everywhere you turn, it seems Google has a new offering. but how serious are these attempts to own your computer?

Google is rich, with a market cap of $183 billion — that’s billion with a “b” — already 71 percent the value of its much more established archrival Microsoft. With those resources, Google has created more and more software products in an attempt to build a sustainable business outside of the search-based ads that account for most of its revenue — and be the center of your computing universe.

For several years, Google seemed to be focused on Web-based collaboration tools, with its Blogger.com service and acqusition of JotSpot (now called Google Wave) as prime examples. but more recently, Google has moved into the cloud business, producing one product after another in a pattern that shows clearly a desire to replace the desktop paradigm — which has Microsoft’s Windows and Microsoft Office at its core. Google has designs to replace the desktop with the cloud, and Microsoft with itself.

The forthcoming Google Chrome OS is the baldest statement of that mission, redefining a laptop into a Net appliance that relies almost entirely on the cloud for the apps people would use routinely. but that’s just the latest salvo. Google has already launched its Google Apps set of services, which are starting to be taken seriously even by large companies and government agencies to handle e-mail, word processing, and more. Microsoft has responded to this direct strike at its business with its cloud/desktop hybrid version of Office, the forthcoming Office 2010 Web Apps. but Google keeps pushing: Its still-in-beta Google Wave promises to attack one of Microsoft’s most beloved products, its SharePoint collaboration software.

InfoWorld has put together a package of articles that explores Google’s attempt to become the center of everyone’s technology universe:

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Google has accepted that there are lots of positive responses to Google wave by the people who have tried this voluntarily. Google wave has hosted several unique areas like personal, business, government, education and even not-for-profit. Google is still in a limited preview and not able to grant permission to everyone who have requested for Google wave invitation for trying the beta version.

Google cannot communicate with all the users personally so in order to collect the feedback Google has taken help of an online Survey and collected feedback on the users experience on Google wave. The Survey was distributed via email and a link in a help center and a tweet.
It’s just an overview in which people have given their view point

The Wavers like to ‘Wave’ as wave is a central place from where the people can communicate and collaborate easily. This is a single platform from where people can work together and also discuss with each other with the help of messages, documents sharing but number of users indicates that existing tools are not fulfilling their needs and wants more improvement with more tools for this new concept.
What Wavers like most

Many users like the collaboration and ability to extend Google wave’s capability to function through gadgets and robots.

The Wavers don’t like is the limited invitation acceptance by Google. The users feel that it is really tough to communicate and collaborate if you have no contacts. So the earnest request to Google is to offer Google Wave to large number of users instead of limited invitations.

Google wave should be integrated with Email and other existing tools and also speed enhancement is demanded. The Google is busy in organizing a team which will handle the core issues collected through the feedback and the team will put hard efforts to improve the Google Waving.

Posted by: Stephen Baker on November 28

I came across a pumped-up email system called Pixetell that could help with a problem I’ve been having. Of late, I’ve been writing laborious click-by-click instructions to explain to people on a Ning network how to change their profiles. Sometimes the written word is a round-about way of communicating.

With Pixetell, it would be easier. you describe or explain whatever you want in your voice as you move the cursor around and click. And then it all goes in an email. The person receiving it might as well be looking over your shoulder. Here’s a video demo featuring my colleague Arik Hesseldahl.

The technology looks useful. it would be great for help desks. Not sure at this point if the rest of us would shell out $9 or $19 a month to be able to generate these messages. (Everyone can receive them, but for now, subscribers have to have Windows machines.) looks like something that Microsoft and Google could add as an enhancement. In fact, it may compete with parts of Google Wave. But Pixetell looks far simpler. (I started to watch the Google Wave video, but then realized, to my horror, that it wasn’t a minute and 20 seconds, but an hour and 20 minutes.)

San Francisco — Google is currently testing a new appearance for its iconic search page, featuring cleaner, bolder graphics and a default side bar with bigger search buttons, brighter colors — bold white typeface on bright blue — with a slightly different logo, one without the shadows.

The new aspect is being discovered by a small number of Google users over the past week or so who have already been witnessing the changes as the company tests the new user interface, but not everybody was able to gain access to the interface, although it is not clear when, if ever, the new search interface will be widely deployed.

As you can notice from screen shots below, the revamped Google logo ditches its 3D shading and shadows while the search buttons switch to white text against a bright blue gradient background. it would appear the search team has been smitten by the look of the company’s new collaboration stuff, Google Wave.

The appearance of the search results also have been altered with the left panel added to the page. the panel suggests a user to choose between image, video, news, maps, and other kinds. Besides, the sidebar similar to Bing’s version also includes a list of similar searches with the option to filter the results based on the date Google sniffed out the website.

According to Marissa Mayer, vice president of search products and user experience at Google, informed Search Engine Land last week that the new pages are intended to eliminate inconsistencies in how Google presented search results after it added several new elements to the page. But it also mimics what Yahoo and Microsoft have been doing with their search results pages, focusing on presentation and new ways to sort results.

On Wednesday, Gizmodo issued some tips on how to force Google into serving the new pages, and therefore we can bring you some screen shots of the new look and feel for Google search. for those who cannot resist the temptation for a wider roll out, the code below allows users to try the new look ahead of schedule.

First log out of your Google account. Next, from Google.com, copy and paste the following piece of code into your browser’s address bar:

javascript:void(document.cookie=”PREF=ID=20b6e4c2f44943bb:U= 4bf292d46faad806:TM=1249677602:LM=1257919388:S=odm0Ys-53ZueXfZG;path=/; domain=.google.com”);

(Those outside the US may need to force the .com locale by using google.com/ncr/)

After reloading the page, the redesign should appear. Note the new look appear across the entire website. Services like Google News and Maps will still use the current Google UI.

Google may have grabbed everyone’s attention recently with the Wave Beta and Chrome OS, but it clearly hasn’t forgotten where its roots are…

The Internet giant has stepped up the latest iteration of its new Google Search engine with a revamped side bar and improved indexing and performance. on top of this there is a new user interface and now you can try it all out ahead of schedule.

The guys at Gizmodo have found four easy steps to do this:

• Go to Google.com.
• Once it loads, enter this code into your web browser’s URL address field:javascript:void(document.cookie=”PREF=ID=20b6e4c2f44943bb:U=4bf292d46faad806:TM=1249677602:LM=1257919388:S=odm0Ys-53ZueXfZG;path=/; domain=.google.com”);There shouldn’t be any google.com in front of that. Just that code.
• Hit enter.
• Reload or open a new Google.com page

Early reports have been extremely positive with Google’s claims largely bearing out. It is noted however that not all sections in the new Google Search have been enabled so it still remains a work in progress.

Enough to stop the momentum of Microsoft Bing? I very much doubt it, but it’s certainly a nice parry in a battle with is likely to rage on and on and on and on and…

…on.

Update: And how to cancel access should you wish to return to the current version!

Links:
via Gizmodo
image courtesy of search engine land

November 25, 2009

First, everybody wanted them and nobody had them. now, you can’t give these damn things away.

When I first got my own invitation and signed on, I had eight, and none of my Twitter friends needed them. Today I have sixteen. Does anybody here need an invite—or, rather, a “nomination,” since you may still languish in the waiting list for an indefinite period of time? I propose that those of you who want invites post comments here, and those of us who have invites to distribute give out as many as we think is decent.

Updated for the n00bs: If you put your real e-mail address into the comment form, you do not need to repeat it in the body of your comment; to do so is just to invite spammers to your inbox.

Similarly, if anybody wants an invitation to Brizzly, I have ten of those. I don’t see anything special about it, myself, but others seem to like it—maybe if you use both Twitter and Facebook it makes sense?

comments

73 Responses to “Google Wave invites”

1. Mary on November 25th, 2009 at 9:17 pm

   I would love one thanks, always fun to take something new out of the box

2. Mario on November 25th, 2009 at 9:37 pm

   Brizzly no longer needs invites. && I have 6 Google Wave invites to give away.

3. India on November 25th, 2009 at 9:39 pm

   Well, see? You can’t give those away, either.

4. Justin on November 25th, 2009 at 9:39 pm

   could send me one google wave invite ?

5. Robert on November 25th, 2009 at 9:40 pm

   Man, I will gladly take a google wave invite. I’m still searching.

6. Brad on November 25th, 2009 at 9:43 pm

   I would like a google wave invite please.

7. Elwyn Jenkins on November 25th, 2009 at 9:44 pm

   If you have a spare Google Wave invite, I would like one. Thanks in anticipation.

8. vinod on November 25th, 2009 at 9:46 pm

   Hey dude will be realy nice if u can send me d invite in my gmail id…….
   Thnxs
   VInod

9. Eric on November 25th, 2009 at 9:54 pm

   I’ll take a wave invite if you are giving them away please.

10. India on November 25th, 2009 at 9:55 pm

    All right. Justin, Robert, Brad, Elwyn, vinod: you’re on.

    FYI, folks, as long as you put your real e-mail address in the header of the comment form, you don’t have to include it in the text of your comment. Less spam that way.

11. Michel Torres on November 25th, 2009 at 9:57 pm

    Hello! I would love a Google wave invite, if you still have any. thank you!

12. India on November 25th, 2009 at 9:57 pm

    I’ve got nine left. If those all go, I’ll forward up to the next six e-mail addresses to you, Mario, if that’s okay with you . . . ?

13. Katie on November 25th, 2009 at 9:58 pm

    That’d be amazing! I feel like I’ve been on their waiting list forever with no luck. : ( Thanks!

14. Mario on November 25th, 2009 at 10:02 pm

    Well, actually, I just checked Wave and Google decided to up my invites to 14!

15. Chris on November 25th, 2009 at 10:02 pm

    I’d appreciate one if you have any left. Thanks!

16. Colin on November 25th, 2009 at 10:10 pm

    I would be eternally indebted to whoever might invite me!

17. Phanindra on November 25th, 2009 at 10:14 pm

    Please send a google wave invititation to me.
    thanks in advance..

18. Cody on November 25th, 2009 at 10:15 pm

    I would appreciate an invite

19. Tom on November 25th, 2009 at 10:40 pm
20. Michel Torres on November 25th, 2009 at 10:45 pm

    Sweet!! thank you very much!!!

21. Justin McCormick on November 25th, 2009 at 10:48 pm

    Well, I’m getting along just dandy without either one. You know what I’d LOVE an invite to, though? Droplr. Go ahead and send me one why don’t cha!

22. Becca on November 25th, 2009 at 10:56 pm

    I would really appreciate an invite if you have any more, thanks!

23. Javier on November 25th, 2009 at 11:03 pm

    I would love one of them!!! Thanks.

24. Nick on November 25th, 2009 at 11:20 pm
25. Steven on November 25th, 2009 at 11:45 pm

    is it still available? thanks

26. Tom on November 25th, 2009 at 11:51 pm

    I’d love an invite. Thanks so much. I’m lookng forward to the business modeling tool sets.

27. Mike Friedman on November 25th, 2009 at 11:59 pm

    I would love as many as you can give me.

    We want to trial Wave company wide (40 people) but we don’t have enough invites!!!

    Thanks
    Mike

28. India on November 26th, 2009 at 12:02 am

    Cody, Phanindra, Colin, Chris, Katie, Eric, Becca, Javier, Nick: done. And that’s it for my invitations, for today, at least. everyone else up to this point (Tom, Tom, Steven, and Mike) I’ll forward to Mario.

    (And sorry if it seems like I’m processing these out of order—I’m trying to do it first-come, first-served, but they arrive in my inbox slightly higgledy piggledy.)

29. Kaahne on November 26th, 2009 at 12:12 am

    I would love to have one ! seems amazing for collaborative working !

30. Mario on November 26th, 2009 at 12:16 am

    Tom, Tom, Steven & Mike, invites sent. I have 10 left!

31. Tiffany Taylor on November 26th, 2009 at 12:22 am

    I would be ever so thankful on this Thanksgiving if I was to receive a Google Wave invite…:-D

32. India on November 26th, 2009 at 12:26 am

    @Justin: Droplr looks sweet. What’s salty is that they don’t even have so much as a “sign up for our mailing list” option.

    So for now I’ll stick with Dropbox and SugarSync. (If you sign up through either of those links, even for a free account, I believe we both get extra storage.) Not as slick for tweeting download links, but still pretty simple.

33. Montanajen on November 26th, 2009 at 12:31 am

    I would love a wave invite! any love for the new girl?

34. Paja on November 26th, 2009 at 12:37 am

    Hi, I’m Paja and I’m a Goole addict:-) if you would be so kind … I simply love their mail and docs and SketchUp, I may seem like a Google dealer, but these guys are just mages. I’ve seen all the vieos on wave and I think that’s it, that’s the simplest brightest idea of all. please, please, I can’t wait anymore:-)

35. Saurabh on November 26th, 2009 at 12:43 am

    Please send me one
    [e-mail address edited out to prevent spam]
    thanx a million ton in advance
    God bless YA…

36. Shraman on November 26th, 2009 at 12:51 am

    I would love to have Google Wave invite. please send me one, Thanks

37. mike on November 26th, 2009 at 1:01 am

    I’d love a wave invite if you still have some left! really awesome of you to offer them up.

38. Aaron on November 26th, 2009 at 1:09 am

    I would love an invite.

    [e-mail address edited out to prevent spam]

39. Masaki on November 26th, 2009 at 1:16 am

    Could you please give me an Invitation of Google Wave?

40. Michael Smith on November 26th, 2009 at 1:22 am

    India, I have six invites up for grabs. Let me know who I should pick up.

41. ajay on November 26th, 2009 at 1:31 am
42. Mike Friedman on November 26th, 2009 at 1:40 am

    I would like to get for following:

    [e-mail addresses edited out to prevent spam]

43. India on November 26th, 2009 at 1:41 am

    OMG I just had the CRAZIEST idea: Mario, Michael, and I could be coordinating who sends which invites . . . using Google Wave!!!

    Quick! somebody ask for an invite so we can try it!

44. Frank on November 26th, 2009 at 1:54 am

    I would defiantly take one!

45. GN on November 26th, 2009 at 1:55 am

    well stories on availability of wave invites are thronging but when requests are sent alas no replies or invites are already distributed this is my personal experiance

    if i get one i would be thankful

46. sajoo on November 26th, 2009 at 1:57 am
47. Frank on November 26th, 2009 at 2:03 am

    Yeah, If I was given an invite I’d be damn thankful too. this is like waiting in line for a furby when you get to the front of the line, they’re all out.

48. Frank on November 26th, 2009 at 2:07 am

    send it here if so
    [e-mail address edited out to prevent spam]

49. Kaybi on November 26th, 2009 at 2:12 am

    I actually took the effort to see the entire technical demo! an invite would be really appreciated [redacted]

50. Krezan on November 26th, 2009 at 2:20 am
51. shubhang on November 26th, 2009 at 2:26 am

    hi pleeeeeaaaaasssssseeeeee send me an invite.i’m dying to try out google wave

52. India on November 26th, 2009 at 2:28 am

    We now have a few more requests than ready invites, so I’m closing comments on this thread until further notice. Maybe other people will chip in unused invites in the next few days, or maybe Google will top off Mario’s, Michael’s, and my accounts. If we get another bunch to give away, I’ll reopen comments.

    If you have invites to offer, you can write to my Gmail address—India dot Amos at the Gmail—with “Wave invites” in the subject line, and I’ll add you to the distribution wave. Do not e-mail me asking for an invitation; I don’t have any and will not add you to the list.

    Mario and Michael: Check your Wave accounts! You’ve got Wave! my friend Jodi has already taken care of a few of them.

53. SAMIK on November 26th, 2009 at 10:46 am

    i would reely reely appriciate if this plea works out……..can i have wave invite..??….[redacted]

54. India on November 26th, 2009 at 10:48 am

    Okay, everyone who’s posted so far should have been taken care of. I’m reopening the thread, so you can continue to post requests. Step right up!

55. Sheila Ryan on November 26th, 2009 at 10:49 am

    Here comes everybody.

56. India on November 26th, 2009 at 11:03 am

    Not quite. A lot of everybody is sleeping in today, it seems.

57. Linda on November 26th, 2009 at 11:04 am

    Can you send me an invite too? thank you!!!

58. Mike Friedman on November 26th, 2009 at 11:04 am

    Thank you very much to Mario Villalobos for the invite.

59. Alex on November 26th, 2009 at 11:06 am

    Can I please have one of those invites? thank you again for sending them out to ppl – much appreciated!

60. India on November 26th, 2009 at 11:08 am

    Whoa—and it looks like “nominations” are getting processed a lot faster than before. Some of the people I invited last night now show up in my Wave contacts list.

61. Sheila Ryan on November 26th, 2009 at 11:12 am

    Some of everybody is busy looking for tips on making SPAM stuffing.

62. Giammatteo on November 26th, 2009 at 11:13 am

    I’d love to seriously dig in to wave. I would greatly appreciate an invite and I will return the favor, by handing out my invites. fgiammatteo dot com

63. India on November 26th, 2009 at 11:17 am

    Frank, chill: You were nominated last night. It’s out of our hands.

64. Giammatteo on November 26th, 2009 at 11:20 am

    Sorry, I am just so anxious.

65. India on November 26th, 2009 at 11:27 am

    Obviously. I hear that if you eat a big serving of turkey, it’ll cure that.

66. cwbshaw on November 26th, 2009 at 11:32 am

    If you still have any google wave invites left, you would have a very grateful recipient here…..

    Thanx muchly in advance.

67. James on November 26th, 2009 at 11:58 am

    Can I has wave, kthxbye?

68. Chris Thomson on November 26th, 2009 at 12:21 pm

    If you have any invites left, I would be very grateful for one.

    Many thanks!
    Chris

69. Justin McCormick on November 26th, 2009 at 12:29 pm

    @India I think I much prefer dropbox over Sugarsync. I like using an actual folder to keep things synced, rather than dropping it into the app window.

70. India on November 26th, 2009 at 12:32 pm

    Yeah, it’s a popular metaphor.

    For my part, I usually prefer to leave a file where it would normally be filed on my hard drive, and then just get a link for it. Less duplication, and less hunting around for stuff.

71. Pri on November 26th, 2009 at 12:57 pm

    i’d love to have one..pls…thanks a lot!

72. Kaahne on November 26th, 2009 at 1:10 pm

    Thank you so much dear mtdsmith

73. Marcus on November 26th, 2009 at 1:24 pm

    I’d love a invite:) Thanks:)

Leave a Reply

Search engine giant Google is testing out a new look for its search page.
Designers have removed the 3D shading and shadowing from behind the Google logo, while blue boxes with white text have been used for the search options “Google Search” and “I´m Feeling Lucky”.

The new design also includes a left-hand sidebar on the search results page which allows the user to quickly select between images, videos, news, maps, and other options.

A “see also” section, which suggests related search terms, search queries and an option to filter the results based on the date Google sniffed out the website, has also been added.

According to a Softpedia news editor, the new interface is a step in the right direction.

“It´s still the same minimalist Google design that we all know and love, but it´s gotten a bit livelier,” he added.

The new design has been compared to Google Wave, the search engine´s online tool for real-time communication.

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Google Voice just keeps getting better and better, and sometimes it does so without the help of Google.

Developer Chad Smith today released a new version of his Google Voice dialer, which takes the service that’s so handy on the Google Voice page, and basically puts it on every web page. now there’s no need to migrate to a different page to make a call, and a number that’s on a page can now be dialed with a click.

It’s a feature that those who use iPhones have come to enjoy. when looking at a web page with a phone number, the iPhone software automatically makes that a link and when you touch that number you can dial it.

Now you can do that same thing from home.

I first learned about Smith because he wrote the very first Add-on to Google Wave, which I still find very useful. like Wave, Google Voice is still somewhat limited in release, but just like with Wave, if you don’t have an invite, the best idea is to just ask around among your friends; they may have an invite and not even know it. There’s no add-on for this, your pals will have to go to the Google Voice page, and at the bottom of the left column it will show how many invites they have left to give.

As Google continues to innovate with Google Chrome OS and build new products like Google Wave, it might seem as if they’re leaving their core business — search — to gather dust. a few recent developments are proving otherwise.

You may recall that GoogleGoogle acquired AdMob in the hopes of gaining market share and attention in the mobile search space, and yesterday they also announced the acquisition of Teracent, for improved targeted display ads.

Today, the company is talking up another new development around search: new ad formats. Google is actively testing and developing new ad formats, some already live in the US, and incorporating visual elements, more links to specific pages, location and maps, comparison ads, and even images and prices for specific products.

The new ad formats are designed to capture your attention and provide you with more relevant and contextual information that you don’t typically expect from ads. The visual elements in ads mean that should you search for a movie title, you might see an ad with a trailer that you can watch on the search results page.

Plus, if you’re searching for local products or businesses, one of the new ad formats you’ll see is a map that pinpoints a nearby shop, or a map that highlights all the surrounding locations of a particular chain.

According to Google’s blog post on the new ad formats, you’re also about to experience ads that help you with comparison and price-point shopping. Here’s their description of how these ads will function:

“You might spot ads that include images and prices for specific products. when shopping for the ski outfit your nephew has been hinting about all year, you might see pictures from the retailer’s inventory to help you quickly determine if they have the color and style you had in mind.”

Still other ad formats may introduce new ways of presenting information, such as Comparison Ads, which allow you to specify exactly what you’re looking for and to compare rates and prices in a single location. With the approaching new year comes resolutions to get things in order, so you might want an ad that lets you see side-by-side refinancing offers.”

Ideally the new ad formats will serve up content that searchers can actually use, and may blur the lines between an advertisement and valuable content. What’s your take on the new formats? Share your thoughts in the comments.

While Google Apps will always have a soft spot in my heart for freeing me from Outlook I’d be the first to admit its UI is getting rather tired. so it appears would Google…

Leaked to Engadget today are some seemingly legit screenshots of new interfaces for Gmail, Google News and Google Docs all integrating Google Wave-style layouts. The site’s tipster said “the goal is to provide a consistent experience throughout all Google Apps and blur the line between the browser and the website (e.g. drag and drop, right-click, etc.).”

Certainly makes sense to us, and – as Engadget itself postulates – suggests that Google Wave (despite a somewhat mixed initial reaction) is fundamental to the search giant’s future plans. could it also be combined with the newly launched Google Dashboard to provide a unified experience in the impending Chrome OS? Well it wouldn’t hurt.

Donning my sceptical hat for a minute, let’s not get too carried away before an official Google confirmation/denial. Still given my own personal view is Google Wave isn’t a replacement for email, but blending its key functionality into email would be very welcome indeed..

Rest of the screenshots below.

In related news Google News could come under threat from a charged up News Corp after chairman and overlord Rupert Murdock said he will block aggregator sites from listing its content. Speaking to Sky Australia he said: “The people who simply just pick up everything and run with it – steal our stories, we say they steal our stories – they just take them. That’s Google, that’s Microsoft, that’s ask.com, a whole lot of people … they shouldn’t have had it free all the time, and I think we’ve been asleep”

As for those publications who cite stories originated from News Corp publications (which include The Times and The Sun): “if you look at them [referencing the BBC], most of their stuff is stolen from the newspapers now, and we’ll be suing them for copyright”.

Better? we beg to differ, but a brave new world awaits journalism and one everyone will be monitoring with interest.

Link:
via Engadget