Google formally rejected the U.S. Justice Department's subpoena of data from the Web search leader, arguing the demand violated the privacy of users' Web searches and its own trade secrets.
"Google users trust that when they enter a search query into a Google search box, not only will they receive back the most relevant results, but that Google will keep private whatever information users communicate absent a compelling reason. The Government's demand for disclosure of untold millions of search queries submitted by Google users and for production of a million Web page addresses or "URLs" randomly selected from Google's proprietary index would undermine that trust, unnecessarily burden Google, and do nothing to further the Government's case in the underlying action."
Download the PDF (253 KB)
More at Google Blog.
Web as an Alter Ego
The mirror
Use the web to find people that share your ideas, or that have other ideas. Think what do you like, and google your statement in quotes.
“I love Bjork”
“SSL is a great idea”
“Hardware firewalls are better than software firewalls”
You will find mostly blogs, comments and forums that extend the idea and that may give you related concepts, arguments that support your idea.
The oracle
The web can answer your questions simply because other people have answered it once and the web has cached the answer. Some answers may be great, others may be subjective or plain wrong. It depends on your question. If it's a simple question and has a precise answer, like “Where was Alexander the Great born?” you should put it in the affirmative form: “Alexander the Great was born in *”. Think this way. Let's assume you know the answer. How would you formulate it?
The questions can be open, like: “What's the best firewall?”. These questions are more difficult to reformulate. You should try: “My favorite firewall is *”, “My favourite firewall is *”, “* is the best firewall”.
The categorizer
Categories are a great way to organize data . They work like some drawers that have a different label and some attributes powerful enough to create a class.
Sometimes you know some items that belong to a category and want to know others. You know Tucows, Simtel and Download.com are important download centers and you want to find similar sites. Just google: [tucows simtel download.com] unquoted this time and the results will contain enumerations of other software download sites, like Winsite, Softonic or FreewareHome.
The interviewer
Sometimes you just have to ask good questions about a topic and, as you know, great questions value more than a thousand answers. Let's say you meet a BMW representative. Google some question fillers:
“Why * * * BMW?”
“Why BMW cars * * *”
“How many BMW * * *”
“How * * BMW X5 * *”
“BMW sales * * drop * *”
Office Live Doesn't Live Up To Its Name
Microsoft's web-based office product, Office Live, was released in beta yesterday.
Microsoft Office Live provides companies with its own free domain name, Web site, and e-mail accounts.
Additionally, Office Live offers
* business management applications, such as customer, project, and document management tools,
* Web site managed and maintained by Microsoft where you can work together and share information with employees, customers, suppliers, and contractors.
Microsoft Office Live isn't a replacement for Microsoft Office, and it's not a hosted version of Microsoft Office.
These services are offered at three different levels:
Office Live Basics,
Office Live Collaboration,
and Office Live Essentials.
Basics (Free)
Create an effective Web site and more:
Your own domain name
Five e-mail accounts
Web site traffic reports
Collaboration (Starting at $29.95/month)
Organize, manage and share information in a single online workspace with:
Simple online programs to manage customers, employees, and projects
Online workspace to share information and work with others more efficiently
Essentials (Starting at $29.95/month)
Manage and grow your business online using:
Your own domain name and Web site
50 e-mail accounts
Site traffic reports and search engine (keyword) reports
Greg Linden thinks it's more "branding foolishness from Microsoft", because Office Live doesn't live up to the 'Live' hype.
Top 10 - Google Blogoscoped in 2005
Google Blogoscoped, by Philipp Lenssen, is probably the best Google Blog on the web. I highly recommend this great source of news, geeky humour and brilliant ideas.
Here is my Top 10 - Google Blogoscoped in 2005:
1.Copyright?
Copyright is complicated. Too many shades of gray. Especially in the digital world. I'll give this post to the public domain, so share it all you like. But it's not always that easy.
Take images you put on your web page, for example. Maybe you made the photo with your digital camera. Maybe it's a photo of a group of people. Are you allowed to publish it without asking anyone? Would it matter if you start charging for it? Would you need to ask all persons on the photo for a permission?
2.Why Good Programmers Are Lazy and Dumb
I realized that, paradoxically enough, good programmers need to be both lazy and dumb.
Lazy, because only lazy programmers will want to write the kind of tools that might replace them in the end. Lazy, because only a lazy programmer will avoid writing monotonous, repetitive code -- thus avoiding redundancy, the enemy of software maintenance and flexible refactoring. Mostly, the tools and processes that come out of this endeavor fired by laziness will speed up the production.
3.Instead of Words
Some years ago, I met a linguist in Sarawak, Malaysia. Originally he was from Australia, but later as adult he was adopted by a Malaysian tribe (it might have been the Penan tribe, though I don't know for sure). He introduced me to one linguist theory which breaks up everything we say or write into experiential, textual, and interpersonal communication. For example, when I say "Thank you", then this is purely interpersonal -- it doesn't carry any specific information but a reassurance of a relationship between two persons (just as the question "How are you doing?").
4.Windows Media Player, or: Usability Going Down the Hill
Maybe I'm getting old: I got a feeling good usability standards for desktop software are going downhill. Probably, all good interface designers of today have left the desktop to take over the web.
5.Problems of Personalization
Stranger 1: "What time is it?"
Stranger 2: "It's 7 in New York."
Stranger 1: "No, I mean here in London."
Stranger 2: "It's 4 in some hours."
Stranger 1: "No, I mean now."
Stranger 2: "It's 2."
Stranger 1: "AM or PM?"
Stranger 2: "Where, here or in New York?"
6.Creating a Good Blog Archive
Making screenshots
Not hot-linking to images
Not hosting elsewhere
Clean code
Choosing a top level domain, and sticking with it
Explain more than necessary
Prominently writing the date on the page
Separating content from layout
Putting the right amount on a page
7.Geek Usability
Here's a shining example of "Geek Usability": the website for GIMP, the GNU Image Manipulation Program. It's a nice photo retouching software in the spirit of Photoshop, but distributed freely.
8.Creative Spam
Most spam you get is rather boring, I assume, making it look like spammers are evil and verbose, but not creative. Yet sometimes, you might also receive an email telling you about a dead link on your site, or a reply to your post in a newsgroup. Of course these bulk emails are fully automated as well, but in a more clever way -- they're personalized to you and thus make you more inclined to read them or click on their links. I wonder why spammers aren't creative like this more often. I could imagine several ways to automate this.
9.Google Search Tips 2005
You can find synonyms of words. E.g. when you search for [house] but you want to find "home" too, search for [~house]. To get to know which synonyms the Google database stores for individual words, simply use the minus operator to exclude synonym after synonym (they will always show as bold in the SERPs, the search engine result pages). Like this: [~house -house -home -housing -floor].
10.How To Find...
Here are some approaches you can use to find different things with Google. Add your own tips in the comments.
Find Song lyrics
Try to enter a line of the song which you already know (as a phrase, using quotes), plus the word "lyrics".
Example: "you're still young" lyrics
You can also use a wildcard inside the phrase if you don't know enough words to construct a meaningful phrase; this helps create a smaller result set.
Example: "you're * young, that's your" lyrics
Here is my Top 10 - Google Blogoscoped in 2005:
1.Copyright?
Copyright is complicated. Too many shades of gray. Especially in the digital world. I'll give this post to the public domain, so share it all you like. But it's not always that easy.
Take images you put on your web page, for example. Maybe you made the photo with your digital camera. Maybe it's a photo of a group of people. Are you allowed to publish it without asking anyone? Would it matter if you start charging for it? Would you need to ask all persons on the photo for a permission?
2.Why Good Programmers Are Lazy and Dumb
I realized that, paradoxically enough, good programmers need to be both lazy and dumb.
Lazy, because only lazy programmers will want to write the kind of tools that might replace them in the end. Lazy, because only a lazy programmer will avoid writing monotonous, repetitive code -- thus avoiding redundancy, the enemy of software maintenance and flexible refactoring. Mostly, the tools and processes that come out of this endeavor fired by laziness will speed up the production.
3.Instead of Words
Some years ago, I met a linguist in Sarawak, Malaysia. Originally he was from Australia, but later as adult he was adopted by a Malaysian tribe (it might have been the Penan tribe, though I don't know for sure). He introduced me to one linguist theory which breaks up everything we say or write into experiential, textual, and interpersonal communication. For example, when I say "Thank you", then this is purely interpersonal -- it doesn't carry any specific information but a reassurance of a relationship between two persons (just as the question "How are you doing?").
4.Windows Media Player, or: Usability Going Down the Hill
Maybe I'm getting old: I got a feeling good usability standards for desktop software are going downhill. Probably, all good interface designers of today have left the desktop to take over the web.
5.Problems of Personalization
Stranger 1: "What time is it?"
Stranger 2: "It's 7 in New York."
Stranger 1: "No, I mean here in London."
Stranger 2: "It's 4 in some hours."
Stranger 1: "No, I mean now."
Stranger 2: "It's 2."
Stranger 1: "AM or PM?"
Stranger 2: "Where, here or in New York?"
6.Creating a Good Blog Archive
Making screenshots
Not hot-linking to images
Not hosting elsewhere
Clean code
Choosing a top level domain, and sticking with it
Explain more than necessary
Prominently writing the date on the page
Separating content from layout
Putting the right amount on a page
7.Geek Usability
Here's a shining example of "Geek Usability": the website for GIMP, the GNU Image Manipulation Program. It's a nice photo retouching software in the spirit of Photoshop, but distributed freely.
8.Creative Spam
Most spam you get is rather boring, I assume, making it look like spammers are evil and verbose, but not creative. Yet sometimes, you might also receive an email telling you about a dead link on your site, or a reply to your post in a newsgroup. Of course these bulk emails are fully automated as well, but in a more clever way -- they're personalized to you and thus make you more inclined to read them or click on their links. I wonder why spammers aren't creative like this more often. I could imagine several ways to automate this.
9.Google Search Tips 2005
You can find synonyms of words. E.g. when you search for [house] but you want to find "home" too, search for [~house]. To get to know which synonyms the Google database stores for individual words, simply use the minus operator to exclude synonym after synonym (they will always show as bold in the SERPs, the search engine result pages). Like this: [~house -house -home -housing -floor].
10.How To Find...
Here are some approaches you can use to find different things with Google. Add your own tips in the comments.
Find Song lyrics
Try to enter a line of the song which you already know (as a phrase, using quotes), plus the word "lyrics".
Example: "you're still young" lyrics
You can also use a wildcard inside the phrase if you don't know enough words to construct a meaningful phrase; this helps create a smaller result set.
Example: "you're * young, that's your" lyrics
New Antitrust Case For Microsoft?
State and federal prosecutors have been in talks with several companies over Microsoft’s next operating system Vista. The U.S. Department of Justice and state attorneys general are gathering information on the complaints but they have not yet decided if they have enough material to bring into action an antitrust case against Microsoft. This is all according to a report filed Wednesday with the judge overseeing Microsoft's U.S. antitrust compliance.
One of the complaints rests with Vista's "Welcome Center" feature, which greets users after they start a new PC. The feature also advertises other products. Since the feature will be shown to hundreds of millions of computer users, companies will intensely negotiate with Microsoft in order to get their product shown.
According to the status report, Vista's Welcome Center also will present users "with various setup options." These complaints, although somewhat quiet, might have an effect on the release of the anticipated and many time postponed OS.
The company discussed Welcome Center's design with the top 20 PC makers "and nearly all of them are satisfied" with the design approach, spokesman Jack Evans said. "We've worked closely with our partners throughout the development process to ensure Vista provide unprecedented flexibility and opportunity to them," Evans said.
One of the complaints rests with Vista's "Welcome Center" feature, which greets users after they start a new PC. The feature also advertises other products. Since the feature will be shown to hundreds of millions of computer users, companies will intensely negotiate with Microsoft in order to get their product shown.
According to the status report, Vista's Welcome Center also will present users "with various setup options." These complaints, although somewhat quiet, might have an effect on the release of the anticipated and many time postponed OS.
The company discussed Welcome Center's design with the top 20 PC makers "and nearly all of them are satisfied" with the design approach, spokesman Jack Evans said. "We've worked closely with our partners throughout the development process to ensure Vista provide unprecedented flexibility and opportunity to them," Evans said.
Google Triumvirate on Time Cover
Sergey Brin, Eric Schmidt and Larry Page are on the cover of Time, that has an interesting title: "Can we trust Google with our secrets?".Some excerpts from the interview:
"IS THERE A GRAND STRATEGY FOR GOOGLE? IT SEEMS AS IF YOU'RE DIVING INTO ALMOST EVERYTHING.
SCHMIDT: We try very hard to look like we're out of control. But in fact the company is very measured. And that's part of our secret.
PAGE: We don't generally talk about our strategy ... because it's strategic. I would rather have people think we're confused than let our competitors know what we're going to do. That's an easy trade-off.
HOW DOES IT FEEL TO SUDDENLY BE SO WEALTHY?
BRIN: It takes a lot of getting used to. You always hear the phrase, money doesn't buy you happiness. But I always in the back of my mind figured a lot of money will buy you a little bit of happiness.
PAGE: If we were motivated by money, we would have sold the company a long time ago and ended up on a beach."
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1158956,00.html
Steve Gibson on Internet Privacy
Internet security expert Steve Gibson says that "the use of the internet is not as anonymous in fact as it appears to be in practice." In a web conversation with Larry Magid, Gibson explains how internet anonymity is generally a myth, but that it takes a lot of effort and usually a court order to get real life personal information about people based on their surfing history.
This podcast from IT Conversations focuses particularly on Google and the information about individual users that Google collects. Gibson does point out, however, that modern life is full of opportunities for governments and others to collect and aggregate personal information without even looking at the internet.
Download MP3
This podcast from IT Conversations focuses particularly on Google and the information about individual users that Google collects. Gibson does point out, however, that modern life is full of opportunities for governments and others to collect and aggregate personal information without even looking at the internet.
Download MP3
Orangoo Spell Check
Do you like GMail-style spell checking? Would you like to check the spelling of a text and can't install Google Toolbar or other software?You can try Orangoo Spell Check, an Ajax site that uses Google spell checker. The site was created by Amir Salihefendic and the code is available online.
New Error in Internet Explorer
This error is from IE 7 Beta 2 and happened while watching a Flash video-stream. It's funny that even if you press Continue, the browser still crashes.
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