Just in time for spring, Google is helping you enjoy the great outdoors by adding bike trails to Maps.
Simply open up maps and search the location you’re looking for. Then click the “More” tab and select “Bicycling.”
The bike paths are highlighted in bright green:
If you zoom in, you can see that there are solid lines and dotted lines. The solid lines are greenway or bike trails. The dotted lines are bike routes on streets.
Catching up on a week of new stuff from the GOOG.
Google and DISH Network may be teaming up for a TV search.
AdWords released a new feature for advertising on the Google Content Network that filters out below-the-fold inventory.
Google Webmaster Tools now offers Fetch as Googlebot Mobile and the ability for page owners to claim their Sidewiki entry.
Google Public Data Explorer is a new Labs application.
Google Maps served up three updates:
- A new imagery update was released for Maps and Earth. It includes new imagery for areas affected by the Chile earthquake.
Bike fitted with street level imagery cameras to visit five locations in the U.S.
Last October, Google unveiled the Street View trike, which was designed to go to places cars couldn’t go. With the unveiling came a contest to decide where the Street View trike would go next.
Today, Google named the winners. They are:
- Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY
- Boulder Creek Path, Boulder, CO
- Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Boston, MA
- National Mall, Washington, DC
- Detroit Zoo, Detroit, MI
Sponsored features are included with local biz listings.
Google has been testing a new local ad feature. You know when you search something local on Google and it presents a map with local businesses listed to the right? Well, the new feature is hanging out in there.
Look at the screenshot below, from the Google LatLong blog. You’ll notice one of the listings has a yellow box with the words “View Photos” next to it. The word “Sponsored” appears at the end, indicating the presence of an ad.
So many Google updates. So little time.
It was another overachieving week for Google. In addition to launching their own quasi-social network and acquiring Aardvark, they were busy pushing out a bunch of updates to existing products and sharing new data. And yes, even Buzz has received its first round of updates.
Without further ado….
AdWords is now offering up Bid Ideas in the Opportunities Tab. Bid ideas are based on bid simulator data.
Google AdSense explains how they treat keywords from referral search engines as content on publisher websites in order to serve up relevant ads.
Only 2 out of 300 events will stream live on the Internet.
It’s no secret that people are increasingly multi-tasking their entertainment, firing up the laptop to access the Internet while watching TV. This is not lost on search engines and who would very much like your split attention to be spent with them.
Bing and Google in particular are going head to head when it comes to mapping Vancouver and nearby Whistler, where many events will be held. Both Bing and Google have already announced enhanced mapping elements for both cities. Now, Google stepped it up a notch by grabbing “Street View” images of ski slopes via snowmobile.
Suggestions run the gamut from competitors to simply next-door establishments.
If you’re browsing Google Maps and click through to Place Pages, you might notice a new feature. “Nearby places you may like” is a recommendation feature designed to help users explore cities and neighborhoods.
Some suggestions seem to be related to proximity of the business whose Place Page you’re browsing. Other suggestions seem to be competitors of said business.
Google says that the recommendations are not based on any single criteria. Rather, they use a set of broad signals, which they continue to refine.
Google goes after Apple’s iPhone with new Android software update for Nexus One.
Google is competing with Apple head on by adding “pinch-to-zoom” functionality to its new Nexus One phone. One of the biggest complaints after launching the device was that it lacked multitouch but a new software update answers that complaint.
Other updates included in the software refresh:
Google Goggles: Allows image search using the camera on Nexus One. This app will be available directly from the device after the software update is downloaded. It can be found in the All Apps menu.
Over 100,000 business have been selected as “Favorite Places in Google.” Over 9,000 cities and towns in all 50 U.S. states are included. The businesses are being sent decals they can place in their storefront windows. The decals include a barcode, known as a QR code, that can be scanned by smartphones, including iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry.
When the QR code is scanned, it will take the user directly to the business’s Place Page on Google Maps. There you can get coupons, read reviews and star it for future reference.
This was one of those weeks where Google unleashed a google of updates. Try as we might, sometimes we just run out of time at the end of the week. So, occasionally, we have to compile a list of the leftovers at the end of the week. Here’s what we haven’t yet covered that you’ll still want to know:
Google Retail told us that consumers are increasingly shopping online on the weekends – yes, even during the holidays (avoiding the crowds?). They also unveiled hot holiday searches and Cyber Monday’s hot search trends.
