By Maria O’Connell
“The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.”
-Arthur C. Clarke, 1917 (Author of 2001: A Space Odyssey )
We live in a fast-paced, ever-changing world – an atmosphere where patience is slowly depreciating. I would argue that much of our lack of patience, and especially the rising generation’s inability to sit still, might be due in wide part to the newest and coolest technologies. We have developed a “get it now” mentality, thanks to search engines on the internet that allow us to sift through billions of sources in a matter of seconds.
The well-known and well-loved search engine Google is arguably at the crest of this technology wave. Currently, Google searches only the web; ultimately, Google is seeking to make all of the world’s information available. Made famous for google.com, the company has a plethora of helpful tools that you may have yet to learn about. Some of the tools are great for personal use, but many others could be helpful additions for your business.
First off, ever heard of Google labs (google.com/labs)? This is a website that showcases a few of the Google engineers’ latest and greatest ideas that have not yet been released on the market. On the site you can navigate through the application of your choice and give feedback. Also, you will find the list “Graduates of Labs,” where you can look through a few of the already existing tools that Google has to offer.
You may recognize Google Maps or Google Images, but have you heard about Google Analytics, Google Transit, Google Apps, and Google Notebook? Google Analytics is a tool that we use here at WA, which allows us to track web traffic on our website. The site allows you to view how many visits your website receives, from what countries, states, or cities, how long the visitor stayed on your site, what pages he/she viewed, etc. Google Transit is a system that may help you navigate through large cities; by typing in a start point and end point, Google Transit will tell you how to get there using public transportation. If you want to learn more, check out the site for yourself. But, be careful – you could get stuck there for hours!