Google redesigns its website for mobile devices

We spend quite a bit of time on our smartphones these days, perhaps more so when compared to feature phones due to our smartphones being able to do many things. Activities such as browsing the web while commuting is a perfectly common sight, which means that websites need to not only think about how their pages look like on a desktop computer, but also how it might look like on a mobile device like a smartphone. Google has indeed thought about that and has since redesigned its mobile homepage.

Launching your mobile phone’s browser and surfing to Google’s website should yield a new design, which rather interestingly looks like a compressed version of the desktop version of Google. It features an options menu to the top left which when pressed, will reveal a sidebar which we can’t help but feel is reminiscent to Facebook’s own sidebar in its app. If you have signed in to your Google+ account, it will display your profile photo along with a box that will inform you of notifications. It’s not a super huge deal but for those who rely on Google frequently, hopefully this redesign will have made your surfing a little bit more convenient.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Google’s Eric Schmidt believes that Apple should have kept Google Maps, Google+ app update supports iPhone 5 now, delivers new Android widgets,

Google mobile web revamp brings hidden sidebar, feels all too familiar

Google mobile web revamp brings hidden sidebar, feels all too familiar

Google+ has it. Facebook has it. Even Spotify and Evernote have it. “It” is the hidden sidebar, and that subtle if over-repeated interface has spread to Google’s mobile home page. Visit from an iOS or Android device and the front end will resemble the desktop web version, but with a sidebar that exposes Google’s services in a more elegant way than the top bar we’ve had to use before. The redesign isn’t showing for everyone as of this writing, so don’t be disappointed if Google’s new drive towards interface consistency isn’t available yet. Just know that there’s one less refuge from the trendiest input metaphor of 2012.

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Google mobile web revamp brings hidden sidebar, feels all too familiar originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Oct 2012 20:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Twitter rumored to be interested in a video hosting service of their own

Twitter already has their own photo hosting service, so would a video hosting service be next on their list? It would not be a stretch of the imagination and according to recent rumors, that seems to be the case. This was revealed to the folks at AllThingsD by one of their sources who claims that Twitter was looking into a video hosting service of their own.

At the moment videos by YouTube and Vimeo can be linked via Twitter, although if Twitter launches their own video hosting service, there is a chance that both YouTube and Vimeo could be taking a hit. However given that YouTube is more or less the de facto video hosting service, and depending on what sort of features Twitter’s video hosting service offers, perhaps it might not have that huge of an impact after all. Either way we’ll keep our eyes peeled so until then, we suggest you take this with a grain of salt.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Twitter security flaw allows for brute-force password discovery, Kelloggs opens Tweet Shop in the UK, lets you pay for snacks via Twitter,

Firefox 16 final launches with Reader on Android, VoiceOver on Macs and web app support

Mozilla Marketplace in Firefox

Mozilla knows how to keep on the fast track. Just weeks after the Firefox 16 beta first showed, the finished version is ready and waiting. Surprises are few if you were an early adopter, although the update still has some welcome changes for the right audiences. Mozilla is most keen to talk about preliminary web app support for the Mozilla Marketplace, but you’ll also find device-specific additions like a Reader Mode for the Android flock and VoiceOver support automatically switched on for Macs. More responsive JavaScript and on-by-default Opus audio playback give existing surfers extra reasons to upgrade. Firefox 16 is immediately available through all the usual channels, so hit the relevant source link if you’re ready to live on the not-quite-bleeding edge.

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Firefox 16 final launches with Reader on Android, VoiceOver on Macs and web app support originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Oct 2012 12:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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W3C teams with Apple, Google, Mozilla on WebPlatform, a guide to building the open web (video)

W3C teams with Apple, Google, Mozilla on WebPlatform, a guide to building the open web videoThe World Wide Web Consortium might just be the United Nations of web development, as it’s bringing together some frequent enemies to fight for a common cause through WebPlatform.org. The collaboration will see Adobe, Apple, Facebook, Google, HP, Microsoft, Mozilla, Nokia and Opera pool educational resources to create a comprehensive, frequently updated guide to creating HTML5 and other content for the open web. The companies’ instructional oversight is just the start, however — visitors will have chats and forums to devise their own solutions, and they’ll even have a better than usual chance at influencing mid-development web standards. It may be some time before we’ll see the first fruits of the organization’s work, but we’re already happy to see technology companies set aside some of their differences.

Continue reading W3C teams with Apple, Google, Mozilla on WebPlatform, a guide to building the open web (video)

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W3C teams with Apple, Google, Mozilla on WebPlatform, a guide to building the open web (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Oct 2012 03:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Adafruit releases WebIDE alpha for Raspberry Pi, eases beginners into coding

DNP Raspberry Pi

If you’ve been intrigued by the Raspberry Pi but were hesitant to get one because you’re new to Linux, Adafruit has a solution for you. The team that brought us the Raspberry Pi Education Linux Distro has come up with a special WebIDE (Web Integrated Development Environment) designed to run on the affordable barebones computer. It’s entirely web-based so there’s no need to install any software — just launch a browser, hook up your Pi, and you’re ready to go. To make life easier for coders, the platform has a terminal built in, plus there’s an automatic updater included to keep folks running only the freshest version of WebIDE. It’s currently at the alpha stage, so only experienced users should install it for now, but Adafruit’s hoping to roll out a stable release suitable for programmers of all levels sometime soon.

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Adafruit releases WebIDE alpha for Raspberry Pi, eases beginners into coding originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Oct 2012 20:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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US court to rule on digital content resales in ReDigi vs EMI case, could set a legal precedent

Complicated legal systems and copyright laws put aside, on a basic level it makes sense to think that if you were to purchase an item, it would be yours to do as you see fit which includes reselling it, right? That’s pretty much how websites such as eBay and Craigslist work where people put up second hand (and brand new) items for sale. However when it comes to digital goods, that’s when things start to get a bit complicated and a US court is set to hear a case which will determine whether digital media files can be resold which could also set a precedent for future cases. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Denied: Closure of used MP3 store, LG sues Samsung over use of OLED displays, alleging patent infringement,

Google Wallet reaches the web, reminds most of us that it exists

Google Wallet reaches the web, reminds most of us that it exists

Unless you happen to be using the right phone on the right carrier, you might not know that Google Wallet is even a reality: the close association with NFC-based mobile payments on one network has largely kept it out of the public eye. Many more are about to see Wallet in action now that Google has quietly introduced it to the web. No, you won’t tap your phone against your computer screen; the web version is mostly targeted at microtransactions and gives readers more than a few ways to buy without getting burned, such as long and blurred-out previews, a narrow price range between 25 to 99 cents and an Instant Refund option that gives no-questions-asked credit within half an hour. Only Oxford University Press as well as Pearson’s DK and Peachpit publishing wings are known to be testing Wallet at this stage, but Google is already soliciting new partners for the e-commerce service before the customary blog post is active — a sign that Mountain View is eager to get Wallet on the web rolling a little faster than its slow-moving mobile counterpart.

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Google Wallet reaches the web, reminds most of us that it exists originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Oct 2012 07:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BlipBoard: Twitter Meets Foursquare

[DEMO Fall 2012] Today, BlipBoard for iPhone was launched at DEMO Fall, the application acts like a social map, where people can access information and alerts in real time about what is happening nearby.

Users can tune in to people and places and get instant information about events, happy hours, restaurant specials and many other happenings posted by people and venues around the city. It looks like one of the key concepts of this app is to attract active contributors that will have a large following in order to make them “local tastemakers” or “trendsetters”, just like the “influencers” in Twitter who count hundreds of thousands of followers. Yelp call them the “Elite members”.

Following the SoLoMo trend, a term coined in 2011 by KPCB, a number of startups try to enhance or combine the successful location-based and social networking apps out there, namely Facebook, Foursquare, Yelp and Twitter. I need to test BlipBoard to see if it is more fun and efficient to use than the ones I already check regularly.  In case you try it, please let me know in the comments what you think.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Pearltrees for iPhone, DEMO Fall 2012 – Only Two Weeks Left To Buy Tickets ,

Opera 12.10 beta for desktop launched by Opera

Opera has launched the beta of its browser’s version 12.10. Opera 12.10 has been launched for all the major platforms, including Windows, Linux and Mac. While it packs a number of new features for the common users, the company tells us that the highlight of the browser is a far more developer-friendly API than the earlier versions of the browser.

The new browser furnishes three chief APIs, namely context menu API, screenshot API and resource loader API. The screenshot API allows developers to build apps which enable the users to share screenshots from their Opera browser. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Google Chrome is still the world’s most used browser, research says, Firefox goes to war against design fragmentation,