SearchCap: The Day In Search, July 28, 2008

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

From Search Engine Land:

• Cuil Launches — Can This Search Start-Up Really Best Google?
  Can any start-up search engine "be the next Google?" Many have wondered this, and today’s launch of Cuil (pronounced "cool’) may provide the best test case since Google itself overtook more established search engines. Cuil provides what appears to be a comprehensive index of the web, a unique display…
• Power Searching Google News With Cluster Filtering
  Ionut Alex Chitu noticed a new feature in Google News that allows you to filter news clusters by three options. The three options include, “All Sources,” “Blogs,” and local news options. Let me walk you through this step by step….
• Yellow Pages Usage Stats Are Likely Wrong
  I was reviewing print yellow pages book usage statistics this week, in preparation for the SMX Local & Mobile conference, and I was struck once again by the large numbers that the Yellow Pages Association (YPA) touts in their press releases and research papers. I’ve had some individuals at…
• Google Ad Planner: Another Disruptive Technology From Mountain View
  When I tried out the new Google Ad Planner recently, I had no idea my reaction would be so out of step with the reactions of various observers on the scene. Has this ever happened to you? It’s like being in an episode of The Twilight Zone, as you…
• Yahoo Improves Search Ad Performance Reports
  The Yahoo Search Marketing Blog announced they have improved the Ad Performance Reports to include a few new columns. The new columns include: Ad ID column – This column displays your Ad’s ID number.Ad: – This column provides a visual representation of your ad, including its title, short description and…
• Yahoo Search Improves News Injection In Web Results
  The Yahoo Search Blog announced they have made “significant enhancements” to how they show news results in the web search results. Yahoo is now showing news results in different positions throughout the web search results, based on their new “News Direct Display (DD)” algorithm. In addition, Yahoo improved how they…
• Google StreetView Mapping Rural Areas, Crosses “No Trespassing” Boundaries
  Google is starting to take StreetView beyond major US and EU metro areas to more rural locations. In the process it may be, in some cases, disregarding “no trespassing” warnings on private roads. According to a Sonoma County, California newspaper, Google has started capturing images of large areas of mostly…
• With Yahoo Proxy Fight Done, Shareholder Protest Now Largely “Symbolic”
  Reuters reports that Gordon Crawford of Capital Research and Management, one of Yahoo’s largest shareholders, has apparently said that he may not support the existing Yahoo board at Friday’s annual shareholder meeting. The only trouble is that Yahoo’s settlement with Carl Icahn removes the ability for Crawford and other disgruntled…
• Cuil Fast Test – Relevancy Isn’t A Google Killer
  Now that Cuil is live, I wanted to do a few fast queries to get a sense of how it seems to stack up against Google. With the huge caveat that nine queries are far from letting anyone conclude anything, I still didn’t come away with a sense that…
• What Should You do When Quality Score Kills Your Keywords?
  One of the biggest frustrations for an AdWords advertiser is when a minimum bid for highly relevant keywords jump from a few cents to a few dollars without any seemingly reasonable explanation. The keyword, ad copy, and landing page can all be highly relevant. The CTR could be above…

Search News From Around The Web:

Applications & Portal Features

• A Better Interface for Google Bookmarks, Google Operating System
• iGoogle Redirects, Google Operating System

Business Issues

• Google explains: We’re not a monopoly, not by a long shot, News.com
• Google Walks Away From Digg Deal, TechCrunch
• Facebook Hires Mozilla Exec Mike Schroepfer As Director Of Engineering, TechCrunch
• Flickr co-founder pines for Microhoo, News.com
• Newsnight editor Peter Barron leaving the BBC to join Google, The Guardian
• Yahoo Japan Posts 18% Rise In Net Profit, Wall Street Journal

Local, Maps & Mobile

• Why is Google Earth Hiding Dick Cheney’s House?, Wired
• Memories of the Amazon, Google LatLong
• Nasa opens up space image library, PC Authority
• Announcing the Microsoft Virtual Earth ASP .Net Server Control, Virtual Earth, An Evangelist’s Blog
• More Add-ons for Google Earth Flight Simulator, Google Earth Blog
• New YP Reality: Leverage All Channels, Screenwerk
• Tabbed EROs in Microsoft Virtual Earth, Virtual Earth, An Evangelist’s Blog

Link Building

• Screencast: Here is an Easy 4 Step Formula to Create Linkworthy Content, Performancing.com

Paid Search & Contextual

• Effective Checkout Pages: "Voucher" vs. "Coupon" Language at CustomInk, Rimm Kaufman
• Yahoo Publishers Recently Notice Huge Drop in Earnings; Is Yahoo Skimming?, Search Engine Roundtable

Searching

• Microsoft Search BrowseRank Research Reviewed, SEO Book
• Twitter/Summize search flaky?, Matt Cutts
• Yahoo Robots Combat Spam and Phishing, SEO By The Sea
• Google News Source Filtering, Google Operating System
• Google’s Assault on Wikipedia, Dare Obasanjo

SEM Industry

• Sharon Hurley Hall: Search Blogger of the Day, The SEO Scoop
• Eric Enge interviews Peter Nieforth of Vitrium Systems, Stone Temple
• Exposing Gray/Black Hat Information – What Should SEOmoz Do?, SEOmoz
• Congratulations to Jordan McCollum – Baby Rebecca Arrives, Marketing Pilgrim
• Motoko Hunt on Search Engine Optimization in Japan, Google Blogoscoped
• Reorganize Management For Social Media, Search Marketing & Internet Advertising with Carolyn Shelby and David Dalka, SEOish
• SMX Local Mobile Grows Up: The Future Arrives, AIM Clear Blog

SEO & SEM

• Information Architecture – a site review is nothing without it., SEOmoz
• TinyURL SEO, beu blog
• 7 FireFox Extensions to Explore Page Source Code, Search Engine Journal
• Make Sure Your Robots.txt File is UTF-8, Search Engine Roundtable
• Seven Building Blocks of a Destination Website: #4 Unique Value Proposition, Search Engine Guide
• What Kinds of Changes Were Made to Google PageRank?, Search Engine Roundtable

Social Media

• Facebook’s iPhone App Has 1 Million Users, TechCrunch
• FriendFeed Friday Tips #8: How To Post To FriendFeed Via E-mail, www.louisgray.com
• My Hiatus From Twitter – Why You Should Join Me, Stay N’ Alive
• Delicious 2.0 Imminent Again, TechCrunch
• 50 Steps to Establishing a Consistent Social Media Practice, chrisbrogan.com
• FriendFeed- The Hidden Conversation, chrisbrogan.com

Video, Music & Image Search

• Yahoo To Reimburse Customers Of DRM-Protected Music, InformationWeek
• A Full Hour of Viral Marketing Video, Search Engine Guide

Web Analytics

• adCenter Analytics Beta Refresh – New Features Added! – adCenter Analytics Blog, adcentercommunity.com

Other Items

• Video Recap of Weekly Search Buzz :: July 27, 2008, Search Engine Roundtable

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

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• Ultimate Guide To SEM Pt. II
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• Lyndon's FakeBaitGate makes the BBC
• 3 New Uses for Archive.org
• New Toolbar PageRanks coming
• Optimizing for Multiple Word Order Search Phrases
• Microsoft tries to one-up Google PageRank
• Low Click Through Keywords – Kill 'Em or Keep 'Em?
• The Ultimate RSS Toolset: 100+ Online Apps and Resources
• Is Reddit Sending More Traffic than Digg?