December 2011 Summaries

Reflecting on 2011, the Google Code Blog, edited by Scott Knaster, published 208 posts, averaging more than one every two days, focusing heavily on new APIs, client libraries, HTML5, Chrome, and initiatives to enhance web speed. Notable topics included Android, Google+, Google Apps, and cloud developments such as App Engine and Cloud Storage. The blog also highlighted commerce and in-app payments and provided extensive coverage of Google's developer events, especially Google I/O, featuring announcements, recaps, and guest posts. The two most popular posts involved the Dart preview and the Swiffy launch. Knaster humorously noted his 26 "Fridaygrams" meant to entertain readers, expressing gratitude for their engagement and anticipation for more content in 2012.

In December 2011, the Android Developer Challenge finalists, selected from over 200 submissions and 30 semi-finalists, participated in a Google+ Hangout to discuss their projects and experiences. The finalists included developers from Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa, and the interview was facilitated by CP Africa and Nigerian tech evangelist Gbenga Sesan from Lagos' Murtala Mohammed International Airport. The event, conducted in collaboration with developer hubs in Cape Town, Lagos, and Nairobi, allowed participants from various countries to engage with the finalists through Google Moderator. The most popular questions revolved around feature prioritization when building applications and the potential impact of their projects in Africa. For more information on the finalists and their applications, further resources are available on the Google Africa Developers website.

The Google Prediction API Team announced several enhancements in December 2011 aimed at improving the user experience and performance of their service. These updates include a simplified model creation process that allows users to add training data without using Google Cloud Storage, faster model update algorithms, an expanded range of classification algorithms for better accuracy, and integration with Google Apps Script to enable the use of prediction services with various Google products like Google Docs and Gmail. These improvements are available in version 1.4 of the API, reflecting Google's commitment to evolving their cloud-based predictive modeling tools.

Google's initiative to enhance web speed, as presented by Satish Kambala, emphasizes the importance of fast-loading websites for improved user experience and overall web performance. The Site Speed report, now a standard feature in Google Analytics, allows website owners to measure page load times and correlate these with other metrics such as page views and conversions, facilitating the identification and optimization of critical pages. The report offers insights into page load times by browser type and user location, and has been recently upgraded with a Technical section detailing network and server time components. Combined with tools like Page Speed Online, these resources aim to assist website owners in creating fast and responsive websites, ultimately contributing to a faster web.

Google recently launched a universal Terms of Service (uToS) for most of its APIs, aiming to simplify and unify the legal framework developers navigate when using its services. This consolidation project, which began as a cleanup effort, took over two years and significantly reduced the legal text by more than 125,000 words, making the terms clearer and more concise for developers. While the uToS applies broadly, certain APIs still maintain brief additional terms. In a lighter note, the blog post highlights the Voyager 1 spacecraft's journey 18 billion kilometers from the sun, exploring a region of space with unique magnetic properties, and humorously suggests using Google Maps for whimsical routes, such as walking from Rivendell to Mordor, embodying the playful spirit of the Fridaygram series intended for tech enthusiasts' enjoyment.

Google has introduced the AdSense Management API into Google Apps Script, enabling users to automate AdSense reporting through a JavaScript cloud scripting language. This integration allows for the creation of AdSense performance reports and charts in Google spreadsheets, as well as embedding scripts into Google Sites pages and scheduling script execution with triggers for tasks such as periodic updates. The service launch includes reference documentation and a tutorial to guide users through implementation. Silvano Luciani, a Developer Programs Engineer with the AdSense API Team, emphasizes the API's potential to enhance developer experience and has a diverse background in web-based tools before joining Google in 2011.

In-App Payments, initially launched by Google for U.S. developers, is broadening its reach to 17 additional countries, allowing developers from regions such as Australia, Canada, Japan, and several European countries to integrate the Google In-App Payments API into their applications on the Chrome Web Store and their own sites. This expansion is driven by positive feedback regarding the API's ease of integration and consumer use, along with the demand for availability outside the U.S. Key features contributing to its success include a seamless payment process within the app or site, access to a large user base of Google Wallet users in over 140 countries, and a low transaction fee of 5% for developers. Google aims to further expand the service to more countries and continually enhance the payment experience for both developers and consumers.

As mobile devices become the primary means for accessing the web, addressing mobile web performance challenges is crucial, as users expect fast page displays similar to or quicker than desktops. In a presentation by Guy Podjarny, CTO of Blaze.io, hosted by Google, strategies for enhancing mobile web performance were discussed, focusing on three critical areas: mobile networks, software, and hardware. High latency in mobile networks can be mitigated by reducing requests and download sizes, using on-demand image displays, and employing non-blocking requests to prevent single points of failure. Modern mobile browsers benefit from localStorage for CSS and JavaScript files, and techniques like splitting dynamic and static requests on different domains help circumvent head-of-line blocking. Given the weaker CPUs in mobile hardware compared to desktops, minimizing JavaScript and optimizing image rendering are essential. The presentation underscores the need for continuous adaptation to evolving operating systems and browsers to ensure an optimal browsing experience for mobile users, as new tools and technologies emerge to address these ongoing challenges.

Google Affiliate Network, a free program facilitating connections between website publishers and advertisers, has introduced the Google Affiliate Network API to simplify and automate tasks for its users. This development aims to enhance the efficiency of affiliates and advertisers working with the network. Ali Pasha, a seasoned Google Product Manager, has been instrumental in this initiative, drawing on his extensive experience with other Google projects like Android App Inventor, Google Code, and AJAX APIs.

In December 2011, Google announced the introduction of a unified Terms of Service for most of its APIs, simplifying the legal framework by significantly reducing the word count and removing redundant documentation, while maintaining the same functional provisions. This update aims to enhance the accessibility and technical consistency across Google's API offerings, utilizing shared infrastructure like the Discovery service and APIs Console. Additionally, the "Code Labs" label is being removed from APIs on code.google.com to minimize confusion, as the Google Labs program has concluded, although the APIs themselves remain unchanged. Adam Feldman, the APIs Product Manager, emphasizes these changes as part of Google's broader strategy to provide a more streamlined and developer-friendly platform.

Google Code Blog Editor Scott Knaster discusses recent updates and interesting tidbits in technology and science, including Google's new feature that allows users to graph functions directly in the search engine, enhancing its capabilities as a calculator. The Hubble Space Telescope achieves a milestone with 10,000 scientific papers published based on its data, showcasing its enduring value and the benefits of regular maintenance by astronauts. Additionally, Knaster highlights the Nerdy Baby coloring book, aimed at fostering a love for science in young children, encouraging their early engagement with scientific concepts. These updates are part of the blog's Fridaygram series, intended to entertain and engage readers with intriguing content for their leisure time.

Native Client, introduced by Google, is a technology designed to enhance web-based application development by allowing developers to run native code across all popular desktop operating systems. Since its launch, Google has expanded its capabilities with core Pepper interfaces for 2D graphics, audio, and compute-intensive applications, along with additional APIs such as hardware-accelerated 3D graphics via OpenGL ES 2.0. This enables developers to port existing applications from languages like C, C++, and C# to the web, as demonstrated by companies like Supergiant Games and Spacetime Studios. The technology supports various programming languages and middleware, making web development accessible to a vast number of developers. It is integrated with the Chrome Web Store, offering developers a platform to reach over 200 million active Google Chrome users, and Google continues to collaborate with the community to expand language and middleware support.

Google announced the launch of the new Google Analytics Core Reporting API as a successor to the Data Export API, marking the second phase of their API infrastructure upgrade. The Core Reporting API is available in two versions: Version 3.0, which is a completely new API offering a 10-fold reduction in output size and support for various client libraries such as PHP, Ruby, Python, JavaScript, and Java, and Version 2.4, which maintains backward compatibility with the older Data Export Version 2.3. Developers are encouraged to migrate to Version 3.0 for new features, and they must register applications via the Google APIs Console using a project ID to access the API. The Data Export API version 2.3 will be deprecated, continuing to function for six months before transitioning all XML requests to a v2.4 response. Additionally, the Data Export API Account Feed will be terminated, and configuration data should be accessed through the Google Analytics Management API. For detailed updates and guidance, developers are advised to consult the Data Export API changelog and developer documentation.

Google Developer Day 2011 was a global event series that spanned nine cities and four continents, attracting thousands of developers eager to engage with the latest technological advancements from Google. The events, held in cities such as São Paulo, Buenos Aires, Moscow, Prague, Beijing, Tokyo, Sydney, Tel Aviv, and Berlin, featured keynote presentations, breakout sessions, and innovative showcases, highlighting products like Android and Chrome and fostering community interactions through developer challenges and showcases. Notable activities included keynote addresses built in HTML5, live audience instant messaging in Beijing, and developer competitions in Prague, all aimed at celebrating and encouraging innovation within local developer communities. The Berlin event marked the tour's grand finale, boasting the largest attendance and featuring collaborative sessions with German universities. Throughout the series, local Google Technology User Groups played a crucial role in organizing and promoting interactions among developers, underscoring the importance of community in driving technological advancements.

Google Maps for Android has introduced indoor mapping for locations such as airports and shopping centers in the U.S. and Japan, providing users with a new way to explore these spaces. Meanwhile, NASA's Mars Science Laboratory, carrying the Curiosity rover, has been launched and is set to reach Mars for experiments on the potential for past life in its landing area. The blog, intended for a nerdy audience, also humorously suggests weekend activities like flying in formation with jets or cleaning out the fridge, encapsulating the lighthearted and entertaining nature of the Fridaygram posts.

Random Hacks of Kindness (RHoK) is a global initiative that brings together coders, designers, and experts in disaster response and international development to create open-source software solutions for global challenges. Taking place in over 30 cities worldwide on December 3-4, 2011, this event is spearheaded by major organizations like Google, Microsoft, Yahoo!, Hewlett-Packard, NASA, and the World Bank. Past RHoK hackathons have led to innovative tools such as I’mOK, a mobile app used in the aftermath of earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, CHASM, a landslide risk mapping tool utilized by the World Bank, and Bushfire Connect, a real-time fire information service in Australia. Participants are encouraged to collaborate with experts, contribute to impactful projects, and submit problem definitions for potential solutions. Googlers and other tech professionals will attend events in cities like San Francisco, New York, and London, emphasizing the communal effort to use technology for humanitarian purposes.