Posted by Jeremy Scott | 0 Comments

Google Seeks to Own All Knowledge in the Universe

Google has unveiled plans for a Wikipedia rival.  Because, it seems, being the go-to source for information on the web isn’t quite enough.  Now they want to be the go-to source for everything. 

There are some differences between Wikipedia and Google’s new Knol service.  The most important one is that authors on Google’s Knol will have bylines, so that everyone can see who authored a particular entry–Wikipedia, of course, lets anonymous users create and/or edit entries, and uses a system of editors to weed out the false info.  Another chief difference is that readers will not have the ability to change an author’s submission, but will instead offer a voting system that lets readers pick the entries that are the best.  Theoretically, the best of the bunch would rise to the top.

From the article:

 ”‘We believe that knowing who wrote what will significantly help users make better use of web content,’ wrote Udi Manber, vice president of engineering, on the official Google blog.”

There’s another wrinkle too:  Google will allow authors to sign up to permit ads to show up on their entries, and is promising a “significant” share of the revenue those ads generate to the author. 

So…in other words…the new Knol service could easily be named: Another Way For Google to Make Money on Ads (but that’s admittedly a long name for a product, so I can see why they went with Knol). 

What I want to know is how this will impact search results.  Wikipedia is already dominating the Google results pages, often coming up #1 for countless queries.  Will Google now “demote” the authority Wikipedia entries carry?  Will Knol entries now be placed across the top of the results?  It’s a slippery slope to allow your own money-making encyclopedia to overpower other sites in the rankings.  Knol will allow multiple articles for the same topic–they claim more is better and that this will allow for maximum overall accuracy, and they may be right–and that voting system will impact which entry on Knol shows up the highest on Google’s results pages.  So what about the secodn-most-voted-on entry for a topic?  Will it still be in the search results too?  Will the top ten results for a query eventually be the top ten entries for that topic on Knol?  When does “providing the best results possible” become “blatantly skewing results to advertise your own product,” you know? 

Anyway, Google is clearly bent on world domination.  I’m not one to rock the boat.  All hail Google, our information overlords!

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Posted by Jeremy Scott | 4 Comments

Vista Still Annoying People, but Maybe it’s ...

Has your new Windows Vista operating system annoyed you?  Enough to write a book about it?  Because that’s what this guy did. 

Actually, Windows 95 annoyed him–back in the day–and it was enough to cause him to write out all the various bugs and glitches as well as work-arounds for each. 

13 years later, and he’s turned it into a full-time job.  David Karp has written a book of annoyances (and fixes) for every version of Windows since, and Vista is no exception.  There are, in fact, over 600 pages of annoyances in this book.

One of the more interesting things he says is that our perceptions play tricks with us, perhaps making us think that XP is better than Vista.  Karp claims that XP had just as many annoying bugs when it came out.  So it is the freshness…the newness of the Vista annoyances that make us overinflate the greatness of XP.  Users all over the world have been clamouring for XP on new PCs, forcing Mircosoft to extend XP’s availability many times.  But Karp reminds you that XP–however great–is still a piece of software written in 2001.  Vista, for all its bad press, will slowly iron out its bugs….as all Windows incarnations have.  Don’t let it frighten you too much; even a buggy new OS is probably a better long-term option than a seemingly-smooth 7-year-old one. 

Unless you’re like my uncle, who is still using Windows Me.  Let it go, man…let it go. 

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Posted by Jeremy Scott | 0 Comments

So Apparently This Google Company is a Pretty Big ...

According to Hitwise–a web metrics firm–Google accounted for 65% of internet searches in November.  And all the Google employees chant, “We’re #1, we’re #1!”  Actually, I have this feeling that Google doesn’t pay attention to this stuff.  They’ve been #1 for so long that a new survey showing them as the top dog is just business as usual. 

Now, as our clients know (and are probably tired of me telling them), Google has long been the dominant player in the field of search.  These new Hitwise numbers serve only to show that the dominance continues. 

New marketing efforts from Ask (formerly AskJeeves), along with continued efforts by Yahoo and Microsoft to grab more of the search market share, have made virtually no dent whatsoever in Google’s armor. 

Yahoo is number 2, with 21%.  Microsoft follows in a distant 3rd, with 7%, and Ask is holding steady in the 4th position with 4% of the market. 

Some quick and complicated math tells me that these four companies account for 97% of all internet searches.

This might be a good time to remind you about the shady SEO scam firms, who often pitch their services (via email) by touting the fact that they’ll submit your site and secure you great rankings on “thousands of search engines.”  Yeah, there are a few problems with that kind of boast, namely that there simply aren’t “thousands of search engines.”  Also, as this new survey shows us, no matter how many engines there may be…only four matter.  And of those four, only one really matters. 

If you’re site isn’t being found on Google, you’ve got a problem, because you’re missing out on 65% of your possible customers. 

If you have questions about your website’s search engine rankings, or are interested in seeing how Keystone might help you improve your search presence, check out our Search Engine Services page on our official site.  Chances are, you’re not doing all you can to let the engines know what you’re really about, and we’d love to help you out.

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Posted by Jeremy Scott | 0 Comments

Identity Theft Has Tripled in the Last Year

Identity theft is a growing problem…a rapidly growing problem.  As USAToday reports:

“More than 162 million records have been reported lost or stolen in 2007, triple the 49.7 million that went missing in 2006, according to USA TODAY’s analysis of data losses reported over the past two years.”

Wow.  That’s… alarming.

So now is as good a time as any to brush up on some basic identity protection tips (actually, it’s way past the time to brush up on this, but if you’ve had a hard time getting motivated, allow this new report to wake you up and help you smell the coffee).

Identity theives operate in a varitey of ways, but one of the most common is also the easiest to guard against:  unattended laptops, mail, computer equipment, disks, and flash drives.  Apparently, the section of the population most prone to leave their computer lying around unattended are also among the most likely to have their sensitive information on said computer, in easy to find places.

Another problem is employees skirting the rules:  the study finds that 35% of empolyees felt compelled to end company rules on internet and email usage just to get their jobs done.  So these folks end up emailing things from work to their home or to friends–things they shouldn’t email such as account numbers and passwords. 

Phishing is another trend on the rise, where thieves create copycat websites that look and behave just like the real ones.  So you think you’re logging into your Yahoo mail account, but you’re really just giving your account information and password to the bad guys.  Yahoo and many other online firms have taken steps to help avoid this problem, by having users choose a Site ID Key or unique color scheme, so that users can quickly know they are logging in to the correct place.  Unfortunately, millions of users simply don’t take advantage of this technology, further opening themselves up to attack. 

While identity theft’s rise has been sharp, the fact remains that the majority of instances of this crime are avoidable with proper planning and precaution. 

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Posted by Jeremy Scott | 0 Comments

Jetpacks Are Real…No Seriously

Words can’t really describe this video. 

Okay, maybe they can:  Jetpacks are real now, and in 2008 you can own one. 

Jetpacks International is the company that has spent millions of dollars and five years developing their Personal Flying Machine.  Granted, some of the models will only fly for 30 or 45 seconds.  But the consumer model they plain to sell next year can fly for 10 miles (I certainly hope that it’s not 10 miles in 30 or 45 seconds!). 

I think I speak for men everywhere when I say, “Where’s the line?”  I mean, seriously, who hasn’t dreamed of owning their own jetpack?  The only trouble I can forsee is how we’re going to regulate these things.  Sure, the price tag is sure to serve as a regulation method all its own for quite a while.  But once these things come down in price, how are we going to keep any sort of order in the skies with hundreds of these things flying around?  Oh well, I’m sure we’ll all just get along fine, politely waiting for other jetpacks to pass.

Go here to see Jetpack International’s website.

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