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- theone3, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2And so, the nightmares came to fruition.
Here's the deal.
1. They offer free wifi + 'acceleration'
1.5. They expand the service USA wide
2. They force you to use the upcoming 'gBrowser' to use it, for 'security reasons'. gBrowser will, of course, rock, because it has lead firefox + IE designers on the team.
3. They add 'contextual ads' later on, once you're used to it.
4. They track your usage and location, and give you local ads.
5. ...
6. World Domination
0h n0ez. :( - Goner, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2exactly WHAT happened with Microsoft? Sorry, but they're just a competitive company doing exactly what you would do to rake in the cash... I don't buy all the Microsoft bashing just for the sake of Microsoft bashing.. I use windows every day and my career is built around helping other people use windows-based applications and such. Personally, windows is find with me. I've tried various Linux distros, I love Open Office, the Gimp, 7-Zip, Audacity, Gaim, etc. etc., but I don't hold anything against Microsoft... I pick and choose which of their products I use (you can keep XP and the DRM-laden media player(s)...) just like I pick and choose which Proctor and Gamble products I use.. I don't see P&G or MS as evil.. They're just big and I think YOU are just jealous...
- davidg, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Google are not doing this for the public. Financial regs would probably prevent them doing things that hurt shareholder value. They are doing it to sell ads and they will effectively get a monopoly in SF if this goes ahead. Companies that sell ISP access will go under if this becomes widespread.
People who say that they want Google to rule the world are not thinking clearly. 15 years ago Microsoft was cool and look what happened there. Google control much of the web and we, poor fools, are letting them get away with it. They process most of what we see, they record everything we do, and most people don't seem to care... - SoulRebel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1free stuff kicks ass.
- maskd, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1300k is faster than what a lot of people in Australia get with broadband, and they have to pay for it....
- Anchovi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I don't know why but, i got a feeling that in a couple years google will be seen as an evil big corporation bent on world/universal domination. But it's just a feeling i guess...
- craigtheguru, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Free 300k is better than any for-pay dial up.
I'm still keeping my Comcast cable modem but I'm glad to have google access as a backup, or when I'm out and about. - BugMeNot2, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1That means it's bits.
- Codom, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0But it will it increase by a few k a week like Gmail.
- jervana, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0GO GOOGLE.
I'M IN SF AND THAT WOULD BE GREAT. - ice2004, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Hopfully google will make it international ISP provide so i can get some free access to google ISP from a country outside US
- nano, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Now imagine them also cutting out all the adds from content passing through their own private backbone and replacing them with Google contextual ads. Pretty cool, I say.
- Junkey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0google taking over the world for 2000 alex!
- BugMeNot2, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Wait, 300k = Bits or Bytes?
- brucebeh, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0WOW!!
That's crazily cool! - phidong, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I think 300k is decent. It lets people who are on dial-up get something better while at the same time not being a huge threat to cable/dsl companies.
- betoyjesus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Go Frisco! TeknoTurd I dont think you understand what it means to have reliable connectivity.
- psyonide, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I think this is a brilliant move. Perfect for people who are currently stuck on dial-up. Something like this has the potential of bringing quality internet access to the common people and taking some power away from the companies that charge you through the nose for their inferior services.
This is about more than just speed. - vertex, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I don't think I would mind if google ruled the world.
- BugMeNot2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Google hax ju0r home. ejeet.
- Sazime, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Living 30 min from SF and the idea of having a PDA with free WiFi when I go to the city is damn cool.
- milhouse007, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0If Google ruled the world, everything would be so much easier.. everything, including taxes would be user friendly..
- siouxmoux, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0So when is this service is going to be on the south bay.
- MacGyver, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0300k is only about 37kb/sec. I guess they just want people surfing and not dling large files.
- neocitron, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0google's plan for world domination...
they just need to team up with Apple and Sony to crush microsoft now. - DryPenguin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"I don't think I would mind if Google ruled the world"
Me either bro - BugMeNot2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Free internet... that's faster than the internet that i'm paying for?!
- diggerphelps, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"15 years ago Microsoft was cool and look what happened there."
Microsoft was NEVER 'cool.'
Ever. - mkg12, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Even if 300k is around 37 KB/sec transfer rate. It is still free broadband. By having Google do this, I am hoping that other broadband providers will end up lowering their monthly rates. And it is still awesome.
- echimu, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Nothing in this word comes free... and I'm sure not even this google offer! C'mon Google is suppose to make money ... if they continue this kind of act and if I'm google share holder i will sell out those share .. seems stupid to me
- rcomegys, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0God, I'm so happy I live in San Francisco now!!! Well, even more so!
- fudgebrown, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0i hope bonjour will work in iTunes over this network - that way you can listen to peoples shared music all over San Fran -
- chazzy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I love Google for all of the obvious reasons, but I don't entirely like this idea. The question is ... why does Google want to do this? It's only partially to be the positive PR and giving something back to Bay Area residents. Think about all they have to gain, in rough order of casual data-mining to the sinister:
- Track web browsing patterns across millions of users in real-time
- Observe searches on the competition and evaluate new sites even before they become hot
- Offer free service, push out the competition (wean residents off of DSL/cable), and then force them to use Google software and services to keep the free service
- Stream Google ads directly into pages as they get served to the browser
- Geo-target individual users with ads and mine the crap out of their data
I love the idea, and I'm all for free stuff, but I'm quite the skeptic when it comes to these types of hooks ... This isn't a measly $1 MM effort -- it's a serious chunk of change. So what's in it for Google? - dbr_onix, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"300k is only about 37kb/sec. I guess they just want people surfing and not dling large files." indeed, saying "FREE WIRELESS ACCESS TO MULTIPLE T1 LINES!!", think how many people will start Bittorrent after seeing that..
As for "How will google make money", chances are, advertising (As has been said many times in various places)
Interesting though (If useless to me, as I don't live in America..)
- Ben - Twelve-60, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0http://mail.google.com/mail/a-25489e8e46-f5fa0a6eb8-191a3f5899
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http://mail.google.com/mail/a-25489e8e46-6cff8c95f1-692db1fd8f - mirunit, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"300k is only about 37kb/sec. I guess they just want people surfing and not dling large files."
Read the subject its 300k/sec
and the article
amazing EV-DO type speeds of 300 kilobits/sec
300k/sec is not bad at all considering most people will just be surfing. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"There are no plans however to share revenue with the city."
Why would there be? Cable companies sharing revenue with the city doesn't make any sense either. It's like an additional tax on customers. Since Google's model passes costs on to advertisers, it would be a tax to them.
Damn big government. Lets do this one right. - Synthetic, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0googlezon.
- lonelycanuck, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0fudgebrown -
imagine them rolling this out nation wide - and iTunes listing 300 million shared libraries :D
SWEET! - mousky, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"Likewise, the problem with Google is that they are ceasing to compete in markets, and are starting to control them."
Such as? Yes, they are the leading search engine, but Google accounted for just over 50% of all searches. That means almost 50% of all searches were conducted using the competition. That is hardly "ceasing to compete in markets". What other information tech markets is Google controlling? - Maajid, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"google has no intention of making money .... business is business."
Business my friend, is all about making money. - MacGyver, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@mirunit
Could you explain EV-DO a little? How is 300k/sec on that different than 300k/sec on a standard network? - SirBriggs, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Kudos to Google.
"IS anyone sick of hearing about Google yet?" No. - davidg, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"Microsoft was NEVER 'cool.'"
Clearly you weren't around when 90% of the stories in the tech press were drooling over Microsoft and when the business-plans of most start-ups revolved around how they could align their business to be bought by Microsoft.
Similar things are now happening to Google. Look how sites have sprung up based on Google maps, making money with adverts from Google.
"exactly WHAT happened with Microsoft? Sorry, but they're just a competitive company doing exactly what you would do to rake in the cash.."
What happened to Microsoft is that their business was based on using their position in the market, so that they did not *need* to compete. The problem is they went from competing in a market to controlling it.
Likewise, the problem with Google is that they are ceasing to compete in markets, and are starting to control them.
Is there anything wrong in Google using their financial muscle and market position to spread their influence further? From a business point of view, no. Of course not. They are doing their job. Would I do the same thing? Probably.
But I think if society hands over more and more control to an organization, (or me, or you) that has no social contract, then that is dangerous.
If you hand over control to a company for everything you see, find and look for on the Internet, then don't complain in a few years if some government, some corporation or whoever pays them off to get you to think what it wants.
If you think that is ludicrous, then try searching for pro-Democracy web sites in an Internet cafe in Beijing.
I don't blame Google for trying this. I can understand why people will want to use it. I just don't think it's a good thing. That's all. - TRUEPATRIOT, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0im all for google taking over the world till they ban competition O_O
- anagami, on 07/02/2008, -0/+0"I don't think I would mind if google ruled the world."
they will never rule the world if they make most of their services USA-centric. - cwhill, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Yep this is wonderful but wonder how long this will take to get to rest of American is the $54million dollar question??
- gsteff, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"Once again the Google/Apple dick suckers act like Google and Apple are in business to help the little guy."
Apple, no. But Google... maybe yes. Are you familiar with the prospectus they offered investors before their IPO? They make it very clear that they're not particularly concerned with quarterly earnings. And did you hear about their summer of code program? They dished out $4 million to students to write open source code, only about 90% of which was unrelated to Google's work (and even the 10% that was is, again, published, open source code that anyone can use... and it looks like they're going to do it again next year). And check out the Google Maps interface... see any ads? No? How about Google News? Google Blogsearch? Google Scholar? Google Talk? Notice any ads when you connect to gmail via POP?
Now you can argue that these are all beta services, and that eventually they will become cash cows somehow. But Google News has been in beta for 5 years now, and apparently the reason they refuse to move it out is that that would create some kind of legal liability. If they were trying to maximize their profits, do you think producing services that generate no revenue is the way to do that? Again, you could argue that its all a cynical ploy to build brand loyalty, but if they're building brand loyalty BY GIVING COOL SERVICES AWAY FOR FREE, I think the little guy would take that kind of opression any day. - lollerskates, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0This is how it's going to go:
Google Beats Microsoft in 20 years. Google tracks your every move (or not, this is irrelevant.). Google gets bashed like MS by the /. (and tech in general) crowd. -
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