Google Wow

Waking up to the sound of rain in our Airstream is one of the most beautiful sounds, the steady drone of heavy drops ~ like the rhythmic seductive beating of  drum. But unlike most of our mornings on the road, I had an appointment to make! I promised to teach an early morning yoga class, and 5 friends showed uP! Fabulous. 🙂 But after that, I had plenty of time on my hands. A perfect day to spend on the computer, searching and researching.

Google has always been a good place to start for me, and today I stumbled upon a goldmine! Did you know that Google offers more than 70 Google services — from 3D Warehouse to YouTube? I didn’t realize this fact until I installed a Google toolbar add-on in my Firefox browser. The Firefox toolbar rocks! I’ve always been a fan of the Google search engine and my Gmail account, but add an additional 68 features (and growing), you have a pretty behemoth workhorse of a company that is providing useful target services, pretty much for every individual on this planet who uses the Internet! Now that’s an impressive company.

For example, they have Google Transit … kind of like Google Maps but a planning /  scheduling system for the transit systems of more than 446 cities. Now that’s impressive (and as we approach Earth Day, an eco-friendly resource that I want to promote).

Here’s an extensive (but not fully comprehensive) list. You be the judge!

Search

• Alerts Get email updates on the topics of your choice
• Blog Search Find blogs on your favorite topics
• Books Search the full text of books
• Checkout Complete online purchases more quickly and securely
• Google Chrome A browser built for speed, stability and security
• Custom Search Create a customized search experience for your community
• Desktop Search and personalize your computer
• Directory Search the web, organized by topic or category
• Earth Explore the world from your computer
• Finance Business info, news and interactive charts
• GOOG-411 Find and connect for free with businesses from your phone
• Google Health Organize your medical records online
• iGoogle Add news, games and more to your Google homepage
• Images Search for images on the web
• Maps View maps and directions
• News Search thousands of news stories
• Patent Search Search the full text of US Patents
• Product Search Search for stuff to buy
• Scholar Search scholarly papers
• Trends Explore past and present search trends
• Videos Search for videos on the web
• Web Search Search billions of web pages
• Web Search Features Find movies, music, stocks, books and more

Explore and innovate

• Code Developer tools, APIs and resources
• Labs Explore Google’s technology playground

Communicate, show & share

• Blogger Share your life online with a blog – it’s quick, easy and free
• Calendar Organize your schedule and share events with friends
• Docs Create and share your online documents, presentations and spreadsheets
• Google Mail Fast, search-able email with less spam
• Knol Share what you know
• Orkut Meet new people and stay in touch with friends
• Picasa Find, edit and share your photos
• Reader Get all your blogs and news feeds fast
• Sites Create websites and secure group wikis
• SketchUp Build 3D models quickly and easily
• Talk IM and call your friends through your computer
• Translate View web pages in other languages
• YouTube Watch, upload and share videos

Go mobile

• Mobile Get Google products on your mobile phone
• Maps for mobile View maps, your location and get directions on your phone
• Search for mobile Search Google wherever you are

Make your computer work better

• Pack A free collection of essential software