SearchCap: The Day In Search, May 7, 2007

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

From Search Engine Land:

• SuperPages Cleans Up Its Act
  What I mean by that is that the new site design is a great deal cleaner and easier to navigate than the old site. Some awkward elements remain, such as old style “disambiguation” pages. But the new results pages are more user friendly and less cluttered. There are also more…
• Minding The Gap Between The UK & US Search Markets
  A new white paper from UK-based search marketing firm Latitude Group says that search engines are missing out on $11 billion of potential revenues “if paid search penetration in the US was at UK levels.” Why? “The US has a much higher proportion of in-house search marketers, who tend to…
• Pew Research: ‘Web 2.0′ Crowd A Small Minority
  The Pew Internet & American Life Project just released the findings of a new survey of 4,001 U.S. adults that segments Americans into a range of groups based on usage of and attitudes toward the Internet and mobile phones. The report is provocative (even surprising) but long, so I’m just…
• Detailed Comparison & Review Of Web Analytics Software Underway
  StoneTemple Consulting is in the process of conducting a 2007 Web Analytics Shootout where they are comparing five different web analytics packages. The software packages included in the comparison are Clicktracks, Google Analytics, IndexTools, Unica Affinium NetInsight, and WebSideStory HX Analytics. Most people have their own preference, but what I…
• More YouTube Woes
  The legal issues for Google’s YouTube continue. Here are some select stories over the past few days on YouTube and more legal issues Google has to deal with. NBC lines up against YouTube in copyright case from News.com reports that NBC Universal and Viacom requested in the U.S. District Court…
• Google’s Schmidt Interviews Senator John McCain
  Google interviews McCain about presidential run from Reuters reports that Google’s CEO, Eric Schmidt interviewed Senator John McCain in front of “several hundred employees.” In this interview, McCain admit that he was not the best student, saying “my GPA earned me 5th from the bottom of my class.” McCain also…
• Google Launches “Gadget Ads” Beta
  Google Tests ‘Gadget Ads’ from MediaPost reports Google has begun testing a new ad product named “Gadget Ads.” In short, the Google Gadgets you see across the web and on your “iGoogle” (Google personalized) home page, will begin to contain ads in them. Currently the ads are being testing in…
• SEM for SMBs: A Critical Layer For Local
  Just like the category of local search itself, the phrase “local search” has many different aspects and dimensions. It is generally used to refer to a cluster of consumer behaviors or destination sites whose ultimate goal is to help people find businesses offline, in their local communities. But as…
• The Folly Of “Linking Metrics”
  How do you measure link building effectiveness? The easy answers are by search rank improvement or click traffic. But the easy answers are moving targets and nobody knows where they are headed. The links that are giving you page one rankings today might stop helping you one day. The…
• Last Chance To Save On SMX Advanced!
  This is a special message for our SearchCap newsletter readers and anyone who visits Search Engine Land, regarding Search Engine Land’s first conference: Search Marketing Expo Advanced. It happens in Seattle this June 4th and 5th. Thinking of attending the show? Sign-up this week by May 8 to save on…
• Search Month: April 2007 Search News, In Review
  Search Month is a monthly newsletter that recaps stories covered on Search Engine Land over the past month. It’s also available by feed here. Below, news about Search Engine Land itself, then our 10 most popular stories written last month, then a major story for various search marketing topics along…

Search News Headlines From Elsewhere

Applications & Portal Features

• Old Blogger is dead! Long live Blogger!, Blogger Buzz
• The more the merrier, Google Docs & Spreadsheets Blog
• Microsoft Launches Windows Live Hotmail Worldwide, Microsoft Press Releases
• Four New Features for Google Docs Announced, Search Engine Roundtable

Business Issues

• Google Domain Names and Hybrid Cars?; Microsoft Domains: Road Trips & Products of Champions, ResourceShelf
• Google’s country-fried data center, Channel Register

• Graduation speakers pass/fail Google test, Pittsburgh Tribune

• Students set sights on a job at Google, San Jose Mercury News
• Google expands its lobbying power on Capitol Hill, Seattle Pi

• About.com Buys ConsumerSearch.com, New York Times

• Google In Talks To Acquire SimplyHired, Techcrunch
• Fear of Google, Scobleizer

• Microsoft’s sophisticated ad system has some catching up to do, Seattle Times

• Photobucket goes to Myspace, Valleywag
• Out of the Gate: Yahoo Falls, Forbes.com
  

Link Building

• Drawing Attention So People Will Read & Start Linking To Your Blog, Shady King

• Linkbaiting vs Directories Link Building Debate, SEOptimise

• Follow Up To 100’s Of Automated Links/Hour Post, Blue Hat SEO
• Sorry, Folks: Link Building Is Just Harder Now, Tropical SEO

Local, Maps & Mobile

• On Winning the Webby for Best Mobile Site, Ask.com Blog
• Russia, Turkey, Lithuania, Slovenia, Taiwan, Croatia, Greece, Thailand &

  Estonia: Now with Streets!, Google Maps API

• Understanding Google Maps & Yahoo Local Search – Interface upgrade on Local OneBox, Blumenthal
• Geo Targeted Advertising for Google Maps and Google Earth, SEO By The Sea
• French Presidential Election Results in Google Earth, Google Earth Blog
  

Paid Search & Contextual

• AdWords Optimization Tips: Part 6 – Ad Text, Inside AdWords Blog
• Google Analytics Integrations, Google Analytics Blog
• Paid Inclusion &

  Conference Speakers, SEO Book

• Why Are Engines Still Pushing The Content Network?, SEM Geek
• Microsoft Using Intellitxt To Promote Live.com Search, Search Engine Roundtable

• Google AdWords Ad Missing Title in Sponsored Results, Search Engine Roundtable

• Best Ad Campaigns Ever, Threadwatch.org
• Microsoft AdCenter: Hear My Plea, Search Engine Watch

• Using Negative Keywords, Search Marketing Standard

• Welcome to the Hype Zone, Traffick
• Introducing AdWords Editor 3.5, Inside AdWords
  

Searching

• A Command Line for Searching Google, Google Operating System
• Google Testing New Search Results Layout?, Techcrunch
• Did You Mean: “He Invented”?, Google Blogoscoped
• Google Testing Blog Search Results In Google.com, Search Engine Roundtable
• Search for Tomorrow, Inc Magazine

SEM Industry

• The Life of a Leading Search Blog Owner, Gray Hat News
• Press Releases Asking For Rebecca Lieb Interviews?, InsideGoogle
• The Age Old Question: If You Inherited SEOmoz, What Would You Do With It?, SEOmoz
• June Search Marketing Conferences, Online Marketing Blog
• Gary & Lisa Price’s Wedding – Mazol Tov!!!, Cartoon Barry
  

SEO & SEM

• Why I Love the Google’s Supplemental Index, SEO Book
• Robots.txt to Disallow All but Adsense Mediabot, stefanjuhl.com
• Search Engines Giving You the Tools to Kill Yourself, SEO Book.com
• Yahoo Information Navigation Interface, SEO By The Sea
  

Social Media

• Twitter Launches Moblie Interface, Laughing Squid

• Stop being a twit on twitter!, Adam Lasnik

• Adam, Stop Being a Twit About Twitter, Cartoon Barry
  
• How Did Digg’s Kevin Rose Get A 101% Popular Stories Ratio?, SEO Disco

Video, Audio & Image Search

• 23 different ways for you to download a YouTube video, Mashable

• Rock the Cash Box?, Yahoo! Search Blog

• YouTube Elevates Most Popular Users to Partners, YouTube Blog

Other Stuff

• Google Tech Talks Showcase, Google Operating System
• Weblogs: What’s New at the Internet Archive, ResourceShelf
• Technorati Authority and Rank, Technorati
• Yahoo! searches! abroad! for! online! gambling! riches!, The Register
• Google News Adds New Sorting Option, Search Engine Roundtable
• Leaders In Search, Latitude
• Sphere focuses search on time and connections, Between the Lines
• Google CRAPTCHA, Faithful Web
• ConsumerSearch.com Sold to About for $33m, Comparison Engines
• Moms, Mars, and Mr. T: May Smart Answers, The Ask.com Blog