Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Welcome To The Google Experience!

This is a comical view of Google's Views, you can find this information right here on their site.


1. Focus on people – their lives, their work, their dreams.

The Google User Experience team works to discover people's actual needs, including needs they can't always articulate. Armed with that information, Google can create products that solve real-world problems and spark the creativity of all kinds of people. Improving people's lives, not just easing step-by-step tasks, is our goal.

Above all, a well-designed Google product is useful in daily life. It doesn't try to impress users with its whizbang technology or visual style – though it might have both. It doesn't strong-arm people to use features they don't want – but it does provide a natural growth path for those who are interested. It doesn't intrude on people's lives – but it does open doors for users who want to explore the world's information, work more quickly and creatively, and share ideas with their friends or the world.
So far google has been focusing on their own phone and providing this item for that phone only. Yes they made the Android Platform but they have not been very helpful since then...

2. Every millisecond counts.

Nothing is more valuable than people's time. Google pages load quickly, thanks to slim code and carefully selected image files. The most essential features and text are placed in the easiest-to-find locations. Unnecessary clicks, typing, steps, and other actions are eliminated. Google products ask for information only once and include smart defaults. Tasks are streamlined.

Speed is a boon to users. It is also a competitive advantage that Google doesn't sacrifice without good reason.
Wow Big Shocker Here! They have been wasting everyone's time, with this whole Market crap and not getting the Footprint uploaded... they could save everyone some time and fix the market to do copy protection based on IMEA numbers instead of blanketing phones based on a footprint just so they can prevent developer phones from accessing paid apps?

3. Simplicity is powerful.

Simplicity fuels many elements of good design, including ease of use, speed, visual appeal, and accessibility. But simplicity starts with the design of a product's fundamental functions. Google doesn't set out to create feature-rich products; our best designs include only the features that people need to accomplish their goals. Ideally, even products that require large feature sets and complex visual designs appear to be simple as well as powerful.

Google teams think twice before sacrificing simplicity in pursuit of a less important feature. Our hope is to evolve products in new directions instead of just adding more features.
Ok I'll give them this, They have made it simple.

4. Engage beginners and attract experts.

Designing for many people doesn't mean designing for the lowest common denominator. The best Google designs appear quite simple on the surface but include powerful features that are easily accessible to those users who want them. Our intent is to invite beginners with a great initial experience while also attracting power users whose excitement and expertise will draw others to the product.

A well-designed Google product lets new users jump in, offers help when necessary, and ensures that users can make simple and intuitive use of the product's most valuable features. Progressive disclosure of advanced features encourages people to expand their usage of the product. Whenever appropriate, Google offers smart features that entice people with complex online lives – for instance, people who share data across several devices and computers, work online and off, and crave storage space.
Well with the number of bugs in the system its turning away a bunch of people, Beginners and Experts.

5. Dare to innovate.

Design consistency builds a trusted foundation for Google products, makes users comfortable, and speeds their work. But it is the element of imagination that transforms designs from ho-hum to delightful.

Google encourages innovative, risk-taking designs whenever they serve the needs of users. Our teams encourage new ideas to come out and play. Instead of just matching the features of existing products, Google wants to change the game.

Ok they have been inovative, yet they have not been consistent with the who android project.


6. Design for the world.

The World Wide Web has opened all the resources of the Internet to people everywhere. For example, many users are exploring Google products while strolling with a mobile device, not sitting at a desk with a personal computer. Our goal is to design products that are contextually relevant and available through the medium and methods that make sense to users. Google supports slower connections and older browsers when possible, and Google allows people to choose how they view information (screen size, font size) and how they enter information (smart query parsing). The User Experience team researches the fundamental differences in user experiences throughout the world and works to design the right products for each audience, device, and culture. Simple translation, or "graceful degradation" of a feature set, isn't sufficient to meet people's needs.

Google is also committed to improving the accessibility of its products. Our desire for simple and inclusive products, and Google's mission to make the world's information universally accessible, demand products that support assistive technologies and provide a useful and enjoyable experience for everyone, including those with physical and cognitive limitations.
Well it seems they have only designed for certain countries, and will not even give a time frame for when others will be made available?

7. Plan for today's and tomorrow's business.

Those Google products that make money strive to do so in a way that is helpful to users. To reach that lofty goal, designers work with product teams to ensure that business considerations integrate seamlessly with the goals of users. Teams work to make sure ads are relevant, useful, and clearly identifiable as ads. Google also takes care to protect the interests of advertisers and others who depend on Google for their livelihood.

Google never tries to increase revenue from a product if it would mean reducing the number of Google users in the future. If a profitable design doesn't please users, it's time to go back to the drawing board. Not every product has to make money, and none should be bad for business.
Yeah Right!

8. Delight the eye without distracting the mind.

If people looked at a Google product and said "Wow, that's beautiful!" the User Experience team would cheer. A positive first impression makes users comfortable, assures them that the product is reliable and professional, and encourages people to make the product their own.

A minimalist aesthetic makes sense for most Google products because a clean, clutter-free design loads quickly and doesn't distract users from their goals. Visually appealing images, color, and fonts are balanced against the needs for speed, scannable text, and easy navigation. Still, "simple elegance" is not the best fit for every product. Audience and cultural context matter. A Google product's visual design should please its users and improve usability for them.
No problems here...

9. Be worthy of people's trust.

Good design can go a long way to earn the trust of the people who use Google products. Establishing Google's reliability starts with the basics – for example, making sure the interface is efficient and professional, actions are easily reversed, ads are clearly identified, terminology is consistent, and users are never unhappily surprised. In addition, Google products open themselves to the world by including links to competitors and encouraging user contributions such as community maps or iGoogle gadgets.

A greater challenge is to make sure that Google demonstrates respect for users' right to control their own data. Google is transparent about how it uses information and how that information is shared with others (if at all), so that users can make informed choices. Our products warn users about such dangers as insecure connections, actions that may make users vulnerable to spam, or the possibility that data shared outside Google may be stored elsewhere. The larger Google becomes, the more essential it is to live up to our "Don't be evil" motto.
So far the trust with google has gone out the door...

10. Add a human touch.

Google includes a wide range of personalities, and our designs have personality, too. Text and design elements are friendly, quirky, and smart – and not boring, close-minded, or arrogant. Google text talks directly to people and offers the same practical, informal assistance that anyone would offer to a neighbor who asked a question. And Google doesn't let fun or personality interfere with other elements of a design, especially when people's livelihood, or their ability to find vital information, is at stake.

Google doesn't know everything, and no design is perfect. Our products ask for feedback, and Google acts on that feedback. When practicing these design principles, the Google User Experience team seeks the best possible balance in the time available for each product. Then the cycle of iteration, innovation, and improvement continues.
And when we provide feed back Google has been either slow to respond or ignored the requests of developers and users a like...

Android Developers Actively Helping

Letter to Mobile Carrier's

Feel Free to copy and use this eMail to send to your Mobile Carrier.

You will NEED to enter your device info before mailing this

----

(Insert Your Devices Info Here - Found in "Settings/About Device(or Phone)")

Device Model:
Firmware version:
Baseband version:
Kernel version:
Build number:

(End Insert)

I'm sending you this in case you have made any changes to the Firmware/OS of my device after your received it from the manufacturer, in which case the modified Device Footprint that resulted needs to be submitted to Google's Android Market to allow "Copy Protected" apps to be viewed and downloaded from the Android Market.

This oversight is caused by one or more of you ,Google, or my device's manufacturer. So I am reporting it to YOU, Google, and my device's manufacturer.

For you to point the finger at Google, the device manufacturer, or the app's developer and tell me to contact them is irresponsible on your part as this issue is not a consumer issue, it is the responsibility of the you, Google, and the device manufacturer to ensure the device is listed properly with the android market. It is not the responsibility of the app's developer to ensure this device is listed properly so they can distribute their wares to this device.

If you choose to respond with finger pointing, although it is not my responsibility to facilitate the communication you should be having with that party yourself. Please be advised that all communication will be forwarded to the party with which you place the blame of the oversight. And may be made public on one or more websites.

Letter to Device Manufacturer's

Feel Free to copy and use this eMail to send to your device manufacturer.

You will NEED to enter your device info before mailing this

----

(Insert Your Devices Info Here - Found in "Settings/About Device(or Phone)")

Device Model:
Firmware version:
Baseband version:
Kernel version:
Build number:

(End Insert)


This Device Footprint needs to be submitted to Google's Android Market to allow "Copy Protected" apps to be viewed and downloaded from the Android Market.

This oversight can only be caused by one or both of you and, or Google. So I am reporting it to YOU and Google.

For you to point the finger at Google, my mobile carrier, or the app's developer and tell me to contact them is irresponsible on your part as this issue is not a consumer issue, it is the responsibility of the Device Manufacturer to ensure their device is listed properly with the android market. It is not the responsibility of the app's developer to ensure your device is listed properly so they can distribute their wares to this device.

If you choose to respond with finger pointing, although it is not my responsibility to facilitate the communication you should be having with that party yourself. Please be advised that all communication will be forwarded to the party with which you place the blame of the oversight.

Letter to Google

Feel Free To Copy and use this for your own email

You NEED to change *MANUFACTURER* to your Devices Manufacturer, and input your device details

---

(Insert Your Devices Info Here - Found in "Settings/About Device(or Phone)")

Device Model:
Firmware version:
Baseband version:
Kernel version:
Build number:

(End Insert)

This Device Footprint needs to be processed in to Android Market to allow "Copy Protected" apps to be viewed and downloaded from the Android Market.

This oversight can only be caused by one or both of you and, or *MANUFACTURER*. So I am reporting it to YOU and *MANUFACTURER*.

For you to point the finger at *MANUFACTURER*, my mobile carrier, or the app's developer and tell me to contact them is irresponsible on your part as this issue is not a consumer issue, it is the responsibility of YOU and the Device Manufacturer to ensure the device is listed properly with the android market. It is not the responsibility of the app's developer to ensure the device is listed properly so they can distribute their wares to this device.

If you choose to respond with finger pointing, although it is not my responsibility to facilitate the communication you should be having with that party yourself. Please be advised that all communication will be forwarded to the party with which you place the blame of the oversight.

Letter to App Developer's

Feel free to copy this letter to send to app developers when you can not find an app of theirs

-----

Unfortunately I seem to be having some issues with getting some apps from the market...
This problem only happens if your app is "Google copy protected" and is happening to a lot of devices not just mine

And your app is one of those.

So here is the skinny on my device

(insert your information here)

Carrier:
Voice Plan:
Data Plan:

(Insert your phone Information here - You can find your info in "Settings/About Device(or Phone)")

Device Model:
Firmware version:
Baseband version:
Kernel version:
Build number:

SD Card:

Firmware version = android OS version

(Be truthful here)

The phone is not rooted - has never been rooted
The phone has no mods done to it

Location: Your City - Your State - Your Country

After through searching, I found that this website http://androidissues.blogspot.com/ and it seems to be a problem with "new devices." The device manufacture is supposed to send the device's footprint signature to Google for the "Google copy protection" to work, and until this has been resolved any app in the market that has "Google copy protection" will not show up in searches for a new device. By new device, I mean either a device that has just come out, or an old device that has had the OS updated.

On that site they have an image of what error I get when I try searching for your app.

Why am I telling you this, because it’s hurting your sales, and even your ratings?

What you can do about this?

Please Visit This Site http://androidissues.blogspot.com/ to learn more about this error/issue, Once you have read the webpage above, you could help get this issue resolved, by contacting Google and my device's manufacturer. I have included links to their contact pages for you. Please use the device info above when contacting them.

Email Google:
Http://www.google.com/support/androidmarket/bin/request.py?contact_type=publisher
Inform them that the footprint for the device needs to be processed by the market, and you are losing business because it is not processed.

(Insert Manufacturer's email Support Link here)

And tell them the same thing; you need the devices footprint submitted to Google android market as you are losing business.

No matter how much you complain these guys will continue to point the finger at each other, just keep replying to their emails and copy Google’s response to the manufacturer and the manufacturer's to Google, thereby getting them to communicate to each other

Why do you need to do this instead of me? Well I have already done this, and you should ask your clients to also contact these guys, but you also need to contact them as you are the one who is really missing out, for those apps that are paid you lose money, for those that are free you get a bad rep as a developer.

So in conclusion thank you for your time and understanding in this issue.
And if you are developing free apps in the future please do not mark these free apps as copy protected. For the paid apps I don't really know what else to say.

After all of this, can you please provide a way for me to get your app other than the android market?

Thank you
(Your Name Here)

Apps Missing From Market on (Insert Your Phone Here)


Apps Missing From Market on (Insert Your Phone Here)


There is a lot of talk on a lot of forums about Not being able to see all the apps in the market, this is usually when someone purchases a phone that has just been introduced (new phone) to the public or after upgrading the phone to the latest Firmware/OS version sent out by the manufacturer or mobile carrier. And most likely you are having this issue as well.

Image of the Error - Just Insert The Package name (pname: XXXX)

The Problem!

As best we can tell from all the chatter is that it is being caused by the phones footprint (also called fingerprint) is various info like manufacturer, model name, hardware version, OS version, kernel version, and a few other things. To see what yours is you can try one of these apps Developer Device Info or OS Build Reader.

The footprint is used by the Market Copy Protection to secure the app from being copied, if your phones footprint is not available to the market then it figures you have a "Unsecure" phone and hides that app from your phone. By "Unsecure" we mean that you have access to copy programs and do certain things that a "Secured" phone would not be able to do (Sometimes referred to as Unlocked, or Jail Broken).

Now your phone Is most likely still "Secured" however because the market does not have its footprint on file, Google has opted to just treat your phone as though it is not secure. There are ways to "Root" (gain access to the root/super user account. remember this is a type of Linux) and can cause this issue, but we will assume that you have not done this. So it is not something that you have done wrong or a defective phone, It is more likely to be that Google or the phones manufacturer is dragging their feet with getting the phones footprint online at the market.

Welcome To The Google Experience! (Here is How Google "Says" this are to be with their Experience!)

What can you do about it?

Send an email to the developer:

Well on the left here we have some links "Letter to App Developers" is something you would want to send to the application developer of the app you can't find. At this point I'm going to assume that you do know about the many unofficial "Market List sites" like Androlib.com where you can view many of the apps available on the the market, As of yet Google has not made an Official List Site for the market, and 3rd party sites is currently the only way to view the market on the web. Now back to what I was saying, by using one of these sites you can find the developer and send them an email, letting them know that your phone is having issues with finding their "copy protected" apps. If you get a developer who understands they may turn off the copy protection, in which case you will be able to see the app. Otherwise your just out of luck.

Send an email to Google:

By notifying Google that you do not have access to the copy protected apps makes them aware that there is a problem with the market and they need to fix it. The best way would be to fix the copy protection to tie it to a phones IME number rather than the footprint. but that's a whole different story. but it gets them involved with getting this resolved.

For App Publishers - Users (they do not offer email support use the Help Forums instead)

Report It on The Android Bug Tracker:

Before you submit a new Bug Ticket search and see if you Phone/Device already has one open... If so then add a comment and "Star" the bug so It gets noticed.
If you have a Phone/Device That I Haven't listed here then feel free to contact me here.

  • T-Mobile MyTouch 3G (with firmware/os 1.6) - The Original has been updated to 1.6, the Fender and 3.5mm Jack came stock with 1.6
  • HTC Wildfire A3333 - Firmware version: 2.1-update1
Send an email to the phone manufacturer:

By sending them an email you will get them on the ball to sending that footprint to Google, and it is their responsibility to make sure that it is submitted and works.

Send a Letter to your Mobile Carrier:

In some cases sending an email to your mobile carrier may help as well, because some of them will Brand the phone and this will mess with the footprint that was submitted by the manufacturer to Google.

  • Mobile Carriers List - Please note that your carrier may not be head quartered in your country (like T-Mobile is a German company)

When you see someone having this issue send them to this page.

Reference Citations:
Someone in a forum somewhere asked how this page is supposed to help them, so I am including my response
Truthfully, It really doesn't... Only because YOU have no control over when it gets fixed... but the more emails they receive about this problem the more likely they are to acknowledge it and fix it...

But you don't have to do anything, you could just sit there and complain some more to everyone but the ones who have the control to fix the problem.

as I pointed out on my page there... it is not the consumers problem, we have done nothing wrong, it is the corporate giants dragging their feet that is causing this to happen... how ever you could also write an email to the app developer telling them about this problem and see if they may turn off the copy protection so you can download their app again

or you could also just search for a better answer, perhaps you will find the one that I just didn't find and it will all just magically work


You may want to put this notice on your website or a link to this page would be better, so others with this issue can figure out how to help, and know why they are getting this error.

I have spent countless weeks digging up this info trying to figure out why I can't see certain apps, I also got lucky and had a T-Mobile support tech that didn't just shift the blame to the app maker or Google or the phone maker, he truly helped to discover why this was happening. This tech used a T-Mobile g1 that had been upgraded earlier last month, with the same result, and tried his personal MyTouch without the jack, and it worked just fine, he was also able to use a g1 that had not been updated to the newest OS offered by T-Mobile, and it worked. I am a pc & network tech, and software developer myself. I have started writing an app for android and I already dread it as I have seen what is happening...


My Emails were sent March 3rd 2010 @ 9:00 AM PST

UPDATE: HTC Has decided to reply first!

*************************** Received March 3rd 2010 @ 3:02 PM PST

We are unable to receive replies to this email account. Please visit us at www.htc.com

if you have any questions or need further assistance

New Response From [ Lindsay (North America Support (Tech)) ]Dear SprayPaint,

Thank you for your inquiry regarding our product, the HTC My Touch 3G. I can understand how important it is to be able to fully utilize your device and the use of the Applications.

Your comment of “Device Footprint needs to be submitted to Google's Android Market to allow "Copy Protected" apps to be viewed and downloaded from the Android Market” has been submitted to the proper authority.

Please feel free to Reply to this email with any questions or concerns with this device or give us a call at our HTC Technical Support Line, 1-866-449-8358. I want to thank you for contacting HTC. In order to help improve our service I’d like to invite you to take a survey at http://survey.htc.com/worldwide.

**************************

Please Note the first line says no replies to the address sent from... but in the reply it says feel free to reply to this email :P

It is nice to see that they did not try to do any finger pointing, yet they did do a good job of making the response cryptic, as WHO is the Proper Authority and why don't you tell me how to contact that person/department myself

My Reply (Sent March 3rd 2010 @ 3:16 PM PST) :

I would prefer to keep this ticket open until HTC has verified that My device's footprint has been properly submitted and the flow of Copy Protected apps works as described...


UPDATE: New reply from HTC About what I said in my reply

*************************** Received March 3rd 2010 @ 4:22 PM PST
New Response From [ Lindsay (North America Support (Tech)) ]Dear SprayPaint,

Thank you for your inquiry regarding our product, the HTC My Touch 3G. I can understand how important it is to be able to fully utilize your device and the use of the Applications.

Your email has been submitted to the proper department and has been documented in the appropriate systems. We cannot guarantee a time frame for when this will be taken care of. When or if this is addressed you will be notified through the proper channels.

****************************

Once again vague and misdirected information, but tactfully composed to make you feel like they gave you an answer to your question...

****************************

Called T-Mobile on March 9th 2010 @ 10:37AM

Called Support Again, This time with more information about what the problem is. After speaking with Jessica for about half an hour (she reviewed the notes from the previous call) she added the new information and tried a couple of things with their support phones and found they had one that had the same issue, She escalated my issue to the supervisor who said it needs to go to the business department ( the ones who contact and work out the phone issues with the manufacturers and content providers) so maybe we will see some action now... all we can do is hope and wait...

T-Mobile has responded in their forums

http://forums.t-mobile.com/t5/myTouch-3G/Mytouch-3G-amp-Mytouch-3G-3-5mm-not-all-apps-in-market/td-p/322375/page/5

As of March 11th 2010 @ 5:28 PM - Google still has yet to respond.

Thursday April 1st 2010 MyTouch 3G has been fixed, but what about the rest?