Google - the teenager

So Google has just celebrated its 14th birthday. In that time it has become the dominant internet search engine (outside China). It has developed the most widely used smartphone operating system, and like a teenager on a diet of cola and blue sweets, aims to keep reinventing itself to ensure it gets to be the centre of attention.

Personal opinion, overall despite my natural gravitation to smaller vendors,I really like Google,  its approach and ambitions. I have been to a Googleplex (one of their 'funky' office environments where bean bags and games tables support the creative process for its staff), and like many in the western world, in addition to having it [Google] as the default search engine (although I am cognisant of potential bias in results). I have also come to use Google as a verb when clients ask for reassurance on my activity/credibility - "google me".
However such a profile comes at a price. If you put up a big dart board, people will throw darts at it, and the bigger the dartboard, the greater number and heavier the weight of the darts, and thus Google's local 'representatives' in countries from Germany to India find themselves under scrutiny/questioning from authorities on issues of confidentiality and anti-competitive behaviour (bet that wasn't in the job description).
Happy Birthday Google.

Apple mapping - now it's personal

Like many others I have learned that Apple's Mapping App, delivered on the iPhone 5, along with iOS6,  has a few flaws in its application. And it was funny/acceptable until my local 'rag' spotted that the place I proposed to my wife, and where we (very recently) spent our twentieth wedding anniversary was potentially 6,000 miles from where we live http://bit.ly/QBoRDG.
Please Tim Cook, for the credibility of my marriage, please sort it out.