google

Google Hacks Google Hacks is a compilation of carefully crafted Google searches that expose novel functionality from Google's search and map services. For example, you can use it to view a timeline of your search results, view a map, search for ... music, search for books, and perform many other specific kinds of searches. You can also use this program to use 'google' as a proxy. http://code.google.com/p/googlehacks/ Gspace Gspace turns the 2GB of your Gmail account into free online storage. With Gspace you can manage unlimited Gmail accounts to store all type of files within its simple, user ... (view more)

Google has unveiled a new feature for its popular Google News: comments. The new addition, now in beta, is sparking talks of the ethical implications of journalism and how Google is "stepping it up a notch" on that front. As Google software ... engineers Dan Meredith and Andy Golding explained on the official Google blog, adding comments may equate to adding integrity. "As always, Google News will direct readers to the professionally-written articles and news sources our algorithms have determined are relevant for a topic...But we're hoping that by adding this feature, we can help ... (view more)

At the Stanford Summit in Palo Alto, California, IT heavyweights such as Google and Apple discussed the U.S. patent system -- and not everyone was thrilled with the its current state. Google's head of patents, Michelle Lee, described the U.S. patent ... system as being "in crisis." She explained that there are too many businesses that use patents mostly as a means of making money. These businesses, called trolls, have proven profitable for many tech companies, but the large number of patents is backing up the system. "The Patent Office is overburdened," she said. "The volume of patents going in ... (view more)

The European Union's executive branch has approved a grant of 120 million euros (about $166 million US) to help fund the German government's next-generation Internet search engine, code-named Theseus. (Source: arstechnica.com ) The grant will be ... distributed among different companies, including SAP AG and Siemens AG, as they begin research on the Theseus project. The project aims to develop "new search technologies for the next generation Internet," including "semantic technologies which try to recognize the meaning of content and place it in its proper context." Semantic technologies are ... (view more)

Google search rival Ask.com is providing its clients with a new tool called AskEraser, which prevents the company from storing a user's search results. AskEraser gives searchers the ability to control their search history and data retention at the ... same time. While the program is extremely user-friendly, it is surprisingly only the first of its kind amongst the world's top search engines. The sceptical may wonder how this concept can possibly be successful if leading search engines, such as Google, did not discover it first. In terms of mechanics, "with AskEraser, users can instantly request ... (view more)

In a move that will surely please many privacy campaigners, Google has changed its cookie policy dramatically. How so? Instead of having cookies expire in the year 2038, they will expire two years after the page has last been viewed. (Source: ... betanews.com ) The announcement comes shortly after the search engine giant revealed that it will erase search logs after 18 months, a reduction from the previously uncapped time limit. The cookie reduction announcement came via an official Google blog entitled "Cookies: Expiring Sooner to Improve Privacy." In the post, Global Privacy Counsel Peter ... (view more)

Recently, we reported on Australia's disinterest in Microsoft Vista. Now, the former crook colony is lashing out at another tech heavyweight, launching a lawsuit against web giant Google. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is ... suing Google for deception. The world's most popular online search engine is being accused of misleading users with links paid for by its advertisers. The ACCC feels that Google has allowed advertisers who falsely claim to be associated with other companies to place their links next to those of the companies that deny any relation to them. ... (view more)

Many people have turned to Google to answer various questions, like how to loop a necktie or how to change a tire. As it turns out, the helpfulness of Google is not limited to law abiding citizens; two robbers in Colorado used Google to help them ... crack a safe and take off with $12,000. Here's how the heist goes: The burglars had broken into an indoor amusement center known as Bigg City. Although the robbers knew the codes for the safes, they were unable to get them open after several tries. To solve their problem the bandits consulted a computer in the next room and searched "how to crack a ... (view more)

Google has lost the Gmail name battle in Germany. The winning party, German entrepreneur Daniel Giersch, has had his own Gmail trademark in the country since 2000. Google, on the other hand, launched its Gmail service more recently in 2004. This ... specific trademark case is not the first of its kind. In 2005, Google quarrelled with a U.K financial firm that had been offering a Gmail service to currency investors since 2002. It is not surprising that Google lost this overseas case as well; after all, Google's Gmail "does not appear to be an active domain in a number of countries including ... (view more)

On Friday, Google employee Lauren Turner created a post on the official Google blog which criticized Michael Moore's new film "Sicko." The post caused so much outrage that Turner has since posted another note which apologizes for her controversial ... suggestions. In the original post, Turner not only panned the movie but also offered health care advertisers a way to fight back by placing Google ads so that when a user searches for Sicko, their health care ad pops up. "We can place text ads, video ads, and rich media ads in paid search results or in relevant websites within our ever-expanding ... (view more)