connect

Google has launched an enhanced version of its comments gadget for Google Friend Connect. With the gadget, users can easily translate comments that aren't in their language native.

At PubCon Matt Cutts just announced the launch of the Google Friend Connect API. It let's you copy javascript and make your blog more social. Editor's note: How do you think the launch of the Google Friend Connect API will affect data portability? Share your thoughts. Murdok anchor Abby Jonnson spoke with Cutts at the conference:

Yesterday, at PubCon South, Matt Cutts talked about Google Launching the Google Friend Connect API. Shortly after Murdok broke this story, Cutts sat down with our own Abby Johnson for an exclusive interview in which he discussed the API launch in a litle more detail.

Google and Facebook have both released new social features for third-party sites recently in Google Friend Connect and Facebook Connect respectively. These are not the only kids of their kind on the block, however, as I am reminded by Gigya, the company behind a platform called Socialize. While Socialize has actually been around since September, its relevancy seems pretty significant now with the launches of the services mentioned above.

MySpace has launched its answer to Facebook Connect with the MySpace Open Platform. This is the broader suite of products that includes the MySpace Application Platform, 'MySpaceID' (formerly Data Availability) and Post-To MySpace.

It has been quite the day for connecting. Not only did Facebook unleash Facebook Connect on the world, but Google has also now made Google Friend Connect available (in beta) as well.

Facebook has just announced the general availability of Facebook Connect, its new service that allows users to login to other sites using their Facebook IDs and share there activities from these third-party sites with their Facebook friends. The service, "makes it easier for Facebook's 130 million users to tap into the social graph by extending their Facebook experience to any participating Website, desktop application or mobile device," a Facebook representative tells Murdok.

Facebook Connect was announced back in May and has just recently begun to see the light of day. Since the announcement, the obligatory privacy concerns have been raised, but Facebook hoping to nip that in the bud has made it very clear that users can choose whether or not they wish to share information, a feature that was also available with the resurfacing of Beacon a while back.