Dear Google Friends,
We always love to hear from Google users, and the past
couple of weeks have given us some great opportunities to
talk with those who know Google inside and out. We've rubbed
elbows with webmasters, programmers, advertisers, and other
search aficionados, learning what makes them happy and what
might make them happier. Read on for the latest news from
the Googleplex.
Dances With Bots: Google meets the webmasters
This year's Search Engine Strategies conference in San
Jose attracted hundreds of webmasters, who swapped secrets
for getting more love and traffic from their favorite search
engines. One of the recurring topics of discussion was the
extraordinary effectiveness of keyword-based advertising
programs like Google's AdWords Select and premium sponsorships.
Many attendees had great success stories to share and stopped
by the Google booth to relay them first hand. Others had
questions about Googlebot (the software agent that crawls
websites for Google) and website optimization.
Given their interest in all things Google-ish, it was
only natural to invite everyone to come up to the Googleplex
to get acquainted and get down with the Google team. The
Google Dance – named for the ranking shifts whenever
Google rolls out a new index – drew more than 400 people
who dined al fresco amid a landscape of shagadelic carpets
and inflatable exercise balls. To glimpse many of the webmasters
who shared their time with Google, visit our picture page
at: http://www.google.com/googledance2002/
For more information on how Google's advertising programs can help
your business, visit:
http://www.google.com/ads/
In the Land of the Penguin: Google at LinuxWorld
The open source Linux operating system that powers Google was the
focus of the recent LinuxWorld Conference and Expo in San Francisco. Many in attendance were fans of both Linux and Google and
inquisitive about everything from the "flavor" of Linux Google
uses to issues Google might have encountered running Linux on more
than 10,000 web servers.
In his keynote address, Google co-founder Sergey Brin
described the impact of Linux on Google's ability to quickly
and cost-effectively serve millions of searches worldwide.
Sergey also talked about the nature of innovation and the
broader mission of Google itself, which he described as
"the application of large-scale computing to solve
real important problems."
We used Google to solve the important problem of remembering the
name of the penguin mascot for Linux. Don't know? Try clicking here
to find out:
http://www.google.com/search?&q=linux+penguin+mascot
"Google in a Box" at the University of Florida
Linux is also the operating system for the Google Search
Appliance, an all-in-one hardware-based solution for those
looking to improve the search capability of their web sites
or intranets. Affectionately known as "Google in a
box," the bright yellow Google Search Appliance has
been warmly received by high-tech companies, government
offices and universities throughout the U.S. and Canada.
For the University of Florida, locating the right document
quickly was a task akin to finding a three-winged mosquito
in a hurricane. Even with 58,000 students, faculty and staff
spread across the state and hundreds of servers running
on different platforms, the university was able to quickly
connect their network to a Google Search Appliance and begin
answering search queries for all their users.
UF Web Administrator Mark Trammell was pleased with the results he
got from Google. "We took the Google Search Appliance and our
previous solution and plugged the top 100 searches from the UF
home page into both to see who gave us the most relevant results.
Hands down, Google beat the solution we used before"
Among others reporting improved search results with the Google
Search Appliance are Boeing, Cisco and National Semiconductor.
To read more tales of woe, intrigue and ultimate search success,
visit:
http://www.google.com/appliance/case1.html
Or learn more about the Google Search Appliance at:
http://www.google.com/appliance/
"I Got My Google Through The New York Times"
The past several weeks have found Google in the media for a number
of reasons, including announcements about new news partners.
Readers of NYTimes.com now see Google search results and advertising integrated into that site's search pages and Boston.com
readers will see a similar presence for Google in the fall.
Google's partnership with Ask Jeeves, also made the news, when the
search service selected Google to provide advertising for their
users beginning in September 2002. And a final newsworthy item was
a Brand Keys study that found Google ranks highest in consumer
loyalty among all online brands, both in the search category and
overall. We have our users to thank for that, and we'd like to
take this opportunity to express our gratitude for your vote of
confidence.
Sneak Peeks and Prototypes: Google Labs
Always wanted to play mad scientist, but couldn't get mom to buy
you a Tesla coil? Step into Google Labs and play around with some
prototypes not quite ready for prime time. Google Labs projects in
development currently include Google Glossary (finds definitions),
Google Sets (finds items like those you specify) and Google Voice
Search. Try them out and send your feedback directly to the
Googlers developing them. Of course we can't guarantee your
results, but we can guarantee you'll see strange and wondrous
sights never before beheld by mere mortals. Don't forget your
safety goggles.
The secret entrance to Google Labs can be found at:
http://labs.google.com/
Google Programming Contest Winner: Geographic Search
And speaking of unorthodox development paths, Google announced its
first annual Programming Contest last February. After weighing the
merits of an extraordinary set of entries, the $10,000 prize was
awarded to Daniel Egnor of New York. Daniel's "Geographic Search"
project lets a search user limit matches to those close to a
specific address – useful for answering such everyday questions as
"Is there an Indian restaurant within walking distance?" To achieve
this, the Cal Tech alumnus converted street addresses to latitude –
longitude coordinates, then indexed the resulting data. The program
impressed the judges, and though it hasn't been integrated into
Google, it offered some interesting directions for our research
group to pursue. To read up on other worthy entries, go to:
http://catalogs.google.com/programming-contest/winner.html
It's in the bag: Win big with the Google Quiz
Here's a chance to show your search smarts and win something for the effort.
Take the Google Quiz and you could walk away with a Timbuk2
messenger bag or one of dozens of other stylish prizes on
which we've stitched, glued or otherwise plastered our Google
logo. Question topics range from art, film, and music to
the contents of the Google Store – and yes, you can use Google
to find the answers. The contest ends September 20th, so
don't delay. For full details, visit: http://www.google.com/googlequiz.html
Imagine Yourself at Google: We're Hiring
If your affection for Google is matched only by your desire to
make it better, consider joining the Google team. Your work will
affect millions of people all over the world – and you'll receive
excellent benefits including free healthy meals. Most of our
departments are hiring, with several openings in our engineering
group. Do you yearn to apply your world-class programming skills
where you can make a real difference? Then check out our jobs page
and send us your resume. Our current openings are listed at:
http://www.google.com/jobs/index.html
Some reasons to pursue an engineering career at Google
can be found at: http://www.google.com/jobs/great-people-needed.html
These are exciting times at Google. Thanks for your interest and
support as we continue to grow. We look forward to sharing news
with you in the coming months and wish you the very best.
The Google Team
