Google pulls Gmail mic drop April fool joke after ruining many lives

Looks like the joke's on Google, or is it? The search engine giant -- known for inserting jokes and hoaxes into its products ceremoniously on every April fool's Day -- was caught foot in mouth on Friday when an ill-conceived joke backfired, ruining many lives in the aftermath. The prank: a mic drop option added to Gmail that automatically affixed a gif of a minion tossing away a microphone when you hit send. The problem: it led to more headaches than laughs.

Google has acknowledged the 'joke wasn't funny' and pulled the plug on it now, but the damage has already been done.

"Well, it looks like we pranked ourselves this year. Due to a bug, the Mic Drop feature inadvertently caused more headaches than laughs. We're truly sorry. The feature has been turned off. If you are still seeing it, please reload your Gmail page," said Google on its official blog .

So what's the fuss all about, you ask? Well, Google silently replaced Gmail's 'send and archive' option with a 'send and mic drop' option this morning. Typing in an email (or possibly replying to one) and quickly hitting on it attached a gif to your email (a minion dropping the mic) inadvertently letting the receiver to know, 'hey, this conversation' just ended.

"Gmail is making it easier to have the last word on any email with Mic Drop. Simply reply to any email using the new 'Send + Mic Drop' button. Everyone will get your message, but that's the last you'll ever hear about it. Yes, even if folks try to respond, you won't see it," Google said while announcing the feature earlier in the day.

But, people ended up sending those emails to bosses and other people who might not really appreciate the joke.

"Thanks to Mic Drop I just lost my job. I am a writer and had a deadline to meet. I sent my articles to my boss and never heard back from her. I inadvertently sent the email using the "Mic Drop" send button.There were corrections that needed to be made on my articles and I never received her replies. My boss took offense to the Mic Drop animation and assumed that I didn't reply to her because I thought her input was petty (hence the Mic Drop). I just woke up to a very angry voicemail from her which is how I found out about this "hilarious" prank,"said one user .

"Yes, it's a funny April fools joke, but not when it's actually screwing up my important email correspondences," wrote another user .

Source India Today

How did Google Maps brand JNU as Antinational?

Google Map is showing Jawaharlal Nehru University if you search "anti-national" or "sedition ". For a company like Google, this is a major problem. Suddenly it has found itself in middle of the loaded -- and viciously political -- debate about JNU and some of its students. And it is a debate that Google would like to avoid. So how did it happen? Why one of the most used products of the company has suddenly gone wonky and is branding JNU with certain words?

The Map Maker, a Google tool, that gives people ability to edit map information and supply additional information seems like the obvious culprit. It looked like someone made some JNU related edits in Map Maker so that Google deems it "anti-national". After all, in the past we have seen Google Map vandalism through Map Maker. Remember the Android logo pissing on Apple logo? That was done through Map Maker.

But in this case, Map Maker is not at fault. The problem this time seems to be the Google Maps algorithm and how Google uses data from all of its services to improve what it can offer to consumers. The problem in this case is with the keywords that Google deems important.

Google is a company that utilises the user data in a big big way to power its services. Almost all Google services, from Google search to spam filters in Gmail, use the data generated by users to improve services. In the case of Google Maps, the company apparently sees a lot of keywords, even outside Google, and apply them to various installations in Google Maps to give richer information to users.

This has seemingly happened in the case of JNU, which is being described by many people as "anti-national". For example, in the reviews for JNU on Google Maps there are tens of spam entries describing JNU as anti-national.

Although Google has officially not commented on how and why "anti-national" keyword is pointing towards JNU, some information has trickled out. A senior Google executive aware of the JNU issues told IndiaToday.In that it is definitely connected to keywords.

"This is a bug. Google Maps results take signals from many points on the web -- including top news outlets. The terms "Anti National and "Kanhiya Kumar" and JNU have been in the news so much recently that they became associated in Maps which is why this is triggering. This is a bug and we're working to fix this as quickly as possible," said the executive.

The fact the issue is not due to the Map Maker edit but because of keywords also gets confirmed by the time Google is taking to fix it. It is possible that to fix the issue, Google may have to change the way it processes "signals" in Google Maps, and tweak algorithm. That will not only require some serious work but also several approvals from the company headquarters in Mountain View. So for now, it seems JNU will continue to be "anti-national" on Google Maps, at least for another several hours or even a few days.

Source : India Today

SEO,PPC Updates: Google Removes Right-side Ads & Drops Flash Ads

• No More Ads on the Right-hand Side of SERPS

Google “We’ve been testing this layout for a long time, so some people might see it on a very small number of commercial queries. We’ll continue to make tweaks, but this is designed for highly commercial queries where the layout is able to provide more relevant results for people searching and better performance for advertisers.”

There are only two exceptions to this: Product Listing Ads (PLAs) and Knowledge Panel ads. They may show a fourth ad above the search results now, but only for “highly commercial queries” such as “hotels in New York City” and “Car Insurance.”

How is this affecting people in the industry? For smaller advertisers, this change has had a minimal impact. They haven’t seen much of a change in clicks. For organic search, this probably won’t impact visibility that much. They’re not going to show up as every single query.

I was happy to see Google’s comment on PLA listings, because I have said over and over that they are going to take over the right side due to their higher CTR and visibility: “Interestingly, as an aside, PLAs demonstrate strong user interaction when they’re on the right side, so they’re staying put.”

Google to stop showing ads on right side of SERP

• AMP Pages Now Live

Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) are now fully rolled out globally. And apparently, this is very important to Google.

Image Courtesy : conductor.com

Google’s VP of Engineering stated at SMX West that, “everywhere we use content, we want to embrace AMP.”

• Google Allows Changes to Knowledge Graph Data

Bill Hartzer on billhartzer.com wrote a great article about the ability for Official Representatives to suggest edits to their own Knowledge Graph.

According to Google, “If you officially represent a topic that has a Knowledge Graph card in Google search results, you can request changes to that card. To be recognized by Google as an “official representative,” you need to be signed in as an owner of the topic’s official website, YouTube channel, or Google+ page.”

Before, you never really had any control over this (Google would normally pull from Wikipedia or other sources).

• Google Drops All Flash Ads and Goes for HTML5 Ads Instead

Starting June 30th, 2016, display ads built in Flash can no longer be uploaded into AdWords and DoubleClick Digital Marketing.

Starting January 2nd, 2017, display ads in the Flash format can no longer run on the Google Display Network or through DoubleClick.

This is going to affect anyone who is running display campaigns. This should not be a surprise to anyone because Flash has been out for awhile. Google has put together a help document on how to move from Flash to HTML5, which can be found here: https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/6249073

For people who are running really large display campaigns, you should start changing now, so you have enough lead time. Start switching to HTML5 now and get out of Flash!

• Penguin 4 Update

Gary Illyes announced at SMX West that he’s not going to give out release dates for Penguin anymore.

They’re going to stop commenting on when it’s going to happen but just keep hanging on: they’ll eventually roll it out…

• Google Launches “Google Analytics 360 Suite”

Though this wasn’t discussed in this month’s webinar, Google has launched their Analytics 360 Suite, which they have been working on for quite some time now. This is their enterprise solution that is more likened to Adobe’s analytics suite than anything else.  Per Google, the 360 Suite is “a set of integrated data and marketing analytics products, designed specifically for the needs of enterprise-class marketers.”

It’s currently in beta but is most likely going to be released very soon.

Source:Conductor Spotlight 

Not earning revenue from govt's content, Google to HC

Google India Pvt Ltd Monday told the Delhi High Court it has not earned any revenue out of the agreement with the government or any other monetary benefit from content uploaded under the deal.

The company also told a bench of justices Badar Durrez Ahmed and Sanjeev Sachdeva it has no contractual relationship with the Centre regarding content uploaded by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on YouTube or any other of its sites.

The submissions were made on affidavit in response to the court's query to it and Google Inc, on an earlier date, as to whether YouTube was generating revenue from contents uploaded by the government.

Google Inc, the parent company of Google Ireland which operates YouTube, in its affidavit stated that "no advertisements appear on the content owned by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India and provided/uploaded on the YouTube platform by the ministry".

The Centre, meanwhile, told the court that it has no "customised agreements" with Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp.

There are no customised agreements with YouTube (Google) either, except the one (with Google Ireland/YouTube) mentioned above".

This submission was made by the government in response to the court's earlier query as to whether the ministry has any agreement with these social media entities.

The affidavits were filed in a PIL by former BJP leader K N Govindacharya raising questions on social media usage by the government.

Appearing for Govindacharya, advocate Virag Gupta told the court that Google Inc was "misleading and silent on the crucial issue of income generated by Google Ireland and if any revenue is shared with the Union of India".

The bench, thereafter, sought an additional affidavit from Google Inc on whether it is making any money out of the content uploaded by ministry and listed the matter for further hearing on April 27.

On January 27, the government had filed the content licence agreement entered into with Google Ireland in 2013 regarding content put up on YouTube.

The government had earlier in an affidavit told the court that its media wing and IT departments were using social media sites like Facebook and Twitter by entering into standard agreements and not any formal or separate deals.

Gupta had told the court that as per contracts the government has with these companies, it was "transferring/ surrendering" all intellectual property rights of the data being uploaded.

Source : India Today 

Game over for humans! Google's AI beat Go world champ 4-1

Google's artificial intelligence (AI) program beat South Korean professional Lee Sedol in the ancient board game Go on Tuesday, recovering from Sunday's loss to win its fourth match in a five-game series.

AlphaGo, developed by Google subsidiary DeepMind, had already clinched a series victory with its third win on Saturday in a result that shocked the world.

The program made history last year by becoming the first machine to beat a human pro player, but 33-year-old Lee was seen a much more formidable opponent.

"One of the most incredible games ever," DeepMind founder Demis Hassabis tweeted following the match. "To come back from the initial big mistake against Lee Sedol was mind-blowing!"

Go, most popular in countries such as China, South Korea and Japan, involves two contestants moving black and white stones on a square grid, with the aim of seizing the most territory.

The game is perfect for AI researchers because there are simply too many moves for a machine to win by brute-force calculations, which is how IBM's Deep Blue famously beat former world chess champion Garry Kasparov in 1997.

You read out more on original source @ India Today
All about Go, the ancient Chinese game in which Google's robot bested a master

SEO Tips - Top 10 SEO Blog You Should Refer in 2016

It's been said again and again ,I'll say it again: SEO is something which is constantly changing. One of the best ways to keep up with SEO update is to follow some of the top SEO blogs in the industry.Its not all of them but yes you can stay update by following these blog

What you want to look for in a SEO blog is not only that it covers the latest SEO news, but that it also takes that news and analyses what it means for your brand company or clients. These topics, in addition to other relevant "how-to" articles, videos, and guides, are what make an SEO blog stand out against the rest.

You see where this is going: I found few of the best that really fit this criterion and have great potential for 2015.

Google's Official Blog

The Google Blog. This is obviously a blog that never gets old. It's always updated, it's always correct, and it's always something you should be reading.This blog is purely for the latest news , update on product , events and glimpses of life inside Google.

The Popular Names in SEO industry 

Search Engine Land.“Search Engine Land is a must read hub for news and information about search engine marketing, optimization and how search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Microsoft Live.com and Ask.com work for searchers” Arguably the most popular SEO blog around, this one seems to have it all. It is always the first to break news, and you'll find that they have several articles on one subject, so all of your questions can be answered right on this blog. You'll find that most of the writers are the same each day, but the topics definitely have good variety.

Search Engine Watch.“A guide to search engine marketing and search engine optimization. Forums, reviews, articles, ratings, and frequent newsletters.”This is also one of the main blogs out there on the web for SEO. While Search Engine Land is typically the first to break news and get it out there, Search Engine Watch still covers the news and always seems to publish just a little bit more frequently and add just a little bit more information. In other words, reading both is beneficial.

Search Engine Journal. This blog thrives on guest contributors, so you're always getting different topics and different voices. It still covers news like the other two main websites, but this one seems to have a little bit more fun with videos, great comments, and some of the most detailed content around.

Moz. Moz has been in the SEO game since 2004, publishing some of the best guides available for beginners. They also publish quite a bit of advanced material and keep things very detailed, so just about any small business can benefit. They don't report SEO news quite as much as the others, but they delve into popular topics frequently.

The Blogs Not to Miss

KISSmetrics.This is a cool blog because it puts a focus on data & metrics and is incredibly thorough . Although they do cover other subjects besides just SEO, they publish frequently enough that there is almost always a few articles each week that can help your SEO efforts. If you're looking for content that is detailed and covers every angle of a topic, this is your blog.

HigherVisibility. This is one of those SEO blogs that focuses quite a bit on the "what it means to you" aspects of everything SEO. It doesn't just tell you the news and what it might mean, but it actually gives you steps and tools to put something in place to take action on your website. In other words, it's one of the best out there if you're really looking for useful advice about improving your SEO.

SEMRush. SEMRush is a company that does more than just blog (they offer one of the best SEO site audit tools on the market), so they really know their stuff. You'll see guest authors on this blog occasionally and it's always updated with the latest information. Like HigherVisibility, there is a lot of advice found here that you can really take and put into practice.

HubSpot. The greatest thing about this blog is the way it's written. The articles have a conversational tone and have done a good job "humanizing" the content to make it easy to understand. The Marketing Blog is where you're going to find your SEO advice, but HubSpot also has blogs covering other topics (sales, academy, web design, etc.) that I recommend checking out.

Mattcuts.com. This blog is belongs to former web spam Team Head .This blog contains post related to technology , gadget & SEO.

ShoutMeLoud This blog is about blogging tips and technology, its popular one among  all the bloggers however you can get very helpful tips regarding SEO and Word Press.

Whatsapp is Free & More Useful - No subscription Fees

Say Cheese! WhatsApp is free and more useful

Whatapp, most popular messaging app, I guess there are almost none,who have not used Whatsapp. An instant messaging app keeps you abreast with all developments under the irrespective of place and time.

Fast,Simple & Reliable 

Folks, here is some great news to share with you all.

WhatsApp will no longer charge subscription as presumably this was one of the biggest tension of someone`s lyf since lyf comes to a halt when we don`t receive WhatsApp messages.

The Company, now under the aegis of Facebook, has recently announced this news instead WhatsApp is planning to give more pleasant experience and trying to lend you a more simpler life than ever , by testing new tool being developed by the company that would communicate with business and organizations that you want to hear from. That could mean communicating with your bank about whether a recent transaction was fraudulent,or with an airline about a delayed flight.

Top Technology Blogs on Web

Searched For

Then I found 926 million results but most of the lists are not relevant technology blogs.So here is the list of manually verified technology Blog.

http://www.computerworld.com/blogs

• Technology Tips 

http://googleforwork.blogspot.in/

• Google Apps & Gadget 

http://lifehacker.com

• Jugaad Technology , Psychology & Mental well being 

http://gizmodo.com

• About : Technology blog advise on which gadgets are worth your money and time.

http://howtogeek.com

• About : Online Tech Magazine 

http://arstechnica.com

• "technically savvy, up-to-date, and more fun"

http://digitaltrends.com

• Techs for the way we live 

http://venturebeat.com

• News, events, groundbreaking research and perspective on technology innovation

http://hackaday.com

• Hackaday serves up Fresh Hacks Every Day from around the Internet.

http://krebsonsecurity.com

• Cyber crime and other Internet security topics.

http://coolest-gadgets.com

•  All latest cool gadgets

http://binarymoon.co.uk

• wordpress & Themes 

http://briansolis.com

• Emerging technology on business, marketing, and culture

http://coolsmartphone.com

• Android and iPhone, Windows Phone news

http://tapscape.com

• iPhone, iPad, Android App Reviews And Tech News

http://kryogenix.org

• Open source and product design

http://itproguru.com

• Windows Server, System Center, Virtualization, Cloud Etc. 

http://smarterware.org

•  Tech News , Tutorial & Analysis