Google’s Secret Plans Revealed

Google Blogoscoped has published a summary of an apparently-leaked internal Google memo that outlines the Big G’s secret plans to breed evil radioactive mutant rats, er, take over the world, er, make a ton of money this year. To summarize the summary, this year Google planned to:



Improve infrastructure and make engineers more productive with uber-search tools

Build 10MW of green power toward its goal of becoming carbon-neutral

Become the best in search (duh), which includes building the world’s top AI lab, eliminating spam, and launching products with UIs that “that people love”

Sell lots of ads, with a goal of $1 billion in new business this year

Expand communities and content, in particular video

Push Google Pack deployment

“Increase the scale of innovation”

Test a “radicall improved” Google News prototype in Q4

 

Nuance Gives Users the Power to Be the World’s Fastest Text Messager

Ben Cook, the world’s fastest text messenger was defeated Tuesday by a voice-recognition computer in a competition sponsored by Nuance Communications Inc., a company that hopes to deploy its new software across several wireless carriers next year.” The Associated Press reports.



TechScraper blogged about Nuance yesterday:



“Nuance Communications has released a new software specifically for mobile phones that translates voice into text.



Not only goes it do that, but it does much more. Users can speak natural queries to find ringtones, locate the nearest Starbucks, search the Web, or dictate a complete SMS or email, and much more. This is much better than other speech programs that are available, only allowing basic queries like “Call Sarah at work”.

 

interracial romance

According to a recent Gallup Poll, nearly 95 percent of young people, ages 18 to 29, approve of interracial dating. This is a huge difference from the older generation. This tech-savvy, internet-using, demographic has changed, and atleast in part due to the online universe, and online dating may have helped many people who would have considered interracial dating taboo, to overcome that and connect romantically. This is a staggering new statistic, showing that either the internet, and perhaps many a online matchmaking service, has changed and connected these people, or either the modern school system has successfully indoctrinated opinion. While the indoctrination, which is probably the biggest factor isn’t always a good thing, in this case, it’s helped to remove the harmful barriers between races, which undoubtedly help connect people of other races, romantically or otherwise. Generally speaking, you’re nicer to people you think of as potential dates, so even if only on that level, it will help open human communication and respect for each other. 

Top 10 reasons/places not to use an iPod

There has been recent rash of iPod events/incident that the press has been very kind to warn us about. Here are my recommendations of places and situations where people should avoid using their iPods (or look for alternatives).



1. Airline toilets. Maybe a Zune would be a better alternative since its bigger than the nano and the brown color will hide any, err, hmm, stains.



2. Mowing the lawn during a thunderstorm. I recommend a boom box at the edge of the lawn cranking out Toby Keith.



3. If you want to climb Mount Everest while listening to Van Halen. You should carry a Zune so you can share three songs for three days after you make summit, dude.



4. If you are in high school and your bff doesn’t have an iPod.



5. If you have over 90,000 songs. Just carry your RAID on your back with its own power pack and headphone setup. Sweet.



6. If you are concerned about autism. Only the soothing sounds of Celine Dion can help us.



7. If you are concerned about DRM (even though you have never have purchased a tune from iTunes Store).



8. Because it doesn’t have built-in wifi, bluetooth, voip, fm receiver, or even a voice recorder. Sheesh. Really - what use is this device?



9. If you are travelling to the UK and you have a tan or you have had a little too much medicinal marijuana and start driving around or you are afraid of getting mugged. Umm, I think its safe to say that when travelling to the UK, a Rio player would be best. No one would recognize it or want it.



10. If you are Steve Ballmer. I pity his kids. Hopefully that trust fund can kick in soon so they can hook up their disguised iPods to their disguised Macbooks.

 

Forest connections with the Owls vacancy..

The vacancy at Sheffield Wednesday is reportedly down to a shortlist of three, two thirds of which comprise of
former Forest related candidates. The first one is unsurprisingly former Forest manager (and indeed, almost
Forest player - had he managed to make an appearance!) Gary Megson. The ginger taskmaster has been out of
work since parting with Forest after a disastrous spell in charge, and is of course a former Wednesday player.



Brian Laws is the other former Forest man in the frame. The Scunthorpe United boss has impressed in charge of
The Iron for the last few years, and is likely to be interested in a move to a larger club - and well, if he does go
then let’s hope he’s up for a challenge! He would also bring with him the potential promise of luring some of
Scunthorpes better players to make the move with him, or soon after him - which in the case of Billy Sharp and
Andrew Keogh would be a significant bonus!



The other candidate is some chap called Pearson who I’ve no knowledge of at all, and there are also less
pronounced whisperings linking Mansfield Town boss Peter Shirtliff to the position - which seems unlikely given
how utterly badly the Stags are doing so far this season! So there could be some former-Forest interest at
Hillsborough soon - it’s certainly a management task that requires some serious attention and it’s not going to be
an easy job!



Unlike many Forest fans, I don’t really have much of an axe to grind with Megson - he failed, unquestionably, but
I think he did a lot of ‘dirty work’ that needed to be done - he also made some great signings (and some bad
ones!), so if he does get the post then since I similarly have no particular strong feelings for the Owls, I couldn’t
really care less whether he does well or not. There are certainly teams in the Championship I would enjoy seeing
struggle more.

 

Google Coop Hacks

Google Co-op — An Intro & Some Insider Hacks

http://www.google.com/coop

So what is it? It’s called Google Co-op, a platform which enables users to build their own vertical search engines and make money off the advertisements. It provides a clean, easy interface for simple site restrictions (like what Yahoo! Search Builder and Live Macros offer) but on top of that a ridiculous number of power user features for tweaking the search results. The user has control over the look and feel (to embed the search box on their own site), can rank results, and even (multi) tag sites to let viewers filter out results by category.

But talk is cheap. So let me show you some examples of what you can do with Co-op:

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/techstuff

This is a technology specific search engine, which lets users refine results based off Google Topics (for those who don’t know what Google Topics are, they are basically global labels which anyone can annotate with.). Basically, I was lazy here. I didn’t feel like multi-tagging sites/domains individually, so instead I just collected a laundry list of popular technology site domains in a flat file and pasted it into Google Co-op’s Custom Search Engine control panel/sites page. In addition, something I think is really useful, Google Co-op allows users to bulk upload links from OPML files. So, to make my life easier when building this, I uploaded Scoble’s and Matt Cutt’s OPML’s. Tons of great links there (and close to 1000 total). Then I clicked on the ‘filter results to just the sites I listed’ option (which I recommend you use since if you muddle your results with normal Google web search’s you typically won’t see your results popping up on the first page of results despite the higher priority level promise for hand chosen sites). To enable the filters you see on the results page (Reviews, Forums, Shopping, Blogs, etc.), I did an intersection with the background label of my search engine and the Google Topics labels. How do you that? The XML context configuration exposes a tag. Any labels listed in the BackgroundLabels block will be AND’ed (how cool is that). So I added the label of my search engine (each search engine has a unique background label - it can be found bolded on the Advanced Tab page) and a Google Topic label (News, Reviews, Stores, Shopping_Comparison, Blogs, Forums, etc.) in the BackgroundLabels XML block. I made a separate XML context file for each Google Topic intersection. By doing this, I didn’t have to tag any of my results and was still able to provide search filters. Google Topics does most of the hardwork and gives me search refinements for free!

But say you’re not lazy. Here’s an example of what you can do with multi-tagging and refinements.

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/machinelearningsearch2

This one is a super power user example - notice the refinements onebox on the search results page, and the labels with “>>” at the end. These labels redirect to another label hierarchy (a hack, I used the label redirect XML option to link to other custom search engine contexts - basically I’m nesting search engines here)

Now, say you really want to get fancy with the search results presentation. Say you want to make your results Ajax’y (a la Web 2.0). Here’s an example on how to do it with Google’s Ajax Search API:

http://www.google.com/uds/samples/cse/index.html

Thanks to Mark Lucovsky and Matt Wytock for developing that great example.
For more information about how to use the Ajax Search API with Custom Search, please take a look at this informative post: http://googleajaxsearchapi.blogspot.com/2006/10/custom-search-engine-support.html

While writing this blog post, I realized it would take me forever to go over the number of tricks one can pull with Co-op. Instead, I’ll summarize some of the big selling point features to encourage everyone to start hacking away. Also, to help jump start power users, I’ve linked the XML files I used to make my featured search examples at the bottom of this post.

Key Feature Summary (in no particular order):
» Make money (get a share off the ad clicks)
» Multi-label sites
» Have up to 5000 annotations
» Can collaborate with friends to tag sites (I’ve made my search engines public so anyone can add their annotations)
» Can associate weights to results and have control over the rankings (refer to the tag in the XML)
» Completely brand the engine and customize the look and feel
» Ex. http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/techstuff
» Can display refinements on the search results page
» Ex. http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/machinelearningsearch2
» Can upload XML/OPML files filled with links
» Can upload XML to configure the search engine labels/contexts
» Can even nest label hierarchies on the refinements onebox
» Ex. http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/machinelearningsearch2 .. click on Sources
» Can make the search Ajax’y
» Ex. http://www.google.com/uds/samples/cse/index.html
» Can combine results with another person’s search results
» (by intersecting the background labels in the XML advanced configuration file)

and much much more (especially for power users).

If you need a search engine for your site, and your content has been indexed by Google, then seriously consider using this rather than building your own index - or worse, using the crappy full-text functions available in relational databases.

Here are my XML files:

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/ml-context.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/ml-pop-context.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/ml-complx-context.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/ml-source-context.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/tech-stuff-context.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/techreviews.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/techforums.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/techshopping.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/techblogs.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/technews.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/tech-stuff-scoble-annotations.xml

http://vik.singh.googlepages.com/tech-stuff-matcutts-annotations.xml

Happy Coop hacking!

innovative advertising

5 Most innovative ideas I’ve seen in advertising

Billboard advertising has been around for decades. It is safe to say that they are no longer as effective as they used to be. Watching some new advertising techniques appear has made me realize that the memorable ads are the ones that really interact with life itself and are connecting to us in an emotional way.
I’ve a compiled a small list of the most striking ads of the last 6 months.



1. HUNGER AND THIRST: Magazine on a bottle
This could be how we get drinks for free in the future.
Have a coke. Have a smile.




2. SUPRISE! Peephole Pizza Guy
Nice alternative to the stacks of flyers we all have






3. PATIENCE & CURIOSITY - Conveyor belt ads
I’m sure you’ll want to see the entire belt before you leave the store




4. PLAYFULNESS - Wonderbra magazine ad
Have a feel of what a wonderbra would look like




5. CLEVERNESS - Fun shopping bags
There are tons like these.
All of them play on either (1) how they interact with the person
or (2) how the bag interacts with the print

Mineral Make-up Wonders!

Another mineral makeup brand that’s been making waves is Valerie Beauty. Valerie Tukey, the beauty behind the brand, is here to share to The Mineral Makeup Blog readers her story, and her products!



Valerie’s background with cosmetics is very broad - touched and played with cosmetics as young as age two,
as her dad made her play with her mom’s bagful of cosmetics to keep her distracted and make her dad watch
football in peace ( Haha! ), giving an improvised facial of washcloth and a bowl of water to the nextdoor
neighbor at age seven, managed sales for cosmetics brands and doing freelance makeup for a period of fourteen
years, and finally, opening a business for her Aesthetician services ( facials, chemical peels, etc. )


Valerie’s mineral makeup journey began when she became aware of the pore-clogging effects of the makeup
that her customers had been using, that they’d rather “cover” their problem skin rather than trying to clear it up.
One of her ( and her customers’ )huge gripes is bismuth oxychloride, that is said to be irritating and makes some
skin break out. It’s not that bismuth oxychloride is a bad thing for her, since she tells us that there are alot of
satisfied customers who are using mineral makeup with bismuth oxychloride - she simply wants to cater to the
market which would want bismuth-free products, namely, her customers. With her concern for her clients, she
formulated a cosmetic line of her own that would address the skin issues rather than cover, and just hide them
forever. I think that’s a better way of taking care of your skin! Thus, voila! Mineral Makeup!


Valerie Beauty Cosmetics is a mineral makeup brand sold online. She has mineral makeup, skin care ( The
Green Cream! ), and some Youngblood cosmetics for sale there. Her customer service has been widely raved
about for Val giving her clients the personal touch. Her noteworthy products are Cover Deluxe- famous for
giving flawless coverage on the heavier side, and her green cream, which is highly raved at the Mineral Makeup
Mania Forum (Wow. ) I have tried some of her products (product review, to follow! ) and I must say, I am
really overwhelmed by Cover Deluxe. I love love love it! Oops, I sort of got carried away! Anyway, she also
has a forum at Delphiforums for her customers who interact and ask her questions. She holds some contests,
and there are also customers ( and her ) posting FOTD pictures of using Valerie Beauty Cosmetics.


I asked her some interesting questions that you might want to know, coming from a mineral makeup brand
owner. I mean, don’t they live and breathe ( and cook! haha! ) mineral makeup?


Here’s one question :


Some are turned off by mineral makeup because of the “messiness” and “wrong application”. Can you teach us
how to “correctly” apply mineral makeup in such a way that it would look good? How do you control coverage
in mineral makeup application?

Yes, the powders have a mind of their own sometimes, don’t they? I think the challenge with minerals is that we
need to “re-learn” how we work with cosmetics. Many of us are used to pressed cosmetics, which are loaded with undesirable ingredients that are needed to keep the makeup in a pressed form. Did you ever notice the oils
and buildup that can happen in your powder compact? Yuck!

But, the advantages of minerals outweigh the small inconvenience of having a little powder on the bathroom
counter. For instance, I think back to my days on the makeup counters. So often I would have a customer
looking for a foundation match and there wouldn’t be one! So, she’d have to go with “the next best thing” as far
as a color match. While mineral foundations tend to be very forgiving as far as color goes, you can easily mix a
couple of shades if you can’t find a match, sometimes it only takes a sample of another color to tone your jar of foundation to what you want! Custom blends can be done too. If you get a tan in the summer, you might want to
just add a little of a darker shade to keep your foundation in line with your summer skin.

Another advantage of minerals is that they are so incredibly versatile. You can apply them in many ways. The key
is to experiment and find what method you like best. Some skins look and feel better when the minerals are
mixed with a moisturizer, or even a gel like aloe vera, before applying. In your palm you can mix a little mineral
foundation powder to your cream, lotion, or gel, and make it like a tinted moisturizer. The more you add, the
more coverage you’ll get with your mix. So, it’s adjustable! You can then just apply with your fingers, a makeup
sponge, or a foundation brush.

Dry applications can be customized too. The type of tool you use will determine what coverage you get. The fluffier the brush, the lighter the coverage. I find flat top brushes give a more full coverage, while a large powder
brush gives a more sheer application. Using a makeup wedge or flocked sponge (velvety makeup puff) can give
medium to full coverage. Kabuki brushes are also very popular. Personally, I prefer to use a Kabuki that
contains a blend of squirrel hair, as many kabukis are the less expensive goat, or capra hair. The cheaper hairs
tend to be more stiff and scratchy, and sometimes these brushes can sensitize your skin and make it itchy. There have been cases when people thought it was their mineral foundation that was making them itchy, only to find it
was their brushes that were the culprit. Using high quality brushes can make a difference in how your makeup
goes on and how it looks. Don’t scrimp on the brushes! You wouldn’t buy a cheap brush to paint your house
interior, would you, because it would affect the way the paint goes on, right? Same with your face. I think you’re
worth it, and so should you.

Don’t forget that you can apply multiple layers of your foundation if needed. Again, you really need to experiment with your application tools to find which one works best with your skin. I’m constantly amazed at how a mineral
foundation’s look can change, simply by changing the tool.

Remember that mineral foundations can easily be “overdone”. So, if you’re looking cakey or ghost like, you probably used too much. Many people find a gentle swirling technique with their brush gives a nice, even
application. When you dip your brush into the minerals, don’t whip the brush in the air, or it will be all over the
place and you’ll be wasting precious makeup! Just give a gentle tap and release the excess powder back into the
cap or container. I often remind clients that minerals tend to look better 30-60 minutes after applying, when
they’ve had a chance to adjust to the skin, warm up, and absorb a little oil from your moisturizer. So, don’t
dispair if your face looks a little too powdery at first. Wait a while and see if the look of it changes. This happens
a lot for people.

Another factor that people overlook is the condition of their skin. Too often I find people are trying to make their
makeup responsible for the appearance of their skin, instead of addressing the skin itself. If your skin is flakey
and it’s showing up through the makeup, don’t try to mat it down, exfoliate! You should always try to perfect the
“canvas” as best you can before applying color. That means cleansing, exfoliation when necessary, and then
applying your treatment products like serums, moisturizer, and always SPF. You can never have too much SPF.
Although mineral foundations do offer a certain amount of sun protection, unless the SPF has been determined
through extensive and expensive testing, no SPF claim can be made.

A nice finishing touch is to lightly mist the face with a hydrating toner or moisturizing setting spray. This step is
recommended for people who don’t like a powdery or matte look to their makeup. A light spritz to the face will
instantly give the skin a more dewy and natural look. Again, some sprays are more moisturizing than others; some
contain emoillients and oils which appeal more to dry skins. Check to make sure your spray will be right for your
skin type.