Google Launches Chrome OS Preview - InformationWeek

In recent years, consumers have had three major desktop-oriented operating systems to choose from: Windows, Mac OS, and Linux. On Tuesday, Google introduced a fourth option, Chrome OS.

'With Chrome OS, we have the development of a viable third choice for the desktop," said CEO Eric Schmidt, evidently unconvinced that Linux counts where consumers are concerned.

At a media event in San Francisco, Google announced a pilot program for Chrome OS, its highly anticipated browser-based operating system, launched the Chrome Web Store, its effort to change the way Web apps are discovered and purchased, and provided an update on the global adoption of its Chrome browser.

Chrome OS won't be ready for a stable release until mid-2011. That's when Google's Chrome OS hardware partners Acer and Samsung are expected to ship their Chrome OS netbooks.

But Google this week plans to begin shipping specially commissioned hardware to select testers through its Chrome OS pilot program.

Program participants will receive a Google-commissioned netbook, designated Cr-48, with Chrome OS installed. The company extended invitations to event attendees, to a random group of users through an invitation placed on the Chrome new tab page, and to some Facebook users who participated in a recent quiz. Would-be Chrome OS users may also apply online and are encouraged to submit a YouTube video to convey why they should be invited into the pilot program.

"Chrome OS is nothing but the Web," said Sundar Pichai, VP of product management.

Google is throwing out the things people hate most about computers -- slow startup times, the need to update and install software, and security worries -- and offering an operating system that loads its Chrome browser instead of a desktop file system.

Those using Chrome OS will have to rely on Web applications in place of familiar favorites like Microsoft Office. To ensure an adequate supply of Web apps, Google launched its Chrome Web Store, an online app store that aims to do for Web apps what Apple's iTunes has done for music and iOS apps: build a viable market by providing a mechanism for discovery and monetization.

The Chrome Web Store has some 500 apps at launch but Google expects that developers will add many more in the months ahead. Several companies sent representatives to discuss the Web apps they've created for Chrome, including Amazon, Electronic Arts, and the New York Times.

Amazon showcased an e-commerce Web app called Amazon Windowshop and Kindle for the Web, which will be available early next year. Electronic Arts demonstrated a game called Popit that will ship with future versions of Chrome. And the New York Times showed off a newspaper reading Web app that allows the user to control how news gets presented.

Pichai acknowledged that offline functionality was necessary and demonstrated a version of Google Docs that works offline (coming early next year). But he said that the Web is better when a network connection is available. That's why Google has partnered with Verizon to offer on-demand cellular connectivity with every Chrome notebook.

The Verizon plan provides for 100 MB of free data every month for two years. It doesn't require a contract and additional data can be purchased as needed, starting at $9.99 for unlimited data for one day.

Pichai also provided an update on the adoption of its Google Chrome browser. Chrome had 70 million users in May. Now it has 120 million users worldwide.

"The single most common piece of feedback we get from our users is that Chrome is fast," he said. "Speed has been our biggest focus since day one."

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Google launches eBookstore with choice of sellers and devices - Ars Technica

We expected Google to launch its upcoming e-book store before the end of the year, and the company announced Monday that the new Google eBookstore is now open for business in the US. Google is touting the "open" nature of its e-books by making them accessible to the widest array of popular e-reader devices, including the iPad, Nook, and Sony Reader. 

Google's new eBookstore works a little differently than other stores—at least when it comes to reading via computer. All purchased titles are kept in Google's cloud-based storage and accessed via a browser. When reading via an iOS or Android-based device, a dedicated app can download and cache titles for reading offline. And for devices compatible with Adobe's DRM-protected e-book formats—including Sony Reader and Barnes & Noble Nook—PDF or EPUB files can be downloaded and transferred to your device using Adobe Editions software.

Those hoping Google meant "DRM-free" when it said "open" will be disappointed, though, as may users of Amazon's popular Kindle e-reader. "Currently, Google eBooks are not compatible with Amazon Kindle devices, though we are open to supporting them in the future," the company noted in a support document.

Google has also partnered with Powell's, Alibris, and participating members of the American Booksellers Association to offer rebranded Google e-books through their respective websites. "You can choose where to buy your e-books like you choose where to buy your print books, and keep them all on the same bookshelf regardless of where you got them," according to Google Books product manager Abraham Murray.

Google said that its library of over 3 million books is one of the largest in the world. "Hundreds of thousands" are on sale (similar to libraries from Amazon, Kobo, and Apple) while the rest are public domain titles available from the Google Books project.

The proposed settlement to sell e-book versions of copyrighted books hasn't yet received final approval from the courts, but the Google eBookstore puts all the technological pieces in to place so additional titles can be made available once it is. Some publishers worried that approval of the deal could create an e-book duopoly between Amazon and Google, but Apple's iBookstore and Barnes & Noble's Kobo-powered store have opened since it was originally announced.

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Xi3 Launches Miniature Modular Computer - InformationWeek

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Taking a new approach to personal computing, Xi3 has unveiled its Xi3 Modular Computer, which resembles an aluminum cube, and targets home and office users.

The Xi3 Modular Computer's architecture divides the standard motherboard into three separate boards -- one that houses the processors and RAM and two additional I/O boards to handle all connectivity and input/output requirements, the Salt Lake City-based Xi3 said. All three of the boards can be removed, modified, and replaced.

The individual modules back each other up so that the computer has no single point of failure, the company said. Adding other modules for scalability is not a problem and a network-like environment can be easily created to increase the computer's processing capabilities as requirements change, according to Xi3. The modular design makes it easy for new external devices to be connected to the computer, Xi3 said.

The Xi3 Modular Computer measures less than 4 inches on each side and is powered by dual-core processors, but requires less than 20 watts to operate, the company said. The device's aluminum casing acts as a type of "heatsink," and the heat generated inside is lessened by its flow-through design and the way the processors have been placed, Xi3 said. Separate universal mount slides have been placed on three of the aluminum casing's external sides so that it is easy to mount it to almost anything, according to Xi3.

"We reject the concept that computers should have a useful life of only two to four years," said Jason A. Sullivan, president and CEO of Xi3, in a statement. "Instead we believe that computers should be upgradeable and updateable over and over and over again, and that's how we've designed the Xi3 Modular Computer, making it (potentially) the last computer you ever need to buy."

A companion product, the Z3RO (Zero) Module, connects to the Xi3 Modular Computer so that three additional workstations can be integrated.

The Xi3 Modular Computer will retail for under $1,000 and will be available in early 2011.

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Loopt Launches Windows Phone 7 App - PC Magazine

Location-based service Loopt launched its app for Windows Phone 7 on Monday.

"The Windows Phone 7 Loopt app is distinctly different from any version we've ever made," Sam Altman, Loopt co-founder and chief executive, said in a statement. "Microsoft has created a smartphone experience that lets people get out of their phones and back to their lives. Loopt is all about using your phone as a tool to get out, find friends, and socialize, and with this phone, Microsoft has opened up a new window into that valuable, social information."

The app includes Loopt's social map, a tool that lets users see where their friends are in relation to their own current location. Users can share their location and photos and see where their friends have been, with the option to include photos in friend updates.

Similar to a text message, the Loopt app allows users to "Ping" a specific user in order to connect, rather than sending out a message to all their Loopt friends at once. Privacy controls enable location-sharers to determine who gets to see where they are.

The app is available for free in the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace.

Also on Tuesday, Sling Media released its SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Phone 7 app, which will sell for $2.99. When connected to a Slingbox Solo or Slingbox PRO-HD via the Internet, the SlingPlayer Mobile software lets users watch their home TV on a variety of handsets. Other Windows Phone 7 apps that have been made their debuts recently include Google's search app, an official Twitter app, and one for Amazon's Kindle.

The first three phones on the Windows Phone 7 platform hit U.S. stores on Monday. Two phones, including the Samsung Focus and the HTC Surround, are supported on AT&T, while the HTC HD7 is supported on T-Mobile. Each phone is $199 with a two-year contract.

The Windows Phone 7 Marketplace already has more than 1,000 apps, including games, utilities, and other social-networking applications.

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Alternative Search Engine Blekko Launches to Eliminate Spam in Search - ABC News

Blekko's alternative search engine — a $24 million venture-backed project that's been three years in the making — is today launching its public beta. With the official rollout, Blekko is also releasing several new features designed for both mainstream and the site's super users.

As you may recall, Blekko is designed to eliminate spam search results, allowing users to search just a subset of the web through its proprietary slashtag technology.

The most significant upgrade to Blekko's search engine is the addition of slashtags that auto-fire for queries that fall into one of seven categories: health, colleges, autos, personal finance, lyrics, recipes and hotels. Every time a Blekko user's query is determined to be in one of these categories, Blekko will automatically append the associated slashtag to the query and limit results to just the subset of URLs that fall under that slashtag.

The auto-fire functionality is designed with passive searchers in mind and aims to eliminate friction for first-time users. The technology that powers these auto-slashtags was developed through an extensive research and development phase that involved analyzing the relationship between queries and the type of spam results they typically generate.

Blekko plans to introduce auto-slashing for additional categories moving forward, but selected to launch with ones that represent a high volume of search traffic and are typically laden with spammy results. Health, lyric and financial queries on Google or Bing, for instance, will return results dominated by poor quality content farms or malware-hosting sites. Those same searches on Blekko yield results only from high quality sites.

Blekko's slashtag formula works because of passionate users who take the time to add and edit URLs for category slashtags. As such, the company has released new features to enable users to apply to be editors for slashtags as well as share their comments and feedback on individual slashtags. Think of this as the Wikipedia formula but applied to search, so a small percentage of users will work together to build out slashtags for the majority of Blekko searchers.

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Gates Foundation Launches $20M Grant for Online Ed - PC Magazine

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on Monday announced a $20 million grant program to improve college graduation rates via technology, which will probably be oriented around online education and learning programs.

Next year, the focus will be expanded to K-12 programs, Bill Gates, the chairman of Microsoft and the co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said in a conference call.

The initiative, first disclosed last week, will be known as the Next-Generation Learning Challenges, a $20 million "funding round" of grants that will be handed out in grants ranging from $250,000 to $750,000. The request period will run until Nov. 19; the winners will be announced by March 31, the foundation said.

Gates, the world's richest man announced his intent to donate $3 billion to improve education over five years in 2008, after leaving Microsoft that same year. He formed the his foundation with his wife, Melinda, in 2006.

Since then, the Gates foundation has worked to attack the fundamental problems plaguing society, including medecine, agriculture, and hygiene. In 2009, Gates pointed to technology as the way out of the recession plaguing the U.S. economy.

"Education is the biggest priority for our foundation here in the United States," Gates said in a conference call Monday afternoon. "We think it's the most important thing for the future of the country," he said.

Gates said that the goal was to develop more effective methods for education, and that the primary means was by tapping into the most effective educators and sharing that knowledge with others. The most effective way, he said, was through online education, where "it was pretty clear," Gates said, that pairing world-class lecturers with the ability for a student to move at his or own pace, acceessing the material online at any time, any place, would be the most effective.

"It seems like there are some incredible possibilities," Gates said.

Meanwhile, online education is taking off; in the fall 2008 term, 4.6 million students took at least one online course, a 17 percent increase, according to the most recent report by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. About 66 percent of the institutions polled by the Sloan consortium reported increased demand for new online courses, with 73 percent seeing increased demand for existing online courses and programs.

But many of those, in Gates' words, are "not fantastic," with not a strong commitment to the breadth and depth of coursework other institutions offer. "But we feel sure there are some real gems even beyond what we can even point out ourselves," Gates added.

The Gates foundation has put together a team, working with Carnegie Mellon, to try and identify these new opportunities, Gates said. He identified the Khan Academy and the University of Central Florida as two leaders in bringing education to a broader audience via the use of online videos. But making a course interactive take a lot of extra effort, he said.

Gates said he envisioned a future where a very motivated student could complete nearly all of her coursework online, while another might require a blend of face-to-face and online interaction. Schools will also need to balance the online coursework with in-person coursework, all against a backdrop of rising tuition.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has an annual trust endowment of $33 billion and paid out $3 billion in grants during 2009. In June of 2009, Gates urged the world's wealthiest to donate heavily to charity. In July 2010, Gates, investor Warren Buffett and others of the world's wealthiest launched the Giving Pledge, an invitation the wealthiest individuals and families in America to commit to giving the majority of their wealth to charity.

Because of the relatively small size of the grants, both in comparison to the amount the charity gives annually and the size of the online education market, Gates characterized the foundation's role as a "catalytic" one, "getting in on the front edge of online learning," he said.

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