The following new features are available in Gmail when adding attachments:
– You can now select multiple files from the same folder for attachment simultaneously – The ability to see upload progress on for each attachment as it loads
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education and Partner Editions
Languages included: All languages supported by Gmail
How to access what's new: To upload multiple attachments from the same folder, click 'Attach a file', browse to a folder, hold down the Ctrl key (Cmd on OSX) and click on each file you want to attach to your message. You can hold down the Shift key to select a continuous list of files. An upload progress bar will be displayed for each file as it loads.
The Google Apps status dashboard now provides performance information for Google Apps services.
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education, Team and Partner Editions
Languages included: US English
How to access what's new: Go to http://www.google.com/appsstatus to view the status of Google Apps services. Select 'Older >>' or '<< Newer' to navigate to a specific date.
Advanced Segmentation is one of Google Analytics' most powerful features - you can use it to slice and dice your Google Analytics data by, well, pretty much anything. We've made it a little easier to see what your iPhone visitors are doing on your site by adding a default Advanced Segment showing just visits from iPhones.
Enabling the new iPhone segment is easy: click on the drop down menu at the top right of any report next to the text "Advanced Segments", and select "Visits from iPhones" in the list of default segments. You might want to turn off "All Visits" when viewing your iPhone segment; if the percentage of total visits to your site from the iPhone is small, it will be difficult to visualize the two sets on numbers on the same graph.
Like any Advanced Segment, all of Google Analytics' reports are available; this includes AdWords performance, of course. If you use AdWords, you can now use Analytics to better analyze the performance of any campaigns that use our new iPhone and high-end mobile targeting feature. We've added the iPhone segment to get you started, but you can always create a custom Advanced Segment to compare or combine iPhone visits with other mobile operating systems; for instance, if you're targeting ads in AdWords to iPhone & high end mobile devices (which currently includes Android devices), you can create a new segment for iPhone & Android.
From the Advanced Segments drop-down, click on "Create a new advanced segment", and create a segment with 2 criteria. Drag "Operating System" under the "Systems" dimension into the target area with the dotted-line border, and type "iPhone" into the "Value" field. Click "Add 'or' statement" to get a second target area, and do the same for Android. Then, you can name your segment "High-end mobile" and see that traffic in Analytics.
One of the most common questions we are asked on this blog is "When will this be available for my phone?". Well for all you Windows Mobile fans the answer is "now" for the Google Mobile App. Try it out by downloading it from http://m.google.com/search on your mobile phone.
Google Mobile App gives you faster searching on your Windows Mobile device, with easy access to your favorite Google applications from the Today screen. There's no need to wait for a browser to open to begin a search, and with search history available to reduce typing, you can get your search results with fewer clicks than before. For an even speedier experience, Pocket PC users can add the Google Mobile App to the start menu (Settings: Menus) or configure a hardware key (Settings: Buttons) to provide easy access from within any application on your phone.
How much faster is it? Well, our stopwatches show that Google Mobile App team members (who are mostly normal people, no superpowers were deployed during the timings) were able to get their search results for identical queries nearly 50% faster from Google Mobile App than from navigating to google.com in the mobile browser.
Check out more highlights of Google Mobile App on Windows Mobile in this video.
Google Mobile App is available for all devices running Windows Mobile in the US, UK, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, and Germany. (Check your phone model here to see if your phone is running Windows Mobile.) It is also available for iPhone, iPod touch and BlackBerry devices.
Posted by Craig Wilkinson, Google Mobile App engineer
If you own a BlackBerry Storm on Verizon Wireless, we encourage you to download a brand new version of Google Maps for mobile that utilizes the Storm's internal GPS. The Storm is the first Verizon BlackBerry that makes it possible for My Location to access GPS location. After you install the new version on your Storm, you will notice improved accuracy for My Location and Latitude. Based on interest in certain Google Mobile User Forum threads, this functionality should be a welcome addition.
So if you have a Verizon BlackBerry Storm, just go to m.google.com/maps from your BlackBerry's browser to download the latest version of Google Maps to your device - and start getting hyper-accurate!
(Note: If you have an older BlackBerry on Verizon, even one with GPS like the BlackBerry 8130, this announcement unfortunately does not apply to you. The Storm is currently the only BlackBerry Verizon phone that makes GPS available to Google Maps. We hope you enjoy using My Location through network positioning or Wi-Fi, when available.)
Posted by Tom Dimopoulos, Consumer Operations Mobile
The following new features are available in Google Spreadsheets: – A mobile-friendly view with filtering, sorting and row-by-row editing – The ability to define attributes of a cell and require that input meets those data validation rules – A form summary page with information about completed responses
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education, Team and Partner Editions
Languages included: All languages supported by Google Docs
How to access what's new: To access or create a spreadsheet in list view from your mobile device, visit docs.google.com/a/example.com from your mobile browser, but remember to replace "example.com" in this address with your actual domain name.
To use data validation, select a cell from your spreadsheet, click 'Tools' from the menu bar and choose 'Data validation'. Enter your attributes and click 'Save'.
To view the form summary page, click 'Form' from the spreadsheet menu bar and choose 'Show summary'.
Until today, you've only been able to view Google Docs spreadsheets on your mobile devices. Last night, we launched new capabilities to Google Docs for your phone that allow you to add new rows, edit existing cells, sort by columns, and filter by terms. Now you don't have to wait until you get to your computer to update a spreadsheet, whether it's your expense tracker, time sheet, or your wine rating spreadsheet.
To check out these new capabilities, just go to m.google.com/docs in your mobile browser and log in. If you are a Google Apps user, go to docs.google.com/a/your-domain.
Enhanced mobile access to spreadsheets is available on Android, iPhone (and iPod touch), and Symbian S60. You can read more about these enhancements on the Google Docs blog.
Posted by Andrew Chang, Marketing Manager, Google Docs team
Just a week ago we announced Google Latitude, a new feature of Google Maps for mobile that lets you see your friends' locations. Today Dylan Casey, a former professional cyclist, announced another location-based service from Google. My Tracks is a new Android application that makes it easy to record your routes when cycling, running, hiking, or doing pretty much any outdoor activity.
Because the Android operating system supports background processes, you can run the My Tracks app while using other applications on your phone.
My Tracks also integrates with other Android applications to make it easy to share your routes. When you select "Share with friends," Android will allow you to share your track through other Android applications that can send messages. By default this is the Gmail application, but if you have installed other applications that can send messages, there will be more options. To demonstrate this we worked with the Twidroid team. It is now just as easy to tweet your tracks as it is to email them. Simply install the latest version of Twidroid available from Android market. Next time you share a track recorded with My Tracks, you can also tweet a link to your tracks!
To download My Tracks to your G1, go to Android Market and search for "My Tracks." And don't forget to check out the My Tracks website.
The following new features are available in Gmail contacts: – You can now combine multiple contacts into a single entry – The new 'All Contacts' group includes 'My Contacts' and other people you've corresponded with – You can remove contacts from 'My Contacts', leaving them in 'All Contacts' – You can search across all contact fields
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education and Partner Editions
Languages included: US English
How to access what's new: To merge multiple contacts, go to the Gmail contact manager, select the contacts you want to merge and click the 'Merge these contacts...' link. Note: autocomplete may show email addresses from merged contacts in an unexpected order, and this issue is being resolved.
To remove contacts from 'My Contacts' (which can be synced to your mobile device with Google Sync) go to the Gmail contact manager, select a contact, click the 'Groups' button and choose the 'Remove from...My Contacts' option.
To search across all contact fields, go to the Gmail contact manager and enter your search term in the search box. You can search on phone numbers, postal addresses, notes and more.
In September 2007, we launched Adsense for mobile content so that publishers could join our mobile content network and monetize their sites with Google text ads.
Today, we're happy to announce a new AdSense product for both mobile network operators and mobile website owners across the globe. AdSense for mobile search is a quick and easy way for carriers and mobile publishers to embed a Google search box on their mobile portals and web sites. Whether they are day-dreaming of Hawaii or trying to find the perfect Valentine's day gift, mobile phone users will get instant access to Google search including comprehensive web search, local, image, and news results -- all formatted for their phones. Mobile operators and website owners share in the ad revenue generated by searches originating from their sites.
AdSense for mobile search is a Google-hosted solution, which means users will experience the same speed, reliability, and innovation that they've come to expect from Google. And even though the results pages are served by Google, the pages can be cobranded with publishers' logos and linked back to their sites. See the mock-up on the left.
If you're interested in beta-testing AdSense for mobile search, please fill out this form. And if you are coming to Barcelona next week for the Mobile World Congress, make sure to fill out the form by Friday, February 13. We are inviting a limited number of carriers and publishers for a private information session about AdSense for mobile search and would love to meet you. Note that filling out the form does not guarantee participation in the program.
Posted by Yury Pinsky, Product Manager, Google mobile team
Google Sync (beta) is now available, and allows two-way push sync of Google Calendar and Gmail contacts data to iPhone and Windows Mobile devices through ActiveSync. Two-way contacts sync is also available for devices that support SyncML.
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education, Team and Partner Editions
Languages included: US English
How to access what's new: Administrators must first enable Google Sync for their users. In the control panel, click 'Services settings' and choose 'Mobile'. Check the box for 'Enable Google Sync' and click 'Save changes'.
Users can then configure Google Sync for their mobile devices. The link below provides device-specific configuration instructions.
Note: Google Sync will replace all existing contacts and calendar information on your phone, so make sure to back up any important data before you get started.
One of the hardest parts about switching phones is getting your address book and calendar to your new device. We're making that process a little easier by releasing a beta version of Google Sync for the iPhone and Windows Mobile phones as well as a contacts-only version for phones that support SyncML.
For iPhone and Windows Mobile devices, Google Sync allows you to get your Gmail Contacts and Google Calendar events to your phone. Once you set up Sync on your phone, it will automatically begin synchronizing your address book and calendar in the background, over-the-air, so you can attend to other tasks. Sync uses push technology so any changes or additions to your calendar or contacts are reflected on your device in minutes. The connection is always on so you don't have to manually sync your phone after Sync has been set up. This means that when your colleague changes the time of the TPS report cover sheets meeting, you'll know about it right away.
Since Sync is a two-way service, you can make changes on your phone or in your Google Account. Your calendar and contacts are always up-to-date, no matter where you are or what you're doing. Also, since your data is automatically backed up to your Google Account, it's securely stored even if you lose your phone.
For devices that support the open SyncML protocol, Google Sync will allow for two-way contacts synchronization. If you're a BlackBerry user, a version of Google Sync is already available.
Following the Google credo to launch early and iterate, we're introducing Sync in beta. We encourage you to visit our Help Center to review device specific instructions and known issues. Also, please keep in mind that Google Sync may remove all existing contacts and calendar events from your phone, so make sure to back up any important data before you set it up. You can find more information on backing up in the Help Center.
The following new features are available in Google Calendar: – Collapsable screen area for all-day events – Ability to add Google Docs files to events – Streamlined settings for sharing, unsharing and deleting calendars – New 'Save and send emails' option for new events – Better accessibility with improved support for screen readers
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education, Team and Partner Editions
Languages included: US English
How to access what's new: To minimize the area for all-day events, click the triangle on the left side of the all-day events area.
To add a Google Docs file to an event, open the event details page and click 'Add a Google document'.
To share, unsubscribe from or delete a calendar, click the 'Settings' link at the bottom of the 'My calendars' box on the left side of the screen.
To save changes to an event and automatically send the details to attendees in one step, click the 'Save and send emails' button at the bottom of the event details page.
Over 1.5 million public domain books in the US (and over half a million outside the US) are now available for perusing on iPhone and Android devices. Just go to books.google.com/m in your mobile browser. You can search for a title, author, or subject. Or you can browse the list of "Featured books" and various categories like business and economics, the classics, science and math, travel, and more. Once you've picked out a book or two, you can easily get back to your selections by clicking on the "Recently viewed books" under the "My books" section.
Read more about the launch and Optical Character Recognition from the Book Search team on the Inside Google Book Search blog.
Posted by Lawrence Chang, Product Marketing Manager, Google mobile team
Google Calendar is now available offline. Read-only access allows you to view your account even when you don't have an internet connection.
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education, Team and Partner Editions
Languages included: US English
How to access what's new: End users can enable offline access in Google Calendar by clicking the 'Offline beta' link in the upper right area of the screen.
Premier and Education Edition administrators must first opt their domains into new features for their users to use Google Calendar offline. From the administrative control panel, click 'Domain settings', check the box to 'Turn on new features', and click 'Save settings'.
The Provisioning API for user and group management has been updated to allow Premier, Education and Partner Edition admins to take advantage of the new functionality of Google Apps groups, including per group sending permissions and groups that contain other groups.
Editions included: Premier, Education and Partner Editions
Languages included: US English
How to access what's new: Learn more about the Provisioning API on the Google Code site (link below).
Google Apps email lists (now called "groups") now support two improvements: – Admins can now set permissions to determine who can send to each group: group owners, group members, domain members and/or anyone in the world. – Groups can now contain other groups, making it easier to reuse frequently-referenced groups of users.
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education and Partner Editions.
Languages included: US English
How to access what's new: Sign in to the control panel and click 'Users and groups' and then 'Groups' to manage groups.
Way back in November 2007, we location-enabled all of our Google Maps for mobile clients to bring location awareness to the masses and improve the local search experience. Using My Location, millions of you have been able to easily find yourselves on a map at the touch of a button. But what about finding other people? Lots of you have been requesting to see where your friends are on a map, too. Well now you can with Google Latitude.
Latitude is a new feature of Google Maps for mobile, as well as an iGoogle gadget, that allows you to share your location with your friends and to see their approximate locations, if they choose to share them with you. You can use your Google account to sign in and easily invite friends to Latitude from your existing list of contacts or by entering their email addresses. Google Talk is integrated with Latitude, so you and your friends can update your status messages and profile photos on the go and see what everyone is up to. You can also call, SMS, IM, or email each other within the app. Check out the video below to see Latitude in action.
We've gone to great lengths to put this on as many smartphone devices as possible from day one so that most of the people you know will be able to use Latitude right away. There are two primary ways to use Latitude right now:
On your mobile phone: visit google.com/latitude from your phone's mobile browser to download Google Maps for mobile with Latitude. We currently support most of the popular smartphone platforms: Android, Blackberry, Symbian S60, and Windows Mobile, and we are hoping to see Latitude on the iPhone soon. It will be available through Google Mobile App, and you'll just need to download or update the app from the App store to find Latitude in the Apps tab.
On your computer: go to http://google.com/latitude from your browser and add the Latitude gadget to your iGoogle homepage. What's neat is that if you've installed Google Gears or if you're using Google Chrome, you can choose to automatically share your location from your laptop or desktop computer -- no smartphone required!
Latitude gives you control over how much or little location information you want to share, and with whom. And of course Latitude is 100% opt-in. Learn more about using Latitude and its privacy features in our Help Center or check out our privacy video. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention - it is available in 27 countries and 42 languages. See in which part of the world your friends are now!
Posted by Charles Mendis, Software Engineer, Google mobile team
The buttons and menus at the top of the Gmail inbox have been updated to make working with labels easier. "Move to" applies a new label, archives the message from your inbox and removes any existing labels, similar to working with folders. "Labels" just applies a new label to the message.
Editions included: Standard, Premier, Education and Partner Editions
Languages included: US English
How to access what's new: Sign in to Gmail, select the message you want to label, and click the "Move to" or "Labels" button to choose a label.
Don't want to type a long query, like "U.S. economic stimulus plan", on your T-Mobile G1? Just say it. Or, perhaps you'd like to browse the web without sliding out the keyboard? Well now you can. For those of you with a G1 in the US, the next time you get an Android update (which will gradually roll out starting this week), you'll be able to start searching -- and surfing -- with your voice. And you can use the feature quickly and easily because it's integrated in the Android browser and the home screen search widget.
You can start searching by voice with just the touch of a button. On the home screen search widget, look for the microphone button right next to the search box and the search button. Press that button, wait for the "Speak now" prompt, and then say your query. You'll soon see search results formatted for the Android browser.
Also, whenever you're in the Android browser, just press the "Menu" button and tap "Search". You'll see the same microphone button there too.
This makes doing successive voice-triggered searches -- and mobile web surfing -- easy and fast. Try speaking your favorite web sites, then tapping on the top search results to get to them.
Note that you can use the "Voice Dialer" app, which you can find on the main app menu, to search for your contacts with your voice to make a call. Or, simply long-press the green call button and follow the prompts on the splash screen.
Finally, if your speech is not interpreted correctly, try tapping the down arrow to the right of the search box and you'll see a drop down list of other suggested queries. Look for your query there. In the meantime, we're constantly working to improve our algorithms, so stay tuned for future improvements.
Posted by Jeff Hamilton, Software Engineer, Android team
A couple months ago, Tasks launched in Gmail Labs. Tasks lets you easily create and manage to-do lists right in Gmail. Now, you can access and manage your task lists from your phone, too. Just go to gmail.com/tasks in your mobile browser and log in. If you have a Google Apps account, you can go to mail.google.com/tasks/a/your-domain, replacing your-domain with your actual domain name.
On most phones, you can view tasks, add tasks, and mark them as completed. The changes are automatically reflected in Gmail. If you have an iPhone or an Android-powered device, you can also add, edit, and delete entire lists as well.
Tasks for mobile is currently available in English (like the rest of Gmail Labs). Read more on the Gmail blog and check out the video below.
Posted by Lawrence Chang, Product Marketing Manager, Google mobile team
