canuck - 1:26 pm on Apr 30, 2004 (gmt 0)

Canuck: Perhaps someone at G should compare click-through rates for results that showed a DMOZ cat... Powdork: Of course the ctr would be higher. Those listed in the Google directory received 6 lines of text whereas those without received four.

There's many ways to evaluate the usefulness of the DMOZ cats with all the data G has. Perhaps a better indicator of its usefulness would be time spent on a site with a DMOZ cat link compared to now without. I believe the cats allowed the user to make a more informed click, thus saving time. Of course only G's data can back any of this up...

It all comes down to searcher satisfaction, and just because people aren't clicking the DMOZ links doesn't mean they aren't useful.

Plus, there's the whole issue of aesthetics - the SERPS just look plain boring without the DMOZ links to add a little spice...