A few months ago I whined about suggested that Google should make their stock symbol lookups smarter in their finance section. Well, I noticed today that they took my suggestion.
Here's the porfolio page:
...and the main finance page:
It was an obvious improvement, so I won't take much of the credit.
Thanks Google!
Google announced a number of new and improved offerings for mobile phones. Unfortunately, one of the more potentially useful products, Google Mobile Maps, doesn't support the Palm Treo, one of the more popular smart phones on the market.
I understand that it is difficult to support all of the various moblie browsers that are out there. I also understand that there aren't as many owners of Treos as there are of these other devices.
But, the Treo is a high end "smart phone" with a big screen and fast internet connection. And it is carried by lots of early adopters. If you are targeting mobile map users, wouldn't Treo owners be high on the list?
Don't get me wrong. Google has done more to advance mobile online apps than anyone else. I use mobile Gmail every day and Google SMS is quickly becoming my go-to guy.
But, my search for quality mobile maps for the Treo continues...
Update 10/13/06: Google just added support for the Treo! Download it from your Treo's browser at google.com/gmm.
It appears that Google is labeling at least one of their new services TEST instead of BETA.
Question: Does this mark a major shift by Google? Will it trigger a surge in their stock price? Does anyone care?
Answer: Probably not. Just something I noticed.
Mar 21, 2006 | 
4
| AJAX + Feature Request + Google
With today's launch of Google Finance I am reminded of a feature that is missing from every major finance site I can think of: Smarter Stock Symbol Lookups!
On every finance site I have ever used, you have to know the company's exact stock ticker symbol in order to pull a quote, add to a portfolio, etc. Sure, they offer a "symbol lookup" tool if you can't remember those three or four unique letters, but why make me jump through hoops? Make it easier!!
Here's what I want.
Let's say I am interested in getting a quote for Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway, but I don't remember the ticker. I want to type "berkshire" in the symbol field and instead of seeing this:
I want to see this:
With ajax oozing out of all the new web app (including the new Google Finance), I am surprised no one has implemented this yet.
Please! Someone steal this idea! I beg you!
As an aside, my overall impression of Google Finance is similar to Om Malik's take. The charts and blog mentions are nice and it might spur Yahoo! to improve their site, but it is not enough to convert the average Joe.
Feb 28, 2006 |
0
| Google + Marketing
Catherine Marcus is a savvy real estate agent.
A search on google.com for GOOG (Google's stock ticker) prominently displays an ad for her services in selling multi-million dollar homes in Silicon Valley.
Google's stock has certainly created quite a few millionaires over the past two years. I'm sure real estate agents clamor to sell to these folks. Catherine found a way to stand out. Too bad her web site looks like it is straight out of 1998.
UPDATE: Looks like she is also looking for folks who are spending their AAPL and YHOO money.
Google's announcement that they are integrating Gmail and Google Talk finally gave me a reason to get behind GTalk.
I initially took a pass on installing Google Talk when they first announced it. I already use AIM, Y! and MSN. Why in the world would I want to use a fourth?
Today they announced that they are adding some key features that made me rethink that decision.
Having chat sessions automatically archived in Gmail is nice. Being able to chat with someone directly from the GMail interface is even better. That is the integration that has been missing from instant messaging and email clients.
It is also nice to see Google starting to do more integration between their products. First with Local Search and Maps. And now with Gmail and Google Talk. Keep it up!
These entries were posted on the Surprise Highway weblog in the Google category.
Other entries can be found in the archives.
