Is Google Dictating where to link

[mack]

It is fare to say without question that Google is by far the best search engine out there. Fast is catching up, AV is getting better but Google is still the NO1. From the start Google search was based on the very demographics of the web and the structure if the billions of links out there. Now it is getting to the stage where instead of the links effecting Google. Google dictates the links. People are scared to link because of the possible consequences. In a way this is good because it makes webmasters more likely to act responsible but surely the downside is that a search engine has such control over the entire structure of the Internet. One of the reasons that Google may be so popular and relevant is that they are carving a landscape that suits them. I think it is fare to say that if Google hadn’t made it so big the Internet would be a very different place. Possibly one of the reasons that other search engines are not doing so well is because the current Internet structure does not suite their algo.

At the end of the day we have to agree that Google does a good job of providing high quality relevant results to almost every query, but surely what the internet really needs is a serious contender to Google so that the internet can evolve more freely without having to worry so much about “is it safe for me to link from my own website”

[NFFC]

If you are being bullied then the best course of action is to fight back. To me it is simply a question of refusing to be dictated to and building sites in a way that *you* believe will be most benificial to your users. This has to be balanced with not drawing any penalties, in our case any penalties we have recieved were a result of over stepping the mark.

I don't think this is really a Google issue, all the SE's are the same, they have their own agenda which in many cases conflicts with that of the webmaster. A good SEO will be able to walk over the hot coals without getting their feet burnt [my feet are burnt to a cinder :)].

So, when faced with a bully it is best not to goad them but you still need to stand your ground.

Then again maybe the best action would be to get your retaliation in first. All imho.

[mack]

All good points and I aree that every search engine has it's own agenda. I just think we realy need a serious contender. Right now when you think link you probaly think page rank. Shouldent a link be a link. The entire foundation of the internet is indirectly related to page rank. Having said all this if it wasn't Google it would be another search engine. Right now I vote google :)

[NFFC]

>The entire foundation of the internet is indirectly related to page rank

hehe, we will have to disagree on that. There are 1/2 billion Internet users and growing, I'd bet on them collectively to guide the Internet in the direction *they* want. 50 PHD's don't stand much of a chance against the "army of the market" :)

At one time AV dominated, then it was maybe Ink, now we have Google, next...... my guess is Openfind.

[mack]

I think fast have what it takes. The only problem I see is that their search has nothing new on Google. The next big player in search will be the one that comes to the market with something new.

[caine]

[quote]At one time AV dominated, then it was maybe Ink, now we have Google, next...... my guess is Openfind.[/]b]

NFFC > you are more than welcome to the upcoming dominance of openfind, not even going to get into that one. hehe

There are still mainly players, like you Mack, i think Fast, definately is standing in the wings, waiting to step in and take the crown, though i would'nt discount, AV either, there theme focused, reindex impressed me. Teoma (AJ) i think is very much in contention in the future, but like fast, its waiting for a big slip, though pagerank is an excellant technology, it may also be a step too far by Google.

Another possiblity is if MSN, decide to get into the crawl/index game themselves, as they already have customers / searchers, they just don't have the capacity of keeping them.

[Brad]

I think both mack and NFFC are right. PR is a measure of popularity. But as in physics, you cannot measure something without changing it.

Google and other search engines that reward sites for links-in helped create a demand for it. So yes, the landscape has changed.

Any SE is controlling a scarce commodity: Traffic via listing popularity, and it is something we want very much; which is what kicks off the whole cat and mouse game. SEO's might have stepped over some lines but Goggle may have also stepped over the line.

But competitiors are now starting to get their act together. It may be that Google has already reached it's apex.

[mack]

Has any other SE even had the market share that Google has now?

[caine]

Its hard to determine even approxiametly what google's web presence is. lots of claims!

Webcrawler was massive a few years ago. Excite was large, AV, Yahoo using INK.