Phone GPS Makes People Easier to Find...

And sending your location back to Google a few times each hour

(NEWSER) - Apple isn’t the only one tracking its users’ every move . Google’s Android OS does something very similar, a security analyst has found. The HTC Android phone he tested collected data on its current location every few seconds, transmitting it to Google several times an hour, the analyst tells the Wall Street Journal . The phone also keeps a lookout for the signal strength of any nearby Wi-Fi networks, and reports that info, too. More»

GPS, Google Maps used to track lovemaking

(NEWSER) - Where's the love? A new website called IJustMadeLove.com will tell you—with precise, digitally-guided detail. The site uses GPS technology and Google Maps to allow anonymous users to chart where, exactly, people are getting it on. Users can also let the world know whether their lovemaking was homo or hetero, indoor or outdoor—or for that matter, whether it took place on land, at sea, or the back of a car. There are even stick figures to denote positions. More»

Innovative integration and photo features make beta worth a test

(NEWSER) - The beta version of Microsoft’s Bing search engine maps feature could well give Google Maps a run for its money, Jason Kincaid writes for TechCrunch . The new feature challenges Google on every front: Streetside, the answer to Street View, functions similarly but uses 3D modeling to provide a seamless user experience. And the map is fully integrated with Twitter and other apps—with more to come. More»

All looks promising, but some think OS is still no match for iPhone

(NEWSER) - Verizon's Droid smartphone—built by Motorola and powered by Google's Android—goes on sale Nov. 6 for $200. Some early opinions on the iPhone challenger:

• The phone is "almost not worth writing about," notes Chris Dannen in Fast Company . It's "fine" but "doesn't advance" the Android platform. About all it has going for it is a cool commercial, "which is cool, if you like commercials, but less important if you like smartphones that do stuff well."

NY meeting introduces new services to new media leaders

(NEWSER) - What’s next for online social networking? A heavy dose of geography, writes David Kirkpatrick in Fortune’s Fast Forward. At a real-life meeting for 100 new-media notables in New York, one hot topic was adding location information to user-driven sites so that “not only will you know what someone is doing online, you’ll know where they are doing it.” More»