Google

Update 9:14 a.m. PST: I uncovered much more specific information from Google programmers, so be sure to check this separate story describing how Chrome works crudely on Linux.

I get a lot of e-mail from people asking when Google will release its Chrome Web browser for Mac OS X and Linux. So, with the Windows beta version available for more than two months now, I thought I'd pester Google for an updated schedule.

Will we see the new versions by Thanksgiving? The end of the year?

The answer, in effect: "Please hold, your call is important … Read more

Google has always deserved a little healthy suspicion. Now it may be getting unhealthy.

The company that will never, never share your search information, unless, well, things change, is launching something called Flu Trends.

It is based on the exciting notion that when people come down with the flu, they rush headlong to their laptops and search "flu," "flu symptoms," "thermometer," or "can you pick up germs through kissing people you don't know?"

So the idea that the Google engineers have come up with is to track these aggregate searches so that the government can warn certain regions when the flu is coming their way.… Read more

Microsoft is getting closer to a deal to become the default search provider for Verizon Wireless, according to a report Tuesday in The Wall Street Journal that cited people close to negotiations.

Microsoft would share ad revenue with Verizon under terms being considered, with guaranteed payments to the wireless carrier of $550 million to $650 million over five years, or twice what is Google was offering, according to people familiar with the deal. Microsoft is also reportedly negotiating to put its Windows Mobile operating system on more Verizon devices. The combined deals are valued at $1 billion.

Reports that Microsoft … Read more

If an Argentine sports fan tried searching Yahoo Argentina for one of his country's most beloved athletes--soccer star Diego Maradona--these days, he'd be out of luck.

Both Yahoo and Google are locked in a legal battle with dozens of fashion models and other public figures like Maradona over whether the Internet companies should have to censor search results relating to those persons' names.

The result so far: since last year, Internet users have been left with abbreviated search results from Yahoo Argentina and Google Argentina, as a result of temporary restraining orders handed down by Argentine judges.

Google Profiles have become a bit more socially useful, with the search giant adding an option that lets people offer it as a way to get in touch without actually sharing their e-mail addresses.

To enable the option, click the "Edit profile" link, then check the "Allow people to contact me through my profile (without showing my email address)" option.

Enabling the option adds a "Send a message" link to your profile page, but not just anyone can send a message, though--only those with a Google account.

I sent myself a message; it had … Read more

Google on Tuesday unveiled a new site to track the progress of the common cold.

Using the same keyword tracking technology found on Google Trends, it keeps an eye on people searching for queries involving the word "flu" and tracks them both by date and location.

What makes the technology so fascinating is that its data set goes back to 2003, and has been cross-referenced with the last several years of survey data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Google says that because its own system is based on a constant flow of searches as … Read more

When it comes to telling customers about security weaknesses, there's a fine line between alerting customers and inviting attacks. With T-Mobile G1, the first phone to run Google's Android operating system, I think the companies are erring on the side of inadequate disclosure.

I've been testing a review model of the G1, and an update arrived first on November 1 and then a second a week later. Only by dint of much pestering and more than a week of waiting did I find out from Google what was in those two Android patches.

And T-Mobile has been … Read more

Google is rolling out video and voice capabilities for the chat function that is embedded in the Gmail interface. It's a bare-bones voice and video-conferencing service, but it's simple to install and use and is a very good addition to Gmail.

It's no Skype, though. Gmail Video and Voice, as it's called, can't connect to the plain phone network, as Skype's paid service can. And there are plenty of other optional features missing, like a voice call recorder.

I found a demo of voice and video quality on the service excellent, although to be … Read more

We try to get all sentimental about the demise of the Mars Phoenix lander, but Brian Cooley ruins it with his outlandish assertions about the uselessness of space. Plus, he loses his mind about the crappiness of the BlackBerry Curve. In sum, a good time is had by all.

Mars Phoenix Lander completes its mission http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-10092897-52.html http://www.urbanhonking.com/universe/2008/11/interview_marsphoenix.html http://gizmodo.com/5082385/this-is-my-farewell-transmission-from-mars

Flat-panel TV shipments begin their decline http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10093153-1.html

FCC OKs digital workaround for … Read more