How Yahoo Plans to Compile New Search Engine Index
Taken from Tim Mayer's (Yahoo) post over at Webmasterworld.com:

"The primary means of generating our index is via our free crawl, using our new Yahoo! Slurp crawler. Yahoo! Slurp discovers pages by following links on the web. We update our index with a daily crawl to gather newly created and fast-changing URLs, as well as our main crawl which updates our index incrementally twice per week.
We supplement this free crawl with the paid inclusion program, which allows us to add dynamic database content and other content that we could not otherwise discover and crawl. Currently less than 1% of our index is content that is included via our inclusion programs.

Our paid inclusion programs provide a superior way for sites to interact with us in a clearly structured fashion. These sites get the following
benefits:
1) Control over which URLs they include in the index (subject to content
guidelines)
2) Frequent refresh
3) Clearly defined way to interact with us (for example: clear feed
specifications)
4) Quality review and consultation (for feed customers)
5) Detailed reporting to track and optimize performance
6) Customer service

Participation in Yahoo!'s paid inclusion program does not guarantee rank in the search results. URLs are ranked in search results in the same way as all other URLs from the free crawl. The key drivers of ranking are keyword-specific relevance and site quality, as assessed by our regular search relevance algorithms with input from the quality review process.

(Note that Inktomi Index Connect clients are receiving Yahoo! Search traffic going forward, and Inktomi Search Submit customers are receiving a free trial of Yahoo! traffic until 4/15/04.)

We will also be launching free URL submission during the week of 3/1. This service allows content providers to suggest that the crawler should visit a site during the main crawl cycle. This service is different than paid inclusion in two ways:

1) There is no guarantee that we will crawl and include the URL in the index.
2) As this site potentially could be added to the main crawl, Yahoo! Slurp will follow links from that URL.

This service will reside on the Yahoo.com site and be accessible via a Yahoo! login. This service has been available for the AltaVista and Alltheweb Indices previously and the tradition will continue with Yahoo! Search."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Billionaires to Create a Charitable Foundation
Google's billionaire co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, who have organized their Web search company around the principle that "you can make money without doing evil," plan to establish a charitable foundation.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Continues to Encourage "Out of the Box" Thinking
Rumors that Google had scaled back their 20% rule (encouraging employees to spend 20% of their time on creative projects), appear to be not true.

Google's co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, addressing a technology conference in Monterey, California, on Saturday, said they encourage their employees to pursue their own ideas and projects. The company tracks the results with an internal list known as the "Google Top 100," they said.

"For 20 percent of your time, if you're working at Google, you can do what you think is the best thing to do," Page, 31, said.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Recruitment Party Hosts 200
Bubble, what bubble?

Google recently held a recruitment party for 200 attendees in an effort to hire the very best talent in Silicon Valley.

"We hire both for technical brilliance and for culture," said Alan Eustace, vice president of research and systems engineering.

Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Googlewhacking is Word of the Week
Macmillan names its new word of the week: Googlewhacking.

"the practice of trying to find combinations of two or more words that will produce exactly one single result when submitted as a query to the Googleâ„¢ search engine"

Courtesy of resourceshelf.com.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo UK Adds Business Search
Thanks to Gary for letting me know that Yahoo UK has added a new business search option. It appears to work just like the Yellow Pages (actually pulls data from Thomson Directories).
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Looking Hard At Search Engine Spam
Read what Google Engineer, Matt Cutts has to say about Google's fight against search engine spam.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Guys Get Richer
Google co-founders Page and Brin join Forbes billionaire list.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Dismayed By IPO Speculation
Taken from a recent Reuters report:

"Google co-founder Larry Page said on Thursday that he and other executives of the Internet's most popular search engine provider have made no statements about an initial public offering and said he was "dismayed" by the amount of conjecture being reported as fact.

"We've made no statements about an IPO," said Page, who along with Sergei Brin founded Google in 1998.

"I have been a bit dismayed at the level of speculation that has been reported as fact. It's pretty amazing the stage we're at. ... Even when we don't do anything in some area, people make stuff up," Page told Reuters at a technology conference in Monterey, California."

Page says, "I have been a bit dismayed at the level of speculation". Excuse me chief, but that "level of speculation" is making you the hottest company around, IPO or no IPO. Don't bite the hand that feeds (then again is he just stoking the rumor fire?)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
The Secret To Google's Success
The New York Times outlines why Google has become so successful:

"Google has found ways to make advertising pay without making advertising obtrusive — something the big-banner portals are only now starting to figure out. It has changed the way we shop, travel and get basic information about our economic and cultural climates. Perhaps the most fundamental difference since those early days is an enormous change in the usefulness and credibility of what one can find on the Internet. "
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Want to Know the Future of Search Engine Technology? Ask Jeeves!
If you plan on attending Jupiter Media’s Search Engine Strategies conference in New York on March 1st thru 4th, you’ll no doubt hear a lot of buzz surrounding the future of search engine technology. With Yahoo recently switching to a new and improved Inktomi index, Google testing localized search and MSN promising to enter the foray sometime in the next twelve months, you can bet that the search engines we know today will be much improved over the next couple of years.

While the spotlight may be on Google, Yahoo and MSN, Ask Jeeves has quietly improved their search engine to ensure a user experience that is second-to-none. While, Ask could comfortably rest on their laurels, they know that the competitive world of search is constantly changing and in order to continue their success they need to ensure that they remain at the cutting edge of search engine technology.

After being fortunate enough to sit down with Microsoft’s Robert Scoble and discuss his thoughts on search engine technology development, I caught up with Ask Jeeves’ vice president of products, Jim Lanzone and asked him his thoughts on what the future of search might hold.

[Andy Beal] Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions. Let’s start with what you see happening in the future?

[Jim Lanzone] Unfortunately, we can't talk publicly about the most exciting search technologies we're building, because they are proprietary to us and we wouldn't want Google copying us now would we? We have some very tasty special sauce we'll be launching over the course of the next few quarters that will make our search results perceivably better than the competition's.

[AB] Without giving too much away to your competitors, can you give any hints as to what might be upcoming from Ask Jeeves?

[JL] In the area of things we can talk about, we are very excited about our work on both the search technology side and the search experience side. They are equally important to helping people find what they need.

Regarding the user experience, we've had a lot of success with Smart Search the past year, and you can expect to see us continue to pursue that strategy. Smart Search is more of an ideology here than a brand name. It means giving the user smarter results in a more intuitive way, and what that means differs depending on what kind of search you're doing.

[AB] What new developments in search do you see happening in the next 3-5 years?

[JL] Because accessing information is such an integral part of our lives, I believe your interaction with search will change dramatically in the next 3-5 years. You will be able to access search databases from other sources than the keyboard (with voice recognition technology, maybe), and on different platforms (such as the GPS in your car).

[AB] GPS (global positioning system)? How do you see GPS and search interacting?

[JL] For example, a GPS with search capabilities could tell you where to find the best local pizza restaurant or nearest medical clinic in a neighborhood you visit. Of course, in order for that to happen, local search capabilities will have to vastly improve, as will voice recognition technology.

[AB] Apart from GPS, do you see search having an impact on any other consumer products?

[JL] Search is the #1 activity on the Web, and there's no reason why the utility of search or the Internet should be restricted to your PC or Mac. I believe a device will come along and have the same impact on search as the iPod did for music. Cell phones will probably adapt more to this device, ultimately, than the other way around, due to usability issues, and the user's desire to carry only one device. Standing on a street corner and using this device, you will search for a local restaurant, or a cab company, through the Internet. Instead of going to the cab company's website, you will click a link and initiate a phone call. The search engine will be compensated for the call (this is the traditional Yellow Pages model of "metered calling") rather than the click.


[AB] Let’s take it one stage further. Assuming there were no restrictions on technology, what new feature would you like to see introduced by the search engines?
[JL] We'd like to one day be able to understand a user's query perfectly, regardless of how they phrase it. Understanding the query perfectly would do much more to impact the quality of results for the everyday user (whether novice or expert) than perfecting the results themselves (though obviously we're trying to do both!). Much of our work is geared towards overcoming the hurdles of technology to make this dream a reality. After that, things like voice-enabled search will flow more easily.

[AB] What if cost wasn’t an issue? Any dream product?

[JL] If cost were no issue, we'd also like to see an Ask Jeeves-enabled PDA in every user's hand!

[AB] Companies such as Eurekster are betting that social networking is the future of quality search engine results, what are your thoughts?

[JL] In terms of the social networking devices being developed by other companies, there are two types we're seeing get attention. The first is the kind being used by the likes of Friendster and Tribe.net, where social networks are being used to help people find a job or a gardener or a date. The potential problem with this is the "reverse network effect", whereby the more the network grows, the less useful the recommendations are by those in the network. For example, how much more useful is it to me, versus the yellow pages or a search engine, to be recommended a contractor by my friend's cousin's neighbor? Now imagine if that's how I'm finding a date for next Friday night?

Meanwhile, with something like Eurekster, the "social networking search engine", you may face the same problem. At what point are these results more useful than those given by our "normal" engine, which is already getting smarter and smarter about who and when it serves up certain results. So, in the end, we believe that social networking as defined and utilized by Teoma is the best of breed way to go in this area, and the most effective growth will be built on its foundation.

[AB] What makes Teoma the “best of breed�?

[JL] Our Teoma technology is predicated on social networking theory, as originally pursued by the Clever team at IBM in the mid-90's. Teoma was the first (and is still the only) search technology that can identify the Web graph's expert hubs and authorities in real time.

[AB] What is Teoma doing that the IBM team couldn’t do?

[JL] The Clever team identified that it was a better mousetrap for producing relevant search results, but thought it would take a server farm the size of the state of Texas to produce in real time. Teoma does it in a split second. Others questioned whether the technology would scale past 50 million document index. We're now at 2 billion. Remember that Teoma is a much younger technology than our competitors, so in some ways we're only now starting to see the power of it. And as it grows, social networking will continue to be at the heart of what makes Teoma different and special.


[AB] Do you foresee a time when commercial search results (product/services) will be separated from informational search results (white papers/educational sites)?

[JL] Yes, similar to Yellow vs. White Pages. But since index search is already separate from P4P links, this is a much more important prediction for the future of paid inclusion. The future of paid inclusion is more likely to be in separate, possibly 100% paid indexes, than it is the current mix of paid and unpaid links, and structured and unstructured data. It's better for monetization, better for relevance, and probably better for the FTC. When you think about it, this is already happening with a site like Shopping.com, which is basically product search with a 100% paid index. Same thing with the Yellow Pages. I could see this model extended to jobs, airfares, and even adult sites.

[AB] We’ve talked a little about providing more relevant search results. If search engine users gave up a little of their privacy and allowed their search habits to be monitored, would this allow the search engines to provide better, customized results?

[JL] Some search engine users are already giving up their privacy willingly, for example with the latest Google 2.0 toolbar. The reason why Google wants this information is because the answer to your question is a resounding "yes"! Even more important than results customized for individuals, however, which will have some utility but not as much as some may think, are results customized for groups of individuals who exhibit similar characteristics. For example, those who frequently visit certain sites. Moreover, search engines can use this information to track the quality of their competitors' results, because these toolbars can - if users allow them to - track their usage on other sites.

[AB] Jim, I appreciate you taking the time to answer these questions. What last thing would you like readers to know about Ask Jeeves?

[JL] We'd just like to add that we're very proud of service Ask Jeeves has become the past 18 months. It is now a world-class search site, featuring world-class search results thanks to Teoma and a world-class search experience thanks to Smart Search. 2004 will be an exciting year for us.

Anyone connected with the search engine industry probably shares my excitement that the future holds some great advances in technology. Search engine users are going to be in for a thrill as Google finally faces some legitimate challenges from a host of search engine companies, both large and small. You can keep up with the latest search engine news and developments right here at www.SearchEngineLowdown.com.

By Andy Beal
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Accepts Anti-Pollution Search Engine Ads Rejected by Google
Something tells me Yahoo wasn't "in" on this press release. That said, Yahoo taking an opposing stance to Google is good for publicity.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
WebSourced's KeywordRanking.com Sponsoring Search Engine Strategies New York
Time is running out to register for next week's Search Engine Strategies in New York. The event is being sponsored by KeywordRanking.com and will feature dozens of speakers from search engine companies and SEM firms.

Rumor has it, this will be the largest SES ever with more than 3,000 people attending. KeywordRanking.com will have a huge 20x20 consultation booth, where our expert staff will be on hand to provide free site consultations on a 42" plasma screen. We'll also be giving away a total of 16 portable dvd players, so be sure to stop by booth #1106.

If you can make the first day of the event, I'll be presenting the "Search Term Research & Targeting" session at 11am, so please come and say "hi". No hecklers please :-)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
New Meta Search Engine, Zapmeta.com, Shows Promise
I've been taking a look at zapmeta.com, a newly developed meta-search engine offering. I like the look of the interface and the fact that you can preview the site is a nice touch. It's a little too slow, but I am sure that will improve.

Chris Sherman takes a more in-depth look at the search engine over at Search Engine Watch.
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Looking For Search Engine Patent Updates?
Gary Price keeps his eye on any developments that include search engine patents.
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Yahoo CEO Keeping Eye on Social Networking
Yahoo chief, Terry Semel is keeping a close eye on social networking.

"At this moment in time, it's exciting, it's interesting, it's viral," said CEO Terry Semel, a former Warner Brothers studio co-chief, at a Commonwealth Club meeting in Santa Clara, California. "We haven't seen any business models around it yet. It's an area we watch very closely."

He also commented on why the switch from Google.

"Semel said that, in the end, in addition to wanting to create its own answer to Google, Yahoo needed search technology that was customized for use by its more than 130 million registered users.

"We had been licensing technology that was not custom made for Yahoo," Semel said, referring to using Google's search results."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Microsoft Loses Search Engine Guru
According to CNet, Microsoft has lost MSN Search general manager, Paul Ryan. Ryan was hired away from Overture but quietly left MSN on Feb 12th.

"Microsoft spokeswoman Crystal Duncan confirmed that Ryan left on Feb. 12. She would not comment on the specifics of his departure, but added that the company is actively seeking his replacement."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Sues FindWhat and Google Over Search Engine Patent Claims
While the "search engine wars" continue, a different battle wages in the courtroom. When Yahoo acquired, Overture, they also acquired the PPC provider's bidding technology. It appears Yahoo believes some of those PPC patents are being infringed upon by both FindWhat and Google.

"Overture has long sought to protect its growing market dominance: It has hired a staff of IP experts and aggressively wielded its portfolio of patents for pay-for-performance search against rivals. The company sued FindWhat.com in February 2002, after FindWhat filed a summary judgment request in a New York federal court in an attempt to fend off any potential infringement charge from Overture. Two months later, Overture launched a second lawsuit, in which it said that Google's pay-for-performance ad system infringed its patent."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
AOL To Buy Ask Jeeves?
My favorite named reporter, Bambi Francisco suggests that AOL may decide it shouldn't miss out on revenues from search engine advertisers.

"Part of the exodus has been partly AOL's own doing. Through its relationship with popular portal Google, AOL has "alerted users to what's existed beyond AOL," said Jordan Rohan, an analyst at Schwab SoundView.

AOL is "missing an opportunity to retain traffic because it sends viewers to Google." The portal suffers from "leakage," said Rohan.

How do you stem this outflow? At a recent media dinner Rohan attended earlier this week, one media executive suggested that AOL could perhaps increase its retention rate if it were to buy Ask Jeeves, which owns Teoma, an algorithmic search engine that competes with Google.

If AOL were to do that, then it would not be so reliant on Google, and would have the option to end its working relationship".

Wow, just look at all the Ask Jeeves news all of a sudden. In England we have a saying..."no buses for an hour, then 3 come at once".
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Ask Jeeves Needs A Voice
I think the PR team over at Ask Jeeves might not have seen my positive interview today at Search Engine Watch. I say this, because they sent me an email in a tone that suggests they think I am smitten by Yahoo and Google and have no time in my life for a menage a trois that includes Ask. Anyway, here is what they had to say:

"Now that Yahoo! has dumped Google in favor of its own search technology, everyone is trumping up the Google vs. Yahoo! battle and doing their own version of the “search taste test.� What the media hasn’t seemed to realize is that this “test� is the equivalent of comparing Coke with Pepsi if the two sodas used the EXACT same ingredients.

So, why include Ask Jeeves’ search engine in these types of stories? Here’s why…

Type these searches on Ask.com then Google then Yahoo! and see what you get. We promise you’ll see a big difference.

Capital of New York
Stamp collecting
What does a dachshund look like

Let me explain:

Capital of NY: Ask Jeeves Web results are about Albany, not just about the keywords capital or New York. This is what we mean by INTUITIVE searching.

Stamp Collecting: This is an example of ranking by “authority.� Ask Jeeves’ Teoma search technology has determined that the American Philatelic Society is the most authoritative site for stamp c ollecting, which is why on Ask.com it is ranked as your first result, but not on Google or Yahoo.

What does a dachshund look like: Unlike other search engines, Ask Jeeves’ technology can understand from your query that you want a photo of a dachshund. By delivering a photo of a dachshund directly to the first reply page, Ask Jeeves is redefining the meaning of a FAST search; it’s no longer how fast you get your ten blue links, but how fast you receive actual information.

Now that search engines have realized the success of Google’s technological approach to search, the most popular engines—Yahoo!, Alta Vista, AlltheWeb, Wisenut, etc--use that same approach. The size of their datasets or the way results are presented may differ from engine to engine, but the algorithmic approach is basically the same. So, basically, there are TWO search technologies out there. Only TWO…

How is the Ask Jeeves search technology different?

Ask Jeeves’ Teoma search technology is the only search technology that breaks down the Web into what is called "Subject-Specific Popularity." This is a process that uses social networking theory to examine the links that are attached to pages on the Web and analyzes the Web organically as a social network of naturally occurring “communities� that are about or related to the same subject. The technology then identifies the experts within each community, called the “hubs and authorities� of the Web. These communities, hubs and authorities determine which sites are most relevant.

We ask you to experience the difference yourself and put Ask Jeeves HEAD TO HEAD with Google and Yahoo!"

For the record, I like Ask Jeeves, they have some great technology. Besides anyone who includes references to "dachshunds" get's my attention [secret Dachshund fan lurking].

Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Ask Jeeves: What's the Future of Search?
Thanks to Search Engine Watch for running an interview I did with Ask Jeeves' vice president of products, Jim Lanzone.

Check back tomorrow, and I'll post the unedited version for you! ;-)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Espotting Strikes Search Engine Deal with Mcdonald's UK
Some positive news for FindWhat's newly acquired UK PPC provider, Espotting. Espotting will provide search functionality and develop over 10 new channels for Internet Terminals at 200 UK locations this year.

'Espotting were our partner of choice for the McDonald's deal' commented Mike Kellond, Managing Director, DVE. 'As pioneers of Content Solutions, they have vast experience in this area and their dedication to providing customized solutions is a huge asset to the project and the user experience.'

Here is how the terminal interfaces will look:


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Discontinuing AltaVista?
Is Yahoo taking steps to wind-down AltaVista?
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Lycos Launches New Site
Lycos previously announced a change of direction and today they launch the new look website. Gary Price shares his thoughts.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
WebSourced's KeywordRanking.com Selected by Lowe's For Search Engine Marketing Campaign

Press Release: WebSourced's KeywordRanking.com Division to Provide Search Engine Marketing for Lowes.com


RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 25, 2004--WebSourced, Inc., the global leader in search engine marketing (www.websourced.com) - today announced its KeywordRanking.com division has been selected by Lowe's, the world's second largest home improvement retailer, to assist the company in achieving better website positioning on major search engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN.

The engagement will begin immediately with the objective to assist Lowe's in achieving better search engine positioning for home improvement related terms across its website.

Andy Beal, vice president of search marketing at WebSourced, Inc.'s, KeywordRanking.com division, stated, "We are excited to announce this partnership with Lowe's. We are confident our search engine optimization expertise will result in better search engine positioning for Lowes.com and ultimately drive sales."

WebSourced helps clients design a well-rounded online marketing presence that will generate new business and continue to keep revenues high. The company works with clients to increase their web presence and rank high in popular search engine results; build new websites that leverage online sales technology; and design improved infrastructure for order fulfillment and financial transactions.

Lowe's is the latest addition to the WebSourced, Inc. roster of over 1,200 clients, including a wide array of market leader companies such as NBC, Alaska Airlines, LasikPlus, Peopleclick and Experian.

With fiscal year 2003 sales of $30.8 billion, Lowe's Companies, Inc. is a FORTUNE 100 company that serves approximately 10 million customers a week at more than 950 home improvement stores in 45 states. In 2003, FORTUNE named Lowe's America's Most Admired Specialty Retailer. Based in Mooresville, N.C., the 58-year old company is the second-largest home improvement retailer in the world. For more information, visit Lowes.com

Founded by CEO and President S. Patrick Martin, WebSourced, Inc is the global leader in Internet marketing, with its KeywordRanking.com service specializing in improving website visibility in major search engines and Cherish.com offering online dating services. WebSourced is a subsidiary of CGI Holding Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board symbol: CGIH.OB - News). The company's filings can be viewed at www.freeedgar.com. For additional information please visit www.cgiholding.com.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Just What We Needed, More Search Engine Toolbars
In case you haven't found that perfect search engine toolbar take a look at what Yahoo and Viewpoint are cooking up.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
How Small Search Engine Companies Can Change The Future
How are Eurekster and a host of other companies looking to change the way you search? This article by Mark Boslet takes a look at the potential of search.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
DMA/AIM net.marketing Conference
Not attending the DMA/AIM net.marketing conference? Not a problem, check out Garrett French's live reports.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Froogle On Your Wireless Phone
For those of you who like to shop online at every opportunity, check out the latest incarnation of Froogle. (Nod to ResourceShelf)

Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Losing Relevancy?
I know that it's not new news to tell you that the search for "search engine" on Google, shows AltaVista at #1 and not Google. But have you looked at the other results? Let's take a look...

1. AltaVista
2. Excite
3. Dogpile
4. Lycos
5. SearchEngineWatch.com
6. Google
7. Yahoo

AltaVista you can say deserves to be number 1 because it has been around forever, but we're talking relevancy here. Today's relevancy! How in the world does Excite and Dogpile place higher than Google and Yahoo. And no disrespect to Search Engine Watch, but if I am searching for "search engine" chances are I want an actual search engine, not a site about SEM.

Anyone else care to share search results at Google that just don't make sense?
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Wired Magazine Features Google
I already reported that Wired had gone Google crazy in their current issue. For those of you who have not yet read the magazine, here is the online version.







Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Booble Fights Back at Google
Ok, this is very funny. For all of you who have trouble differentiating Booble from Google, try TauntedByTatas.com. Those naughty people at Booble.com have launched the site in response to Google's trademark attorney's attempt to "tuck the Booble name back into the softly padded embrace of obscurity." (link from ResourceShelf)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Shunned by Stanford
File this under the "ouch, that hurts" category. Sergey Brin and Larry Page's alma mater, Stanford University, has chosen Google's competitor, Verity's Ultraseek for both its internal and external search engine needs.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
LookSmart Adds New Sponsored Search Partners
LookSmart today announced the addition of four new search partners including BrainFox, Findology, Superlogy.com and GenieKnows. (thanks Gary)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Verizon Selects FindWhat.com To Supply Paid Search Engine Ads
Could this be FindWhat.com's year? They are certainly getting aggressive in their acquisition and partnership efforts.

Verizon today announced it will relaunch SuperPages.com, the new service for its online Yellow Pages, on March 1 with partner and paid-search advertising provider FindWhat.com.

"We're adding pay-per-click for national and local advertisers to take advantage of that model," Lester Chu, a Verizon vice president, told Reuters.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Ask Jeeves Launches Smart Search UK
Ask has launched Smart Search in the UK, which combines natural-language processing and Teoma search technology to deliver selected contents and direct results for popular searches.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Can Google Remain Cool?
The UK's Independent takes a look at the history and future of Google.

"One thing that has worked in Google's favour - and which its founders espouse - is its sense of cool....earlier this year, Brin lectured attendees at the Davos conference about how one becomes, and remains, hip. "If you have to think about being hip, you're never going to be hip," he told them. (No doubt they carefully wrote it down.) He also joked that after Google, he'd like to build a detector for airports to prevent unhip people boarding planes; he only likes to share aircraft with "cool" passengers"

At Forrester, Colony warns: "How long did it take you to switch to Google? Seconds. How long will it take you to switch out of Google? Seconds." By contrast, he says, "all great businesses are built on a monopoly". And nobody has that in searching. Get it wrong, and the pack will leave footprints all over your back. "Is Google's search good?" he adds. "Yes. Is the company worth tens of billions? No."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
FindWhat.com Agrees to Acquire Comet Systems
Thanks to John Battelle (and Gary Price) for sharing FindWhat.com's latest acquisition, Comet Systems. You know Comet, they are the (annoying) cursor company that some webmasters insist on using on their website.

With the recent acquisitions of Miva, eSpotting and now, Comet, FindWhat is certainly going on the offensive.
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Queryster, A Fun Multi-Search Tool
A couple of weeks ago we discovered a great little search tool called Queryster. In today's Search Engine Watch article, Chris Sherman shares his thoughts on the service.
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Google Tops the Search Engine Charts
CNet gives their views on the recently released Nielsen/NetRatings survey.
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Inktomi Wants To See Your Meta Keywords Tag
Whenever I have been asked to discuss the SEO techniques you should implement, I have always maintained that you should at least do something to optimize your meta keywords tag.

Now that Yahoo is getting it's results from an Inktomi-based index, it appears that decision has been validated. Look what Tim Mayer of Yahoo has to say.

"Yahoo Search uses the Metakeywords tag . We did not use them at FAST or Altavista. It is important that you make the keywords and description different (targeted) on every page. Exactly what the page is about. ie. the right specificity. Having all the pages have the same keywords and description is not helpful to the SE."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Nielsen NetRatings Report Shows Google Still Most Popular Search Engine
Nielsen//NetRatings has released a new report on the top search engine destinations. While Google is still on top (39.37% reach), Yahoo (30.38%) and MSN (29.63%) are closing the gap. More than 39% of the population now use search engines on a regular basis.

Survey respondents also reported on what they felt were the most important search engine features:

1. Can Find Relevant Information = 51.8%
2. Can Get Credible Results = 34.2%
3. Get Results Quickly = 33.0%

Surpisingly, only 17.5% of those asked suggested that a search engine needed to be well known in order for them to feel comfortable using it.


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
More "Which Is Better", Google or Yahoo?
Seems that the hottest topic this week will be which search engine has the best results, Google or Yahoo. Robert Scoble weighs in with his views.

Search Engine Strategies in New York next week, should be very interesting.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Peter Jennings of ABC News Talks With Google's Page and Brin
Can Larry Page and Sergey Brin still keep to their mantra of "Don't be evil" once they have shareholders screaming down the phone? Read the interview with Peter Jennings.

It used to be that you knew you had made it if Peter Jennings wanted to interview you. Now, you know you have made it when Google takes the time to talk with you! ;-)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Adwords Now In New Sizes
According to dmnews.com, Google has added six more ad format options for publishers displaying its AdSense contextual paid listings.

The new formats are: 125x125-pixel button with one listing; 120x140 vertical banner with two listings; 180x150 small rectangle with one listing; 160x600 wide skyscraper with five listings; 250x250 square with five listings; and 336x280 large rectangle with four listings.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Which is Better, Yahoo or Google?
USA Today conducts a comparison between Yahoo and Google (similar to WSJ's last week). One interesting observation:

"A Google search for presidential candidate John Edwards, without quotation marks, displays headlines about the North Carolina senator. But the top two links are sites for TV psychic John Edward, known for talking to the dead. Five links down is the "Edwards for president" site. At Yahoo, the first link is relevant: "John Edwards for president."

This demonstrates one of the issues with stemming. Google is matching up searches for both John Edward and John Edwards. While this works for other searches (computer or computers), in this instance there clearly is a difference between the two searches.

Unless John Edward can use his psychic abilities to determine if the similar sounding democratic candidate is going to win anything?
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Will Yahoo Become The Next Verb for Search?
The New York Times prints an interesting piece on Yahoo CEO, Terry Semel. Yahoo faces a challening but potential lucrative future as it competes not only as a portal but as a bona fide search engine.

"...For the moment, it is enough that Yahoo has become a credible alternative, argued Jeff Weiner, a protege of Mr. Semel's from Warner Brothers who now runs Yahoo's search unit. "You have a second player now," he said. "If you go to Google and you didn't find what you want, you have somewhere else to go."

Of course, Yahoo isn't done, and Mr. Weiner said that there would be a series of improvements to the search system in coming months. Many of them take advantage of its data about users.

"Personalization will ultimately change the way search is delivered," Mr. Weiner said. In particular, he hopes that by watching users over time, the search engine can guess what sort of information they are looking for - or, as he put it, "If you type in flowers, do you want to buy flowers, plant flowers or see pictures of flowers?"
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Makes Front Cover of Wired Magazine
While you can't get March's edition of Wired Magazine online yet, the magazine is available at your favorite store. On the front cover you'll find Google as well as a huge feature inside.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Wants You To Advertise With Overture
Yahoo has started actively promoting Overture as it's search engine advertising division, including banner ads on the Yahoo homepage.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Like Search Engine Lowdown? Get the T-Shirt!
I had to do it, the little voices inside my head made me do it. Anyway, for all SEL fans out there (yes, both of you), you can now buy your very own Search Engine Lowdown merchandise.

Ask the world..."where do you get your news?"




Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Confirms Not Using Inktomi
According to WebmasterWorld forum user "Tim" (which after reading his profile, can only be Yahoo employee, Tim Mayer), Yahoo is not using Inktomi...

"Yahoo is using a new search technology which is not Inktomi."

It's obviously based on Inktomi technology, but the fact that Yahoo results do not match those at MSN or Hotbot, confirms that it's certainly an improved version. Yahoomi perhaps?

P.S. Tim, if it's not you that made that quote, please let me know. ;-)

Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
What Search Engine Metrics Are You Measuring?
eMarketer.com publishes findings by icrossing that show what metrics most US marketers track during an SEM campaign.



The chart above is credited to WebTrends and iProspect....I was expecting icrossing to be the source. What happened guys?
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
WebmasterWorld Internet Marketing Conference
It's not too late to sign up and attend the 2004 PubConference.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
The Hottest Consumer Searches
Spring is coming and "front load washers" are among the hottest product searches. Maybe they'll be on Oprah's "Favorite Things"!
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
A Sign That Google Has Fallen
Thanks to Serge for pointing out that Aaron Swartz has decided to end his Google Weblog citing, "Google simply isn't relevant in this day and age."

Update: As Bill Curnow pointed out, the post is almost a year old. Aaron must have had a change of heart. I was going to delete the post, but let's leave it in as a reminder to all of us to do our due diligence and fact checking (I will be!).
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Mail Invading Your Privacy
Now this is interesting. I have just noticed that Yahoo is spying on my Yahoo Shopping purchases and then using that information to power contextual ads they serve me. Take a look at this screenshot:



That inconspicuous looking Sponsored Links ad you see, is more sinister than it first appears. When you click on the "What's This" link, you'll see that it is a contextual ad served up by Overture.

Now, a few weeks ago, I predicted that Google was going to launch an email application so that it could serve up contextual ads. However, it appears Yahoo is doing this already.

What does appear to be troubling is when I search for the phrase "charger ipaq" within my Yahoo account, there are no results. So how does Yahoo know that I recently purchased an Ipaq car charger? Well, I used Yahoo shopping using the same username I use for my email account. Interesting, huh? Is Yahoo collecting information on my purchases and then using that to further entice me to click on one of their sponsored ads? Or are they simply scanning the content of all my received emails?

According to the Yahoo Mail Privacy policy:

"Yahoo!'s practice is not to use addressing information or the content of messages stored in your Yahoo! Mail account for marketing purposes."

According to the Yahoo Shopping Privacy policy:

"Yahoo! does not give your personal information or any information about where your shopped or what you bought to any of our partners or advertisers."

Either way you dice it, Yahoo appears to be collecting information on my habits that they claim they don't! I'm waiting for someone at Yahoo to call me back with an explanation.

Buyer beware!!
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Why Yahoo Dropped Google
The Times in England gives some insight on why Yahoo switched from Google. Nothing new, but a nice re-cap.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Which Is Better, Google Or Yahoo?
The Wall Street Journal conducts a non-scientific test on 6 different searches to see which search engine comes up with the most relevant results.

Some quotes of note:

"While our search wasn't exact, Yahoo got us what we wanted much faster"

"Yahoo's hits are much cleaner than Google's, if you have pure intentions in this search. Also, Yahoo's results are also presented in a more appealing way."

"Google's search turns up a more comprehensive list"
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Using Google To Locate Wi-Fi Hotspots
Over at Searchblog, John Battelle highlights that you can use Google's "Search by Location" to find wi-fi hotspots. I'm glad to see that my home was not listed!
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
John Kerry's Affair Rumors Dominate Search Engine Queries
According to About.com, the alleged affair between freelance journalist, Alexandra Polier & Democratic presidential candidate, John Kerry is driving thousands of search enquiries this week.

"The Yahoo! Buzz Index reports that searches for Alexandra Polier have shot up 1758.95% in a single day."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Is Losing Its Share Of Search Engine Traffic
With all of the Yahoo/Google/Inktomi news lately, it's almost easy to forget that the balance of power is shifting away from Google. With Yahoo's Inktomi currently being used for Yahoo Search and MSN Search, they control nearly half of all search queries.

Google is still King, but for how much longer?


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Isn't That Purty - Search Engine Watch Changes It's Spots
Search Engine Watch is sporting a brand new look today and a new tagline, "The source for search engine marketing". I know the old color scheme was based on Danny Sullivan's original website. I wonder how he likes the new colors?

Come on Danny, I know you stop by here. What prompted the color change and are you sad to say goodbye to the old colors? BTW, the SES logo on the homepage still says "2003", might want to update. ;-)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google To Enter Newspaper Business?
Thanks to John Battelle for pointing me in the direction of Editor & Publisher's interview with Google co-founder, Sergey Brin.

The article focusses on Brin's views on the future of newspapers now that search is so popular.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Paid Inclusion And Inktomi Will Be Different
According to the sign-up page of Inktomi paid inclusion provider, Positiontech, Yahoo will be offering a paid inclusion service of their own. This indicates that those of you hoping to get all of that great traffic from your Inktomi feeds, will now have to cough up additional $$$.

Yahoo! Search has transitioned to its own search technology and is preparing to launch a new inclusion program. As a bonus for Search Submit customers, Yahoo! Search is providing a free trial of Yahoo! traffic that will end on April 15, 2004. When the new inclusion program launches, Search Submit customers will have the option of joining the new program for ongoing participation in Yahoo! Search results.

Credit WebmasterWorld for the tip!
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Microsoft's MSN Expands News Service, Competes With Google
Microsoft's MSN has unveiled news search in several additional foreign languages, advancing its search strategy internationally to compete with Google.

In addition, according to CNET, on Wednesday, Moreover Technologies is expected announce with Microsoft that it is the exclusive provider of technology and content for the news services and MyMSN.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Lacking Relevance?
Brian Livingstone of eWeek seems to think so.

"Google.com is such a sacred cow in the search business that I hate to be anything other than worshipful. But it's beginning to appear that Google's results pages have developed a problem with relevance, based on my experiences and those of my readers."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Who Has The Largest Search Engine?
My market share is bigger than yours!


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Dipsie CEO Discusses Search
Gary Price conducts an interesting interview with Dipsie CEO, Jason Weiner.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo! Birth of a New Search Engine
Search Engine Watch offers it's opinion on the new Yahoo search engine results. How are the results different from Google?

"The presentation of the results is very similar. Yahoo has wisely opted to keep things looking mostly the same, with a few exceptions. There's a linked to the cached copy of each indexed page -- now being served from Yahoo, not Google -- but the "more pages from this site" link is gone. Just about everything else on search result pages looks the same.

The actual results returned by Google and Yahoo depends on the query. For popular or common queries, there seemed to be very little difference between the two engines in top few results. But once you get past those, the results tend to diverge dramatically. And for less common or non-popular queries, Yahoo results look quite different from Google results.

While Yahoo and Google are likely using similar algorithms, one reason for the differences in what's displayed is that Yahoo's email and search teams are now working together to leverage what they've learned about spam. Since Yahoo mail processes billions of email messages, this knowledge is likely quite helpful in providing Yahoo with a much deeper understanding of the characteristics of spam -- and helping keep the nasty stuff out of the web page index."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
WebSourced Comments on Yahoo's Switch to Inktomi
I had a chance to speak with Matt Hicks of eWeek about the recent changes at Yahoo. Below is the article he published:

Yahoo Inc. this week is revving its search technology as it prepares for a promised switch away from partner Google Inc.'s search results.

Search engine marketers, who watch the variations in search listings like hawks, said on Tuesday that they had begun seeing a large amount of results from the Yahoo Search site coming from Yahoo-owned Inktomi Corp. rather than from Google's Web index.

A day earlier, Web site operators also reported a new Yahoo Web crawler indexing their Web pages. Yahoo posted an FAQ about the crawler, called Yahoo Slurp, and said that it "collects documents from the web to build a searchable index for search services using the Yahoo! search engine."

Yahoo officials did not return requests for comment on the search moves.

At Web-site marketing company WebSourced Inc., 15 people spent much of Tuesday analyzing Yahoo Search results to decipher the reason behind changes in rankings for the company's Web clients, said Andy Beal, vice president of search marketing for the Morrisville, N.C., company.

Beal said that as of Tuesday afternoon he was noticing about 90 percent of the search results from Yahoo being retrieved from Inktomi, rather than Google. Yahoo acquired Inktomi last year as well as paid-search provider Overture Services Inc. and in January confirmed that it planned to switch from Google by the end of March.

The Inktomi-based results were appearing as slightly different from those at other Web search sites that use Inktomi, leading Beal to speculate that Yahoo was using its own algorithm to filter the results. Beal wrote about the new Yahoo Search results on the Search Engine Lowdown Weblog.

"The early results are looking good and very relevant and fresh," Beal said. "And it looks like Yahoo is trying to mimic Google in many ways."

Beal based his observations of a Yahoo Search switch on an analysis of its search results. When users roll their cursor over the links of results, the URL includes a redirect to Inktomi. Inktomi's index, unlike Google's, includes listings from sites that pay to be included. The redirects are used to track the traffic for those paid-inclusion listings, Beal said.

Yahoo Search still includes Google results in many search results, experts say. Yahoo most likely is testing its new search technology as it prepares for a full, official switch.

"They need to have, in the eyes of customers, a seamless switchover," Beal said. "They've really supped up the results and they need to be able to switch over without losing a heartbeat."

Inktomi has used for some time its own crawler named Slurp, but on Monday, Webmasters began noticing a crawler named Yahoo Slurp spidering their sites. Yahoo has offered few details about the new crawler, and search experts disagree as to whether it is a renaming of Inktomi's crawler or a separate one creating a distinct Web index.

Detlev Johnson, vice president of technology solutions at SuccessWorks Search Marketing Solutions Inc., said his analysis of his clients' Web logs points to Yahoo using its new crawler to create a separate index from the existing Inktomi one.

"It appears that they want to have a completely independent index that is as relevant and high quality as they can possibly manage," Johnson said.

Yahoo's switch away from Google, once completed, will create a more competitive search engine market. Google currently accounts for about 78.6 percent of U.S. Web searches, according to data from comScore Networks Inc. But without the Google-based searches that flow through Yahoo (27.7 percent) Google would fall to 50.9 percent.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo dumps Google search technology
Twleve hours after we reported that Yahoo had switched from Google to Inktomi (yes, we are blowing our own horn), the rest of the world catches up with the news.

Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Switching To Inktomi From Google
CNET catches up on the news that Yahoo is in the processing of switching to Inktomi results...

"Yahoo is starting to display results from its own technology, though company spokeswoman Diana Lee denied that it has switched from using longtime search partner Google. Yahoo, which has licensed search technology from Google since 1999, has said that it will introduce an in-house replacement in the first quarter of 2004 for Google. It has several technologies to choose from via acquisitions of Inktomi in late 2002, and Altavista and Fast Web search last year.

A review by CNET News.com shows that for some commercial queries, Inktomi results appear on Yahoo in place of Google. For example, search results for the term 'Powershot G5' include a listing for Amazon's Web page offering the digital camera for sale. By running a cursor over the link, it shows a referral Web address from Inktomi, which attaches the referral tags to track its paid inclusion program. Paid inclusion is designed to let companies pay to be updated in a search index more rapidly. Google does not offer a paid-inclusion program.

Other Yahoo results, for terms like 'debt consolidation' and 'casinos,' show referral links from Yahoo.

Despite this, Yahoo spokeswoman Diana Lee said that the company is still using Google's search technology. Yahoo Slurp is new, she said, but it was previously called Inktomi Slurp. Lee would not disclose how many documents are in its searchable database. "
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo CEO, Terry Semel $2.4 Million Richer
According to CNET, Semel exercised his remaining stock options and netted over $2 million.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Microsoft Seeking Feedback on MSN Search
It seems Yahoo is not the only one who wants to know how to improve their search results. Thanks to Gary Price for sending me this link to MSN's search engine survey.

A couple of the questions focus on PPC ads and what you think of them (and if you even notice them).
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Indexes 6 Billion Items
As we noted earlier today, Google's search index has passed 4 billion pages. Here is their press release announcing total indexed items exceeding 6 billion.

An announcement to take the sting away from losing Yahoo today?
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Search Engine Toolbar Overload? Groowe Has The Answer
If your toolbar downloads are starting to take up half your browser screen, consider downloading Groowe's toolbar.

The handy IE addition will allow you to access the features of all of your favorite toolbars from one simple interface. No more clutter!

Not sure if there is any spyware included with the download, so check for yourselves.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Online Buyers Use Search Engines Often
According to eMarketer.com, Kelsey and BizRate.com surveyed over 5,000 people who have made an online purchase in the past year and found 71% of online buyers use search engines at least seven times per week. One-quarter of respondents are “heavy� users who search 30 or more times per week.


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Breaking News: Yahoo Switches To Inktomi, Seeks Feedback
Yahoo appears to have finally switched their search results to Inktomi. Not sure of the exact hour it happened, but sometime in the early hours of Tuesday, search engine results switched from Google to a new and improved Inktomi Index.

According to WebmasterWorld (those guys find the best stuff), Yahoo is already collecting feedback on their new search engine results.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Index Surpasses 4 Billion Pages
According to Google's homepage, their index now stands at 4,285,199,774 web pages indexed.

Nice big number to show potential investors of any IPO, methinks.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Yahoo Renames Spider
In anticipation of switching search results from Google to Inktomi, Yahoo has renamed their search engine spider.

Yahoo! will be modifying its web-indexing robot (crawler) user-agent to reflect our company name. This is the crawler we use to build a searchable index for the Yahoo! search services. To ensure consistency and minimal disruption, we will continue to maintain the "Slurp" name within our web crawler user agent and continue to support "Slurp" as part of any robots.txt files that references this.

Yahoo! Slurp will continue to obey the Robot Exclusion Standard (http://www.robotstxt.org/wc/exclusion.html).

The complete User-Agent that will be logged as part of this transition will be shown in your logs (if user-agent logging is enabled) as follows:

Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; Yahoo! Slurp; http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/ysearch/slurp )

For more information on the Yahoo! Slurp user-agent, robots.txt usage or accesses please refer to the slurp information page now located at:

http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/ysearch/slurp/

This transition will take affect starting Monday Feb 16th, 2004.

Thanks to WebmasterWorld.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Search Engines Compete For Your Loyalty
Over at news.com, there is an interesting article on the fickle nature of search engine users.

"Everyone thinks there's this incredible loyalty to Web search engines, but in fact there really isn't," said James Lamberti, a research director at ComScore. "Consumers still switch around a lot, and loyalty can be quickly broken."

The very fact that search engine users can switch around and change their allegiance within a matter of seconds, could be the very reason some analysts believe that Google is over-valued. After all, they have no way of guaranteeing their income base.

Interesting snippet. Did Yahoo read my article on the Future of Search Technology? They sure appear to be implementing my ideas. Maybe I can collect a royalty fee. ;-)

"Yahoo spokeswoman Diana Lee said that the company plans to introduce personalized search sometime this year. Such a service would likely track, with his or her permission, a visitor's physical location, personal preferences and search history to deliver more relevant results."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Attending Search Engine Strategies New York?
Coming to Search Engine Strategies New York? Be sure to stop by the booth of Premier Plus Sponsor, KeywordRanking.com, where we will be providing free website reviews, answering your SEM questions and giving away a total of 16 portable DVD Players! Get free advice from Andy Beal and his team and qualify to win a fantastic prize at the KeywordRanking.com consultation booth (#1106).

KeywordRanking.com is one of the largest and most successful search engine marketing companies in the world.

Our 70+ employees offer the very best in expertise, experience and customer service to more than 1,300 satisfied clients, including NBC, Alaska Airlines, Monica Lewinsky, Experian, Peopleclick and Do It Best.

Part of the WebSourced, Inc group of companies, our professional approach to search engine marketing ensures that over 98% of our clients enjoy top search engine positioning using spam-free techniques. KeywordRanking.com maintains strong associations with the American Marketing Association, eMarketing Association and other professional organizations. We were recently confirmed as the world's largest search engine optimization company by MarketingSherpas' Buyers Guide, topping a list of 120 companies.

Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Congrats to Kalena Jordan
Kalena Jordan gave birth to healthy baby boy last week, Jack Fitzgerald Jordan. Congratulations to the Jordan family!
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Update Brandy
So they named this one "Brandy".

Doesn't look like anything too spectacular happened with this Google update. According to Google employee, "GoogleGuy"..

"We've definitely been working to incorporate new signals of quality and improve the way that we rank pages, so the results at the 64.x.x.x data center are not a rollback or pre-Florida results--it's several steps forward based on new ways of gauging quality and relevance. From my perspective, we're in a much better position than we were a few months ago to score pages and to incorporate new signals, which is a good thing for webmasters and users."

Looks like they have tweaked things to include a lot more "authority" sites that were previously not included.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Technorati And Feedster To Challenge Google
Should Google forget about the challenge from Yahoo and MSN? Robert Scoble (Microsoft employee) thinks that the biggest challenge might come from Feedster or Technorati.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
AllTheWeb Morphing Into AltaVista
It looks like Yahoo (via Overture) is making changes to AllTheWeb. In particular, the "submit your site" pages look very much like AltaVista's. Thanks to WebmasterWorld for the tip.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Can Australian Local Search Company Defeat Google?
Does Australia's Sensis (part of the Telstra's group) have what it takes to take on Google?

"If you go to our future search vehicle and we put all the White and Yellow pages, CitySearch and Whereis content on it, plus internet content, the same search in Kew will get a much bigger reply" - marrying local search and internet search together in one search capability.

"We expect we'll have something in the marketplace in the next six to nine months."

After the service has been introduced to the internet, Sensis will offer the same service in voice (by calling an operator), mobile phone (your phone will recognise your position and send you a list of the 10 nearest Malaysian restaurants) and, eventually, interactive television.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Can Friendster and Orkut Make Money?
Reuters asks whether social networking companies can actually make money.

Let me put it this way, the moment Orkut starts charging, I am out of there. It may be a warm, fuzzy feeling to know that so many people like you enough to "add" you to their network, but I ain't that lonely!!!
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Localized Companies Turn To The Search Engines
The New York Times reports on the Kelsey Group's findings that local search is taking a bigger piece of the pie.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Ideas For Changing Search Engine Results
John Battelle offers some interesting ideas for making search engines easier to use.

"Here's what I'd like to see, as a small step in a new direction: A button that I can hit when the results come up which reshuffles the search in an intelligent way. In a fit of originality, I'll call it the "reshuffle" button. Show me the first ten pages, and only those first ten. Just as I do now, I'll scan them. If there's nothing there, I'll hit "Reshuffle", and the engine shows me another 10 results, only this time, it eliminates pages that are similar to the ones it showed me before. This way, you can quickly and intuitively sift through all those results, grokking and pruning your search as you go."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google May Delay Public Offering
Interesting article at Investors.com suggests that not only might Google delay their IPO, they could abandon it all together.

"Not going public could send a powerful message as well, says Matthew Berk, an independent analyst in New York. "If Google doesn't go on the public market, it says to their competitors that they don't need a huge war chest and that should scare the bejesus out of everyone else," he said."


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Online Ads Soar, Fueled By Search Engines
Online ad revenue hit $2.2 billion for the fourth quarter of 2003 and $7.2 billion for the year, according to data released Thursday by industry group Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB).

"Much of this growth has come from commercial search, which has fueled the strength of Internet giants such as Yahoo and Microsoft's MSN, while turning Google into a cash cow. Google and Yahoo's Overture Services subsidiary are industry leaders in selling advertising placement on Web search results pages."

Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Bans Environmental Group's Adwords Campaign
Google has banned the ads of an environmental group protesting a major cruise line's sewage treatment methods.

Oceana, a 2 1/2-year-old nonprofit group, said Google dropped the text-based ads displayed in shaded boxes along the right side of its Web page because they were critical of Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines.

Google's actions show why we need healthy competition in the search engine space. Right now, Google wields far too much power.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Dancing
Hold on to your rankings folks, backwards links are fluctuating at Google, indicating an update. I wonder what the SEO forum users will name this one?

Remember, you heard it first at Search Engine Lowdown.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Local Search Now 25% of Activity
The findings of a new survey of more than 5,000 online buyers conducted by The Kelsey Group and BizRate.com reveal that local commercial searches-those seeking merchants 'near my home or work'-represent 25.1% of all searches being performed by online buyers, more than double the amount previously estimated by analysts.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Paid Search Engine Advertising To See Slower Growth
EMarketer notes that U.S. spending on paid search advertising rose to about $2.06 billion last year, up 123% from $923 million in 2002, but will rise more slowly this year, about 23%, to over $2.5 billion (according to InternetRetailer). It figures search advertising will rise to about $3 billion next year, but then face sharper growth later in the decade.


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
What Is Your Favorite Google Logo?
What would you like Google to celebrate? Take a look at some of these logo suggestions. Thanks to Boing Boing


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google spurns RSS for rising blog format
Google has decided to no longer offer RSS syndication to Blogger users, in favor of the newer Atom format.

"Google confirmed that it is offering Atom syndication capabilities only to Blogger users. But subscribers who once used RSS with paid premium memberships will still be able to do so, it said. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company eliminated paid Blogger subscriptions on acquiring the service from Pyra Labs."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Public Service Announcement
Not search engine related, but important enough to alert SEL readers.

If you get an AOL Instant Message that reads "check this out" and includes a link that contains a reference to "osama capture.php.", don't click it. Read why it could download spyware to your computer.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Proof Yahoo Is Testing Inktomi Results
If you're looking for some proof that Yahoo is testing Inktomi's index in their search results, take a look at these findings.

Yahoo (with Google index):
http://search.yahoo.com/bin/search?p=widget
Google:
http://www.google.com/search?q=widget

Now take a look at the Yahoo results using Inktomi:
http://search.yahoo.com/bin/search?p=widget&tmpl=E088

It does appear that the second set of Yahoo results are pulling from a fresh Inktomi index. If you are a member of Webmaster World, you can discuss at their forum.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Lycos Plans To Restructure
Lycos, one of the original Web search engines, said over time it will phase out its generic media portal business and focus instead on subscription offerings such as online dating services and Web site publishing.
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Could Google IPO Signal Bubble 2?
Forrester's George F Colony says in a newly published brief that the company is not worth the tens of billions being bandied about as a target.

'Google at a $US6 billion valuation would be great. Google with a cap north of $US15 billion blows in the stench of Bubble II,' he says."

Read the rest of the scathing report.
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Google Takes Adwords To China
Google continues its expansion of Adwords and launches Chinese version.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Search Engines Preferred Method Of Locating Suppliers
UK industry's increasing reliance on using search engines to source new suppliers has been revealed in a new survey.

Reed Business Information's Kellysearch found that 69% of the 6,200 people surveyed said they now regularly use internet search engines in the hunt for suppliers and 39% that internet search has become their first port of call in locating new products/services for their companies.

The results place search engines way in advance of other systems of supplier searches with the survey showing:

- 24% said they prefer to use contacts at their 'existing suppliers'
- 23% would rather rely on 'word of mouth' (colleagues, industry contacts etc)
- 10% have a preference for using 'online catalogues/directories'
- 4% favour traditional 'hard copy catalogues/directories'

However, despite a growing dependence on retrieving purchase information via the internet, most UK companies still like their suppliers to be close to home. 42% said they begin their searches on a local level, while 37% start looking nationally and just 4% internationally. By contrast, a third of the overseas companies questioned in the survey begin their searches internationally and a further quarter said that proximity of suppliers did not matter.

Reprinted from Netimperative.com
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Take Your Search Engine Use To A New Level
Search Engine Watch reviews the new book by Randolph Hock, The Extreme Searcher's Internet Handbook.

Whereas his fist book was a nuts and bolts look under the hood of the major web search services, The Extreme Searcher's Internet Handbook is much wider ranging, looking not just at web directories, search engines and portals, but also at specialized search sites.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Is Orkut Stealing Your Information?
Over at Boingboing.net you can read about the concerns circulating that Orkut might be able to use your personal information in ways you may not like.

"I suspect that Orkut is a way for Google to gather personal information about their clientele for marketing purposes".

Isn't that obvious?
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
FindWhat.com Paid Search Struggles To Impress Wall Street
Is Wall Street starting to sense a new "bubble" surround search engine stocks? Despite FindWhat.com beating analysts estimates and finally agreeing to merge with Espotting, shares (FWHT) dropped 11% on Tuesday.

"The quarter was strong, but the guidance was shy of the 2004 consensus by three cents," says Richard Fetyko, an analyst at New York investment bank Merriman Curhan Ford & Co.

For the fourth quarter, FindWhat reported net income of $3.5 million, or 15 cents a share, up from $2.7 million, or 14 cents, a year earlier.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Preparing To Battle Microsoft's Longhorn
An Internetnews.com article takes a look at the future of Internet use and how downloaded applications are become popular. Scroll towards the bottom of the piece and you will see some notes on Google and Microsoft.

"The Google deskbar is in response to the Longhorn challenge." Industry figures speculate that Longhorn, the next version of the Microsoft Windows OS, might feature an Internet search function embedded in a variety of Microsoft applications beyond the browser, such as Word.

"The new search capacity (of Longhorn) will help people search the hard drive, and might let you search for files on a shared server, a corporate intranet and the Internet at large," said Matt Rosoff, an analyst with Directions on Microsoft. In general, though, Rosoff said, "I don't even think Microsoft itself knows exactly what it is planning for Longhorn."

Google isn't the only search engine to venture onto the desktop. Yahoo! and Terra Lycos also have deskbars. And by no means is the Google deskbar the only new desktop app to launch in the last few months."
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Is Yahoo Testing Search Engine Results Using Inktomi?
According to Jennifer Laycock, Yahoo users around the world are reporting sporadic appearances of Inktomi listings in the search results.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Queryster, A New Way To Use Search Engines
If you're on an eternal quest to find the best search engine interface, check out Queryster.com. They allow you to search different indexes by using a nifty graphical interface that sits on top of the search results.



You can change between 25 different search engines, although only 10 can be selected at any one time.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Social Networks Are Stealing Your Information
CBS MarketWatch reports that Spoke Network has developed a social networking/search hybrid that uses information on your friends to create a more personalized search experience.

While this has benefits to Spoke members, it does have a creepy side to it. Spoke can pull information from a member's computer (Outlook or Act for example) and utilize that information to create profiles for people who haven't even registered yet!

Your personal information could at this moment be drifting around Spoke's network without you knowing it.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Mamma.com Upgrades Its Search Engine
According to ResearchBuzz, Mamma.com has added some functionality to their search engine.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Will Stand Strong Against Microsoft
There are a lot of articles that discuss whether Microsoft will end up crushing Google and dominating the search engine space.

Over at ZDNet.com, John Carroll argues that Google will be a fierce competitor for Microsoft.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Having Trouble Using Google?
Is this a sign that Google is taking a detour from its "simple to use" path? Has Google gotten too complicated to use? Soople offers a service that allows you to easily search the different search options at Google.

Filter your search, search images, search links and more.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Technorati Adds Search Function
Blog database, Technorati, has now added a search engine allowing visitors to search over one million different blogs.


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Increases New York Office Space
According to reports, Google has increased the office space it occupies at 1440 Broadway.

In the past 18 months, Google has expanded its space in the 25-story building incrementally and now occupies 102,000 sf on four contiguous floors.
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The Search Engines Are Stealing Your Identity
Identity theft is a growing practice, with millions of Americans facing the daunting task of repairing credit ruined by thieves stealing their social security and personal information.

These thieves are finding it easier to get that information, thanks to search engines such as Google. Google is so powerful that it can scan a whole host of pages (include those residing on secure servers) and store it in its index.

By "hacking" Google's index, identity thieves are able to locate a vast amount of information including social security numbers, bank account details and employment records.

As a quote in a recent WashingtonPost.com article says:

"On a [client's] bank site, I found an Excel spread sheet with 10,000 Social Security and credit card numbers," said Skoudis, of one of his successful treasure hunts."

Website owners can protect this information by using a robots.txt file to prevent the page from being spidered, but some do not know how to correctly use or fail to use altogether.

The Washington Post article asks the question, "Who is to blame". Is it the company that posted the information on its website or the search engine who provided the link to the page? While the offending company website will most likely be the first to be blamed, I see Google getting involved in an issue that could impact all of its results. It used to be that you needed to actively submit your site to the search engines in order to get listed. These days the search engines simply follow links to your site and crawl the information they find there. Should the onus be on the website owner to tell the search engines which pages not to index, or should the search engines be required to check first before including a page in their results?
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Are The Search Engines Crossing Party Lines?
AOL has decided to remove President Bush from the #1 spot for the search "miserable failure". While I can see the reason for this, isn't this simply a case of trying to fix a broken leg with a band aid?

If AOL doesn't like the way the results are displayed, they need to speak to Google and push them to change their algorithm so as not to be so heavily influenced by keywords in links.

Not only that, but what about the poor souls that now occupy the top results? Do they deserve to be "miserable failures" too? Thanks to SearchEngineJournal.com for the tip.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
FindWhat.com Finally Acquires Espotting
FindWhat.com on Monday said it has signed a long-delayed deal to acquire British search service Espotting Media Inc.
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LookSmart Releases Earnings
Troubled search engine, LookSmart released stable yet uninspiring earnings on Friday. No news yet of a replacement for MSN.

"While our agreement with MSN ended only a few weeks ago, our restructuring efforts are well underway," said Damian Smith, LookSmart's interim CEO, following the recent departure of former CEO Jason Kellerman, who resigned days after the MSN loss.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
4th Annual Search Engine Watch Awards
Did your favorite search engine win an award?
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Same News, Different Day
When you spend your day keeping up to date with the latest search engine news and trends, it can be easy to dismiss news items. I often read articles and decide that there is "nothing new" here. This is true of this article from USA Today.

However, there are 70+ employees at KeywordRanking.com all just waiting for me to miss a story. ;-)

Thanks to all the unsung heros who make sure I never miss a news item.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Selecting A Search Engine Friendly Business Name
Naseem Javed offers his advice for choosing a business name that is search engine friendly while still portraying a strong brand. Thanks to MarketingWonk for the tip.
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Overture Expands Into Australia
ZDNet reports that Overture is expanding into Australia.

Overture has opted for a three-tiered pricing strategy depending on the value of the desired search terms, ranging from 10c to $1. Companies then bid on the terms and are ranked in the sponsored search section according to how much they pay per click through.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
IBM Hopes For Success From Its Search Engine
According to zdnet.com, IBM is hoping that its WebFountain project will help take search to the next level.

"IBM is hoping to cash in on the trend with the four-year-old WebFountain project, which is just now coming of age. It's an ambitious research platform that relies on the Web's structured and unstructured data, as well as on storage and computational capacity, and IBM's computing expertise.

"Search is trying to find the best page on a topic. WebFountain wants to find the trend," said Dan Gruhl, chief architect of the project at IBM's Almaden Research Center in South San Jose, Calif."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
What Sounds Does A Search Engine Make?
FindSounds is a specialized search engine for sound effects and musical instrument samples. Unlike some other multimedia search services that help you find songs, radio broadcasts or other types of recorded content on the web, FindSounds is limited to simple sounds and short samples. From Search Engine Watch.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Have Search Engines Replaced Librarians?
Remember the days when you would go to the library to do your research and if you got particularly stuck, you would ask the librarian for help? Well the New York Times does and they claim that there librarians can offer information that Google and other search engines can't.

"...few people scrutinize the information they find on the Web. A study in 2002 by Google found that 85 percent of search-engine users examine only the first page of results. On the other hand, librarians say they often use Google's advanced search features, asking it, for example, to search only pages that have been updated in the last three months, or just nonprofit or educational sites, which they find are sometimes more reliable than commercial sites."

I'd suggest that all librarians sign up to be an expert at Google Answers. That way, they'll get paid for answering those obscure questions.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Welcome Slashdot Members
It appears that Search Engine Lowdown has gained some interest from the fine readers of Slashdot.org. Apparently this article got everyone talking.

A warm welcome to all Slashdot readers. Please take a seat, hang out a while. There's beer and left-over pizza in the fridge. I only ask that you leave SEL in the same condition you found it. ;-)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Search Engine Marketing Makes Front Page
For any of you who thought search engine marketing was not here to stay, think again! USA Today has a front page article that discusses how thousands of businesses are using Google Adwords or instead reducing their costs by optimizing their content for the crawled listings.

Why is search so effective?

"Search marketing has changed what an ad is," says Sheryl Sandberg, Google's vice president of global sales. "On television and magazines, (ads) are perceived as an interruption. ... But online, I'm not bothering you. You searched for information, and I'm giving it to you."
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Venture Capitalists Drooling Over Google
I've discovered that in venture capital circles there is a chart called "The Midas List". To get on it you simply need to be one of the people who most successfully use venture capital to create wealth for their investors.

According to Forbes, those involved with Google could see their Midas Ranking improve dramatically if the search engine has a successful IPO.

"Start-ups like Motive and Shopping.com may also go public in 2004. Neither would be nearly as big as Google, but they could still improve some venture capitalists' rankings."

So a Google IPO could improve their rankings huh? Is their no ranking on this planet that does not involve Google????
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Proof That High Traffic Can Be Achieved With A Low Google PageRank
Are you one of those people that stress over your Google PageRank? Or perhaps you have clients that won't be happy until they have at least 8/10?

Have them take a look at these stats from Christopher Cemper's site statistics for his blog.

PageRank stats (Jan 31st 04, first 1000 pages only)
· PR6 x 27
· PR5 x 139
· PR4 x 451
· PR3 x 124
· PR2 x 51
· PR1 x 11
· PR0 x 70

Most of his pages have a PageRank of 5/10 or less, yet he generates 4,000 visitors a day!
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
What Does The Future Hold For LookSmart
I guess LookSmart is a little upset that no one wants to interview them any more. Not prepared to sit around and wait, LookSmart decided to interview themselves, in particular Tony Mamone, Senior VP of Sales & Marketing.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Janet Jackson's Bare Breast Tops Internet Searches
Didn't I say this would happen? Ok, ok, so it hardly takes Nostradamus to predict this...

"On Monday, Jackson received 60 times as many searches than perennial chart topper, the "Paris Hilton sex tape," and 80 times as many as singer Britney Spears.

By Wednesday Jackson broke records on Yahoo, accounting for nearly 20 percent of all terms searched on the site. The next closest on the list was the Super Bowl"
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
MSN Search Engine Beta Test
PcPro.co.uk gives its take on the recent launch of Microsoft's MSN search engine (beta). They report that most of the results being displayed there appear to be from Inktomi and not the rumored MSN search engine.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Traffic Takes Down Web Site
Interesting little story.

It appears that the Google logo yesterday (honoring Gaston Julia) linked to the search results for the words "julia fractal". The resulting traffic generated from that "featured logo" crashed the servers of the #1 listed website.

This more than inconvenienced the owners of that site, who had to move pages and ended up displaying this page instead.

They also posed an interesting question. Should Google ask permission before potentially sending huge traffic loads to a single page/server?
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Microsoft and Google - An Australian Point of View
The Sydney Morning Herald gives us their (Australian) views on the upcoming Google/Microsoft battle.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Official: No Search Engine News Today
Did I miss the memo or did I just get caught up with all of the search engine news? Either way, there's not much to report this morning.

Tell you what, go get a coffee and then head over to Search Engine Watch and read Danny Sullivan's recap of the past month. By the time you get done, I'll have some more news, I promise! ;-)
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Inverse Search - The Future of Search?
Jon Kleinberg is a professor at Cornell who's work influenced the eventual creation of Google's PageRank. John Battelle spoke with him and discussed the concept of "inverse search".

You're probably familiar with the concept, if not the name. Inverse search is where you know what it is you are seeking information on, but don't know the correct terminology to type in when using a search engine.

Interesting stuff, and something to add to the search engine technology "wish list".
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Logo Celebrates Gaston Julia
Google has "themed" its logo today to mark the birthday of Gaston Julia, the French fractal mathematician who devised the formula for the Julia set.


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Verizon's Yellow Pages Enters Paid Search Arena
According to John Battelle, Verizon plans on revamping Superpages.com to focus on the local advertising marketing.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
WebSourced Achieves Record Sales From Search Engine Marketing Services
WebSourced, Inc. has announced record back-to-back sales months, adding 90 new KeywordRanking.com customers in January alone. The company expects 2004 revenues to easily exceed $15 million.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
How Many Words Used By Search Engine Users.
For all of you who think that "computers" or "toys" are great words to target, check out the latest findings at OneStat.com. Two and three-word combinations rule.

The 7 most used word phrases in search engines on the web are:

1. 2 word phrases 32.58%
2. 3 word phrase 25.61%
3. 1 word phrases 19.02%
4. 4 word phrases 12.83%
5. 5 word phrases 5.64%
6. 6 word phrases 2.32%
7. 7 word phrases 0.98%
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Microsoft's Robert Scoble Discusses Search Engine Technology
In my recent article “The Future of Search Engine Technology�, I looked at a lot of developments that might happen in the future, that would improve search technology. I strongly believe that we are witnessing the infancy of search engine technology, but I wanted to hear what others had to say. Today, we start a series of interviews with prominent experts, insiders and search engine developers to hear what their thoughts are for the future.

If you’ve been online for any length of time and work in any industry connected with the Internet, you would heard of, Robert Scoble. The Microsoft employee maintains a daily blog (when he’s not working to get the word out about Microsoft’s new “Longhorn� operating system) where he gives his thoughts on all things Microsoft, while also casting a critical eye on the competition. Scoble does a great job of keeping a distinct line between what’s “official� and what’s simply his opinion.

I was fortunate enough to catch him taking a sabbatical from his blog and asked him his thoughts on the future of search engine technology. Scoble did ask me to note that the following represents his personal opinions, not Microsoft-vetted opinions.

[Andy Beal] Robert, tell me about the search engine technology being developed that you are most excited about?

[Robert Scoble] That depends on whether you're talking about Internet searching, or searching on your local hard drive. If we're talking about your local hard drive, searching for files on your local hard drive is still awful and getting worse.

[AB] Why do you say that?

[RB] Because hard drives keep getting bigger (a 60GB drive at Fry's Electronics is $60 now -- in three years we predict it'll be $20 and you'll see 500GB drives for less than $100). It's easier to create files now than it is to find them.

Today search tools like X1 are most interesting because they index your hard drive and make it easy to search for email and files on your local drives. Microsoft Research has been working on a tool called "Stuff I've Seen" too, which is also quite interesting (both let you search email as well as files on your hard drive). But, these tools don't go far enough. First, they are bolted on top of the operating system. So, while they are indexing, your system often sees slowdowns. They can't design those to work properly with the operating system and with other applications that might need processor time.

Plus, to really make search work well search engines need metadata and metadata that's added by the system keeping track of your usage of files, as well as letting application developers add metadata into the system itself. In a lot of ways, weblogs are adding metadata to websites. When a weblog like mine links to a web site, we usually add some more details about that site. We might say it's a "cool site" for instance. Well, Google puts those words into its engine. That's metadata. (Technically metadata is "data about data"). Now if you search for "cool site" you'll be more likely to find the site I just linked to. So, you can see how Google's engine is helped by metadata. But, we haven't been able to apply those lessons to the thousands of files on your hard drive. That will change.


[AB] Can you explain the problems faced with searching hard drives and what Microsoft is working on to help?

[RB] What if we did the same thing on your hard drive [as Google]? For instance, look at pictures. When I take pictures off of my Nikon, they have some metadata (for instance, inside the file is the date it was taken, along with the exposure information) but that metadata isn't useful for most human searches. For instance, how about if I wanted to search for "my wedding photos?" Neither X1, nor Windows XP's built in search would find your wedding photos. Why? Because they have useless names like DSC0001.jpg and there's no metadata that says they are wedding photos.

Let's go forward a couple of years to the next version of Windows, code-named Longhorn. In Longhorn we're building a new file storage system, code-named WinFS. With WinFS searching and metadata will be part of the operating system. For instance, you could just start typing in an address bar "W" and "E" and "D" and "D" and anything that started with WEDD would come up to the top. For instance, your wedding documents, spreadsheets, and photos.

But, WinFS goes further than X1 and other file search tools do today. It lets you (and developers of apps you'll use) add metadata to your files. So, even if you don't change the name of your files, you might click on one of the faces in a picture application and get prompted to type a name and occasion. So, you would click on your cousin Joe's face, type in "Joe Smith" and "Wedding."

Now whenever you search for wedding stuff, that photo will come up. And that's just the start. If you imported a group of photos into a wedding album, you'd be adding metadata for the search engine to use. In other words, you'll see a much nicer system for searching your local hard drive.

[AB] It looks like Microsoft has things mapped out for offline searches, but can they compete with Internet search engines?

[RS] Now, if we're talking about the Internet, then Google has done an awesome job so far. I use Google dozens of times a day. Will MSN [search] be able to deliver more relevant results than Google? I don't know. Certainly that's not the case today. Will that change tomorrow? I'm waiting to see what the brains at MSN do.

One thing I do see is that in Longhorn, search will be nicer for customers. Google is working on making its toolbar the best possible experience. We're working on a whole raft of things too. I'm very excited about the future of search, no matter which way things go.

[AB] Let’s look beyond the next couple of years. What new developments in search do you see happening in the next 3-5 years?

[RS] For Internet searches, I see social behavior analysis tools like Technorati becoming far more important. Why? Because people want different ways to see potentially relevant results. Google took us a long way toward that future as their Google's results are strongly influenced by how many inbound links a site has. But, now, let's go further, even further than Technorati has gone. Let's identify who really is keeping the market up to date on a certain field and give him/her more weight.

I also see that search engines that search just specific types of content (like Feedster) are going to be more important (Feedster only searches RSS and Atom syndication feeds).

Oh, and users are going to demand new ways of exporting searches. Google showed us that with News Alerts. Enter in a search term, like "Microsoft" and get emailed anytime a news source mentions Microsoft. Feedster goes further than that. There you can build an RSS feed from a search term. I have several of those coming into my RSS News Aggregator and find they are invaluable for watching what the weblogs are saying about your product, company, or market. For instance, one of my terms I built a feed for is "WinFS" -- I'll be watching to see how many people link to this article and if any of you have something interesting to say I'll even link back.

[AB] Let’s look at your “wish list�. Assuming there were no restrictions in technology, what new feature would you like to see introduced to search engines?

[RS] I want to see far better tools for searching photos -- and connecting relationships between all types of files and photos. For instance, why can't I just drag a name from my contact list to associate that name with a face in a photo? Wouldn't that help searching later on? In just
18 months I've taken 7400 photos. But I can't search any of them very well today without doing a lot of renaming and other work.

[AB] What impact do you see social networking having on the future of search engine technology?

[RS] We're already seeing an impact over on Feedster and Technorati. It's hard to tell what'll come in the future, but what would happen if everyone in the world had a weblog and was a member of Google's Orkut? Would that change how I'd search? Well, for one, it'd make me even more likely to search for people on services that linked together social spaces and weblogs. Heck, I can't remember my brother's email address, but Google finds his weblog (and I can send him an email there).

One other thing I'll be watching is how Longhorn's WinFS gets used by application developers to build new kinds of social systems. Today if you look at contacts, for instance, they are locked up in Outlook, or another personal information management program like ECCO. But, contacts in Outlook can't be used by other applications (particularly now because virus writers used the APIs in Outlook to send fake emails to all contacts in Outlook, so Microsoft turned those features off).

[AB] WinFS changes that. How?

[RS] By putting a "contacts" file type into the OS itself, rather than forcing applications developers to come up with their own contacts methodology.

What if ALL applications, not just Outlook, could use that new file type? What if we could associate that file type to social software services like Friendster, Tribe, Yahoo's personals, or Google's Orkut? Would that radically change how you would keep track of your contacts? Would that make contacts radically more useful? I think it would.

Already we're seeing systems like Plaxo keep track of contacts, but Plaxo is still unaware that I've entered my data into Google's Orkut and Friendster. Why couldn't I make a system that'd associate the data in all my social software systems? Including Outlook?

[AB] Do you foresee any problems with the WinFS approach?

[RS] Developers distrust Microsoft's intentions here. They also don't want to open up their own applications to their competitors. If you were a developer at AOL, for instance, do you see opening up your contact system with, say, Yahoo or Google or Microsoft? That's scary stuff for all of us.

But, if the industry works together on common WinFS schemas (not just for contacts either, but other types of data too), we'll come away with some really great new capabilities. It really will take getting developers excited about WinFS's promise and getting them to lose their fears about opening up their data types.


[AB] Do you foresee a time when commercial search results (product/services) will be separated from informational search results (white papers/educational sites)? And do you think all commercial listings will eventually be paid only?

[RS]I don't see the system changing from the Google-style results today. Searchers just want to see relevant results. Paid-only searches won't bring the most relevant results.

[AB] What makes you say that?

[RS] Because I often find the best information on weblogs. Webloggers are never going to be able to afford to pay to be listed on search engines.

Commercial-only listings might be seen on cell phones or PDAs, though. If I were doing a cell phone service for restaurants in Seattle, for instance, I might be more likely to list just member sites. But, thinking about it, I still don't see such a system becoming popular enough without listing every restaurant in some way.

[AB] Speaking of cell phones. How do you see search engine technology impacting our use of PDAs and Cell phones?

[RS] Not sure if search engine technology will impact it, but the mixture of speech recognition with search engines might change it a lot. When I'm using my cell phone I don't want to look at sites that have a lot to read (I'll save those for later when I'm in front of a computer or my Tablet PC) but, instead, I want to find the closest Starbucks. Look up movie listings. Find a nice place to have a steak dinner. Now that cell phones are reporting e911 data (that means that the cell phone system knows approximately where you're located, so can give you just one or two Starbucks, rather than all of the ones in Seattle).

[AB] If search engine users gave up a little of their privacy and allowed their search habits to be monitored, would this allow the search engines to provide better, customized results?

[RS] Yes. I already give Google the ability to watch my search terms (I use the Google Toolbar). But, it always must be a choice. People really hate it when you don't have strict privacy policies that are easy to understand and they hate it if you don't give them a choice to not report anything.

[AB] Robert, you’ve certainly opened our eyes to the future of search engine technology, is there anything else you would like to add?

[RS] To echo what I said above, I hope the industry sees the opportunities that Longhorn's WinFS opens up. We can either work together and share data with each other, or we can be afraid and keep data to ourselves. It'll be an interesting time to watch in the next three years.

Many thanks to Robert Scoble, Microsoft employee and blog extraordinaire. Please be sure to visit SearchEngineLowdown.com as we continue to highlight the thoughts and views on the future of search engine technology.

By Andy Beal
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Microsoft Tests New Look For MSN Search
For those of you who have not yet seen the new look MSN is testing for its search results, here you go.
Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Google Tops Global Brand Poll
Maybe I should rename this web site "Google Lowdown" :-)

Anyway, Google has been named Global Brand of the Year by consultants Interbrand for the second year running.

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Can NeedleSearch Improve Your Search Engine Experience?
Over at Search Engine Watch, Gary Price discusses the benefits of downloading NeedleSearch's toolbar.

"My favorite reason for using NeedleSearch is that in addition to searching general web engines, such as Google and Teoma, you can also use it with specialized databases."


Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

 
Analysts Still Convinced Google Will Announce IPO
Is Google CEO, Eric Schmidt trying to throw us of the scent? Wall Street analysts appear to think so. According to sfgate.com, those tracking Google's movements still believe that Google will have an IPO this year.

"There is no reason that I would know for Google to wait," said Mark Argento, an analyst for ThinkEquity. "From a valuation standpoint, the Street is willing to pay for high-quality businesses, and Google is one of those marquee companies."
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Janet Jackson Tops Search Engine List?
Keeping topical....do not be surprised to see Janet Jackson related search terms appear on Jeeves' most popular search requests next week. The half naked rock star will probably top any other search query.

I see a marketing tie-in with Booble on the horizon.
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Search Engine Milestones for January 2004
Every now and then, Search Engine Watch likes to take a breather. One of those times is the beginning of each month, when the normal daily article is replaced by a look at the previous month's search engine news.


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Search Engine Results Fast As The Wind? Try BlowSearch.
Now here is a tagline that attracted my attention. BlowSearch claims to offer "Searches Fast As The Wind". Living in North Carolina, where those winds can hit 140mph+ during a hurricane, I wanted to test the claims of this little known meta crawler.

BlowSearch claims to be able to source "around 20 engines and offer a blended result based on relevancy giving our visitors the best results the internet has to offer." Twenty different search engines, is impressive, but are the results truly as fast as the wind?

Considering the number of engines BlowSearch claims to search, it did provide remarkably fast results, comparable to the speed of Google. In addition, at the right of my results were links to related searches that came in handy. The only negative is the number of paid listing that dominated the search results (Overture etc), but I guess this is to be expected from a meta crawler trying to make a living.

BlowSearch has also recently released a new version of their toolbar. The latest version includes a live ABC News feed and an intelligent pop-up blocker. The free toolbar also provides access to Yellow & White Pages, stock quotes, public records, horoscopes and maps.

We'll give BlowSearch 6/10 for quality but 7/10 for a clean interface, a toolbar with news and for an interesting tagline.
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Ask Jeeves Hit With Same Law Suit As Google
According to the WSJ, Google is not the only search engine being sued by American Blind.

"The suburban Detroit-based company, a retailer of custom window treatments, also named Time Warner Inc.'s America Online, Netscape, CompuServe, Ask Jeeves Inc. and EarthLink Inc. in the suit, accusing those companies of the same infringement because they are given Web search support by Google."
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Ten Things Wrong With Google
Over at Pandia.com, Gary Price lists the ten things he thinks are wrong with Google. I especially agree with #10...

10) In 2001 Google spokesperson David Krane told News.Com, "...we've firmly established ourselves as the No. 1 search service on the Internet, and this can be attributed to our laser-like focus on a search-only business model." It's obvious that this business model is gone.

Microsoft has deep enough pockets to focus on more than one business model. Even with an IPO, I'm not sure Google can say the same.
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Get Your Google Degree
You know that you are ubiquitous when schools start offering courses about your company. That's what has happened to Google.

And now — for apparently the first time — a university professor is teaching a class on Google. This class — taught by University of Washington Information School professor Joe Janes — isn't a simple class on Web searching that one might find at a library or a community college. This is a graduate-level course (albeit only one credit) that explores Google as a cultural phenomenon, Google the business, the technology behind Google — and "Google the Ravager of Worlds."

Finally, a course I can pass!
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Booble Still Fighting Google
What started as a joke site, meant to last just a few days, has turned into the fasted growing search engine in history.

"after reports of Google's attempt to shut it down hit the Web news site Slashdot last week, Booble.com started getting a million visitors a day."

Booble.com, the adult search engine, has gained attention because Google has sent a cease and desist order claiming that the site is trying to confuse visitors.

Booble is firing back, claiming the site is a parody of Google and is therefore protected under copyright and trademark law.

I've been giving it some thought and believe that Booble should at least change it's name and logo design. The site is clearly there to make money and not just be a parody of Google.
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The Coming Search Engine Wars
John Batelle disects the recent nytimes.com article and highlights among other things...

"the company now plans to digitize the entire collection of the vast Stanford Library published before 1923, which is no longer limited by copyright restrictions. The project could add millions of digitized books that would be available exclusively via Google."
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Could Eurekster Indicate Google's Intentions for Orkut?
Eurekster receives further coverage of it's social network/search hybrid.

The concept certainly has merits, especially if you conduct a lot of research online. Let's say you work in the "construction" industry, by including your peers in your network, you're more likely to get results that match your interests.

Eurekster uses results generated by AllTheWeb (Fast) and interestingly, "the tool is designed to ignore friends' searches related to pornography, to reduce the risk of people finding out more about their acquaintances than they would care to."

Look for Google to add search to the tools available to Orkut members. This would allow them to determine the benefits of rolling out something similar for the main Google results.
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