One unfortunate effect of the coronavirus pandemic, especially in the US, has been the loss of employment for millions of people. Given the current circumstances, many are looking for work-from-home jobs, and now Google is trying to improve the visibility of those positions.
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Amid COVID-19 stay at home orders, people earlier this year discovered 3D Animals in Google Search. From educational uses to viral moments, the company has been adding more in recent months. The latest Google 3D Animals are insects complete with realistic sound effects.
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Alongside many Google search terms, you’ll find a row of “Top Stories” with news articles from various online publications. Now, Google is upgrading that section with a new “For Context” section on “Top Stories” articles.
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With smartphone browsing so much more common in this day and age, Google wants Search results to reflect that reality. Google announced in March that the search engine would switch to mobile-first indexing this September, but that’s now being delayed until March 2021.
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In recent years, Google has worked to directly surface answers to popular questions as the first result. Google Search now has a Knowledge Panel to explain the US mortgage process and provide useful tools.
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Yesterday, Twitter suffered a severe compromise which resulted in the accounts of high profile individuals — from Elon Musk and Kanye West to Apple and Joe Biden — sharing a scam request for Bitcoin in exchange for free Bitcoin. It appears Google responded swiftly by demoting Twitter-related results in Search and those results have yet to return as of this writing.
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This year, the neat trick of viewing animals in 3D via Google Search exploded in popularity, and in the time since, Google has massively expanded the list of objects and creatures people can view. Today, Google has announced that you’ll be able to view 3D dinosaurs through Search.
Several hours ago, users started noticing that the Google Search Knowledge Graph card for Sir Winston Churchill lacks an accompanying image. The company says this disappearance was accidental and will soon be fixed.
Following a test last August, Google has recently rolled out a new feature for Google Search. If you search and click on a Featured Snippet, Google will now highlight the content you’re looking for within the article.
Back in April, Australia set out to force Google (and Facebook) to pay local publishers for content that appears in products like Search and News. An AU$600 million to $1 billion yearly payment has recently been suggested, with Google Australia today offering a rebuttal and explaining how its business works.
This past week has seen widespread protests in cities across the United States. Google today expressed solidarity for this moment in history with a message on the Search homepage. YouTube has a similar display and is encouraging donations.
At the start of May, the Chrome team established metrics for building fast websites. Google today announced plans to incorporate “Core Web Vitals,” like page speed, when ranking how sites appear in Search next year.
Google Search already has clinically validated self-assessments for depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). In light of COVID-19, Google Search is adding an anxiety questionnaire.
One of the core aspects of Google’s Material Design, especially as of late, is the usage of “cards,” which help visually separate things in an app or page. Google has now begun testing a new UI for Google Search on the desktop that’s based almost entirely around Material Design cards.
Local businesses are struggling amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic due to decreased foot traffic and sales. Many have turned to selling gift cards as a means for customers to offer additional support, with Google soon allowing affected businesses to link to such donation methods on their public listings.
Earlier this month, we showed that a dark mode was coming to the Google Search website on Android, by way of Google Chrome. At the time, we weren’t sure of how this dark mode would work or why it would require a flag in chrome://flags. As of today, Google Search has finally begun testing its dark mode for mobile web — here’s how you can start using it.
Amid the ongoing pandemic, one concern for first responders is that their line of work will inadvertently infect their families with the virus. Some hotels have begun offering free or discounted COVID-19 rooms for these essential workers, and Google Maps is now highlighting these places.
On Android, Google’s visual search tool can primarily be accessed from the homescreen or through Assistant. Google Lens is now testing a shortcut in Image Search.
In recent weeks, people have turned to virtual animals in Google Search to experience the outside world indoors. Google today is adding a 3D skeleton and other models, while revamping the AR viewer on Android.
Last May, Google announced and rolled out a major redesign of its visual search tool. Google Lens is now adding three productivity-focused features, including Search results from the web and a “Copy to computer” shortcut.
Even before the launch of Android 10, Google has been putting special focus on bringing dark mode to its apps and services, especially on Android. Now Chrome for Android is working to bring dark mode to the Google Search results page in something of an unusual way.
Since the start of this pandemic, Google has reiterated how lookups related to COVID-19 are surpassing Search’s “most common and consistent queries.” Many people are seeking local news and information, with Google making tweaks to the Top Stories AMP requirement.
