For many Google has become the patron saint of open source, and the number of open source projects Google supports or directly develops seems to increase every day. Some of Google’s own open source projects, like Android, have become as common as their proprietary competitors, yet many do not even realize they are using software with free and open source components.
While major projects like Android, WebM video, and Chrome make headlines and attract numerous developers and end users alike, there are plenty of little projects from Google that you may not even know about, but that are worth looking at and maybe even taking for a spin. In no particular order, here are eight of the ones I found interesting.
What is the hottest stock that is not-yet-available to the seasoned, diaper-clad online ‘toddler traders’ from the Ameritrade commercials? Unsurprisingly . . . Facebook. The Palo Alto-based social networking giant is a privately held company, and its shares are not listed on the NASDAQ or the New York Stock Exchange alongside Google, Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, or any of the other publicly traded Silicon Valley behemoths – at least for now.
If you are like most companies, it would be in your best interest to reduce costs, simplify operations and increase efficiency by converting to electronic documents storage. But there are some serious concerns that all companies which move to these systems will need to address.
Small wonder, it turns out, that projections forecast internet advertising will outstrip print advertising for the first time ever in 2011. 
If you want your online business to be successful then you need to actively market your business. An introductory marketing class will teach you that there are two basic options for marketing: 
Now here’s the thing – memory sticks! Is there anyone else out there who, like me, actually has more of these than lipsticks in their handbag? I’m not excluding men here; this is not a sexist comment: I’m sure you corporate business men always have an emergency lipstick in your laptop briefcase! Seriously, since the growth of laptops and portable hardware, it was only a matter of time before our laptop bags overtook our working girls’ handbags as the kitchen-sink carry-all*. This is why suppliers now offer laptop bags in such a variety of styles and colours and why some designer outlets can charge as much as they do for them – it’s because they know that we’ll (a) love them (b) buy them (c) use them wherever we go!
I don’t think I’m going to upset too many individuals when I say that Firefox is the SEOs browser of choice. Although it must be said that Google’s Chrome browser does now have some very nice extensions, Firefox has lead the way when it comes to flexibility for a very long time.
So we spend plenty of time on Facebook nowadays: talking, exchanging photos and just browsing. Is there any way to make use of all this mess? Can social media talking really turn useful?