Debates over apps vs. the web and the value of Google's new personalized search features are just part of the larger battle between the open web vs. walled gardens and closed platforms -- but what if users don't care? What does that mean for the web?…
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Google Plus: The problem isn’t design, it’s a lack of demand
Some argue that Google+ doesn't have more users -- or more active users -- because of its poor design. But the biggest issue is that while there are plenty of reasons for Google to want such a network, there are few compelling reasons for users to want it.…
Read MoreGoogle+ updates mobile UI, still no iPad app
Google+ is looking much better on mobile web browsers this morning, thanks to a relaunch of the mobile web UI that takes some hints from the service's Android and iOS mobile apps. Still missing is a native Google+ app for iPad users.…
Read MoreGoogle+ Hangouts become accessible to the blind
Google+ Hangouts are a great way to communicate with a small group of people -- except when you're blind, and don't know who is part of a Hangout. A new Chrome extension wants to solve this by making Hangouts accessible to blind and visually impaired people.…
Read MorePseudonyms, trolls and the battle over online identity
Data from Disqus, which offers a comment-hosting service for websites, seems to show that the use of pseudonyms not only produces more comments, but also comments of higher quality. As interesting as the data is, however, it's unlikely to settle the ongoing debate over online identity.…
Read MoreGoogle+ just got a new killer app: Search
Google is rolling out a tight integration of its search on Google.com and Google+. Users who opt to personalize their search results will get to see posts from their Google+ contacts mixed with classic search results. This could be a big boon for Google's social network.…
Read MoreThe Latest Complaint About Google Plus: It's 'Breaking Search'
Google (NSDQ: GOOG) is a great search company. They defined how we enter the great brickyard of knowledge for most of this decade because th……
Read MoreHey Google — you can’t have your cake and eat it too
Controversy over a Google marketing program for Chrome that involves spammy web content and the removal of an "offensive" Google+ avatar photo reinforce how hard it is for the search giant to run multiple businesses without tripping over itself and its own guidelines.…
Read MoreNewTeeVee’s top 11 posts of 2011
Netflix, AT&T's 250-GB bandwidth caps, the Royal Wedding, Roku, Google+ Hangouts and The Guild were only some of the subjects that proved to be really popular this year. Check out our list of the eleven most-read NewTeeVee posts of 2011.…
Read MoreWhat Google+ needs next: A filter API
Google Plus now offers its users an option to fine-tune their social feeds with volume sliders. It's an interesting first step towards a more personalized social web. Now let's make these kinds of filtering functionality available to developers so we can finally have a Tebow filter.…
Read MoreGoogle doesn’t seem to get how media works now
While Google's new Currents app for mobile news-reading is seen by some as a competitor to Flipboard and Zite, there are some crucial differences between them that make me wonder whether Google really understands how media is changing and how they can take advantage of that.…
Read MoreTwitter takes on Facebook and Google+ with focus on profiles
With its dramatic new redesign, Twitter is now trumpeting itself as a better option than Facebook or Google+ when it comes to showing the world who you are via an online profile. "This is the best place to represent yourself on the Internet," Jack Dorsey said.…
Read MoreGoogle+ Android app gains more parity with web client
Google released an updated version of its Google+ app for Android devices on Wednesday, adding a handful of useful features. Presence in Messenger, high-resolution photo support, search and the ability to +1 both comments and photos are in the free software -- welcome improvements.…
Read MoreThe cloud shouldn’t be an over-the-top service
The public Internet and the cloud shouldn't mix, according to a paper out today. Cisco seems to agree if its CloudVerse suite of products is any indication. A growing number of endpoints and multiple services in web apps required dedicated and intelligent networks.…
Read MoreYouTube reinvents itself with massive relaunch
YouTube is rolling out a complete overhaul of its site Thursday that includes a new emphasis on channels as well as a completely redesigned homepage. The changes tie into the site's attempts to establish its millions of channels as the Internet's answer to cable TV.…
Read MoreHas Facebook become the General Electric of the social web?
The news that Facebook is planning an initial public offering that could value the company at $100 billion just reinforces how it has become a kind of social utility. How does that change the way we look at the network and what it does?…
Read MoreCan Google News compete with Twitter and Facebook?
Google says it's adding +1 recommendations to Google News. But has the web giant lost the social news market to Twitter and Facebook, or could the integration of recommendations with the Google+ network allow it to catch up and become a strong competitor?…
Read MoreCourt makes it official: You have no privacy online
A recent U.S. court decision involving the Twitter accounts of several WikiLeaks supporters shows that when push comes to shove, users of social networks and most online services have no expectation of privacy -- at least, not if the one requesting the information is the U.S. government.…
Read MoreWhy we shouldn’t be so quick to write Google+ off
Plenty of people seem to be ready to pronounce Google+ dead in the water, or at least doomed to fail. But there are good reasons to believe that it will be around for awhile. If anything, it's only beginning to show its real power.…
Read MoreGoogle Talk and Hangouts close to go native in Chrome
Chrome will soon feature an open-source and open-codec implementation of Google Talk and Google+ Hangouts voice and video chat, thanks to the WebRTC framework the company open-sourced earlier this year. This implementation will replace the proprietary plugin that's currently bundled with Chrome.…
Read MoreIs Google helping journalists, or co-opting them?
Google is adding author images and information to Google News search results, but only if writers have Google+ profiles. Is the web giant trying to help journalists get discovered more easily, or has it crossed the line by promoting its own social network over others?…
Read MoreWhy Twitter could win the online identity race
The race to become the default identity platform for the social web continues to intensify, but while both Facebook and Google are determined to win and have substantial resources to throw at the problem, there are some compelling reasons to believe Twitter has the upper hand.…
Read MoreDeclaring bankruptcy in the attention economy
David Shing, the "digital prophet" for AOL, says he expects unfriending and unfollowing to become a major phenomenon, as more people become overwhelmed with social information. I know just what that feels like, because a friend unfollowed me on Twitter recently for that exact reason.…
Read MoreWhy fear of Facebook is not enough for rivals to succeed
New social networks -- such as the newly launched Unthink, as well as the open-source Diaspora -- are pitching themselves as alternatives for those who are upset with or afraid of Facebook. But as Myspace found out, a social network really requires one thing to succeed: utility.…
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