I'm afraid that something happened with they went public. Did they bring in "professional" executives? Now they're hiring people from Microsoft, which seems like a sign of the apocalypse. Why would anyone want to hire someone away from Microsoft? Why not RUN away from them screaming, instead? Well if Google is turning into Microsoft then someone out there is turning into Google.

That is a good way of looking at it - perhaps an optimistic way: That if they are becoming more like Microsoft that somewhere a new Google-like company is coming up the ranks.

I sure hope so.

I liked Google when it was young and growing but something does seem to happen when companies like this go from the hot new startup to the big company stampeding their way around the world.

I hope they get their bearings back.

Oh and this just in:

Reason #8,888 to be worried about Google getting too big for its respective britches: They are now holding conferences which they insist on being private and off the record despite the fact they make their millions out of collecting information, which some others would rather remain private.<

One blogger explains the situation here..

The Google FAQ  for the event says
    All speeches and discussions at Zeitgeist are off the record. To ensure that our presenters and attendees can speak openly, no press coverage or blogging is permitted.

Who decides if Google has too much power? They are, as it were, democratically elected every second of the day. Consumers are voting with their clicks and dollars and whatnot.

Plus, there's a recall election on their power every day. They start cheesing off their customers, they'll be gone in a heartbeat.

"Why would anyone want to hire someone away from Microsoft?" Perhaps because Microsoft is the most successful company in the history of computers.

Also, the pranksters in the bookstore are totally, completely unrelated to anything to do with Google.

Search engines are great. We all agree on that, and they are valuable. But nothing compares to a subscription service. An EBSCO Host for example get you into college databases. But you pay for it.

It's too bad the internet and the information prospects that are truely out there aren't truely available unless a cost is attached.

Here's a Google experiment for you all:

Go to Google.

Type in "failure"

Click on "I'm feeling lucky."

Well, that just shows how the rankings can be manipulated which is a whole separate issue.


I want to believe Google is doing responsible things with the data it is collecting but each time they make another move that rubs me wrong (be it getting mad when the CNET reporter collects data about the Google top exect or it trying to have off-the-record meetings) I get a little more nervous that they're not going to out-Microsoft Microsoft, i.e. find ways to make up either too dependent on them with future decisions and purchases or regret saying things we never should have said on the Net.

Look, if YOU choose to publish things on the world wide web and then they come back to bite you in the ass, don't blame Google.

"Well, that just shows how the rankings can be manipulated which is a whole separate issue."

I don't think the rankings were manipulated. I think someone at Google has a sense of humor.

Oh I think they were manipulated. This is the fourth or fifth time I've seen groups pointing out that you see some anti-Bush message via google.

The pranksters at Borders are related to Google and all search engines in that people are figuring out new ways to use search engines to get people in trouble, do pranks (i.e. Bush loser thing above) and information that one wouldn't expect to be available via Google - i.e. a list of women's shelters private locations - is now online.

I know better than to write anything googleable but that doesn't mean others do.

Is it Google's fault that these things are changing? No.
But should we be concerned about what they're doing with this information, especially when they are not responsive to requests to take down links to false info? I think so.

here- at today's posting about phone numbers - is
an example of what I'm talking about. A Person types in a phone number in here and if it was a private number it could then be googleable.

Here's an idea for all you young entrepreneurs out there. What are the two biggest commercial forces on the Internet? Porn and Google, in that order.

So someone should make a porn-only version of Google and Google should make a search engine that filters out all the porn spam that hides unrelated search terms in sites advertising porn.

There ya go. Feel free to make millions with my idea.

That is all.

Interesting idea.
Are you hoping for royalties for your idea?

No, just make me a consultant with an exorbitant flat salary in your new start-up, preferably in the porn side of the business and we're straight.

That is all.

Here's the latest on Google bombing.

And more on Google bombing and yes they do manipulate the

rankings.

There's a good update on this situation today in the Washington Post