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Android and Google Earth Technology

During the past year I have been sailing through the Caribbean and the south Pacific and, after 13,000 miles of sailing, arrived in New Zealand. Right now, I’m back in the US visiting friends and family for the holidays.

Google Earth on Mobile Phones Earlier this year, Google was good enough to send me an unlocked Nexus One (see GEB review). Increasingly, I’ve managed to use the phone – often without cell or WIFI connections – for a variety of applications. Google Earth for Mobile still has the ability to work offline, just like the desktop version. You just have to visit the places you want to store (while you are on an Internet connection) and the last 2GBytes of data are remembered in your cache. Then, when you have no Internet, you can still use Google Earth to re-visit those places. The offline ability can be incredibly useful since you often have a need for geo-spatial awareness when you are far away from a data connection (read my story on Google Earth for Sailors).

Keep reading for more about using Google Earth on your phone…

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YouTube 2.1 App Now Available on Android Market

When you’re watching a video on YouTube, how often do you JUST watch the video? If you’re like me, you scroll down, maybe read the video description and glance over at the related videos to choose what you might watch next.

Today the latest YouTube app, version 2.1, is available on the Android Market, so YouTube app updates aren’t tied to Android OS releases anymore. The app was rebuilt from the ground up to mirror the YouTube desktop experience and is our fastest, most intuitive YouTube mobile app to date.

What’s new:

In-page playback: you can read the video description, browse related, rate or flag videos without having to interrupt video playback.
Posting comments: you can post a comment while the video is playing, just like on the desktop website.
Subscription updates: we’ve made it easier to access new videos from your subscriptions. If you are signed into your account, you will see all your subscription updates right on the home screen of the app.
New full-screen UI: To enter full-screen mode simply rotate the phone. The new player controls make it easier to seek within the video, and you can pause or resume the playback by just tapping on the screen.

Following our famous mantra ‘launch early, iterate often’, we first released an early version of the unbundled app a few of weeks ago, collected user feedback, and addressed the key user requests in version 2.1.

Please note that the new YouTube app only works on devices running Android 2.2. To install it, search for ‘YouTube’ in Android Market. It also comes pre-installed on many upcoming Android 2.3 devices, such as the Nexus S.

Posted by Andrey Doronichev, YouTube Mobile Product Manager, recently watched “Huge Bike Jump into a Pond 35 feet in the air“

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Gmail for Android: better Priority Inbox support and improved compose

When we first released Gmail in Android Market back in September, we said that you’d be getting new stuff faster, and we meant it. After getting thousands of comments on that release, we made a bunch of updates based on your feedback and today we’re launching Gmail for Android 2.3.2.

Priority Inbox

First of all, you told us that you love Priority Inbox and expect much better support for it on your phone. Now you can see important messages in a new Priority Inbox view.

This view includes all important messages in your inbox, regardless of whether you’ve read them or not. You can archive and delete conversations or mark them unimportant from there. You’ll notice the importance markers you’re used to seeing in the desktop version of Gmail, and you can also change a conversation’s importance using the menu. To switch between inboxes or labels, try tapping on the current label.

Ever wanted to know that you got an important message without taking your phone out of your pocket? Now you can set up your phone to notify, vibrate, or ring on just your new important mail (check out Menu > Settings > Priority Inbox).

While Priority Inbox on your Android phone doesn’t have all the features offered in the desktop version of Gmail, we think this is a good start and plan to add even more functionality moving forward.

Improved Compose

Since our last Market update, we adopted a few features related to composing messages from the desktop version of Gmail. Many of you asked for a better way to switch between replying to the sender to replying to all. Now, you can easily switch between reply, reply all, and forward while composing your response.

If you moved to Gmail from another webmail provider and want to continue to send email from that address, now you can send from any address you’ve configured in the desktop version of Gmail.

In addition, you can now respond to messages in-line.

You won’t need to wait for Gingerbread to get these updates. This version of the Gmail app works for Android 2.2 (Froyo) and newer releases in most countries. (Not sure if your device is running the right version? Check here.) Get the update from Android Market (just scan the QR code below, or click here if you’re on a phone) and check out the new Gmail. And don’t forget to send us your feedback from within the new version of the app (from your Inbox: Menu > More > About > Feedback).

Posted by Paul Westbrook, Gmail for Android team

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Guest post: Top 10 local UK business directories compared & rated

This is a guest post by Myles Anderson of Brightlocal.com. Brighlocal is a London-based local SEO company that is building local SEO tools for marketers, web-designers and local businesses. He has also written an excellent companion piece: Top UK online business directories – comparison of audience figures 2009/2010. In November, I wrote up Brightlocal’s Review facilitation tool, ReviewBiz.

Last year, David Mihm did an excellent piece on UK directories, The Guide to UK Citations for Local Search. He offered up a comprehensive list of citation sources from the professional SEO point of view. I thought that this was a good companion piece to David’s in that it approached the issue from the SMB’s point of view and offered some good, actionable advice as to prioritization of efforts.

Top 10 local UK business directories compared & rated

Online business directories are an important & powerful marketing tool for local businesses. Whether you’re a builder, a hairdresser, a dentist or a driving instructor you can attract new customers and grow your business using an online business directory.

More and more people are turning to the internet to find best local businesses. Online business directories provide a quick & easy route to identify the best businesses.

Recent research shows that people use online directories when they have an immediate need for a local service but they don’t know which business to call. Theyíre ready to buy your services but they’re looking for guidance on which business to select. Over 50% of directory searches result in either a call or visit to a local business. You need to make sure that local business is your business!

Many online business directories offer a free listing and it’s important to get listed in as many directories as possible.

Paid-for listings will often appear at the top of the directory results but there are other ways to get your business to the top of a directory without paying for it (see our article on ‘Perfecting you online business directory listing’)

Top 10 UK online business directories

…
1. Yell.com

The biggest online business directory with over 6 million monthly users*. yell.com offers free, basic online listings but the options to personalise your listing & create standout with photos, service description are non-existent at present. Yell.com recently (Sept2010) bought TrustedPlaces.com and is in the process of integrating the TrustedPlace community & review features into the Yell.com platform. This marks a new era for Yell who have only played the paid-for listings game up until recently. Paid-for listings still remain their focus and costs range from £300-£600 depending on your business category.

Verdict: list your business for free and could be good value for paid-for listing given their large audience size..

2. Qype.co.uk

A rapidly growing heir to Yell’s throne. Qype covers all business categories. Qype has a loyal community of regular users who actively rate & recommend businesses. Getting on the inside of this community offers any business a great opportunity. Qype allows businesses to add lots of extra information for free – inc. photos, business description. A full listing will really standout and getting good customer reviews on the site can get you to the top of the listings for free. Qype do offer a paid-for listings service for approx. £50/month which represents good value if you want to boost your business leads.

Verdict: list your business, add extra detail; consider their paid-for listings if you have the budget..

3. HotFrogUK.co.uk

A relative newcomer to the UK, this bizarrely named directory has grown rapidly due to itís excellent ranking in Google. All listings are free and a business can lots of extra information which will help you to get up their ranking and also start appearing in Google for relevant search terms.

Verdict: list your business for free now and benefit as this directory grows in influence..

4. Vivastreet.co.uk

This is a free local classified advertising service not a directory. Vivastreet has a monthly audience of over 1.2 million users and they rank very well in Google. Local businesses should use the site to promote their latest special offersor any local events that you put on. Listings donít remain on the site for too long (they expire when your so youíll need to update regularly. Your listings will provide a Citation in your Google Places listing (see this article for more on Google Places & citations).

Verdict: advertise your latest deals & local events for Free..

5. City-visitor.co.uk

A well established online directory but with an aging design. They offer a basic free-listing which is useful as a Citation for your Google Places listings. Theyíre business is paid-for listings and they will try hard to persuade you to buy into their directory but iím not convinced of the value or return.

Verdict: list your business for free but not worth paying for..

6. FreeIndex.co.uk

Another rising star in the UK. FreeIndex only offers free listings and uniquely they donít buy in a list of basic business information. Each business listed on FreeIndex has been added by the business owner which is what makes it so powerful in itís Google rankings. FreeIndex also offer a lead-generation service for local businesses.

Verdict: list your business for free but explore the lead-generation options as they could prove good at generating new customers..

8. Bizwiki & AccessPlace

2 separate directories but they share information, so if you list on Bizwiki you get a listing on Access Place – great, 2 for 1! Their combined monthly audience is approx. 700,000 and you can list your business for free and extra information including photos, service description, opening hours etc…

Verdict: go for free listing and generate some positive user reviews to get to the top.

8. Yelp.co.uk

Yelp is huge in the US – Google recently tried to buy them for a reported US$500m! Theyíve been in the UK for a couple of years and are rapidly building a loyal audience – theyíve grown from 100k users to 500k in 12 months! Yelp is known primarily for their restaurant reviews but they cover all business categories. User ratings & reviews are an important factor on Yelp and to get the most out of the directory you need to get to know the community.

Verdict: will be a major force soon so list for free and start generating some user reviews..

9. Bview.co.uk

They’re focus is on local deals more than traditional online directory. You can list your business for free and add a local offer (see this article about local discount vouchers). Still quite London-centric, their local vouchers are distributed to a number of other sites & mobile apps and they get a great response.

Verdict: great lead generator with discount vouchers so list for free, add a voucher and wait for the phone to ring..

10. ViewLondon.co.uk

View is a lifestyle & entertainment directory so if youíre a pub, bar, restaurant, club, venue etc…then this is for you. They now cover most major cities in the UK and are growing rapidly. You can list your business for free & add lots of extra information. They have a number of advertising & paid-listing opportunities. Theyíre not cheap but iíve heard from business owners who use it that it works.

Verdict: if you’re an “entertainment” business then list your business for free and consider testing their paid-for options and see what the return is like..

Conclusion: Online Business Directories are a great local marketing channel if used correctly

Online business directories represent a great local marketing channel for local businesses. Local businesses should take advantage of the Free listing opportunities and focus their efforts on getting their customers & directory users to leave positive reviews in order to reach the top of the listings.

If you have some additional marketing money available then you should consider paying for priority listings in the leading directories but make sure you negotiate and push them for extra value – it’s a competitive market!

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The next generation of mobile maps

I’m excited to announce Google Maps 5.0 for Android, with two significant new features: 3D interaction and offline reliability.
We launched Google Maps for mobile a little more than five years ago. Since then, we’ve added dozens of features, and we’ve grown from a few thousand to more than 100 million users. Still, a couple of things have remained the same: a flat, north-up map and the need for a strong Internet connection. Today, we’re changing that for the first time.

Tilt while zoomed in (left) or use compass mode (right) to orient yourself with 3D buildings.

Explore maps in 3D
Until now, Google Maps has always downloaded the map as a set of small, square images that we stitch together to form the map you see. (You’ve probably seen those gray squares getting filled in, block-by-block, as the images load over the network.) Starting today, we’ll use vector graphics to dynamically draw the map on your device as you use it, allowing you to interact with it in new ways:

Tilting: Drag down with two fingers to tilt the map. Tilt while zoomed in on one of the 100+ cities around the world with 3D buildings to see a skyline spring to life.
Rotating: Twist with two fingers to rotate the map. After tilting to see 3D buildings, rotate around them to gain a new perspective from any direction.
Smooth zooming: Slide two fingers together or apart, and see the map and labels continuously scale to any zoom level, stopping when your fingers stop.
Compass mode: Center the map on your location, and then tap the compass button in the top right corner. The map will flip into 3D mode and start rotating to match your perspective, while still keeping all the labels upright and readable.

I found 3D buildings especially useful on a recent trip to New York. From my hotel to the Google office in Chelsea and bars on the Lower East Side, this richer representation of the real world made the map much more helpful. And whenever I walked out of a building or subway station, I used compass mode to get myself quickly oriented and on my way. Check out the video below to see tilt, rotation, zoom and compass mode in action, or see more pictures.

Offline reliability
Google Maps has always been, and continues to be, a fundamentally Internet-connected experience, meaning you always get the freshest map and place data, search and voice search, live traffic conditions, satellite and Street View imagery, and much more. Still, we understand that mobile Internet connections aren’t 100% reliable. So today we’re happy to take the first steps toward greater offline reliability, so you can find your way even if you lose your connection.

In the past, you’ve probably had frustrating moments when you get stranded without a map, whether ducking into the subway, sitting at the back of a restaurant or traveling anywhere with a flaky Internet connection. But dynamically drawing maps requires 100 times less data to get maps across all zoom levels, so now we’re able to proactively cache (or store) large areas on your device based on where you use Maps the most. This way, you can rely on having fast, robust maps available to you where you’re most likely to need them.

For example, I live in San Francisco and work in Mountain View, so Maps makes sure I can always pull up detailed street maps of each city and area maps for the whole San Francisco Bay Area. When I do have an Internet connection, I still get live traffic, imagery, richer map details and all the other features I’m used to with Google Maps.

Rather than having a static set of maps when installed, Maps will automatically start caching the areas you visit the most when your device is plugged in and connected to WiFi (e.g., the nightly charge). We’re already hard at work improving the algorithms and technology behind these features, so over time you can expect to see maps work better in more offline situations.

Offline rerouting
If you’re one of the more than 10 million people relying on Google Maps Navigation (Beta), our free turn-by-turn GPS navigation feature, losing your Internet connection can be particularly painful. (This happened to me on a recent ski trip to Tahoe, and I was left trying to manually find my way back to my route.) So we’re also introducing offline rerouting. You’ll still need a connection to start a route, but if you miss a turn along the way, we’ll quickly get you back on track, even if you don’t have an Internet connection. We’ll be rolling this feature out gradually over the next few weeks.

Google Maps Navigation now automatically reroutes you, even if you lose your connection.

These new features are just the first steps in maximizing dynamic map drawing technology to create a faster, more interactive experience where efficiency really matters: mobile devices. For example, we estimate that viewing maps now requires almost 70% less mobile network data overall than before. We can’t wait to take the next steps in making Google Maps faster, more reliable and even more useful no matter where you take it.

Get Google Maps for mobile 5.0 by searching for Google Maps in Android Market (or tap on this link if you’re on your phone). Android 1.6+ devices can get Maps 5.0, but 3D and offline features require Android 2.0+, and some features may not be supported for all devices or countries.

So try it out. Wander around in compass mode, explore 3D buildings—even dare to open Maps on the subway! I hope you enjoy all the new features as much as we do.

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