Should Search Engines Have Manual Reviewers?

July 26, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Nutch robots

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There was a time not so long ago when a company such as Google would need to have tons of people doing manual, often rote tasks. Of course, the entire nature of search engines is that they rely heavily on the ever-growing power of computers. With a computer, rote work becomes a lot less frequent and far fewer people are needed. However, such an approach may have the flaw of a lack of the human touch about it.

Google has had a long lasting problem with websites and their often mediocre or worse content. Simply put, a lot of sites were “optimized” for a particular keyword and ended up having little more than tons of the keyword placed throughout the page with little genuine content holding it together. Far too often, this led to bad quality websites being at or near the top of the search queue, while better sites lagged behind.

A website is really only as good as its content, so perhaps it would be best if companies like Google stepped backward in time and hired people specifically to review website quality for websites vying to get onto the critical first two pages of search results. While this could easily employ a team of hundreds of people full-time, it might end up producing better quality search results. In the end, this could end up putting better quality information and better-produced sites at the top of the search results, where they belong in the first place.

 

Filed Under: Content, Creativity Tagged With: , ,

Do Search Engines Check for Quality?

July 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Another view of the south side of the Googlepl...

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The content of search engine approved websites has long been considered to be of subpar quality. While Google has declared war on bad content, a lot of people have figured out that the algorhythms have a long way to go in order to remove all of the bad content from the Internet’s most used search engine.

While this search engine is depended on by most people whenever they want to search for anything, its content has always relied on things like keywords. This reliance on keywords ultimately resulted in website owners and content producers stuffing huge amounts of keywords into their content. This tended to result in badly written content that bordered on being gibberish and has contributed to lessening the online world’s trust of most content. However, the quality level that a website uses for itself can vary tremendously between one site and another.

Website quality is a bizarre thing. High quality sites tend to attract more links than any other kinds of sites do, and in some cases large numbers of links still found their way onto sites of dubious quality. To date, for all of Google’s tough talk about being all about separating the wheat from the chaff, they have done very little to curb second rate quality. Culling the worst of the work from their roster has been a very slow process for the major search engines and has seemed almost impossible. Checking for quality is still a ways off from a software perspective.

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Searching Effectively For Information

March 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

The internet is a vast world of information and details. You can find answers on anything under the sun and get both amateur and expert opinions on it. No matter whether you are a student, a professional or even just passing your time reading through the articles on the internet, you can be assured that you will get information which would be interesting.
There are techniques which can help you to search better and get more results. People who are not that familiar with the internet find it quite difficult to get accurate results. This may because their search term is very inaccurate or that the search engine has not got the idea what you are implying to say, or on what topic you are trying to search on.

The latter reasons are very unlikely to happen, especially with search engine giants like Google, Yahoo and similar such sites. They are the best among the best of the search engine sites with advanced techniques to search and track down the information and articles relating to the words you had searched. Also, you can be assured that you would get the best results with such sites.

To get the best answers you must carefully phrase your search. For example, suppose you want to search on the Bermuda Triangle mystery. In this case if you just search on Bermuda Triangle it would show each and every result, while adding the word mystery to it would give searches relating to it. This would give you what you wanted.
With a little care and choice of clever words you can get the best results. Not only that, you can also find other interesting information regarding other things related to the keywords you searched for. You can turn a boring task into something very interesting and captivating with good choice of keywords to search.

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Micro Search Engines

January 26, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Even though it may sound like it, micro search engines aren’t teeny-tiny search engines. Rather, they can be better described as search engines within search engines, sometimes called online directories.

Take Google, for example. This is a search engine that takes you to different websites. Within these websites may be even more websites. One of these websites lists nothing but links to other websites. These are micro search engines or online directories, if you prefer.

Micro search engines let you search for specific topics. These can range from recipes, sites for online degrees, job information sites, and many others.

By utilizing online directories, you have access to links that have been gathered and put in one place. You don’t have to enter keywords such as online degrees, and then enter other keywords to narrow the search down more. The online directories that deal with this subject will have them listed in different ways so that you can find the one you need.

Online directories can save you a lot of time and frustration. Because they get very specific, they let you get to the business of accessing information faster. You don’t waste time searching and searching some more for the information you need.

In the case of online degrees, for example, you may be interested in the field of Computer Science. Rather than have to plow your way through websites that offer information on all the online degrees that are available however, you can use micro search engines to go directly to online directories that show links to this subject.

Of course, you’ll have to use Google or another main search engine to get started, so don’t worry about that search engine page feeling like you’ve abandoned it. You haven’t, because you couldn’t have gotten to online degrees websites without it.

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Google Search Features

December 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Google isn’t just a place to research a project. There are many other search features that Google offers rather than the basic search box. Many of these specific search boxes you can add to your tool bar.

You can search the everyday essentials such as weather and sports. You can search the stock quotes, and you can see what time it is in any part of the world. Along with these everyday essentials comes music, where you can search for songs to listen to, and the precise times of sunsets and sunrises in many cities world wide.

Google offers many reference tools such as a calculator or a unit conversion program. You can also do special book searches and see information about recent earthquakes. Google also offers a person search where you can type in a person’s name and it will list people with that name.

You can look up local searches such as a store, restaurant, or another local business. Google also shows you show times and reviews for recent movies in your area.

There are several health related searches you can make. If you want to learn about a common disease or symptom, Google can tell you about that. You can also find information about medications and several phone numbers for various health related issues.

Google also shows searches in travel. You can search flights arriving and departing from the U.S. You can search currency conversions and see how much a dollar is worth in other countries. Google also has its own set of maps that you can search for locations or directions. Google Maps has a feature that shows up close pictures of certain locations. These pictures have proven to be useful.

Google offers many types of searches. You can add the Google search box to your tool bar. On the Google home page there is a list of specific searches if you want to narrow down your search.

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Why URL Shorteners Are a Good Idea

December 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Over the last few years, we’ve seen the emergence of numerous URL shortening services, such as TinyURL, Ow.ly, and bit.ly to name a few. Longer isn’t better when it comes to web links these days, especially with the popularity of social media sites such as Twitter. Shortening a link saves space, leaving that space for something more important, but not everyone uses these shortening services. Some claim it’s too complicated and time consuming, while others rely on the service for better communication.

Why are URL shortening services a good thing and why should you use them? A simple answer would be “because they just make life easier.” This is true, but there are other, more detailed reasons. Below is a short list:

1.) Shortening a URL that is regularly three lines long is convenient, especially when space is in short supply.
2.) Longer links are more likely to break that ones that are shortened, especially in communications where they can be “recycled,” such as through email.
3.) Some URL shortening services offer the opportunity to personalize the shortened link. This is especially convenient if what you’re linking to is a new product you’re selling, or a new article you’ve posted.
4.) Most of these services offer users a way to view what are known as “click through statistics,” which is a way to see how many people clicked through your link. This is a must for those who like to track visits to their web sites or product pages.

If you’re interested in using a URL shortening service, there are quite a few to choose from, including the following:

1.) Bit.ly (http://bit.ly)
2.) TinyURL (http://www.tinyurl.com)
3.) Ow.ly (http://ow.ly)
4.) DwarfURL (http://dwarfurl.com)
5.) URLKiss (http://urlkiss.com)

Some popular web sites, such as Google and Twitter, have created their own URL shortening services. With the simplicity of shorter URL’s being such a popular item all over the Web, some of our favorite sites may have URL shorteners built in. There’s only one way to find out!

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Spinning Search Results With Blekko

December 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Move over Google and Bling, there’s a new search engine available to the masses. Blekko, which served some time in a limited beta phase, was released to the public back on November 1st, and offers a new way to search on the Web. Search results through Blekko are focused around content from professionals and content farms, rather than the sometimes outdated links that search engines like Google and Yahoo offer users.

Blekko also uses something that other search engines don’t—slashtags. These tags are entered after a search term within the search box and allow a user to skew the results to a certain point. An few examples of slashtags that could skew results are “/liberal” and “/christianity.”

If you were to enter something like “abortion /christianity” or “abortion /liberal” into the search box on Blekko, the results you receive would be skewed to either liberal beliefs and viewpoints or Christian beliefs and viewpoints on the topic of abortion. If you want to see the “green” views on a certain aerosol spray, you would type in the name of the spray and put “/green” after it.

The current list of slashtags is at 3,000 and is steadily growing. Specificity in search results is what the creators have aimed for. No other search engine employs slashtags as part of the search method, which makes Blekko the first to do so. While these tags (and this method of searching) aren’t perfect, the results they yield are much more to the point than what you may get through a search on Google, Bing, or Yahoo.

Users can create their own slashtags, or they can browse the quickly growing list of tags already created. In addition to the “specialty” tags, a regular set is available that includes “/news,” “/people,” “/blogs,” and “/forums” among others. If you’re searching for something specific, try Blekko and put a new spin on your research.

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Wolfram|Alpha: A New Kind of Search Engine

December 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Most of us have one or two search engines that we use multiple times every day—Yahoo, Google, and Bing, among others—but few of us really look into the other types of search engines that are out there and available for use. There are many different types of search engines out there—web crawlers, directories, and pay-per-clicks to name a few—but one that most likely never comes to mind for anyone is the computational knowledge engine.

Wolfram|Alpha, developed and owned by Wolfram Research and Stephen Wolfram, is that search engine. Announced in March 2009 and released to the public on May 15, 2009, Wolfram|Alpha can answer factual questions (including mathematical equations) from structural data instead of offering a list of web sites that may or may not have the answer to the question.

Examples of questions and calculations/formulas that can be entered into the search engine include:

• How old was Queen Elizabeth in 1970?
• lim(x->0) x/sin x
• What is the life expectancy of a 10-year-old female in Congo?

These questions are answered with charts, graphical analyses, and of course, regular textual information if the question calls for it. The name of any web site can be entered and “searched,” and the results will be information concerning that web site, such as the number of visitors each month and where the site is hosted from.

Wolfram|Alpha runs on any up-to-date Wen browser and is also available for mobile platforms such as iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad and Android. The search engine also runs on the Opera Mini mobile browser for people not using iOS (Apple) or Android devices.

The current data sets that the engine gets its answer from was assembled over the last few years. Those data sets will continue to grow, as will the range of questions the search engine will be able to answer.

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Using Keywords in Web Copy

December 16, 2010 By Leave a Comment
screenshot of then OSL Desktop Search engines ...
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When writing blogs or articles on your websites to catch the eye of the search engines and to hopefully be ranked high, it is important to use SEO techniques. However, it is more important to write text that flows and makes sense.

All too often articles and blogs are bombarded with keywords. This is called keyword stuffing. Some believe that this technique of maximum keyword saturation is what will enable your site to rank higher than others. These sites seem to forget, however, that people actually read their blogs and articles. If an article is so ridiculously stuffed with keywords, then it is not going to read well at all. In fact, some articles that are keyword stuffed are just off-putting due to the lack of content and obvious tactics.

Like searching for apartments for rent in Seattle, search engines will crawl over your site looking for the keywords, so they are in fact important. On the other side of the fence are the people who believe that using the keyword only once or twice will suffice in attracting the most attention from the search engines. The fact of the matter is that nobody knows for sure what sort of algorithms the search engines like Google use to rank sites.

The best course of action is one that uses the keywords in a logical and judicious manner. Content is more important than using the keyword in every other sentence. Stick to having current and relevant articles on your site with no more than a 1% or 2% keyword saturation. As long as the article reads well and makes good sense, then you’ll be sure to have appeased both your readers and the great search engine gods. Treat your readers like the intelligent beings that they are and you’ll have won an audience and great rankings.

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Charity Search Engines

December 15, 2010 By Leave a Comment

If you’re looking for a way to “give back” but don’t have the means to do as much as you would like, there’s another option you should consider—charity search engines. These search engines donate anywhere from 30-100% of their revenue to specified charities. Some even let you choose a charity, then donate the money that is earned each time your ISP address clicks through that engine.

Charity search engines function like any of the regular search engines you may use, such as Bing, Yahoo, or Google. Advertisements will be displayed alongside the search results, and that’s how the money is made for charity. If you use the Internet (and nearly everyone does these days), then you’ve probably clicked on an ad or affiliate link at least once. Charity search engines are no different than the regular ones.

When you’re searching for something, you’ll be clicking on at least one of the results. Each of those clicks—and in some cases, even the searches themselves—bring in money for charity. It’s simple, really. The more you click when using these search engines, the more money goes to charity.

There are more of these search engines out there than some may think. Below is a small list of charity search engines that you may want to consider using:

1.) EveryClick (http://www.everyclick.com): Donates 50% of its revenue among a number of different charities.
2.) MagicTaxi (http://www.magictaxi.co.uk): Donates 50% of its revenue to a different charity each day.
3.) SearchKindly (http://www.searchkindly.org): Donates 100% of its revenue to charity.
4.) ClickNow (http://www.clicknow.org.uk): Donates 50% of its revenue to the charities registered with the site.
5.) Clicks4Cancer (http://www.clicks4cancer.com): Donates 70% of its revenue to cancer foundation charities.

There are many more charity search engines than just the five listed above. If you’re truly interested in giving back this way, take the time and search for more. You’ll find plenty!

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