Thursday, May 30, 2013

Google Launches New Inbox For Gmail


Google unveiled a new inbox for Gmail on both desktop and mobile today, saying it “puts you back in control” thanks to “simple” and “easy” organization.
It separates your incoming messages into categories by tabs: Primary, Social, Promotions and Updates.
“On the desktop, the new inbox groups your mail into categories which appear as different tabs,” explains Itamar Gilad, Product Manager. “You simply choose which categories you want and voilĂ ! Your inbox is organized in a way that lets you see what’s new at a glance and decide which emails you want to read when.”
“You can easily customize the new inbox – select the tabs you want from all five to none, drag-and-drop to move messages between tabs, set certain senders to always appear in a particular tab and star messages so that they also appear in the Primary tab,” says Gilad.
The Gmail apps for iPhone, iPad and Android (4.0+) will show you the Primary mail when you open the app, and you can navigate to other tabs to see the rest.
Gmail inbox
If you don’t like the new style, you can switch off all optional tabs, and go back to classic view.
The new inbox is rolling out across desktop and mobile apps over the course of the next few weeks. If you want to try it sooner, you can click “Configure Inbox” when it appears in your settings.
Email marketers who have had difficulties reaching Gmail users since Google launched the “priority inbox” have some new stuff to take into account.


About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow Chris on Twitter, on StumbleUpon, on Pinterest and/or on Google: +Chris Crum.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Google+ Gets 41 New Features, Including Stream Redesign [Google I/O 2013]

Google+ Gets 41 New Features, Including Stream Redesign [Google I/O 2013]

The first major change is an entire upheaval of the Google+ stream on desktop from a single column to a multi-column design. Some photos and videos will take up multiple columns while smaller stories will take up one out of three columns.
Google is also introducing a new feature called related hashtags. In short, it tags stories based on contextual clues from photos and posts. One example is a photo of the Eifel Tower being tagged #eifeltower based solely on Google’s image algorithm recognizing the subject of the photo.
For Hangouts, Google is introducing an app called Hangouts that’s separate from Google+. It’s kind of like Facebook Messenger, but with all of the sharing and video chat capabilities found in Google+ Hangouts. Google says that those participating in the Hangout app will feel like they’re in the same room together.
Photos on Google+ will be adopting a new philosophy of “Your darkroom is a datacenter.” In other words, photographers on Google+ will be able to utilize Google’s cloud technology to make highlighting and sorting photos easier. The latter is especially impressive as Google+ can now automatically sort photos by landmark, human presence, aesthetics and other indicators. Photos will also be getting auto-enhance – a new application that automatically applies image enhancements without having to use complicated software like Photoshop.
The final feature is called “auto-awesome.” One of its applications is called motion – it will take photos that are taken in burst mode and turn them into animated .gifs. The motion application is only one of five new features comprising the auto-awesome feature. Some other auto-awesome features include HDR and auto-collage.
Most of these new features, including the new stream, will be rolling out to Google+ this afternoon.
About Zach Walton
Zach Walton is a Writer for WebProNews. He specializes in gaming and technology. Follow him on Twitter, StumbleUpon, Pinterest, and Google+ +Zach Walton

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Google Maps Is Reportedly About To Look Like This

Alex Chitu at Google Operating System has shared a couple of screenshots of what it says is the new Google Maps interface. It’s no small redesign:
New Google Maps
Chitu hints that we could see the new look unveiled at Google I/O next week. Google does apparently have a three-hour keynote lined up.
It’s hard to say for certain just how authentic these screenshots are, as Chitu appears to be the only source (though he thanks a Florian K.). Chitu has a pretty credible track record of Google coverage though, and is always conscientious to point out when new Google features are simply tests. His post makes him seem pretty confident that this is the real deal. I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
Chris Velazco at TechCrunch makes a couple of good points, like for one, that the design seems to fall in line with other Google products of late – the “cards” look in particular. Also Google has had a history of recent product leaks.

About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow Chris on Twitter, on  on Pinterest and/or on Google: +Chris Crum.

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

WordPress’ Share Of The World’s Top Blogs Increases


The majority of the world’s top 100 blogs are using WordPress, according to a new report from Pingdom, and the content management system’s share of these blogs is on the rise.
According to the firm, 52% of these blogs are using WordPress, up from 48% a year ago.
To come up with the top blogs, Pingdom looked to Technorati, which is famous for its annual State of the Blogosphere report, which has transformed into the “Digital Influence Report“. It’s worth noting that Pingdom was only able to identify the platform in use by 94 out of 100 sites.
WordPress
As you can see, the next largest piece of the pie comes from custom systems, followed by Drupal, N/A, Gawker, BlogSmith, Movable Type, TypePad, Blogger, Ceros, Joomla, and Tumblr.
Considering Tumblr’s rising popularity in recent months, it’s interesting to see it carry such a small percentage here (1 site).
TypePad has increased from two sites to four sites, while Movable Type decreased from seven to four. Drupal dropped by one site. Google’s Blogger gained one site, reaching three.
Here’s the list of blogs, and which platform each uses:

Top 100 blogs and their blog platforms – complete list
Technorati ranking Site Platform
1 www.huffingtonpost.com Movable Type
2 www.tmz.com Ceros
3 mashable.com Custom
4 www.techcrunch.com WordPress
5 www.gothamist.com Movable Type
6 www.mediaite.com WordPress
7 www.theverge.com Custom
8 www.gawker.com Gawker
9 arstechnica.com WordPress
10 www.buzzfeed.com Custom
11 jezebel.com Gawker


13 bits.blogs.nytimes.com WordPress
14 www.infowars.com WordPress
15 laughingsquid.com WordPress
16 theonion.com Custom
17 www.theblaze.com WordPress
18 hotair.com WordPress
19 www.joystiq.com Blogsmith
20 www.zerohedge.com Drupal
21 www.scotusblog.com WordPress
22 www.engadget.com Blogsmith
23 googleblog.blogspot.com Blogger
24 krugman.blogs.nytimes.com WordPress
25 www.eurogamer.net N/A
26 www.deadline.com WordPress
27 politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com WordPress
28 www.boingboing.net WordPress
29 thenextweb.com WordPress
30 www.deadspin.com Gawker
31 9to5mac.com WordPress
32 funnyordie.com N/A
33 www.towleroad.com TypePad
34 www.wired.com/wiredscience WordPress
35 www.neatorama.com Custom
36 www.neowin.net Custom
37 www.businessinsider.com Custom
38 www.macrumors.com WordPress
39 www.slashgear.com WordPress
40 thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com WordPress
41 americanthinker.com Movable Type
42 www.redstate.com WordPress
43 bleacherreport.com Custom
44 mlbtraderumors.com TypePad
45 www.sbnation.com Custom
46 artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com WordPress
47 thisisnthappiness.com Tumblr
48 marginalrevolution.com WordPress
49 ycorpblog.com N/A
50 blog.us.playstation.com WordPress
51 blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/ WordPress
52 www.extremetech.com WordPress
53 www.dailykos.com N/A
54 townhall.com Custom
55 www.wired.com/threatlevel WordPress
56 eurekalert.org Custom
57 www.tor.com Joomla
58 americablog.com WordPress
59 sethgodin.typepad.com TypePad
60 www.whitehouse.gov/blog Drupal
61 www.autoblog.com Blogsmith
62 thebiglead.com WordPress
63 joemygod.blogspot.com Blogger
64 www.refinery29.com N/A
65 flavorwire.com WordPress


67 blog.twitter.com Drupal
68 rightwingwatch.org Drupal
69 www.tuaw.com BlogSmith
70 thisiscolossal.com WordPress
71 www.dlisted.com Drupal
72 www.comicbookmovie.com Custom
73 inquisitr.com WordPress
74 economix.blogs.nytimes.com WordPress
75 www.geekologie.com N/A
76 www.geekosystem.com WordPress
77 thelede.blogs.nytimes.com WordPress
78 opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com WordPress
79 directorblue.blogspot.com Blogger
80 www.bleedingcool.com WordPress
81 www.bostonherald.com/sports Drupal
82 www.kottke.org Movable Type
83 economistsviews.typepad.com TypePad
84 blogs.the-american-interest.com/wrm/ WordPress
85 consequenceofsound.net WordPress
86 www.cinemablend.com Custom
87 www.wired.com/dangerroom WordPress
88 wattsupwiththat.com WordPress
89 www.geek.com WordPress
90 consumerist.com WordPress
91 www.popsugar.com Drupal
92 www.celebitchy.com WordPress
93 trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com WordPress
94 www.siliconera.com WordPress
95 www.nakedcapitalism.com WordPress
96 www.mediabistro.com/galleycat WordPress
97 www.ubergizmo.com WordPress
98 hip2save.com WordPress
99 animalnewyork.com WordPress
100 phandroid.com WordPres

About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow Chris on Twitter, on StumbleUpon, on Pinterest and/or on Google: +Chris Crum.

How Much Would You Pay For Google Glass? Most Say $200

In its current state, Google Glass is incredibly expensive. Those who signed up for the Google Glass Explorers program last year had to fork over $1,500 to get a crack at the device. The price will come down when it’s made available to consumers next year, but a new survey suggests that the price will have to come down a lot before consumers bite.
Last week, TrendBlog posed a question to its audience – “How much are you willing to pay for Google Glass?” The respondents were given a wide variety of price options ranging from below $100 to more than $2,000. The end result found that most were willing to pay near the bottom of the price spectrum.
Overall, 48 percent of respondents would pay between $200 to $300 for Google Glass when it launches next year. Going lower or higher than that causes interest to drop dramatically with only 13 percent willing to pay less than $100 with only one percent willing to pay between $1,200 and $2,000. Unsurprisingly, nobody would pay more than $2,000.
How Much Are People Willing To Pay For Google Glass by trendblog.net
How Much Are People Willing To Pay For Google Glass by trendblog.net
Pricing is incredibly important, especially when it comes to consumer electronics. Microsoft has learned this lesson the hard way as Windows 8 PCs have failed to take off partly due to the high cost. Apple was able to sell high priced electronics because it was able to convince consumers that its products contained exceptional software value. Google will have to do the same if Google Glass is priced above $300.
About Zach Walton
Zach Walton is a Writer for WebProNews. He specializes in gaming and technology. Follow him on Twitter, StumbleUpon, Pinterest, and Google+ +Zach Walton