Posts Tagged: google

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24
Dec 10

iOS Quality Apps not in Android Store

Gruber on app stores and the philosophy that shapes them:

“The differences between the iOS App Store and Android Market are a microcosm of the differences between Apple and Google. Apple is a retailer, a purveyor of well-crafted goods that people will line up to purchase. Google is an advertising company that builds popular services that command large audiences.”

He makes a good point on the quality (and type) of apps you find in each store:

“iOS’s best apps could exist for Android but don’t. Android’s best apps couldn’t exist for iPhone. In theory, then, Android could be beating iOS in both regards. Android could be the platform with exclusive apps like Reeder, Twitterrific, Things,Simplenote, Instagram, Calvetica, PCalc, and Pastebot — in addition to the exclusives it already has like Swype and home screen replacements that the iPhone can’t have. What I find interesting is that Android just doesn’t have apps like this.”

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10
Jun 10

Knowledge vs Searching for Knowledge

Mark Pesce in his book The Playful World:

“For [the millennial child] the act of knowing something has become inseparable from the act of reaching for knowledge. She searches for what she needs to know; in a moment’s time, the answers are at hand. And anything known to anyone anywhere has become indistinguishable from what she knows for herself.”

Memorizing certain things has it’s value, but if you have the skills to find the answer to anything in 30 seconds using the smartphone in your pocket, what things are really worth memorizing? There are two things we should teach: the skill of searching and finding (ie, how to learn) and the skill to evaluate the quality of your sources. That’s it. Research and critical analysis.

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11
Mar 10

About the Nexus One

Jason Snell:

“If the iPhone didn’t exist, I would have the Nexus One in my pocket right now—but then again, if the iPhone didn’t exist, the Nexus One wouldn’t either.”

He talks about how a Nexus One is good for folks that like to tinker, tweak, and modify their devices, but warns that it comes at a significant cost to its usability. If you want something that just works (and you don’t want to hack it “within an inch of its life”) then iPhone is the one for you.

[via Marco]

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16
Jan 10

Google Nexus One

There have been plenty of articles written about Google’s Nexus One. This offhanded comment from the Macalope pretty much sums up my feelings:

“The Nexus One seems like a nice enough phone, but it’s nothing revolutionary (it’s got a trackball, for God’s sake). Everyone is still operating inside the same box that Apple defined three years ago.”

On one hand, I’m glad to see some competition for Apple. But I don’t know that most consumers can see what’s happening: Google is playing the Microsoft game. Copy Apple as closely as possible and as quickly as possible. Android will always be a second-rate smartphone (or super-smartphone).

Google’s Android phone operating system will rearrange the icons, change the colors, and maybe even do a couple unexpected things. But the genius at Apple is already working on the next big thing – not trying to copy their competitors.

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27
Dec 09

Automatic Captioning and Translating

This is another one of those things that falls into the I-Don’t-Think-We-Appreciate-The-Importance-Of-This category…  Google’s Automatic Captioning in YouTube:

“In addition to expanded accessibility for those with hearing disabilities, the combination of captions withmachine translation expands YouTube accessibility across the globe. If a caption track is available, it can be translated automatically in any of the 51 currently available languages. As a result, video content otherwise not accessible due to a language barrier can now be understood by a significantly larger user population.”

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