a blog on technology in the real world

Google has a post on the new iGoogle layout. A lot of their “gadgets” have been updated and the tabs have been moved from the top of the portal to the left of it.

I’m not happy with the changes. The new Gmail gadget now opens within the same window instead of opening a new window (or tab). You can work with e-mails by replying or forwarding, but if you need to click on any web links you have to copy the link and paste it into your address bar. Moving the tabs from the top to the left also has some problems. Google’s blog post describes the move so you can “access to any gadget with one click.” It may be so, but it would have been nice to have some notice of the change.

(left, old design. right, new design. Click for larger versions.)

Don’t get me wrong, I like some of the new apps. The Weather app is particularly nice. However, this design has the feel of being rushed. Maybe it was hurried because of Yahoo’s upcoming redesign?

TripIt is travel site I have been using for the past few months. I’m not sure exactly how I found it, but I’m glad I did. Tripit describes itself as a “travel assistant.” It works by e-mailing the confirmation e-mails from flights, car rentals, and hotels to plans@tripit.com. You are then presented with the information imported in a clean looking itinerary with all the information imported, weather updates, and maps. You can add other items such as meetings, activities, restaurant reservations, and directions to the itinerary if needed, and you the itinerary can be exported to any calendar that supports the iCal format. The itinerary can also be printed out, and includes Google Maps for both the area you’re visiting as well as all the driving directions for the trip in a nice, clean layout.

Read more

As we wait on our waitress to return with my credit card I thought I would test this put again.