Technically Foreign» Google

Intro to Google Apps

Terry — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 19:46:28 +0000

This a quick post about Google Apps. Google Apps allows your small business or Sole-Practice look and feel much bigger. Google Apps when setup properly allows the following:

Your own email with your own domain yourname@yourcompany.com
Your own company calendar – equvlent to the big corporate company calandars that you can work with your employees, plus access anywhere with any computer or smartphone.
Access to google docs to easily share and collabarate on projects with employees or clients.
Using your email address yourname@yourcompany.com as your login to all google products plus hundreds of other helpful products through there Marketplace.

Having google apps has helped my clients manage there technology by giving them a little taste of a big business. I have been using this technology for years and has made my life much easier. The good things is google has a free version for ten or less accounts. You do not need an account for general emails like Sales or Info at your company, just use an alias or Group. (Alias is sending that email to one person, a group is sending that email to a group of people.)

Google Apps is a great start to organize and get your business on a Technology Eco-System. This is just the start. Take a look at googles website on Google Apps. The email interface of it is Gmail. If your interested in moving your company over to Google Apps, drop me a line (contact info on the bottom of every page) or leave a comment. The initial setup is a little technical and there is so many things Google Apps can do.

Look forward working with you and posting much more detailed information on this wonderful tool.

Google Turns 10!! Happy Birthday!

Terry — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 12:00:55 +0000

Google is Ten today. That’s right he’s smarter then a 5th grader too. Ten years ago Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded Google Inc. (September 7th, 1998 for those who can’t count backwards!) Over the years google has brought us many online toys like – Gmail, Google Docs, Google Earth, Okurt and Picasa to name only a few. However many may have forgeten that the baby-curse word started out as search engine from Stanford University. More of the boring info is at Wikipedia (google on wikipedia!). But if want to see what they looked like when first launched here’s a peek from the wayback machine: Google 1998.

Technically 411 with google?

Terry — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 15:07:30 +0000

So while out with my conversational Spanish group trying to be technically foreign the group leader asked about that old school way of Texting google and getting a reply. If you text message GOOGL (46645) with a business and city, then you will get the information texted back to you. This works with sports, weather, movies and such. However, why text when now you can just call. Google now has a 1-800-goog-411 or 1 -800-466-4411. Which is a free 411 service with voice activation commands. This service works like any 411 service you would use, plus some extra benefits.

There website – http://www.google.com/goog411/ has a cool youtube video on the service, and allows you to also have the service send the info to your cellphone via text or directly connect. This is a free 411, service instead of the ones that charge you, so it seems worth it or at least to try and like all things that I deem Technically Foreign, it just got that cool factor while you and your friends are walking through the streets and trying to find that restaurant.

Random Googling: NASA technology shrinks a human

Terry — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 04:42:31 +0000

A new thing over here at Technically Foreign. Random Googling. As I stated previously on my post about Google As A curse word, there is a lot you can do with google. So now I will be randomly putting phrases into google to see what the all seeing eye thinks.

Today’s Random Googling is: NASA technology shrinks a human

or: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=NASA+technology+shrinks+a+human&btnG=Search

Like all things web, Results may vary. The results I saw show a couple of interesting things. First I have a PDF from MIT about Bio Space suite, but no Shrinking Humans.

Next I have two from NASA’s website but they would never admit in shrinking humans. So we move onto NASA Spinoffs from Thespaceplace.com. This is a cool place that explains all the gadgets NASA has created for our modern way of living. The list is great but no real mention of NASA’s ability to shrink a human.

Next and last for this post is the opinion from the AIP – that is the American Institute of Physics which talks about if Mars should be Human Space flight objective? Now the article is not very interesting and doesn’t talk about any shrinking of a human. It is drier then the planet mars.

So I am afraid I leave with not discovering NASA’s technology that shrinks a human. Till next time, keep Random Googling and spread the hobby.

Google Maps Spying – what’s with the goats?

Terry — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 01:10:24 +0000

In the middle of the desert in Africa Google satellite maps show a bunch of guys by a well with a lot of goats surrounding them. I think one guy is actually look up to the sky. The surrounding area isn’t mapped with high resolution. Google maps seems to upload the resolution by one square at a time, but how do they pick the squares? I wonder if they find anyone stranded on an Island after a plane crash… the others probably block that too. Very interesting if you zoom out. Not sure what is there besides a lot of goats, a well and some guy randomly staring back at you.

Click for the Google map:

Google as a curse word?

Terry — Wed, 16 May 2007 21:48:36 +0000

Their are many stories about the origination of the word F U C K. Well, the old 100 year war store (yes i know it lasted 116 years) where the British were being killed off by those bloody French and when they were captured the nice gentle French army cut off the middle finger so they couldn’t use the Long Bow which was made from the Yew Tree. When the English kicked some French ass, they put up the middle finger and stated “I can still pluck my yew.” Which was shortened to Pluck Yew. However my favorite origins of the word is from the band Van Hallen according to the rockers the word comes from an old English law term “For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge”. But most people will believe that it was the German word Fokken which meant to Thrust.

Now what does this have to do with google? Well today the word google can be used as diverse as the F word. It took hundreds of years for this simple and yet fun word to become a medifore for almost anything. Let’s face it the F word can be used in almost any conversation. Today I have heard googling, googled, googlish, googler with many different meanings. A googler isn’t only someone who uses google but rather someone who just knows a F’n lot. Googling isn’t just that term for searching on google but the process of finding things quickly. Plus everyone is googling each other that it is also the term of background checking dates, employees, employers, friends and everyone in between. I’ve been googled is the term meaning that someone has found me. The word is a very common term today.

The complication of this meaning is that google is not a term, a verb but it is a company. The overall ease of use and culture that the company created shows us that maybe this fun word (say it ten time really fast with out laughing) on the tips of our tongue is the real reason why the search engine is popular. Just like the F word google has that vibe even though the meanings are completely different.

In two hundred or three hundred years from know maybe the word will be a illegal, a slang of sorts. Something that isn’t appropriate to say at the dinner table or to the elders. By then we might not even be communicating by our mouths anyway. However for now we can all keep F’n googling.

Google Sued because parents don’t know web filtering

Terry — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 14:26:56 +0000

Most people don’t bother learning how to secure their Internet or even search for a place that will help them (like netsmartz.org). We all want to protect our kids and ourselves from the bad parts of the Internet. However, most people will just sue a company. And if you work for the government and need a way to get more votes, then maybe stating “Google Inc. generates “billions of dollars from the pornography trade and illicit profiteers.”" makes a lot of sense. ( News article from Newsday ) People have to take a little responsibility for themselves and their children. The Internet Law is open and it is the user’s responsibility to filter and make sure they are protected.

Now an easy way to filter adult content in Google is to create a Google user account and keep logged into Google personalized: http://www.google.com/ig.
Then inside click on preferences: http://www.google.com/preferences?hl=en
There is a “SafeSearch Filtering” feature. Turn this on and save the preferences.
Besides Google all top search engines have a safe search Feature, but since Google was singled out…

Now there are many ways to filter a computer and doing this just for Google isn’t the best way since there are other search engines out there. Yahoo, MSN are others who have the same issue. Parents and anyone who has kids around have to learn to set up their computer to have better filters since children can also get into other online places like MySpace or blogs. Software filtering is an important step for parents. With a simple google search with the keywords: parent information on web filtering a parent can find many ways to restrict their computer.

I do not think itâ€™s Google’s or any other search engines responsibility for filtering the Internet for pornography. Instead, the US government could have backed the push for a .xxx domain which would have made it easier for filtering and enforcing control over such content. Instead it is the parent’s responsibility to configure their computer. However, what I have found that all parents should look at is the websites: netsmartz.org, www.nap.edu/netsafekids/ and getnetwise.org. These are a must for all parents to look at. But, if a parent wants to go further, they can use monitoring software like Web Watcher or filter program like NetNanny.

The parent resources below go into more detail about what parents or people who have kids on their computer should do. We aren’t going to leave a four-year-old alone in a house without someone looking after them. Why then would we let children use a computer without proper safe-guards in place ?

Parent Resources:

netsmartz.org
Net safeFiltering And Monitory Tools
getnetwise.org – Online resources for protecting yourself, your kids and your computer.
staysafeonline.info/ – National Cyber Security Allaiance

Software Solutions:

Sex, Drugs and iTunes Generation

Terry — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 16:26:51 +0000

Today the web is what rock and roll was to previous generations. It is no longer the tool of the geek, nerd and software engineers (if any distinction exists). The web is open to all who have a creative moment, since it lives in the moment for the moment like table dancing in a dive bar at 3am on a Thursday night. In this moment we discover our inner curiosity and build our wish lists on Amazon and iTunes; our profiles on myspace, 360 and facebook; upload our photos on picasa web or flicker; stream our personal videos on youtube and google video. This is how we â€“ the iTunes Generation – are expressing ourselves. Some people do this a little more then others as in the past with head-bangers, greasers, punks we have labeled these bloggers, hackers and back to the word geek . However, years ago it was the rock star, the guys with big hair, loud voices that entertained us by biting off bat heads, smashing guitars, dancing on stage in spandex. These were our heroes, our role models and in some small way they made us all warm and fuzzy inside. The 21^st centaury has main streamed entertainment making it possible for anyone to be a rock star, to have their 15 minutes of fame and all they need is a little modern day canvas â€“ the internet – to express themselves and show the world what thy are made of. In myspace they post pictures, link to friends, show favorite music videos just for the fun of it. What use to be the fame of the super cool has been distributed to anyone with a web blog, webcam and a little pride. With iTunes you donâ€™t have to wait to goto the store buy the latest song or movie. Plus you can speak your own mind, create your own PodCast and express your own opion, submit it with the thousands of free PodCasts available daily at iTunes.

I would like to say good bye to the Sex Drugs and Rock and Roll generation and hello to the Sex Drugs and iTunes generation. Because whether itâ€™s real or cyber you canâ€™t substitute the sex or the addiction of any drug but entertainment has gone from old school rock into digital puberty.

april fools day… gift from google

Terry — Sun, 02 Apr 2006 20:38:28 +0000

On April Fools day some tech companies keep us laughing. A friend forwarded the Google april fools joke… Google Romance… http://www.google.com/romance/ – And it still seems to be up. I’m glad to see that the Geeks at google still have a sense of humor. It is great to get a laugh out of an industry leader like google. My only fear is those people who think this is a real product… Raise your hand if you were fooled.