Google

It appears Google may not be fully into the "spirit of giving" this holiday season. The search giant has announced its intention, as part of its business plan for 2013, to take 90 per cent of current Office users away from Microsoft. In a recent Q ... ... (view more)

Google is reportedly working on a super smartphone. Dubbed the 'X Phone', it will directly compete with the Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy series. However, Google is reportedly having significant problems designing the new device. Google is working ... on the project with Motorola, the major electronics manufacturing firm it recently acquired for $12.5 billion. This marks the first time the two companies have worked together to build a smartphone. Reports also indicate the Google and Motorola partnership will produce a special 'X Tablet' computer. 'X Phone' a Feature-Rich Device Reports suggest ... (view more)

Insiders say it now looks as though Google will not be punished for allegedly favoring its own web sites when compiling its search engine results pages. Rival firms are already complaining such an outcome would allow Google to retain an unfairly-won ... advantage over them. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been looking into a series of allegations that Google abused its dominance of the Internet search market by unfairly favoring its own websites when compiling its search results. However, observers say the punishment the FTC could inflict on Google is unclear, even if the regulatory agency ... (view more)

Owners of devices running Windows 8 will be disappointed to learn that Google will not be investing any more resources into building apps for that operating system or for Windows Phone 8 -- at least not for the time being. In a recent interview with ... the British technology-based publication V3, Google Apps product management director Clay Bavor made it clear his company has no plans to build any more apps for Windows. Bavor says Google is "very careful about what (they) invest and will continue to go where the users are." According to Bavor, Google's users "are not on Windows Phone or Windows ... (view more)

Google chief executive officer Eric Schmidt has offered a scathing assessment of Microsoft and its newest operating system (OS), Windows 8, in a recent interview. Talking with the Wall Street Journal, Google's CEO had this to say of Windows 8 (which ... launched October 26, 2012): "I have not used it, but I think that Microsoft has not emerged as a trendsetter in this new model yet." (Source: businessinsider.com ) Put another way, Schmidt seems to believe Microsoft and its products are offering far less of a challenge to Google than they once did. 'Microsoft No Longer a Key Player in Tech ... (view more)

Insider reports suggest the US government may decide against taking Google to court over allegations it fixed its search results for its own benefit. Officials are reportedly concerned they don't have evidence to suggest such practices actually ... harmed any web users. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been carrying out a preliminary investigation to determine whether or not Google has broken any rules. If the FTC does find Google violated federal law, it must then determine what the government can do. Investigation Focuses on Smartphone, Search Markets The investigation covers several ... (view more)

Google says that national governments are demanding access to its user data more than ever before. The search giant also says governments are making more requests for it to take controversial information offline. These revelations come in the latest ... edition of Google's Transparency Index, a semi-annual report designed to shed light on the state of online censorship. It takes Google several months to compile the data, so the new information covers 20,939 requests for user data and other demands made only between January and June 2012. Compare that to Google's 2009 Transparency Index, which ... (view more)

A new version of Google's popular Chrome Internet browser reportedly reduces power consumption and extends the life of a portable device's battery. According to Google, the updated browser now uses a new video decoding technique that puts a device's ... dedicated graphics processing unit (GPU) to work instead of its central processing unit (CPU). The firm says that because graphics chips require less power than CPUs, this approach significantly reduces power consumption and extends battery life by as much as 25 per cent. (Source: computerworld.com ) Google says it has tested the system ... (view more)

Google's top executive in Brazil has been released pending a court date. Fabio Jose Silva Coelhoto was arrested because the company defied a court order to take down YouTube videos some say slander a mayoral candidate. The video clips reportedly ... suggest that a candidate in the city of Campo Grande has committed crimes. It's not clear at this point whether there is any truth to the allegations. However, local court actions suggests there is not. Judge Flavio Peren ruled last week that the videos breached Brazilian election law and must be removed. Peren also ruled that YouTube access should be ... (view more)

VirusTotal, a company that produces a free online malware scanner service, says it has been acquired by search giant Google. Google has confirmed the transaction took place, but has not released financial details of the sale. We do know that ... VirusTotal announced the acquisition late last week. The firm's online malware scanner evaluates website addresses (URLs) and also files on your hard drive, to ensure they do not contain viruses, trojan horses, or other forms of malware. VirusTotal says it utilizes more than forty different antivirus strategies to detect potential problems. (Source: pcmag ... (view more)