Google buys an online polling startup to help improve Google+
You know what Google+ really needs, more than anything else? Polls.
Right, maybe not, but Google did just acquire a startup (yes, another one!) called Polar that specialized in crafting buzzy online polls like "Who did a better job hosting 'The View'?" and "Is WhatsApp worth $16 billion?" (no, really) for media outlets and website operators. While it wouldn't be impossible for those sorts of click-driving questions to find a new home in Google+, that's not really why Google opened its checkbook. As the New York Times points out, this was actually an acquihire -- a deal meant more to snag the people behind the product than the product itself. Those folks (including co-founder Luke Wroblewski, a big proponent of mobile-first design) are joining the Google+ team to do, well, no one really knows yet. Google VP of engineering Dave Besris cryptically noted on his own Google+ page that they'd be working on making the maligned social service "even more awesome," which in this case apparently means helping fine-tune the Google+ experience, especially when it comes to those small screens we carry with us everywhere.
