mere funde

That’s an email from the Google Alerts not spam!!

After a lot of hue and cry over the blogosphere over the similarity between Campfire and HuddleChat, a sample application for the Google AppEngine, Google team has decided to take down the app.

While I appreciate the quick action over the reaction of a lot bloggers, I find it pretty stupid. The web is full of examples of similar apps, and taking down one because it is similar to other, even though it is simpler and free, is just plain stupid. I have no idea why the bloggers took offense at it in the first place! While I do agree that the similarity was pretty obvious (from screenshots that is - never got a chance to use it), doesn’t the same logic apply to MS Office & OpenOffice??

Come on people, grow up. People are going to develop similar apps, only that they would be easier to use and FREE - not paid. I was looking forward to using it

I have pretty busy over the past many weekends, and this one was no different. Debo was in town and it was nice spending time with him.

Anyways a few interesting nuggets from the web.

• Upgrade to XP from Vista says CodingSanity - I agree. Too many warnings. Let me use it please. I not a effing retard you know. [Link via FSJ]
• Vicky Nanjappa asks Scorpions if they would introduce hip hop into their music. Yes. And they are also thinking of hiring Anu Malik as their composer and Himesh Baba as their lead singer. [Link via India Uncut]
• For the IP Geeks - Espacenet is thinking of allowing download of search results in XML/CSV format. Good going folks. I remember having given a similar suggestion to Google Patents team. But they seem to have gone into hibernation.
• Finally, Apar has great series going on here. Must read.

Don’t have much time for a full post, so a small roundup:

• Google goes hindi. In a related news, it also launched the Finance service for China. Do it for India - the markets have gone bonkers!
• Jason Calacanis analyzes the Facebook hype. It is not a Google killer. Period. And I hate some Facebook apps that allow people to chuck things at me.
• Daily WTF - Copyright stupidity - Act One.
• Daily WTF - Copyright stupidity - the Grand Act. Sue a Durga Puja pandal of all things!!

It is first April and after the success of the pigeons, lunar office and yes Google Gulp, Google is now offering Google TiSP.

“Want WiFi around? Just flush it down.”

Do you want a free WiFi network? Order online now and have the team of Plumbing Hardware Dispatchers (PHDs) get your connection up and running. Or should I say down!!

Happy Fool’s Day!

Introduction

First trial of the Google Docs . Seems to be working perfectly. Only if they allowed a document to be edited in the print layout format. That would allow more control over the formatting and see exactly what the final print would look like, right when you are working on the document.

Points I like about it:

1. Clean and neat interface, no cluttered tool bar
2. Ability to export as PDF
3. All MS Word short cuts work as they should
4. Collaboration option
5. Inserting comments, symbols and tables
6. Of course, the Google tag
   

Points I dislike about it:

1. Cannot be used on a slow Internet connection (like the one I have at home)
2. No print layout
3. No options of inserting tables

Overall I think that the product is a sure shot winner. I am very pleased with the final product. Google, keep rocking guys!! Oh, by the way, this post was composed directly from within Google Docs and from my home. One oddity however, when I posted it from Google Docs (Writely) it was posted on my blog with a time stamp of tomorrow (Jan 08) and after 4 hours of posting it.

Following this wishlist from Pandia fellows, I came up with one of my own. So what do I want from Google in 2007. Here you go:

1. Allow comments on all official Google blogs and answer them.
2. Keep up the work on Google Patent Search. Expand coverage, jurisdictions and search options. Maybe add intelligent assignee optimizer and show related news. Something like Google Finance.
3. Advanced search operators.
4. Search result RSS feed.
5. Powerpoint equivalent on Google Docs. (Think. Rather Thinkfree)
6. Better Google Books.
7. Better Blogger. Rather close Blogger and adopt Wordpress.
8. Mashup between all Google search tools (Websearch, blog search, patents, etc) and Google Docs (spreadsheets).
9. A functional and effective GDrive.
10. Stop launch of any new services till all products are out of beta.

And did I forget the Google India Blog??

The inevitable has happened. Google has finally launched a patent search engine. You can check it out at http://www.google.com/patents

For long I had wished that Google gives a better patent search option, and it has finally happened. Complete with advanced search options including assignee, inventor, IPC classes, and date limitations it is gonna be one heck of a tool for prior art search. I hope it does normal language search more effectively than concept search on PatentCafe.

Though the jurisdiction coverage is currently limited to granted US patents only, I am sure it would not be long before it adds other major Patent Offices like EPO and WIPO to it and published applications/pre-grant publications.

I sure see some competition for us in the future and also for IP service providers like Thomson Scientific.

What I now want to see is a mashup which combines Google Patent Search and Google Spreadsheets & Docs. That would be so much fun!!

PS: The official post is at http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2006/12/now-you-can-search-for-us-patents.html.

PS: Google rocks!!