This has to be the funniest Google April Fool’s Day joke yet:
Google TiSP (BETA) is a fully functional, end-to-end system that provides in-home wireless access [...] via fiber-optic cable strung through your local municipal sewage lines.
[...]
With professional installation service, you can also have your Google Checkout purchases delivered directly through the sewage network into your bathroom.
[...]
We’re actively developing a higher-performance version of TiSP specifically tailored to small and medium-sized businesses, including 24-hour, on-site technical support in the event of backup problems, brownouts and data wipes.
Hilarious!
They even, uh, use the location of this WiFi access to provide uncanny monitoring:
Your FREE TiSP service includes a Google Toolbar-based analysis of your dietary habits and genetic predispositions, along with recommendations for healthier living.
[...]
To offset the cost of providing the TiSP service, we use information gathered by discreet DNA sequencing of your personal bodily output to display online ads that are contextually relevant to your culinary preferences, current health status and likelihood of developing particular medical conditions going forward.
Read more at Google TiSP (haven’t figured out what it stands for yet…).
Update: it appears that TiSP stands for “Toilet Internet Service Provider.” Makes sense.
You’re young, so you can be forgiven for laughing about this. But when you’re looking at 50 like a deer in the headlights, it’s no laughing matter when Google rips off your idea.
http://www.networkworld.com/community/?q=node/13240
Toilet paper though would be the perfect medium for most ads.
Rip off? You mean like toilet paper?
I imagine it would stand for “Toilet ISP”.
Oh, oops. You already said it.
hmmm. I personally enjoyed the dedicated Gmail April Fool’s joke more. Paper backups of gmail? What a great idea!
Yeah I saw that too. It is indeed a very good idea. I don’t think it was quite as funny as Google TiSP though.
Although now that I think about it, I suppose there could be a certain level of integration between TiSP and Gmail Paper (Gmail Toilet Paper?…)