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News

• Google blames outage on system error and online traffic jam

  Google Inc. is blaming this morning's Google Apps service outage on a system error that caused a major traffic jam.

• Google suffers major failure

  The Internet has been abuzz about widespread trouble with Google Inc.'s Google Apps service this morning.

• Google to push Gmail to BlackBerrys

  Google has unveiled a new service that will push Gmail and calendar items to the native client software on BlackBerry devices, stepping up the search giant's efforts in the enterprise market.

• Google offers top tip to help beat bots

  Google has put a new spin on the CAPTCHA, a way of helping Web sites distinguish between human visitors and bots: It wants people to tell it which way is up in a series of randomly rotated images, a task that humans find easy and computers difficult.

• Google preps next version of Android

  Developers will now be able to take a look at the SDK (Software Development Kit) for the next version of the Android platform, Google announced on Monday on its developer blog.

• Google goes against the tide, launches VC company

  While most venture capital has dried up due to the sinking economy, Google Inc. has decided to swim against the current.

• Google OS will be on netbooks by year's end

  It's not news that Microsoft will get Windows 7 out as fast as possible this year. Vista has been a complete dog, so Microsoft will rush to deliver what is essentially a cleaned-up, lightweight version. What is news is that Google will have its own contender, Android, in the desktop operating system market.

• Study: Microsoft US search share hits 12-month low

  Microsoft's share of internet searches in the US fell to a 12-month low according to Comscore's report of internet search queries for February.

• After Gmail, Google wants to search your voice mail too

  Google has begun testing a service that will make transcripts of voice-mail messages and make them searchable.

• Google dismisses click fraud report

  Google is taking issue with a report that says click fraud hit a record high in the fourth quarter.

• Google to enable offline access for Gmail

  Google is to begin offering browser-based offline access to its Gmail webmail application, a much-awaited feature.

• Web apps eroding MS Word franchise: study

  Companies may use Microsoft Word for word processing out of habit rather than necessity and are beginning to consider other alternatives, as the web has changed the way people create and share documents, according to a Forrester Research report.

• Local companies find their own Street View paths

  Local online mapping service providers are putting on a brave face, welcoming the launch of Google’s Street View and saying it creates an awareness of spatial information that can only be good for business.

• Unlocked Android phone: Pricey outside the US

  Just in time for the end-of-year shopping season, Google is offering an unlocked Android phone, targeted at developers but available to anyone. While the phone might be attractive to consumers and developers alike in the US, its price in other countries is putting off even developers.

• Report: Google to 'significantly' cut contractor use

  Google Monday acknowledged plans to "significantly" reduce the number of contractors it uses, according to a report on the Web site of the Wall Street Journal. The report noted that the company has no plans to cut its permanent workforce.