Google, Inc. Page at Spirit of America Bookstore

          s h o r t
          h i s t o r y
          t e x t
          h e r e

          Founded in 1996; incorporated 1998; stock I.P.O. in 2004; reorganized as Alphabet, Inc. in October 2015.
          8/2008 Google now claims to have found 1 trillion pages on the web.
          After a seven-year legal battle, the European Union slapped a record 2.42 billion-euro ($2.72 billion) fine on internet giant Google on 26 June 2017
for taking advantage of its dominance in online searches to direct customers to its own online shopping business.

2021 Mon Jan 4: The Alphabet Workers Union launched public existence in an op-ed for the The New York Times by the union's executive chair Parul Koul and vice chair Chewy Shaw, both of whom are Google software engineers; 200 workers at Google's parent company Alphabet 'organized in secret for the better part of a year and elected its leadership last month'; the union leaders said that the labor group will be open to all Alphabet employees and contractors.

world headquarters is at 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway in Mountain View, California 94043
New York headquarters is at 111 Eighth Avenue, Chelsea District, Manhattan, NYC 10011
Los Angeles offices are at 340 Main Street in Venice, California 90291
Playa Vista offices are at 12422 W. Bluff Creek Drive in Playa Vista, California 90094
Washington, DC offices are at 25 Massachusetts Avenue NW in Washington, DC 20001

The Google search engine
Google launched new Panda 1.0 ranking algorithm in 2011.
Google launched Panda 4.0 ranking algorithm revisions in May 2014.

Google released a new algorithm in July 2020 that negatively altered search results for many websites, especially for small businesses.

Google announced in May 2024 that everyone in the United States will have access to its “AI overviews” that Google has been slowly expanding for the past year.

began as

Froogle was launched in December 2002 and indexed seller data after free signup, with income to Google derived from Adwords keyword bidding. The service
was renamed to Google Product Search in April 2007, then rebranded as Google Shopping in May 2012, with a change to for-fee inclusion.
official website • entry at Wikipedia

Google Chrome is a freeware web browser first released in September 2008 for Microsoft Windows; later versions were released for use on Linux, macOS, iOS, and Android platforms; Google Chrome is also the main component of Chrome OS, where it serves as a platform for running web apps.
Google Chrome official homepage {free download}

The top seven browsers according to StatCounter Global Stats as of June 2015: Google Chrome has 44% market-share; Safari has 13.4%; Internet Explorer {down from 53% in 2010} has 12.2%; Firefox has 10.7%; Android Browser has 6.3%; Opera (mostly in Africa) has 5.16%; UC Browser has 5.16%; the browsers after that total just 3.1%.
The top nine browsers according to StatCounter Global Stats as of May 2018: Google Chrome has 58.1% market-share; Safari has 13.78%; UC Browser has 8.16%; Firefox has 5.27%;
Opera has 3.68%; Internet Explorer {down from 53% in 2010 and 12.2% in 2015} has 3.08%; Samsung Internet is 2.59%; Edge is 1.91%; Android Browser has 1.51%;
the browsers after that total just 1.93%.
Google released Chrome 56 in april 2017; this new version may impact websites without SSL certificates, warning visitors that they are not secure;
there are free scanning tools to see if your site passes Chrome's security checks.
Google launched the new Chrome 68 browser in July of 2018; the changes include stricter requirements for SSL certificates on all websites.
Google Chrome is used by an estimated 300 million people (in 2020), and has about 40% of the browser market, which makes it the most popular internet browser out there

Google's first retail store, in Manhattan NYC - open 6/2021

Google Retail Stores
Google began experimenting with pop-up retail stores in 2016 to learn about what consumers expect from a brick-and-mortar location. The first permanent retail store opened in June 2021 on the ground floor of Google's Manhattan headquarters building at 111 Eighth Avenue in the trendy Chelsea neighborhood. The venue is 'designed like a social space', with many special booths and rooms so that customers can experience hardware & software product in a variety of situations; the store also provides support for devices and software. Some functions are by appointment; all employees and all customers must wear COVID masks.

YouTube, LLC was founded by three former PayPal employees in February 2005; Google Inc. paid $1.65 billion for the company
in November 2006; based in San Bruno, California. About 500 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every single minute. There are more than 2 billion subscribers
on YouTube; it has virtually no competition, and people are spending more and more time consuming online videos.
official website • entry at Wikipedia

YouTube opened offices at 331 Foothill Rd. in Beverly Hills, California in late 2011,
and a 41,000-square-feet production facility YouTube Space in nearby Playa Vista, California in November 2012.

YouTube Music is a for-fee streaming service that was launched in November 2015, available as an app for smart phones and PDA devices; the app was redesigned
in June 2018 and now includes software for desktops & laptops; 2018 early offer is 3-month free trial, then $9.99/month, family-level offer (up to 6 family members
ages 13+ in same household) 1-month free trial, then $14.99/month.
official website {requires Google sign-in} • entry at Wikipedia

YouTube TV for-fee live-streaming broadcast TV service launched in five metro areas February 2017

YouTube TV is a for-fee live-streaming broadcast TV service that was launched in February 2017 in five metro areas: Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay, Chicago, New York City, and Philadelphia ('with more areas soon'). Cost is $35/month, for six accounts per household; contents derived from ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox, and NBC – as well as 40 cable channels.
official website • entry at Wikipedia

	"The YouTube Formula: How Anyone Can Unlock The Algorithm To Drive Views, Build An Audience, and Grow Revenue" [2021] Wall Street Journal bestseller by Derral Eves, Foreword by 'MrBeast' Jimmy Donaldson 'the owner of the largest YouTube how-to channel provides the secrets to getting the results that every YouTube creator and strategist wants' Kindle Edition from Wiley & Sons [3/2021] for $15.00 Wiley & Sons 9x6½ hardcover [2/2021] for $16.29
	"YouTube Marketing: The Complete Guide To Grow Your YouTube Channel, Get More Views, And Make Money As A YouTube Influencer" [2022] by Max Goodwin Book 4 of this author's self-published Social Media Marketing Series; tips and strategies for making money off of YouTube, including chapters on swiftly attracting viewers and gaining subscribers, on the YouTube Algorithm, on YouTube Analytics, on paid advertising, and more . . . 116-page Kindle Edition from self-publd [8/2022] for $5.99 91-page self-publd 9x6 pb [8/2022] for $12.99
	"Like, Comment, Subscribe: Inside YouTube's Chaotic Rise To World Domination" [2022] by Mark Bergen, tech reporter for Bloomberg the first book to cover YouTube’s business evolution as told from the perspective of those who created the streaming giant, of the Google executives who took it over, and of the micro-celebrities that it created; particularly explores the YouTube platform’s technology and the company's complicated relationship with Google Kindle Edition from Random House/Viking [9/2022] for $9.99 paperback or hardcover 97805932966349 not yet listed on Amazon (9/2022)

Subsidiaries
Google's purchase of cellphone manufacturer Motorola Mobility officially completed May 2012.
The new Google Glass computer spectacles launched with limited availability for $1,500 in 2013.
January 2014: Google purchased Nest Labs for $3.2B.
April 2014: Google purchased Titan Aerospace of Moriarty, New Mexico
(designer & manufacturer of solar-powered drones) for $60M.

Google announced Knol in December 2007 and opened a beta version in July 2008, with just a few hundred articles, mostly in the health and medical field; the site was opened to all the world in August 2008. Google's Knol project aimed to include user-written articles on a range of topics; as a lower-case term, Google defined knol as a 'unit of knowledge', referring to an article in the project; the project was led by Udi Manber, a Google vice president of engineering. Knol was closed in April 2012, and all content was deleted by October 1st; the Internet Archive has snapshots of Knol archived between July 2008 and May 2012.
Knol entry at Wikipedia

Google My Business adds accessibility for small businesses in Google Search and in Google Maps; the trade-off is that Google wants you to advertise on Google AdWords, etc.
official website • no separate entry at Wikipedia (2018)

Google launched its Google+ social network in June 2011, replacing Google Buzz. Google discovered a software bug in Google+ in March 2018 that allowed a data breach
that may have exposed profile data of 500,000 users to external developers, but made no public announcement. Google announced in October 2018 that it will be 'winding down'
the Google+ operation for individual users, with complete shutdown by August 2019; the Google+ operation will be 'kept alive for businesses'; the reasons given
for the shutdown are very low consumer usage and the recent data breach.
official website • entry at Wikipedia

Google launched its Android Market online app store in October 2008; Google eBookstore was launched in December 2010, debuting with three million ebooks;
in November 2011, Google announced Google Music, a section of the Play Store offering music purchases; the name was changed to Google Play in March 2012;
Google Play also had a Devices section until it was split off as the Google Store online hardware retailer in March 2015.
Google Play: official website • entry at Wikipedia
Google Store: official website • entry at Wikipedia

Google agreed to acquire Pointy, a company based in Dublin, Ireland for $163M in January 2020; their product appears to be a retail search app that brick-and-morter
members of Google's commercial services can install on their website for customers to download to their phones/PDAs. The retailer member scans their products to
automatically add them to a Pointy Page for that store; the Pointy Page shows customers the store's live product inventory, opening hours, and contact details.
Pointy homepage at Google • there is no entry at Wikipedia

Sergey Mikhailovich Brin [b. 1973 in Moscow, Russia]
co-founded the Google search engine 9/1998; stepped down as president of Alphabet 12/2019; still very active at the company.
credits at IMDb • entry at Wikipedia

Lawrence Edward 'Larry' Page [b. 1973 in Lansing, Michigan]
co-founded the Google search engine 9/1998; stepped down as CEO of Alphabet 12/2019; still very active at the company.
credits at IMDb • entry at Wikipedia

Peter Chane, Senior Director of Local SMB Products (1/2020)
Jeff Dean, senior fellow, Google (2017)
Nick Fox, VP of Assistant and Search
Diane Green, SVP of Google Cloud, Google (2017)
Gary Illyes, Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google
Dr. Ray Kurzweil, Google’s Director of Engineering (2019)
Udi Manber, a Google vice president of engineering (2008)
Doantam Phan, Google product manager (2017)
Jason Rosenthal, Google VP direct channels & membership (6/2021)
Ivy Ross, Google VP of design, user experience & research (6/2021)
Google CEO Sundar Pichai
Kara Silverstein, Google's director of people operations (1/2021)
former exec Amit Singhal: forced out over sexual assault allegations, yet paid $35M exit package
Meredith Whittaker, founder of Google’s Open Research Group (2017) + co-founder of A.I. Now Institute [est. 2017]

retired Google exec Eric Schmidt [b. 1955] spent a decade as the company's CEO, otherwise active until late 2020
credits at IMDb • entry at Wikipedia • personal public service website
2013: shares his visions of digitally driven change and of a radically different future in "The New Digital Age"
http://www.amazon.com/New-Digital-Age-Reshaping-Business/dp/0307957136/
http://www.amazon.com/The-New-Digital-Age-Reshaping/dp/0307957136/
In 2014, Schmidt co-authored the New York Times best-selling book "How Google Works" with Jonathan Rosenberg and Alan Eagle
"Trillion Dollar Coach: The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley's Bill Campbell" [4/2019]
by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, et al.
http://www.amazon.com/Trillion-Dollar-Coach-Leadership-Playbook/dp/0062839268/

Visiting this webpage from outside the U.S.A.? It is possible to make purchases from these coded Amazon (USA) links
via other Amazon sites: just follow these instructions.

	"The Google Boys" [A&E Biography 2005] 45-minute TV documentary co-produced, written & co-directed by Michael Joseloff, co-directed by George P. Pozderec; featuring Larry Page & Sergey Brin A&E Home Video color DVD [12/2006] for $7.68 credits at IMDb
	"The Google Way: How One Company Is Revolutionizing Management As We Know It" [2009] by Bernard Girard No Starch Press 9¼x6¼ hardcover [4/2009] for $16.38
	"Googled: The End of The World As We Know It" [2009] {New York Times bestseller} by Ken Auletta The tale of geek founders Sergey Brin & Larry Page against the background of a sharp and probing analysis of the parallel apocalyptic upheavals in the media and entertainment industries. Penguin 8½x5½ pb [10/2010] for $10.88 Penguin Press 9¼x6½ hardcover [11/2009] for $18.45
	"Google For Seniors: Get Acquainted With Free Google Applications - Google Earth, Maps, Reader, Docs, Sites & Chrome" [2010] from Studio Visual Steps book with color disk meant to run on Windows Vista or XP or 7 Studio Visual Steps 11x7¾ pb w/disk [4/2010] for $86.00
	"The Googlization of Everything (And Why We Should Worry)" [2011] by Siva Vaidhyanathan Univ CA Press 9x6¼ hardcover [3/2011] for $17.79 official book site
	"In The Plex: How Google Thinks, Works, and Shapes Our Lives" [2011] by Steven Levy Simon & Schuster hardcover [4/2011] for $16.51
	"Search & Destroy: Why You Can't Trust Google Inc." [2011] by Scott Cleland, with Ira Brodsky Telescope Books 9x6¼ hardcover [5/2011] for $18.72
	"I'm Feeling Lucky: The Confessions of Google Employee Number 59" [2011] by Douglas Edwards Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 9x6 hardcover [7/2011] for $15.84
	"The Google Guys: Inside The Brilliant Minds of Google Founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin" [orig 2009, 2011] by Richard L. Brandt published as "Inside Larry & Sergey's Brain" in 2009; new Afterword added for the 2011 editions Kindle Edition from Portfolio/Penguin Group [6/2011] for $13.99 Portfolio 7¾x5 pb [6/2011] for $13.33
	"Digital Wars: Apple, Google, Microsoft, and The Battle For The Internet" [2012] by Charles Arthur Apple, Google, and Microsoft are radically different companies that fought a series of pitched battles for control of different parts of the digital landscape; the new edition looks at each of these battles in turn and analyses the very different cultures of the three companies and assesses exactly who are the victors on each front. Second Edition: Kindle Edition from Kogan Page [5/2014] for $19.99 Second Edition: Kogan Page 8½x5½ pb [5/2014] for $20.99 Kogan Page mass pb [4/2012] out of print/used
	"SEO - The Sassy Way To Ranking #1 In Google - When You Have NO CLUE!: A Beginner's Guide To Search Engine Optimization " [2017] by Gundi Gabrielle 'A step-by-step guide to optimizing your website & blog posts for S.E.O. and top ranking in Google' 111-page Kindle Edition from CreateSpace [2/2017] for $5.99 109-page CreateSpace 8x5¼ pb [2/2017] for $12.99
	"Everything Google For Seniors: The Unofficial Guide To Gmail, Google Apps, Chromebooks, and More!" [2019] by Scott La Counte book walks the reader through using the most popular Google programs and hardware, including Chromebook, Gmail, Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides Kindle Edition from ... [8/2019] for $9.99 self-publd 10x7 pb [8/2019] for $24.99 S.L. Editions 10x7 pb [8/2019] for $29.99
	"The Beginner's Guide To S.E.O.: How To Optimize Your Website, Rank Higher On Google, and Drive More Traffic " [2021] by Jessica Ainsworth guidebook is arranged in four parts: On-Site SEO, Off-Site SEO, Technical SEO, and The Extra Bits - plus Introduction, Afterword, and Glossary Kindle Edition from Pendragon Consulting, LLC [1/2021] for $2.99 Pendragon Consulting, LLC 8x5 pb [1/2021] for $12.99
	"SEO 2022 Complete Guide: Rank #1 On Google - Rank On The First Page of Google For On-Page SEO, Video SEO, Keyword Research SEO, Link Building, WordPress SEO With Easy To Follow Strategy" [2022] by Paul Adams SEO becomes difficult when you hear the same advice over and over, such as optimizing your title tags, sharing your content on social media, and publishing great content; while this advice isn't completely useless, it won't catapult your website to the top of Google because everyone else is doing the same thing. So, to rank higher than them, you must do something completely different, which is exactly what this guide will teach you to do, step by step. 39-page Kindle Edition from self-publd [2/2022] for $2.99 55-page self-publd 9x6 pb [2/2022] for $5.99

Spirit of America BookstoreGoogle, Inc. / Alphabet, Inc. [est. 1996]

Spirit of America Bookstore
Google, Inc. / Alphabet, Inc.
[est. 1996]