Google to Aquire Urchin
Published by Picturesque on Tuesday, March 29, 2005 at 9:23 AM.
Urchin, offering web analytics software and on demand services, is to be aquired by Google. Urchin has been an industry standard for years in web log analysis and reporting. The obvious reason for the purchase is reporting for Google AdWords programs. Other reasons could include reporting on Google search activities beyond what Urchin currently offers. The concern here is having an unbiased web log analysis program that presents all traffic evenhandedly. Hopefully such a great tool will remain untarnished. Press Release --->Urchin Web Analytics software and on demand services
Ixquick Metasearch Adds New Features
Published by Picturesque on Thursday, March 24, 2005 at 2:03 PM.
Ixquick Metasearch adds new features including an international phone search, price shopping service and more. Ixquick is a search service that scours various other search engines and directories for results. It eliminates duplication and scores results using a star system. Ixquick Metasearch
IAC/InterActiveCorp to Acquire Ask Jeeves, Inc.
Published by Picturesque on Wednesday, March 23, 2005 at 8:49 AM.
Ask Jeeves started as an alternative to standard search query engines. Ask any question and get an answer was the mantra. Unfortunately, Ask Jeeves has never been a major contender in the search arena. This may change now with some financial muscle from their new owners. Read about the aquisition --- IAC/InterActiveCorp to Acquire Ask Jeeves, Inc..
Brainboost Answer Engine
Published by Picturesque on Monday, March 21, 2005 at 10:24 AM.
Brainboost is back online! Gone for a while, this unique question and answer search has miraculously reappeared. Unlike other search engines, it doesn't just give you links to sites containing answers, it gives you the answers found on those pages. Try it out at Brainboost Answer Engine.
Is this similar to Google's new service (see below) in that it is copying information from a site? The major difference is that it isn't copying entire pages of information including pictures. It's also giving proper credit and a link to that page. Still, I might not visit the site because I have the answer I was looking for. Talk about gray legal matter....
Is this similar to Google's new service (see below) in that it is copying information from a site? The major difference is that it isn't copying entire pages of information including pictures. It's also giving proper credit and a link to that page. Still, I might not visit the site because I have the answer I was looking for. Talk about gray legal matter....
Google Sued by French Press Agency
Published by Picturesque on at 10:17 AM.
Google has been sued by Agence France Presse (AFP), a French press agency. Google's news service takes and gleans information from various news sites including their content and photos. Google then serves up this content with their ads. This is a legal gray area so many will be watching this case.
Picture how you'd feel if someone was copying content from your site. Now picture that you are trying to sell advertising on that site. Picture how upset your advertisers would be that their ads are not being seen by everyone reading those web pages. You can see why a number of companies are upset with Google's news "service".
Unlike real news services, Google has no news personel out beating the pavement to write original stories. Instead they gather everyone else's stories and show them as a "news search service". While it may be benefical in some aspect, to the companies doing the leg work, it goes beyond being a search engine and crosses the threshold into theft.
Picture how you'd feel if someone was copying content from your site. Now picture that you are trying to sell advertising on that site. Picture how upset your advertisers would be that their ads are not being seen by everyone reading those web pages. You can see why a number of companies are upset with Google's news "service".
Unlike real news services, Google has no news personel out beating the pavement to write original stories. Instead they gather everyone else's stories and show them as a "news search service". While it may be benefical in some aspect, to the companies doing the leg work, it goes beyond being a search engine and crosses the threshold into theft.
Google Desktop Search Tool Out of Beta
Published by Picturesque on Wednesday, March 09, 2005 at 12:28 PM.
The Google Desktop Search tool is now officially released to a version 1.0. This tool not only searches the internet, but also files on your hard drive. You can check out the new features added at http://desktop.google.com/ as well as the system requirements. This tool currently runs only on Windows XP and 2003.
Lycos Now Using Ask Jeeves Data
Published by Picturesque on Thursday, March 03, 2005 at 9:57 AM.
Lycos is using Ask Jeeves data (Teoma) for search results. They have been using data from Yahoo!, Inc.'s Iktomi division. Lycos claims that they want to have the "ability to differentiate our products later this year". (Here's a hint: If you really want to be different, try going back to using your own data.) More at Reuters.com.
Overture Changes Name
Published by Picturesque on at 9:49 AM.
Yahoo! has decided to change the name of it's popular text advertising service Overture to Yahoo Search Marketing Solutions. Overture had already had a name change from Go To to Overture. Today Overture is a well branded, practically household name. Why they'd choose to change it to something so generic is beyond our comprehension. It's like renaming "Pepsi" to "Brown Bubbling Liquid". More info is at Tech News World.
