Who's @ Google I/O - spotlight on AJAX and Google Data APIs

There are over 60 Google APIs across a wide range of products and technologies. The AJAX APIs include Google Search, Language, Maps, FriendConnect, and Visualization APIs. The team recently launched v2 of the AJAX APIs Playground, an app designed to show interactive code samples for some of our coolest Javascript APIs. The Google Data APIs provide a simple standard protocol for reading and writing data on the web and are used by many products including YouTube, Calendar, Picasa Web Albums, and as of last week, Analytics.

Google I/O will feature many sessions covering the AJAX and Google Data APIs. Here are a few of the developers who'll be leading sessions and/or demoing at the Developer Sandbox:

• Redfin
  Redfin is an online brokerage site for buying and selling homes. Redfin uses the Google Maps, Charts, and Feeds APIs. Redfin actively talks about the behind-the-scenes development decisions, which can be found at the Redfin Developer Blog. (For example, they blogged about why they switched to the Google Maps API) Sasha Aickin, Engineering Manager, will be speaking on a session called Performance Tips for Geo API Mashups.


• Lonely Planet
  Lonely Planet is known by travelers for producing informed and honest travel advice. Lonely Planet uses the Google Maps Javascript API to power interactive maps on lonelyplanet.com, the Google Static Maps API on its cross-device mobile site, m.lonelyplanet.com, and OpenSocial, App Engine, and Android in products soon to be launched. Ken Hoetmer, Lonely Planet's neogeographer in residence, will be speaking on a session called Maps APIs & Mobile.


• Adobe
  Introduced with Adobe Creative Suite 4, Adobe Community Help utilizes Google Custom Search (a product which also supports the AJAX APIs) to aggregate the most relevant help content from the broader community. By integrating search directly within the application workflow, users can find answers to their software questions no matter where those answers may be found. Currently, Adobe is exploring ways of expanding Custom Search to include code samples directly within Adobe development environments for products like Flash and Flex. (Read Adobe's blog post about Adobe Community Help)


• LuckyCal
  LuckyCal is a calendaring application which utilizes several of the Google Data APIs to create a dynamic calendar experience. They authenticate using OAuth to retrieve data from the Calendar and Contacts Data APIs. Based on where you'll be, who you know and what you like, LuckyCal finds events that are relevant to you. LuckyCal has also created a Google Gadget and uses the Maps API (both for UI and for Geocoding) extensively.


• Eye.fi
  The Eye-Fi Card stores photos & videos like a traditional memory card, and fits in most cameras. When you turn your camera on within range of a configured Wi-Fi network, it wirelessly transfers your photos & videos to either your computer or services like YouTube, Picasa Web Albums, etc via the YouTube and Picasa Web Albums Data APIs.


• Vast Rank
  Vast Rank is a college ranking website that utilizes the Google Maps API in their interactive ranking map (where visitors see rankings based on what is in view on the map). With the Client Location API, Vast Rank’s personalization engine can weigh the visitor’s location into the criteria used to suggest interesting colleges to the visitor. Vast Rank creator Jon Kragh will be leading a session, Using AJAX APIs to Navigate User-Generated Content.


• 280 North
  280 North's application, 280 Slides, enables users to easily create web-based presentations. With the AJAX Search API and Google Data APIs, 280 Slides builds in the ability to search Google for images and YouTube for videos and drag media directly into a presentation. 280 North is also the creator of Cappuccino, an open source JavaScript-based web development framework. Check out co-founder Ross Boucher's videos where he talks about 280 Slides' implementation.

Finally, a friendly reminder that early (discounted) registration for Google I/O ends this Friday, May 1. Visit code.google.com/io to sign up and learn more about sessions and demos that'll be in store this year.

*Follow us for the latest I/O updates: @googleio.

By Christine Tsai, Google Developer Products