Cool Site of the Week: Topeka

Google-erm Topeka, is a new company that is using google's domain name, google.com.  It looks like google, searches like google, even emails like google.  But wait, it's actually google's new name!  Apparently a town in this strange land called Kansas (I think its in Japan?) renamed itself from Topeka to Google in order to convince Google to give them their new fiber optic network.  So, Google in turn renamed itself Topeka. 

This new Google has some really cool and innovative features.  Topeka has an Email client similar to Gmail, and with many of its cool features.  It can, incredibly, send and receive email in minutes!  You can even send images!
It also has a remarkably extensive search feature.  You can search the ENTIRE internet for images, websites, even video.  I can now find videos of cats playing the piano in a matter of seconds.  I don't know how I could live without this!  You can also search Topeka Maps to find places and streets just by typing in the address! 

So that's this weeks innovative and brand new website Topeka.  And remember, happy  April Fools Day.

Nexus One Released on T-Mo, Verizon in Spring

It's here, finally, here.  The worst kept tech secret this year, the Nexus One, is here.  You can get it at google.com/phone, that's right, Google is selling this online-only for once.  Right now you can only get the device with T-Mobile for $170.00 or without a contract for a whopping $529.00.

It's really what we've come to expect from an Android device specs-wise, a 1 gHz processor, 5 megapixel camera, 3.7 inch capacative LCD screen.  But, one interesting thing, is unlike the iPhone it doesn't have a multitouch screen.  It does have a lot the iPhone 3GS doesn't though; LED flash, up to 4GB MicroSD card slot, and it can run on any network that uses a SIM Card.  So, I guess the 'Droid does...sort of...

What makes this phone unique, is the Android 2.1 software it runs, the "true" Android I wrote about earlier.
This is not much different then the 2.0 firmware the Droid uses, except it integrates Google Voice a lot more and is sleeker and prettier.

The Nexus One also has a 3D aspect to it, able to browse menus in 3D, hopefully developers will have access to this.  The Nexus One also has a Voice-To-Speech feature for every text field.  But, from what people are saying, its doesn't work as well as it should.

Ultimately, I don't think the Nexus One is the iPhone-Killer it was made out to be, but it is the best Android phone on the block right now and leads it one step closer to the iPhone's heels.  The Nexus One will land on Verizon this Spring.

RUMOR:Google Phone May be on the Horizon

No, I'm not talking about Google's Android OS. I'm talking about a full-fledged, Google made device. Sources from Gizmodo say that a Google-made Android based device is "a certainty". The sources also say that it is running a new version of Android "that has never been seen before".

Google Chrome OS First Look: Google has officially taken over computers

Google's long-fabled operating system has come to fruition, well, at least is in a working state.  Today, Google released its first glimpse at Google Chrome OS, and so far, I like it.

Google Announces E-Book Store to Compete with Amazon

It looks like not only Barnes & Noble is trying to compete with the Kindle and Amazon's E-Book store.  Google announced last Thursday that it will have an ebook market that can be used by "anyone with a web browser".  They did, though, rule out any possibility of a Google-made E-book Reader.

Youtube in Talks Offer Streaming Movie Rentals

The Wall Street journal has reported that Youtube is in talks with 4 major movies studios, Lions Gate Entertainment Corp., Sony Corp., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. and Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Bros, to offer retail movie rentals. These rentals would be payed, about $4 per movie, or could be ad-supported. The negotiations aren't anywhere near finished but this could help Hollywood survive the dwindling DVD market.

Google's Chrome Web Browser is getting Desktop Notifications

Google's Chrome web browser is going to get built in "Desktop Notifications" soon. (similar to Growl)  A document on this feature can be found on the Chromium Developer site.  On Macs and Linux computers, the notifications would run through Growl and DBus (respectively). 

At this moment these notifications are off by default, but with some command line fiddling you can get them to work.  It's uncertain how this will be used, Growl has few applications that run it, and if it will not be used for "nefarious purposes".

(info from TechCrunch)

Google Unveals Chrome OS

Google has finally gone and done it. After years of rumors, it is finally releasing its own operating system. It will be, in typical Google fashion, Open-Source. Not much is known yet, since Chrome OS is set to release in 2010.

Chrome OS will be "fast, lightweight...start up and get you on the web". This will be a welcome change since other OS's (*cough* Windows) take forever to load because of personal settings, tons of programs, and other crap. Oh, and Chrome will be based on Linux so it will be familiar to other Linux users and will have many of its great applications (OpenOffice, Firefox, etc.).

Chrome OS will most likely largely be based on web apps, using Google's applications (Docs, Wave, Gmail). Hopefully, since it is running with Linux as a base, it will have a large amount of applications it can run offline. With lightweight netbooks in mind, it will most likely use little CPU and hard drive space.

Google already has some sponsors lined up to run this OS, mainly netbook manufacturers. There may never be a Google supported downloaded, a "simple" Os may not be able to handle all the variations in computers. This begs to question whether this Os will ever take off (like Linux). You can read the official post on it on the Google Blog.

Bing: Microsoft may have got it right this time

A few days ago Microsoft released its new, long-awaited search engine, Bing. It touts video previews, easy business listings, and much,much more. It has a nice, dead simple interface and a nice color palette. Right on the start page non"internet savvy" people will feel right at home, the sidebar on the right directs with large type to Shopping, Travel, News, Images, Videos, and Web search.

One of the nice features is all the ways you can narrow down the image search. You can choose the size, the style of photo, and who is in the photo. There are also options to change how the thumbnails are shown, from only one at a time to many on screen at once. While it can't give you witty humor like Wolfram Alpha can, it sure has some snazzy features.

If you search something in Bing it will give you many options to expand on it, from searching downloads to repairs and games for the Wii or any other product.

When you search for videos it plays a preview of it when you roll over the video, with sound too. If you click on the video it will show a larger preview with the results still under it, along with a link to view the video at its site of origin.

Bing also give phone numbers for businesses when you search for them and search suggestions inside of the results, and probably more that I'm not putting here.

The search results, overall, are comparable to any other engine. It seems like a solid, all purpose search engine that really wants you to use it. I think Microsoft hit it right with this one, bit, it is not the Google-killer we are waiting for, and, it may never come.

Wolfram Alpha Impressions

A few weeks ago I wrote about the new search engine called Wolfram Alpha. It is made by the Wolfram company, that makes mathematics and science software such as Mathematica. So, obviously, this is one nerdy search engine. Yesterday they let beta testers check it out (I...um...forgot to...sign up) and it ran a tad rocky. Today, though, its released to the whole world. And it is cool, not amazingly useful, but still pretty cool.

But, on using it for myself, I now know it will definitely not be the Google killer. It does have a vast amount of information on very advanced topics. But, it is far to complicated for normal users, for people who do not understand how to even email it will be completely useless. But, Wolfram Alpha is not made for those people, it is made for tech savvy teachers, scientists, and geeks(like me!). It can tell you advanced equations, facts about universities, information on historical figures, and much much more.

The interface is incredibly easy to use, surprising on such an advanced search engine. The website runs fast, even under incredible loads of traffic. It also has nice, easy to read type. But, the real reason you want to use it so you can say you didn't use Wikipedia on school projects. I give it an A- (pun intended).

Apple Adds Integrated Youtube into Snow Leopard: Tries to Bypass Adobe

Apple has already been hesitant to add support for Adobe's widely used Flash plugin on the iPhone but today marks another harsh blow by Apple. Apple will now have integrated Youtube support in its new operating system Mac OSX 10.6 (Snow Leopard). This is good because this will lead to more profits for Apple (and most likely a copycat from Microsoft). But, here's the catch, Apple will only do this if Google(which owns Youtube) will transfer all of Youtube's videos from Flash format to H.264 format. This means even more share is lost to Apple, already Adobe is losing ground due to iTunes. I don't think Flash is going to die any time soon though. Many widely popular sites still use Flash, such as Myspace, Facebook, Apple (suprisingly), and many game sites such as Kongregate. You can read more at 14U. Also, thanks to The Eclectic Skeptic for the tip.

Wolfram Alpha Search Engine may be a Google-Killer

Wolfram Alpha is a search engine that is releasing this month (May 2009 for those of you who are still running Windows NT or Mac OS9). But whys is it a big deal? Well, this search engine like the super-genius child of Google OneBox and Wikipedia. Unlike the strangely named Ask.com, this will actually answer your questions, like Wiki Answers except with instant gratification. It will also ooze with data-y goodness for all the techies out there. You can visit it at wolframalpha.com (its not up and running yet though). The video below this (its a tad blurry) shows how Wolfram Alpha works. But, will it actually be the Google-Killer?

Swine Flu is officaily "Web-ified"

Google Maps has a map of the Swine Flu progression, and now there is a Twitter set up for it. Happy day for hypochondriacs!

Youtube takes on Hulu: Adds "Shows" Section

Youtube added a "Shows" section to its video section today, apparently try to take on the 10 ton behemoth that is Hulu. Youtube has already been offering Movies for months (though you may not notice it). This new features adds shows from MGM, Sony, CBS and other companies. Most of the shows, though, are about a decade too late to attract any viewers. Not exactly very tactical, when you can watch last night's episode of 30 Rock on Hulu. Hopefully Google's weight will get some better shows in the future. (well, there's always reruns of Astro Boy).
One of the nice features is the fact that you can "dim the lights" to get a better view. The size of the video is also set to a large size by default, with the option to make the video smaller. Youtube may be a viable source for television shows online if they can get better content. It would be nice to see Youtube get away from amateur videos. (sure, we all like the Evolution of Dance, but it still would be nice) You can go rot your brain at Youtube Shows.

Cool Gadget 2/18/09: The HTC Magic

Meet the T-Mobile G1's much prettier cousin. The next Google Android phone, the HTC Magic (referred to by some as the G2), will be out in Europe this spring. Unveiled at the Mobile World Conference trade show yesterday in Barcelona, the touchscreen HTC Magic will be on the European carrier Vodafone. Vodafone will release the handset in Spain, Italy, UK, France, and Germany this Spring.
The Magic will have have a 3.2 inch touchscreen (a little bigger than the G1's 3.17 inch one), GPS, Wifi capabilities, 3G access, and a 3.2 megapixel camera (without flash though). It will also host a slew of Android applications, Gmail, Youtube, Google Maps (with a new Compass view that changes the street view as you move the phone), and Google Talk. The Magic abandons the G1's clunky physical keyboard for a virtual one, like on the Iphone or Blackberry Storm.
Their is no word on when this potential Iphone-killer (like thats gonna happen, right Apple fans?) will land in the US.