Alleged Google-Killer Omnity Is Now Free
January 31, 2017
Omnity is a search engine designed to deliver more useful results than one obtains from outfits like Google. The company, according to “Omnity Is a Semantic Mapping Search Engine That’s Now Offered for Free”,
…sometimes there’s a need for another kind of search, namely to locate documents that aren’t explicitly linked or otherwise referenced between each other but where each contains the same rare terms. In those cases, a method called “semantic mapping” becomes valuable, and there’s now a free option that does just that…
My query for “Omnity” returned these results:
When I checked the links in the central display and scanned the snippet in the left hand sidebar, I did not locate many relevant results. I noted a number of NASA related hits. A bit of checking allowed me to conclude that a company called Elumenati once offered product called Omnity.
If you want to experiment with the system, point your browser thing at www.omnity.io. You will have to register. Once you verify via an email, you are good to go.
We don’t have an opinion yet because we don’t know the scope of the index nor the method of determining relevance for an entity. The “semantic” jargon doesn’t resonate, but that may be our ignorance, ineptitude, or some simple interaction of our wetware.
Omnity may have some work to do before creating fear at the GOOG.
Stephen E Arnold, January 31, 2017
Rise of Fake News Should Have All of Us Questioning Our Realities
January 31, 2017
The article on NBC titled Five Tips on How to Spot Fake News Online reinforces the catastrophic effects of “fake news,” or news that flat-out delivers false and misleading information. It is important to separate “fake news” from ideologically-slanted news sources and the mess of other issues dragging any semblance of journalistic integrity through the mud, but the article focuses on a key point. The absolute best practice is to take in a variety of news sources. Of course, when it comes to honest-to-goodness “fake news,” we would all be better off never reading it in the first place. The article states,
A growing number of websites are espousing misinformation or flat-out lies, raising concerns that falsehoods are going viral over social media without any mechanism to separate fact from fiction. And there is a legitimate fear that some readers can’t tell the difference. A study released by Stanford University found that 82 percent of middle schoolers couldn’t spot authentic news sources from ads labeled as “sponsored content.” The disconnect between true and false has been a boon for companies trying to turn a quick profit.
So how do we separate fact from fiction? Checking the web address and avoiding .lo and .co.com addresses, researching the author, differentiating between blogging and journalism, and again, relying on a variety of sources such as print, TV, and digital. In a time when even the President-to-be, a man with the best intelligence in the world at his fingerprints, chooses to spread fake news (aka nonsense) via Twitter that he won the popular vote (he did not) we all need to step up and examine the information we consume and allow to shape our worldview.
Chelsea Kerwin, January 31, 2017
Composite Software: From Search to Data Virtualization
January 30, 2017
I was deleting some of the old enterprise search and content processing data I had gathered over the years. I came across a text file which noted that Cisco Systems bought Composite Software in 2013. My recollection was that I had a screen shot of Composite’s search and retrieval interface. I dug around and located this graphic:
Composite was founded in 2008, and at that time it was positioning its technology as an enterprise search solution. I was no longer compiling information for my Enterprise Search Report, which had devolved to a content management type outfit.
I did have in my files this diagram of what Composite’s search system morphed into:
Search is still in the architecture but it is called a Query Engine and includes traditional search functions; for example, a federation component, rules (which are very expensive to maintain in my experience), metadata, and editorial management now called “Governance.”
What’s interesting to me is that Composite figured out that search was not exactly a booming business. The company wrapped itself in next-generation features like Discovery and an Endeca-type “Studio” to create interfaces.
The sale of the company as a “data virtualization” vendor to Cisco took place in July 2013. According to a ZDNet write up, Cisco paid about $180 million for the five year old company. What I found interesting was the description of Composite in “
Composite provides software that connects different kinds of data on a network, including cloud and big data sources, and consolidates it as if it were in one place. In doing so, it allows companies to better visualize their data in order to make more accurate real-time decisions.
One would not know that Composite was an enterprise search vendor which pulled of a successful repositioning. Then Composite was able to sell the company to Cisco Systems, which had dabbled in search before this deal went down. At one time, I thought that Cisco would embrace open source search software.
Net net: Cisco got a search system for a fraction of the price HP paid for Autonomy. Composite is one of a small number of search vendors able to recognize the dead end that plain old search became. That’s important because slapping the word “semantic” on a keyword search system and shopping for a buyer may not be very productive.
In fact, it raises the question, “Why are some enterprise search vendors still pitching search?” Composite’s approach suggests that there are other ways to package keyword search and add some sizzle to what otherwise may be a cold chunk of stew meat.
Stephen E Arnold, January 30, 2017
30 Content Filters Illustrated
January 30, 2017
Short honk. I came across an illustration of how content filtering works. The popular name for this function is “filter bubble.”
Source: “The Filter Bubble.”
The idea is that smart online systems note what a user does online and shapes the information presented to that user. The procedures is described by various names; for example, filtering, personalizing, shaping, tailoring, customizing, etc. Here’s the illustration that makes the process clear. I found the image in “The Filter Bubble.” Kudos to whoever crafted the diagram.
Stephen E Arnold, January 30, 2017
Some Web Hosting Firms Overwhelmed by Scam Domains
January 27, 2017
An article at Softpedia should be a wakeup call to anyone who takes the issue of online security lightly—“One Crook Running Over 120 Tech Support Scam Domains on GoDaddy.” Writer Catalin Cimpanu explains:
A crook running several tech support scam operations has managed to register 135 domains, most of which are used in his criminal activities, without anybody preventing him from doing so, which shows the sad state of Web domain registrations today. His name and email address are tied to 135 domains, as MalwareHunterTeam told Softpedia. Over 120 of these domains are registered and hosted via GoDaddy and have been gradually registered across time.
The full list is available at the end of this article (text version here), but most of the domains look shady just based on their names. Really, how safe do you feel navigating to ‘security-update-needed-sys-filescorrupted-trojan-detected[.]info’? How about ‘personal-identity-theft-system-info-compromised[.]info’?
Those are ridiculously obvious, but it seems to be that GoDaddy’s abuse department is too swamped to flag and block even these flagrant examples. At least that hosting firm does have an abuse department; many, it seems, can only be reached through national CERT teams. Other hosting companies, though, respond with the proper urgency when abuse is reported—Cimpanu holds up Bluehost and PlanetHoster as examples. That is something to consider for anyone who thinks the choice of hosting firm is unimportant.
We are reminded that educating ourselves is the best protection. The article links to a valuable tech support scam guide provided by veteran Internet security firm Malwarebytes, and suggests studying the wikis or support pages of other security vendors.
Cynthia Murrell, January 27, 2017
Looking for Insight and Universal Search: Dip in the Insightpool
January 26, 2017
I read “Insightpool Launches World’s Largest Influencer Search Engine.” I think I know what an influencer is. That is a person to whom others turn for guidance, insight, a phone call, or invitations to parties. I also know what an “influence peddler” is. That’s a person who delivers introductions, pressure, content marketing in various forms, and maybe for enough cash a good word to a really important person.
How does one find these folks? Easy. Use the University search system for influencers.
I learned:
With Universal Search, brand marketers can search for influencers across 100 social networks including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and other niche social communities such as Yelp!, Reddit, and Weibo. Additionally, they can view key insights by influencer segment to understand follower size and reach, conversation sentiment, frequency of activity and other characteristics. Marketers not only save significant time in selecting the right influencer, but also gain more detailed information about the influencers most likely to actively engage in their strategic campaigns. This leads to higher performance and conversions.
Okay. This is slightly different from getting a meeting with a senator’s administrative aide or wrangling a face to face with one of Google’s vice presidents of engineering.
The top influencer at Insightpool said:
“This is the largest influencer database on the planet. Other influencer platforms offer fewer than 100,000 at most. The real benefit with Universal Search lies in its pure simplicity — using a familiar search bar to find the most relevant influencers. It used to take days to identify the right people for a campaign. Now it takes seconds.”
You can run your queries using the “influencer marketing platform.” Tap into a search system that
blends together our mission of connecting brands and people on social media. We are not just an intelligent Influencer Marketing platform, we are not just a tech company, we are creators and innovators dedicated to revolutionizing the way brands build relationships and create measurable results through social channels. Since inception in 2013, our customers have helped refine the product roadmap, which has dramatically expanded to pioneering concepts such as identification, prediction, automated social drip marketing campaigns, nurturing and creating measurable insights that give brands results and revenue.
There you go. A search engine for those who want real information.
Stephen E Arnold, January 26, 2017
Voice Search: An Amazon and Google Dust Up
January 26, 2017
I read “Amazon and Google Fight Crucial Battle over Voice Recognition.” I like the idea that Amazon and Google are macho brawlers. I think of folks who code as warriors. Hey, just because some programmers wear their Comicon costumes to work in Mountain View and Seattle, some may believe that code masters are wimps. Obviously they are not. The voice focused programmers are tough, tough dudes and dudettes.
I learned from a “real” British newspaper that two Viking-inspired warrior cults are locked in a battle. The fate of the voice search world hangs in the balance. Why is this dust up covered in more depth on Entertainment Tonight or the talking head “real” news television programs.
I learned:
The retail giant has a threatening lead over its rival with the Echo and Alexa, as questions remain over how the search engine can turn voice technology into revenue.
What? If there is a battle, it seems that Amazon has a “threatening lead.” How will Google respond? Online advertising? New products like the Pixel which, in some areas, is not available due to production and logistics issues?
No. Here’s the scoop from the Fleet Street experts:
The risk to Google is that at the moment, almost everyone starting a general search at home begins at Google’s home page on a PC or phone. That leads to a results page topped by text adverts – which help generate about 90% of Google’s revenue, and probably more of its profits. But if people begin searching or ordering goods via an Echo, bypassing Google, that ad revenue will fall. And Google has cause to be uncomfortable. The shift from desktop to mobile saw the average number of searches per person fall as people moved to dedicated apps; Google responded by adding more ads to both desktop and search pages, juicing revenues. A shift that cut out the desktop in favor of voice-oriented search, or no search at all, would imperil its lucrative revenue stream.
Do I detect a bit of glee in this passage? Google is responding in what is presented as a somewhat predictable way:
Google’s natural reaction is to have its own voice-driven home system, in Home. But that poses a difficulty, illustrated by the problems it claims to solve. At the device’s launch, one presenter from the company explained how it could speak the answer to questions such as “how do you get wine stains out of a rug?” Most people would pose that question on a PC or mobile, and the results page would offer a series of paid-for ads. On Home, you just get the answer – without ads.
Hasn’t Google read “The Art of War” which advises:
“Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.”
My hunch is that this “real” news write up is designed to poke the soft underbelly of Googzilla. That sounds like a great idea. Try this with your Alexa, “Alexa, how do I hassle Google?”
Stephen E Arnold, January 26, 2017
Declassified CIA Data Makes History Fun
January 26, 2017
One thing I have always heard to make kids more interested in learning about the past is “making it come alive.” Textbooks suck at “making anything come alive” other than naps. What really makes history a reality and more interesting are documentaries, eyewitnesses, and actual artifacts. The CIA has a wealth of history and History Tech shares with us some rare finds: “Tip Of The Week: 8 Decades Of Super Cool Declassified CIA Maps.” While the CIA Factbook is one of the best history and geography tools on the Web, the CIA Flickr account is chock full of declassified goodies, such as spy tools, maps, and more.
The article’s author shared that:
The best part of the Flickr account for me is the eight decades of CIA maps starting back in the 1940s prepared for the president and various government agencies. These are perfect for helping provide supplementary and corroborative materials for all sorts of historical thinking activities. You’ll find a wide variety of map types that could also easily work as stand-alone primary source.
These declassified maps were actually used by CIA personnel, political advisors, and presidents to make decisions that continue to impact our lives today. The CIA flickr account is only one example of how the Internet is a wonderful tool for making history come to life. Although you need to be cautious about where the information comes from since these are official CIA records they are primary sources.
Whitney Grace, January 26, 2017
Google Needs a Time-Out for Censorship, But Who Will Enforce Regulations
January 26, 2017
The article on U.S. News and World Report titled The New Censorship offers a list of the ways in which Google is censoring its content, and builds a compelling argument for increased regulation of Google. Certain items on the list, such as pro-life music videos being removed from YouTube, might have you rolling your eyes, but the larger point is that Google simply has too much power over what people see, hear, and know. The most obvious problem is Google’s ability to squash a business simply by changing its search algorithm, but the myriad ways that it has censored content is really shocking. The article states,
No one company, which is accountable to its shareholders but not to the general public, should have the power to instantly put another company out of business or block access to any website in the world. How frequently Google acts irresponsibly is beside the point; it has the ability to do so, which means that in a matter of seconds any of Google’s 37,000 employees with the right passwords or skills could laser a business or political candidate into oblivion…
At times the article sounds like a sad conservative annoyed that the most influential company in the world tends toward liberal viewpoints. Hearing white male conservatives complain about discrimination is always a little off-putting, especially when you have politicians like Rand Paul still defending the right of businesses to refuse service based on skin color. But from a liberal standpoint, just because Google often supports left-wing causes like gun control or the pro-choice movement doesn’t mean that it deserves a free ticket to decide what people are exposed to. Additionally, the article points out that the supposed “moral stands” made by Google are often revealed to be moneymaking or anticompetitive schemes. Absolute power corrupts no matter who yields it, and companies must be scrutinized to protect the interests of the people.
Chelsea Kerwin, January 26, 2017
The SEO, PPC Baloney Sandwich: Total Search Can Be Dangerous
January 25, 2017
I love the clever folks’ ability to make language do tricks. I read “Unleashing the Potential of ‘Total’ Search.” The write up itself strikes me as a bit of content marketing. The objective is to whip up enthusiasm for a Breakfast Briefing “event.” I am okay with PR. I am not okay with taking a nifty word like search and morphing it into one of those online advertising concepts which confuse and lure the unwary.
The SEO and PPC baloney dog. It can be your pal and your meal ticket… if someone bites.
Total search, according to the write up, is “a holistic approach to search marketing which considers SEO [search engine optimization, that old relevance killer] and PPC [pay for click, that buy traffic approach pioneered by GoTo.com years ago] as a single channel.”
Search has a slightly different meaning to some folks here in down home rural Kentucky. Dictionary.com offers this definition:
1. to go or look through (a place, area, etc.)carefully in order to find something missing or lost:
They searched the woods for the missing child. I searched the desk for the letter.
2. to look at or examine (a person, object, etc.)carefully in order to find something concealed:
He searched the vase for signs of a crack. The police searched the suspect for weapons.
3. to explore or examine in order to discover:
They searched the hills for gold.
4. to look at, read, or examine (a record, writing,collection, repository, etc.) for information:
to search a property title; He searched the courthouse for a record of the deed to the land.
TheFreeDictionary.com says:
1. To move around in, go through, or look through in an effort to find something: searched the room for her missing earring; searched the desk for a pen.
2. To make a careful examination or investigation of; probe: search one’s conscience for the right thing to do.
3. Law To examine (a person or property) for the purpose of discovering evidence of a crime.
Verb transitive
1. To search a place or space in order to find something: searched all afternoon for my wallet.
2. To make a careful examination or investigation: searching for the right words to say.
3. Law To make a search for evidence.
noun
1. An act of searching.
2. Law The examination of a person or property, as by a law enforcement officer, for the purpose of discovering evidence of a crime.
3. A control mechanism on an audio or video player that rapidly advances or reverses the playing of a recording.
I suppose the inclusion of the word “total” allows the word search to become so much more to the wizard who is defining “total search” as marketing and ad buys.
The “total search” write up explains that “We live in a C2B world.” That means, I believe, “consumer to business world.”
Sorry. I don’t live in that world. I live in a world in which finding specific information, determining which information is either accurate or reasonably credible, and then analyzing that information in an effort to become more informed is important.
Presenting off point, inaccurate information is not my cup of tea.
How does one deliver “total search”? Here’s the “answer”:
There are several ways that a brand can realize the full potential of this approach. Some are fairly simple to implement, such as combining keyword research or aligning landing page testing. These can be merged into a single stream of work by your internal teams or agencies and will lead to immediate returns. Others (unifying leadership and introducing one search objective, for example) are likely to be more involved and may require a radical step-change in your organizational structure, driven from the top down. There are many other ways, which, in combination, can bring more benefits than the sum of the individual parts and drive significant incremental gains. Those brands that embrace a Total Search approach will be the ones that will more frequently be able to solve consumers’ problems and ultimately emerge successful.
There you go.
Think about this type of “search” in these three contexts:
- Your child is ill. One of the medical researchers at the hospital where doctors are trying to figure out how to address the disease presenting itself use “total search” to determine a course of action. Forget that baloney about precision and recall when searching the medical literature. Go for the content marketed drugs and the information delivered by an online ad. Care much about your child’s health? What’s your answer, gentle reader?
- You are involved in an accident. Three parties are involved, but only you have been injured. Your attorney is struggling to determine what coverage your automobile insurance provides. One of the other parties to the accident has decided to sue you even though your semi autonomous automobile was unable to avoid the collision caused by a vehicle hitting your car from behind. The momentum pushed your vehicle into a day care center van. Are you expecting your attorney to use free online Web search systems to locate legal information germane to your particular situation? How do you select your attorney? An ad supported online search?
- You are involved in a government project. You have to assemble information about a specific bad actor in a specific location. Your input will have a direct impact on the success or failure of the mission. This means that young men and women may die if you provide information that is not on point, accurate, and valid for that particular action. Are you prepared to rely on digital systems and content manipulated to get you to read information which is swizzled and promoted?
In each of these situations, the silliness and danger associated with “total search” becomes apparent to me. If you think that “total search” is just the ticket for you, you frighten me. A tainted baloney sandwich with slabs of SEO and PPC is not something too appealing to me. You can explain your preference to your ailing child, the attorney muffing your case, and the parents of the young woman who was killed due to your informational ignorance. Unleash your critical thinking, gentle reader.
Stephen E Arnold, January 25, 2017
-
- Subscribe to Beyond Search
Feature archive
News archive
-
