Jun 25
MikeGeneral Business Practices, Web Industry Google, google voice
In the last couple of days Google, Google has opened Google Voice to anyone in the U.S. looking for phone management on the web. Until now it has only been available to a select few, since Google acquired the excellent Grand Central service back in 2007. After launching Google Voice on a limited scale and shutting down Grand Central, Google went on to acquire the VoIP service Gizmo5, which it too shut down. Because Google did seemingly nothing for sometime with regards to Google Voice its long term plans have at best been left to educated guesses, until now.
The Google Voice service which launched last year in Beta, has since undergone a metamorphosis and has emerged as a brilliant solution to online phone and voicemail management. The SMS service works better and there is a Chrome extension which makes it easier to manage. An account is still free if you have a Google log-in and you have a choice of keeping your existing number and upgrading it with voicemail. If that doesn’t suit then you can set a new main number which will ring your cell, home and office phones, as well as your desktop VoIP. Gmail integration also gives users the ability to turn voicemail into emails. International calls are cheap and future additions include number portability and no set-up web calling.
As a communications solution, especially where small businesses are concerned, it is simply brilliant and we have been using it for sometime now along with over 1 million others – a figure you can now expect to balloon thanks to this latest release. Google themselves are delighted with the results particularly after the now infamous rejection by Apple of its Google Voice app (an episode that led Google to design their own mobile based web app).
Google have described the service as ‘the pinnacle of modern human communication’ and given all that it has to offer – I think they may be right!
Apr 06
MikeWeb Industry April Fools, Google
Google loves April Fools Day. Every April 1st, Google cannot resist the challenge of trying to trick us all. This year was no exception with Google announcing it was renaming itself as “Topeka” after the city whose mayor had decided to rename it as “Google” in a bid to propel the city onto Google’s new fiber optic/broadband project. If this year didn’t fool you, what about the previous pranks?
- 2000 – Google announced it had developed “MentalPlex”, cutting edge software which could read a users mind! Google would therefore be able to tell instantly what we were looking for and take us straight to it.
- 2002 – Google decided they would share with us the technology behind its PageRank system, otherwise known as PigeonRank. Apparently PigeonRank is a cost effective and efficient means of ranking pages and we were assured that no animals are harmed during the process.
- 2004 – Google claimed to have created a new operating system called Luna/X (a pun to Linux, Windows XP and Max OS X) which they said was fully operational at their state of the art research center, located on the moon. They were accepting applications.
- 2005 – Google Gulp was the drink of choice for all would be Googlers. This beverage claimed to optimize our Google user experience by helping to increase our intelligence. This brain power boost would come from real-time analysis of our DNA and some careful adjustment to the neurotransmitters in our brain. Mmm, sure I saw something similar in an episode of Start Trek once!
What’s in store for us next year? Regardless, laugh and joke about it but don’t be fooled!
Mar 05
MikeGeneral Business Practices Google, Topeka Google
Who doesn’t like to be loved? Truth is, everyone loves to be loved. It’s such a great feeling, right? Whether it’s impressing someone to get a job or showing off to capture the attention of your “crush”, people go to great lengths for love. My mother always told me “don’t change who you are and pretend to be somebody you’re not”. How far should one go for attracting someone’s attention?
Well, not as far as the Mayor of Topeka, Kansas. Recently, Google announced that it will build incredibly fast fiber optic Internet networks in certain areas of the country. To capture Google’s attention, the Mayor elected (with no argument from the city council) to temporarily rename Topeka, Kansas to Google, Kansas. Call me crazy but this it outright ridiculous. Topeka, Kansas is a large American city. It’s a state capital. To change the name to capture Google’s love and attention in hopes to be selected for Google’s broadband effort is outrageous.
In today’s world, no love is stronger than the love from Google, Inc. My fiance may dislike that bold statement but being in the web industry, we’re constantly seeking love from Google to get our client’s websites ranked higher in nature search. That being said, you should never change who you are for someone’s love. It’s not worth it; be the person (or city) that you are and be proud of it. You’re either liked for who you are and what you bring to the table, or you’re not. If not, it’s just not meant to be — continue looking for that better suited friend, partner, employer, etc.
For the full story, Google (verb) [Topeka Google (noun)].
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