Official Google Canada Blog: April 2014

Due North! Google Maps teams up with True Patriot Love for an expedition to the Magnetic North Pole

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Editor’s Note: Today’s blog post is authored by David Quick, a wounded veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces and True Patriot Love’s Arctic expedition team leader
This week a team from True Patriot Love, including myself and eleven other wounded soldiers, will set out to ski across Ellesmere Island en route to the Magnetic North Pole. On my back I will be carrying the Google Maps Trekker. History will be made, as this is the furthest north Street View and Google Maps has travelled to date.

Heading to the Magnetic North Pole with the Google Trekker on my back. This is the furthest north Google Maps Street View imagery has been collected.
Aside from collecting spectacular imagery of one of the most remote places on this planet, this expedition is also about raising awareness of the needs of Canadian veterans and their families. During my Afghan tour in 2007, I served as company commander in the Royal Canadian Regiment’s 2nd Battalion. Two months into my tour I was wounded in combat by an improvised explosive device that left me with a traumatic brain injury. Despite these injuries, I continued my command for the duration of my Afghan tour which saw numerous intense combat operations in Zharey district. I am proud of the time I spent in uniform, but I recognize the challenges faced by my fellow veterans.
We will be using the Trekker to collect Street View imagery as we ski across Canada’s high Arctic for the next two weeks and we’ll be tracking our progress here. Our team is made up of soldiers, athletes, business people, moms, dads and friends -- ordinary Canadians who are willing to endure Arctic temperatures and punishing long days on skis to help raise awareness for an important cause. These are the kinds of Canadian values and this is the amazing land that so many of us in uniform proudly ventured into harms way to protect.
Today, I am equally as proud to be both a veteran but also a cartographer of this amazing country. I can’t wait to share the imagery from this extraordinary expedition with Canadians and Google Maps users from around the world.
Posted by David Quick David Quick is a recipient of Canadian Armed Forces Star of Military Valour for “exceptional courage” and “selfless dedication” during combat operations in Afghanistan.

Go back in time with Street View

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Editor's Note: Originally posted on the Google Maps blog.

If you’ve ever dreamt of being a time traveler like Doc Brown, now’s your chance. Starting today, you can travel to the past to see how a place has changed over the years by exploring Street View imagery in Google Maps for desktop. We've gathered historical imagery from past Street View collections dating back to 2007 to create this digital time capsule of the world.

If you see a clock icon in the upper left-hand portion of a Street View image, click on it and move the slider through time and select a thumbnail to see that same place in previous years or seasons.

Now with Street View, you can see a landmark's growth from the ground up, like the Freedom Tower in New York City or the 2014 World Cup Stadium in Fortaleza, Brazil. This new feature can also serve as a digital timeline of recent history, like the reconstruction after the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Onagawa, Japan. You can even experience different seasons and see what it would be like to cruise Italian roadways in both summer and winter.

Construction of the Freedom Tower, New York City

Destruction in Onagawa, Japan after the 2011 earthquake

Forget going 88 mph in a DeLorean—you can stay where you are and use Google Maps to virtually explore the world as it is—and as it was. Happy (time) traveling!

Posted by Vinay Shet, Google Street View Product Manager

Plaaaaay ball! Now casting live with Major League Baseball

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Cross posted from Google Chrome BlogMLB.TV Premium

MLB At BatPosted by Brad Foreman, Sports Partnerships Lead for Chromecast and Tee Ball Slugger

Chromebox for Meetings help employees see eye-to-eye in Canada

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

The best meetings are face-to-face. But these days, we often connect with each other from far-flung locations, coordinating time zones and dialing into conference calls from our phones. Starting today, any company can upgrade their meeting rooms with a new Chromebox, built on the Chrome principles of speed, simplicity and security.
Chromebox for meetings brings together Google+ Hangouts and Google Apps in an easy-to-manage Chromebox, making it simpler for any company to have high-definition video meetings.
Chromebox for meetings is now available in Canada starting at $1099, which includes the ASUS Chromebox and everything you need to get going. That means for the same price that companies have typically paid for one meeting room, they'll be able to outfit 10 rooms - or more. CDW Canada, Agosto, Cloud Sherpas, SHI and SYNNEX will help bring Chromebox for meetings to customers and resellers in Canada, and Chromeboxes from HP and Dell will be available for meetings in the coming months.
Companies that have been testing Chromebox for meetings have told us that they love the simple setup, the ease of use, and being able to see their colleagues in other offices.
Bill Whyte is the Director of Information and Technology Operations for Vision 7, the parent company of integrated agency Cossette and the EDC group of agencies, and oversees the IT strategy for the organization. "We've been using Google Apps for our business for a while, and it’s been instrumental in allowing our employees to connect and get down to business, wherever they may be.”
“With Chromebox for meetings, we've been able to brainstorm openly and collaborate quickly 'face-to-face,' something that is essential in the marketing and communications world. The technology has been really simple for everyone to use, allowing us to focus on our 'real' work - developing and executing effective, creative campaigns for our clients."

Here are a few highlights of Chromebooks for Meetings:

Instant meeting room. Chromebox for meetings comes with a blazing-fast Intel Core i7-based Chromebox, a high-definition camera, a combined microphone and speaker unit and a remote control. Set up your entire room in minutes and easily manage all meeting rooms from a web-based management console. All you need is the display in your room, and you’re good to go.

Simpler and faster meetings. Walk into the room, click the remote once and you’re instantly in the meeting. No more complex dial-in codes, passcodes or leader PINs. Share your laptop screen wirelessly, no need for any cords and adaptors. Integration with Google Apps makes it easy to invite others and add rooms to video meetings, directly from Google Calendar.

Meetings with anyone, anywhere. Up to 15 participants can join the video meeting from other conference rooms, their laptops, tablets or smartphones. Need to meet with a customer who doesn’t use Chromebox for meetings? That’s easy too—all they need is a Gmail account. You can also connect to rooms that have traditional video conferencing systems using a new tool from Vidyo, and participants who prefer phones can join your meeting with a conference call number from UberConference.

Find out how Chromebox for meetings can help you and your coworkers see eye-to-eye. Happy meetings, everyone!
Posted by Caesar Sengupta, VP, Product Management

‘Check Out’ the new Chromebook program at the Brampton Library

Monday, April 7, 2014

Ontario’s Brampton Library kicked off its new Chromebook program this month in an effort to help its patrons connect online and make it easier to reach the information that matters to them. The Internet is transforming our lives at lightning speed, changing the ways we learn, share information, and connect with one another. Canadians have embraced this change, but about a fifth of us still didn’t have access to the Internet at home in 2012.

Brampton Library’s new program aims to bridge this digital divide, by providing Internet access to those who don’t have access to a computer at home, including students, seniors and new Canadians.
Library cardholders will now be able to borrow one of 200 Google Chromebooks for use in the library - the largest collection of Chromebooks at a Canadian library!
In addition, the library will be hosting new courses to make it easy for anyone to discover the wonders of the Internet. Classes such as ‘Google Essentials’ will focus on on popular web-based Google tools, including search, maps, and translation, while ‘Gmail Basics’ will teach the foundations of email.
We’re very excited to see how the new Chromebook program impacts the community of Brampton and the half a million residents the library serves. Hopefully, we’re a few steps closer to bridging the digital divide and improving web literacy in our neighbourhood.
Posted by James Lambe, Head of Google Enterprise, Canada

Charting Canada’s Digital Future

Friday, April 4, 2014

At Google Canada, we see the impact digital technology can have in the everyday lives of Canadians. As smartphones and high speed Internet have become available in communities across the country, Canadians have jumped at the chance to record and share their stories, consume online content and even dabble in some online shopping. Canadians are world leaders in terms of the number of webpages we visit monthly, we’re second only to the United Kingdom when it comes to watching online video, and more than half of Canadian consumers have used the Internet to order a good or service.

Still, many Canadians have been slow to recognize the potential for digital technology to transform our economy. For instance, according a recent study by L2, Canadian retailers are falling significantly behind on e-commerce and digital marketing, driving 68 percent of Canadian online shoppers to purchase from non-Canadian retailers and effectively ceding the Canadian market to international competitors.

Digital tools can accelerate innovation in every sector of our economy, help Canadian businesses develop new products, and access new markets at home and abroad.

Digital Canada 150, released today by the Government of Canada, makes it clear that Canada must embrace this digital challenge, much as our ancestors explored our great rivers, laid a ribbon of rail from sea to sea, and first established radio-communication across the country with the help of microwave towers.

With this strategy, the Government of Canada not only recognizes that digital technology is having an impact on every aspect of Canadian life, but argues for us to make a greater investment in digital adoption - as individuals, communities, businesses and a nation.

Digital Canada 150 also commits to supporting the collection, preservation and popularization of our cultural and historical heritage. We share this focus, making information available through Google Maps, the Cultural Institute, the Maps Gallery, and our partnerships with groups like Parks Canada.

We are a digital nation. Digital Canada 150 challenges us all to have a truly global impact by revolutionizing how we interact with our government, our customers and each other.

Posted by Chris O’Neill, Managing Director of Google Canada

It's April Fools' Day - How Will Canadians Prank?

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

searches for ‘April Fools’Searches for ‘pranks’ are most popular in AlbertaHow will Canadians prank? searches for ‘office pranks’ are outpacing searches for ‘school pranks’searches for ‘scary pranks’‘prank call’searches for ‘prank text’

For the ultimate inspiration: Expert pranksters from Just for Laughs have devised some of the most elaborate, funny, and clever pranks that you will ever see on the Just for Laughs Gags YouTube channel.

For playful pranks and sketches: Vancouver-based YouTuber TheChengman has no shortage of new pranks, funny characters and public twerking.

For Canuck comedy: The signature style Canadian-grown funnyman Tom Green turns ordering a sandwich or using Windex into a comedic experience.

For pranks ... with love: Ever wonder what it would be like to start a prank war with your boyfriend or girlfriend? Jesse and Jeana of Prank vs. Prank have done just that! OK, they are not Canadian, but they have collaborated with Tom Green so we added them to the list.

For a simple how to … Check out PrankVote’s video on how to really make a pop bottle pop in the ultimate explosion prank.

Official Canada Blog