Your internet guide to April Fools’: The top four jokes of the day

Tired of the old "salt-in-the-sugar-shaker" gag?

Is saran-wrapping the toilet bowl simply not bringing you the unbridaled joy it once did? 

If you're one of the many who are bored of the same old April Fools' Day pranks, the internet has some fresh material for you. Here's a selection of the day's best:

Twttr: A new, vowel-less way of communicating

On the eve of April Fools' Day, Twitter launched a revised, vowel-less, social media service. 

Yes, you read that right. Vowel-less tweets. 

And while, as news writers, we at GlobalPost share an appreciation for brevity, we're not sure what to make of a social media platform that requires a decoder ring to parse. 

See a prime example below:

In the announcement — which the company says was partially inspired by Wheel of Fortune — Twitter said that sometimes-vowel "Y" will remain free, while other alphabets will be unaffected by the change.

Twitter said it's promoting the consonant-only version of its service to "encourage a more efficient and 'dense' form of communication," though users can subscribe to a "premium" account that will also allow vowels, for a mere five dollars a month.

Charging for a formerly free service? Hm…. Maybe this isn't a joke, after all.

Oh, and in an effort to make the faux-transition easier for everyone, Twitter has built a site that automatically transforms your Tweets into a Twttr friendly format. Try it here: twttr.com.

Noted. Moving on.

Google Nose

In other news, Google has shared in the April Fools' Day fun, introducing Google Nose, a scentsational new search application which aims to incorporate finding odors into Google's search function.

Claiming an impressive 15 million scentibyte database of smells, Google describes their new product as a "flagship olfactory knowledge feature enabling users to search for smells." 

From wet dogs to fine wines and wild flowers, Google Nose has got you covered.

Gmail Blue

A second, more colorful Google prank is the introduction of a new email service, Gmail Blue — which purports to have all of the features of regular old black and white Gmail, only now the buttons, text and links are all …  wait for it … blue.

"It's Gmail, only bluer!" project manager Richard Pargo exclaims in the program's intro video (see below), which was posted online in honor of April Fool's Day.

Pro tip: Be sure to watch the entire video for the hilarious response from a popular, appropriately hued three-man theatrical group.

Google Maps: Treasure Mode

Last but not least, in an effort to cement its reign as king of April Fools' Day shenanigans, Google has launched Google Maps: Treasure Mode.

The project, widely advertised as a globally cooperative undertaking, requests the participation of people across the globe, transforming web-savvy, adventure-minded Google Maps-users into modern-day treasure hunters.

Now this is an April Fools' Day prank that we really wish were true. What's cooler than the prospect of searching for buried pirate's treasure?

But don't take our word for it, watch the video below and decide for yourself.

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