Join Santa as he delivers presents around the globe. Whether you’re in Sydney or South Dakota, hop in the driver’s seat by checking out Santa’s Dash(er) Board. See where Santa’s been, where he’s going, and his real-time jolly status ("mmm, those cookies were delicious!”). Don’t forget to check out the photos and local info for places he visits on the route.
For the next 24 hours, tune in on your desktop, tablet, or phone to the Santa Tracker website. Still worried you’ll miss a minute of Santa’s big day? The developer elves have been hard at work so you can:
And follow Google Maps on Google+, and Twitter to get up-to-the-minute details on Santa’s journey around the world.
With more than 300,000 kilometers to go, Santa’s got a lot of the map to cover. So set out those cookies and a glass of milk and get ready to #tracksanta!
Posted by Brian McClendon, Vice President, Google Maps
To get ready for your journey you may want to stop by Google Play. There you'll find all sorts of Hobbit-related apps, games, books, music and films*. Together with the recent recording of a Google+ Hangout with director Peter Jackson and actors Evangeline Lilly and Richard Armitage, these can also help you get up to speed for the upcoming release in theaters of “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.”
And for those of you more interested in web development than Dragon-slaying, check out the second technical case study on “A Journey Through Middle-earth” (the first one is already available on HTML5 Rocks). You can also watch a Hangout with North Kingdom, the team of designers and hackers who built it, on December 18. We'll be posting more updates for the developer community on +Google Chrome Developers.
Adrian Soghoian, Product Marketing Manager & a Fool of a Took
* Available content and promotions vary by country.
“Dell asked for and listened to feedback about what our district needs in a laptop so we can ensure the best teaching and learning experiences across our schools. Simplicity in rolling out and managing the Chromebooks was really important to us because we only have a crew of six IT team members to manage 13,000 students. We also know that students can be tough on the technology, so we really appreciate the durable screen and robust power supply the Dell Chromebook 11 offers.”
--Bryan Phillips, Chief Technology Officer, Hoover City School District, Alabama
Verified for 2014 Assessments
The new Dell Chromebook 11 joins a family of 5 other Chromebooks that are verified for the latest education assessments. Both Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced) and the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) verified that all Chromebooks meet their requirements for standardized assessments in the 2014-2015 school year. With the shift toward online assessments and the Common Core State Standards, Chromebooks are helping schools achieve their goals.
To learn more about Chromebooks for Education, please visit our website and fill out our contact form to speak with a member of our team.
Chrome Apps work offline, update automatically and sync to any computer where you're signed into Chrome, so you can pick up where you left off. Your Chrome Apps on Mac behave and feel just like native software. For example, you can find your Chrome Apps in the Applications folder on the Dock. Search for apps by name in the Spotlight search—just like any other Mac program that you already use.
To make it even faster to find and launch your favorite Chrome Apps, we’re also releasing the Chrome App Launcher for Mac. Just download a new Chrome App and you’ll see the Chrome App Launcher in your Dock.
We know many of you will be spending time with friends and family this holiday season, so here are a few Chrome Apps to check out:
WeVideo Next makes video editing easy for everyone and accessible from anywhere. You choose the editing mode that suits your level of experience and then trim, adjust, apply themes and publish. And it works offline, so you can get a head start polishing up your family videos on your flight home.
Smartsheet is a project management and collaboration app you can use at work and at home. Try the dinner planner and holiday card tracker templates to stay organized.
Until AM is a full-fledged DJ setup in a lightweight app. Use the music from the cloud while online or keep the party going with your locally stored songs even when you're on an unstable internet connection. It’s perfect for hosting that big New Year’s party.
There are many more great Chrome Apps available in the Chrome Web Store. We hope you enjoy them.
Trent Apted and Jack Hou, Software Engineers & Mac devotees
The Acer C720P is available for preorder now at Amazon, and the device will hit store shelves in the U.S. and additional countries from this week onwards.
To start casting from HBO GO, just check that you have the latest version of the app for Android or iOS. You can also cast from hbogo.com using Chrome browser on your laptop or any Chromebook. The mobile and web apps will be rolling out over the next few days.
Winter is Coming!
Posted by Shanna Prevé, Head of Content Partnerships for Chromecast and Mother of Dragons in Training
Your adventure starts on a beautiful, interactive map of Middle-earth. Zoom in to explore Trollshaw Forest, Rivendell and Dol Guldur (with more locations to come in the next few weeks). Click on each one to learn its history and meet the characters who inhabit it, or dive further to test your wits on a unique survival challenge.
The immersive 3D graphics in “Journey through Middle-earth” were built with CSS3 and WebGL, which you might recognize from previous Chrome Experiments. But “Journey through Middle-earth” is the first Chrome Experiment designed to bring this beautiful, 3D experience to mobile, thanks to support for WebGL in Chrome for Android on devices with high-end graphics cards.
The rich audio effects and sound manipulation are delivered through the Web Audio API, which is now supported on both Chrome for Android and Chrome for iPhone and iPad. Although WebGL isn’t supported on iOS, Chrome users can still experience most of “Journey through Middle-earth” on their iPhones and iPads. We can’t wait to see what sort of rich experiences developers will build as modern web technologies become available on more types of devices.
Circle +Google Chrome to stay updated as more Middle-earth locations get released in the coming weeks. You can also check out the Chromium Blog and read the team’s technical case study if you feel like geeking out a bit more.
Adventure is a click away. Just watch out for the trolls!
Posted by Christos Apartoglou, Product Marketing Manager & Part-time Dragon-slayer
On Android, we’re testing some improvements to Autofill to further streamline online forms. Using your saved Chrome Autofill info (or Google Wallet account if you’re in the US), checking out becomes as simple as a few clicks.
This feature is just in the early stages, but we’re excited about the opportunity to make online shopping and form filling even easier for merchants and users alike. You can test this faster checkout flow on Betabrand with this release of Chrome for Android, and we’re hoping to bring more of your favorite retailers onto the platform in the coming months. Interested merchants can learn more about implementing this feature here.
Ready to give your fingers a break? Try out these new Autofill features and more with the latest releases of Chrome for Android and iOS, coming soon to the Play Store and App Store.
Update (Nov. 20): As of today, both the Chrome for Android and for iOS apps have been updated and are available on the Play Store and App Store.
Ruslan Abdikeev and Jim Blackler, Software Engineers and Sprint Form Fillers
And for those who use Windows 8 you’ll notice that Chrome looks different in “Metro” mode. We’ve made it possible to manage multiple Chrome windows and quickly get to your favorite Chrome Apps with an integrated app launcher. If you use a Chromebook the change may look familiar — with a common interface we’ll be able to bring great experiences to both even more quickly!
Finally, while Safe Browsing warns you before you visit malicious websites or download malicious files, Chrome Beta will now automatically block malware files. If you see this message in the download tray at the bottom of your screen, you can click “Dismiss” knowing that Chrome is working to keep you safe.
Download Chrome Beta to give these latest enhancements a test drive.
Yuri Wiitala, Software Engineer and Tenacious Tab Tracker
In the current Canary build of Chrome, we’ll automatically block downloads of malware that we detect. If you see this message in the download tray at the bottom of your screen, you can click “Dismiss” knowing Chrome is working to keep you safe.
This is in addition to the 10,000 new websites we flag per day with Safe Browsing, which also detects and blocks malicious downloads, to keep more than 1 billion web users safe across multiple browsers that use this technology. Keeping you secure is a top priority, which is why we’re working on additional means to stop malicious software installs as well.
We hope this new feature helps you share Chromebooks with everyone in your family. Additionally, you can try an early version of supervised users on Chrome beta for Windows, Mac and Linux, too. This is just the beginning — we’d love to get your feedback on features you’d like to see. If you’re on the beta channel, supervised users will begin rolling out this week. Give it a try, and let us know what you think!
Posted by Pam Greene, Software Engineer and surf instructor
The C720 is available online at Best Buy and Amazon for $249.99 in the U.S., with devices arriving in stores soon. The C720 will also be available in Germany, UK, France, Netherlands, Sweden and Finland. We’re also happy to see that Acer is bringing their Chromebooks to India for the first time, available at Flipkart.
First, a laptop should be light and mobile. So the new Chromebook is really thin with no extra fluff. It weighs in at just over two pounds—one of the lightest laptops on the market. There are also no sharp edges so nothing digs into your wrists while you type. And when you’re traveling, you don’t need to throw an extra charger into your bag. The HP Chromebook 11 is powered by a micro-USB charger, which can also be used to juice up your Android phone or tablet.
Second, a computer should look good—something you’re proud to take out at a coffee shop. So the new Chromebook has a sleek, distinctive and super simple look. The fanless design means it doesn’t need any grills for venting. And it comes in a variety of colors to match your mood (or your wardrobe).
And there are a bunch of other things that we hope will make your computing experience even more awesome:
Brilliant display. Often when folks gather around a screen, everyone tries to gently nudge the computer in their own direction so they can see better. No more nudging. The new Chromebook's screen has a 176-degree viewing angles so you can see even when looking at it almost completely sideways. And the super bright display brings all of your favorite photos, shows and videos to life.
Light but sturdy. We wanted the Chromebook to hold up well against everyday bumps and bruises. So it has a magnesium frame that makes it incredibly sturdy. You can hold it from a single corner without it bending or flexing.
Finely-tuned speakers. Many computers have speakers on the bottom, which is great if you have ears in your lap. Instead, the speakers on the new Chromebook are under the keyboard, which means the sound is crisp, clear and pointed up towards your ears.
Goodies built-in. And, of course, many Google apps come built-in, including 100GB of Google Drive cloud storage (free for two years) and a 60-day free trial of Google Play Music All Access.
This Chromebook is crafted with the same obsessive attention to detail as the Chromebook Pixel. But we worked hard with HP to keep the price low: the new HP Chromebook 11 is available for just $279.
Look for it starting today at Best Buy, Amazon, Google Play and HP Shopping in the U.S., as well as at Currys, PC World and many other retailers in the U.K. It will be available in other countries that sell Chromebooks in time for the holidays.
So if you’ve been looking for a computer that makes it easier to get stuff done (and look good doing it), we hope you give the new HP Chromebook 11 a try—or add it to your gift list this holiday season. We designed it to make computing faster, simpler and more secure, for everyone.
Anytime you’d like to open the saved website, you can just tap its icon on your homescreen. For certain websites, the shortcut will now open in a full-screen experience and appear as a separate app in the app switcher.
Some Beta users on Android will also begin to see variations on their New Tab page, like the one below:
We’ve tested this New Tab page with a search bar on desktop and now want to bring the benefits, including a faster load time, to mobile as well. While you can search straight from the Omnibox in Chrome, we realized many users continue to visit their search engine’s homepage before searching, so we wanted to make it faster for those users to search. We’re always thinking about how to save milliseconds from every search you perform, and we hope this new feature will save you time on-the-go.
You can start trying out these Chrome Beta features later today.
Posted by Newton Allen & Ted Choc, Software Engineers & New Tab Architects
Chromecast, which we launched in July, is designed to be small, affordable ($35) and the simplest way to watch online video on your TV. It’s been exciting to receive such positive feedback from many of you (thank you!)—and to see Chromecast currently listed as the #1 best seller on Amazon in Electronics.
To start casting your favorite Hulu Plus content from your Android phone, tablet or iPad (support for iPhone coming very soon), just check that you have the latest version of the Hulu Plus app for Android or iOS that’s rolling out today. And if you don't already own a Chromecast device, they’re in stock and available on Google Play, Amazon, BestBuy.com or at your local Best Buy store.
Posted by Shanna Prevé, Head of Content Partnerships for Chromecast and TV junkie
Right-click on an image to use it as a Google search
In Chrome for Android, you’ll be able to:
Swipe horizontally across the top toolbar to quickly switch tabs.
Drag vertically down from the toolbar to enter into the tab switcher view.
Drag down from the menu to open the menu and select the item you want without having to lift your finger.
Swipe your way between tabs and into the menu
These updates to Chrome for desktop and Android will be rolling out to all users over the next few days, so if you don't see them yet, you will soon. Happy browsing!
Posted by Kibeom Kim, Software Engineer and Swift Swiper
Links from Chrome can now directly open in the YouTube, Google Maps, Gmail, Google Drive and Google+ apps. For example, if you’re searching for a nearby Thai restaurant, Chrome will open the address in the Google Maps app. Just visit “Google Apps” under Settings to select which apps you’d like to open from Chrome.
Fluid Searching: Intelligent pronoun understanding & snap back to search results
With today’s update, voice search on Chrome for mobile gets better. You can now string together multiple voice searches with pronouns to get to results faster. For example, a voice search for “Who is the president of the United States?” followed by “Where did he go to school?”, lists all the schools President Barack Obama attended (all the way back to elementary school!).
Try it out by asking:
“Who is the prime minister of Canada?” and then, “How old is he?”
“How many people live in Pennsylvania?” and then, “When did it become a state?”
“Who directed Star Trek Into Darkness?” and then, “Who is his wife?”
Finally, it’s even quicker to return to your search results. Search result link you clicked not what you were looking for? We’ve sped things up so that as soon as you hit the back button, all your results reappear instantly.
Over the coming months, you’ll see Chromebooks from multiple device manufacturers. These include newly designed Chromebooks from Acer and HP, as well as new entrants ASUS and Toshiba.
Across the new lineup, the devices offer superb battery life and a variety of new designs—from a light and portable Acer Chromebook, to the large display on the HP Chromebook14, which comes in various colors; from the versatility and portability of the Toshiba Chromebook, to the ASUS Chromebox, suitable anywhere you need a computer. With today’s announcement, now six of the top laptop manufacturers are offering Chromebooks.
It’s been amazing to see the broadening of the Chromebook spectrum and we look forward to continued advances in both the hardware and software. Now more than ever, a new Chromebook truly offers something for everyone.
Posted by Caesar Sengupta, Product Management Director, Chromebooks
“Just A Reflektor” is an interactive film directed by Vincent Morisset and featuring a new song from Arcade Fire. The film lets you cast a virtual projection on your computer screen by holding up your mobile device in front of your computer’s webcam. That way, you control all of the visual effects in the experience—not by moving a mouse on a screen, but by moving your phone or tablet through the physical space around you.
The film’s heroine, Axelle, is revealed through a spotlight that moves in time with your mobile device.
In a later scene, a liquid effect is combined with a time delay, creating a video collage.
About four minutes into the film, the “reflektor” is turned toward Axelle herself.
To explore the effects used in the film, see the technology page, where you can adjust a number of visual settings and create your own effects using a robust editor. You can also watch a behind-the-scenes video to learn about how the film was made. The code for the film and tech page is open source, so creative coders can download it and try it for themselves.
The technology page lets you create, edit and share your own visual effects using footage from the film.
We hope this project inspires more filmmakers and visual artists to experiment with the latest features in Chrome. And for everyone else, we hope “Just A Reflektor” offers a new, exciting way to interact with the web.
Of course, even with all this great stuff happening behind-the-scenes, the apps are what really matter. We know many of you doing enjoy things like photo editing, checking off your to-do’s or unwinding with games, so here are a few Chrome apps to get you started:
Explore and create
Pixlr Touch Up lets you quickly touch up, crop, resize and adjust photos from your computer or Google Drive. If you’re feeling dramatic, you can also choose from a variety of film-inspired effects to apply. And it works offline, so you can get a head start polishing up your vacation photos on your flight home.
Wunderlist is a beautiful and simple to-do list, which features voice dictation and desktop notifications, which remind you of timely tasks and team updates. And for those on the move, you can take your tasks with you from computer to computer, and manage them even if you’re offline.
Be entertained Cracking Sands is an action-packed racing game that lets you speed your way past your online or computer opponents through beautiful 3D courses. And for those looking for more precise control, you can even connect your Xbox controller via USB.
We hope you enjoy what you see in the Chrome Web Store. And please share your favorite new Chrome Apps in the comments below. Posted by Erik Kay, Engineering Director and Chrome App-ologist
One of the most powerful abilities of the web is that it connects people from all over the world in new ways. In “March on Washington," you can also virtually join this historic event by recording yourself reciting Dr. King’s words. Then, you can play back other participants’ recordings as a crowd-sourced narrative of voices, hearing the timeless message repeated back from people all over the world.
We’re excited to see the modern web enable experiences like “March on Washington” that bring together people and history in new, powerful ways. Head over to wearestillmarching.com on a laptop, phone or tablet to check it out.
Posted by Max Heinritz, Associate Product Manager & Modern Marcher
Right-click on an image to use it as a Google search
In Chrome for Android, new gestures make it even easier to get where you want to go. Swipe horizontally across the top toolbar to quickly switch tabs (this gesture replaces swiping from the edge of the screen). Drag vertically down from the toolbar to enter into the tab switcher view. And drag down from the menu to open the menu and select the item you want without having to lift your finger.
Swipe your way between tabs and into the menu
Get Chrome Beta today (for desktop and Android) to give these latest enhancements a test drive. If you are interested in APIs and other developer features we are introducing in this version you can get more details over in the Chromium blog.
Posted by Jianning Ding, Software Engineer & Speedy Searcher
On Chrome on Android, we have improved scrolling and startup performance and are introducing WebRTC support that will enable video conversation directly in the browser without a plugin. Experience it over the coming days as the update rolls out to your device.
Update August 21: edits made to correct what is disabled when opting to restore your Chrome to its original state via the new Chrome settings option.
Posted by Mark Pearson, Software Engineer and Suggestion Savant
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