O Google, Google, wherefore art "not thou" Google?

Hi friends

You switch on a PC. You open the web-browser of a computer. But you don’t know whether it has an internet connection or not. What do you type in the address bar to check? Nine on ten will answer – Google.com. A website that is so famous that it has been involuntarily given the greatest tribute any brand can have i.e. usage as a verb. “To Google” means to search on the web. It’s almost like “To Xerox”, only much more relevant in this present day world considering that Xerox, as a company, is not that famous now-a-days.

Google has penetrated our web-world like crazy. Almost any application we imagine can be given to us by Google. My personalized web-page (iGoogle) shows me all the information that I want to see the first time I log onto the net. I can use Google Calendar for my planning and scheduling. For new, I have Google News, which is my most comprehensive source of information on the internet.

I check my mail using Gmail with ease. We chat with each other using Google Talk. Google Toolbar is so integral part of my life that I sincerely cannot imagine a Web-browser without it. Google NoteBook helps me store some vital information instantly. Google Video player helps me view downloaded videos from Google Videos.

I am presently blogging through a Google Application “Blogger”. I maintain contact with friends from all over the planet thanks to “Orkut”. Using Picasa, I share my pictures with my near and dear ones. “Youtube”, a Google-acquisition, helps me view all my favorite videos. Google Alert alerts me to the news that may be vital for me.

Want to see the world? Google Earth gives a down-to-earth experience of all the places in the world. But hey, space is the final frontier. Google Moon can take you atleast to the moon, where we can only visit in our dreams while sleeping. Soon, we will have even “Google Mars” and extend our vision.

But the most important aspect of Google – It’s the fastest and the most unbiased search engine. And I can even search for specialized products – Froogle (products), Google Books, Google Patent Search etc. Why restrict my searching to the web. Let Google Desktop search your cluttered desktop for the relevant document so that you can see your favorite wallpaper at all times. Got a question – Google Answers has the answer for you in its archives.

These are few of the applications that I use. Many like Google Maps, are restricted to the US. But someday, Google will surpass even that barrier. Are you sure it will? Is that its ultimate objective? Many people in the non-western world are more concerned than happy about this level of penetration of Google into our daily lives. Infact many conspiracy theories press that Google is a Zionistic regime that wants to capture the world and make it its slaves. As technology binds us all, the Zionists produce the best technology to capture the audience and then slowly creep into their lives and finally enslave them – that’s what they say. More on conspiracy theories in my next post.

But sadly, Google is not a product maker. Google clearly states in its vision that it wants to integrate the entire world’s data and make it available to the world. They will keep doing so, even if it takes another 300 years! At Google, employees spend 70% of their time on making their search engine more efficient and 20% of their time on making search-related improvements. Only 10% of their time is spent on other activities. And look at what array of products it has managed to produce with that measly 10%!!

But does that mean Google will not develop any products at all. Google has clearly stated that if the public finds anything needed or useful, they will make it. Microsoft fears the development of open-source word-editors that may replace MS Word forever. Who knows, maybe, even a free web-based OS may eliminate the need for Windows altogether!

The title is the best indication of how I view Google. When Juliet says, "O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” she is searching for where Romeo is. When I say what I wrote in the title, I was searching for where Google isn't present. And that's one question whose answer I cannot find in Google Answers for sure!

But one thing is certain – Google was and will always be the world best search engine for a long time to come.

Ciao.