Questions About Google Knol

Since the initial announcement from Google about their Knol project I have been reading the discussions to try and clear up some thoughts. If you don’t know Knol yet, here is how they described it:

Earlier this week, we started inviting a selected group of people to try a new, free tool that we are calling “knol”, which stands for a unit of knowledge. Our goal is to encourage people who know a particular subject to write an authoritative article about it. The tool is still in development and this is just the first phase of testing. For now, using it is by invitation only. But we wanted to share with everyone the basic premises and goals behind this project.

It seems I have more questions than answers, in particular the following three:

  1. More or less trustworthy than Wikipedia? – Google is pushing the fact that authors will get full credit for their content, so there are both advertising revenue and ego benefits. At the same time though they say:

    Google will not serve as an editor in any way, and will not bless any content. All editorial responsibilities and control will rest with the authors. We hope that knols will include the opinions and points of view of the authors who will put their reputation on the line. Anyone will be free to write. For many topics, there will likely be competing knols on the same subject. Competition of ideas is a good thing.

    So potentially Google is going to rank something, with the Google good name attached, that is no more reliable than any other content on the web (ie. not). At least at Wikipedia you can go in and try to edit something that is incorrectly claimed about yourself or your company, it’s not clear what recourse you will have in this case.

    Despite any disclaimers, you know there will be people who say “it’s from Google, it must be true”. Hopefully as well as having alternative points of view they have a way to make it clear these are just opinions.

  2. Wikipedia dupe content? – As Techcrunch say, Knol will show advertising, which will attract lots of Wikipedia contributors, but also as they point out Wikipedia content is free to copy:

    Very soon we are going to see a lot of Wikipedia content moving wholesale to Knol. Wikipedia content is basically free to use, redistribute, copy, whatever, under the GNU license

    How much of Knol is going to be dupe content, and as this is a Google product, will any of this copy and paste content outrank the original?

  3. SEO heaven or hell? – Which brings us to my final question. If Knol ranks, and especially if it outranks will it turn out to be a spam magnet and a draw for SEO’s looking for a ranking leg-up?

What do you think? Is Knol going to cause spam and plagiarism, or will it be great for competition and users?

Should Google Have a “People Search”?

I was just reading Aarons comment on my last post and it got me thinking. First, in case you missed it, here is what he said:

while Google makes it pretty easy to find someone, I think the search engines are going to get even better at this. They’re going to have to with millions of people starting their own sites on domains that don’t sync up with their real names.

Why hasn’t Google already done more in this area?

Search Google for my name right now and you get the usual mix of sites and personas.

Anyone who has been on the web for a while will probably also have a mixture of various profiles, their own blog, perhaps their employer, etc. What you do not see is my Facebook, LinkedIn, etc profile. While those services are, at least in part, meant to be “people discovery systems”, I have no motivation to send them “search juice” by linking to them.

Google sates as their mission:

to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.

I think having a useful interface for finding people online would not only be cool, but incredibly useful. While others have attempted this in the past, Google could actually do it.

Yes, they have a phone book, and Yahoo! has their equivalent, but those are hardly what I am wanting, and not particularly useful for the majority of the world either.

I can see it being a tab, like “Images”, to differentiate between trying to find the person/profile/site of versus places that mention the phrase “Chris Garrett”. Multiple results could be listed showing either profile photograph or website snapshot along with whatever contact or bio details they can find.

What do you think?

Get Google Maps Phone Directions and Locations Without GPS

It’s funny. The same week I buy a GPS-enabled phone, Google releases a beta of Google Maps that can find your location without the use of satellites.





Yes Google Maps for Mobile now has cell tower triangulation built in so your location can be guessed to within a range of around 100 meters or so. If you have not tried Google Maps on your phone, it is well worth a look. Here is what they describe as the key features:

Real-time traffic — See where the congestion is, and estimate delays in over 30 major US metropolitan areas.

Detailed directions — Whether you plan to walk or drive, your route is displayed on the map itself, together with step-by-step directions.

Integrated search results — Local business locations and contact information appear all in one place, integrated on your map.

Easily movable maps — Interactive maps let you zoom in or out, and move in all directions so you can orient yourself visually.

Satellite imagery — Get a bird’s eye view of your desired location. (It’s like you’re there, we swear.)

Now for me this is a great improvement in many ways over Nokias own product that comes free on the n95. There are however a few things you need to be aware of:

  1. It is quite data intensive, unlike Nokias product you can’t pre-load the maps you need to use, which means you will be using up your data tariff pretty quickly
  2. Just like the standard Google Maps/Earth, the data is out of date. Don’t expect it to show you recent road changes. Right now it thinks I am sitting 100 feet up in the air above an empty field.
  3. The directions are only really useful as a passenger or on foot, if you want a voice telling you which direction to take use Nokias subscription or buy TomTom.

That said it is a great addition to be used as complimentary, if only for local amenities searches and the detailed (if dated) satellite imagery. Try it out on your phone now.

Google Android: The Least You Need to Know

Google AndroidWell the GPhone is here … kind of. As with any announcement from the big-G, there is a buzz around the media and the blogosphere but strangely the reaction to this news is quite muted. Is the Google magic fading? Could it be expectations were raised too high?

This is a high profile endeavor for the company, especially as they are going up against the current darling of the telephone market, Apple.

Many people have been disappointed to hear that it is not quite the iPhone-killer they were hoping for, but rather something quite different, and still quite exciting.

What is it? Read on to find out everything you need to know!

See more and watch it working in the Youtube Video.

So there it is, lots of interesting geek-toys but as yet nothing tangible to put money down for. Even if this does not turn out to be the market disrupting product people were wishing for, it should put a fire under the Apple team and create some competition.

More coverage: Engadget Techcrunch Gigaom Scoble

What do you think? Something to give iPhone a run for their money or is it too little too late? Let us know in the comments …

A web 2.0 Song

Guy Ruvio is a dear friend of mine, which I have been trying to persuade to blog since I learned about blogging. Imagine my horror when I found out he started blogging in Hebrew. How will the English speaking world read his brilliant stuff? And then it dawned on me. I can steal his work in the guise of “translation” and get all the credit.

So without further Ado…


A web 2.0 song

Web 2

Do you get the feeling that we will make do?

Is it really over?

Have you noticed all the sites talking about web 3.0?

——–

The Web

In numbers

It feels good to count

It’s a primal need

But everybody keeps ignoring the number 1

Do you see companies saying – we are the solution to web 1.0?

communication 1.0?

It’s just to remind

I left the one behind

——–

I want a domain

Or a blog

Or a search engine,

To call my own

To hold in the night

——–

Alone?

Together?

A sense of community?

Cooped up at home?

In any case, the psychologists will have more work

——–

Web 2.0

Is it a technology?

A Trend?

A Buzz?

A Spin?

Revolution?

Revolution!

——–

I opened a blog

A diary of my own

I am no longer anonymous

Who will read it?

What does it matter?

As long as we push adsense into it

——–

Google

Will pass a billion

Won’t make it

Changed the world

Talented people

I want too

——–

Google

did it

So why don’t we buy

Booble

Or

Doodle

Or

Xooxle

It’s the domain that counts

They’ve all been lent?

Did you stop to think about content?

——–

Mashups

A picture on a picture

A site on a site

A service on a service

Playing with Lego

Does anyone build with bricks anymore?

——–

Software as a service?

Sounds good to me

I get this need to kick it

When the blue screen comes on

Getting a service from the blue?

I’m bought.

——–

Google Docs

Save it all at Google’s

Or on my Computer?

But they know everything about me

Not using Google!

Oh, What the hell,

Google it is,

Now I can work from anywhere

Damn what are these commercials?

How do they know I love Taami**

Enough

Going to the Beach

What does it say there on the billboard?

——–

Programming

I Program

I Model

I Design

I Photoshup

Like Mashup

10 Photoshuppers needed for a successful startup

——–

VCs

Web 2.0

Come on…

At least try to disguise the herd affect

I’ll tell you a secret

Where the herd is, the good grass is already gone

And there is only dead weed

I actually saw a couple of good companies

Where?

At TechCrunch

Or one of its

Mashups

——–

In 98 we built

Hosting providers

In 99 we built

ASP

In 2001 we blow up

In 2005 we woke up

And built

Software as a service

Or

Software on demand

Or

Multi Tenant applications

Hold it!

What?

IS everything the same?

What is changed?

Kids, help me find the difference

——–

Web 2.0

I am there too

I don’t understand what it is

But there’s something there

If everybody’s going there, there must be something (there)

It has to be

If Vardi could at 99

Why can’t I do it now?

——–

Web 2.0

Experts

Isn’t it a contradiction?

——–

A collaboration plant

I am building a collaboration plant

Anyone can water it

And leave a comment

Or a talkback

Their messanger number

Maybe a girl will stop by as well

That would be great

——–

{Censored}

——–

{Censored}

——–

Talkback

I will leave a comment

I have stuff to say

And the world will hear

Let the people know

I am First!

I am First!

I am First!

Damn, who left the comment before me?

——–

Web 2.0

In war time

The one book I don’t want to write!

——–

Big Companies

Small Companies

Medium

And Microscopic

Even for me

There is a place

In the Web 2.0

——–

What will be the next big thing?

Electronic Ink

Implanted Cellular phones

A Bionic Shoe

Or plug-ins?

To the brain

Well come on guys, that’s very easy

Web 3.0

Electronic Ink

Implanted Cellular phones

A Bionic Shoe

Or plug-ins?

To the brain

I Guarantee It.

**Taami is a popular low quality chocolate bar in Israel

Read Professor’s McAfee’s Blog – It will probably make you smarter and happier

It is not a simple thing to do – Reading Professor Andrew Mcfee’s Blog.

Being a Harvard professor, he writes long posts, uses Harvardian English and writes about theoretical issues. But if you are interested in web 2.0 technologies and/or their adoption in the enterprise – this is the blog for you.

I also found that when I read articles that were written by very smart people, I experience a surge in gray matter activity.

And to top it all, every once in a while he writes a piece that makes me feel better about the world we live and work in. Here is the last paragraph from his recent blog post:

“Web 2.0 is empowering all kinds of creators:  hacks to be sure, but also craftsmen and artists.  Shouldn’t we be truly excited to experience the best of the worlds they’ll put up on the World Wide Web?”

To sum up … Read Prof’ McAfee’s Blog. It’s good for you.

The information leak in the online collaboration sink

Learn why information leaks in online collaboration applications are important to you

Earlier, I promised that I would look into online collaboration tools. I started looking into Zoho, Google Docs & Spreadsheets, Thinkfree and others. I was a bit worried that these services created an opening for security violations.

What I found was downright scary. People use online collaboration tools to document the most damaging private and commercial information and leave this information in a public folder or URL for the entire world to see.

The tech industry speaks as though the security and privacy problems inherent in collaboration and Web 2.0 software were merely a theoretical problem. My intention here is to show that this problem is very real. I will also suggest a solution.

Here are some of the things I found (note: I blacked out personal data):

Samples of personal medical information leaks

I’m pretty sure that recipient of the following letter is not aware that the details of his orthopedic appointment have been published on the Internet.

Private Medical Information - 1

The following image was taken from a 13-page list of daily admissions to an ICU. It probably was posted by a nurse or doctor who wanted to share information about a patient with a colleague. The unfortunate side effect was the exposure of enormous amounts of private medical data to anyone with a browser.


Personal medical information - 2

Samples of personal employment information leaks

This Best Buy employee decided to go to school and resign from Best Buy. That’s not such a big deal, but if I was a master spear phisher, I could use the information to my advantage.

Personal Employment Data - 1

The same goes for this XILINX employee. These are just two examples of countless personal and corporate documents that contain data that can be used for spear phishing. Perhaps we should call it spear phishing 2.0: fraud based on information found in Web 2.0 apps.

Personal Employment Information Leak - 2

Samples of personal and corporate financial information leaks

The following claims form was filled in with every kind of personal financial information about Mr. S. Using this to perform identity theft is a piece of cake.

Financial Information Leak - 1

Ironically, this next example was taken from a status letter sent by a VC that invests in Web 2.0 and online collaboration to its limited partners. It was a very interesting read, with much financial data.

Financial Information Leak - 2

The mother of all leaks – Passwords galore

For all you techies who are thinking, “Heh heh, stupid users, putting all their private data on the Web,” here are some techie-generated documents. I actually logged into the accounts shown in the next documents.

Leaked Passwords - 1

Leaked Password - 2

How big is the problem of information leaks?

After we checked some 1,500 documents that had been created by online collaboration tools and published on the internet (without any access restrictions), two facts emerged:

Percent of dangerous information leaked

Why information leaking could spell the end of online-collaboration tools

Corporations are terrified of information leaks. Information leaks such as the ones we’ve discussed make the company a target for litigation, pave the way to commercial espionage, and may help expose weaknesses in the company or its management.

Once this problem becomes known, corporations will act swiftly and decisively and block their users from accessing online-collaboration tools. Since corporations are the target market for online-collaboration vendors, getting blocked by corporations is very bad news.

How can information leaking be prevented?

The problem can be solved by not allowing users to publish “open to all” documents. Just don’t allow users to publish documents on the Internet on a publicly accessible URL. This is a painful act, since it decreases the productivity gain offered by online-collaboration tools, but it is necessary for those tools that wish to survive.

One more thing

All the tools I checked were amazing–easy to use, fast and skillfully designed. In fact, the high quality of these tools attracted all these users and led to the information leaks.

An apology and some Google news

Hello everybody. I apologize for the long gap in posting. Although there is no excuse for such a gap, I am the proud father of two small boys who have decided to take turns at being sick. So I spent a lot of time at home in October. On top of that, we have been very busy at Cogniview, adding a new and very exciting ability to our products. I will make an official announcement soon.

Back to business, Google has made some advances in its online docs and spreadsheets product. You can read a good summary of these features here on Ian’s blog. Google seems to be the most threatening competition to Microsoft Office these days. In my opinion, however, a couple of other companies are better positioned to dethrone Microsoft. Can you guess which companies I am referring to?

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