Lately, most of the things I write about Google seem negative. That happens when the company continues to do things people disapprove of, but it’s still a bit of a drag. I imagine it’s just as much of a drag to read bad press about Google all of the time if you’re entrenched in its ecosystem of devices or software.
Today is different. A blog post from Google reminded me about one of the reasons I use Google products and how much I enjoy some of them. Case in point: the Google Arts & Culture app.
I’m not a particularly fancy or artsy guy, at least not as much as I wish I were. But I do enjoy seeing and learning about beautiful things, both natural and from the minds and hands of mankind. That’s why I installed the app in the first place; it gives us a glimpse of things we might not ever be able to see otherwise.
The app itself also has other features that let you build a gallery or morph your selfies. You can even find art that looks like you or your dog. I mostly use it to explore the world around me, though. If you’ve never looked at it, you should.
As I was cruising through my reading list, I came across Google telling and showing me work in Columbia studying ancient art. Found along the edge of the Amazon, this prehistoric art tells a story about the culture and myths of the Jiw people, an ethnic group that still lives in the La Lindosa region today.
People at the University of Exeter at working to study and preserve this ancient art and that’s fabulous. They know about things like this. I only learned of it today, because Google showcased it for me. I mentioned I’m not particularly artsy and I’m not much of an archeologist, either.
I am curious about a lot of different things, and Google has often shown me something marvelous through the Arts & Culture app—things I probably would never have heard of otherwise. I can’t help but think that’s fabulous.
When we think of Google, we probably think about things like smartphones, software platforms, AI, and other tech-centric ideas. That’s what Google is known for because that’s the bulk of what it does.
Google also does plenty of things I think it shouldn’t, and I’m not alone in that way of thinking. I enjoy having an opportunity and a platform to call Google out for everything I think is terrible. I also enjoy being able to appreciate something the company does that provides a few minutes of joy.
There are plenty of other things Google does that people approve of, too. The company provides the essential service of auditing internet software for exploits that could compromise our online safety. It spends money, time, and resources on medical research into things like cancer and disease diagnosis and epidemiological studies. These sorts of things are more important than an app that lets me see and learn about the beautiful things I’ll never get to see, even if they don’t feel as personal.
I tend to forget about the good a tech company can do when all I see is anticompetitive behavior, broken promises, and huge defense contracts. The good things are still there, though. All we need to do is look for them.