04
Dec
2012-12-04_11h41_24

Google's Knowledge Graph Expands To Several New Languages Including Spanish, French, Russian And Japanese

Posted by in Google, News

Under the hood of Google Now, powering all those beautiful cards that pop up when you search for certain things, is Google's Knowledge Graph. In what might be the company's most ambitious project ever, Google aims to categorize and classify all information so that when you search for, say, Jeff Goldbum, the search engine knows you might also be interested in information about Chaos Theory or survival tips for raptor attacks. Today, the company announced an extension to this already-huge product: availability in Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Japanese, Russian, and Italian. Pretty huge.

knowledgegraphlanguages

As Google briefly explains, this endeavor is about more than just translating words ("'football' means something quite different in the U.S.

15
Aug
play

Google Play Movie Rentals Come To Germany, Hangouts On Air Spread Through Europe

Posted by in Android OS, Google, News

One of the most common complaints against Google's Play Store is the lack of certain content or functionality in countries outside the US. Google has been making progress in expanding access to other corners of the globe, though. You may remember, for example, that Play Books hit France just last month after Play Movies opened for the French in March and for Spain in June.

Today, Google (finally) brought Play Movie rentals to Germany, much to the delight of German users who have been asking for more Play content for quite some time. Strangely, the addition of movie rentals to the German market came without an official announcement, but was confirmed by multiple Twitter users and our own readers.

15
Jun
unnamed

[Update: Spain, Too!] Google Announces Books On The German Play Store, Continuing Into Non English-Speaking Markets

Posted by in Apps/Games, News

Update: Google just announced that Books is now available in Spain, as well. Yay for reading!

Not a bad week for German Android fans. First on the map in Europe with the recently-reviewed LG Optimus 4X HD, and now the release of books for sale in the Google Play store. The soccer team's not doing too badly, either.

Posted today on its Google+ account, Google Play announced the availability of book purchases effective immediately in Germany, including plenty of German-language bestsellers. Unfortunately their German-speaking neighbors of Austria and Switzerland have been left out in the cold with no way to get their deutschsprachige literary groove on, but this is the service's first step another step beyond the realm of English and is unsurprisingly gradual.

16
Feb
ohnoes

Apple Receives Injunction Against Motorola In Germany For Slide Unlock - Will Have To Use Circle Unlock Now, Might Have Mattered Two Years Ago

Posted by in Legal, Motorola, News

Apple is causing more mischief over in Germany today, having received an injunction from a Munich Regional Court against phone manufacturer Motorola for utilizing slide-to-unlock style lockscreen methods patented by Apple. Motorola intends to appeal the ruling. The basic point to take away is this: the court ruled that Apple's patent on the concept of moving a tracked image from left to right in order to unlock a phone is valid, and it seems likely that every slide-to-unlock implementation on Android would be infringing in their eyes.

applepatentlock1

REVOLUTIONARY

The appeal will likely take months, and after a Hague court in the Netherlands ruled that Apple's slide-to-unlock patents were invalid for obviousness and existence of prior art, it seems that there are still some very relevant substantive issues in need of higher review here.

09
Dec
evil apple

Apple's Plan To Sue The Pants Off Everyone Backfires: European Judge Issues Injunction, Rules That 3G-Enabled Apple Products Infringe On Motorola Patent

Posted by in Motorola, News

In case you're unaware, Apple is in the process of suing just about everyone it competes with in the tablet/phone field. There's an abundance of irony in the entire situation - the most substantial of which I covered when Apple complained that Samsung and Motorola were anticompetitive because of their patents  - but things just (at least, temporarily) took a turn for the awesome. A judge in Germany has ruled that 3G-enabled Apple products (including the iPhone, iPhone 3G, 3GS, 4, iPad 3G, and iPad 2 3G, but not specifically the iPhone 4S) infringe on a Motorola patent. Consequently, the judge has issued a preliminary injunction against Apple, resulting in a Europen sales ban on the aforementioned iPhones and iPads.

07
Jul
hi-256-2-cc0fe591f53fb319966e7d80f462b8beaf2116de

Vlingo Gets Major Update - Streamlined UI, Support For 7 New Languages

Posted by in Applications, News

Second only to Google Voice Search in terms of popularity on Android, Vlingo received a major update today. What's new? The entire UI has been streamlined into a much more intuitive list format that makes learning Vlingo's various voice command capabilities, or quickly accessing them, a breeze.

You can send text messages, make phone calls, find places, open apps, get directions, buy movie tickets, and more. Vlingo also includes a handy InCar mode, which you can set to activate automatically whenever your phone connects to a Bluetooth headset.

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More important than the spiffy new look, though, is the added support for more languages.

30
Jun
3185410319_419a368b35

Google Translate Fail: Android 2.3.4 Translated From German To English Is...

Posted by in News

Every once in a while we get a humorous tip that is just too good to pass up. Check out what happens when you translate "Android 2.3.4" from German to English with Google Translate:

2011-06-30 14h56_33

Whoops! It looks like you'll get the same result when you search for any version with 3 digits, from 2.2.1 to 2.3.4. Hit the link below to see it for yourself.

[Source]

Thanks, Josh!

30
Mar
image

Dropbox Drops New Beta v1.0.9.3 With Lock Code Support, More Languages, Honeycomb Improvements, And Other Fixes

Posted by in Applications, News

If you use Dropbox on your Android device and either like to live on the edge or help the company test out the latest betas, you will want to check out this post on the Dropbox forums, announcing a new public beta v1.0.9.3 with some new translations, Honeycomb improvements, new Lock Code support for the security-conscious, and other fixes. Forum replies also indicated that some sort of a folder opening bug got fixed in the process, though I am not sure what exactly that bug was in the first place.

Check out the changelog, then proceed to the direct download link, and once you've tested everything out, head back to the Dropbox forums to post your feedback:

Release Notes

  • Internationalization (French, Spanish, German, Japanese)
  • Lock Code now protects your Dropbox from prying eyes.

11
Dec
instant_de (1)

Google Instant For Android 2.2+, iOS 4 Now Available In 28 Languages, 40 Countries

Posted by in News

Google's mobile blog released some impressive numbers today in regard to the availability of Google Instant for mobile: the service is now ready for Android 2.2+ and iOS 4 devices in 28 different languages and 40 countries.

instant_de (1) instant_henri (1)

If you're a non-US Android (or iOS) user and want to check availability for your locale, simply go to the Google homepage on your device. If "Instant (beta) is off" appears hit "Turn on", and you'll be set to go.

Commenters, if you'd like to confirm the languages/countries that Google Instant for mobile is now available to, please do so below!

Source: GoogleMobile via Engadget