Google finally reveals its plans to let you buy things directly from search results

Google wants to make it much easier to shop from your phone. In the next few weeks,  the company is rolling out a new feature that lets you make purchases directly through Google Search results. It's being called Purchase on Google.
When an advertisement for a product appears in search results, you'll be able to click on that product and select the checkout option if you want to buy it. Here's what it will look like:

Google says it wants to make sure the retailer still has a relationship with the customer. So, when you select a product that appears in search results, you'll be taken to a microsite within Google that has the look and feel of that particular retailer. From there, you can choose to buy the product, or search for another product from that retailer if the specific item you want isn't shown.
There are currently a dozen or so merchants participating in Purchase on Google.  As that scale is successful, Google says it will continue to ramp up and offer more products from different merchants.
Google is also launching several other new features catered towards shopping. One way the company is doing this is by deep linking apps from shopping ads. This means that if you have the eBay app installed on your phone, you'll be directed to the eBay app if a product from eBay appears in your search results.
Another way the company is making it easier to shop online is by rolling out  a new feature called conversational voice search. This means you can ask Google Now a shopping-related query in natural language, and it will pull up an answer. For example, you can ask for the resolution of a specific camera model just like you would ask a store clerk at Best Buy, and Google will pull it up.
Google is also adding a few new cards to Google Now that make it easier to shop. A new product reviews card will show you reviews for a certain product when you ask. A  price drop card will show you when a particular item is on sale, too.

Google will soon be able to rank products in search results, too. So, if you ask Google what the best sunscreen is, it will rank the three best sunscreens based on reviews.
"We built this because we saw a lot of people asking Google for advice," said Jonathan Alferness, vice president of product management for Google Shopping.
The announcement comes after Google confirmed that a buy button would be coming to search results back in May at Re/code's Code Conference. This is the first time we're hearing more details about the feature and when we can expect to see it.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com 

Facebook will soon add a 'buy' button so you can shop from Facebook

Facebook is rolling out a new way to sell things.
It's letting certain stores sell their products directly through the social network via a "buy" button on their Pages,
Although Facebook's just testing its so-called "shop section," the move makes sense, given its recent introduction of peer-to-peer payments capabilities, new ways to let stores communicate with people via messages, and its increasing dedication to keeping people within the Facebook ecosystem as much as possible.
This isn't the first time Facebook has taken a stab at ecommerce.
Back in 2011, Facebook allowed a bunch of different brands like Gamestop, Gap, JC Penney, and Nordstrom to open stores on the site.
They all closed within a year.
At the time, several merchants said that they decided to close their shops because consumers preferred shopping on their regular sites, so there wasn't a big enough return on investment.
Of course, ecommerce has swelled hugely since then and its become much more normalized for people to buy things on their phones. Google, Pinterest, and Twitter now all have their own buy buttons too.
Facebook told BuzzFeed it won't take a cut of sales.
Don't expect to see a bunch of buy buttons cropping up right away.
"We are planning to expand the test in coming weeks to include more businesses, but it will remain very small for now,"

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com 

Apple and Samsung are said to be working on a technology that would change the wireless industry as we know it

 In the near future, switching your phone plan between different wireless carriers could be a lot easier than it is today.
The GSMA, an industry association that represents mobile-phone makers worldwide, is working on a standardized, embeddable SIM card that would let you jump between carriers more easily.
Apple and Samsung, two of the world's biggest phone makers, are said to be in "advanced talks" with the GSMA about the launch of these embeddable SIM cards, according to the Financial Times.
Samsung has confirmed to Business Insider that it is working on electronic SIM cards in the following statement:
"We are participating in the development of e-SIM cards, which we believe will allow us to provide better experience on our devices for consumers."
A SIM card is the tiny piece of plastic in your phone that stores your phone number and info about your data plan and identifies your phone to the carrier.
These cards are programmed to work with a specific carrier, which is why you typically need to buy phones specific to the carrier you're using when shopping for a new device.
The SIM card in your phone is locked into that carrier, so if you have an AT&T phone but want to switch to Verizon, for instance, you'd have to buy a Verizon SIM card.
This new electronic SIM card would work differently. It doesn't sound as if it would be removable, but you would be able to switch between carriers on your device whenever you please.
AT&T will reportedly support this embeddable SIM along with international carriers including Deutsche Telecom, Etisalat, Hutchison Whampoa, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone, according to the Financial Times.
It's unclear how this would work, but it sounds similar to Apple SIM, which Apple launched earlier this year.
Apple SIM is a SIM card that is available as an option for the cellular version of the iPad Air 2. It works with multiple carriers, so you could choose your carrier when you set up the iPad and then switch whenever you want.
A standardized SIM card that lets you jump between carriers at will could have a significant impact on the industry because it could change the entire phone-purchasing process.
You wouldn't be locked into a two-year contract, because you could switch carriers at will. You'd still have to buy data plans from carriers, but if you're dissatisfied with the service, you could switch next month rather than having to wait out a contract.
Carriers have been shying away from the traditional two-year contract model in recent years. All of the major US carriers now offer plans that let you pay off your phone monthly and upgrade after one year or a year and a half rather than two years.
But a move like this could give consumers less incentive to remain loyal to a carrier. If you're willing to give up the price subsidy that comes with long-term contracts, there's nothing stopping you from switching carriers from month to month.
The GSMA's deals with Apple and Samsung are contingent on finalizing the technical specifications of the SIM card. Devices that support the technology aren't expected to launch for another year, the report says.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com 

Microsoft's new web browser is up to 112% faster than Google Chrome

Google's Chrome web browser is the most popular web browser in the world right now, according to StatCounter. But Microsoft's new web browser for Windows 10, called Edge, might prove to be superior.
In a Windows blog post on Wednesday, Gabe Aul, Microsoft's head of the Windows Insider program, announced a new set of benchmarks for Microsoft Edge, the company's new web browser made for Windows 10.

Microsoft Edge showed significant performance gains over Google Chrome, but what's most impressive is that Microsoft used benchmarks created by Apple and Google: Edge was tested using Google Octane, Apple JetStream, and WebKit Sunspider. That last one is actually a benchmark created by Apple's WebKit development team that's intended for the iOS, Mac, and Windows versions of Safari, Apple's web browser.
According to the benchmark results, Microsoft Edge was 112% faster than Google Chrome on WebKit Sunspider, 11% faster on Google Octane, and 37% faster on Apple JetStream.

"We're really pleased with those performance gains and we hope that you'll enjoy faster browsing with Microsoft Edge along with the many great features we've added over the last several builds," Aul said.

If these results are accurate, Microsoft Edge could soon be the web browser of choice for Windows users, considering its power and efficiency. At the very least, these kinds of performance improvements could spur other web browsers like Chrome to innovate and improve their own products. But as it stands right now, this looks like a great reason to try Windows 10 when it launches later this year.

Windows 10 will be a free download for Windows 7 and Windows 8 users.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com 

Apple has raised the bar for construction standards with their new Campus2 spaceship HQ project

the picture represent how the site will look like when is done .
 Construction is well underway on Apple Campus 2, Apple's planned new Cupertino headquarters. No expense is being spared on the futuristic building, nicknamed the "spaceship" and costing an estimated $5 billion. Due to be completed at the end of 2016, it will accommodate 12,000 employees and features a $161 million auditorium, as well as a vast leafy green space at the centre of the site.
Every piece of this building is engineered. In other words, everything has been looked at and vetted and measured and mocked up, from concrete to joints to rebar placements. Stuff you wouldn't even see when the building's done,

The site, shaped like an O, is split into nine "wedges," and Apple employees are assigned to each "specific geographic location." Employees from Foster + Partners, the architectural firm behind Apple Campus 2, are also on-site to supervise.

The project is so extensive that Apple Campus2 has effectively "raised the bar for construction
standards.

source : Business Insider

Google I/O 2015: Everything You Need to Know

Google I/O kicked off this week in San Francisco with a clear reminder that the company mission has extended well beyond a list of 10 blue links.

Google’s Senior Vice President of Product, Sundar Pichai, reminded the crowd of 3,000 developers just how broad that mission is: to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. What started with search now includes mobile operating systems, self-driving cars, virtual reality, ad platforms, natural language processing, and one of the most remarkable products every made out of cardboard.

As usual, the conference kicked off with a 2.5-hour keynote that set the stage for the year to come. It is a developer’s conference, so the material can get pretty technical, but there is no better place to get a glimpse of the future. If you didn't catch the live stream, here is what you need to know.

(For a trip down memory lane, here's what happened last year.)

source :PCmag

10 Hidden Facebook Features Only Power Users Know

1.The Facebook Inbox You Didn't Even Know You Had
If you have been on Facebook for a while, you probably have a folder full of unread messages that you didn't even know you had: the "Other" messages folder.
To review your messages, click on "messages" in the top left column (or conversely, just click on the messages icon up at the top). By default, you'll find yourself in your main Inbox where you find all the messages you've received from your connections. However, if you look directly to the right of your "Inbox" at the top, you'll find the "Other" folder.

The Other folder is where Facebook sends all the messages from people you are not connected to

2.See Who's Snooping In Your Account
Want to know if someone is logged into your Facebook account without your permission? First, go to your settings page. Under the Security folder, you'll see the link "Where You're Logged In." Here you will find all your active Facebook log-ins from both desktop or mobile. It will (usually) provide data on the location, browser, and device. If something seems fishy, you also have the ability to "end activity" from individual or all devices.
This also comes in handy if you logged in to your friend's computer or on some public laptop, but forgot to log out.

3.Make Facebook Upside Down or in Pirate Speak
Remember 10 years ago, when Pirates were all the rage for a minute? Well, at one point the Facebook engineers got swept up in this ironic buccaneer frenzy and programmed a peculiar Easter Egg that allows you to translate your Facebook interface into Pirate or Upsidedown speak.
Does this sound appealing to you for some reason? Go to General Account Settings > Langauge and you can change your settings to either "English (Pirate)" or "English (Upside Down)."

4.Create an Interest List
There's a little-known Facebook function boringly called "interest lists." It's basically Facebook's version of Twitter lists (and should not to be confused with Facebook's "Friends lists"). Interest Lists are curated collection of posts from websites, companies, or individuals that you follow in one streamlined feed (e.g. "indie hip-hop" or "local restaurants"). Interest lists may be kept private just for you or some friends, or can be made public for the world to follow.
To access interest lists, scroll down to the "Interests" link in the left column, hover over the header and click on "more." On the next page, click the "+Add Interests" button and you will have the option to search and follow other publicly available interest lists or create your own.

5.Detail Your Facebook Romance
If you want to see the detailed Internet history of you and your significant other, go to www.facebook.com/us and you will see the complete Facebook history with whomever you are listed as in a relationship with ("us," get it?). If you're not listed as being in a relationship, it will just go to your regular page because Facebook thinks that you are just in love with yourself.
6.Transfer Files Over FB Chat
If you open a FB Chat window, there's a little gear icon in the top right corner of the window. One of the options is "Add Files...", which will allow you to upload files directly from your computer to transfer over. The receiver can just click on the included link and download them from there.
7.You Can Embed Public Content
Like other social media sites, Facebook allows you to embed publicly available content on your webpage. Just click the pull-down menu in the top right of the file and click "embed" to place the code wherever you'd like.
8.There's Lots of Secret Emoji on FB
Emoji. They take away some of the horrible pain of writing in plain language. Facebook will render all the usual face emoticons into pictorial representations: :) :D ^_^ . You know the ones. But there's also a whole bunch that you may not even be using.
(y) = thumbs-up 'like' symbol
(^^^) = a great white shark
:|] = a robot
:poop: = well, you know
<(") = a penguin
You can use these in wall posts, chats, and comments, but they don't always seem to render in mobile. You can find a full run-down of FB emoticons here.
9.Prune Your News Feed
Your News Feed is your home on Facebook. And as your home, you should try your best to keep it clean, orderly, and free of distractions. You don't want to be inundated with posts from that one brand or friend you follow who just posts all. the. time.
One of the most direct ways to do this is by pruning out offenders from your News Feed. The quickest way to access this feature is by hovering your mouse over "News Feed" in the left corner and then clicking on the little gear icon which will pop up. Then click the "Edit Preferences" prompt that appears. The pop up will give you a run-down of who you saw the most. If they are one of the offenders, you can just click the Follow button to unfollow them.
Conversely, you can do this by clicking the little arrow in the top-right corner to follow or unfollow specific people.
10.Save Posts for Later
Did you ever want to read a link that a friend shared on Facebook, but didn't have the time at that particular moment? Then, when you finally do have a moment, you either forgot about it, or it has been buried under so much other junk that it's not even worth searching for? We've all been there. That's why you should get acquainted with Facebook's "Save for Later" function.
If there's anything you want to save for later, click the little arrow in the top-right of any post. Then click the Save "[name of story]" button from the pull-down. This will send the link to your Saved folder. "Where's your Saved folder," you ask? Good question! You actually won't see it until you save something for the first time. Then you will see a little "saved" ribbon in your left-hand favorites bar. Click that and you will find all your favorite stories. Also works with any video your friends posted.