Google

WASHINGTON -- A German regulator on Monday fined Google Inc., about $190,000 for illegally recording data from WiFi networks while taking mapping photos for its Street View service. The regulator complained the amount, limited by law, was too little to dissuade large companies from violating privacy laws. The Hamburg commissioner for data protection and freedom of information, Johannes Caspar, said Google captured data from unencrypted WiFi networks from 2008 until 2010. The company has been under fire for the data collection, which it said was unintentional, and has faced fines and investigations in the U.S. and abroad.

A little over a week after being released, Facebook's new interface for Android smartphones, Facebook Home, has crossed the 500,000 mark for downloads on Google Play. The interface, installed the same way as smartphone apps, gives users' home screens a new look that focuses on their Facebook friends rather than their apps. Facebook Home removes users' lock and menu screens and replaces them with status updates and photos posted by their friends. Facebook Home was released on April 12 alongside the HTC First, the so-called Facebook phone, and it gained its 500,000th download on Google Play over the weekend.

Google said the latest version of Google Earth will allow users to navigate their way through the 3-D map using hand gestures, giving a strong vote of confidence for Leap Motion's technology. As seen in the video above, users can control Google Earth 7.1 using Leap Motion's "motion-sensor" control, which works like Microsoft's Kinect device for the Xbox 360. Leap Motion is set to begin selling it in stores next month. The San Francisco company last year unveiled the technology in a series of YouTube videos that drew rave reviews.

With cellular service in Boston jammed in the aftermath of the marathon explosions this week, many people were left scrambling for ways to let loved ones know they were safe and to search for information on family and friends. Social networks and other websites became the go-to solutions in many cases, as scores of people posted updates saying they were unharmed and offering firsthand accounts and photographs from the scene. Because the Internet wasn't affected, Boston residents used Facebook and Twitter to reach out to large numbers of people at once; they also turned to Apple Inc.'s iMessage, Skype and Google Inc.'s Voice.

LinkedIn wants to give its mobile app a spark, and the social network is doing so by simplifying and customizing it to individually fit each of its users. The business-focused social network rolled out the major app update late Wednesday night. The updated app features an overhauled design and minimized build that's intended to let users access as many features as possible with as few finger taps as necessary. "We designed with one key core principle in mind: having all the stuff you care about one tap away from you," said Tomer Cohen, a LinkedIn senior product manager and mobile phone lead.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Make no mistake about it, Larry Page has his sights set on the future. The Google co-founder and chief executive discussed his company's big bets such as YouTube, Android and Chrome, but focused on more speculative bets such as Google Glass and Google Fiber during a conference call with analysts to discuss first-quarter financial results. "Companies tend to get comfortable doing what they've always done, with only a few minor tweaks. It's only natural to work on the things you know," Page said.

The first buyers of Google Glass are starting to get the smartglasses in the mail, letting them shoot hands-free video, pull up GPS directions in the corner of their eye and even hold video chats with their friends while they walk. But they won't be allowed to let anyone else enjoy the device and its features. In its terms of service for the early "Explorer Edition" of the device, Google says it has the right to deactivate any device if it has been sold or lent to someone else.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Google Inc., which for years has dominated online advertising sales on personal computers, is showing signs that it's figuring out how to make money on mobile devices, too. Google's first-quarter profit jumped 16% as the Internet giant saw strong revenue growth in its advertising business. Marketers have begun to pay more for ads that Google places on smartphones and tablets, the results suggest. Google has been hounded by concerns over slowing ad revenue growth on desktops as more and more people turn to smartphones and tablets to access the Web. The prices paid for clicks was down about 4%. The average fee that Google gets for ads that run alongside search results, known as cost per click, has fallen compared with the previous year for five straight quarters.

After loudly announcing its expansion to Austin, Texas, last week, Google on Wednesday used a simple blog post to let users know it hopes to also bring Fiber, its high-speed Internet service, to Provo, Utah. The Silicon Valley giant is hoping the Provo City Council will approve an acquisition agreement between it and iProvo, a fiber optic network the city began building in 2004. Provo has been looking for a partner since 2011 to finish building out the network. Google will pay $1 under a deal that would include Google finishing and upgrading the network to be able to provide speeds of 1 gigabit.

Google this week began shipping its Glass smart eyewear to app developers. The company also revealed that the widely anticipated device will not be fully functional when paired with an iPhone. The smartglasses, which some buyers have already received, connects to Wi-Fi networks or Bluetooth-enabled smartphones to access the Internet. This allows Glass wearers to make calls, do Google searches or even hold video chats with friends using Google+. The device can also let users send their friends text messages and retrieve directions using GPS. But a sentence at the bottom of the webpage describing the specs for the glasses says the device, or at least the early "Explorer Edition" being shipped to developers, must be connected to an Android phone running the MyGlass app to send text messages and use GPS. QUIZ: How much do you know about Google?