The Google machine has released 2 really nice updates:

Google Analytics: face lift.

The free web analytics tool offered by Google, has a shiny new interface that makes me want to “do stats” all day long. Gone are all the 3d charts, and slightly confusing navigation options. Now it’s all big, flat, and easy to understand.

I think that the reason so few people actually USE their stats is because the good stuff is usually too deep in the jungle of wild numbers and vicious charts. I think Google Analytics has changed all of this for the better. Due to the fact that GA uses 3rd party cookies, I still recommend that these stats be used in conjunction with a log file analyzer which can provide more accurate figures for total visits and search engine crawlers (which cannot be tracked by javascript).

Picasa: Free storage increase and embeddable albums.
As my photo editor and storage app of choice (I rather unconvincingly initiated a Flickr v Picasa debate at Barcamp Jozi last year), Picasa has stepped further into Flickr’s territory by offering the ability to embed a slideshow of a selected album directly into your blog. I don’t seem to have the option available to me at the moment so I can’t even test it. bummer.