112 replies to this topic

[Raphael]

Hush, I like my bubble. Don't burst it.

[arlen]

Man I know that feeling!

[Alan Perkins]

What happens when you lick the isbn number?

You get this funny tingly feeling on your tongue. If you click the link, you go to the Amazon page for that ISBN number.

Also what happens when you click the green link?

That isn't a link, so nothing happens. If it was a link, then the ISBN wouldn't have been turned into an Amazon link.

[Renagade Master]

You get this funny tingly feeling on your tongue.  If you click the link, you go to the Amazon page for that ISBN number.

Ohh is that what you do *dries the monitor and keyboard*.... hey this interwebnet thing is much more usable when you click links

[Betty]

This new version of the toolbar isn't being sent to anyone as an automatic update of the toolbar they'd already installed, is it? If that were the case, it would be a very different matter.

From the Google page about it

Auto Update
There's no need to check for new versions of Google Toolbar; updates are installed automatically, so you'll always have the latest and greatest version.

I have the tool bar and mine has not updated. Not sure if that's because of a firewall, spyware blocking tools or what. Perhaps they haven't updated it yet?

[qwerty]

I know that was the case in the past, but I was giving them the benefit of the doubt about auto-updating to this version. Maybe not.

This is kind of humorous, though...

The Toolbar 3.0 beta installer that was available for download from February 16, 2005 to February 29, 2005 has a bug that caused it to install the Google Compute feature of the Toolbar by default. Google Compute is a feature of the Google Toolbar that enables your computer to help solve challenging scientific problems when it would otherwise be idle

They did it on purpose! They're stealing my memory, my bandwidth AND my customers!!

[DianeV]

> Google Compute is a feature of the Google Toolbar that enables your computer to help solve challenging scientific problems when it would otherwise be idle

Yikes. That sounds a little too much like a setup for a DDOS. Did they ask anyone's permission?

[Mickys]

It isn't what the toolbar does to the webpage, it is what it does to the web. This is the beginning of a slippery slope which will eventually pave the way for Microsoft to embed SmartTags into MSIE.

Fast forward and we will have embedded ads competing with online ads and many of your favorite sites will end up having to close down because they will not be able to pay for their hosting services.

The mom and pops and web publishers will be the first to suffer.

For those who do not know, Microsoft tried to do this back in 2001 and and they will have the green light to try again. Google and Microsoft must have a deal because Microsoft owns the patent on this technology. That is the stinker that so many people are missing.

AutoLinks is step one in a plan to funnel billions of dollars to the major portals. In the end, they will be perfectly wedged in between the major retailers and the consumers. This is a very subtle power grab.

If you love the Internet, you better be worried.

[Jill]

If they expect me to obey their rules for the "opportunity" to maybe, possibly, arbitrarily show up on their search results and struggle to measure up to their current algorithm, then they owe me the respect of setting the rules for use of my webspace. It is my property not theirs - I make the decisions, they don't.

This is a bit off topic, but actually, they don't expect nor really care if you obey their rules, nor if you show up in their search engine.

Just thought I'd mention that!

[arlen]

Sure they do Jill. They don't care IF I exist or IF show up, true, but for the opportunity to show up they have made it very clear at least a number of things they expect me not to do. They have set rules, otherwise their TOS means squat. If they didn't care if you follow their rules, no one would ever be banned, penalized, sandboxed, etc ... they care.

My point being, It's not my place to tell them what they do w/ their website or search results, that's their business. I will try to meet their "stated" expectations (rules) in order to participate. However, equally, I have the right to decide what is presented on my website. If they expect to participate in my webspace then they should be bound to my expectations and limitations, which certainly do not allow for inserting any unauthorized functionality that has the potential of hijacking my traffic.

I realize they are big, I am small, they will do anything they damn well please ... but they are crossing the line here.

Edited by arlen, 05 March 2005 - 12:21 AM.

[Jill]

Again, I don't see how any of this has anything to do with their autolink tool (and I may end up splitting this off), but I do have to comment on this.

Sure they do Jill. They don't care IF I exist or IF show up, true, but for the opportunity to show up they have made it very clear at least a number of things they expect me not to do. They have set rules, otherwise their TOS means squat. If they didn't care if you follow their rules, no one would ever be banned, penalized, sandboxed, etc ... they care.

First, Google's TOS has nothing to do with Webmasters. There is no Terms of Service for Webmasters. You simply create a site and Google may or may not index it. It's their engine, and that's basically how it works.

Google has indeed published some "Webmaster Guidelines" for those who do wish to be included in their index. The idea is that if you pretty much follow those, they should pretty much have no problem indexing your site. If you don't, your site may or may not get indexed.

But none of this has anything to do with the autolink tool that the general public gets when they download the latest toolbar version.

[arlen]

I'll save you the trouble of splitting this off - I'm bowing out. I don't know how I can make my point any clearer ... I believe everything I've said is entirely on topic and completely reasonable ... apparently my communication skills are failing me. Yes, I probably should have said guidelines not tos.... nevermind, nevermind ... uncle.

Edited by arlen, 05 March 2005 - 10:03 PM.

[Randy]

How about I simplify it for you Arlen.

Google has the right to refuse to show any of my sites on any of their sites. They have that right because they own and control their own domains. Additionally, if they do in fact choose to display my sites they have the right to reflect them in any light they would like, via the snippets they alone choose. Those are their rights that I freely acknowledge since they do in fact own Google.com and I don't.

By the same token webmasters, who also own and control their domains, should have the same right to control their space without having to worry about anything being usurped by some cockeyed, lame brain decision made by Google or any other third party who has chosen to release some really bad software.

They have no more right to alter my work and my sites than I have to alter Google.com.

Or to put it more simply, what's good for the goose is good for the gander.

[arlen]

Thank you Randy ... exactly the point I apparently didn't make even after 3 tries

[Randy]

Tis a matter of semantics my friend.

It's the old Google doesn't owe us anything argument, which is true.

But we don't owe them anything either. Not even our respect after a move like this one IMHO.