Web APIs, web mashups and accessibility

Posted by T.V. Raman, Research Scientist

From time to time, our own T.V. Raman shares his tips on how to use Google from his perspective as a technologist who cannot see—tips that sighted people, among others, may also find useful. - Ed.

Wikipedia defines mashup in the context of web applications as a "(web application hybrid), a website or web application that combines content from more than one source."

More generally, web mashups are created by leveraging web APIs to present data in new and innovative ways—often, such innovation comes about by combining data from a multiplicity of sources. However, notice that combining multiple data sources into new and innovative views is not the only possible use of web APIs; in particular, you can also leverage these APIs to produce alternative views of a given data source. Newer uses of web APIs such as those provided by Google Maps, Google Calendar or Google Search often fall into this category of providing convenient user access. Thus, it is possible to embed a Google Calendar or the map for a given location into one's website.

Moving from the above scenario to leveraging web APIs in the context of mashups for enabling better accessibility is but one step away. As an example, envision a very basic Google Maps mashup that embeds a map on a web page—but with zoom level set to twice the normal default. This might make a very interesting starting point for a low-vision user. Given the expressiveness of web APIs, we can go a lot further. I believe web mashups provide a very rich platform for building creative accessibility solutions with the goals of:

• Providing the ability to build highly optimized custom views for cases where a "one size fits all" solution does not work
• Experimenting with different accessibility approaches to discover solutions that work for inclusion into the mainstream

To get a sense of what is possible, see how other web developers are leveraging these APIs to provide innovative access solutions. As an example of what can be done with GData-based APIs provided by applications like Google Calendar and friends, see this trip report—Mashup Camp 3 - A Googler's Experience. In particular, notice RoboCal a mashup that provides spoken access to your calendar.

Personally speaking

Posted by Sep Kamvar, Engineering Lead for Personalization, and Marissa Mayer, VP Search & User Experience

Google's goal has always been to give you exactly the information you want right when you want it. With the growth of the Internet and all the new information coming online every day, this might sound hard.

We're constantly trying to improve the quality of your search results. One of the ways we're tackling this is by personalizing your search experience. After all, you're the only one who actually knows what you're really looking for.

We have two main ways of personalizing your Google experience. First, you can customize products and services like the Google Personalized Homepage. Personalizing your homepage gives you the at-a-glance information that you care about—such as your latest Gmail messages, news headlines, or to-do list—right at your fingertips, just the way you want it.

Second, we offer automatic personalization through things like personalized search and recommendations. Our goal with these types of technologies is to make your Google search experience better based on what we know about your preferences, without you having to do any extra work.

Today, we're taking another step toward making personalization more available to you by combining these two into a single signed-in experience. Now, when you're signed in, you'll have access to a personalized Google—one that combines personalized search results and a personalized homepage.

Keep in mind that personalization is subtle—at first you may not notice any difference. But over time, as the search engine learns your preferences, you'll see it. For example, I (Sep) am an avid Miami Dolphins fan (no joke). Searching for [dolphins] gives me info about my favorite football team, while a marine biologist colleague gets more information about her salt-water friends.

If you don't want to see personalized results, just sign out of your Google Account. After all, the goal is to give you what you want when you want it. So give it a whirl and let us know what you think.

Office of the apes

Posted by Tom Galloway, Technical Writer

Yesterday was National Gorilla Suit Day (NGSD). No, I'm not making this up--MAD Magazine cartoonist Don Martin did, back in 1964. Naturally, there's a full story behind this holiday, and it's been chronicled by my friend, writer Mark Evanier. If you've visited the right websites over the last week or so, you'll have seen various banners promoting National Gorilla Suit Day, which were provided by Mark.

One particular result of Mark's promotion of this wonderful holiday is that a New York City-based singing telegram service, The Furrier Courier, offered free singing telegrams, delivered by someone in a gorilla suit on NGSD, to the first five responders.

So, I asked myself: Wouldn't it be Googley to have a gorilla-suited singing telegram delivered to some New York City Googlers?

Why, yes...yes, it would. Especially if they didn't know about it in advance.

So Wednesday morning our gorilla-suited singer serenaded a weekly meeting of Googlers, including ones videoconferencing in from Mountain View, Kirkland, and Dublin.

Mark also celebrated the day appropriately--by having Furrier Courier serenade the MAD Magazine offices.

Now if only I can manage to talk the powers that be into a National Gorilla Suit Day Google doodle--oh well, next year.