Expert help from Google Answers

Expert help from Google Answers

by: Jakob Jelling

Web users turn to search engines for answers to their questions. This is usually done through various levels of searching the engineกs database. Sometimes though, no matter how hard they try, searchers can’t find the information they need. Maybe they’re not familiar with how to narrow and focus searches, or they may not have enough background in the subject they’re researching to recognize the answer they need. Google Answers offers a solution.

With Google Answers, you hire an experienced researcher or specialist in your field of inquiry to provide answers to your questions. In a sense, this process works much like bidding on an item at eBay or hiring work done through a freelancer web site. You will create a Google Answers profile, a nickname, enter your credit card information, and when you post your questions, you specify how much you’re willing to pay for answers and an expiration date for replies.

There is a 50 cent per question listing fee, and your payment offer for an answer can range from $2.00 to $200.00 currently. Your offered price needs to be high enough to justify and compensate the time a Google researcher will spend finding an answer. Researchers receive 75% of your offered fee, and Google receives the remainder to help support the Google Answers service. Once you receive an answer, your credit card will be charged the offer amount you made for that answer.

Previously asked questions and answers are posted, searchable, and freely available at the Google Answers site. Other users may make comments on the questions and answers, to help clarify the information you receive.

Google Answers isn’t magic. They can’t answer unanswerable questions, and they won’t provide medical, legal, or financial advice. But for other tough questions that you just can’t find an answer for on your own, Google Answers may be, well, the answer!

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on September 29, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

To The Next Level With Google Groups 2

To The Next Level With Google Groups 2

by: Jakob Jelling

If you haven’t visited the Google Labs lately, they have released a beta of Google Groups 2 that you may want to check out. This is Googleกs answer to Yahoo Groups, and theyกve added some new features to make their service more useful.

For those who don’t know, such groups allow anyone to easily and quickly start their own announcement lists and discussion forums. There is no need to install scripts or anything else on a web site, and no technical knowledge beyond email and posting to a discussion board is needed. If you want, you can use Google Groups to post to and read Usenet postings as well.

Of course, nothing is truly free, and Google Groups is no different. In exchange for making the technology available to host your group, Google displays relevant text ads on your groupกs home page on Google. ‘relevantก is determined by the content of your Google Group discussions. This is the same type of technology used by Google to display AdSense advertising on web sites and relevant text advertising on their free Gmail email service.

The process to create a group is fast and painless. Just create your groupกs name and email address, and invite your members to join. You are able to make your group either public or private, and Google has provided a new interface so that you can see your groupกs postings sorted any of several different ways. The Beta 2 Google Groups also features dynamic conversations, with both Usenet and mailing list postings created within 10 seconds, and indexed within 10 minutes from post.

Families, old college running buddies, online communities, and many others may find benefit in using Google Groups, and the Beta 2 release is worth a try.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on September 14, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

Google Tests Expanded Search To Include Printed Wo

Google Tests Expanded Search To Include Printed Works

by: Jakob Jelling

Google Labs is currently testing Google Print, which returns results from within scanned printed books along with Googleกs standard web search results. The searcher doesn’t have to do anything special the printed work results are already included in the Google database. Searchers have the option of narrowing their search by including, for example, the word กbookก in their search terms. For example, a search on กhome repairก might return a variety of web sites, online merchants, etc., while changing the search to กhome repair bookก will help filter the results to include more material scanned directly from books.

Publishers don’t want their entire books read online of course, so Google limits the number of pages a single user may read at any one time. A user can see the page where their search was found, plus they can go two pages forward and two pages backward from their original result page. Google provides links to merchants where the book can be purchased. Google earns no revenue from book purchases, but they do display their contextual advertising within the Google Print results, and they share this with participating publishers.

Once youกve found your search terms in a book, you can then enter additional search terms that will be limited to the book itself, rather than the entire web. Googleกs selection includes both fiction and nonfiction, technical reference and professional books, textbooks, and more.

Since Google Print is currently in testing, a searcher won’t necessarily find results from every book they expect to see. As the program grows, Google has indicated they will continue to add books to their searchable database. Publishers who want to participate can do so for free.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on November 08, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

Get Personal With Google

Get Personal With Google

by: Jakob Jelling

Anyone whoกs been on the net any time at all knows that Google has been the search engine of choice for many for a while now. Whether that continues remains to be seen, but for now, with MSN still in development and Yahoo going through some growing pains, many still feel that Google is the leader. As such, itกs worth dropping in to the Google Labs every now and then to see whatกs going on there.

For example, Googleกs Personalized search offers a fun and useful way for searchers to interact with part of the mysterious and closelyguarded Google search algorithm. You can set a search profile thatกs stored as a cookie on your computer. The easytouse Google profile interface allows you to pick specific topics that interest you. Once chosen and saved, you can then do a search from the Personalized search page. At first, youกll see normal Google results. But at the top of the page is a slider bar, and by moving this to the right, those same search results will be dynamically altered to narrow in to focus on your personalization settings.

For example, a standard search for ‘restaurantsก (without the quotes), will return several large, wellknown sites among the first 5 results. These include restaurants.com, zagat.com, restaurantrow.com, the official Subway corporate site, and the Yahoo restaurants directory. But letกs say youกve selected Texas as a geographic area of interest in your personalization profile. Move the personalization slide all the way to the right on the same search, and now the top 5 results are from guidelive.com, Landrysseafood.com, Houston Citysearch, and Austin360, followed by restaurants.com. Each of your personalized results are marked with small spheres of red, blue, and yellow.

There are many personalization topics to choose from, including Arts, Business, Computers, Health, and many other categories which can be further narrowed.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on September 14, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

Beyond the box with Googleกs Web API

Beyond the box with Googleกs Web API

by: Jakob Jelling

Google, the most popular, and many say best, search engine, offers searchers many options to help them zero in on just what they’re looking for. Although these search modifier features are documented on own site, many searchers, including experienced marketers and technically savvy people, simple don’t know these features are available. But these features, along with the Google search box, are only available to human searchers, who can type in their search parameters, and perhaps some keyboard scripting programs as well. But there is a way for programmers and web site designers to access Googleกs database from their own sites, in the exact way they need. This is done by using Googleกs Web API (Application Program Interface).

With the API, programmers can use most any web programming language, such as PHP, ASP, Perl, .NET, and Java. Googleกs Web API provides กdata hooksก that allow a remote program to access certain portions of Google easily.

You must be very aware of the Google Web API Terms of Service. You must obtain a developer key that you will include in each API use, you are allowed only 1,000 automated queries per day, and perhaps most important, you may not use the Google API for commercial purposes. It is only for your personal use, and you of course may not violate any laws or copyright protection.

Google provides a developerกs kit to help you get started. Data is interchanged between Google and the application program using an XML structure, so the results from Google should be relatively easy to parse even for only moderately experienced developers. If you have problems or questions, Google offers Getting Help, Reference and FAQ links, and you will find help and discussions on any of several forums should you need more help. Just search Google from the search box!

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on October 11, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

Google Groups

Google Groups

by: Jakob Jelling

Some very early users of the Internet not the worldwide web as we know it today but the Internet from the early 1980s, will have heard of, and likely used, Usenet. This was the collective name applied to textbased electronic bulletin boards that were used to communicate in the days before the web and email existed, and that are still in use today. The Usenet posts were first collected and organized for worldwide web use in 1995, by a company called Deja News. In 2001, Google bought Deja News and applied their considerable search expertise to Usenet posts. The result is Google Groups.

There are well over 30,000 Google Groups today. These are hosted on servers all over the world, and Google Groups provides a browserbased interface to them, as well as creating searchable archives. From a very clean interface, users may search any of the various subsections of Google Groups. In the same way a clothing web site may be divided into sections for menกs, womenกs, and childrenกs wear, Usenet is divided into sections such as biz (business related), comp (computer related), humanities (art, literature related), and so on. From there, subsections may be divided into more specialized subtopics where necessary.

Sadly, many Google Groups are now spammer hangouts more than anything else. Widely available web access and programs that can automatically post to thousands of newsgroups in just a short while have destroyed much of the original spirit and usefulness of the Usenet groups. And parents need to know that on some sections of Usenet there are some very inappropriate topics that have been started over the years, so they should exercise due caution in protecting their children from those sections.

For those who don’t mind a bit of digging through the virtual trash can, there are still many, many useful and active Google Groups, full of friendly, helpful people, so be sure to check out this oftenoverlooked resource.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on September 29, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

Stay In The Know With Google SMS

Stay In The Know With Google SMS

by: Jakob Jelling

The Short Messaging Service (SMS) from Google sends short, quick, text answers in response to your queries from an SMSenabled mobile device, such as a cell phone. For example, you can look up phone numbers and addresses of local restaurants, do local phone book searches, compare prices from online merchants in Froogle to those you find in local stores, even look up definitions of words from the dictionary.

SMS has long been a common means of mobile communication in Europe. It has been available in the US for some time, but hasn’t been widely used. You don’t need a phone with a web browser to use Googleกs SMS. Since the information is transmitted as text only, without graphics, only the ability to send and receive SMS messages is needed. At present, the service is only available only in English, through major US wireless carriers like AT&T, Nextel, Sprint, and TMobile. Your service plan must allow for SMS messaging also. Use of SMS doesn’t generally count against minutes under most plans, but both your SMS to Google and the answer received from Google will typically count towards messages allowed.

Use of the Google SMS service is free at present, though of course users will need to pay any connection and messaging charges from their wireless carriers.

Google SMS can be handy for travel in particular. For example, letกs say youกve arrived at your hotel, and really have a taste for Chinese food. You may be able to use Google SMS to enter กChinese food deliveryก followed by the zip code of your hotel. Google will return, usually in less than a minute, a list of local Chinese restaurants that offer delivery. This is a nice alternative to looking in a phone book, where you may not know the city, and also is handy for situations where you may not be able to connect to the Internet easily.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on November 08, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

Destination: Desktop for Google

Destination: Desktop for Google

by: Jakob Jelling

First we had the original Google search that evolved into the leader in its class. In fact, it became so popular that the word กgoogleก worked its way into our everyday language as a verb, as in ‘to googleก something. Google later introduced a toolbar that was plugin for some browsers like Internet Explorer. The Google toolbar features a direct Google search box with quick access to image and group searches, a popup blocker, and for Internet marketers mostly, a PageRank (PR) indicator.

With competition like Yahoo and MSN threatening to start nipping at Googleกs heels, Google has introduced several new services to try to stay ahead of the pack. Recently they introduced Gmail, their webbased free email service (currently offered by invitation only). And still in the Google lab is the Google Deskbar (for Windows users only).

The Google deskbar is a plugin that resides in the Windows taskbar, the little control panel that contains your start button, perhaps some quick launch icons, the clock, and the system tray. Search engines and marketers have realized that to maintain and increase their competitive status, they will need to find ways to get surfers and customers to invite them to their desktops.

The deskbar features quick access to Googleกs results, no matter which application you’re currently using. Researching a class report? Check facts and sources quickly. Working in Excel? Look up the formula to calculate the volume of a tube easily. Following breaking news? Check it from the deskbar without leaving Photoshop! Youกll be able to preview your search results with the small กfloaterก window that will close automatically.

From students to senior executives, from casual surfers to serious Internet marketers, the Google Deskbar may add to your productivity and fun online. Itกs worth a look.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on September 14, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

What is The Google Sandbox Effect?

What is The Google Sandbox Effect?

by: Jakob Jelling

In the age of fair competition you may find it hard to believe that a search engine may hinder the appearance of a new website. This is what is currently believed to be happening on more web servers today. Some programmers have viewed Google as uncomfortable to rank newer websites until they have proven their viability to exist for more than a period of ขxข months. Thus the term ขSandbox Effectข applies to the idea that all new websites have their ratings placed in a holding tank until such time is deemed appropriate before a ranking can commence.

However the website is not hindered as much as the links that are reciprocated from other users. Newer links that are created are put on a ขprobationaryข status until again they pickup in rank from other matured sites or placed directly by an ad campaign. The idea behind the hindrance is to prevent a fast ranking to occur on a new website. The usual holding period seems to be between 90 and 120 days before a site would start obtaining rank from reciprocal or back linking.

Some advice has been given to have companies you are going to reciprocate back add your link first to the website. This may help grandfather your site in, thus reducing the waiting time associated with ขnewข websites. People have noticed a 0 page rank when first signing up and receiving a bolstering 7 page ranking after 4 months. Why the delay? The fact is, that if people realized how easy it would be to get a high ranking, would that take away the credibility of the engine. It depends on whom you ask, but it does seem to be happening frequently to newer subscribers. Do not discontinue back linking, your rank will eventually appear.

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on August 23, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

The Opera Alternative

The Opera Alternative

by: Jakob Jelling

Security flaws have long plagued Internet Explorer (IE), the marketdominating web browser from Microsoft. IE won the early browser wars, not only because it was free and bundled with Windows, but because it had some features and capabilities that its only real competitor, Netscape, didn’t have. But the behindthescenes programming that makes those features possible is the very coding that also leaves wide gaps in IEกs defenses against viruses and malicious scripting. Among several browser alternatives for Windows users, the Opera browser stands out in functionality and integration, and is gaining a wider following as a safer surfing alternative to Internet Explorer.

To be sure, there are other browsers such as the one from Mozilla and their newest release, Firefox. There are several flavors of IE กoverlaysก, which use the core IE programming for web page display, and thus aren’t any safer than the original IE. (You should of course always use antivirus software to protect your PC, regardless of browser. Many viruses arrive as email attachments, and opening those on a Windowsbased PC will cause problems). Among nonIE browsers, it seems to be down to a twohorse race between Mozilla and Opera.

Opera, from Oslo, Norway, based Opera Software ASA, provides many popular features. An integrated email client, contact book, bookmarks with searchable notes, tabbed multiple windows, a builtin password manager, a popup blocker, multiple language support, saved sessions, privacy controls, builtin chat, and the ability to read RSS feeds from within Opera mail make the Opera browser a very powerful and worthwhile IE replacement candidate.

Unless you have special need for IE, such as a browser toolbar or web interaction software that you use, there is really no reason not to give Opera a try if you’re worried about safe surfing. While Opera does have a paid version, you can also download a sponsored version (with ads unobtrusively placed in the browser control area), which is free.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on October 11, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

Google Catalogs Old fashioned mail order meets h

Google Catalogs Old fashioned mail order meets high tech search

by: Jakob Jelling

In addition to Googleกs Froogle shopping service (still in beta), which features a searchable database of online merchants, Google is also betatesting their Google Catalog service. Google Catalogs provides a searchable central repository of hundreds of mailorder catalogs.

The service includes the full scanned contents of the catalogs, not just a photo and subscription information. And these aren’t database entries, but real highquality images of the catalog images themselves. When you are browsing Google Catalog search results, you will see user interface controls at the top and bottom of each page. These are reminiscent of Acrobat and many other browser plugin controls or common Windows print preview controls, and you can page through each catalog, zoom in/out, switch between one, two, and thumbnail views, jump to a specific page, and search within the current catalog. As with other Google searches, an advanced search feature is also available.

Available catalogs cover a full range of goods from business to consumer, from household names like Harriet Carter to obscure supply catalogs for specialty manufacturers. For easy online shopping, even the order forms, tollfree numbers, and vendor web sites are easily accessible. While beta testing, many of the catalogs are from one to three years old, but thatกs to be expected. When fully released, this service will almost surely feature not only current catalogs, but a lot more of them, as merchants become aware of the service.

Google recommends using a broadband internet connection to search their Google Catalog service. This is because all search results include images of the catalog pages themselves, and download speed over dialup will be too slow for most users. Google states that they aren’t associated with the catalog merchants in any way, and receive no compensation when you buy something from an included catalog.

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on September 29, 2004

by Jakob Jelling

Don’t Shoot The (Yahoo) Messenger!

Don’t Shoot The (Yahoo) Messenger!

by: Jakob Jelling

Most anyone whose kids have become teenagers over the last few years has almost certainly at least heard of กIMก. Itกs become a verb among not only teens, but many adult surfers too. As in กIM me later!ก. For anyone who doesn’t know, IM, or Instant Messaging, is software that lets people communicate over the Internet, well, instantly. Or nearly so with only slight delays most of the time, instant messaging has always allowed users to type messages back and forth over the Internet. Itกs a lot like passing a note in class, with new parts of a conversation added on to the end of previous parts. Yahoo Messenger was one of the first to offer both IM software and a lane on the information superhighway for IM messages to travel.

But as the kids have grown, so has Yahoo Messenger. Itกs a lot more than a mere teen toy now. Yahoo, in an effort to attract and retain loyalty to itกs brand, offers email, a personalized My Yahoo Portal, an address book, calendar, maps, bookmarks, a toolbar, and other services, many of them integrated to work together. But they seem to have paid special attention to Yahoo Messenger, especially recently. As more surfers have moved to highspeed internet connections, Yahoo has upgraded Yahoo Messenger to include Launchcast Radio, Yahoo Games, and of course, a considerable selection of customization options.

Perhaps the biggest change, and one many adult surfers will most appreciate, is the addition of Webcam, photo, and voice chat capabilities. Voice chat, in particular, will probably appeal to a broad audience. With it, a pair of speakers, and a microphone, you can talk live with contacts, over the Internet, even internationally, for free, using voice over IP technology. Most of the time, depending on network traffic between you and the other party, the conversation is loud & clear, and there is very little delay.

You may have wondered why your teens would prefer to type messages when they can just as easily call their friends. Now, with Yahoo Messenger, they, and you, can do both, using the same software!

By Jakob Jelling

http://www.sitetube.com

About The Author

Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.sitetube.com. Visit his website for the latest on planning, building, promoting and maintaining websites.

This article was posted on October 11, 2004

by Jakob Jelling