GoogleLabs
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Gmail advanced search gets autocomplete in 'from' and 'to' fields, three lab features become standard
Coming on the heels of Google announcing additional languages for Gmail search, the dev team out in Mountain View is rolling out a few more tweaks. For starters, when you use advanced search, you'll now see autocomplete predictions in the "from" and "to" fields. Google is also "graduating" three labs: Refresh POP accounts, Filter import / export and Navbar drag and drop. Starting with that POP feature, you'll be able to click the refresh link at the top of the inbox to populate your inbox with new messages, and also fetch messages from any other POP address you've got set up. Moving on, that filter import / export feature should come in handy if you want to share filters with friends or feel the need to back them up. Wrapping things up, the ability to drag and drop gadgets on the left-hand pane is good for, well, you get the idea.
Google Play Music switches on labs features: HTML5 player, star ratings and notifications
We're so used to Google Labs features on commonly used services like mail and maps that we often forget they're technically experimental and now Music has a few of its own. The new features available on the desktop version of its web player include toggles for an HTML5 player (there was already a mobile version for iOS) instead of Flash, Gmail-style desktop notifications (Chrome only) and the ability to rate music on a five star scale instead of just thumbs up or thumbs down. There's been a steady of stream of updates to the Music arm of Google Play since it was first announced last May, now that the velvet invite rope has been lifted has it become a part of your daily soundtrack?
Google Swiffy extension exports Flash to HTML5, ActionScript fans rejoice
If you were bummed that you'd have to pick up some new coding skills when Adobe announced that Flash for mobile was finito, cheer up friends. Harken back to the summer months when Google unveiled its Swiffy conversion tool that turns those aging SWF files into browser friendly HTML5 animations. Now the folks in Mountain View have created an extension for the Flash desktop app that allows you to export your working files to something a little more up to date with a single click -- or a combination of keystrokes for you pros. So if you're worried you'd have to brush up on your coding wizardry, it seems you're safe... for now. If you're sporting Flash CS4 or newer, hit that source link to download the goods.
Google X lab is full of smart people with crazy dreams and frozen yogurt machines, probably
A Google lab so secret that even some of the company's own employees don't know of its existence? That's Google X -- or it was, before The New York Times ran a profile on the lab's super secret goings-on at an undisclosed location somewhere in the San Francisco Bay Area. Naturally, the paper doesn't have a ton of information about the lab, which some claim is "run like the CIA," though it paints a picture populated by robots who are are learning menial work tasks and how to take photos for Google Maps. There are around 100 concepts in all from the lab that helped give rise to those driverless cars, including social networking dinner plates and internet-connected refrigerators. No word on the lab's production of an adamantium-laced super soldier for the Canadian government, but we're sure it's around there somewhere.
Google finally pulls the plug on Buzz amid 'fall sweep'
Before there was Google+ there was Google Buzz, the company's big effort to stake a claim in the social networking space. That, of course, didn't exactly work out for the search giant, and it even managed to spark some lawsuits and attract the eye of the FTC. Now Google has finally swept it under the rug in a bit of fall cleaning, stating in a blog post today that Google Buzz and the Buzz API will be shut down "in a few weeks," and that it will now focus solely on Google+ instead. Also getting the axe is Jaiku, a social networking service that Google acquired in 2007, as well some of the social features on iGoogle, and the company's Code Search service, which will officially be shut down along with its API on January 15th of next year. And, if that wasn't enough, Google also confirmed that today's the day that the Google Labs site will be shut down (its demise was announced this summer).
Engadget Podcast 249 - 07.22.2011
Here at Engadget, and here on the Engadget Podcast in particular, we're all about customer service. OK, maybe not all about customer service, but on this episode we've dedicated twenty percent of our breath to answering your questions! If you happen to enjoy a bunch of Apple news too -- which we heard you do you -- then we're at about fifty percent on-track to serving you completely. If you like Apple news, having your questions answered, and a healthy dose of other up-to-the-minute information in the spacecraft, e-reader, and digital camera realms...well, let's just say we got this.Host: Tim Stevens, Brian HeaterGuests: Dana WollmanProducer: Trent WolbeMusic: Paradise City02:44 - Apple Mac OS X Lion available now in the App Store06:00 - Apple refreshes MacBook Air with Sandy Bridge, Thunderbolt, and backlit keyboards08:35 - Apple OS X Lion (10.7) review17:32 - The MacBook drops from Apple's Store (update: confirmed)22:37 - Apple updates Mac mini: Core i5 and i7, Thunderbolt, AMD Radeon HD, no SuperDrive22:55 - Apple rolls out 27-inch Thunderbolt Display with FaceTime HD camera, built-in speakers23:45 - Apple's Q3 earnings exceed estimates: $28.57 billion revenue, $7.31 billion profit, 20 million iPhones sold25:13 - Apple outpaces Nokia in global smartphone shipments28:00 - Nokia Q2 2011: 'clearly disappointing' results as challenges prove 'greater than expected'32:35 - Motorola Droid 3 review37:35 - Sony Alpha NEX-C3 review42:55 - iRiver Story HD review49:51 - Space Shuttle Atlantis touches down in Florida, won't be going back up again50:44 - Google 'winding down' Labs, likely due to meddling older sister51:40 - Listener questionsHear the podcastSubscribe to the podcast[iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (enhanced AAC).[RSS MP3] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in MP3) to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically.[RSS AAC] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in enhanced AAC) to your RSS aggregator.[Zune] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune MarketplaceDownload the podcastLISTEN (MP3)LISTEN (AAC)LISTEN (OGG)Contact the podcastSend your questions to @tim_stevens.Leave us a voicemail: (423) 438-3005 (GADGET-3005)E-mail us: podcast at engadget dot comTwitter: @tim_stevens @bheater @danawollman
Google 'winding down' Labs, likely due to meddling older sister
Google Labs, that breeding ground for the wacky, sublime, and sometimes useful experiments that Mountain View's scooter-loving employees are so fond of, is getting ready to "wind down." The software giant announced today that the experimental forum for testing out potential features is being sidelined, in order for the company to focus on bigger picture ideas. Some of the more useful experimentation for properties like Calendar and Gmail will stick around, as will the Labs experiments that eventually made their way into the Android market. Google has promised to keep us all in the loop during the transition, so perhaps we can pick up a few secondhand test tubes for our own collections.
Google unveils Swiffy: turns high maintenance Flash animations into HTML5
Still hanging on to those sweet site loaders hoping they'd be of use again someday? Perhaps the time has come -- for some ads and animations, that is. Google Labs has cooked up Swiffy, which takes an antediluvian SWF file and creates an HTML5 version that will run in most current browsers (Chrome and Safari, for example). The converted file is pretty close in size to the original; however, the company warns that the project is fresh out of the oven, so it won't convert your entire Flash library just yet. Even still, software that makes existing animations useful without starting from scratch? Sign us up! Check out the source link for the FAQs and some of Swiffy's handiwork, then test drive this bad boy yourself.
April Fools' Day roundup: Google overload edition
Ah, April 1st. It's that time of the year again when the internet is rife with odd news and pranks. As before, news sites like us end up with a healthy stream of tips throughout April Fools' Day (thanks, by the way), so let us round up some of the best findings for your comedic appetite. Contenders include the usual suspects like Google and ThinkGeek, the former of which dominating the gigglesphere this year with some new "features." We also have some interesting submissions from Hulu, a font company, and probably plenty more to come as the day progresses, so keep watching this space as we add new entries to this post. Right, let the fun commence after the break.
Google App Inventor opens up access to everyone, clings on to beta tag
Google's famous penchant for keeping things in beta doesn't seem to have changed lately, as the company's App Inventor for Android is still keeping its Greek lettering, but at least access has now been opened up for everyone to enjoy. The switch from private to public beta isn't the most significant thing in the world -- up until now you just had to ask for an invite to get one -- but we're sure amateur Android coders and experimenters will appreciate not having to go through that extra step. The App Inventor's sitting in Google Labs right this minute, waiting for you to magic up (no coding skills required!) a finely crafted solution to modern living of your own. Hit the source link to get your mouse pointer dirty.
Android App Inventor lets you be the developer (video)
Google is following in Nokia's footsteps today by offering its users a simple-to-use DIY app maker. Employing a design scheme that relies on visual blocks rather than oodles of arcane code, the App Inventor -- still in Beta, of course -- has functions for "just about anything" you can do with an Android handset, including access to GPS and phone functionality. All that's really missing is the raw creative talent, which we're sure you'll be happy to provide. Hit the source link to get involved or skip past the break for an educational video.
Google launches "GOOG-411" voice local search
Apparently the beakers and Erlenmeyer flasks have been bubbling over at Google labs lately as its group of lab fiends have brought us yet another fun trick in a long stream of goodies, "GOOG-411," or voice local search. Bringing Google's powerful search mojo into yet another realm (they are, after all, bent on world domination), the free service enables voice-prompted search of local businesses and will SMS you the results and even connect your call. Various mobile and landline companies already have this feature -- including the SMSed results -- but will typically charge you for the privilege. We love when Google gets its lab coat on and brings goodies like this to us; we just hope to see it extend to home numbers, other languages, and of course other countries. Just dial 1-800-GOOG-411 (1-800-466-4411) from any handset to give it a go.[Via Boy Genius Report]
