Google

Google makes tens of billions of dollars each year through advertising sales. Yet it has now allowed independent developers to produce tools which block ads from appearing on pages viewed with its Chrome browser. Since last month, the latest beta ... edition of Chrome has been able to run extensions, third-party tools which offer functions similar to those available for open-source browser Firefox (where they are known as add-ons). The current plan is to keep the extensions in the next full release of Chrome. Programmer, Student Create Ad Blocker An independent programmer from Athens, Georgia and ... (view more)

Reports suggest Google will soon unveil its own smartphone running Google's own Android operating system. However, analysts are split on how significant the move is and whether it will have a major impact on the market. Rumors of a "Google-phone" ... have been rampant ever since the company launched its open-source operating system Android, which now appears on a growing number of handsets, most prominently Motorola's Droid phone. Blog Posting Drops Strong Hints Officially, the firm has only said "We recently came up with the concept of a mobile lab, which is a device that combines innovative ... (view more)

It's been a year since Google released Chrome for Windows, and now Mac and Linux users have access to the popular, streamlined browser. It comes just two months after Google co-founder Sergey Brin told his audience at the Web 2.0 Summit that the ... absence of a Mac version of Chrome was a serious disappointment for his company. To be clear, the edition of Chrome for download by Mac users is still in its beta stages. Still, Google says the release is part of a long-term project that has meant much sweat and stress up to this point. "The Wait was Worth it, " Says Google "We've been ... (view more)

Google will soon offer a range of new search options. The improvements include a constantly updated "real-time" search and some creative ways for using camera phones. One of the main drawbacks to any search engine has been that it takes time for ... pages to be scanned, analyzed and then added to the site's index so that they appear in searches. Today, that time has been greatly reduced, and it's common for news stories to appear on the first page of Google search results on the same day they are published. However, that's not enough for some users who want to search for the latest details on a ... (view more)

Google appears on the verge of releasing software capable of starting up a PC as fast as a television set. The speedy start up software is said to be linked with the Google Chrome operating system designed for computers that perform the bulk of ... their workload over the Internet. According to Sundar Pichai, vice-president of product management for Google's Chrome OS, netbooks running the Chrome OS will be able to start in less than 7 seconds. (Source: reuters.com ) Imitating the TV Experience The idea is to mirror that of the television set experience. "From the time you press boot you want it ... (view more)

YouTube has struck a content deal with the largest provider of Spanish language television in the United States. The partnership with Univision could be a major breakthrough in the Latino market. As well as a self-titled channel, Univision runs ... TeleFutura and Galavision. It's best known for its broadcasting of telenovellas, a form of soap opera that air in Mexico and Venezuela. However, those won't be part of the YouTube deal because Univision only has TV broadcast rights rather than online rights to the U.S. market. (Source: wsj.com ) The content which most definitely will air includes ... (view more)

According to TechCrunch, Google is reported to have paid $30 million for Internet phone call company Gizmo5. It could be a major boost for Google Voice, but may also raise further interest among regulators. (Source: techcrunch.com ) Google Voice ... lets users hook up a single phone number that can receive calls. When they get a call on that number, a user can have multiple phones ring, such as home, work and cellphones. The service also includes features such as voicemail transcription, meaning the user can search for words in their messages in the same way as with emails. The firm also offers ... (view more)

The U.S. Justice Department says it has legal concerns over a proposed deal between Google and American book authors and publishers. While not a killer blow to the deal, the comments significantly decrease the likelihood that it will ever receive ... court approval. The deal would settle a long-running case in which the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers sued Google for scanning books without permission. Pages from these books then appeared as results in the Google Books search service. The proposed settlement would include setting up a registry of copyrighted books, ... (view more)

Google has announced a major deal that will see its own Chrome Internet browser packaged with Sony VAIO brand PCs shipped in the near future. It's a giant breakthrough for Google, which has struggled to find a comfortable place in the market amidst ... Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox. (Source: seattlepi.com ) Reports haven't yet revealed exactly which Sony models will come equipped with Chrome, but Google spokesperson Eitan Bencuya, who for the most part remained mum on the topic, did announce the agreement will take effect this summer. It's part of Google's plan to make ... (view more)

An anonymous blogger whose identity was revealed by Google says she will sue the firm for $1.5 million. But Google, which only revealed her name after a court order, says it was following both the law and its own user policies. The uproar began ... after former model Liskula Cohen complained to Google about a site using its Blogger service. The "Skanks of NYC" blog contained unflattering pictures of her and the words "I would have to say that first place award for 'Skankiest in NYC' would have to go to Liskula Gentile Cohen." Cohen said she wanted to pursue legal action against the writer but ... (view more)