Blog Posts As Wikia Search Application - Scary If Anyone Cared
Wikia Search just posted about turning blog posts into a "Wikia Search Application". That has the potential to be amazingly contentious, and dangerous - if anybody cared! Basically, if Wikia Search actually had any users, and so was worth going to the effort of fighting over spaces and scamming people, that feature would be a trouble-magnet. However, "luckily", essentially nobody uses them, so it's not going to cause much of a stir.
In sum, they're allowing blogs to be "Search Extensions" for keywords. You can nominate any blog for any term. Subject to their approval. Now, I happen to think my blog is quite relevant to terms like "Jimmy Wales" and "Wikipedia" and "Wikia" ! :-) Would they let me in? For those keywords? I can think of several other folks with blogs who would also love prime ranking for those terms.
Someone could object that this is the same problem with as Wikipedia, and that was sort-of addressed, enough to be functional (with lots of cost-shifting and misery). But it's often said, search is worth real money, and that's orders of magnitude more difficult to handle.
Anyway, I'm not going to bother trying to get accepted as a bona-fide "WISE"-guy. It doesn't seem worth the potential backlash. But I wish coverage pointed out these problems more often.
By Seth Finkelstein | posted in wikia-search | on October 08, 2008 11:59 PM (Infothought permalink)
*This is not a comment on this entry to your blog; it is the easiest way I can tell you something I observed in an article of yours on how Libertarians make people stupid, or something to that effect.
I should have read further into your criticism on Liberalism, but fortunately I haven't the time.
Because of reading the first few paragraphs, I honestly now feel dumber. Thank you. And not because "liberalism makes you stupid," or why you think so, but because your attack on their beliefs is, "who would say they PROMOTE fraud?" ... Obviously, no one. But believe it or not, half of the things that Libertarians state they are for, they ACTUALLY support. While many kinds of governments say they do, and don't follow through with it (our country, as wonderful as it is, for example). Not just fraud, but half of the other reasons you criticized the "obvious" things Libertarians support.
Now, I am no Libertarian, but I know that should I disagree with their beliefs, it will be for ligitamate reasons. That said, I'm sure the rest of your article has potential to be based on more substantial reasons you disapprove of the Libertarian form of government. I just felt the need to tell you, while you are high on your own horse of anti-Liberalism, that you should work on a stronger, more realistic opening paragraph structure for future persuasive articles.
Thanks.
Also in the news...
'Cyber' Lawyer's Threats, Intimidation Shut Down Web Site
http://www.publiccitizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=2746
Also of interest
http://lab.wgbh.org/open-call/election2008/rough-cuts/voting-schmoting
by Chris Metzler + Josh Kurz
see preceding weblink