Google Expeditions Standalone App Launched

Google on 2015, launched a program called Google Expeditions. It is a virtual and augmented reality based program which allows the user to visit and experience famous places around the world virtually.

It was primarily designed for classroom purposes where teachers could take their students on explorations to famous sites and keep the class interactive. Google has released an app version of the Expeditions to some schools last year for beta testing.

After its success, Google has now finally launched a standalone app for Expeditions and it is available for download on Android right now.

Related :Using Google Maps Timeline Feature

Previously the Expeditions program could only be used in a classroom setup with the help of a Google Cardboard or a VR device. But now with the release of the standalone app, anyone could the Expeditions feature at the comfort of anywhere in the world.

Features Of Google Expeditions

Google has over 600 different tour locations integrated with the Expeditions app. These locations include the most popular seven wonders of the world and the Great barrier reef.

It also includes common urban tours like baseball stadiums and solar power plants. Teachers could assign tasks to the students to visit these places and write about their experience.

Google has also added additional features like multiple user scenarios. You could explore the location either as a guide or as an explorer.

Explorer mode is ideal for students or travelers who are new to a place. It shows useful information as a point of interests when you view a location using your VR device. If you are a teacher or you want to share your experience with someone about a place, then the Guide mode is the one you should choose.

Other new features include shared annotations and Expedition panoramas. You can use this feature to mark certain things on a location or add a point and it will be instantly shared with all shared users.

How To Use Google Expeditions

You can try the Google Expeditions on your Android phone right now. All you need is the app installed from the Play Store and a VR supported smartphone.

Download and Install the app on your smartphone and then choose your desired location from the app. You can then mount your phone to the Google cardboard or the Google Daydream device to start exploring places.

Right now the app is only available for Android platform but an iOS app is expected soon.

The post Google Expeditions Standalone App Launched appeared first on Google Tricks Blog.

How To Find Your Android Phone With Android Device Manager

Android Phone Overheating? Here Are 10 Ways To Cool Down Your Android Phone

Android Not Starting? Here’s Everything You Need To Know To Fix It

via Gtricks http://ift.tt/2v8nhHM

How to Effectively Manage ZIP Files in Drive

Google accounts come with a measly 15GB of storage & many users including students upload ZIP files to save space. It’s hard to use the given space for everything from photos to documents & Gmail attachments without running out of space. Use ZIP Extractor which is a Chrome app & an add-on to effectively manage ZIP files in Drive.

RELATED: Google Drive Scans Documents and Images, You Don’t Need a Separate OCR Application

Easily Extract ZIP Files Stored in Google Drive

Method 1: Using the ZIP Extractor Drive Addon

Installing the ZIP Extractor Addon

Step 1: Double click the ZIP file. Press the drop down button and choose Connect more apps.

Step 2: Enter the name of the Addon which is ZIP Extractor & press Connect to add it to your account.

Extracting ZIP files Using the Addon

Step 1: Open Google Drive & navigate to the ZIP file.

Step 2: Double click the ZIP file to check the contents of the ZIP file. Google by default lets users read the contents but doesn’t have the functionality to extract it. This is where ZIP extractor comes into play.

 

Navigate folders inside the ZIP file

Step 3: Depending on the number of folders in the ZIP file, select the folder & press Open with Extractor.

Time saver: Alternatively, right-click the ZIP & select Open With and choose ZIP Extractor

Step 4: This will open ZIP Extractor in a separate window. Press Authorise to give access to your ZIP file.

Press Authorise

Step 5: The addon will automatically start downloading the contents to begin the process of extraction. Wait patiently as it may take some time depending on the file size.

Wait for it to download the contents

Step 6: Once the extraction is complete, press Extract now to store the extracted files in the same folder. Choosing the Change destination folder button will allow users to choose a different destination in Drive.

As soon as it’s done the extracted files will show up in the specified folder in Google Drive.

RELATED: Keep Your Clipboard in Sync Between Desktop & Android Devices

Method 2: Using the ZIP Extractor Chrome App

Step 1: Visit the ZIP Extractor and download the Chrome app. The Chrome app & extension are no different in terms of functionality. Both are web apps but the choice is given for convenience sake.

Select Add to Chrome

Step 2: Once you see a pop-up window, select Add app again. This will install the web app to your Google Chrome profile.

Press add app

Step 3: This will launch Chrome Apps window. Here you can launch the web app by press the ZIP Extractor icon.

Launch the app

Step 4: This launches a window which is similar to what was seen during the Drive add-on. After pressing Authorise, follow the same instructions as before.

 

Follow the previous steps written for the Drive add-on

Step 5: Choose the ZIP file from the Drive file path or extract a local file.

RELATED: Backup Call Logs & Text Messages to Gmail

Manage ZIP Files From The Google Drive App

Android users aren’t left out when it comes to handling ZIP files. There are plenty of file managers like Solid Explorer equipped to deal with the extraction of compressed files.

Step 1: Launch Google Drive & navigate to the ZIP file and select the file. This will prompt Google Drive to download the file locally. Once the download is complete, you’ll be prompted to choose between different files that are capable of handling ZIP files.

Step 2: Once the download is complete, you’ll be prompted to choose between different files that are capable of handling ZIP files.

Left to right: Launch the drive app & open the ZIP file

Step 3: Choose the app you’re most comfortable with. In case you have only a single app capable of handling ZIP files, Android will automatically launch that app. After extraction, the files are available for use from the appropriate folders.

Solid File Explorer showing the extracted files

Conclusion

ZIP Extractor is a dead simple app that’s used to fill the void left by Google when it comes to handling compressed files.

RELATED: Create Shortcut for a Google Drive File at Multiple Folders

The post How to Effectively Manage ZIP Files in Drive appeared first on Google Tricks Blog.

Create Shortcut for a Google Drive File at Multiple Folders

Launch Your Favorite Android Apps From Google Chrome

How To Download YouTube Videos on PC

via Gtricks http://ift.tt/2uNkVLV

Google Adds SOS Alerts To Maps And Search

Google in an attempt to keep its users safe both physically and virtually has been rolling out a lot of security patches and updates.

On account of that, Google has recently added SOS alerts to the Google Maps and Search apps.

SOS was originally named as Save Our Ship. It was used as a signal to alert the passengers when a disaster occurs.

With SOS alerts now integrated into Google Maps and Google Search, it would be helpful for the modern world to keep themselves aware of their circumstances.

Basically what the Google SOS alerts feature does is that, it will send you alert notifications in times of any natural disasters or man made calamities.

Related : View & Manage Your Location History Using Google Maps Timeline

Fire accidents are some of the common man made calamities and are capable of affecting the everyday lives of people around the affected area.

Natural disasters like Floods, Earthquakes and even Snow storms also cause a huge distress.

How Will Be The SOS Alerts Useful

Google will show important information at the top of the search results when someone searches for the location or the Keyword of the disaster.

These information include emergency contact numbers, safe locations, news coverage and related media.

Google Maps will also show important information during times of distress, These include disaster locations marked in red, alternate routes and notification alerts.

Google will also provide translations regarding the issues incase you are on a trip when the disaster occurred.

Related : Caching offline maps in Google Maps App

How To Make Use Of The SOS Alerts Feature In Google Search And Maps

If you have the latest version of the Google Search and The Google Maps apps installed, you will automatically get notifications for the SOS alerts.

Incase you want to view specific information like the location where some of your relatives live in, you can open the apps and search for the location or a keyword related to the incident.

For instance, if you search for NewYork, Then Google will return all possible results about any kind of calamities that occurred in NewYork.

As mentioned earlier, this will include news and coverage about the disaster, emergency contact numbers, Disaster locations marked in Google Maps and alternate routes to travel.

Google has joined together with multiple emergency authorities like the Red Cross, the Federal Emergency Management Agency or the Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration in order to provide reliable and instant alerts to its users.

However Google has revealed that it might not be able to send out alerts for every events but is working on to improve this.

Google SOS Alerts is live from Today and it will be working on your phone as soon as you update the apps to the latest versions.

The post Google Adds SOS Alerts To Maps And Search appeared first on Google Tricks Blog.

Mirror Android Notifications in Google Chrome

Google Maps Reveals Alphabetic Letters

Google it !

via Gtricks http://ift.tt/2v8hkup

Establish Your Online Identity by Creating a Google Profile

Google is still the dominant search engine and the best way for people to find individuals & businesses. Thus it’s crucial to be ranked first when your name or brand is searched online. And unless your name or brand has a unique name it’s pretty hard to get it to rank first or even to the first page. Fortunately, Google makes it much easier for people to set-up simple Google profiles for better discoverability.

It’s an important tool that’s especially helpful for new freelancers & smaller businesses who cannot afford to maintain their own website.

Create & Manage Your Online Identity Using Google Plus Profiles

Technically speaking, it’s now called a Google Plus profile since Google watered down the service Google Profiles & integrated it directly with Google Plus. While the move can be seen as forcing users to switch to a new platform, Google Plus Profiles still comes with many new features to help individuals & businesses express themselves creatively.

An example of how the old Google Profiles looked

Get Started with Google Plus Profiles

If you’re new to Google and it’s your first Gmail account, here’s how to create a Google Plus profile.

Step 1: Visit Google Plus and press the Join Google+ button in the sidebar.

Select the Join Google+ button

Step 2: This will prompt a window for entering your First & Last name which will appear publicly. Details like visibility date of birth & gender can be made private.

Step 3: Press Create Profile & upload a profile photo. Putting up a picture essential requirement for setting a custom URL.

Step 4: Finally press Save.

RELATED: Backup and Sync Guide for Your Uploads

Adding Details to Your Profile

Step 1: Click on Profile from the Google+ sidebar. This will load your profile page.

Step 2: In the top right corner there’s an About button or use this link. Press it to furnish the page with additional details. Press the pencil icon to edit details.

Step 3: Press the Plus (+) fab icon in the bottom right to add more details to your profile.

Step 4: Add the appropriate details and press Save.

Enter the relevant information and hit save

RELATED: Add your name in Google Search

Controlling Privacy

The privacy of each detail can be individually controlled by pressing the Lock icon.

1. Press the lock icon

2. Select the appropriate privacy setting

Getting a custom URL for your Google Profile

Google+ profiles aka Google profiles usually look like this:
http://ift.tt/kC2wBsu/0/117852991644422207414
If a custom URL is set, the page is easier to share with others
For example, this is our own custom URL: http://ift.tt/kC2wBs+Gtricks

It’s easier to remember compared to a string of characters. But to get a custom URL there are some rules such as:

• You have ten or more followers (people who have added you to their circles)
• Your account is at least 30 days old
• Your profile has a profile photo
• Your account is in good standing (account should follow the rules & guidelines for posting content)

Once you fulfil these requirements Google will automatically show a banner above the Google Plus logo asking you to set a custom URL.

Here’s an example of what the banner looks like

Downsides & Alternatives

While Google Plus profiles offer a lot of options for entering new information, it lacks visual customisation features. Since it’s a part of Google Plus, every profile will natural fit in with Google’s design guidelines. Thus there’s very little room for tweaking when it comes to changing icons and typefaces.

If you’re allured by such features About.me is a better option with paid options for more customisation & removal of branding.

Conclusion

Google Plus’s profile offering is an essential feature for everyone to get their name or business ranked high in the Google search results and is definitely an effective use of one’s time.

RELATED: Manage Multiple YouTube Channels

The post Establish Your Online Identity by Creating a Google Profile appeared first on Google Tricks Blog.

Google it !

How To Recover Your Hacked Gmail Account

How to Add Your Name or Image in Google Search

via Gtricks http://ift.tt/2v7jfiY