about our business,” adding that its OS does “not require carriers or manufacturers to include Google Search or Google applications on Android-powered devices.”
Google’s South Korean offices raided over alleged antitrust violations originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Sep 2011 04:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Well, would you look at that? Two of our favorite entertainers, Lucile Ball and the World Wide Web, share a birthday. Of course, the former Mrs. Desi Arnaz would have about 80 years on the old web if she were alive today, but there’s no reason the two can’t get along, right? That’s Google’s stance anyway, as the internet giant’s dedicated its latest doodle to the memory of the fiery ginger comedienne. If you love Lucy as much as we do, hit the source link, grab some popcorn and cozy up to that tiny TV to watch some of her very finest comedic performances.
[Thanks, Bedan]
Babalu! Google celebrates Lucille Ball’s 100th birthday doodle-style originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 21:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Google’s been on a creative tear lately, rolling out
new products and
revamping older ones. But there’s a reason the phrase “search giant” is synonymous with Big G, and it’s always working to return
better results. Sometimes that means tweaking its algorithm to
prevent SEO-gaming; other times it means dropping over 11 million sites from search results, as the company just did in blocking the .co.cc subdomain. Google classifies it as a “freehost” — it belongs to a Korean company that provides free or cheap domains, often bulk-registered — and after automated scanning revealed a high percentage of malware-hosting sites, decided to scrub the entire lot from its results. Of course, this is something like using a nuclear weapon against cockroaches: it causes a lot of collateral damage, while your real target scurries to its next hideout. Still, we wish Google well in its bravely quixotic mission.
Google pulls co.cc subdomains from search, brings our global malware nightmare to an end originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 10 Jul 2011 14:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Google’s Voice Search for desktop is nifty and all, but what it’s really been lacking is a worthy way to trigger it into action. The Verbalizer is an open-source dev board made specifically to be used with the search giant’s new tools from up to ten meters away. This microphone-shaped piece of circuitry was made with Arduino compatibility in mind, which means that voice search is just the beginning. The company (who happens to be the same folks behind the brilliant Instaprint) will be distributing schematics and source code through its website, and promises to give away a “limited run” of kits for free in a drawing starting today. Head on over to the source link if you feel like testing your luck, but not before checking after the break for one more shot of these mini masterpieces on display as well as the nitty gritty PR.
Continue reading Verbalizer: the open-source wireless microphone of your Arduino-loving dreams
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets
Verbalizer: the open-source wireless microphone of your Arduino-loving dreams originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Jun 2011 10:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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What you once knew as the Google Mobile App has been rechristened the Google Search app, signifying a renewed focus for Google’s primary iOS application. Having formerly served as a multifunctional access point to all of Google’s varied web apps, the new software is now geared to serve search needs first, with its other offerings relegated to a secondary “Apps” menu. There’s also the addition of a new toolbar, accessible by swiping left to right, and improved fast-app switching support. The ever-present bug fixes and a few more user interface tweaks complete the list of changes. To get your download on, you may exploit either the source link below or the QR code above.
Continue reading Google Search app for iPhone introduces new side-swipe toolbar and other UI tweaks
Google Search app for iPhone introduces new side-swipe toolbar and other UI tweaks originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 07:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Okay, so this Google announcement doesn’t come with some dessert-themed upgrade, but we guarantee you’ll be able to find recipes for
cupcakes,
gingerbread, and maybe even
ice cream. Yep, those always-hungry folks in Mountain View are rolling out a new Recipe View tab, which will not only narrow your search results to show cooking recipes, but will also provide some pretty awesome ways to filter down your inevitable query for spaghetti and meatballs. The image above pretty much explains it all — you can filter down by your ideal ingredients, cooking time, and even the calories count. Google’s even making it easier for recipe website developers to add markups to their webpages so that content can eventually appear all nicely sorted on the new search pages. It should all be rolling out as we speak in the US and Japan, which really means you have no choice but to cook tonight.
Google pulls Recipe View out of the oven originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Bing not meeting your needs? Don’t fret, Google just pushed its Google Search app for Windows Phone 7 live in Marketplace. A move the mirrors the Bing app availability on the Android Market. The Google Search app utilizes your location to provide local search results and features suggestions as your type and a search history to quickly repeat any previous queries. While there’s no way to reassign Google Search to the dedicated search “button” on WP7 devices, you could always pin the app to the Start screen. Unfortunately, we’re still not seeing it populated in the UK Marketplace (search for “Google Search”) but that should be remedied anytime now.
Google Search App bungs Bing on Windows Phone 7 Marketplace originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Nov 2010 04:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Tomorrow, there’s a new competitor in the web browser arena: RockMelt. It’s a web browser built to fit perfectly “the way people use the web today” (they say), namely with Facebook, Google & Twitter completely integrated from the ground up. With this tight integration, RockMelt makes tasks like sending a Facebook or a Twitter message faster than before because you’re always logged-in. Looking at several Google Search results should also be quicker because the search results say visible while you look at those pages.
Will it change the way we use the web? Probably not, but maybe it will make us more social (employers are going to “love” it). In my view, the main strength of RockMelt is its new user interface: it would be difficult to build with an array of plug-ins made by several companies. Also, launching a browser that’s based on the fact that Google and Facebook (should we call it “GooBook”?) are two dominant forces might not be such a bad idea (business-wise), even if that seems closed-minded… In some ways, it reminds me of when AOL “was” (almost) the internet – not a pleasant thought.
This browser doesn’t claim to be the fastest, although it should be plenty fast, as it is based on the code that was used to build Google Chrome. Soon, you’ll be able to experience it. In the meantime, there’s only the official video. If you try it, leave us a comment.
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RockMelt, a Social Web Browser
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