Google and IBM: Revenue and Profit Honks Sounded
April 17, 2014
At my age, I don’t own stocks. I don’t own anything because life in rural Kentucky is simple. The news about Google’s and IBM’s most recent financial results struck me as an MBA discussion group problem.
IBM issued “IBM Reports 2014 First Quarter Results.” What surprises did the $100 billion giant sprint on me? In a nutshell, declining revenues and profits. The bright spots were IBM’s consulting revenues and the company’s cloud computing. Other parts of the business were less robust. Overall IBM faces major challenges in hardware where no easy fix seems evident. Search as manifested in the Watson initiative will have to deliver.
In “Google Inc. Announces First Quarter 2014 Results” made clear that the Google was able to pump up its revenue. I noted the word “great” as Google’s way of describing the last 12 weeks’ financial performance. I noted that profit was down. Explanations included accountants being accountants and acquisitions. For me, the shift to mobile and the now-familiar dependence on one major revenue stream were important. Google may have to do more to keep up the appearance that it is the same super star that burst upon the scene more than a decade ago. Aging pro athletes and Hollywood starlets know the drill well. More effort goes into staying young at an increasingly higher cost. Is search as Google defines it up to the task of paying for personal trainers and plastic surgeons?
Could this be a group activity for tomorrow’s future business leaders? Here’s a question I know I would struggle to address:
What steps would your team recommend to generate more revenue and increase profit over the next quarter? The next nine months? Identify key assumptions for the cost benefit of your recommendations.
Identifying options that address a looming crunch in operational costs is easy. Implementing actions is likely to be more difficult. Pro athletes slow down. Hollywood stars age. Time and cost are challenges in the near term and the future.
Will MBAs and management work their magic? I suppose executives at each company can query their firms’ respective search engines for answers. Google’s information will be sponsored, and IBM’s will be a game show winner.
Stephen E Arnold, April 17, 2014
Imagine the Internet without Search Engines
April 17, 2014
Centrifuge Systems proposes an interesting idea in “Big Data Discovery Without Link Analysis Is Like The Web Without Google.” Centrifuge Systems asks readers of the short article to imagine using the Internet without a search engine. How would we locate information? It would be similar to the librarian’s favorite description of the Internet all the contents of a library spilled on the floor. The article continues to explain that big data without link analysis works the same as the Internet without a search engine.
What is link analysis?
“You can view link analysis as a data discovery technique that reveals the structure and content of information by representing it as a set of interconnected objects. When combined with a visual representation, an investigator can quickly gain an understanding of the strength of relationships and the frequency of contacts and immediately discover new associations. Link analysis offers an intuitive alternative to the traditional relational database formats and BI tools without deep technical expertise.”
It is a convincing analogy. To increase a potential client’s interest, Centrifuge Systems offers a Data Discovery Challenge, where the client is given a free solution. In other terms, it’s a free estimate for services. Big data is full of analytics, but has anyone other than Centrifuge Systems offer rich link analysis?
Whitney Grace, April 17, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
IBMs ICAwES Red Book Available
April 17, 2014
The article on IBM.com titled Building Enterprise Search Solutions Using IBM Content Analytics with Enterprise Search involves IBM rolling out information about ICAwES. That excellent acronym stands for IBM® Content Analytics with Enterprise Search, as you may have guessed. It allows for customized synonym dictionaries for search, annotators, and the integration of diverse kinds of repositories. The abstract explains,
“With ICAwES enterprise search solutions, you can integrate fields from multiple content repositories to create a single, integrated user search experience. In addition, the enterprise search solutions can use fields and facets in various ways to create diverse views of your search result set, thus helping you identify the hidden meaning of your unstructured content. This IBM Redbooks® Solution Guide explains, from a high level, how to build enterprise search solutions using ICAwES.”
A red book is available through IBM Redbooks. It offers information on using the “text classification capability”, the “LanguageWare Resource Workbench” and “IBM Content Assessment”. It is aimed at IT architects and business users interested in expanding their usage and improving customer satisfaction and business operations, all interesting information. The reference to the “billion dollar baby Watson” appears in the footer, but not in the explanation of the ICAwES.
Chelsea Kerwin, April 17, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Microsoft Recalls SharePoint 2013 SP1
April 17, 2014
There may be trouble in paradise for Microsoft. After release SharePoint 2013 to a good deal of positive press, there has been some frustration over the wait for the release of Service Pack 1. Now it seems that Microsoft has had to recall the long-awaited update. Read the details in the Redmond article, “Microsoft Recalls SharePoint 2013 SP1.”
The article begins:
“Microsoft on Thursday said it is blocking downloads of the recently released Service Pack 1 (SP1) for SharePoint Server 2013. Microsoft released SharePoint Server 2013 SP1 in late February or early March through the Microsoft Download Center. However, access to the bits has now been ‘deactivated.’ No information was provided about when an updated service pack would be available. At press time, attempting to download SP1 for SharePoint Server 2013 returns a page not found message.”
Stephen E. Arnold is a longtime search expert, and spends quite a bit of attention on SharePoint for his Web service, ArnoldIT.com. He finds that enterprise managers and end users are seeking greater ease of use and customization. Setbacks like a service pack recall must be devastating to enterprise teams that finally started to feel like they were gaining ground with SharePoint.
Emily Rae Aldridge, April 17, 2014
Litigation Software dtSearch Demo
April 16, 2014
The dtSearch Desktop Demonstration Video on nlsblog.org shows how to setup and search with dtSearch for Windows. The 12 minute video begins with an introduction to dtSearch, which is able to “recognize text in over 200 common file types.” By indexing the locations of words in different files, dtSearch is able to build an almost limitless index of documents. The demo walks through the setup of dtSearch. After naming the index,
“It is important to keep in mind that when we add items here, dtSearch is not creating copies… but links to those files. A good practice is to put the files and folder that we want to run searches on into a single centralized location, before we create the index… all we need to do is add this discovery folder, and the subfolders and files will be automatically included…dtSearch reads the text in the linked files and creates a searchable words list.”
Then you are able to search which index to search through, and limit it to one case, or all cases. The word appears with a number, show how often it appears in the index. Then you can add the keyword to the search request to find the documents in which the word appears. You are able to preview a document, copy a file, and create a search report. The demo goes into great detail about all of the search options, and should certainly be viewed in full to learn the best methods, but it does not provide metrics for the time required to build the initial index or update it. These metrics are useful.
Chelsea Kerwin, April 16, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Bing Basics, Search Tips to Search Better
April 16, 2014
The article titled Master Bing and the Internet with This Guide to Search Engine Operators on Windows Phone Central focuses on “advanced operator references” to refine Bing search. Anyone who had to write a research essay in a freshman composition class may have had a similar lesson from their friendly librarian, and this article covers the basics admirably. It begins with how to use “and” to request several search terms. The article continues,
“Sometimes when you are searching the web, you want a quick and easy way to find images of a certain size; sure, you could always use the image size buttons within Bing Image search, but buttons are for “noobs”! Use the “ImageSize:” operator to quickly return images of certain dimensions. Valid search values are “small”, “medium”, and “large”. Example: “puppies imagesize:medium” – By typing this query into Bing, you will only receive image results of puppies that are categorized in the medium image size category.”
Other operator references are “contains” (for specific file types), “define” (for searching for a definition of the term), “ext” (also for specific file types, but even more limited), “feed” (for RSS feeds only), “filetype” (if you are bored with “ext”) and “language” (to request search results in a single language). Read the full article for more shortcuts and tips to master Bing search.
Chelsea Kerwin, April 16, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
SharePoint Opens Itself Up to Mobile Challenges Debate
April 16, 2014
Microsoft’s feelings have not been spared in the discussion of how late SharePoint was in coming to the mobile game. It seems as if they are digging themselves an ever-deepening hole. CMS Wire covers the latest news in their article, “Huddle Cofounder on SharePoint’s Mobile Challenges.”
The article begins:
“If Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella thought he was doing iPad users a favor by offering them Office support, all he accomplished was opening up a great big can of worms called collaboration, prompting some to argue that SharePoint has had its day. And while changes to Office don’t equate changes to SharePoint, the iPad launch spurred on a broader discussion amongst critics of the faults with SharePoint’s mobile collaboration capabilities.”
Stephen E. Arnold is a longtime leader in search and covers the latest search and enterprise news on his Web site, ArnoldIT.com. A lot of his recent SharePoint coverage has focused on mobile, but most of what SharePoint offers is mere catch-up compared to what users are expecting from consumer level technologies.
Emily Rae Aldridge, April 16, 2014
ArnoldIT Video: Search Brands Video
April 15, 2014
Whatever happened to Convera and the other four companies comprising the Top Five in enterprise search: Autonomy, Endeca, Fast Search & Transfer and Verity. The video also mentions Exalead and ISYS Search Software. The wrap up to the video points to three open source enterprise search options. For those who want to be reminded of the Golden Age of enterprise search, check out the free, six minute video from Stephen E Arnold, publisher of Beyond Search. Mr. Arnold is converting some of his research into brief, hopefully entertaining and useful free videos. You can access this short search history lesson at http://bit.ly/1etGExr. The next video in the series tackles the subject of buzzword, argot, jargon, lingo, and verbal baloney. What vendor is the leader in the linguistic linguini competition? The video will be available before the end of April. In the meantime, take a walk down memory lane and learn how Cornelius Vanderbilt obtained needed information in the early 19th century.
Kenneth Toth, April 15, 2014
How-To Guide for Amazon Search
April 15, 2014
The article on Search Engine Journal titled The Power of Amazon Search lays out the five main components of Amazon search for Amazon authors. The first is content, but the other four are more strategic. SEO experts are exceptional information managers, and this article is built around the components of sales, keywords, category, and reviews. It compares Google search to Amazon when it comes to keyword, and arrives at the following conclusion:
“The difference between doing a search on Google vs. Amazon is that with Amazon you do not want to rely on long tail keywords. Instead, you want to find the exact words people use when searching for a book. Aim for shorter phrases that reflect traditional book browsing. Think “Indian Cookbook” versus “Cookbook of traditional Indian dishes”. For example… when you type in the word Entrepreneur in Amazon there are 22,145 results? Comparatively, when you type in entrepreneurship there are 36,899 results.”
The category component builds on the keyword idea. Instead of opting for the broadest category, the article suggests narrowing your focus, and in turn your competition within a category. Similarly, the reviews component includes the advice to target the top reviewers, and aim for quality over quantity. It also links to Amazon’s Review Hall of Fame as a starting place.
Chelsea Kerwin, April 15, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Secrecy News Talks Declassification
April 15, 2014
Declassified records are an interesting element to the public. But there is more to declassification than simply putting them out there for the public to find. Findability and search play a role also. Secrecy News focuses on the topic in their blog entry, “Putting Declassified Records to Good Use.”
The article says:
“The final, climactic step in the declassification of government records is not the formal removal of classification markings or even the transfer of the declassified documents to public archives. The culmination of the declassification process is when the records are finally examined by an interested reader and their contents are absorbed into the body of public knowledge.”
Secrecy News is an FAS project on government secrecy. They provide documentary resources on secrecy, intelligence, and national security. Interested readers can subscribe for regular updates. Secrecy is a hot topic due to the Snowden case, but this blog has been in business for years, and offers a steady flow of information, even if not completely original in scope.
Emily Rae Aldridge, April 15, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
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