Written by Alex Hughart
May 4, 2007
The Paradox of Content & Catalog
> Forbes has up an article on the consequences of being dumped
> into a claimed 'supplemental index', also known as 'Google Hell'...
> So, should the SEO be liable for causing the mess, and
> shouldn't this industry have some form of standards?
- John Smart, LED Digest 2401
This whole thing is very entertaining! Yet another episode in the Google drama covering anything from unseemly employee blogs to the instances of international censorship plus the money that is, somehow, always involved. In absence of any real contribution to this topic, I'll take the easy road and try to "put things in perspective" (don't roll your eyes.)
As humans, we are compelled to compile and share knowledge, an
impossible task without a system of storing and retrieving the
information. In a way, we always lived in an "information age", the
only difference being the informational systems and media in place at a
given time. But, we wouldn't be who we are if we didn't add an extra
component to this noble "gather, share" process and that is to
"manipulate".
When it comes to online search, it takes three to tango:
user-catalog-content or, the other way around, if you prefer. Right
now, as it seems, search engines as catalogers are ahead of us, both as
users and content providers. They are the informational rocket that we
(willingly) strapped ourselves to. This current imbalance and lack of
control on two sides, created a paradox wherein a catalog becomes more
important than the information being cataloged.
One can presume that the online search will naturally come to its place
like any other eco-system. Users will be smarter users, content will be
better tagged, engines will become more transparent .. Eventually,
laws, ethics, social norms and business itself will catch up and there
will be little room left for testing boundaries. Soon enough, Google
will become sedated like an ancient library so let's enjoy the ride
while it lasts.
Alex Hughart
Bon Savon
 this post appeared in
LED Digest 2403: The Paradox of Content & Catalog
 |
