Google Friends Newsletter - November 2005

Google Friends Newsletter November 2005

Welcome to this penultimate 2005 roundup of tips, how-to's and new Google developments. At the bottom of this message, you'll find details on subscribing or canceling your subscription to this newsletter.

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Power Tip - Make a gift photo CD fast
Celebrate special events by creating a photo CD you can send to friends and family. It only takes a minute using Picasa, Google's free photo software. After you've inserted a CD (or DVD) into your writeable drive, open Picasaand select the folder of photos you'd like on CD. Click the "Gift CD" button and follow the on-screen instructions to add more photo folders, include aslideshow, set the picture size, and name your CD. For friends who want to save and view the photos to their computer, include a copy of the Picasa software (it's only 3.9MB). Click the "Burn Disc" button and Picasa will do the rest. For a nice finishing touch, add a customized photo CD cover: select a picture and click the "Print" button (go to Tools > Options > Printing to add "CD cover size" as one of the layout options).
http://picasa.google.com

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New Products

Google Desktop
Don't lose face by losing files - Google Desktop saves both by locating emails, documents, photos, and more on your own hard drive. Use Desktop to quickly launch applications, get all of your personalized info in one place with a customizable Sidebar, and search conveniently in Outlook with the Outlook Toolbar. Now Desktop has added some new features including a maps panel for the Sidebar, which displays local business listings, directions, plus locations relevant to the web pages and emails you're reading.
http://desktop.google.com

Expanded Google Video
We've added a lot more video to Google Video, thanks to a host of producers including The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (who
produce the Emmys), Campus Movie Fest, The Photography Channel, WorldAffairs Council, Asia Movie Channel, and many others. Check them out, visit the new Google Video Blog for regular selections, or upload your own work.
http://video.google.com
http://googlevideo.blogspot.com
https://upload.video.google.com

Google Local for mobile
If you've got a mobile phone, you might as well have mobile information. This new free download offers detailed directions, interactive (movable and zoomable) maps, integrated business locations and contact info - even satellite imagery. It works with most newer Java-enabled phones; you'll also need a data plan with your mobile carrier.
http://www.google.com/glm
Google Reader
Google Reader can help you keep up with the firehose of info coming your way from blogs and websites. New on Google Labs, it automatically gets the latest news and updates from sites you pick. You can sort your reading list by relevance, and you can share the good bits with friends via an easy email or blog tool within Reader. You can also star or label things you want to save for yourself, too.
http://reader.google.com

Updated Google privacy policy
Your online privacy continues to be a critical part of any company doing business on the Internet. We've just updated and clarified our policies on this important issue through a new summary page with links to greater detail on exactly what we collect, and what we do with the information. We hope you find it useful and easy to read.
http://www.google.com/privacy.html

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Miscellany

Google.org
In our 2004 initial public offering, our founders committed one percent of our profits and equity toward Google's philanthropic efforts. Regarding these efforts, they wrote, "We hope that someday this institution will eclipse Google itself in overall world impact by ambitiously applying innovation and significant resources to the largest of the world's problems." We're calling the umbrella under which we put all of these efforts Google.org. It will include the work of the Google Foundation, some of Google's own projects using Google talent, technology and other resources, as well as partnerships and contributions to for-profit and non-profit entities. As we continue to define the goals, priorities and approach for Google.org, we are focusing on several areas including global poverty alleviation, energy, and the environment.
http://www.google.org