Google Releases Instant Messaging API

By Chris Crum - Fri, 09/04/2009 - 12:04

Apps Can Exchange Messages with Google Talk/Wave

Google has announced the release of a new API for building Talk bots on top of Google App Engine, Google's product that lets developers create and host web apps on the Google infrastructure. 

Google has released version 1.2.5 of the App Engine software developer kit (SDK) for Python and Java. This happens to be the company's first simultaneous release for both. The API includes XMPP (also referred to as Jabber) support, which is an open standard for instant messaging. This comes in the form of the XMPP API for both SDKs. 

"Like the other APIs that App Engine provides for developers, XMPP is built on the same powerful infrastructure that serves other Google products," says Google on the App Engine Blog. "In this case, we take advantage of the servers that run Google Talk. This new API allows your app to exchange messages with users on any XMPP-based network, including (but not limited to!) Google Talk."

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Tips for found in real time searches

Thursday, September 03, 2009 - For WebPro News

You've Got to Stay in the Now 

Real-time search is still an emerging concept. At this point, using a real-time search engine will bring you results by time/date. This doesn't always cater to relevancy, which is why there is still a lot of work to be done in this field.

So, if real-time results are based upon time/date, and the user's query, it stands to reason that time and those queries are the most important components in getting your content found in these types of searches. 

1. Use Keywords 

This seems obvious, but use keywords in not only your content, but in your titles, and your updates. If you're writing an article, you have to consider what people are going to include in their updates if they share it on a social network, whether this be Facebook, Twitter, or anything else. 

More often than not, they are going to include the title. If the right keywords are in the title, then those keywords are also more likely to appear in any ensuing tweets, Facebook updates, etc. If someone searches for those keywords, they will be more likely to find your content in a real-time search. 

The same goes for your own Tweets/status updates. Even if you are not sharing an article, if you want your update to be found, use relevant keywords. Again, obvious, but true. 

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eBay Sells Skype, Which is Worth $2.75 Billion

By Chris Crum - Tue, 09/01/2009 - 10:06 from WebPro News

Will Retain Approximately 35% Stake

Update: The announcement has been made. Some details from the press release:

eBay signed a definitive agreement to sell its Skype in a deal valuing the business at $2.75 billion. The buyer, who will control an approximately 65 percent stake, is an investor group led by Silver Lake and includes Index Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz and the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) Investment Board. eBay is expected to receive approximately $1.9 billion in cash upon the completion of the sale and a note from the buyer in the principal amount of $125 million. The company will retain an approximately 35 percent equity investment in Skype. The transaction, which is not subject to a financing condition, is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2009. 

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Google Launches New Features for Sites

By Chris Crum - Wed, 09/02/2009 - 14:47 for WebPro News

Gives Site Owners More Control

Google has introduced some new features to Google Sites, the company's web site creation and publishing app. The new features were made to make it easier for users to copy their site, and use more options to search and announce updates.

Google Sites now allows users to copy entire sites. You can do this by simply going to "Manage Site," then "General," and "Copy Site."

The "recent announcement" gadget received an upgrade, which gives users control over how much text is shown in the post summary. You can show full post content, and/or a thumbnail of the first photo in the post.

Users also now have more control over the search box. If you go to "Manage Site," "Site Layout," and "Configure Search," you can configure search across multiple site, so you can unify them.

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Facebook Now Just Integrating Directly with Twitter

By Chris Crum - Fri, 08/21/2009 - 08:54 for WebPro News

FB Page Admins Can Post Updates to Twitter

Facebook is in the process of releasing a feature for Facebook Pages that allows the page's admin to automatically post updates to Twitter simultaneously. The feature is only for Pages and not for individual profiles. 

"Public figures, musicians, businesses and organizations of all types who've created Facebook Pages often want to share a status update, a photo or an event with as many of their supporters as possible," saysFacebook's Michael Gummelt. "Celebrities may want to share personal news or charities may want to put out calls for help to both their Facebook fans and their Twitter followers, all at the same time."

"If you manage a Facebook Page, you now will be able to decide whether to share updates with their Twitter followers, and you also will be able to control what type of updates to share: status updates, links, photos, notes, events or all of them," explains Gummelt. "If you have multiple Pages, you will have the option to link each of those Pages to different Twitter accounts."

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