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Google Analytics is a powerful, free tool for measuring your website's traffic and engagement. Here's an overview of the core features and the metrics you should be paying close attention to.

A month ago, Google's three-year effort to push its Web browser, Chrome, took a major step when analysts said it had passed Mozilla's Firefox to become the second-most popular tool of its kind on the Internet. Today, that climb continues and has some tech observers wondering whether Chrome could do the unthinkable and topple perennial leader Internet Explorer from atop the browser rankings.

With Iowa deciding on their choice for GOP candidate tomorrow, Google’s timing is much better this election season to roll out their political news and trends trackers at Google Elections. In 2008, they had a similar offering but didn’t release it until just before the conventions.

Google has added several new Google+ features and improved old ones, among them some of the most popular requests from users.

Social games maker Zynga is preparing to set a final initial public offering price on Thursday, a day before it begins trading on the stock market, in what is shaping up to be the biggest U.S. Internet IPO since Google.

After watching Amazon corner the online retail market, Google is in talks with merchants to begin a delivery service that would allow users to order items online from local stores and receive them within a day. But does it make sense for Google to directly take on the online retail giant?

With Google incessantly branching out into even more ventures such as music and social networking, its search business could continue to act as a minor Catch-22 situation in future by helping competition in other business lines.

Google has expanded its search blacklist to include many of the top file-sharing sites on the Internet, including The Pirate Bay. The changes were quietly processed and appear to be broader than previous additions. Google’s blacklist prevents the names of sites appearing in their Instant and Autocomplete search services, while the pages themselves remain indexed.

Facebook is working with HTC to develop a phone that has a much deeper integration with the social network than any previous "Facebook phone." That's according to a report from All Things D, which says the phone is probably 12 to 18 months away from hitting store shelves.

It appears that YouTube is getting a facelift. And Google+ might be a big part of the new look. Tech blog the Next Web was one of several whose staffers caught a glimpse of a redesigned interface on the massively popular video-sharing site.