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

From Search Engine Land:

• Ask City’s Shape Search Tool For Local Search Results
  The Ask.com Blog announced a neat new feature that enables you to literally shape your own local search results. You can go to Ask City, locate a location, draw a circle or square in a certain location and then search specifically within that location. Below is a screen cast I…
• Microsoft’s "Third Era" Of Search Begins With Departure Of Search Chief Christopher Payne
  Microsoft’s top search executive leaving company from the Seattle PI covers Microsoft’s Christopher Payne reportedly leaving the company. The AP also reports similar news from its sources. Payne took over search efforts at Microsoft back in 2003. He oversaw what I’d call Microsoft’s "second era" of search, that of…
• Google Wins Google Earth Patent Case
  Google wins key ruling in patent dispute from BusinessWeek reports that the patent case against Google over Google Earth has now been closed. Google has won the dispute dating back to 2002, when it was filed by Skyline Software Systems against Keyhole, which Google later acquired and whose software became…
• Mark Cuban Subpoenas Google Over YouTube Videos
  Mark Cuban’s Magnolia Pictures Subpoenas Google over Pirated Videos from Google Watch reports that Magnolia Pictures, Mark Cuban’s film studio, has subpoenaed Google for the identities of those who uploaded his videos to YouTube. Cuban told Reuters:  "We don’t expect to get valid user information," but if he does…
• Baidu & Google Go Head To Head With Chinese Book Search
  Google, Baidu race to set up online library in China via Reuters reports that Baidu and Google are going at it to be the largest and best book search service in China. Reuters writes that Peking University Library in Beijing, "one of Asia’s largest academic libraries," already has a partnership…
• 5 Shiny Reasons Google Should Take Over Ford’s Twin Cities Auto Plant
  Ed Kohler makes a pitch for Google to come to St. Paul, Minnesota — and it’s both a fun and compelling one. He points out that Ford is abandoning its Twin Cities Assembly Plant that comes complete with its own hydro-electric power station, handy for power-hungry (that’s electric power I’m…
• Yahoo Adds Networking Features To Answers
  Yahoo has added a social networking feature to its Answers service, allowing you to add Yahoo Answers users to your own personal collection of contacts, providing direct access to the questions they ask, answer, and star on Answers. "This allows you to identify individuals on Answers whose knowledge you value…
• Google Local Business Center Adds Photos, Attributes, Maps Corrections & Stats
  The Google Local Business Center has just added four new features for business owners who want to maintain a Google Local Business listing. Below, a step-by-step guide to how you can adjust the marker for your business, add a photo to your listing, add custom attributes and see statistics on…

Search News Headlines From Elsewhere

Applications

• Signs of an embeddable Google Talk client coming?, Googling Google

Business Issues

• How To Get A Job At Google?, Search Engine Roundtable

Local Search & Maps

• Music, Movies, Mayhem, and the Metro, Google Blog

Paid Search & Contextual

• Marchex Attempts Overhaul of Web Site Ad Business, SmartMoney.com
• 3rd Party Google AdSense Abuse Should Not Harm AdSense Account Holder, Search Engine Roundtable

SEM Industry

• Women of Internet Marketing Wednesday Part 12, Search Marketing Gurus

SEO & SEM

• Google Link Update in Count Only – Actual Links Coming Soon, Search Engine Roundtable

Social Media

• Store and find even more photos on Picasa Web Albums, Official Google Blog
• Digg Hits 1 Million Registered Users, Techcrunch
• How to Become a Digg Top User (without doing anything shady), 10e20
• What Everybody Ought to Know About Being a Top Digger, Pronet Advertising

Other Stuff

• Uncluttering Yahoo, SFGate.com
• My Yahoo! Gets Web 2.0 Makeover, Read/Write Web
• Not trapping users’ data = GOOD, Matt Cutts
• Wife of Chinese Cyber Dissident to Sue Yahoo, Digital Chosunilbo
• What happens on Wall Street…, Official Google Blog
• Gromozon hijacks Italian MSN searches, Virus Bulletin
• Exalead: Crawling Faster and Adding Shortcuts to Your Personalized Exalead Homepage Made Easier, ResourceShelf
• Create Your Own Google Logo, Google Blogoscoped
• Amusing News From Search Engine Past, V7N
• Podcast: Microsoft Enters Its Third Era Of Search; Ask Raps Yahoo On Paid Inclusion; Send To Car BMW Feature For Google Maps & More!

Related Topics: Channel: Other | SearchCap

About The Author: Danny Sullivan is a Founding Editor of Search Engine Land. He’s a widely cited authority on search engines and search marketing issues who has covered the space since 1996. Danny also serves as Chief Content Officer for Third Door Media, which publishes Search Engine Land and produces the SMX: Search Marketing Expo conference series. He has a personal blog called Daggle (and keeps his disclosures page there). He can be found on Facebook, Google + and microblogs on Twitter as @dannysullivan. See more articles by Danny Sullivan

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