HelloFax is one step closer to realizing their dream of creating a paperless office by integrating their services with Google Drive.

HelloFax

HelloFax is one of those ideas that makes you wonder why it has taken this long for someone to come up with it. And often, as is the case with CEO Joseph Walla, it takes a young intrepid individual to look at the way something has been done for decades and time immemorial and say, “Wait, why are we still doing things this way?”

“Our objective as a company is to end faxing everywhere for everyone,” says Walla in conversation with Mashable. “It’s so wasteful. It’s environmentally unfriendly, and it’s a waste of time.” Although HelloFax began simply as a faxing service, Walla and co-founder Neal O’Mara realized they were onto something when they added the ability to edit and sign documents inside a browser. This of course eliminates the need to print documents, sign them, and re-scan them so that they can make yet another cyber journey.

“We see faxing the way Google probably sees Android,” continues Walla. “It’s this way of expanding and protecting its core business which is search. Our core business is documents and document signing, and faxing is just this transmission method that hasn’t gone away.”

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If you are not already familiar with the search engine SimilarSites.com, you will find its intuitive searching mechanism a delight.

Where have all the search engines gone?

These days, we take for granted that there was once a time when myriad search engines existed in our collective consciousness. Remember Alta Vista, Excite, Netscape, Infoseek? And although the Internet landscape is populated still by a plethora of search engines, today’s average user could likely not name more than a couple search engines that they use regularly.

There is a good reason for that. Google has risen to such prominence that it has eclipsed all other search engines, if not completely in use, then certainly in terms of what we think a browser is (and does). However, as users we should understand that what Google does is tailor its searches to you specifically and to who it thinks you are. The more you browse, the more the search engine loses its spontaneity, so to speak — and in a sense, you lose a little of that spontaneity, too.

But there are alternatives.

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All New Android Devices Will Now Feature Holo Interface

Google has announced that from this point forward, it will require all devices that run Android 4.0 – Ice Cream Sandwich — and have access to its Android market to use its Holo theme. The interface, which debuted in 3.0, has been updated and refined. Holo is a slick and intuitive interface that has received widespread praise from users and critics alike.

Android Now In Line With Industry Norms

The move by Google will bring Android-based devices in line with industry norms.  Apple, with its iOS platform, and also Web OS and Windows Phone devices have long maintained a user interface that is consistent across different devices. Up until now, Google has largely given individual manufacturers complete freedom. That freedom has allowed them to choose their own customized end- user experience. This has resulted in fragmentation with many top-tier manufacturers producing their own interface to run above the actual OS.

Google says the move is designed to provide a consistent experience across devices for consumers. It noted that it will not prevent individual manufacturers from including its own customized themes.  The release also sought to reassure developers. It stated that Google will provide tools that will make it easy for them to design software that runs seamlessly with its own Holo theme, as well as customized themes from manufacturers.

Users of older devices are not to be left out either. Developers will be given details on how to make new apps designed for Android 4.0 compatible with Gingerbread and earlier operating systems.

“No SOPA” Add-on From Chrome Helps You Boycott SOPA Supporters

If you’re among the many still furious about the proposed SOPA legislation, Google Chrome is giving you a new way to protest.  You can download a “No SOPA” add-on for the browser, which will alert you every time you visit a website owned by a parent company that supports the legislation.  The add-on won’t block the site – it simply flashes a red banner at the top of the screen alerting you to the fact that the company is a SOPA supporter.  What you do after that is up to you – but, chances are, if you are opinionated enough regarding SOPA to download the Chrome add-on, you won’t want to frequent sites that support the legislation.

SOPA Brings Out the Angry Mob

This is the latest form of protest against the infamous Stop Online Piracy Act.  In late-December, opponents of the bill organized an official “Dump Go Daddy Day,” in reaction to Go Daddy’s initial support of SOPA.  Go Daddy reversed their position – apparently in time to save their own skins – because the dumping effect was barely noticeable.  Although the domain name registrar lost close to 40 thousand domains over the course of the controversy, they gained slightly more.

Time will tell if Chrome’s “No Sopa” add-on is any more effective.