Google News

Fridaygram: App Engine search, rock-tossing chimp, man vs. beast

3:16 pm - May 11, 2012 in Google Developers Blog

By Scott Knaster, Google Developers Blog Editor

Google App Engine has a well-deserved reputation for regularly adding cool new features and other improvements. This week the team launched full-text search, which has been a hotly desired feature since the earliest days of App Engine. The new App Engine Search API enables you to search documents using lots of options, including searching specific fields and creating results snippets. At Google, it’s always fun to build new frontiers in search.

The App Engine Search API is a powerful tool indeed, but it probably couldn't defend you against an aggressive chimp that likes to gather and throw stones. The chimp in question, Santino, has apparently been gathering stones for years and then throwing them at intruders. Scientists have debated whether Santino is actually planning for upcoming tantrums when collecting stones. After years of close observation, researchers still disagree on whether Santino is a premeditated stone-thrower. But there is plenty of fascinating evidence, such as Santino stashing his stones beneath piles of hay where nobody will see them. Cat out of the bag, Santino?

Finally, we direct you to this remixed video of a different, stone-free interspecies confrontation. It's weird and funny, and it has special effects – what more could you want? It's a perfect way to spend a minute and ten seconds of your Friday or weekend.

Each week we publish Fridaygram, a post with cool Google and non-Google stuff you might have missed during the week. Fridaygram items aren't necessarily related to developer topics; they’re just interesting to us nerds. As for moving from App Engine Search to Santino the plotting chimp, we’re just trying to maintain our practice of tortured transitions.

Announcing the AdWhirl to AdMob Ad Network Mediation Import Pipeline

3:00 pm - May 11, 2012 in Google Ads Developer Blog

We're very pleased to announce the availability of the AdWhirl to AdMob Ad Network Mediation Import Pipeline. This functionality--accessible from mediation.admob.com--will enable you to import all of your relevant configuration data from AdWhirl in just a few clicks!

Getting started is simple! Here are the steps you'll want to follow to import a configuration:

Navigate to mediation.admob.com and click the Import Placement from AdWhirl link. Read through the notes.
Click Log in to AdWhirl. You'll be redirected to an AdWhirl authorization page where you should enter your AdWhirl account's email address and password.
Click Submit. Assuming your info is correct, you'll be redirected back to AdMob's Import Placement from AdWhirl workflow, where you can choose a particular placement to pull over.
Mouse over a placement and click the Select to Import button. After confirming things are correct on the Review & Import screen, go ahead and click the final Import button.
Put your feet up, grab a brew; you're done! Take a moment to bask in the warm glow of your accomplishment. The placement will now appear in your AdMob Ad Network Mediation Placements interface.

The AdMob Ad Network Mediation product offers many improvements over AdWhirl, including enhanced stability, support for tablet sizes, revenue optimizations by country, and improved reporting. We hope you give it a look! As always, if you have questions or concerns, you can get a hold of us on our forum.

- Wes Goodman, AdMob Team

(Navigation)
(Content start)

Make it your own with Custom Fields in DFP API

1:37 pm - May 11, 2012 in Google Ads Developer Blog

New to v201204 of DFP API are custom fields, which can be applied to orders, line items, and creatives. This new feature gives you the ability to include additional information on DFP entities without having to implement data persistence in your own system. They are saved when the entities are saved on the DFP servers which ensures data consistency and removes the need for syncing.

Data Types
The following are the supported data types of a custom field:

String
Number
Toggle (true/ false)
Drop-down (selection from user-defined values)

These data types should cover some of the most common use cases for custom fields such as comments (string), metrics (number), and internal system status (toggle/drop-down).

How-To
You can create and manage your custom fields and custom field options (for drop-down custom fields) with the new CustomFieldService. Please make sure you have the feature enabled for your network before you try to set up custom fields. We are also working on bringing custom fields to the user interface, so be on the lookout for them!

Walk-Through
The following Java sample shows how you can add a string and drop-down custom field value to your line item. This assumes that you have already created the custom fields and custom field options. You can check out how to create them using the CreateCustomFields and CreateCustomFieldOptions examples in the client libraries.

Long customFieldId = Long.parseLong("INSERT_STRING_CUSTOM_FIELD_ID_HERE");
Long dropDownCustomFieldId = 
    Long.parseLong("INSERT_DROP_DOWN_CUSTOM_FIELD_ID_HERE");
Long customFieldOptionId = 
    Long.parseLong("INSERT_CUSTOM_FIELD_OPTION_ID_HERE");
Long lineItemId = Long.parseLong("INSERT_LINE_ITEM_ID_HERE");

// Get the line item.
LineItem lineItem = lineItemService.getLineItem(lineItemId);

// Create custom field values.
List customFieldValues = new ArrayList();

// Create the String custom field value.
TextValue textValue = new TextValue();
textValue.setValue("Custom field value");
CustomFieldValue customFieldValue = new CustomFieldValue();
customFieldValue.setCustomFieldId(customFieldId);
customFieldValue.setValue(textValue);
customFieldValues.add(customFieldValue);

// Create the drop-down custom field value.
DropDownCustomFieldValue dropDownCustomFieldValue =
    new DropDownCustomFieldValue();
dropDownCustomFieldValue.setCustomFieldId(dropDownCustomFieldId);
dropDownCustomFieldValue.setCustomFieldOptionId(customFieldOptionId);
customFieldValues.add(dropDownCustomFieldValue);

// The line item can contain custom field values for the field you are
// trying to set or an unrelated one.  The following checks that you only 
// add existing custom field values for custom fields different from the 
// ones you are setting.
if (lineItem.getCustomFieldValues() != null) {
  for (BaseCustomFieldValue oldCustomFieldValue : 
      lineItem.getCustomFieldValues()) {
    if (!oldCustomFieldValue.getCustomFieldId().equals(customFieldId)
        && !oldCustomFieldValue.getCustomFieldId().equals(
        dropDownCustomFieldId)) {
      customFieldValues.add(oldCustomFieldValue);
    }
  }
}

// Set the custom field values on the line item.
lineItem.setCustomFieldValues(customFieldValues.toArray(
    new BaseCustomFieldValue[]{}));

// Update the line item on the server.
LineItem[] lineItems = lineItemService.updateLineItems(
    new LineItem[] {lineItem});

And that’s it! For the full Java code example, you can refer to the SetLineItemCustomFieldValue in the client library.

With this new feature, we aim to help you create stronger integrations with DFP through the API. If there are any features you would like us to demonstrate, please don’t hesitate to let us know with a forum post or at a Office Hour Hangout.

- Jeffrey Sham, DFP API Team

(Navigation)
(Content start)

Model bid changes at scale with campaign bid simulator

11:57 am - May 11, 2012 in Inside AdWords

When we launched bid simulator in 2009, we wanted to make it easy for you to understand the impact of bids on your advertising results. Until now, you’ve been able to access bid simulator at the keyword and ad group level.

To allow you to more easily simulate and apply bid changes at scale, we’re pleased to announce the launch of campaign bid simulator.

To access campaign bid simulator, go to the Opportunities tab and select “campaign bid simulator” from the left navigation tree.

With campaign bid simulator, you can:

View bid changes in aggregate and model changes even when keywords or ad groups might not have enough data for this on their own.
See what might happen if you increased or decreased all your bids by a specific percentage (10%, for example).
See whether you may need to increase your campaign budget to ensure it doesn’t become limited by budget at the new bid value.
Model what happens if you changed all your bids in the campaign to a single value.
Download the bid-simulation data at the account or campaign level.
Download an AdWords Editor-compatible file with bid amounts at the simulated level and the ad groups and keywords to which they should be applied.

Note: this is mock data only and should not be seen as a real or accurate simulation

For more information, visit the AdWords Help Center.

Posted by Sheridan Kates, Product Manager, AdWords

How Nissan Uses Ecommerce Tracking Without Directly Selling Online

11:04 am - May 11, 2012 in Google Analytics Blog

This post originally appeared on the Google Analytics Japan blog.

Google Analytics’ e-commerce tracking allows online merchants to measure items sold and tie those results back to their digital marketing activities. But did you know that it can also be used to track non e-commerce activity?

Nissan Motor Company does just this. Nissan operates in the automobile industry, and owns a network of websites designed to help consumers around the world decide which Nissan vehicle they would like to purchase.

Nissan uses e-commerce tracking whenever a visitor submits a request for a test drive or a brochure. They treat each request as if a car were sold, and record details such as the model, colour, transmission type, and location of the vehicles people inquire after. A traditional Google Analytics implementation for a non e-commerce site would simply use goals to measure conversions. So why did Nissan opt to use e-commerce tracking instead?

They wanted to be able to measure more information about each inquiry within their Google Analytics reports. By implementing e-commerce tracking they are now able to pass additional information to their Google Analytics account, such as the category, colour, and model of car the visitor was interested in. Nissan's Global Marketing Strategy Division then analyses this information to understand which vehicles are in hot demand in each market; it then feeds those insights to their manufacturing plants across the globe to ensure that there is enough supply to satisfy demand.

One of the benefits of Google Analytics is that you can decide who should have access to your suite of reports. Nissan’s Global Division uses this feature to decentralise access to their different market operations, allowing each country manager to log into Google Analytics and quickly assess the popularity of different models for their market. Nissan employed a Google Analytics Certified Partner in Japan, Ayudante, to help set up their account profiles and custom reports that could then be accessed by each of the country managers.

Nissan’s Global Marketing Strategy division says there are 3 key benefits they gain from Google Analytics as a whole:

It is easy to assess product popularity globally and by market. The user experience is seamless and there was no complex setup necessary.
Custom reports allow you to easily view complex information in one view. It dramatically reduces the time to summarize multiple reports, document it, and share it within the organisation.
Google Analytics gives them access to timely information, which allows for better decision making.

Even if you are a non e-commerce site, you should explore e-commerce tracking as a means of measuring more information about the products or services your visitors are inquiring about. Then share that information with your wider marketing and product teams so that they can make effective decisions to maximise sales.

Posted by Noriyuki Ouchi, Google Analytics Solutions Consultant, Google Japan and Vinoaj Vijeyakumaar, Senior Conversion Specialist, Google Southeast Asia

More from Google Analytics team in Google News

(Navigation)
(Content start)

Ad Exchange Buyer SOAP API v201109_1 – features available more quickly in dot releases

9:46 am - May 11, 2012 in Google Ads Developer Blog

The Ad Exchange Team is pleased to announce the launch of v201109_1 of the Ad Exchange Buyer SOAP API, a dot release which includes the following services that are relevant to Ad Exchange Developers:

Expandable directions for display ads are now available through ThirdPartyRedirectAd.ExpandingDirection.
TargetingIdeaService now exposes the attribute CATEGORY_PRODUCTS_AND_SERVICES.

Moving forward, we will use dot releases which will allow us to launch features more quickly; v201109_1 does not start the sunset on prior versions.

The full set of release notes is available here. If you have any questions please reach out to us in the DoubleClick Ad Exchange forum.

- David Torres, AdWords API Team

(Navigation)
(Content start)

People Making Good Sees the Good in Google Apps

3:34 pm - May 10, 2012 in Google Enterprise Blog

Posted by: Nicole Ravlin, Co-founder of People Making Good

Editor’s Note: Today’s guest blogger is Nicole Ravlin, Co-founder of People Making Good, a public relations company based in Burlington, Vermont.

People Making Good is a public relations and social media marketing firm focused on promoting healthy, socially responsible brands. In six years we’ve grown to ten employees and have a wide range of clients across the country and around the globe.

Over the past several years, we’ve been limited by our IT solutions, particularly since our clients are in multiple time zones and our staff travels frequently. Important tasks like scheduling meetings or tracking product launches often were made more difficult than they needed to be. About 18 months ago, our IT consultants recommended we try Google Apps for Business to help simplify our work processes. Not only has it kept us organized as a company, it’s also helped us stay in line with our core values, one of which is to be as paperless as possible.

Google Calendar has completely transformed the way we schedule meetings with clients, book trade shows, and schedule launch events. For one client we set up a shared calendar to manage events in multiple cities for the launch of a new product – everything from tracking industry events to meetings with retailers and press. Our client could see their schedule come together in real time, and it automatically synced with their mobile device. They knew exactly where to be and when, no matter what time zone they were in.

With Google Docs, we’re able to work with clients all over the world. Before, we’d email back and forth, and critical information got buried in people’s inboxes or lost for good. Now, we share documents directly with our clients and quickly work through things like media lists, press releases and blog posts. We often make comments and chat directly in a doc so we can avoid the hassle of multiple phone calls and emails.

Google Apps has helped us streamline our processes, even while we’re on the go. This gives us more time to continue our quest to help socially responsible companies tell their stories.

AdWhirl v3.2 Released!

2:33 pm - May 10, 2012 in Google Ads Developer Blog

We're very happy to announce the release of AdWhirl v3.2! This version brings us support for the latest and greatest from several ad networks. In particular:

Android:

Support for AdMob v6.0.1
Support for Millennial v4.5.1
Support for InMobi v350

iOS:

Support for AdMob v6.0.4
Support for Millennial v4.5.5
Support for InMobi v350

As always, you can find the latest SDKs available on our download page. Or, feel free to snag the source: (Android | iOS). If you encounter any issues, don't hesitate to contact us on our forum or during Office Hours--times to be announced on our blog.

- Wes Goodman, AdMob Team

(Navigation)
(Content start)

Reminder: Migrate to the new Core Reporting API

12:13 pm - May 10, 2012 in Google Analytics Blog

At the end of 2011 we announced the Google Analytics Core Reporting API as a replacement for the Data Export API. We also announced a 6 month deprecation period for the Data Export API version 2.3, after which all v2.3 queries will return a v2.4 response. Well, it's almost been 6 months since the announcement was made. If you haven't already moved to our shiny new APIs, and we know there are quite a few of you out there who haven't, we urge you to get movin' or risk your application not working come June.

The good news is that we published a new, easy to follow migration guide to help you make the transition and ensure your application continues to work after we shut down the Data Export API sometime in June.

If you are building a new application, we highly recommend using the Core Reporting API v3.0. For existing applications, we also recommend moving to v3.0 but it may be easier for you to migrate to v2.4 as an intermediary step, since it is backwards compatible with the Data Export API v2.3.

The great news is that if you make the move to v3.0, you'll be able to take advantage of any new features, and the compact JSON format that reduces response size by 10x!

To get started, check out the Migration Guide: Moving from v2.3 APIs to v2.4 & v3.0.

Additional details and support:

Core Reporting API Forum - for any questions you may have
Core Reporting API Changelog - for details on the change

Posted by Pete Frisella, Google Analytics API team

Updates to our AdMob SDK

12:06 pm - May 10, 2012 in Google Ads Developer Blog

Editor’s note: We’d like to share this post from Chrix Finne which announces updates to the Google AdMob Ads SDK. -- Eric Leichtenschlag, Ads Developer Relations Team

Today we are posting an update to the AdMob SDKs for iOS and Android. This SDK update features several minor bug fixes and improvements.

We are also releasing an optional version of our SDK for iOS that includes the UDID parameter, which is used to improve ad performance and relevance. Apps utilizing this version must obtain appropriate user consent for sending device identifier information in compliance with relevant iOS policies.

Posted by Chrix Finne, Product Manager

(Navigation)
(Content start)

(Navigation)
(Content start)

It's All About Search | © clsc.net |