SearchCap: The Day In Search, January 16, 2009
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Topic: Bing Maps
Google Maps Adds Public Transit Data In 50 Cities
Already recognized in some quarters as the most feature-rich of the major mapping sites, Google Maps has announced the addition of public transit data in more than 50 cities around the world. The new Transit Layer is available as a choice under the MORE button on the Google Maps interface: Once selected, the Transit Layer […]
Yelp Case Settled, But Bigger Issues Remain For Search & Reviews
A lawsuit over a Yelp.com review has been settled, but the larger issue of how business owners, customers, and review sites will co-exist online remains wide open. CNET is reporting that a San Francisco chiropractor and his disgruntled patient have settled their differences over a negative review that the patient posted on Yelp. Dr. Steven […]
SearchCap: The Day In Search, December 30, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Microsoft Updates Virtual Earth Data & Images
The Virtual Earth Blog announced that they have updated the data and images for some locations. The update includes data refreshes to Greece, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Former Yugoslav Republic Of Macedonia, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania and Mexico. In addition Microsoft did global vector […]
The 2008 Santa Tracker Review: Your Guide To Tracking From NORAD To Twitter
It’s Christmas Eve, and that means Santa Claus is out doing his run. But where is Santa right now? Thanks to the internet, there’s a huge number of ways to get Santa sightings. Below, a summary that covers online video sightings, Santa’s phone number (apparently he can talk while driving), email updates, tracking him via […]
Indian Action: Microsoft Chooses NAVTEQ For Maps, Yahoo Invests In 411 Provider
India is something of a parallel universe in terms of search and internet activity. It’s a massive and incredibly dynamic market but distinct from the US and Europe in important ways. All the major engines are competing there and it’s also often a testing ground for new products. For example Yahoo’s “Glue Pages” were released […]
A Small Business Year-End Marketing Checklist
2009 is almost here, and I hope small business owners have already been thinking long and hard about their plan of attack for the new year. Those who have are ahead of the game. If you haven’t given the new year much thought, start now. Successful online marketing is about developing the right combination of […]
Microsoft Live Search Releases New “Silk Road” API With Ad Support
Microsoft today released version 2.0 of its Live Search API, also called “Silk Road,” that offers support for multiple data exchange protocols, access to more search resources and the ability for developers to pull in ads to help monetize search applications they build.
Microsoft Integrates Photosynth Into Live Maps
Channel 10 reports Microsoft has integrated Photosynth into Live Maps. Greg covered Photosynth when it first went public, he described it as a “totally cool” tool that allows Windows users to upload photos, “the technology automatically “synths” them, creating a 3-D, 360-degree interactive photo collage of whatever the photographs depict.” Microsoft has now integrated it […]
October 2008: Search Engine Land’s Most Popular Stories
Below are Search Engine Land’s 10 most popular stories from October 2008:
SearchCap: The Day In Search, October 28, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Google Maps: #1 In Features, Market Share Rising
As Google Maps continues to roll out new features that competing map services don’t have, web users are rewarding it with big gains in traffic. A recent analyst report says Google is the number one maps site in terms of features and usability, and new Hitwise.com traffic data just shared this week with Search Engine […]
SearchCap: The Day In Search, September 25, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
New Virtual Earth Features, APIs & 3D Tools
Microsoft has announced three new enhancements to their mapping solutions with Virtual Earth. The first are new features in Live Search Maps. The second is a new Virtual Earth Web Service and Virtual Earth Map Control 6.2. The third is a new version of Microsoft Virtual Earth 3D and 3DVia.
SearchCap: The Day In Search, September 22, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Microsoft Launches New Live Search Maps India & New Virtual Earth Imagery
Microsoft has announced they released a new Live Search Maps India plus new imagery to Virtual Earth.
SearchCap: The Day In Search, September 8, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Live Search Local Listings Center Adds Features
Chris Pendleton posted details about new improvements made to the Live Search Local Listings Center. The Local Listing Center is the place to go to add your business to Live Search Maps. Here are the changes and additions made to the local listing center:
Microsoft’s Photosynth Opens To The Public
Microsoft’s Photosynth is morphing from a Microsoft Live Labs experiment — featured on the BBC’s “How We Built Britain” television series and in select other rarefied contexts — to what can only be described as a “totally cool” consumer application.
SearchCap: The Day In Search, August 14, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Live Search Maps Offer Local Ads
The Virtual Earth blog wrote about how Live Search Maps can have sponsored ads, as icons or logos, embedded directly in the local results. This is a feature Google had at least since August 2006 and Google Earth had since February 2007. I am not sure how long Live Search Maps had these feature, but […]
SearchCap: The Day In Search, July 22, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Microsoft Seeks To Bring Collaboration To Search
Microsoft has experimentally introduced “SearchTogether,” which allows people to use a browser plug-in (IE7 only) to literally collaborate on search. You need a Windows Live ID and Messenger, but you can apparently use any search engine you like. Here’s a tutorial and some screens.
Mainstreaming Google Earth By Plugging It Into The Browser
Google Earth has always been a great product — and a popular one, downloaded more than 100 million times. Despite this volume it’s still not mainstream however. Microsoft Virtual Earth decided not to go with a big downloadable client and use a browser plug-in instead. This was a smart strategy to “mainstream” the Virtual Earth […]
Google Incorporates Geodata In API, Partners With ESRI, Yahoo Introduces “Internet Location Platform”
Google’s John Hanke keynoted the Where 2.0 conference this morning and discussed the development and evolution of the “geoweb.” But he also announced that KML files (now a public standard) and GeoRSS data (I believe) being indexed by Google are now going to be available to third parties via the Google API. That means things […]
Microsoft Live Search Adds More Images, Multimap, Find My Location, & Celebrity Rank
Live Search has informed us that they have made a few enhancements to the search engine. The enhancements include an expanded image search index, a new integrated mapping experience with Multimap, a location-based mobile search feature to “find me,” and more content for the celebrities and books sections. Here are some more details:
Google Maps Now Offers Traffic Predictions
Late last week Microsoft Live Maps introduced “ClearFlow,” based on four years of work and data collection. ClearFlow is intended to provide traffic predictions and better secondary routing. Now, as reported in Google Operating System, Google Maps has introduced its own version of traffic predictions, based on historical traffic information.
Google Earth 4.3 To Launch, KML Becomes Open Standard
According to the Google Earth Blog, Google Earth version 4.3 (free) is coming later today. Among the upgrades and improvements are faster load times for 3D buildings, day/night lighting, new navigational options, and StreetView images. (Google has also just started to let StreetView on to third party sites.)
SearchCap: The Day In Search, April 11, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Speculating About The Visual Future Of Search Results
Danny has written extensively about the past and potential future of search. And this past year we saw the introduction of “blended” or “universal” search. Among other developments, search results became much more “multi-media” and visual. In particular, video became part of organic and, most recently, paid search results. Accordingly, I believe that the future […]
New Microsoft Live Maps Roll Out With A Boatload Of Upgrades
A new version of Microsoft’s Live Search Maps has rolled out (after yesterday’s major traffic and routing upgrade). There’s an enormous range of feature and functionality upgrades, which are explained in some detail on the Virtual Earth blog. There’s also a discussion at CNET. At a crude level, what it means is that Live Maps […]
SearchCap: The Day In Search, April 10, 2008
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.
Four Year Effort Culiminates In “ClearFlow” Traffic On Microsoft Live Search Maps
Today in 72 US cities, Microsoft is introducing what it calls “ClearFlow” on Live Search Maps. It’s an improved traffic and routing service that relies on machine learning and predictive modeling to offer better traffic and routing information to consumers across the US. Microsoft employee and artificial intelligence expert Eric Horvitz initiated the project in […]
Microsoft To Upgrade Mobile IE Browser, Live Search For Mobile With New Mapping Features And Voice Search For Blackberries
At the CTIA wireless industry trade show yesterday, among the scores of announcements, Microsoft said that it would be releasing a new and improved mobile IE browser for smart phones in the fall that promises to bring “desktop quality” to the mobile Internet experience. (Numerous others are engaged in this same pursuit, including Safari, Mozilla, […]
Microsoft Acquires 3-D Modeling Software Company Caligari
Adding to its already impressive portfolio of mapping tools and capabilities, Microsoft has acquired 3-D modeling software company Caligari. The group will be a part of the Virtual Earth team, apparently, but the software is equally used for gaming and game development. Microsoft already had powerful 3-D modeling capabilities and assets from Vexcel, which it […]
A Local Look At Microsoft’s Bid For Yahoo
Last Friday, shortly after the Microsoft bid for Yahoo was made public, Danny and I had an opportunity to discuss the proposed acquisition with Yusuf Mehdi, senior vice president of strategic partnerships for Microsoft. Our questions to Mehdi often returned to post-acquisition “integration” issues. I brought up local, maps, and mobile as areas where both […]
Microsoft Provides Local Search Content To Garmin Personal Navigation Devices
LiveSide reports on a deal that provides access to Live Search Maps/Local content via MSN Direct to the Garmin nüvi 780 personal navigation device (PND). Users can get maps, news, weather, local events, and other content. One can also plan trips on Windows Live Local and then “send to GPS.” The latter capability works on […]
Search Engine Land’s Most Popular Stories Of 2007
Below are Search Engine Land’s 25 most popular stories, in terms of pageviews, during the 2007 calendar year.
Microsoft Builds A Better Mobile Search Experience
Yesterday Microsoft announced a number of content upgrades and changes to its local search for mobile devices, which include reviews, one-click directions, interactive maps, photos, and so on. There’s more specific detail on the Virtual Earth blog. All the major search engines are now offering blended search results on their mobile-friendly sites. (As an aside, […]