Posts Tagged 'google'

What wouldn’t Google do?

Check out my column this week in The Towerlight. I take Google (and Jeff Jarvis) to task. I could have gone a lot longer if I had the time or the room.

Recently, I was assigned to read Jeff Jarvis’ book “What Would Google Do?” for my Writing for New Media class. How was the book? Oh, it was pretty useless. But that idea – that there’s still a question about what Google would do – is kind of quaint in that it implies there are things Google doesn’t already do.

That’s hard to come by in the industry these days. Any time now, in fact, I expect some of their outlandish April Fools gags to become reality. Google Gulp, Gmail Paper and AdSense for conversations would probably be awesome additions to their portfolio.

Soapboxing

I’m balancing quality gaming time with lots Towerlight writing and course work. I’m working my way through next week’s Tyler Tech, which will be about how Google is straying from its “Don’t Be Evil” philosophy and how maybe having its hand in everything might not be such a good thing. I have seen the beast, and it may soon be Sergey Brin. What do you guys think?

Also, coming soon (tomorrow, probably, when I get around to uploading): Anime USA pics and rundown.

Free Wi-Fi now landing

Courtesy greaterbaltimore.org

I have a theory that airport concourses are one big racket, much like stadium concessions. There’s $10 lunches, $2 bottled water (since you can’t bring in your own anymore) and, of course, the $10/day or so wireless Internet access.

At least one of those is going away for a while as Google announced plans to provide free Wi-Fi in 46 airports (BWI is the only one in the region included) and on all Virgin America flights through mid-January. Woot.

(Protip: Virgin America only flies out of Washington Dulles in these parts, but they’re the best way to go if you’re going to SF or LA.)

From looking at the site, this seems like just a promotional thing, at least for the in-flight access. It’s entirely possible the free airport hot spots could just keep going and going and going…

Now if only Google could do something about the bottled water.



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