SearchCap: The Day In Search, February 20, 2009

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.

From Search Engine Land:

• Google Changes Display URL Policy: One Domain Per Ad Group
  

  The Google AdWords blog has finally announced that the new display URL policy will go into effect the week of February 24th. The new policy, which was I reported at the Search Engine Roundtable about a month ago, and was confirmed by AdWordsAdvisor (an official Google representative in WebmasterWorld), will disallow multiple display domains [...]

• Google Suggests Ways To Prevent Hacking
  

  If you run a popular/successful blog, there’s a pretty good chance you’re plenty familiar with hacking and how to deal with it. But hacking comes in many forms and can hit any kind of web site that isn’t secure. In a post today, Google’s Webmaster Central blog talks about ways to prevent hacking, including using [...]

• Search In Pictures: Ask.com At Daytona, Vint Cerf At SMX & Yahoo Hack Day India
  

  In this week’s Search In Pictures, here are the latest images culled from the web, showing what people eat at the search engine companies, how they play, who they meet, where they speak, what toys they have, and more. Ask.com Car & Crew at Daytona: Google Hammocks: Yahoo Hack Day in India: Vint Cerf at SMX West: Video of Ask.com [...]

• Google Brings Back Video & Drops Shopping From Top Navigation
  

  Google has dropped the “Shopping” link from the main top navigation on Google.com and replaced it with a “Video” link. What is the big deal? Well, in November 2007, Google did the exact reverse. They dropped the video link for products to replace it. Then Google renamed products to shopping but [...]

• Google AdSense Adds Font Selection
  

  The Google AdSense blog has added the font selection preference for publishers. Publishers can now pick between Arial, Times, and Verdana font types and they will be present on all of their Latin-based character units. Publishers can pick the font style two different ways within the AdSense console.

  They can go to [...]

• Google Maps: Transit Updates, Map Maker In 27 Languages
  

  Yesterday Google provided another round of Transit updates. These include more cities globally as well as full public transit schedules for a number of new cities in Canada, the UK, Houston, Texas and throughout the state of Virginia. Separately Google now says that its community mapping tool Map Maker is available in 27 languages: We are proud [...]

• SEO vs. Web Site Architecture
  

  If you ask web professionals what their interpretation of the phrase information architecture is, you will get a wide variety of responses. A search engine optimization (SEO) professional might launch into some grand scheme about indexation and PageRank sculpting. A web developer usually views information architecture in terms of fields in a database—how each field [...]

Search News From Around The Web:

Applications & Portal Features

• Choose your own theme colors, Official Gmail Blog
• Google News Gadget Breaks iGoogle Page, Search Engine Roundtable
• Tip: Manage several email accounts with Multiple Inboxes, Official Gmail Blog

Local, Maps & Mobile

• Google Chrome Supports Earth API Plugin, Google Earth Blog
• Google Maps Closes Down Business When it is Still in Operation, Search Engine Roundtable
• Map Maker for Developers, Google Geo Developers Blog
• Mapping CO2 emissions, Google LatLong
• OMG! Did Google Earth find Atlantis?, News.com
• Yelp Disputes Extortion Story, Wall Street Journal

Paid Search & Contextual

• 70% Of Google AdSense Publisher Report Lower Earnings in January ‘09, Search Engine Roundtable
• How to prevent competitors from seeing your AdWords ads, Jennifer Slegg

Searching

• Apple 1987 Concept Video Showed Advanced Search Engine, Google Blogoscoped
• Be in the Oscar know…instantly!, Live Search
• eBay Shoppers Still Waiting for Microsoft Live Cashback, AuctionBytes.com
• Get Ready for the Oscars with Yahoo! Image Search, Yahoo Search Blog
• Google Listing Same Result Twice, Google Blogoscoped
• Spock unveils "People Search" for iPhone, AltSearchEngines

SEM Industry

• Aaron Chronister: Search Blogger of the Day, The SEO Scoop
• SES London Day 2 in pictures, Search Cowboys
• Video Recap of Weekly Search Buzz :: February 20, 2009, Search Engine Roundtable
• Video: John Battelle Predicts the 2009 Search Industry, WebProNews
• What Type of SEO Consultant are You?, SEOmoz

SEO & SEM

• The Bizarre Case of Recurring Ranking Drops To Page 2, seoroi.com
• New Wordtracker Keyword Tool is Coming, Wordtracker Blog
• SEO: a Process NOT a Project, Search Engine Journal
• Whiteboard Friday – Buckets and Buckets of Keywords, SEOmoz

Social Media

• Commenting with Facebook Connect, Facebook Developers News
• Digg Finally Admits the Auto-Bury Exists, Brent Csutoras

Video, Music & Image Search

• Introducing Collaborative Annotations, YouTube Blog
• YouTube Annotations Get Social, Add A Much-Needed ‘Off’ Button, TechCrunch

Web Analytics

• Enquisite Launches Link Analytics Platform, Web Analytics World Blog

Recent Hot Items From Sphinn, Our Social News Sharing Site:

• Build Links for SEO & Call to Action
• Good is not good when better can be achieved!
• Thomas Gensemer – Obama did not Tweet…
• Keys to building quality relationships and things to avoid