Wikia Search the New human Search Engine

Almost a year after it was publicized the new human search engine Wikia Search is finally out at http://alpha.search.wikia.com/ . Hyped tremendously by Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, this new human powered search engine is believed to take on Google too. (Though I personally do not feel it is that powerful)

Wikia Search is based on the open source Nutch software which contains an index of web pages created by Grub (a company Wikia acquired last year). The search results at present are very meager and do not provide satisfactory answers. I believe the team really needs to work much harder behind the screens to really show some quality in these searches.

Also, not much of a human element is visible on the search engine at present. What users at present can do is add keywords to their profile - things that they are interested in, and would like to share resources with. When a search is conducted by anyone on those keywords, the user’s picture will appear in the right hand column. Much later when things will be smoother (hopefully) the user will be able to edit and improve results for searches they are interested in. Adding to this, Wikia search also allows users to contribute a “mini-article” on any topic that shall appear at the top of search results for queries posted by any person.

Wikia Search also acts as a social network where a user's profile includes basic things like photos, adding friends, interests and skills. Wikia Search profiles also have an activity stream (similar to facebook).

For all those who have been under clouds as to how the human powered search engine shall be able to rule out the leader in search engines, Google.Inc will have to wait for some more time until there are some miraculous changes in the existing form of Wikia Search.

Nielsen to Foster Web Surveillance with New System

Media research giant, Nielsen, is developing a system that'll police websites for copyrighted material. Not just that, it'll also notify original site owners or content providers whenever their media material has been posted without due authorisation.

Working in collaboration with Digimarc, a digital watermarking technology provider, Nielsen is tapping its current technological expertise to come up with this system by the second quarter of 2008.

Initially, this service will be used for TV programmes, clips of which freely circulate in various user-generated content sites. According to industry researchers, most of this content is used without permission from or compensation to the copyright holder, that is, the original content provider.

This free sharing of data between peers has led to increased tension between Hollywood studios producing such programmes and Internet companies allowing such services. In fact, many studios have filed copyright infringement lawsuits against the biggest of web companies.

Hopefully, this new system will help bring down the number of such cases. As experts claim, it is not about policing the Internet, but about establishing stronger and more reliable relationships on the World Wide Web.

What has the World been Searching for? ... Latest Yahoo Report Reveals

Search engine giant, Yahoo, has come up with an exciting report on search trends based on its users' search queries. The year 2007 witnessed millions of web users making billions of searches on Yahoo, and this report enlists the most popular searches in various categories.

According to the report, YouTube, Wikipedia and Facebook have grabbed the top three spots in the tech list. The next three spots were taken by Apple's products and services, followed by gaming consoles. Interestingly, there have been a huge number of searches on environmental issues like global warming, solar energy, recycling, etc. This trend shows that people are getting increasingly concerned about issues that are directly not related to their lives.

Most consumers were keen to search for product recalls. Ranging from government reports to specific manufacturer recall lists, these searches actually show that users trust the web and feel that they can exercise greater control through this medium.

Above all, the Yahoo report reveals that the global populace has been using search engines like never before. From personal to global issues, people are interested in anything and everything, and they prefer using search engines to seek desired information.

Cyber Espionage Major Threat to Global Security

A recent cyber security report by McAfee, the computer security firm, has revealed that cyber espionage will be one of the greatest threats to global peace in the year 2008. It has raised concern that essential online services face a security threat from spies who have infiltrated the World Wide Web.

The 'virtual criminology report' states that the number of 'cyber terrorists' is on the rise. These entities are increasingly using the Internet as a weapon against national governments, attacking their infrastructure systems, including electricity, air traffic control, computer networks, finance markets, stock exchanges, et al. Not just this, they are also targeting individual companies that generate revenues in billions.

Industry experts insist that cyber crime has now become a global issue and is no more limited to just individuals. The only probable solution lies in governments joining hands to pursue corrective measures. This will involve development of technologies that can keep a check on cyber espionage, and if possible, control it to an extent.

And the 'Most-Visited Website' Award Goes To...

A recent survey, conducted by the portal Compete.com, has revealed a list of the 'Top 50 Websites' on the basis of their unique visitor numbers. The top ten domain names in this list are:

1. Yahoo.com
2. Google.com
3. eBay.com
4. MSN.com
5. Live.com
6. MySpace.com
7. AOL.com
8. Wikipedia.org
9. Mapquest.com
10. Microsoft.com
    

The survey took into account the period between September 2006 to September 2007 to calculate the visitor count of these sites. YouTube and Flickr are amongst the topmost gainers, as per the survey.

It has also been observed that sites offering peer-to-peer data sharing are gaining prominence in the lives of web users, as evidenced by the rise of YouTube, Facebook, Wikipedia, Digg, et al.

An increasing number of sites are raking in traffic in millions, and are constantly expanding their network by adding new features to existing domains, or creating new domains altogether.

Moments that Changed the Web Forever - IV

I know I cannot continue with this topic forever... it might have gotten a tad bit boring. So, for the last post in this series, I shall talk about the four most impacting moments in the Internet's history.

Internet Browsers – October, 1969
Way back in the year 1969, the concept of Internet was being pondered upon by Professor Len Kleinrock. The idea took off when he tried to use a dedicated phone line to link a mainframe computer at UCLA to one at the Stanford Research Institute. He managed to transfer two alphabets before the system crashed. The second attempt, however, bore results, and the concept of Internet browsers came into being.

Google – September, 1998
This can be easily described as a historic 'invention' in the online world. Stanford University students Sergey Brin and Larry Page met in the year 1995, and within a year, started working on the concept of links influencing search engine rankings. In September 1998, they opened the first Google office in a garage, and changed the web forever. Google was the company that brought in the idea of profit sharing through search engines. Today, it is considered to be one of the most influential web entities in the world.

Netscape – August, 1995
Netscape was the pioneering effort in the field of Internet browsers. After going public with its shares in 1995, it actually went on to prove that the web is a great place for all kinds of marketing activities. The legacy has been carried forward by a number of web entities, many of which even went defunct in the process. But, Netscape continues to stand tall and make new strides in the online marketplace.

The World Wide Web – December, 1990
What can be bigger than the Web itself? The greatest moment in the history of the web is the moment of its creation. In the year 1990, the world got its Christmas present in the form of the world's first web server. The brains behind this operation were that of Tim Berners Lee and Robert Cailliau of the CERN research lab in Geneva. The first-ever content posted on the web was the CERN phone directory.

Today, the World Wide Web impacts almost every aspect of our lives, both personal and professional. And yes, this blog is very much a part of the same web!

Moments that Changed the Web Forever – III

This topic is getting even more interesting now. As the World Wide Web started to grow, it also became a platform for the coming together of entities bound by some common thread.

Social Networking – March, 2003
It all started with Friendster. And, as the name clearly indicates, it was a site meant for 'friends'; a source of networking on the Internet. By the month of July 2003, the site was being used by more than a million people, who liked 'staying in touch' through a common, feasible platform.

Today, Friendster, the pioneer, has lost into oblivion; sidelined by stronger competitors. MySpace, Facebook, Orkut and the likes were started on the same lines and continue to dominate web users' mindsets with increased doses of interactivity and that personalised touch.

Amazon – July, 1995
Termed as the 'world's largest book store', Amazon started operations in the mid of 1995, headquartered in a garage in Bellevue, Washington. Jeff Bezos, the founder of this all-inclusive online store, has actually revolutionised e-commerce big time. Today, Amazon sells anything and everything through its global network of affiliate programmes.

Domain Names – June, 1983
The domain naming system came into place in the year 1983, resulting from the combined efforts of Paul Mockapetris, Craig Partridge and the late Jon Postel. These guys did a world of good for web users by replacing numerical Internet addresses with real domain names.

Just imagine if we had to memorise all kinds of 12-digit numbers in order to open a website! It would have been so taxing. But thankfully, all we need to do is, type the domain name of the site, and the server itself will decode it into numbers and open the required Internet address.


Today, we can't actually think of the web without all these 'facilities'. More in the next blog...

Moments that Changed the Web Forever - I

The World Wide Web came online in the year 1990. Today, seventeen years hence, it is an indispensable part of our lives, at least in an urban scenario. Thousands of events have shaped the way this medium has been perceived by users. There have been quite a few 'Eureka!' moments that'll go down in the history of the web as moments that changed it forever, and probably, for the good.

I would like to take you back down memory lane, and chronicle ten of the most significant moments in web history, in ascending order of importance.
1) Yahoo
2) eBay
3) Wikipedia
4) Social Networking
5) Amazon
6) Domain Names
7) Internet Browsers
8) Google
9) Netscape
10) World Wide Web

Yahoo – February, 1994
'Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle', or Yahoo, was the brainchild of Stanford University students Jerry Yang and David Filo. It all started in the month of February 1994 when they posted a list of their favourite sites on the web. By April 1994, Yahoo came into existence, offering directory-style listings of important websites.

Eventually, it revamped itself time and again, developing into a web portal providing search, news, sports, entertainment, email, instant messaging, et al. Despite encountering stiff competition from numerous websites of the same era, Yahoo went on to expand its services and still continues to rule the online world.

The other important moments in this list will be talked about in consecutive blogs. Watch this space to know more about how the web became what it is today.

One Big, Happy Internet Family

When we talk of the World Wide Web, the use of names like Google, Yahoo and Microsoft is inevitable. These three giant corporations are easily the most ubiquitous of the millions of entities entangled in this web. They are growing, and how! Whether it is a web portal, or software technologies, these companies have made acquisitions left, right and centre.

Shelving out billions every year, Google, Yahoo and Microsoft have made sure that no other company manages to topple them from the top three positions they have held on to for ages now. Don't believe me? Check out this list of prominent acquisitions made by these three companies in the last decade.

Google
Founded by Stanford University students Larry Page and Sergey Brin in the year 1998.

• Picasa (2004)
• Stake in AOL (2005)
• YouTube (2006)
• Postini (2007)
• FeedBurner (2007)
  

Yahoo
Founded by Stanford University students Jerry Yang and David Filo in the year 1994.

• GeoCities (1999)
• Overture (2003)
• del.icio.us (2005)
• Flickr (2005)
• BuzzTracker (2007)
  

Microsoft
Founded by Harvard graduate Bill Gates in the year 1978.

• Vermeer Technologies (1996)
• Hotmail (1997)
• DesktopStandard Corporation (2006)
• Parlano (2007)
• Jellyfish.com (2007)
  

Apart from these acquisitions, these companies have, time and again, developed or founded their own web applications for users worldwide. It won't be an understatement to say that every second website or web programme available on the web is a part of this one big, happy Internet family!