Google's Gag Order
Perrspectives: Google's Gag Order.
Another piece on Google's bizarre no-hate-ads policy, but this one suggests it is applied with a conservative bias. The author had a political commentary website which included an article which called the President "secretive, paranoid and vengeance-filled". His site was taken down.
Yet another site, whose _name_ is "Michael Moore Hates America", is allowed to run ads for "Michael Moore".
It is increasingly clear that Google cannot enforce their censorship policy with any semblance of fairness. Worse, [their editorial policy in ads undermines their claim of fair, computer-generated results](http://google.blogspace.com/archives/001233). Google should stick to ensuring adds are accurate, and let the computer decide which ones to show based on which are popular.
posted 2004-06-23 08:37 #
Google on the Desktop
NYT: Google Moves Toward Clash With Microsoft. "Google is preparing to introduce a powerful file and text software search tool for locating information stored on personal computers."
posted 2004-05-19 14:56 #
Google Ethics Committee
Ido Kenan, NRG Maariv has filed a story about Google's ethics committee. He sent us this translation:
Google has an ethics committee for decisions on changes to their algorithms. The committee is comprised of Google workers "who are concerned about ethics", said Dr. Eran Gabber, a software engineer with Google, at a lecture yesterday (Monday) at the Tel Aviv University.
Dr. Gabber came to Israel to recruit Computer Science students for an annual Google project, where 100 students from around the world are invited to work at Google for a 12-week period during the summer.
Dr. Gabber said: "We change Pagerank when we find that spammers are abusing it, but we don't change it often. There's an internal ethics committee in Google. Internally, there are people who are concerned about ethics. In Google, there are a lot of people who find ethics important".
There are photos at the original article (in Hebrew). Thanks again to Ido Kenan, NRG Maariv for this story.
posted 2004-05-18 13:40 #
Gmail Goes to 1TB!
Apparently "kicking it up a notch", Gmail now indicates that users have a full terabyte of disk space! Mine says:
> You are currently using 437 MB (0%) of your 1000000 MB.
Is this a mistake or a genius leapfrogging of their competitors? (You've got to imagine that few, if any, users will go past 1GB making this mostly a marketing gimmick.)
[Dave Winer sees the same thing (screenshot)](http://www.scripting.com/images/archiveScriptingCom/2004/05/18/terabyte.gif). Thanks to Logan Ingalls for the original tip.
posted 2004-05-18 13:28 #
Jew Watch Watch
Google has "bought" an ad for the search term Jew that goes on top of the first result so they can apologize for their first result!
posted 2004-05-14 12:28 #
AdSense Image Ads
Google AdSense now provides the option of image ads -- that's right, big large images and banner ads. What's next, animations? And then highly-targeted blinking hit-the-monkey ones?
posted 2004-05-12 17:43 #
Google Groups 2
Google finally bit the bullet and added mailing list support to Google Groups: Google Groups 2 - BETA. It even lets you create your own mailing list, just like Yahoo! Groups.
Google says:
- Group creation: Users can easily create, join, and search email-based mailing lists; administrative interface enables customized access controls to designate a group as public or restricted
- Dynamic conversations: Postings appear within 10 seconds and are indexed within 10 minutes
- Enhanced user interface: Users can track and mark favorite topics using the "My Groups" feature and view postings in a variety of ways including by message summary, title, or conversation view
posted 2004-05-12 17:16 #
Google's Genius
Google had three different pressures on them. They had investors who wanted desperately to send Google money. They had shareholders who wanted to cash out. And they had founders who didn't want to give anything up and wanted to stay honest. Their IPO cleverly manages to solve all three problems.
The founders keep honest by telling folks they have no respect for investors and that Google is probably a bad investment (and also by bypassing the comically corrupt investment bank system). They keep control through the dual-class stock system. And then they let the investors hand their money to the shareholders.
Now I'm no expert, but IPO lawyer Gordon Smith, at his venturpreneur weblog, has been analyzing the Google IPO and doesn't think Google has much of a growth story. Nor, apparently, does anyone else.
posted 2004-04-30 09:52 #
Gmail Problems
Brad of The BradLands reports that Google will give access to your Gmail account to anyone who can answer your secret question, and since most people's secret question is something easily discoverable (mother's maiden name, pet, etc.), this isn't very good news.
On the other hand, as Matt and Brad point out, most other services (Yahoo! Mail, Hotmail, etc.) have the same problem.
So if you do use Gmail, do pick a more difficult challenge question.
On a more uplifting note, Brad notes that Gmail is starting to work decently with Safari now, if you click past the your browser is unsupported screen by hitting "sign in anyway".
And Dane Carlson notes the suspicious potential beginnings of a Google Blog (look at the URL).
posted 2004-04-30 09:40 #
Flash Cache
Google now indexes the text Macromedia Flash files, the format behind those often-annoying animations. For example, you can now search for all flash files that say "skip intro". [via dim blinks]
posted 2004-04-30 09:19 #
Insider Report
The following is a report from a temp employee of Google about what things were like today. If you were around Google today, please share your story.
I'm glad "The Announcement" is happening, actually, because that means that tomorrow it will be over. No more rumors. We're going public. I'm sure there will still be lots of media around, particularly when the actual IPO happens in a few months' time, but until then, there won't be much to report on. The rumors have been around for so long that the elevated hype this week was pooh-poohed by many, but it has been crazy around here this week and a total circus today.
At the main (SGI) campus, there have been security guards manning the entrance to the parking lot all week, and you have to show your badge to get in. This screens out the media who haven't made plans with PR in advance to be there - according to a security guard I talked to, Google gets some very aggressive journalists showing up at random and is trying to shield employees from being hassled. Today the local NBC affiliate had a news van outside the parking lot, plus there were photographers and another news van I didn't recognize.
I should have been tipped off that today was definitely the big day by the presence of a photographer at the building where I work. As I was coming in this morning, he was taking pictures of the sign at the entrance to the parking lot. This was unusual: I'm still at the old campus, and the media don't come here; there's no security roadblock in our lot. The front desk girl was calling security on the guy by the time I had parked my car and walked inside. (She asked, "He's on the sidewalk?", making me wonder whether the guy could be asked to leave if he was standing on public property - but photographing private property. Don't know what the law is around that. There are AP images of the Google building signs anyway, so it's not like he was getting an exclusive, never-before-seen shot.)
Apparently the day's announcement was a surprise for Googlers as well.
Suddenly this meeting was called via e-mail, causing other meetings in progress to be adjourned; everyone dropped everything and vanished. It was like the plague had struck. We temps were not informed, but had to put two and two together from the sudden exodus and from the e-mail we received announcing that the cafe (which is huge and has a stage with a sound system, usually used for DJs and jam bands at lunch) would be closed until 1 due to "a special event." A coworker and I tried to gatecrash and got as far as walking up to the cafe from the inside hallway, seeing the backs of hundreds of people and hearing the voice of whoever was at the mic, before being turned away by security for having the wrong color (temp) badge.
There was a BBQ grill going outside that we were welcome to peruse, though, so we got food and sat down to wait and watch. All we could see were the backs of people visible through the sliding glass doors; the rest of the cafe was under whiteout conditions, with blinds pulled to block all views inside. This is impressive since the entire front facade of the cafe, which is about three stories high, is made of windows! We observed lots of periodic clapping, and there was a Q&A; session after the main piece had been said. Eventually people spilled out into the sunshine. Sadly, I saw no one run out of the building yelling, "I'm rich! I'm rich! I'm filthy rich!" I did see Larry Page go by looking bemused but snazzy in a colorful striped button-down shirt - and it looked like he was wearing his best sneakers. We grabbed someone we knew, who told us, "I think we're doing the right thing."
I hope that's true.
Thanks to our contributor for this report. Again, if you were around Google, please tell us your story.
posted 2004-04-29 16:14 #
Google IPO, Google Foundation
Google has filed their IPO. Seeking $2.7B, Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse First Boston. They will be auctioning shares. Earned $105.6 million on revenue of $961.8 million in the 2003 fiscal year. In the first quarter of 2004, they earned $25.8 million on revenue of $178.9 million. Letter from the founders:
Google is not a conventional company. We do not intend to become one. Throughout Google’s evolution as a privately held company, we have managed Google differently. We have also emphasized an atmosphere of creativity and challenge, which has helped us provide unbiased, accurate and free access to information for those who rely on us around the world.
Now the time has come for the company to move to public ownership. This change will bring important benefits for our employees [...] and most of all for Google users. But the standard structure of public ownership may jeopardize the independence [of Google]. Therefore, we have designed a corporate structure that will protect Google’s ability to innovate and retain its most distinctive characteristics.
[...] Serving our end users is at the heart of what we do and remains our number one priority. [...] If opportunities arise that might cause us to sacrifice short term results but are in the best long term interest of our shareholders, we will take those opportunities. [...] We will not shy away from high-risk, high-reward projects because of short term earnings pressure.
[...] we have set up a corporate [dual-class] structure that will make it harder for outside parties to take over or influence Google. [....] Google [] has a responsibility to the world. The dual-class structure helps ensure that this responsibility is met. [...] we will not unnecessarily disclose all of our strengths, strategies and intentions. [...]
By releasing services for free, we hope to help bridge the digital divide. [...] Last year we created Google Grants—a growing program in which hundreds of non-profits addressing issues, including the environment, poverty and human rights, receive free advertising. And now, we are in the process of establishing the Google Foundation. We intend to contribute significant resources to the foundation, including employee time and approximately 1% of Google’s equity and profits in some form. We hope someday this institution may eclipse Google itself in terms of overall world impact by ambitiously applying innovation and significant resources to the largest of the world’s problems.
Developing...
posted 2004-04-29 11:32 #
News Images
Google Images has been updated. Now when you search Images for a topic in the news, let's say google , not only do you get vaguely-related images from the Web at large, but you also get vaguely-related images from news sites (along with headlines) right at the top.
posted 2004-04-29 09:33 #
Who Wants to be a Google Millionaire?
The other big news, of course, is the perennial speculation over whether Google will go public and make everybody rich...
John Markoff: "Google ... is expected to take a tentative first step next week toward a public stock offering, a person close to the company said."
The New York Times discusses who owns Google shares (and thus stands to make a lot of money).
The real question for me is how much the employees will get. "Those close to the company say that Google's top executives are under pressure because of fears that it may damage employee morale if they do not move ahead quickly to give them an opportunity to turn their shares and options into real wealth." It's not too late to apply!
Then there's the Times again, which bizarrely mistakes April Fools jokes for vision: "The ambitions of the Google founders wander further afield. They have talked about building space transporters and implanting chips in people's heads that can provide them with information as they think."
Brin, always the comedian: Google was avoiding a public offering because "that's a lot of work, and I'm lazy. [A public offering] requires filling out a lot of forms. The S1, in particular, seems like a really long one."
And also, there's no better way to screw up a good thing than by throwing billions of dollars at it.
posted 2004-04-28 09:21 #
Brin and Templeton
EWeek: Google's Brin Talks on Gmail Future
The most interesting thing is that Google co-founder Sergey Brin knows Brad Templeton, an outspoken advocate of encrypted email, and they're discussing what to do. Sergey also says they plan to make Gmail public to everyone within three-to-six months, and an encrypted backend probably won't make it in by then.
Templeton: The Gmail Saga. A good discussion of some privacy problems and solutions, but notice that Brad and the EFF haven't signed the anti-ads letter.
I agree that the most important thing Google could do is encryption, and there are some simple steps that Google can take within their existing framework.
First, they should immediately move everything to SSL. When I was at a conference last week, anyone could read my Gmail email, and with a little extra work, perhaps modify my account and things. With SSL, everything would be protected and encrypted.
Second, they should use public-key encryption. (This part will be a bit technical.) When you create a Gmail account, your computer creates a keypair. The public key is sent to Google. The private key is encrypted with a password you choose, and the encrypted version is sent to Google. (Important: Google never gets your password.) When an email is received for your account, the server encrypts it with your public key before saving it. When you log into read it, you download your encrypted key, decrypt it with your password, and then your computer decrypts your mail with the resulting key as it's downloaded. (Already, all your mail goes through Gmail's JavaScript client to get processed and turned into HTML, so this won't be too hard to add on the client-side.) In this way, your mail is never stored in a way Google has access to.
Third, they should investigate encrypting the indexes in a similar manner. If that's not possible or practical, they should do it the way Brad suggests (store them encrypted with a password sent to Google when you log in and deleted when you log out).
posted 2004-04-28 08:44 #
Anti-Gmail Bill Introduced
Seth Finkelstein reports that California State Senator Liz Figueroa has introduced her bizarre bill. Press release, Info, Text.
I've talked to several privacy advocates (and I'd like to think of myself as a privacy advocate, as well) and I have yet to understand any possible scenario where this bill makes sense. (If you think you can explain it, please tell me.)
Let's be clear: This bill would make Gmail illegal. It wouldn't ask them to change some poor business practices, it wouldn't ask them to add privacy protections, it would just force Google to fund it some way without ads or shut it down.
So why go to this drastic step? What's the harm? As I see it, there are three parts to Gmail:
Receive your email. Every web email service does this, and nobody has objected.
Store up to a gigabyte of email. Since this is so much more email than any other service, this could lead to some increased privacy problems. (Google could search through your archives at any time.) But this doesn't seem to be what people are objecting to, and Google has said they'll try their best to keep your email safe.
Analyze your email. This seems to be what people are objecting to. But I don't see what the problem is: Google searches your email for key words, finds ads that match those key words, and shows you the ads. Then it throws all the information it generated away immediately, so no human (other than you) ever sees it. Google doesn't store any information about how many times or to who ads were shown. They don't store any information about what was in your emails. And no human ever goes and looks at your emails. So what's the big deal? How could this possibly cause a problem for anyone?
I think the real problem here is that people feel uncomfortable about ads in their email. (I felt a bit uncomfortable at first too.) But to say there's a privacy problem with Gmail's ad system, without spelling out what it is, only capitalizes on people's fears.
Sadly, that's exactly what thirty-one privacy and civil liberties organizations have done.
Again, if you can explain the problem with Gmail to me, I'll take it back.
posted 2004-04-28 08:18 #
Digital Envoy v. Google
CNET: Google fires back at Digital Envoy.
Digital Envoy makes geo-location software. Google used it to deliver the right version of the Google homepage (google.com, google.co.uk, google.ru, etc.) to users in different countries. Now, apparently, they're using it for location-targeted ads.
Google previously paid Digital Envoy $8000/mo. for the service. Now Digital Envoy wants more, including a possible cut of ad revenue.
posted 2004-04-28 07:37 #
DSPace Support
MIT says that Google is adding support for their DSpace archive of research papers and associated metadata, along with access to the DSpace repositories of 125 other universities and organizations. It will be interesting to see how this support pans out.
posted 2004-04-15 08:40 #
A9 Launch
Amazon has launched A9, a search tool which enhances Google search results by adding results from Amazon's Search Inside The Book program, site information from Alexa, and search and site history information they've collected.
Nothing particularly exciting, but it's interesting to see Amazon do search engine innovation.
posted 2004-04-14 14:43 #
California vs. Google
A (being charitable) confused California Senator has proposed a bill to outlaw Gmail because of the ads it includes in email. "We think it's an absolute invasion of privacy. It's like having a massive billboard in the middle of your home," she says.
Even if she was correct, which I don't think she is, why is a law necessary? If Gmail is so clearly annoying, won't people who don't like the ads simply not use it? What purpose would such a law serve except to take Gmail away from those who thought the ads were an acceptable cost for the service?
Derek Powazek has responded with a letter from his Gmail account asking for an apology.
(Thanks, Chris!)
posted 2004-04-14 08:58 #
Sergey Brin in Drag - EXCLUSIVE
Privacy advocates have often discussed Google allows your past to haunt you. Any careless mistake or childish prank is preserved on the Internet, forever, available for anyone curious enough to do a Google search.
Well, the problem has really hit home -- so to speak -- for Google's own founder, Sergey Brin, whose college website once included a photo of him in drag.
It's tempting to laugh about how this will completely derail Google's IPO, and joke about how good Sergey looks in a Speedo, but I think we as a society need to move beyond our embarrassment, and admit that all founders of major companies did some pretty silly things in college -- the only difference is that Sergey was dumb enough to put them on the Web for all eternity.
Thanks to alterego for the tip about the pictures.
posted 2004-04-08 10:33 #
Gmail Roundup
Screenshot, Screenshot, Screenshot, Review, Review
Let us know if you have more...
posted 2004-04-08 10:07 #
Google Opens New Office on Moon
Google Copernicus Center is hiring: "our lunar hosting and research center, opening late in the spring of 2007. This unique opportunity is available only to highly-qualified individuals who are willing to relocate for an extended period of time, are in top physical condition and are capable of surviving with limited access to such modern conveniences as soy low-fat lattes, The Sopranos and a steady supply of oxygen."
"Imagine discovering not only alien attempts at communication with Earth, but also such heretofore unavailable cultural treasures as Pink Floyd's 1968 appearance on the BBC and the tragically lost first season of "Iron Chefs.""
posted 2004-04-01 08:10 #
More Updates
Chris Z points out the updated Google Search: More, more, more page, with pretty icons.
Plus we forgot to mention the new Google Web Alerts feature, which appears to email you whenever the Googlebot comes across a brand new page with your name on it. Pretty powerful, if so.
Plus: The indepdendent site newsmap provides an interesting view of the news stories on Google News.
posted 2004-03-30 16:08 #
Tons of Goodies
Lots of news from Google today, most of it listed at: What's New from Google.
Some highlights: The redesign has gone public for everyone. Froogle is now featured in the toolbar at the top of every page.
A new numrange search, that allows you to type $250..350 and get results including any number in between.
But perhaps most interesting is new Personalized Web Search which lets you specify categories of interest and then uses them to rank results in those categories higher than they would normally be.
posted 2004-03-29 08:39 #
Local Goes Live
Google Local integrates yellow pages-style information right into your search. Search for pizza 90210 or macaroni stanford, ca and up will pop a little compass with a couple results. Click the compass, and you'll get a full listing of nearby results, with distance, maps, directions, related web pages, phone numbers, and more. You can narrow it down by category and distance, and look at a map of all the results.
Google's really done a nice job of combining various sources of information for this service.
posted 2004-03-17 08:45 #
New Look Spies
Readers often write in noticing that Google has replaced their search result links, with tracked links, like:
http://www.google.com/url?sa=U&start=1&q=http://google.blogspace.com/&e=7898
It turns out Google has actually done this forever, but they only do this to a small percentage of their viewers, so most of the time it won't happen to you.
However, in the new Google look an insightful anonymous reader notes that this link tracking seems to be on all the time.
Maybe this is just part of testing the new look, but there would be some interesting implications if Google did turn out to track you all the time.
posted 2004-03-11 10:19 #
Built Into Eudora
Morrbus Iff writes that Eudora now has Google searching built-in: you can highlight some text, right-click, and be sent to a page like this.
posted 2004-03-11 10:13 #
New Google Look
Jesse Ruderman has created a bookmarklet that lets you toggle Google's look. Click it and it will switch you to the new Google look. Click it again and it will switch you back to the old one.
Here it is: toggle google look
Drag it tool your bookmark bar, visit Google.com, and click on it.
posted 2004-03-06 21:37 #
Accuracy Fading?
EWeek: Google Grumbles. The author suggests that Google's accuracy seems to be fading, and notes several queries which Google Groups and Teoma answer better than Google Web. (Peter Norvig disagrees.)
posted 2004-03-02 08:10 #
Froogle on Phone
Google Labs: Wireless Froogle. "At an electronics store and shopping for a digital camera? Whip out your cell phone and search for lower prices online using Froogle. Never wonder if you paid too much again."
posted 2004-02-25 19:38 #
6 Billion Items
Press Release: Google Achieves Search Milestone With Immediate Access To More Than 6 Billion Items
6B items = 4.28B web pages + 880M images + 845M Usenet messages
posted 2004-02-17 08:47 #
Anti AdWords Strike Again
Google's long-standing policy of not accepting AdWords for any site they deemed "Anti", which previously banned ads for a weblog criticizing actor John Malkovich's anti-semitism, has now been used to stifle more political speech.
The nonprofit Oceana, which works to protect the world's oceans from pollution, has also been kicked out of the program for running ads publicizing Royal Caribbean's pollution and sewage treatment.
Google continues to serve ads for Royal Caribbean cruises and the so-called Church of Scientology, a cult which most notoriously killed Lisa McPherson.
The problem with Google's Anti policy is not that Google should have no control over the ads it runs, but that it is far too broad and unfairly punishes people with opposing viewpoints, while letting the original viewpoint get off free.
Under the Anti policy, Scientology is allowed to promote its murderous cult, but its detractors are not allowed to point out that harm it causes. Royal Caribbean can promote its polluting cruises, but Oceana cannot discuss how they pollute. The President could promote his agenda, but the opposing party could not respond with its problems
These opposing viewpoints are not hate speech or offensive, they simply try to provide readers with all the facts. By only permitting promotion and never caution, Google does us all a disservice, and makes it seem like there is only one side to every issue. This is the antithesis of the democratic Web Google claims to support.
posted 2004-02-13 13:09 #
Valentines Day Doodle
Tim Jarrett kindly points out that Google has hid a Valentines Day doodle in the Google Toolbar, instead of on their website as they usually do.
Nice trick!
Note: You may need to upgrade to the latest version to see this.
posted 2004-02-13 09:57 #
Ads for AdSense
Matt Haughey found this website advertising Google's AdSense programs with a Flash "Quick Tour". Haughey says it's like using a megaphone to advertise silence.
posted 2004-02-03 11:22 #
More Photos of Google's New Look
More photos of Google's new look/redesign, courtesy of minty.
posted 2004-02-01 11:24 #
AGAR: Amazon/Google Ad Replacement
AGAR - Amazon/Google Ad Replacement will let you serve Amazon affiliate links as your AdSense alternate ads. (Thanks, Rael!)
posted 2004-01-30 10:29 #
Google vs. Booble
We have recently become aware of your website at http://www.booble.com (the Domain Name). This Domain Name is confusingly similar to the famous GOOGLE trademark. Your web site is a pornographic web site. Your web site improperly duplicates the distinctive and proprietary overall look and feel of Google's website, including Google's trade dress and the GOOGLE logo.
But Booble fights back strongly (good for them!):
In your letter, you refer to the Supreme Court decision in Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc., 510 U.S. 569 (1994) (holding that a commercial parody may qualify as a fair use and is not presumptively unfair). As you may have recognized, this is a copyright case. Although some analytic similarities exist between copyright and trademark parody cases, Google neither claims copyright infringement in its letter, nor is any relevant portion of its web site copyrightable.
[...] Since the law does not appear to support Google's position, we ask that Google reconsider its objections and accept the Booble web site in the spirit that it was intended - as a parody. We hope that these comments will permit you to now close your file on this matter. However, if you wish to discuss it further, please feel free to contact the undersigned.
posted 2004-01-29 11:25 #
orkut
orkut: A Google engineer has created a social-networking site (ala Friendster) in his spare time. Invitation only.
I got invited. My review: a slightly-improved Friendster clone written in MS Visual Studio .NET.
More: news.com.
posted 2004-01-23 12:13 #
AdSense Charts
AdSense Charts will generate a free chart for you from your AdSense reports.
posted 2004-01-20 09:16 #
FreshGoo / GooFresh
FreshGoo.com makes it easy to search Google for pages added recently (today, yesterday, last 7 days, last 30 days). I'm not sure why you'd want to do this, but there it is. They also have a nice collection of Google logos. (Thanks, Jeff.)
Tara Calishan's Goofresh does something similar, but seems to think the day is different. It appears that it is correct and that FreshGoo is way off.
posted 2004-01-20 09:15 #
Ending Dot Bug
In what appears to be a bug from code to support international Google sites like google.ca, if you visit a page on google.com. (note trailing ".", something which is technically equivalent to not including it but rarely used) then the links to "Images" and "Groups" on the top don't work.
posted 2004-01-17 18:07 #
You've Got Ads!
Reuters: Google develops ads for e-mail. "In fact, Google's AdSense contextual ads are already used in a number of e-mail newsletters," said spokesman David Krane.
Update: Aaron Johnson points out that AdSense TOS requires that "Ads must not be displayed [...] in any email."
posted 2004-01-17 18:03 #
Bangalore
Joining Mountain View and New York, Google has opened an office in Bangalore, India. "The office will operate in an identical manner to our other engineering groups, with the same scope of work, hiring standards and unique Google culture."
(Thanks, Chris.)
posted 2004-01-16 13:19 #
More Features
Google has added more search by number features:
Area Codes, e.g. 650, bring up maps.
UPC codes, e.g. 073333531084 or 036000250015, bring up some information about the product.
Flight numbers, e.g. usair 50, provide links to flight tracking
Vehicle ID (VIN) numbers, e.g. JH4NA1157MT001832, link to a CARFAX report on what kind of car and its status.
U.S. Postal Service tracking numbers link to package status.
posted 2004-01-12 10:16 #
DomainPark
New: Google DomainPark -- if you're an evil greedy entrepreneur who squats on dozens of domains and gets over 750,000 page views per month, then Google will be happy to supply you with ad pages to put on those domains!
On the other hand, better Google than someone who will fill the page with popups and banner ads, I guess.
posted 2004-01-07 14:53 #
MSN Copycats
Alterego notes that MSNBOT's FAQ is practically a direct copy of Googlebot's FAQ. Apparently only copying Google's ideas wasn't enough for them!
posted 2004-01-07 14:14 #
Google IPOs, Yahoo Attacks
New Yorker: Going Dutch. "Google’s I.P.O. might indeed transform things—just not, as the dreamers hope, in Silicon Valley. What it really could change is Wall Street. [...] [O]ne solution would seem to be to cut out the middlemen. That, as it happens, is what Google is contemplating. [...] A version of this system has been devised by the boutique investment bank W. R. Hambrecht"
SF Chronicle: San Francisco banks Thomas Weisel Partners and WR Hambrecht & Co. are among the firms chosen by Google to sell its IPO shares.
Bloomberg: Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs to Manage Google IPO. "a sale that may raise as much as $4 billion, a banker involved in the transaction said." Now would be a good time to get those stock options ready...
Sadly, the IPO will probably mark the beginning of the end for Google.
David Bernstein: Is Google Overrated? "I used to love Google [...] But it has severe limitations, and rather than improving, it's gotten worse over the years as commercial interests have learned to game its technology"
Down Jones: Yahoo Gets Set to Give Google Run for Money. "First, Yahoo is expected to dump Google as the primary search technology [...] Second, Yahoo wants to combine personalization and customization features to extend the usefulness of searches. Third, it plans to expand its use of 'paid inclusion,' [...] The strategy [is] to add features its rival can't easily match."
posted 2004-01-06 13:03 #
More articles in the archives.