Google Sitemaps Evolves
into Webmaster Central
Google’s interesting sitemap program has continued
to evolve to the point where you do not even need
an actual sitemap file to use the program. Because
of this evolution, the company has decided to rename
the program Webmaster Central. The new name reflects
the broad functionality that the program provides.
For those not familiar, the program provides statistical
data that can give insight into how Google is handling
your site. One of the cool new features is the ability
to select a preferred domain. The program will even
let you specify whether you want the www or non-www
version of your URL to be included in the search results.
Google Partners with MySpace
Google and MySpace recently formed an online partnership
that should make both companies a lot of money. Google
has received exclusive rights to provide MySpace with
search results and keyword-targeted advertising. In
exchange, Google is paying MySpace $900 million over
the next three years. On the surface, this seems like
a lot of money, but MySpace is one of the most popular
sites on the Internet, with close to 100 million profiles.
If you do the math, it will cost Google less than
a penny per day to advertise in front of each MySpace
member. Both companies are said to be collaborating
on future offerings, including a MySpace toolbar.
This is a big win for Google – a partnership
of two of the biggest sites on the Internet has to
worry Microsoft and Yahoo.
AOL Sheds Light on Search
Activity
AOL recently released data on 20 million queries from
500,000 users. The company had good intentions for
the data to be used by researchers, but it failed
to recognize the fact that some queries contain personal
information. AOL also underestimated the intelligence
of the people viewing the data. Searches from the
same numerical IDs were quickly grouped together to
expose some perverse, bizarre, and downright disgusting
insights, turning AOL’s good intentions into
a public relations nightmare. Soon, privacy advocates
and concerned AOL members were weighing in, causing
a backlash against the company. Eventually AOL fired
two employees, and a senior executive stepped down.
It is a shame that this data was mishandled, as it
could have provided some meaningful insights into
search behavior.
Yahoo’s Site Explorer
Gains New Functionality
Yahoo recently upgraded its Yahoo Site Explorer tool
with some new features that offer the ability to monitor
a site’s status with the engine. Users with
a Yahoo account and an authenticated site can download
indexing and linking information about their sites.
The data provided is similar to Google’s Webmaster
Central program. Using both tools can help webmasters
make sure that their websites are playing nicely with
the top two biggest players in search.