Inside Search
The official Google Search blog
Dive (or run, swim, vault…) into the Olympics with Google Trends
August 9, 2016
This year's Olympics in Rio brings together 10,500 athletes from 200+ countries to participate in 306 events, from archery to wrestling. To help you get even more out of the Games, we've created a Google Trends Olympic Hub where you can find fun facts, data insights, feature pages on sports and athletes, and more.
Olympics Trends Hub
Throughout the next few weeks, Google Trends will give you a unique view into the games with a new
Trends Hub just for the Olympics
. There, you’ll be able to see which athletes, events and moments are captivating audiences—and searches—worldwide. For example, which country is searching for beach volleyball the most? Landlocked Switzerland. And the title of most searched grandmother in the world goes to British swimmer Adam Peaty's nan.
Here’s some of what you can expect from Trends over the next few weeks:
Search insights revealing what the world is wondering about the events—from fencing to synchronized swimming (and every moment in between!)
Data interactives like our alternative medal table and top searched sports per country
Trending sports and athletes lists, showing what’s of interest at any given moment
Explore Trends in a new way
As you explore the site, you may notice something else—a new
Google Trends Explore page
. With a fresh design and features like a color-coded map, you can analyze search data in new ways. For example, you can compare interest in previous Olympic Games over the years:
Every four years, the Olympics captivate the world’s attention. We’re excited to be able to help fans get even more out of the Games with insights from Search.
Posted by Lisa Creed, Product Manager
Go Bananas for the 2016 Doodle Fruit Games
August 4, 2016
The summer just got sweeter. Today marks the season opener of the
2016 Doodle Fruit Games
. For the next couple of weeks in the latest Google app for
Android
and
iOS
, journey to an otherwise unassuming fruit stand in Rio, where produce from all over the market are ripe to compete for the title of freshest fruit.
The name of today’s featured game is to see who’s the fastest fruit on the track in this berry special race. Don’t be MELONcholy if your sprint turns into more of a smoothie.
If you like the taste of that, be sure to weave your way through
t
he ice cooler to see if you’re the chillest lemon around. Remember: No one likes sour losers!
We hope you find these fruits as apPEELing as we do. And don’t forget to share your cherry impressive results with friends to see who claims the top seed. These two games are just a taste of what's in store, so come back to the Google app throughout the week to catch the featured game of the day.
Posted by Matt Cruickshank, Google Doodler
Never miss a “must-try” with Google Search
August 4, 2016
Picture this: you’re in New York City for 24 hours. Making the most of your visit may seem daunting, but the latest Google tools are here to help. Starting today in the U.S., when you search on your Google app for the best spots to eat and drink, you’ll have access to reviews from top critics and best-of lists from reputable publishers.
If you’re craving dim sum, but not sure which place is a top spot, a search for “chinese restaurant” may bring up Michelin favorite
RedFarm
in the West Village. Looking further at the search result, you’ll see it also appears on more than 10 best-of lists, including Eater, CBS Local and Refinery29.
Next on the to-do list: dessert. After seeing a sweet review from Zagat, head to
Lafayette Grand Café & Bakery
for a classic Parisian pastry. Serious Eats heralds it as one of “The Best French Bakeries in NYC” and is also on Eater’s list of “15 Destinations of Holiday Sweets in NYC.”
Pro tip for you to-the-minute planners: If you’re looking for the perfect afternoon activity before meeting friends for dinner, for selected places Google shows how long people typically stay at a given location. Got a few minutes?
The High Line
is a must-see. Got a few more?
Central Park
is worth the journey uptown.
Whether you’re stopping by in a city for a weekend or just looking for a new local watering hole, we hope these latest tools from Google will hit the spot.
Posted by Ronnie Falcon, Product Manager
Olá Gboard: new languages, personal keyboards and more
August 4, 2016
In May, we
introduced Gboard
, a new iPhone app that lets you search and send information, GIFs, emojis and more, right from your keyboard. Today, Gboard is going global with international availability, and we’re adding smart GIF suggestions and a way to personalize keyboards.
Bonjour, Hallo and Ciao from Gboard
Gboard is already available in English across the U.S., Europe, Canada and Australia. Starting today, Gboard is ready to start sending GIFs, searches, emojis and more for our friends who speak French, German, Italian, Portuguese (Brazil and Portugal) and Spanish (Spain).
Gboard will default to your device language, so as long as it's set to one of these six languages you're good to go. If your phone uses a different language, Gboard will default to U.S. English. You can change the language in your Gboard settings.
Smart GIF suggestions
Joining text, search and emoji suggestions, you’ll now see GIF suggestions too. Say you’ve got a reason to celebrate so you text your friend “let’s party!” — now, you’ll see a suggestion to search for relevant party GIFs with one tap.
A personal keyboard
Whether you like a keyboard that blends into the background or shows your personal style, today’s update is for you. For those who like a more low-key style, in addition to the current light keyboard, we’re adding a dark keyboard so that Gboard can blend in with darker apps. We’re also introducing the ability to select a personal image from your camera roll to show behind your keyboard, so you’ll never be without your favorite picture from that trip to Crater Lake.
We hope our new friends around the globe love sharing GIFs, emojis and searching as much as we do. To try Gboard, go to the
U.S. app store
or to your local app store and try any of our six languages, with more coming soon.
Posted by Rajan Patel, Principal Engineer
Let Google be your guide to Rio de Janeiro
August 1, 2016
The modern Olympic Games have been a defining moment for athletes and fans alike dating back to 1896. Next week, the 2016 cauldron will be lit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where thousands of athletes will come together to represent the strength and pride of their home countries with the world as their audience.
In celebration of the next chapter in Olympics history, we’re bringing the best our products have to offer to help people around the world stay up-to-date with the Olympic Games Rio 2016:
Discover the event schedule, medal counts, and athlete information in Search
Get results and view TV schedules in 30+ countries
Watch official broadcasters’ event highlights on YouTube in 60+ countries
Explore Rio and venues in Google Maps
Keep up to date with the latest search Trends from around the world
On Google, searching for information about your favorite athletes and sports, the medal race, or your country’s schedule has never been easier. Pro tip: if you search on the Google app on Android and iOS, you’ll also see an option to get automatic updates on top event and medal wins, so you’ll never miss a beat.
To give you a glimpse into the Games, watch official broadcasters’ video highlights on YouTube in more than 60 countries around the world. And as an added bonus, YouTube is sending 15 top creators to Rio, giving you a taste of what it’s like to be there with
mobile live streaming
.
With Street View in Google Maps, everyone can enjoy
the magic of Rio de Janeiro
. Even if you’re a world away, preview the places where the world's most talented athletes will make history and explore the breathtaking beauty of Brazil.
Google Trekker operator captures 360-degree imagery from inside Rio’s Olympic Park
Great triumphs, victories and stunning surprises await us all this summer. This is just a hint of what’s to come—we hope you’ll let Google be your guide.
Posted by Jonathan Livni, Product Manager
A voice for everyone in 2016
July 15, 2016
Every election matters and every vote counts. The American democracy relies on everyone’s participation in the political process. This November, Americans all across the country will line up at the polls to cast their ballots for the President of the United States. With states’ varied deadlines and methods, the voter registration process can be tricky. So starting on Monday, we're introducing a new tool in Search to simplify the voter registration process to make it easier for you to have your voice heard.
Now when you search for “register to vote” or similar queries, Google will display a detailed state-by-state guide providing information on how to register, general requirements, and deadlines.
No matter which state you’re in or how you plan to cast your ballot, you can find the step-by-step information you need to register correctly and on time—right at the top of your Search page and in the Google app.
And for the kickoff of the
Republican National Convention
next week (and coming in time for the Democratic National Convention next week), when you search for these events on the Google app, you’ll find a summary of the event, nominees and the lineup of speakers. You’ll also find a livestream video from YouTube, and relevant social media posts, so you can stay up-to-date with both the political parties and the public.
We hope these new features in Search will help keep you informed this election season and make it easier for you to make it to the ballot box in November.
Posted by Jacob Schonberg, Product Manager
More on Tap: Translate, discover and improved Search by image
July 6, 2016
With Now on Tap, Android Marshmallow users can get quick help from Google without having to stop what they’re doing. Today, we’re introducing new Now on Tap features that surface useful content and create a more engaging experience. With these updates, users can translate text on any page, discover more about the things that interest them, and learn more about products by using QR codes and bar codes in Search by Image.
Translate text from any screen
Chrome makes it easy to translate any webpage into your native language, but what about translations in your apps?
With Now on Tap’s new translate feature, you can translate text on any screen, whether it’s an app or webpage. Just long press the home button and tap the “Translate this screen” card. Voilà, the text on screen will be translated into your phone’s language.
So if you’re using Google Maps and come across a location or a restaurant review in a foreign language, just long press the home button and continue reading. You’ll even be able to translate multiple languages at once.
The translate feature is currently available for phones with the language set to English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Russian.
Discover more interesting content
Now on Tap is great for getting things done, but our new discover mode can also help you learn more about things that interest you. Just tap the “Discover” icon and get a stream of visual content related to what’s on your screen — it’s perfect for browsing and exploring, rather than searching for something in particular.
For example, if you’re reading an article about Pluto and are interested in learning about NASA, discover mode will show you a stream of links to YouTube videos, news articles and more.
Search by Image - Barcodes and QR codes
Last month,
we announced
that you can use Now on Tap to search via your camera app for objects like famous landmarks. Today, we’re expanding that to include barcodes and QR codes.
Next time you’re shopping, you can simply point your camera at the barcode and get helpful cards related to that object, such as user reviews. This feature will work with packaged products, books, DVDs and more!
We’re excited to continue to bring more engaging features to Now on Tap and hope today’s updates help you get things done faster and find new and interesting information.
Posted by Aneto Okonkwo, Product Manager
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