Coolest Google Docs Demo Ever

Google Docs is one of those things that we tend to use daily but don’t get the full experience. I know that I personally don’t use all of its capabilities, especially when it comes to collaboration. I end up using it like a flat Word document.

Google has pushed out a pretty cool demo, which invites you to collaborate with some of the greatest writers of all time. Kind of.

A “famous writer” will start typing and then it’s your turn. Once you’ve typed in the next line, the writer takes over. It’s kind of fun.

Google Docs Demo

Once you’ve finished your collaborative masterpiece, you can then share it with whomever you like. Pretty neat, huh? You can have a play with it here.

Facebook hires Apple UI designer

Facebook has raided Apple’s deep well of talent to lure former UI Design Manager Chris Weeldreyer over to its Menlo Park HQ, installing him as its new Product Design Manager.

Weeldreyer joined Facebook on June 18, four months after he left Apple. At his former employer, he was charged with designing its iWeb and Numbers software and also named in a number of patent applications registered to the company.

The new Facebook employee noted the change on both his LinkedIn and Facebook profiles, joining the company just days after it emerged that its CTO Brett Taylor was to leave the company, to work on unknown startup projects.

Timeline of Apple UI designer in Facebook

 Facebook has been advertising for a new Product Design Manager on its careers website, where it says a successful candidate will lead a team of designers and report to the Design Director.

Weeldreyer boasts skills in industrial design, interaction design, and user interface design on his LinkedIn profile, fitting in with the company’s continued focus on iterating and developing new products on the social network.

With Apple recently announcing that it will integrate Facebook into iOS 6, the bond between the two companies is closer than ever before.

With Weeldreyer’s experience lying in designing Apple’s Web design and spreadsheet software, Facebook appears to be looking for more design insights on both the desktop and in mobile.

Google, thinking BIG!

Larry Page, CEO Google

One analyst is wondering what's going on with Larry Page.

Google CEO Larry Page wasn't at his company's annual shareholders' meeting this week because the search company said he lost his voice. Google has already announced that that he also won't be at Google I/O next week -- nor participating in the second-quarter earnings call set for July.

Android 4.1 Jelly Bean

Google Wallet

Google's Galaxy Nexus phone may soon receive Android 4.1, codenamed “Jelly Bean,” according to an inadvertent leak by Google.

On Thursday, the Google Play Store displayed  the following message when shoppers added the Galaxy Nexus to their carts: “The latest smartphone from Google, soon the first phone with Android 4.1 Jell...” The message was spotted by Droid-Life, GigaOM, and others before Google removed it.

Google may announce Android 4.1 during its Google IO developers conference next week. The company is also expected to introduce a 7-inch Nexus tablet, built by Asus, that runs the latest software.

Google I/O

But despite lots of rumors about the release of Jelly Bean, and the devices that will run it, not much is known about its features. A screenshot of Google's IO application, possibly taken on a Jelly Bean device, hints at a redesigned search widget and Chrome as the default browser, but that's about it.

Google has also talked about new Maps features for mobile devices, such as offline access and 3D flyovers, but those features may be available for all users, not just those with Jelly Bean on their phones.

Personally, I'd like to see Google take on Apple's Passbook and Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 wallet with its own app for loyalty cards, coupons, and event tickets, as an extension of Google Wallet. I'd also like to see built-in remote wipe and geolocation for lost or stolen phones, similar to Apple's “Find My iPhone” service. Expanded voice commands, or a full-blown Siri competitor, would be nice as well. Finally, I'm hoping for tighter Google Drive integration, so you could pull files directly from the online storage service into other apps.

If Google really is planning to bring Android 4.1 to the Galaxy Nexus soon, we're likely to hear a lot more next week at Google IO. Stay tuned for updates from the conference, which kicks off on Tuesday.

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Twitter Crash: Hack Or Hardware Fail?

Twitter

Twitter was unavailable for about two hours Thursday due to a bug or to a denial of service attack.

Microsoft Surface $599 WiFi Only!

Microsoft Surface tablet may cost $599, have Wi-Fi only

I reached out to Microsoft, but the company was unable to confirm either of the rumors. However, it's worth looking at why both are relatively likely.