back to article Google to site devs: 'Please code for Google TV!'

Google has released a set of templates and a UI library for building Google TV–friendly websites, hoping developers will actually pay attention to its fledgling internet-meets-television platform. Mountain View seems to think site developers are dying to build for Google TV. "As the Google TV platform continues to launch …

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Thumb Down

    Google 02

    In the people who manage Google - and their Geolocation being permanently switched on; and only returning results in your own back yard....

    http://www.google.com/support/toolbar/bin/answer.py?answer=166104

    REPLIES:

    01.

    Geolocation? Or targetted ADVERTISING

    I mean YES I can see this as being useful.....

    But at the same time I am sick of CORPORATION USA - sticking me under the fucking microscope - given that the Mozilla Foundation (Firefox) make about $90 Million from Google and their advertising revenue...

    Advertising people doing things to me without my consent or requesting it - are just arseholes anyway.

    And 99% of the time this is NOT wanted or needed.

    Don't you stupid people at Google ever get it?

    Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo I didn't ask for you to only provide searches in my own back yard...

    Noooooooooooo I didn't ask you to start fucking with the results that I wanted to get....

    AND NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I don't want a GOOGLE PROFILE // or Side Wiki - just to leave a comment....

    I do NOT have any Google Toolbar or Sidewiki installed......

    Don't you morons ever give up?

    02:

    Privacy

    Could Google invade our privacy more? I, like Fawn, don't have the toolbar downloaded. I think we should be able to disable this when and where we would like. I do research often and, at times, I really need it to NOT search the area I am searching from at all. This is a really pathetic way to search. Why should Google get to decide the region my terms will be searched? I, alone, should decide this. I know what I'm searching for and I know what criteria I need to use while searching. How dare Google set a criteria for me and limit my search based on their own criteria? I'm going to use another search engine from now on--one that doesn't FORCE me to use Region B, United States to gather data when I need to use Region U, Africa. My other option is to use Google search while in an incognito window. I'm still not sure this will allow me to search the way I need.

    03:

    My Location

    I don't like this feature. I don't even have Google Toolbar installed and it is still detecting my location. I don't want this and don't seem to know how to get rid of it. What a dumb idea. I tried signing out and using Google but it still shows my location. Get rid of this useless feature.

    04:

    My Location - EPIC FAIL!!! What a useless feature google! Apart from the fact that my location is none of your business, I can no longer search the world wideweb AND there is no Location option in the tools menu for me to change. I am more than capable of refining my search results myself, and don't need yourunhelpful, unwanted useless assistance that I can't manually fix!

    05:

    Can't stand the fact that I can't change my location. Just because I live in Malaysia, doesn't necessarily mean I want to read only Malaysian news. Welcome tothe 21st century Google and globalization...arrrghhhh

    06:

    location based customization

    Quote from google support

    'Therefore, we haven't provided a way to turn off location customization, although we've made it easy for you to set your own location or to customize using a general location as broad as the country that matches your local domain.'

    This has to be a JOKE!!!! I try to choose another location and it says that it's not part of Australia. No kidding...I'm looking for stuff in the US. Think vacation trips...think buying stuff. Enable the disabling feature NOW!!!

    07:

    My Location = breach of my privacy. . . !

    This feature is completely out of order. Google you must listen to your users not your advertisers......... This feature is designed to generate revenue for Google not to make users search results any better. Get this feature removed or there will be a mass exit of users. . . . There are other search engines and you should remember that before you invade your users privacy. I have toolbar and have disabled my location yet on google pages it is still trying to guess my location. STOP IT RIGHT NOW.!

    08:

    Location of Search Results Are to be determined by the person searching

    Google is restricting the search results and defeating the purpose of searching the World Wide Web.

    What’s the point of a search engine that doesn’t search the entire web for results throughout the world? If I want to refine the search results based on location I will do so including them in my search parameters as per my requirement/choice. I always look for search results throughout the world for solutions.

    This is a Fail Feature making me want to use other search engines

    09:

    My Location

    My location is none of their business if I want to refine my search by putting in location info that's my choice not yours.

    I am very upset that even tho I do not use the tool bar the My location thing is there with no way for me to change that. That is an invasion of my privacy no wonder there are class action suits against you.

    You didn't learn anything with that whole Buzz mess I see. Shame on you telling us how you protect our privacy, when you are selling us out like everone else!!

    10:

    Firefox users, here is how to turn off your geo location ID

    1. Navigate to the site to which you've granted permission.

    (Actually, I didn't realize I gave anyone permission to locate me on the map...)

    2. Go to the TOOLS Menu and select PAGE INFO

    3. Select the PERMISSIONS Tab

    4. Change the setting for SHARE LOCATION.

    (I chose BLOCK) and opted out.

    Didn't want to quit using Firefox as a browser, so hope this helps someone. Chrome and Safari work when Firefox acts buggy. As a Mac User I stay away from IE. As a PC user we can use IE, but we prefer Firefox for ease of familiarity. Plus it's an open source and the community rocks with the widgets, plug ins, extensions and support.

    So as far as the people who manage Google and their REALLY STUPID mind fuck impositions...

    Youtube is - without addblock, element block and other gear - it's totally up shit creek with the saturation advertising.

    Google - or the people who run it - are SO completely and stupidly insensitive to even "screw your head in a vice" style of reality checks.....

    And they are soooooooooo invasive and lacking in sensitivity.... like if I don't want or need a new car, then how does an add for a new car help me? It doesn't. So how does the logic of sticking 500 adds for new cars in my face, in my time, improve the situation. And how does sticking 5000 car adds in every video, webpage, youtube user content video, etc., etc., etc... improve the grating of the imposition?

    It doesn't - and yet the idiots who run Google keep doing it and they keep on making the impositions more crazy and worse.

    Google TV = Pass; and by that I mean watching it, or developing for it.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Jobs Horns

    Google.....01

    The people who manage Google have crossed the line from being USEFUL innovators, and into stupid pro-creators. (fucking things up)

    This site is sizing up my sentiments on this Google crap entirely.

    http://seobullshit.com/google-losing-streak/

    Google’s Epic Losing Streak

    By SEO Mofo | February 15, 2010

    Hey Google…

    Can I ask you something?

    What. the fuck. are you. DOING?

    Seriously…you are releasing so many SHITTY products in such rapid succession, I don’t even have time to wrap my head around them before you’re already blowing my mind with your next epic failure. Look at this:

    9/23/2009 – Google Sidewiki: Great news, everyone! Now ANYBODY can leave comments on any page of your website, and there’s nothing you can do about it!

    11/17/2009 – Site hierarchies in SERPs: We don’t like your URLs so we made up our own for you! No, you can’t opt out!

    12/04/2009 – Personalized search for everyone: We track everyone who uses your computer and then save that data on your hard drive!

    12/07/2009 -Realtime Search: Now when someone searches Google for your name, we show them your Twitter feed! If it’s not a protected account, then OBVIOUSLY you want the whole fucking world to know everything you’re saying at all times!

    1/19/2010 – Synonyms: We know what you MEANT to search for, so we just went ahead and included pages that don’t even contain your search query, because obviously you’re too fucking retarded to say what you mean!

    1/22/2010 – Answer Highlighting in Search Results: Now there’s no reason for anyone to actually visit your page, because we already told them everything!

    1/27/2010 – Search is Getting More Social: We know who you’ve been talking to, we know what you’ve been saying, we know what websites you visit, we know everything about you…and now we’re using that information to boost the rankings of content that your sister’s ex-boyfriend’s roommate’s old babysitter wrote! No, you can’t opt out!

    2/09/2010 – Google Buzz: We read all your emails and chat sessions and formed a list of people you talk to the most often. And then…we showed everyone! No, you can’t opt out! Hey everybody…guess who this guy’s been talking to!!

    And I’m sure there’s more. The point is…nobody wants what you’re shoveling! Who is telling you otherwise? Seriously…where are you pulling your test groups from, the morgue? I don’t understand why you continue to “innovate” solutions to problems that no one has. Does ANYBODY want to see Twitter content in their search results? If you’re looking for something to solve, how about addressing some of the problems that people have actually been complaining about:

    There’s no easy way to track search rankings.There’s no easy way to opt out of dates appearing in SERP snippets–and your algorithm for detecting relevant dates BLOWS.You give us different estimates of indexed pages, depending on how/where we ask:site:www.seomofo.com – 207site:www.seomofo.com (100 results per page) – 33site:www.seomofo.com (show omitted results) – 35Webmaster Tools, Sitemaps, Indexed URLs – 42(Actual number of pages – 31)Your customer service department doesn’t exist.

    You used to follow the mantra “launch early and iterate,” but somewhere along the line, you seem to have switched to “launch everything and ignore the obvious.” Is this how you intend to compete with Apple and Microsoft–quantity over quality? How long before we can expect the Google MP3 player to launch?

    Here’s a tip…just because 10 million people use Buzz the day it’s released…doesn’t mean it’s a success. All that means is you’ve abused your position in one market to force your way into another. Gee…that sounds familiar…what other big corporation used their dominance in one area to bully the whole World into using a horrible, horrible piece of shit?

    1. kissingthecarpet
      Terminator

      I can see you're unhappy

      with Google. I can see that it must be a pain to have to rely on their ad products for your income, and having to dance to their tune, but then, hey, that's capitalism for you. Google TV may or may not be crap. Buzz was a really bad idea, so I didn't subscribe. But...so what? At least they're not Microsoft, & surely Facebook et al are worse when it comes to exposing customers privacy etc. For a corp of that size they could be a lot more evil (eg News Corp, Union Carbide etc etc)

      As far as your post goes though - tl;dr summarises it nicely I think.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Big Brother

    It's 1984 all over again

    Google TV - the TV that watches you...

    and then sells this surveillance information to those who wat to know.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      FAIL

      Also

      it'll show the programmes in between the adverts!

      1. MyHeadIsSpinning
        Unhappy

        Already the case

        Every time the adverts come on I switch to another channel, and unless it's a BBC channel, then I get...more adverts!

        Also, sometimes the adverts seem to go on for longer than the programmes.

  4. dogged
    Stop

    Site Devs to Google

    "No".

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Alien

    Wow!

    Hey! Tool of Lucifer tell us how you really feel! :-)

    Ok, I happen to agree with a lot of what you are saying.

    But please understand that Google isn't doing the targeted advertising for your benefit. No, its so that they can charge more for advertising in general.

    Do you think that the restaurant wants to pay for advertising when Google show's the ad to someone in Europe or Asia when they serve San Francisco only?

    Or if they are a steak house, why advertise to a vegan?

    Location based services and advertising is geared towards targeting the advertisements for those things that you will most likely want to click on.

    I agree. I'll skip the ad and go to a local website that rates restaurants. Not something Google just happened to show me.

    As to Google TV, Why?

    My guess is that without Eric, the other two will push forward what they want and don't care about the consequences.

  6. Harry
    Thumb Down

    Its an unreasonable request anyway.

    Webmasters should be designing for W3C compliance, not for specific platforms, variants etc.

    Microsoft managed to get the world to design for internet explorer instead of designing for standards compliance, and look what a hopeless mess the whole web is in because of it.

    Definitely the *last* thing any web designer should be doing is designing for google.

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Grenade

    Yeah....

    I have my OWN issues with Google and their bullshit....

    They even DELETE all of the entire forums that I post in....

    LOL

    I won't go into tirades of frustration - but when doing a search for "Norse Man" - we think you mean "Horse Man"; or looking up (any subject) and then getting all the variants of that in the form of local results....

    You mean they think I am too stupid to have the local pizza shop on speed dial?

    Or that I can't enter post // zip codes // city // state // town - locations to narrow my search down?

    It reminds me of sales people who when I ask about a specific machine that I need specific parts for, and they keep on talking about all the other stuff they do have on account of the fact that they are too stupid to either not answer the question in the first place OR they like to bullshit on and on and on about stuff that I don't need or want.....

    Google Buzz - I mean HOW stupid do you have to be to create that product AND THEN launch it with all your information, and contacts and settings and privacy blown WIDE OPEN?

    I mean FUCK OFF........

    It's that LEVEL of pure and unadulterated STUPIDITY that pisses me right off; and they they subject humanity to the ideas of total dickheads.....

    They are the sort of people in Google doing shit that amounts to walking into the middle of a fuel spill from an over turned tanker and then pulling out a cigarette lighter to see how many tens of thousands of liters of fuel are left in the tanks....

    It's like "Fuck - Don't you GET IT"...

    There are people who take acid and flap their arms and off the 10th story of a hotel balcony they go..

    There are people who with bible in hand - climb over all the security fences at the zoo - and into the lions cage - to prove their faith in the lord is stronger than the lions desire to eat..

    And then along comes the Genius's in Google - fucking up everyones life with their "ever so obviously" brilliant ideas.

    The Google forum trolls then start to secretly delete the hundreds of posts of really pissed off consumers... who have the balls to call the management of Google on their bullshit.

  8. Jeff 11
    WTF?

    Dev to Google

    ...I'll write a site for your dinky little toys when you get your chequebook out.

  9. Darkwolf

    Google TV...

    ... something I am glad I do not / will nto use.

    Why spend money on a new tv that can support it, when I can use that money on a good custom built computer and send the signal to the tv via svideo cable?

    I can watch hulu on my tv unlike anyone using google tv.

    1. Ian Michael Gumby
      Coat

      @Darkwolf..

      Here's the thing.

      I want the new TV because it has a great picture. It just happens to have internet capabilities and 3D which neither are of interests.

      So if I want that picture, I can't say no to the other features.

      Now because I bought this new TV that has the picture quality I want, I'm now labeled as some smeg head wanker because I 'bought into' the google TV.

      And yes, if brand x and y tout their TV's success, Google will point to it as their success and the success of Google TV.

      What's a guy to do?

      1. The BigYin

        @Ian Michael Gumby

        "So if I want that picture, I can't say no to the other features."

        Hear, hear! What I want, basically, is a 37" monitor optimised for distance viewing.

        Do I want Freeview? No, I have tuner cards/set-top boxes for that.

        Do I want multiple HDMI? Not really, I want to pump everything through one box if I can.

        Do I want USB? No, I plan to have a media server for that. Acting as a hub is useful though.

        Ethernet? Well, if DLNA actually worked I might be interested, but as it doesn't (unless you get a 'magic' combination of devices) then sod it; I'll pump it all through my media server.

        Do I want a PC in my TV? Crap no. How the hell am I supposed to patch/secure that bugger? I'd need another PC as a gate-keeper and if I have that, it can be a front-end. See all of the above.

        Can I get one of these simple TVs? Can I hell. Each manufacturer wants to lock you into their own walled garden, which might allow the accountants and MBA-dingbats to create their own little fiefdoms, but it stifles innovation and restricts the free market. The companies could take their money/energy and invest in other companies providing the services to all. Imagine Sony making a profit out of Panasonic TV owners - what a larf!

        Some example projects/companies; XBMC - pretty bloody good really. UI needs a bit of polish, or maybe that's just me.

        MythTV - awesome. Maybe they'd like a few tech authors and some tuner schematics.

        Netflix - I hear this is good, but I don't know at the anti-competition license restrictions prevent them from operating over here.

        Hulu - see above. Although a VPN/proxy solves both issues - and only costs a few quid a month.

        iPlayer - seriously; ITV? Channel4? Give up. Your offerings are vomit (I often find it easier to get your programs from 'illegal' sources). Join with the BBC and help build the platform. the BBC can keep their bit ad free, you can do what the chuff you like (probably screw it up....)

        Apple - yes, I know. But admit it, the Apple TV2 isn't half-bad.

        Boxee - all they need is someone to explain "currency conversion" and allow their services to work outside the USA.

        Etc.

        But first...can I please just buy a dumb TV? I've got a lovely Dell branded monitor here (it's probably a ViewSonic/LG/Something) it's a USB hub, has multiple format inputs, does audio pass-through and P-I-P. That's it. Doesn't try to do anything else. Could you just super-size it, please?

  10. mike87d

    Disagree

    I've personally had a Logitech Revue w/ Google TV for some months now and absolutely love the device. As an employee and customer of DISH Network I can say that the 2way integration with my DISH DVR has made everything incredibly convenient. I can browse Facebook and Twitter on commercial breaks, stream Netflix and Amazon VOD movies, and easily search across my DISH service to find what I want to watch. I highly suggest checking it out. On another note, Go Packers!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Grenade

      @mike87d

      You're entitled to disagree, however...

      The fact that you admit to having DISH, and 'browse Facebook and Twitter on commercial breaks', kind of show that you're the type of moron that Google wants to 'own'.

      Some of us don't use Facebook, or Tweet. Why? Because I really don't feel the need to tell the world when I just took a dump or what brand of Scotch I like to drink.

      I would let the Packer comment slide cause there's a bunch of Buckeye's playing for them, but you're still apparently a cheese head. And for you Brits, a cheese head is akin to being an admitted smeg head.

  11. Craig 28

    Re:Privacy

    You mean like StreetView lifting data from unsecured wifi networks all around the world and storing it without permission? Sure you deserve what you get if you don't use any protection, at least WPA, but that doesn't mean it's right. Just because someone's stupid enough to leave their car unlocked it doesn't give people the right to steal it either.

    Microsoft have been bad but at least they've been brought to heel on occasion. Facebook et al might be bad but they can't reveal your information if you don't sign up to their services which have very specific purposes. Google have previously released their entire list of searches grouped by who was searching, "anonymously", but if someone searches for local services you don't need to be a genius to start tracking them down. Google is a general purpose tool and ubiquitous, it isn't a specific "social network".

    1. The BigYin

      @Craig

      (I am so going to get flamed for this)

      If one is blasting one's personal information out to the world unencrypted and for all to hear, then one can't complain when some third party listens to it. Google did nothing wrong - the data was in the clear.

      The analogy with the car is nonsensical, Google stole nothing. Hopefully this will act as a wake-up call for people to switch their SSID off, switch to WPA-2 and use a gobble-de-gook password. And, to come back to the car thing; if one doesn't secure one's vehicles, then one might thind that they have no insurance cover - ever heard of "negligence"?

      ---

      "Facebook et al...can't reveal your information if you don't sign up to their services.... Google have previously released their entire list of searches..."

      Can you see your total logical disconnect? Don chuffin' use Google if that's how you feel (or use blockers/deceivers e.g. TrackMeNot, CustomizeGoogle, NoScipt, CookieCuller, Scroogle, TOR...). So it's Google's fault that you choose to use Google?

      "Google is a general purpose tool and ubiquitous, it isn't a specific "social network"."

      WTF? You do know that FB tries to stalk one around the net if one is retarded enough to use FB?

      ---

      Gawds I must sound like a Google fanboy. Eww. But that doesn't change the facts.

      1) Secure your networks people, anyone could be listening (you could even do your own PEN testing...)

      2) Don't do business with people you do not trust and then bitch about it

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Chrome Store for Google TV

    They should enable the Google TV to use the Apps from the chrome Store. Then they could claim that it would be the TV Set Top Box with the largest Number of developers.

    And the Chrome Store would then have also a purpose.

  13. TeeCee Gold badge
    FAIL

    Two versions....

    .....Flash or JScript.

    Is that 2FAIL or FAIL²....?

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