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Search Engine Roundtable

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  Daily Search Forum Recap: January 27, 2012

  Fetched: January 28th, 2012, 1:01am CET by Barry Schwartz

  Tags:  Search Forum Recap  

  Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.

  Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

  • Video Recap of Weekly Search Buzz :: January 27, 2012
    Busy week in search this week - with Google confirming a Panda update, which I labeled 3.2. Bing seems to really love regional sites in their regional indexes. Google added a bunch of new features to Webmaster Tools...
  • Pay To Get Business Photos In Google Places With Trusted Photographers
    Back in May, Google launched Google Business Photos to help businesses make their Google Places listings more attractive by showing off the inside of your stores. Google said their has been such high demand that they
  • Google Users Don't Seem Upset With New Privacy Policy
    Google announced a new privacy policy earlier this week that goes into effect in about a month. The news sites and stations are having a field day with it - covering how "evil" it is. In fact...
  • Bug: pubCenter Payments Marked As Undeliverable
    There are several reports in the Microsoft Advertising Forum that publishers think they are not going to be paid because the payment area shows their payments as "undeliverable." These publishers use Microsoft pubCenter to monetize their sites and applications...
  • Google Disappoints Users Again With Story Of Illegal Ads
    Google, once a loved and respected company, is starting to lose that love...
  • Google's Brick Desk
    About 6 months ago, when we started looking for new office space, the idea of making our entry area out of all bricks came to mind, including the front desk. Avinash Kaushik posted pictures of Google

  Other Great Search Forum Threads:

  • Google Maps for Android - Update 6.2, Google Maps Help
  • Google+: new safety enhancements, now available for teens â¦, Bradley Horowitz - Google+
  • Give Feedback and Ask Questions: New Video Manager, YouTube Help
  • Twitter Can Now Withhold Content From Users In A Specific Country, WebmasterWorld
  • Update: Videos Not Buffering While Paused, YouTube Help

  
  

• 

  Video Recap of Weekly Search Buzz :: January 27, 2012

  Fetched: January 28th, 2012, 1:01am CET by Barry Schwartz

  Tags:  Search Buzz Video Round Recap  

  Busy week in search this week - with Google confirming a Panda update, which I labeled 3.2. Bing seems to really love regional sites in their regional indexes. Google added a bunch of new features to Webmaster Tools, from testing sitemaps, new reports for sitemaps, a new definition for "average" position in the reports and new and improved download options. Google also added a spam report form for rich snippet spamming. I asked a question that got me in trouble, I asked, is on page SEO dead. Google added public alerts to Google Maps. Microsoft pubCenter has a bug where it shows some payments as undeliverable. Google has a new consolidated privacy policy, but it does look scary. Will the privacy policy lead to people canceling their Google accounts? I doubt it. That was this week in search at the Search Engine Roundtable.

  Make sure to subscribe to our video feed or subscribe directly on iTunes to be notified of these updates and download the video in the background. Here is the YouTube version of the feed:

  For the original iTunes version, click here.

  Search Topics of Discussion:

  • Confirmed: Google Panda 3.2 Update
  • Bing Favoring Regional Sites In Country Specific Versions
  • New: Test Sitemaps & Googlebot Mobile In Google Webmaster Tools
  • Google Updates Average Position In Webmaster Tools & Analytics
  • New Improved Download Options For Google Webmaster Tools
  • Spam Reporting For Google Rich Snippets
  • Is On Page SEO Dead With Google?
  • Google Maps Public Alerts
  • Bug: pubCenter Payments Marked As Undeliverable
  • Google's New Privacy Policy Is Easier But Scarier
  • Google Users Don't Seem Upset With New Privacy Policy

  Please do subscribe via iTunes or on your favorite RSS reader. Don't forget to comment below with the right answer and good luck!

  
  

• 

  Pay To Get Business Photos In Google Places With Trusted Photographers

  Fetched: January 28th, 2012, 1:01am CET by Barry Schwartz

  Tags:  Google maps  

  Back in May, Google launched Google Business Photos to help businesses make their Google Places listings more attractive by showing off the inside of your stores.

  Google said their has been such high demand that they have decided to open up a new program to let any business participate at a fee.

  Google now lists trusted photographers in many locations around America where you can call them and schedule an appointment. But you have to pay the photographers and negotiate the price with them. These are not Googlers, they are third party photographers that Google "trusts."

  Several photographers want to know how they can get on the list of trusted photographers. The way to do that is to fill out this form and wait.

  Google added:

  This self-serve model makes for easier scheduling and quicker turnaround, while also supporting the local photographers in your community. During the hour it should take for the shoot, you can collaborate with the photographer about how best to display and capture your business. When finished, the photographer will upload the images to Google, and shortly thereafter, youâll see 360-degree panoramic views of your business on Google.com, Google Maps and on your Google Places listing.

  More on this at Techmeme.

  Forum discussion at Google Maps Help and Google Places Help.

  
  

• 

  Google Users Don't Seem Upset With New Privacy Policy

  Fetched: January 28th, 2012, 1:01am CET by Barry Schwartz

  Tags:  Google News Finances  

  Google announced a new privacy policy earlier this week that goes into effect in about a month. The news sites and stations are having a field day with it - covering how "evil" it is. In fact, I just saw something on the local news with my wife about it and it was pretty serious.

  But outside of all the news coverage and bloggers acting very upset with Google about it - are Google users all that upset?

  The Washington Post ran a poll for their users asking if you will cancel your Google account and 65% currently are saying yes.

  As Chris Sherman notes that the "picture isn't so clear." He looks at Google suggestions to see if people are searching on how to cancel their accounts and it appears not.

  I checked the the Google Web Search Help forum and there are barely any complaints. Which I find to be a really good indicator if the actual user is upset or not. I actually found a single complaint in the Google Web Search Help forum - that is it.

  So are Google searchers really upset? Maybe they aren't fully aware? I would be surprised by that. Google is blasting the news on every page a Google user visits. The news and media are plastering the evil nature of this everywhere. How can they not be aware? Maybe I don't give the Google user enough credit. :)

  Forum discussion at Google Web Search Help.

  
  

• 

  Bug: pubCenter Payments Marked As Undeliverable

  Fetched: January 28th, 2012, 1:01am CET by Barry Schwartz

  Tags:  Microsoft ContentAds  

  There are several reports in the Microsoft Advertising Forum that publishers think they are not going to be paid because the payment area shows their payments as "undeliverable."

  These publishers use Microsoft pubCenter to monetize their sites and applications. pubCenter is Microsoft's version of Google AdSense.

  Do not worry, says Microsoft representative Ricky Poole, this is just a user interface bug and you will be paid in time. Ricky Poole said:

  We are aware payments are showing as undeliverable within the pubCenter UI for most of our international developers; this is unfortunately an error within the UI. If your account has been processed successfully for payment, you should see this reflected in your selected payout method by Friday, February 3, 2012. If after this time, you do not see the payout come through to you, please contact psupport@microsoft.com with your account number to determine if there are additional items needed to validate your payment methods.

  It is our goal to provide you with clear guidance and information as we work to enhance our platform. We appreciate your feedback on how we can work together to create a positive, sustainable monetization experience.

  Thank you and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

  So if you see this - relax and be patient and you should get the money due to you.

  Forum discussion at Microsoft Advertising Forum.

  
  

• 

  Google Disappoints Users Again With Story Of Illegal Ads

  Fetched: January 28th, 2012, 1:01am CET by Barry Schwartz

  Tags:  Google News Finances  

  Google, once a loved and respected company, is starting to lose that love, respect and trust from their users. From privacy issues to openly selling illegal ads and now to being busted by a con man.

  The Wall Street Journal had a story named Con Artist Starred in Sting That Cost Google Millions. Here are some excerpts from the story:

  Wearing leg irons and guarded by federal agents, David Whitaker posed as an agent for online drug dealers in dozens of recorded phone calls and email exchanges with Google sales executives, spending $200,000 in government money for ads selling narcotics, steroids and other controlled substances.

  Mr. Page, now Google's chief executive, knew about the illicit conduct, said Mr. Neronha, the U.S. attorney for Rhode Island who led the multiagency federal task force that conducted the sting. "We simply know from the documents we reviewed and witnesses we interviewed that Larry Page knew what was going on," he said in an interview after the August settlement.

  You have to read the whole story - it is pretty shocking and eye opening.

  Google - you need to go back to your roots and give people a reason to love the culture of the company again.

  Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

  Image credit to ShutterStock for con cartoon.

  
  

• 

  Google's Brick Desk

  Fetched: January 28th, 2012, 1:01am CET by Barry Schwartz

  Tags:  Search Engine photo Of The  

  
  

• 

  New: Test Sitemaps & Features In Google Webmaster Tools

  Fetched: January 28th, 2012, 1:01am CET by Barry Schwartz

  Tags:  Google Search Engine Optimization  

  I believe there are two new features now in Google Webmaster Tools. They are the ability to test sitemaps before submitting them to Google and testing crawlers specifically for Googlebot-Mobile.

  Testing Sitemaps

  Don't you hate it when you submit a sitemap to Google and you have to wait to see if there are issues with the sitemap file? Google now lets you test your sitemap files before submitting them!

  Here is how it works, you go to Sitemaps under the Site Configuration link in Google Webmaster Tools. At the top right there is a new button that reads "Add/Test Sitemaps". Click on it and you can plug in a URL and then click on the "test sitemap" option:

  Then Google will run the test:

  When the test is complete, you can view the results:

  And then here are the results:

  This is incredibly useful!

  Googlebot Mobile Crawler Test

  Google also added to the Crawler Access a way to test your site with Googlebot-Mobile. I am not a 100% sure if this is new (I am told this actually isn't that new but they did add Googlebot-Mobile for Smartphone), but I am told it is:

  New Design With More Details

  Now statistics from Web, Videos, Images and News are featured prominently. This lets you see how many items of each type were submitted (if any), and for some content types, we also show how many items have been indexed. Sitemap errors and warnings are now grouped.

  Forum discussion at Google Webmaster Help.

  
  

Digg / Design

• 

  BREAKING: Facebook to File for IPO Next Week [REPORT]

  Posted: January 27th, 2012, 7:50pm CET by Digg

  The long-awaited tech IPO of the year -- perhaps of the decade -- is on. Facebook will file its paperwork for an Initial Public Offering on Wednesday, acco

Slashdot: Apple

• 

  America's Future Is In Software, Not Hardware

  Posted: January 27th, 2012, 5:35pm CET by Soulskill

  Tags:  software  

  
  

  New submitter tcjr2006 writes "Obama's State of the Union focused on the return of manufacturing jobs to America. This New Yorker story makes the case that the manufacturing jobs aren't going to come back, and he should be focusing on software. Quoting: 'Yes, there are industries where manufacturing jobs can be brought back to America through proper tax incentives and training programs. But maybe he should have talked more about the things that he could do to keep software jobs here. He spoke of federal funding for university and scientific research. But a real pro-software agenda would also include reforming patent law to stop trolling (and perhaps eliminating software patents altogether); increasing H-1B visas for highly skilled coders; stopping Congress from defunding DARPA, whose research helped create Siri, the iPhone’s talking assistant; and opening up the unused, federally owned wireless spectrum. That agenda wouldn’t bring Apple’s manufacturing jobs back, but it would help to keep the company’s coding jobs here. And it would certainly help develop "an economy that’s built to last."'"

  Read more of this story at Slashdot.