Google is claiming that it has invented a unique way to distribute online advertising via syndicated news feeds--and it wants a patent for the technology.

If granted, the patent would presumably give Google the exclusive rights for "incorporating targeted ads into information in a syndicated, e.g., RSS, presentation format in an automated manner," according to its patent application titled, "Embedding advertisements in syndicated content."

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication, a standard format for syndicating content from online news sites, blogs, job boards and other dynamic Web sites. A growing number of people are using RSS-based syndication programs to stay on top of their favorite sites, subscribing to lists of headlines and other fresh content. The trend is attracting venture capital, too.

Read full article: C|net
 

Google Toolbar
is a popular browser add-on for Internet Explorer that makes it possible to quickly perform Google Web searches, prevent annoying pop-up ads from appearing, and fill in Web forms with one simple click.

The toolbar's 'browse by name' feature also makes it possible to type searches directly into the browser address bar.

• SpellCheck
Check your spelling whenever you type in web forms

• WordTranslator
Translate English words into other languages

• AutoLink (US only)
Turn street addresses into links to online maps

System requirements:
• Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
• Internet Explorer 5.5+ (SpellCheck and AutoLink require IE 6.0+

Download: Google Toolbar 3.0.124.6
 

One small step for Google...

On July 20, 1969, man first landed on the Moon. A few decades later, we're pleased to cut you in on the action. Google Moon is an extension of Google Maps and Google Earth that, courtesy of NASA imagery (thanks, guys!), enables you to surf the Moon's surface and check out the exact spots that the Apollo astronauts made their landings.

View: Google Moon
 

 

Steve Jobs, Sergey Brin and Larry Page all enjoy serious influence across the UK media landscape, according to this year's MediaGuardian 100 list -- which has snubbed Bill Gates for a second successive year.

The annual list is organised by The Guardian newspaper and rates individuals on their cultural, economic and political clout in UK media.

Apple's chief executive was ranked sixth, up from 29th last year, on the back of the phenomenal popularity of the iPod and the impact this is having on traditional radio stations, as well as his role in animated film studio Pixar.

"No-one has done more to change the way we listen to music in the modern era than Steve Jobs," said the panel who calculated the list.

The co-founders of Google -- described as "the ultimate new media success story -- came in three places below Jobs, compared to 20th in 2004. "With millions of people using the search engine every day, Google controls the news and websites we see, and how we see them," said the panellists, who were also impressed with the wide range of services offered under the Google brand.

Read more: ZDNet UK
 

The idea is simple. It’s a globe that sits inside your PC. You point and zoom to anyplace on the planet that you want to explore. Satellite images and local facts zoom into view. Tap into Google search to show local points of interest and facts. Zoom to a specific address to check out an apartment or hotel. View driving directions and even fly along your route. We invite you to try it now.

Google Earth
is free for personal use. No registration is required. You may (optionally) choose to upgrade to Google Earth Plus.

Features:

• Free for personal use.
• Sophisticated streaming technology delivers the data to you as you need it.
• Imagery and 3D data depict the entire earth - Terabytes of aerial and satellite imagery depict cities around the world in high-resolution detail.
• Local search lets you search for restaurants, hotels, and even driving directions. Results show in your 3D earth view. Easy to layer multiple searches, save results to folders, and share with others.
• Layers show parks, schools, hospitals, airports, shopping, and more.
• KML – data exchange format let your share useful annotations and view. thousands of data points created by Google Earth users.

Use it for:

-Planning a trip
-Getting driving directions
-Finding a house or apartment
-Finding a local business
-Exploring the world

Download: Google Earth 3.0.0395 Public Beta 2
 

Google are quietly experimenting with new UI features. One of which is the addition of up to 5 links on the first result of a search query. The links go to other pages on the site, are indented beneath the description and are titled according to the page's title tag. Google confirm a new UI experiment in a discussion at SEW.

Read more: Threadwatch.org
 

Google Toolbar
is a popular browser add-on for Internet Explorer that makes it possible to quickly perform Google Web searches, prevent annoying pop-up ads from appearing, and fill in Web forms with one simple click.

The toolbar's 'browse by name' feature also makes it possible to type searches directly into the browser address bar.

• SpellCheck
Check your spelling whenever you type in web forms

• WordTranslator
Translate English words into other languages

• AutoLink (US only)
Turn street addresses into links to online maps

System requirements:
• Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
• Internet Explorer 5.5+ (SpellCheck and AutoLink require IE 6.0+

Download: Google Toolbar 3.0.124.5
 

Google Toolbar
is a popular browser add-on that makes it possible to quickly perform Google Web searches, prevent annoying pop-up ads from appearing, and fill in Web forms with one simple click.

• SpellCheck
Check your spelling whenever you type in web forms

• WordTranslator
Translate English words into other languages

• AutoLink (US only)
Turn street addresses into links to online maps

• AutoFill
Automatically fill out forms for faster online shopping

System requirements:
• Windows XP/2000 SP3+, Mac OS X 10.2+, or Red Hat Linux 8.0+
• Firefox 1.0+

Download: Google Toolbar BETA for Firefox


Also available:
• Other Firefox extensions
from Google
• Googlebar
, an open-source toolbar written by Google fans 

Current Communications Group, which offers broadband Internet service over power lines, said Thursday that it has received investment money from Google, Hearst and Goldman Sachs.

Although Current did not specify the amount it received from the search king, the media giant and the investment banker, The Wall Street Journal reported that the three companies have invested roughly $100 million in the start-up. Last year, Current and Cinergy Broadband, a subsidiary of energy company Cinergy, announced that their two joint ventures had received $70 million from Cinergy, EnerTech Capital and Liberty Associated Partners.

As part of last year's announcement, Current and Cinergy Broadband said they would create one joint venture to bundle broadband and voice services for Cinergy's 1.5 million customers in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. A second joint venture would deploy broadband over power lines to smaller municipal and cooperatively owned power companies, which reach about 24 million customers across the United States.

Current said Thursday that it plans to use the new investment money to expand its broadband-over-power-line deployments in the United States and overseas. EnerTech Capital and Liberty Associated, a partnership between Liberty Media and the Berkman family, also contributed to the new financing round.

Full article: CNET News.com
 

Google plans to sweeten up the release of the Google Toolbar for the Firefox browser with two extensions: Suggest and Send to Phone. The beta extensions will be released on Thursday, along with the toolbar.

Firefox extensions are plug-ins that add extra functionality to the browser.

"The Firefox browser supports a lot of extensions," said Sundar Pichai, Google product manager. "We're adding to them by launching standalone separate extensions only for Firefox."

Read full article: internetnews.com
 

Next stop for the Google toolbar is the open-source Mozilla Firefox browser, according to an e-mail posted on the Mozilla site.

The July 1st e-mail, posted on Mozilla's developer site, was penned under the name of Google engineer Fritz Schneider.

"I thought I'd drop you a note to give a heads up on something Google will be releasing next week: a version of our Internet Explorer toolbar for Firefox," the e-mail reads.

Schneider said the Firefox toolbar is slated for release on Thursday July 7.

The e-mail also asks developers not to speak with the press until Google makes the announcement tomorrow.

Read full story: internetnews.com
 

Google has been named as one of the world's 100 largest companies.
The internet search company leapt from 279th place to 95th in the latest FT Global 500 rankings.
Google's market capitalisation (calculated by multiplying current share price by the number of shares in issue) is more than £28bn.
In May, Google announced a nearly six-fold surge in quarterly profits.
The California-based group put this down to more consumers clicking on its search ads, more advertisers moving to the web and a drop in company costs.

News source: Web User
 

 

Putting satellite search on the map...

Google and Yahoo! began sharing the code that runs their mapping services with outside developers this week, in the hopes that programmers will create new applications to expand the range of internet search and satellite-based maps.

The two companies are unleashing application programming interfaces (APIs) to encourage developers to create programs that let people search for specific information that will be displayed using the mapping software.

Read full article: silicon.com