Just Another Gadget Blog

Google has risen to become the motherlord of internet and the tech world just a bit over a decade. Even in that short time, enough weird tidbits of information resulted that it makes an entertaining read. Perusing this list of ten interesting facts about Google will make you chuckle and scratch your head.

For Example, did you know that the original name for Google’s PageRank algorithm was “BackRub”? PageRank is probably better and less creepy. Have you ever used Google’s “I’m Feeling Lucky” button? Well, that button costs Google about $110 million per year, because it skips past the ads on the results page. Hit the link for the full list.

Which One is your Favorite?

[Top 10 Google Facts]

All Mac users get yourself 6 great Mac apps for free. Yes, you’ve read it right, completely FREE.

Buy them individually, and you would pay a wopping $154 for them. However, in the MacHesit’s NanoBundle, they for free.

You still reading this post? Why, don’t lose anytime , get downloading from macheist.com.

The MacHesit’s NanoBundle includes:

• ShoveBox
• WriteRoom
• Twitterrific
• TinyGrab
• Hords of Orcs
• Mariner Write

Source: macheist.com
Ends: 6 days from today..

Ever wanted to open a lock with a secret knock, [steve] shows us a video of one actully working. The idea is pretty simple, knock in a certain pattern and the door unlocks. We have seen many variations but this one is more easy in practice. The design is not bad, and it is easyly programable. To change the combination of the knock you just hold the red button, Simple!

We’re a bit surprised that the suction cups actually hold it on the door. Maybe it’s just us, but we can never seem to get those things to hold very well. There are lots of great pictures as well as the source code available on his site.

[via HacknMod]

A Picture showing Batery with a USB Port

You could buy a USB charger off the shelf, but what fun would that be? Try making one yourself with a little help from a 9V battery and a few extra components. This could be cheaper too.

This simple hack on a standard 9V battery is an easy one to undertake. It’s pretty straight forward, and all it requires is a quick solder to finish things up. It will give you power on the go and a sense of accomplishment for the day upon completing it. Hit up tech weblog anythingbutipod for the simple diagram to make your own.

This charger came usefull to me when my Ipod died out on a long road trip. I assured my self to carry a USB Charger so i charged my Ipod. It was like a externel disposable batery.

[anythingbutipod]

What a shocker, the best ever invention voted by visitors to the Science Museum in London (and online) is not the computer. Its way down in sixth place…

The Science Museum’s curators selected 10 items from its collection and asked visitors to the museum and online to vote on the inventions that has made the biggest mark on history to mark its centenary in June. The results are quite surprising….

1. X-ray machine – 9,581 votes
2. Penicillin – 6,825 votes
3. DNA double helix– 6,725 votes
4. Apollo 10 capsule – 4,649 votes
5. V2 rocket engine – 3,985 votes
6. Stephenson’s Rocket – 3,533 votes
7. Pilot ACE Computer – 3,472 votes
8. The atmospheric engine – 3,457 votes
9. Model T Ford – 3,231 votes
10. The electric telegraph – 2,694 votes

The invention that has made a big difference in MY world is the Computer followed closely by the Car. The medical inventions have helped (when I’ve sprained my ankle) but without the computer this blog would not exist

[Source: Read more at NewScientist]

Google Chrome Beta Adds Bookmark Sync, Speed Boost

Windows: The latest beta release of Google’s Chrome browser ups its dynamic page building speed by quite a bit. What users are really going to notice, however, is the built-in bookmark syncing, a feature previously available in bleeding-edge development builds.

If you grab the beta of Chrome 4, either as a version upgrade from Chrome or a new install, you’ll get an option in your “wrench” menu to synchronize bookmarks, enabled through your Google account. We’ve shown you this feature when it was an optional switch, but this feature looks to make it into the final build of Chrome’s Windows release.

Google touts Chrome’s DOM Core speeds (i.e. jQuery powers) at its blog post, continuing in the tradition of browser makers constantly changing their speed metrics. The other big change users might notice is that extensions are disabled in the latest beta build, as the developers are said to be reworking the add-on framework. If that sounds like a reasonable trade for more dynamic page speed and bookmark syncing, Chrome 4 Beta is a free download for Windows systems only.

[Google Chrome Blog via ReadWriteWeb]

For all those Firefox users who have the pleasure of using the Add-on “SearchPreview” for Google, Yahoo and Bing results, this won’t be anything new.

Those using Internet Explore, Google Chrome or Safari good news, if you’re looking for a particular web page rather than a particular result, Google has added “Page Previews” to the top-left options bar to make that much easier. This will help you avoid clicking on sites that have registered good domains but are full of adverts.

Got to say though, I don’t know how often the low-resolution images are refreshed which may cause some concern.

[Source: Google Operating System]

A survey commissioned by researchers Demos found that people who claim to have downloaded music illegally using peer-to-peer file sharing sites such as The Pirate Bay also spend on average £77 a year buying it legitimately. Those who claim not to on average just spend £44 (I’ll keep my opinion to myself…).

1008 people aged between 16 and 50 in the UK took part in the online poll.

Outcome:

• One in 10 of those questioned said they downloaded music illegally.
• Eight out of 10 of that group also bought CDs, vinyl and as MP3s.
• 50% accessed music officially
• 22% listened to internet radio
• 4% had used Napster (One of the founders of peer-to-peer file sharing)
• 21% have not heard of Napster
•  9% had used Spotify
• Most had not signed up for Spotify’s paid-for premium service.

How much would you pay?

• 75% of 16-24 year olds said they were prepared to pay for MP3s.
• The most favourable price was 45 pence for an individual track,
•  Just 2% would pay more than £1.

Current chart topper Fight for this Love by Cheryl Cole is priced at £0.99  on Apple iTunes and £0.79  on Amazon in the UK.

Demos researcher Peter Bradwell said

Politicians and music companies need to recognise that the nature of music consumption has changed and consumers are demanding lower prices and easier access to music

These types of surveys are becoming very popular and need to be treated with caution. This particular survey backs the governments three-prong approach set out this week –

1. education
2. enforcement
3. attractive new commercial deals

I don’t know how much of the results I believe as is it just coincidences that the results help back the governments’ recommendation?

google-ebook

Google is planning to release an ebook store with over 400,00 books online. You can either walk down to you local library to read a book or just google it. With google coming up with yet to say more books, there need not to worry about book availability in libraries. Amazon has a smiler service but unlike them google’s Ebook should be usable on any device.

Google Editions will utilise three business models;

• The first will allow consumers to purchase directly from Google EBooks. This model would gives Google a 37% share of the sale, with the rest going to the publisher.
• The second model would consist of purchases made from partner retailers, with Google getting 55% of the sale.
• The last model Google is looking at will have customers going directly to a publisher’s website to make purchases. No decisions have been made on the split for this option.

This service should be arriving early 2010 so, surfs up.

Remember those days with portable pet keyrings, now you can have a portable fish tank. Some chineese guy has made a video showing a waterproof LG GD900 Crystal in a fish tank. Have you ever watched Simpsons where ‘Disco Stu’ had those see through shoes with dead fish inside. He couldn’t take them out, watch this video below…

Looks like the phone still works after this sort-of-upsetting experement, the fish did survive as he put them back into the fish tank. Disco Stu is not a figure to be emulated. This video was probably a promotional stunt by a random guy. What do you think?