20 Feb 12 Google’s Chrome/Apps VP: It’s ‘early days’ for Chrome Web Store
The Chrome Web Store, open to developers since mid-2010 and to end users since late 2010, is still at a nascent stage, but
has the potential to succeed in a major way, according to a Google executive.
So far in this initial phase, Google feels it has done a good job promoting the idea of apps running within a desktop browser
to consumers, as evidenced by the fact that the Store’s app installs have doubled in the past three months, said Sundar Pichai,
Google’s senior vice president of Chrome and Apps.
Currently, Chrome browser users install about 1 million applications from the store every day, he said during an appearance
at the Goldman Sachs Technology Internet Conference, where he answered questions from a financial analyst and from audience
members.
“We’re pretty excited about the opportunity there, but it’s still early days,” he said.
The next stage is for developers to start earning money from apps, whether by selling them outright or through in-app payment
features, according to Pichai.
There will be a “whole slew” of new game applications added to the store, along with more productivity applications, he said.
Asked about the Google Apps collaboration and communication suite, Pichai acknowledged that most customers are still small
and medium-size businesses, but that there has been a shift toward acceptance in the past six months by CIOs of large enterprises.
As a result, Google is seeing Apps adoption among large companies and organizations accelerate, he said, offering as examples
two recent big customer wins: Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya, which will roll out Apps to its 110,000 employees worldwide, and
Roche Group, which will adopt Apps for its 90,000 employees globally.
“That’s a profound shift we’re seeing,” he said.
Large companies’ privacy and security concerns about the cloud-hosted model of collaboration and communication suites like
Google Apps have lessened, he said.
CIOs also used to worry a lot more about the “feature gap” between the Docs productivity suite of Google Apps and an on-premise
competitor like Microsoft Office, but now their priorities have started to shift, he said.
Now, it’s becoming more important for enterprises to have a productivity suite that can be deployed across multiple devices,
including phones and tablets employees bring to work from home, he said.
“The current model of how you use productivity apps is extremely tied to a Windows-centric view of how you use them,” he said,
adding that as that model changes, the “value proposition” of Google Apps gets a boost.
Of course, archrival Microsoft sees things differently. Asked for comment about Google’s announcement of its Roche Group customer
win on Thursday, Microsoft said via email that the announcement is an attempt by Google to “build credibility with the enterprise
audience.”
“As Google’s past history has shown, winning customers is one thing, keeping them is another,” Microsoft said.
Microsoft has said that Office 2010 is the fastest-selling consumer version of Office in history: A copy is sold worldwide
every second. Office 365, the cloud suite Microsoft launched last year as a Google Apps competitor, is on track to become
one of Microsoft’s fastest-selling products ever, it said. And about 80 million people use cloud applications from Microsoft,
including Office 365, its predecessor Business Productivity Online Suite and the Live@edu suite for schools and universities.
Article source: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/021712-googles-chromeapps-vp-its-early-256315.html
Tags: Chrome Web Store, Google Apps, Microsoft Office, Roche Group
19 Feb 12 Google’s Chrome/Apps VP: It’s ‘early days’ for Chrome Web Store
The Chrome Web Store, open to developers since mid-2010 and to end users since late 2010, is still at a nascent stage, but has the potential to succeed in a major way, according to a Google executive.
So far in this initial phase, Google feels it has done a good job promoting the idea of apps running within a desktop browser to consumers, as evidenced by the fact that the Store’s app installs have doubled in the past three months, said Sundar Pichai, Google’s senior vice president of Chrome and Apps.
Currently, Chrome browser users install about 1 million applications from the store every day, he said during an appearance at the Goldman Sachs Technology Internet Conference, where he answered questions from a financial analyst and from audience members.
“We’re pretty excited about the opportunity there, but it’s still early days,” he said.
The next stage is for developers to start earning money from apps, whether by selling them outright or through in-app payment features, according to Pichai.
There will be a “whole slew” of new game applications added to the store, along with more productivity applications, he said.
Asked about the Google Apps collaboration and communication suite, Pichai acknowledged that most customers are still small and medium-size businesses, but that there has been a shift toward acceptance in the past six months by CIOs of large enterprises.
As a result, Google is seeing Apps adoption among large companies and organizations accelerate, he said, offering as examples two recent big customer wins: Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya, which will roll out Apps to its 110,000 employees worldwide, and Roche Group, which will adopt Apps for its 90,000 employees globally.
“That’s a profound shift we’re seeing,” he said.
Large companies’ privacy and security concerns about the cloud-hosted model of collaboration and communication suites like Google Apps have lessened, he said.
CIOs also used to worry a lot more about the “feature gap” between the Docs productivity suite of Google Apps and an on-premise competitor like Microsoft Office, but now their priorities have started to shift, he said.
Now, it’s becoming more important for enterprises to have a productivity suite that can be deployed across multiple devices, including phones and tablets employees bring to work from home, he said.
“The current model of how you use productivity apps is extremely tied to a Windows-centric view of how you use them,” he said, adding that as that model changes, the “value proposition” of Google Apps gets a boost.
Of course, archrival Microsoft sees things differently. Asked for comment about Google’s announcement of its Roche Group customer win on Thursday, Microsoft said via email that the announcement is an attempt by Google to “build credibility with the enterprise audience.”
“As Google’s past history has shown, winning customers is one thing, keeping them is another,” Microsoft said.
Microsoft has said that Office 2010 is the fastest-selling consumer version of Office in history: A copy is sold worldwide every second. Office 365, the cloud suite Microsoft launched last year as a Google Apps competitor, is on track to become one of Microsoft’s fastest-selling products ever, it said. And about 80 million people use cloud applications from Microsoft, including Office 365, its predecessor Business Productivity Online Suite and the Live@edu suite for schools and universities.
Juan Carlos Perez covers enterprise communication/collaboration suites, operating systems, browsers and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Juan on Twitter at @JuanCPerezIDG.
Article source: http://www.techworld.com.au/article/415843/google_chrome_apps_vp_it_early_days_chrome_web_store/
Tags: Chrome Web Store, Google Apps, Juan Carlos Perez, Roche Group
18 Feb 12 Google’s Chrome/Apps VP: It’s ‘early Days’ for Chrome Web Store
The Chrome Web Store, open to developers since mid-2010 and to end users since late 2010, is still at a nascent stage, but has the potential to succeed in a major way, according to a Google executive.
So far in this initial phase, Google feels it has done a good job promoting the idea of apps running within a desktop browser to consumers, as evidenced by the fact that the Store’s app installs have doubled in the past three months, said Sundar Pichai, Google’s senior vice president of Chrome and Apps.
Currently, Chrome browser users install about 1 million applications from the store every day, he said during an appearance at the Goldman Sachs Technology Internet Conference, where he answered questions from a financial analyst and from audience members.
“We’re pretty excited about the opportunity there, but it’s still early days,” he said.
The next stage is for developers to start earning money from apps, whether by selling them outright or through in-app payment features, according to Pichai.
There will be a “whole slew” of new game applications added to the store, along with more productivity applications, he said.
Asked about the Google Apps collaboration and communication suite, Pichai acknowledged that most customers are still small and medium-size businesses, but that there has been a shift toward acceptance in the past six months by CIOs of large enterprises.
As a result, Google is seeing Apps adoption among large companies and organizations accelerate, he said, offering as examples two recent big customer wins: Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya, which will roll out Apps to its 110,000 employees worldwide, and Roche Group, which will adopt Apps for its 90,000 employees globally.
“That’s a profound shift we’re seeing,” he said.
Large companies’ privacy and security concerns about the cloud-hosted model of collaboration and communication suites like Google Apps have lessened, he said.
CIOs also used to worry a lot more about the “feature gap” between the Docs productivity suite of Google Apps and an on-premise competitor like Microsoft Office, but now their priorities have started to shift, he said.
Now, it’s becoming more important for enterprises to have a productivity suite that can be deployed across multiple devices, including phones and tablets employees bring to work from home, he said.
“The current model of how you use productivity apps is extremely tied to a Windows-centric view of how you use them,” he said, adding that as that model changes, the “value proposition” of Google Apps gets a boost.
Of course, archrival Microsoft sees things differently. Asked for comment about Google’s announcement of its Roche Group customer win on Thursday, Microsoft said via email that the announcement is an attempt by Google to “build credibility with the enterprise audience.”
“As Google’s past history has shown, winning customers is one thing, keeping them is another,” Microsoft said.
Microsoft has said that Office 2010 is the fastest-selling consumer version of Office in history: A copy is sold worldwide every second. Office 365, the cloud suite Microsoft launched last year as a Google Apps competitor, is on track to become one of Microsoft’s fastest-selling products ever, it said. And about 80 million people use cloud applications from Microsoft, including Office 365, its predecessor Business Productivity Online Suite and the Live@edu suite for schools and universities.
Juan Carlos Perez covers enterprise communication/collaboration suites, operating systems, browsers and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Juan on Twitter at @JuanCPerezIDG.
Article source: http://www.pcworld.com/article/250226/googles_chromeapps_vp_its_early_days_for_chrome_web_store.html
Tags: Chrome Web Store, Google Apps, Juan Carlos Perez, Roche Group
17 Feb 12 Google's Chrome/Apps VP: It's 'early Days' for Chrome Web Store
The Chrome Web Store, open to developers since mid-2010 and to end users since late 2010, is still at a nascent stage, but has the potential to succeed in a major way, according to a Google executive.
So far in this initial phase, Google feels it has done a good job promoting the idea of apps running within a desktop browser to consumers, as evidenced by the fact that the Store’s app installs have doubled in the past three months, said Sundar Pichai, Google’s senior vice president of Chrome and Apps.
Currently, Chrome browser users install about 1 million applications from the store every day, he said during an appearance at the Goldman Sachs Technology Internet Conference, where he answered questions from a financial analyst and from audience members.
“We’re pretty excited about the opportunity there, but it’s still early days,” he said.
The next stage is for developers to start earning money from apps, whether by selling them outright or through in-app payment features, according to Pichai.
There will be a “whole slew” of new game applications added to the store, along with more productivity applications, he said.
Asked about the Google Apps collaboration and communication suite, Pichai acknowledged that most customers are still small and medium-size businesses, but that there has been a shift toward acceptance in the past six months by CIOs of large enterprises.
As a result, Google is seeing Apps adoption among large companies and organizations accelerate, he said, offering as examples two recent big customer wins: Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya, which will roll out Apps to its 110,000 employees worldwide, and Roche Group, which will adopt Apps for its 90,000 employees globally.
“That’s a profound shift we’re seeing,” he said.
Large companies’ privacy and security concerns about the cloud-hosted model of collaboration and communication suites like Google Apps have lessened, he said.
CIOs also used to worry a lot more about the “feature gap” between the Docs productivity suite of Google Apps and an on-premise competitor like Microsoft Office, but now their priorities have started to shift, he said.
Now, it’s becoming more important for enterprises to have a productivity suite that can be deployed across multiple devices, including phones and tablets employees bring to work from home, he said.
“The current model of how you use productivity apps is extremely tied to a Windows-centric view of how you use them,” he said, adding that as that model changes, the “value proposition” of Google Apps gets a boost.
Of course, archrival Microsoft sees things differently. Asked for comment about Google’s announcement of its Roche Group customer win on Thursday, Microsoft said via email that the announcement is an attempt by Google to “build credibility with the enterprise audience.”
“As Google’s past history has shown, winning customers is one thing, keeping them is another,” Microsoft said.
Microsoft has said that Office 2010 is the fastest-selling consumer version of Office in history: A copy is sold worldwide every second. Office 365, the cloud suite Microsoft launched last year as a Google Apps competitor, is on track to become one of Microsoft’s fastest-selling products ever, it said. And about 80 million people use cloud applications from Microsoft, including Office 365, its predecessor Business Productivity Online Suite and the Live@edu suite for schools and universities.
Juan Carlos Perez covers enterprise communication/collaboration suites, operating systems, browsers and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Juan on Twitter at @JuanCPerezIDG.
Article source: http://www.pcworld.com/article/250226/googles_chromeapps_vp_its_early_days_for_chrome_web_store.html
Tags: Chrome Web Store, Google Apps, Juan Carlos Perez, Roche Group
28 Jan 12 Chromebooks are the electric car of laptops
January 27, 2012, 12:41 PM — 
The only people I know who own Chromebooks received them for free, from Google. In my case, I have two, both free. But despite the very small-bore hole Chromebooks have made in the laptop market, in the midst of a major project shakedown at Google headquarters, Chromebooks are, apparently, going to be around for a while, and the Chrome OS project has the CEO’s support.
The Register asked a Google product manager about where Chrome OS stands, and, to summarize, the answer is that Google doesn’t need to win in the retail sector yet, or maybe not any time soon, because they’re focused on the education field first, then retail and enterprise sectors next. Schools in 41 states are trying out Chromebooks, and three state education systems are buying 27,000 Chrome OS devices over the next three years, according to Caesar Sengupta, the product manager quoted by The Register.
[ Free download: 3 things Google Apps needs to fix... like, NOW | 7 days in the cloud: My week with the Samsung Chromebook ]
The sales pitch for Chrome OS is centered around simplicity. It’s simple for the user, because it’s nothing but a browser, something they already know how to use. It’s simple for the administrator at a school or business, because Google is constantly pushing out security and program updates for Chrome, and Chromebooks automatically update every time they restart. And in many models, it’s simple to get online: either you’re connected to a Wi-Fi network, or your Chromebook falls back to a 3G cellular connection, of which you get 100 MB of free bandwidth every month for just-in-case working.
Gaining cachet with a core group of enthusiasts is probably the best strategy Google has for its Chromebooks. Whenever Chromebooks are reviewed or mentioned on most tech-related sites and in publications, they’re noted for costing just about the same as a cheaper Windows laptop, yet without the advantage of running the huge universe of Windows apps.
“But, wait,” you might say, “Can’t Google’s own apps recreate most of the tools we need on a Windows system?” To a large extent, yes, with Gmail, Docs, Calendar, and other services.
“But then again,” you chime in, “what about when you’re offline?” Gmail, Docs, and Calendar have some offline capabilities built in, and there are a growing number of offline apps in the Chrome Web Store.
“But what if I need to edit a photo in Photoshop while I’m on a plane? Or if I need to save a huge video file on my system? Or if I need to keep Dropbox running?”
That’s where the Chromebook discussion ends, at least for the moment. Google is probably right that many, many things can be done entirely online these days, and that their own tools provide some of the best ways to work in the cloud. But the Chromebook looks right now to the average laptop buyer like an all-electric car looks to the average car buyer: full of what-if questions and untested theories of living. If you’re working mostly inside a school or your home, or if your company can foot the bill for mobile data coverage, this is less of a concern. For the person footing their own Chromebook bill, though, it’s a conversation stopper.
Not everybody is down on Chrome OS. One writer at ExtremeTech strongly believes in Google’s “long game”. And this writer, too, enjoys the very long battery life, focus-aiding simplicity, and surprising capability of his Chromebook. But I’ve also hacked my Chromebook to dual-boot with Ubuntu, because, well, I’m geeky that way, and I like to prepare for what-ifs.
Article source: http://www.itworld.com/unified-communications/245085/chrome-os-all-electric-car-laptops
Tags: Caesar Sengupta, Chrome OS, Google Apps, Whenever Chromebooks
21 Dec 11 Requirements: Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox, Gmail account
Wouldn’t it be great if your email client could read your mind? You know, sending messages at just the right time. Reminding you when people don’t reply to your messages. And taking messages out of your inbox when you don’t need them, but returning them to the top of your message pile later on, when you do. Boomerang for Gmail offers all of these features. This free Firefox/Chrome extension can’t quite read your mind, but sometimes it feels like the next best thing.
Boomerang for Gmail lets you compose messages now and then send them later.Once installed and given permission to access your Gmail or Google Apps email account, Boomerang appears adds a “send later” button on the top of messages you compose, next to Google’s own “Send” button. Pressing “Send Later” lets you choose between sending the message at a set interval (in a certain number of hours or days) or at a certain date and time in the future. This feature is handy when you’re composing a message at a time when it could get lost in the shuffle, such as over the weekend or during off-hours, and would like to send it at a time when it’s more likely to get noticed.
Boomerang also adds an option that says “Boomerang this message;” this appears right above your message window. You can choose to “Boomerang” the message–which essentially means have it return to the top of your inbox–in a set number of hours or days, or at a set date and time in the future. This feature is much like the email reminders offered by Followup.cc and Followupthen.com. Those services work with any email service and email client, which is a nice touch for anyone not using Gmail. (Baydin does offer another version of Boomerang, called Boomerang for Outlook).
Followup.cc and Followupthen.com also require an extra step: You have to send a message to them in order to have your message sent back to you. Boomerang for Gmail simply requires that you click this box, and includes the option to boomerang the message only if no one replies to it–a nice way to be reminded that you’re waiting for action.
When you open a message, Boomerang also asks if you want to boomerang it back to you inbox at another time. And if the message includes a date–such a proposed meeting time or a due date–Boomerang recognizes this, and suggests returning it to your inbox the day before.
Boomerang’s Basic version is free, but limits you to 10 messages per month. It does work with both Gmail and Google Apps accounts, though. The $5-per-month Personal version (Gmail only) offers unlimited messages, as does the $15-per-month Professional version, which supports both Gmail and Google Apps accounts, too.
If you use Gmail and Firefox, Boomerang for Gmail could quickly become an indispensible tool. I only wish the free version offered a few more messages.
–Liane Cassavoy
Article source: http://www.pcworld.com/article/246741/make_your_email_appear_when_you_need_it_with_boomerang_for_gmail.html
Tags: Boomerang Basic, Google Apps, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox
12 Dec 11 Cloud is what people use 98% of the time: Sundar Pichai, Head, Google Chrome
Sundar Pichai is the man in charge of Google Chrome , which last month rose to the No 2 spot among Web browsers, overtaking Firefox. If current trends persist, Chrome, launched just three years ago, will soon be closing in on Microsoft’s once ubiquitous Internet Explorer. Pichai, 39, grew up in Chennai, did a BTech from IIT-Kharagpur, and then went to Stanford University, US, for an MS. He worked in Applied Materials and McKinsey Co, before joining Google in 2004.
Earlier this year there were reports that Google awarded Pichai many millions of dollars in stock grants (Tech-Crunch says it’s $50 million, though some think it’s lesser, may be $10-20 m) to keep him from joining Twitter. We didn’t try to verify when he visited Bangalore recently (he certainly would not have told us), but the man, who heads the Chrome and Apps division, which includes Gmail and Google Docs, spoke extensively about what is his most ambitious venture, the Chrome operating system (OS).
You’ve launched the Chromebook with the Chrome OS. How’s the response?
We are at the beginning of a long journey. We are incredibly committed to it. This (OS) market is a very mature market. The software experiences you’ve had on PCs have been around for almost 30 years. We are a new comer. We have come with a very different opinion. What excites me is, every way you look at it, the trends on which we bet on Chrome are getting truer by the day. People increasingly live in the cloud, are working on cloud services (Web applications). With Chrome OS, the idea was, can we build an end-to-end computing experience centred around that.
We have made Chromebooks available only online, in select retailers. It was not a volume play for us by any means. Our goal was to show proof of concept of a new way of doing computing, get mindshare, excitement, and continue to build on it. Think about Android six years ago, that’s the stage we are in. We are very excited by the initial feedback from users. My mom and dad use Chromebooks and they love it; they have nothing to install, they have done nothing to maintain it, it’s always secure, always in the latest version; my mom logs in as her, and she gets all her data, my dad logs in as him, he gets all his data.
We often find the latency of Google Docs irritating, and some of us are still a lot more comfortable with the offline Microsoft Word. Do you really think there can be a quick transition to the cloud in places where bandwidth is still a problem?
You are in a line of profession where Word is a core productivity tool, you depend on it for your work. This is not typical of most consumers. My wife, my parents, they don’t need any of the complexities of Word, they never ever think of using Word. Cloud is what people use 98% of the time.
How is adoption of Google Apps by businesses?
We sign around 4,000 new businesses every day. About 60% of the top 100 universities in the US are on Google Apps. The benefits of doing collaborative work on Docs is so mindblowing, the answer is clear for most people.
How is it in enterprises, especially now with Microsoft’s Office 365 cloud offering?
Even in enterprises we are growing at an extraordinarily fast pace. Just that there’s a large legacy market, so it will take years. But the trend lines are very favourable. I’m excited to see Microsoft take a huge step towards the cloud. But for us, when people think of Google Apps, they are not comparing features. It’s a much broader bet they are placing, that the apps will work well together, seamlessly, wherever they are and whichever device they are using. So I don’t see Office 365 changing this one way or the other. Microsoft says they come from the enterprise side, so they know what enterprises need in terms of security and features far more than you do.
Tags: Google Apps, Google Chrome, Sundar Pichai, US
05 Nov 11 Google Chrome 16 beta adds multiple user profiles
Google Chrome is set to add yet another geek-friendly feature in its next stable version, and you can check it out early in the Beta channel right now. In Chrome 16, you’ll be able to switch among multiple user profiles.
Getting started is a breeze — just mouse up to the mannequin head icon in the upper left corner of your Chrome window and click it. The profile menu will appear, and you can then add a new user or click the gray pen-on-paper icon to manage user settings. They’re also available by entering chrome://settings/personal in the Omnibar.
To change an account’s name or icon, click once to highlight it and the click the manage button. There are more than two dozen icons to choose from, including a ninja, an alien, and a slice of pizza. Surprisingly, there’s no Android head yet, but I expect one will appear eventually — what with the Gmail theme and all.
Now for a word of caution. While you might be tempted to use this feature to set up multiple Chrome profiles for different users on the same computer, don’t do it.
It’s not made for that type of multi-user use right now. Rather, it’s aimed at folks who want to have separate profiles for browsing for work and browsing for recreational purposes — or signing into two different Google Apps accounts at the same time.
The current set-up isn’t ideal for multiple users because there’s no password protection. If you create three profiles for your housemates, you’ll all be able to switch back and forth among accounts at will. Your browsing history, bookmarks, and other Chrome data will be there for all to see.
If you do share a computer — whether it’s running Windows, OS X, or Linux — do the smart thing and create separate user accounts in your operating system. Those can be locked down with a password, and your Chrome profiles will be safely isolated.
Some day, Google might add a master password option to Chrome (like the one in Firefox). Until that happens, rely on your OS for multiple user set ups.
More at Google
Article source: http://www.geek.com/articles/news/google-chrome-16-beta-adds-multiple-user-profiles-2011114/
Tags: Google Apps, Google Chrome, OS
04 Nov 11 Google+ gets new YouTube and Chrome integration
On Thursday Google delivered new Google+ integration for YouTube and the Chrome Web browser.
Vic Gundotra, the executive leading the Google+ efforts, said in a blog post that the new features were the tech giant’s latest example of “shipping the Google in Google+.”
So, what does that all mean exactly? For one, a YouTube slider tab has been added to the right-hand side of Google+ — just below the black navigation bar along the top of every page.
When you scroll your mouse over the YouTube tab, a search bar pops out asking “What would you like to play?” Entering any text will return YouTube video results, which pop up in a new window. “And if you move the pop-up elsewhere, you can still navigate your playlist from the slider,” Gundotra noted.
The feature is pretty slick (as long as you don’t mind pop-up windows) and enables users to find, watch and +1 anything they see without leaving Google+ itself.
“Sharing YouTube videos with your circles also works (of course), but there’s a nice little twist: The people you share with can open a related playlist directly from your post,” Gundotra said in his post. “Last but not least, we’re starting to include YouTube playlists in Google+ search results.”
These are the latest of what probably will be many more YouTube plus Google+ features.
The first step came in August, when Google released a feature that allows Google+ users to launch Hangouts (group video chats) directly from YouTube’s website.
One of the new extensions adds a +1 button beside the URL bar in Chrome. With this extension installed, a click of the button shares that website to a user’s Google+ profile.
The other extension adds a Google+ notifications box to show up next to Chrome’s URL bar — enabling users to be alerted of Google+ activity when they’re logged into Google+ but not actually visiting a Google+ page.
Google also added the two extensions to its Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer as new features.
RELATED:
Google+ opens to Google Apps users
Google’s Ron Gorodetzky: Making YouTube more social
Google releases, then pulls buggy Gmail app for Apple’s iOS
– Nathan Olivarez-Giles
Images: (Top) The YouTube slider in Google+ and (bottom) Chrome’s Google+ extensions. Credit: Google
Article source: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2011/11/google-plus-youtube-chrome-integration.html
Tags: Chrome Google, Google Apps, RELATED, Vic Gundotra
04 Nov 11 Google+ gets new YouTube and Chrome integration
On Thursday Google delivered new Google+ integration for YouTube and the Chrome Web browser.
Vic Gundotra, the executive leading the Google+ efforts, said in a blog post that the new features were the tech giant’s latest example of “shipping the Google in Google+.”
So, what does that all mean exactly? For one, a YouTube slider tab has been added to the right-hand side of Google+ — just below the black navigation bar along the top of every page.
When you scroll your mouse over the YouTube tab, a search bar pops out asking “What would you like to play?” Entering any text will return YouTube video results, which pop up in a new window. “And if you move the pop-up elsewhere, you can still navigate your playlist from the slider,” Gundotra noted.
The feature is pretty slick (as long as you don’t mind pop-up windows) and enables users to find, watch and +1 anything they see without leaving Google+ itself.
“Sharing YouTube videos with your circles also works (of course), but there’s a nice little twist: The people you share with can open a related playlist directly from your post,” Gundotra said in his post. “Last but not least, we’re starting to include YouTube playlists in Google+ search results.”
These are the latest of what probably will be many more YouTube plus Google+ features.
The first step came in August, when Google released a feature that allows Google+ users to launch Hangouts (group video chats) directly from YouTube’s website.
One of the new extensions adds a +1 button beside the URL bar in Chrome. With this extension installed, a click of the button shares that website to a user’s Google+ profile.
The other extension adds a Google+ notifications box to show up next to Chrome’s URL bar — enabling users to be alerted of Google+ activity when they’re logged into Google+ but not actually visiting a Google+ page.
Google also added the two extensions to its Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer as new features.
RELATED:
Google+ opens to Google Apps users
Google’s Ron Gorodetzky: Making YouTube more social
Google releases, then pulls buggy Gmail app for Apple’s iOS
– Nathan Olivarez-Giles
Images: (Top) The YouTube slider in Google+ and (bottom) Chrome’s Google+ extensions. Credit: Google
Article source: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2011/11/google-plus-youtube-chrome-integration.html
Tags: Chrome Google, Google Apps, RELATED, Vic Gundotra
