Google on the Path to Ruin

November 11, 2010

I almost broke into song. The tune from The Music Man echoed. Harold Hill, the scam artist with a fatal weakness for hot librarians, sings:

But just as I say it takes judgment, brains and maturity
to score in a balk-line game
I say that any boob can take and shove a ball in a pocket
And I call that sloth,
the first big step on the road to the depths of degradation…

Super pundit and media debunker John C. Dvorak identifies a sour not at Google. Navigate to “Google’s Inevitable Ruin Begins.” Here’s the passage that caught my attention:

Does Google think it needs to add these dreadful features because Bing is breathing down its neck? It must, since the changes to the image page are right out of Bing. Curiously, the old MSN Live Search did it better than Bing. Meanwhile Yahoo, which licenses the Bing engine, has maintained more practical image results and is now superior to both Google and Bing. Go figure! It doesn’t take a genius to see that Google is beginning to make huge judgment errors. And I can assure you, this image fiasco isn’t a mere or minor diversion. It’s a sign of bad things to come. An omen.

Harsh. The Google, as I recall, is all about speed. Google has been adamant that its service is fast. My view is that “controlled chaos” is producing some interesting outputs. The Google has made mistakes before. Remember Web Accelerator or Buzz?

The decline of Google, based on my analyses of Google technical documents and patent applications, began in the fall of 2006 and accelerated in the first half of 2007. By July 2007, the Google was having to work the sails to keep the crew’s controlled chaos in check. Management failed. What’s unfolding now is little more than visible signs that a systemic problem is disrupting functions.

Forget Google’s wacky Girafa-inspired page preview. Forget the dorky image display. Ignore the silly Google Instant. Focus on the problems of Google’s big plays. Steve jobs won’t let me forget that Android is fractured compared to Apple’s iOS. I learned first hand that the new Google TV is a geek’s delight. Anyone over 65 will be flummoxed by the options. I am 66 and was clueless at Best Buy last week end. Google is taking the Department of Interior to court. Now that’s a move that will inspire procurement teams to do what Google wants in my opinion. Google joked that those offended by Street View to move. Ha ha ha. The UK officials are not amused. Google is fighting legal battles on many fronts. I gave up trying to keep track.

The digital Black Death has taken root. The critters with the disease scurried into Google’s nest four years ago. Management doctors are needed. Is there an emergency room big enough for Googzilla?

Stephen E Arnold, November 11, 2010

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Comments

One Response to “Google on the Path to Ruin”

  1. Google’s death throes? « JURN blog on November 11th, 2010 5:37 am

    […] commentary on the Dvorak article at Beyond Search. He thinks the article harsh, but concludes… “What’s unfolding now is little […]

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