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Google will soon start using some of the information it already has about you to make your life a little easier (or maybe creepier). Soon when you’re logged into you Google account on a PC or using the Google Search apps for Android or iOS, you’ll be able to ask Google questions, and receive answers based on data from your Gmail, Google+ and Google Calendar accounts.
For instance, you can type or ask by voice if your flight is on time, and Google will look through your receipts and reservations to find your flight information and then check to see if the flight is delayed.
Here’s a roundup of tech news from around the web.
- Google Search to mine your Gmail, gCalender, G+ data, let you ask for flight info, reservations, etc
In addition to flight info, you can ask Google for details about reservations, purchases (and their associated tracking info), and plans. For instance, you can ask what your plans are for tomorrow, and Google Calendar info along with reservations will help Google provide you with your agenda. [Google] - Ubuntu isn’t profitable (yet), but here’s why millionaire Mark Shuttleworth keeps funding it anyway
Canonical is a for-profit company, but it’s one that hasn’t actually ever made a profit. If Canonical stopped making software for personal computers and focused on servers, it could probably start making money tomorrow — but founder Mark Shuttleworth has visions of a future where Ubuntu offers PC, mobile, and cloud software that works together seamlessly. [Ars Technica] - Popular disk partition tool Parted Magic now costs $5, still totally worth it (and helps out a developer in need)
Parted Magic is an excellent tool for managing your disk partitions. Basically it’s a light-weigh Linux-based operating system that puts the gParted partition manager front and center. It’s been available as a free download for years, but now the developer is asking users to pony up $5. It’s worth it, and it helps an out-of-work developer make a full-time job from his popular software. [Phoronix] - Another Intel Haswell-powered Chrome OS device shows up in the code
The earliest Chromebooks featured Intel Atom processors. Newer models have more powerful hardware. Eventually we might start to see models with Intel’s 4th-generation Core processor family chips. [Chrome Story] - Investors file class-action suit against Microsoft over Surface RT write-down, misleading sales data
Microsoft has had a rough time moving its Windows RT tablets, which is bad enough news. Now it turns out investors are claiming they were mislead about the Surface RT’s performance in the market. [ZDNet] - Amazon redesigns the Silk web browser for Kindle Fire tablets
Amazon is releasing a major update to the Silk web browser for its Kindle Fire tablets since 2012. There’s a refreshed user interface, a new tutorial screen, quick access to your most visited links, and other changes. [Amazon]
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duckduckgo dot com
Duckduckgo is one of my go-to search sites. It reminds me of Google when it first started…minus the tracking. You can also try Ixquick.
For more information about search engines check out https://searchengineland.com/
I am not affiliated with them.
Brad’s pretty cool with administration. You can spell it out fully…you’re enhancing the thread’s value so he’s cool about linking.
https://www.duckduckgo.com
I hate things doing my thinking for me.
There is a technical reason, too, why this annoys me. Layers of complexity add fragility to a system. In search, that fragility shows up as incomplete or invalid return results. That is why I frequently use explicit syntax when I perform a search such as “quote marks around literal strings”.
Ya, as time goes by and Google’s search gets “smarter,” I end up using quotation marks and the OR operator more and more. Google’s search results are getting worse with each “enhancement.”