Google Maps (for iPhone)

Google Maps brings free, accurate GPS-enabled maps back to the iPhone, and even throws in free voice navigation on iOS for the first time.

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Google fighting German plan for linking fee

Google has kicked off a campaign against a proposed German law that would force search engine providers to pay copyright fees every time they return a news article in their results.

The Leistungsschutzrecht für Presseverleger, or "ancillary copyright for press publishers," would provide an extension of copyright in Germany to cover snippets of articles, such as those that show up in search results so the user can tell what each result is about. It is being proposed by Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition and follows intense lobbying by publishing giant Axel Springer and others.

Google today launched a petition against the plan, arguing that they would make it much harder for Web surfers to find what they are looking for. Google has complained about the Leistungsschutzrecht before, but is now stepping up its opposition due to the fact that the bill will be debated this week in the Bundestag. "Most people have never heard of this proposed legislation," Google country director Stefan Tweraser said in a statement. "Such a law would affect every Internet user in Germany

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Google Play Takes Away Reviewers' Mask of Anonymity

By Peter Suciu
TechNewsWorld

Google has begun to require that reviewers on Google Play be signed in through Google

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Google Maps helps man walk 5,000 miles

Winston Fiore (left) has walked 5,000 miles for smiles.(Credit:Winston Fiore)

Imagine hiking 5,000 miles through Asia, with only Google Maps as your guide. Winston Fiore, a U.S. marine formerly deployed to Senegal and Afghanistan, did it in about a year, calling the journey his "Smile Trek."

The inspiration for "Smile Trek" came in 2007 when Fiore witnessed "an incredible amount of poverty" while in Senegal. He then decided to set aside a year for traveling, and found a cause to throw his weight behind: the International Children's Surgical Foundation (ICSF), a nonprofit that provides free corrective surgery for kids in developing countries with cleft lips and palates.

For the past year, he has hiked through Malaysia, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei, and Singapore. He completed his journey last week.

Speaking to CNET Asia in Singapore, his start and end point, Fiore says he didn't carry any physical maps and only relied on Google Maps to map his daily walking route. (Probably a good thing Fiore wasn't using aniPhone 5 -- we all know about the Apple Maps kerfuffle.)

Along with Google Maps, Fiore relied on Google Translate (to communicate with locals); Google Latitude (for keeping his family, friends, and supporters informed of his whereabouts); and MyTracks (to record his speed, distance, and places visited).

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Google ups the ante against Amazon's cloud service

Google has added 36 new types of server to its rentable cloud infrastructure. 

The additions to Google Compute Engine, the company's infrastructure-as-a-service technology, were announced by Google on Monday.

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Google Maps brings indoor layouts to the desktop

Today that its indoor maps, which previously were available only onAndroid devices, had arrived on the desktop. The indoor maps, which cover airports, shopping malls, museums and 10,000 other locations, offer floor plans and labels for things like airport gates, individual stores inside malls, ATMs and even restrooms.

A list of some of the places where indoor maps are available can be found here.

Meanwhile, Google is asking owners of other venues to contribute their floor plans to Google Maps by visiting this site.

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New app gives Google Maps some competition

Skobbler's ForeverMap2 offers map information both online and offline.(Credit:Skobbler)

If you're looking for a mapping app that won't eat up your data plan and will give you results lickety split, Skobbler's ForeverMap2 may be that app.

The navigation technology startup hopes to give Google Maps a run for its money with its ForeverMap2 app that works both online and offline. The company today launched the ForeverMap2 app forAndroid devices.

Related postsScientists say Google Earth island in Pacific doesn't existGoogle Maps brings indoor layouts to the desktopE-mail bill raises privacy concernsNokia's Here Maps finds its way to Apple's App StoreApple's OS X 10.9 may feature Siri and homegrown maps

The app uses mapping information from the open-source project OpenStreetMap, which has built maps via crowd-sourcing. OpenStreetMap is a free editable map of the whole world started in 2004 that allows anyone to view, edit, and use geographical data in a collaborative way from anywhere in the world. It's a lot like Wikipedia for maps.

Marcus Thielking, co-founder and chief marketing officer for Skobbler, said that using the OpenStreetMap data offers more granularity for its maps and allows people to find more accurate local information.

One of the key features of ForeverMap2 is the fact that it can be used both online and offline. While Google Maps also allows users to view map information offline, ForeverMap2 allows users to search and zoom in using offline maps.

"Google Maps is mainly used online," said Marcus Thielking, co-founder and chief marketing officer for Skobbler. "It has some minor offline capabilities. But Google is inclined to keep users online for as long as possible. We give people a choice so you as a user can interact with maps either online or offline."

The app costs 99 cents and online maps are freely available to users. But maps that are downloaded for offline use can be purchased within the app. The company is allowing users to get access to one country map for free for offline use. The app is currently only available for Android devices. But will eventually introduce a similar app for theiPhone 5.

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Scientists say Google Earth island in Pacific doesn't exist

Tim Hornyak Crave freelancer Tim Hornyak is the author of "Loving the Machine: The Art and Science of Japanese Robots." He has been writing about Japanese culture and technology for a decade. E-mail Tim.

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Google attacks net treaty talks

Google claims that the ITU conference is the "wrong place" to make decisions about the internet's future Continue reading the main storyRelated StoriesRussia blacklist law takes effectUS resists losing control of netWho should govern the internet? Google has warned that a forthcoming UN-organised conference threatens the "free and open internet".

Government representatives are set to agree a new information and communications treaty in December.

It has been claimed some countries will try to wrest oversight of the net's technical specifications and domain name system from US bodies to an international organisation.

However, the UN has said there would be consensus before any change was agreed.

Google has asked web users to add their name to an online petition to support its view.

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Google Nexus 7 (32GB, Unlocked)

The Nexus 7 is the best small tablet on the market, but we'd rather tether it to a 4G smartphone than use the built-in cellular modem here.

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Google Fiber connects Kansas City

Some Kansas residents are already using the service Continue reading the main storyRelated StoriesGoogle Fiber: Kansas City residents on life with ultra-fast internet WatchGoogle Fiber: Can ultra-fast internet change a city? Google has begun to connect US homes in Kansas City to super-fast broadband, offering residents speeds of up to 1Gbps (gigabit per second).

People living in the "fibrehood" area of Hanover Heights are among the first to use the service.

They are reporting speeds of about 700Mbps (megabits per second).

The product poses a challenge to established cable companies which typically charge more money with slower connections.

Google says it hopes its package will persuade people to spend longer on the web and try out new services.

However, it will need to convince consumers that they would benefit from access to such fast speeds.

In a blog post, Google Fiber's director of service delivery Alana Karen promised a "great service" for residents in Kansas City - which straddles the border between the states of Kansas and Missouri.

Curiosity project

Google is able to make the foray into broadband installation because it has been buying up so-called dark fibre from telecoms firms in the US in order to link up its data centres which are dotted around the US.

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Google Chrome 23

The race is tightening up, but Google Chrome remains the Windows Web browser to beat, in terms of speed, features, and support for new standards.

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On Google, a Political Mystery That's All Numbers

Julia Angwin, Reporter,

The Wall Street JournalOn Google, a Political Mystery That’s All NumbersNovember 4, 2012 at 3:16 pm PTTweetSharePrint

Google’s quest to guess what we want before we want it has produced an unusual side effect: a disparity in the results the company presents about the presidential candidates.

A Wall Street Journal examination found that the search engine often customizes the results of people who have recently searched for “Obama” — but not those who have recently searched for “Romney.”

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