Top Lajmet Shqip

Filed under: Design, Google, Web

Aviary, makers of awesome web graphics applications which recently went free, have now started offering Google Apps integration, via the brand-new Google Apps Marketplace. This means you can create Aviary graphics from within Google Docs, and save your files there as well. This is aimed at Google Apps users (as is the whole marketplace, currently), so you need to be the domain administrator to enable it. But once it's enabled, all users get to use it, unlimited and free. Office workers now have one more reason to doodle, and management should like it because it saves them money on graphics software.

You can see their intro video after the jump, and read a bit more about it in the Aviary blog. Aviary are seriously rocking recently.

Aviary hops on Google Apps Marketplace bandwagon originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google Docs - Google - google app marketplace - Google App - Download Squad

Filed under: Internet, web 2.0, Browsers

Microsoft Labs has an insanely-cool tech demo product called Pivot. In a nutshell, it's a completely new browsing paradigm which lets you "swim" in the ocean of data rather than drown in it. You can zoom in and out on complex sets of data, and slice and dice them in all sorts of crazy ways.

I saw a TED talk about it (you can watch it too, after the jump) and on the one hand it seemed very cool, but the guy presenting it was also the developer and was very familiar with it. This made me wonder what it's like to use it for the first time -- it's such a paradigm shift, that I just had to see what's the learning curve and how it actually works in real life.

So I downloaded and installed it, and made a short screencast documenting my initial impression. It's very different than the TED Talk because I'm obviously a first-time user, which is the whole point really. My video is after the jump.

My own video:

The original TED Talk showing an overview of Pivot:

DLS Screencast: first time with Microsoft Pivot originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft - Download Squad - Tech demo - Microsoft Pivot - Business

Filed under: Internet, Security

Until now, geolocation has been one of those quaint, semi-useful buzzwords: '... now with geolocation!!!' Twitter, Buzz and Foursquare -- the main exponents of exposing your location -- might not be small, but they pale in comparison to Facebook. With the announcement that Facebook will be enabling geolocation next month, Pandora's Box has been torn open; whether you like it or not, geolocation is about to become a huge part of your life.

Facebook, with 400 million users and a wealth of sensitive and contextual information, will make previous attempts at utilizing your location look like child's play. Not only will this impact you as a user of the busiest site on the Internet, but games are about to be turned on their head: if you thought Foursquare was cool, you really have seen nothing yet. There were hints that Facebook would be enabling geolocation in November, and I guarantee that casual games companies like Zynga are wetting their pants in anticipation. Imagine how social gaming could soon become with a geolocation-enabled Facebook: when you visit your friend's house, their FarmVille farm could pop up on your smartphone. How about a healthy version of the game that rewards you for tending to your farm while walking around outside?

Of course, with greater functionality comes wide-ranging risks. We've already seen the potential pitfalls of exposing your location on Foursquare -- won't the 400 million users of Facebook merely exacerbate the issue? Won't the term 'Facebook stalking' take on a whole new meaning when someone actually knows where you are?

I bet there's a large percentage of Facebook users that haven't configured their privacy settings. What if you tell your boyfriend or girlfriend that you're out with friends, but the geolocation data of an uploaded photo gives away your true location? Worse, can you imagine your mother checking up on you?

I know social networking is all about exposing information about ourselves, but most of the time we are aware of the data we're exposing. Be careful, and make sure you know what you're publishing.

Facebook will enable geolocation -- will you expose yourself? originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Facebook - Twitter - Foursquare - Pandora - Download Squad

Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Macintosh, Linux, Open Source

Open source FeelHome provides simple, cross-platform remote access to your files originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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opensource - Remote access - Windows - Download Squad - Microsoft Windows

Filed under: Fun

While we're on the subject of other web technologies that do things we're used to seeing from Flash, I thought I'd show you Harmony. It's a very neat little toy (or proof of concept, I guess) that is written in Javascript, and it uses a technique called "procedural drawing". It's a similar concept to that used on the Flame app (which I covered the other day), but here you get just a single color (black) and a whole bunch of really cool brushes.

You select a brush, start doodling with your mouse, and it gives you surprisingly realistic sketching effects, like "fur" or "shading". It's really fun to play with, and once you get the hang of it, it's actually controllable. It doesn't have undo functionality which makes it kind of similar to sketching with ink in real life. Still, I used it to draw that incredibly realistic ant-dog hybrid in the screenshot above, and I did it all by myself. Mommy would be so proud!

Harmony helps you doodle with the magic of Javascript originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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JavaScript - Drawing - Download Squad - Adobe Flash - Programming

Filed under: Web services, Google, Beta

Google Maps just added one of its most-requested features ever: biking directions! Sure, you could get by on your bike with walking or driving directions, but those often include either freeways or streets with no bike lanes. The directions come with the ability to change routes by dragging and dropping the start and end points of your trip.

Since I'm familiar with the bike routes in my area, I put Google's biking directions to the test, and they worked well. The biking directions included the most bike-safe bridge in my area, as well as a route to downtown that's already well-known to area cyclists. Well done, Google! Because the directions are still in beta, Google is asking that you use caution when following them, and report any problems with the suggested routes.

Get ready to roll with new biking directions on Google Maps originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google - Google Maps - Cycling - Download Squad - Segregated cycle facilities

Filed under: Utilities, Macintosh, VoIP

Skype may warn you that their experimental versions are potentially unstable and even ugly, but they do have some exciting features that haven't come to the mainstream releases of the app yet. Skype's known for its voice and video chat capabilities, but the experimental version of Skype for Mac adds indexed search to Skype's underrated text chat feature.

You should back up your Skype user data, found in~/Library/Application Support/Skype/<username>, before you install the experimental version of Skype and start indexing your chats. Once the initial indexing process is over, you won't have to go through it again. Your chats will be added to the search index in real time. You'll be able to find them later by searching with whole or partial words and the boolean operators (like AND and NOT) that you're already familiar with from sites like Google.

Other features in Skype's experimental Mac app include sending your Skype "Mood Messages" to Twitter and enabling a new chat window using Command-N.

Experimental version of Skype Mac includes indexed search for chats originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Skype - Google - Twitter - Download Squad - Voice over Internet Protocol

Filed under: Web services, Social Software, web 2.0

Twitter and Facebook both moved forward with their new location-based features today, with Twitter switching on geolocation features on Twitter.com, and Facebook announcing it will allow users to share their locations.

We already knew that Twitter's move was coming, because Twitter's location services have been part of the API and available in third-party apps for some time now. TechCrunch is reporting that geolocation was only on for Twitter.com temporarily, but that it should come back within the week, in time for SXSW. They've also got screenshots, in case you're a "believe-it-when-I-see-it" type.

Facebook's move is a bigger surprise. The New York Times broke the story, citing this new line in Facebook's privacy policy: "When you share your location with others or add a location to something you post, we treat that like any other content you post." Facebook hasn't commented, but the NYT's sources say its location plans include both the website and developer APIs for Facebook apps.

All of this points to the idea that location-centric apps like Google Buzz and Foursquare aren't just a passing phase. Get used to location in social networks, because it looks like it's about to arrive in a big way.

Twitter rolls out geolocation, and Facebook location sharing is coming originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Facebook - Twitter - New York Times - Social network - Google

Filed under: Business, Developer, Google

The announcement for the new marketplace is actually going on right now. Head on over to the Google Code YouTube Channel to watch the live broadcast.

Google Apps, if you're confused by the sheer number of 'apps'-related terms used in conversation nowadays, are Google's in-the-cloud business solutions. Today's launch does not represent the launch of apps that you and I will be able to use with Gmail (but I doubt a consumer Marketplace is far away...)

The Google Apps Marketplace is here to fill the gaps. Citing security concerns, the Marketplace will be full of extensions and apps that join enterprise services -- and your data -- together. To be honest, I don't know the full extent of what we can expect to see on the Marketplace, but I'm sure we'll review some apps when they appear!

If you're unable to watch the video, Mashable is live blogging the broadcast. To get you up to speed, here are some bullet points from the first half hour:

• It will cost developers $100 to join the Marketplace as a seller. 20% of revenue will go to Google (significant, because Apple takes 30%!)
• Lots of partners in the program, from launch: Aviary, Expensify and others
• OAuth is being utilized, to ensure secure interconnectivity between Google Apps and external services/data

The site, when it's officially launched, will be accessible here: http://www.google.com/enterprise/marketplace/ (by the time you read this story, the site might already be up!)

Google Apps Marketplace launches originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 21:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google - Google Apps - Download Squad - Apple - Apps

Filed under: Palm, Web services, Social Software, web 2.0

We covered location-based game Foursquare's webOS client earlier in the year, noting that competitor Gowalla had a client for the Palm Pre and Pixi 'in the works' - and today, just in time for SXSW, the Gowalla webOS client has appeared in the App Store. As with all things Gowalla, the client is slickly designed, and includes all the bells and whistles found in the Gowalla iPhone app from Checking in, friends checkins and the recently expanded 'Trips' feature.

Whilst the number of webOS devices may be somewhat lower than, say, iPhones, the release today is particularly important given the webOS browser doesn't support location services that would otherwise allow Gowalla users to use the well-designed mobile website.

Be sure to check out our gallery of Gowalla for webOS screenshots - and if you own a Pre or Pixi, the app is ready to download in the webOS App Catalog.

Gowalla hits webOS with a slick new client originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PalmPre - WebOS - Palm App Catalog - IPhone - Gowalla