Google

Apple hammers Google witness hard in e-book pricing trial

NEW YORK -- Apple had a field day with Google in court here on Thursday.

Apple started to pick away at the Department of Justice's claim that the tech giant conspired to inflate e-book prices by repeatedly and rapidly firing questions at a key Google witness.

The tactic paid off for lead Apple attorney Orin Snyder, who began to wear down on Thomas Turvey, director of strategic relationships for Google. Turvey appeared increasingly frazzled and frustrated as the afternoon went on.

During his testimony, Turvey admitted that he couldn't remember which publishing executives he spoke to, the circumstances … Read more

Google says it can predict movie hits based on search data

Curious about how well "The Lone Ranger" will fair at the box office? How about whether "Star Trek Into Darkness" will do alright overall?

This is information that Google now says it can predict with up to 94 percent accuracy.

The Web giant released a study (pdf) on Thursday that examines the correlation between Google searches and box-office performance. And, with people using search at an increasing rate (56 percent more in 2012 than 2011), it seems that Google's predictions will only get better.

"Moviegoers are now more actively discovering and exploring their film … Read more

Android keyboard now stands alone

It may not be a Swype or a SwiftKey killer yet, but the Google Keyboard is now available as a downloadable app.

A post Wednesday on Google+ touted the Google Play Store debut of the app, which offers "Gesture Typing" so that you can drag your finger from one letter to the next to spell words.

Google Keyboard offers some interesting competition for other swipe-to-write keyboards. Most notably, it's free where most of its competitors are not. It also has next-word suggestions, auto-complete, voice recognition, and support for 26 languages, although the keyboard itself is English-only for … Read more

Google debuts Maps Engine API for customized, cloud-based maps

Google has introduced a new API for its Maps Engine, touted as a way to let developers build "endless kinds of applications" hosted in the Internet giant's cloud.

To recall, the Maps Engine is essentially the reincarnation of Google Earth Builder, which lets developers use Google's cloud infrastructure for storing and managing their own geospatial data and maps.

Users can also use the service to share their custom Google Maps with other employees, clients, and the public at large.

Touted to be supported by "any platform" (Web, Android, iOS, and so on), the new … Read more

Colbert wags a finger at Google Glass porn ban

Porn is easy to find on the Web through a simple Google search, but as I reported this week, the company's policies make it clear that explicit content is not welcome on Google Glass.

That perceived paradox had Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert wagging his finger at Google on Tuesday.

"Now the only way you can see porn on Google, is by typing 'porn' into Google...or really anything into Google," ranted the comedian on his satirical show, "The Colbert Report."… Read more

Google offers mea culpa to calendar developers

When it comes to services, it can seem that Google giveth and Google taketh away at random. But sometimes, the company listens to its customers, too.

In the case of one particular application programming interface used by developers to access calendar data, the open standard CalDAV API was set to be restricted to whitelisted partners later this year.

Google explained Wednesday that, following an outcry by developers, the company has "a better understanding of developers' use cases" for the API, and CalDAV will remain open to them.

The company also announced that "in the spirit of openness&… Read more

Apple, others to meet with law enforcement over violent phone thefts

With violent street thefts of smartphones and other mobile gear continuing to be a problem, top law enforcement officials from New York and San Francisco will meet with Apple, Google, and other manufacturers next week to discuss possible tech solutions, such as a "kill switch" that would render stolen devices worthless.

"With 1.6 million Americans falling victim to smartphone theft in 2012, this has become a national epidemic," San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon said in a press release Wednesday. "Unlike other types of crimes, smartphone theft can be eradicated with a simple technological … Read more

Google Glass gets camera update, caption support

Google Glass just got a little bit better.

The search giant on Tuesday announced new software for the Google Glass camera that will improve photo taking. The update gives Glass the ability to snap multiple photos at once and combine them, so users can get the best shot. The camera can now also detect low-light environments and will automatically brighten an image to make it clearer. It's also capable of doing a better job of capturing movement.

In addition to the new camera features, users can now also add captions to photos they take.

Of course, there's one … Read more

Production Nvidia Shield showed off at Computex

TAIPEI -- In a demo showing Nvidia's vision for multiscreen technology at Computex, CEO Jen-Hsun Huang showed off its first final production model of the Nvidia Shield. This Android gaming device was unveiled at CES 2013, and will be available to U.S. customers at the end of June. Preorders started two weeks ago.

While the form factor of the production model is largely similar to that of the prototype shown at CES, there have been tweaks since. According to Huang, the Nvidia team concentrated on refining the feel of the buttons, directional controllers and triggers.

Changes have also … Read more