Google is providing its users with an elegant and simple method to transfer links and snippets of text from its Chrome browser to its Android handsets. Available on Thursday, Chrome to Phone requires two installations and a Google account, yet works almost effortlessly to make what you're looking at on your desktop instantly accessible on your smartphone, too. It also requires users to be running Android 2.2 (Froyo) or later.

Users must install the Chrome extension, which frustratingly doesn't provide a QR code or other easy access to the Android marketplace link (available on Download.com). Once installed, the extension opens a quick tutorial on how to use the tool, and how to find Chrome to Phone in the Android marketplace--basically, you've got to search for it yourself.

There is a Firefox add-on for Chrome to Phone, too. Fox to Phone works with Firefox and is based on the same code that powers Chrome to Phone. It shares the Chrome to Phone Android app that Google's browser uses, so people only need to install one Android app to get the same feature in both browsers.

Once the app has been downloaded to the phone, running it for the first time will walk you through the setup process. You must use a regular Google account; Google Apps users aren't supported at this time. With a valid account chosen, the app will connect to the Chrome extension account, then ask for your preferred handling of links. Users can choose between having links open automatically, or receive a notification that the link has been received and require user input.

Text snippets can be sent by simply highlighting a piece of text on a Web page and then hitting the extension icon in the browser. The phone will automatically copy that text snippet to its clipboard, and a notice will appear on the notification bar for easy access. Sending a YouTube link, for example, will open the video directly in the YouTube app.

The Android app is impressively respectful of default settings. If you have a different default browser selected than the standard one, such as Opera Mobile or DolphinHD, Chrome to Phone will still open links with your alternative selection. It might be too respectful of prior settings, though. Driving directions sent from the browser will convert to walking directions in the Google Map app if the last-viewed directions on the phone happened to be for walking.

Sometimes, Chrome to Phone gets confused, too. If you highlight a link in a Gmail message and hit the Chrome to Phone button in your browser, the Android app side of things will attempt to open Gmail in your browser--not the link you wanted to send to the Android clipboard. The work-around for the Chrome extension is to open the link in your desktop browser and then send that to your phone; Fox to Chrome users can get around the bug by right-clicking on the selected text and using the context menu option to send the text to their Android device.

The minor bugs are annoying, but overall Chrome to Phone is an incredibly useful feature for Android phones that could also benefit Chrome's skyrocketing market share as it drives more people to try out the desktop browser.

Looking for something fun to do with your family, spouse, or group of friends? Fire up A Day's Outing, a terrific little app that helps you find nearby events and activities.

The start page lets you quickly search for outings based on a variety of criteria, any of which you can change with just a few taps.

For example, by default, the app looks for outings within the next seven days, but you can narrow that down to today, tomorrow, or even next weekend. You can also specify the range and location (nearby, or someplace in particular--like a travel destination).

Search results are presented in a list or map view, which you can switch between at will. The list view displays tabs along the side so you can filter the results by category: Family & Children, Parks & Gardens, Farms, Food & Wine, and so on.

When you tap any listing, you get the distance from your location, an address and phone number, and a description. The app lets you tag any event as a favorite, get turn-by-turn driving directions (within the app, instead of dumping you out to Google Maps), and share the outing via e-mail, Facebook, Twitter, and just about every other social-media service.

I really liked the app's whimsical, Rockwell-esque interface, though I did have trouble getting the search feature to work--it kept producing error messages when I tried to look up renaissance festivals.

That hopefully temporary bug aside, A Day's Outing is a little gem. It's great for finding events and activities in your neck of the woods, and even better for finding them when you're traveling. Definitely worth the $2.99 price of admission--though I should mention that the Day's Outing Web site offers the same great data for free.

Originally posted at iPhone Atlas

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Microsoft is getting close to releasing a beta version of Internet Explorer 9--the company's latest bid to regain lost ground in the browser market.

At last month's financial analyst meeting, Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner casually mentioned that the beta would be coming in September. Microsoft has already shown the revamped IE9 engine through a series of public preview releases, but next month's beta will be the first chance to see what IE9 has in store in terms of its look and feel.

The current preview version, released last week, shows some of the features of the browser--including support for hardware acceleration and HTML5. The company has also significantly sped up its JavaScript engine, a feature that is often used in comparing browsers and one in which IE has badly trailed its major rivals.

However, the preview version focuses on showing off the new rendering engine and lacks even the most basic navigational features such as an address bar or back button.

Microsoft has been largely mum on what to expect as far as the design of IE9's interface, but in an interview with CNET on Wednesday, Ryan Gavin said that the goal is to get out of the way and let the content shine.

"The browser is the theater," Gavin said. "We're not the play."

The comments suggest that IE9 may take a more minimalist view than past versions of the browser. "You don't want the theater to block the view," he said.

After years of falling behind in performance and compatibility, Microsoft is counting on this next release to help it gain back share lost to Mozilla's Firefox and more recently to Google's Chrome.

As with both the public preview version and the final release, the beta of IE9 will require that users be running Windows Vista or Windows 7. Unlike the preview, users won't be able to run the beta side by side with Internet Explorer 8 and must instead upgrade their built-in copy of Internet Explorer to the beta to try it out. (For those who can't or don't want to make that move, Microsoft does plan to continue offering new updated public preview releases as well that can run side by side with older versions of IE.)

Gavin said that Microsoft hopes a wide range of users try out the beta.

"The beta is not for everyone clearly, but if you are comfortable downloading and installing software, I know I am going to want you to try IE9," he said.

Hardware acceleration
One of the key questions is just how unique IE9's hardware acceleration feature will be by the time IE9 is finalized. Safari already has some hardware acceleration, while Mozilla has included some work in its nightly builds of Firefox, though the feature is off by default.

Gavin said that truly building hardware acceleration throughout the browser isn't just a matter of adding a little code, but instead requires some significant re-architecting of the product.

"We're certainly not doing anything that other browser vendors can't do," he said. "There's going to be a difference between fully hardware accelerated (browsers) and partially hardware accelerated (ones)."

IE 9 uses hardware acceleration for text and images as well as video and audio. The effect of the hardware acceleration, Gavin said, can be significant even on machines like Netbooks that are not thought of as graphics powerhouses. That said, the impact will be more noticeable on machines with higher-end graphics.

"The device matters," he said. "You can't get around the fact, device matters."

Another issue to watch will be to see how significant the compatibility issues will be with IE9. Gavin said that Microsoft has tried to make sure major sites are ready for IE9 and said the new browser will maintain the option included in IE8 that lets sites that work in an older version of IE render in a compatibility view.

Microsoft hasn't said when to expect a final version of IE9, but it's probably safe to say it won't be this year. With IE8, Microsoft rolled out the browser at its Mix show in spring 2008 and didn't ship the final version until a year later.

As for IE9, the first preview version was released in March, though Microsoft did give a brief glimpse of the browser's hardware acceleration feature back in November.

If I were a betting woman, I'd say Microsoft will aim to have its work done or nearly done in time for next year's Mix show, set for April 12-14 in Las Vegas.

Originally posted at Beyond Binary