Comments on: this is utterly appalling: http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/ "cartoons drawn on the back of business cards" Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:03:19 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=abc hourly 1 By: stacey-keebler http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10936 stacey-keebler Fri, 31 Mar 2006 21:16:36 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10936 Nice site <a href="http://freewebhosting.hostdepartment.com/b/baila19/" rel="nofollow">http://freewebhosting.hostdepartment.com/b/baila19/</a> Nice site http://freewebhosting.hostdepartment.com/b/baila19/

]]> By: Elisa http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10935 Elisa Wed, 22 Mar 2006 21:38:59 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10935 I work for an Internet company, and can tell you that all our clients go absolutely crazy for Google page rank, no matter if it brings customers to their website or not. We even got sued by one of our clients, claiming we "guaranteed" the highest position in Google for some keywords. Why are people getting so crazy about it - couldn't it be our (us=web people) fault? I work for an Internet company, and can tell you that all our clients go absolutely crazy for Google page rank, no matter if it brings customers to their website or not. We even got sued by one of our clients, claiming we “guaranteed” the highest position in Google for some keywords.
Why are people getting so crazy about it — couldn’t it be our (us=web people) fault?

]]> By: Martin http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10934 Martin Tue, 21 Mar 2006 20:57:58 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10934 I can't help but wonder what Ayn Rand would've had to say about this... I can’t help but wonder what Ayn Rand would’ve had to say about this…

]]> By: Jack Yan http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10933 Jack Yan Tue, 21 Mar 2006 16:03:20 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10933 Disturbing to me today is that we New Zealanders are moving toward a more litigious society, bypassing civility for clogging up the courts Disturbing to me today is that we New Zealanders are moving toward a more litigious society, bypassing civility for clogging up the courts

]]> By: thoughts.on.code http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10938 thoughts.on.code Tue, 21 Mar 2006 10:09:14 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10938 <strong>Google sued over page rank</strong> This is interesting.  From the article: SAN FRANCISCO, March 18 (Reuters) - A parental advice Internet site has sued Google Inc., charging it unfairly deprived the company of customers by downgrading its search-result ranking without reason or warning... Google sued over page rank

This is interesting.  From the article:
SAN FRANCISCO, March 18 (Reuters) — A parental advice Internet site has sued Google Inc., charging it unfairly deprived the company of customers by downgrading its search-result ranking without reason or warning…

]]> By: 寒境 http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10932 寒境 Tue, 21 Mar 2006 07:56:26 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10932 i'm hanjing, from china. i discover ur blog undesignedly and i very like ur pictures... now i going there everyday p.s.my english tooo bad ... sorry i’m hanjing, from china.
i discover ur blog undesignedly and i very like ur pictures…
now i going there everyday
p.s.my english tooo bad … sorry

]]> By: James Omdahl http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10931 James Omdahl Tue, 21 Mar 2006 06:11:05 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10931 This is a straight up, blatant, move to get links, visibility and visitors to their low-quality site. And it is working brilliantly (in a low-brow kinda way) From the looks of things this company has little to lose anyway. More bad blogs on the net, more spam emails, more frivolous lawsuits in the court systems - welcome to our world fair citizens :) This is a straight up, blatant, move to get links, visibility and visitors to their low-quality site.
And it is working brilliantly (in a low-brow kinda way) From the looks of things this company has little to lose anyway.
More bad blogs on the net, more spam emails, more frivolous lawsuits in the court systems — welcome to our world fair citizens :)

]]> By: Robert Bruce http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10930 Robert Bruce Tue, 21 Mar 2006 04:38:09 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10930 Yes the coding reveals that whoever did this knows nowt about today's Search Engine requirment. KinderStart - Because Kids Don't Come With Instructions! Pathetic. Shall we offer our coding services? Yes the coding reveals that whoever did this knows nowt about today’s Search Engine requirment.
KinderStart — Because Kids Don’t Come With Instructions!
Pathetic. Shall we offer our coding services?

]]> By: Jesse http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10929 Jesse Tue, 21 Mar 2006 02:36:06 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10929 I can't help but to be amused by the outcome of thise companies action. Rather than having people stand behind them and champion their cause, they've effectivley become the laughing stock of the blogosphere. What little dignity and brand recognition they might have had will be permanently soiled by these escapades. I don't see how the kinderstart people can emerge from this victorious in any way, but if anything good comes of it, it will be that other companies have a wonderful case in point of what not to do. I can’t help but to be amused by the outcome of thise companies action. Rather than having people stand behind them and champion their cause, they’ve effectivley become the laughing stock of the blogosphere. What little dignity and brand recognition they might have had will be permanently soiled by these escapades.
I don’t see how the kinderstart people can emerge from this victorious in any way, but if anything good comes of it, it will be that other companies have a wonderful case in point of what not to do.

]]> By: alan herrell - the head lemur http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10928 alan herrell - the head lemur Tue, 21 Mar 2006 01:33:44 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10928 two minutes of my life i will never get back <a href="http://theheadlemur.typepad.com/ravinglunacy/2006/03/kinderstart_and.html" rel="nofollow">http://theheadlemur.typepad.com/ravinglunacy/2006/03/kinderstart_and.html</a> two minutes of my life i will never get back
http://theheadlemur.typepad.com/ravinglunacy/2006/03/kinderstart_and.html

]]> By: Walter X. Ego http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10927 Walter X. Ego Tue, 21 Mar 2006 01:23:37 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10927 That the attack is bordering stupidity is evident, but you have to ask yourself what kind of people would think Google is out to get them? I mean, out of all the companies, institutions or governments on the planet you take on the one that has "Don't be evil" as it's motto. It has disaster written all over it. That the attack is bordering stupidity is evident, but you have to ask yourself what kind of people would think Google is out to get them? I mean, out of all the companies, institutions or governments on the planet you take on the one that has “Don’t be evil” as it’s motto. It has disaster written all over it.

]]> By: john http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10926 john Tue, 21 Mar 2006 01:11:19 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10926 They have, if not a constitutional right, then a legal right to equal treatment. If and it's a big if, Google staff or its algorithms can be shown to be discriminatory then there is a case. To adjust Jesse's analogy - if NYSE somehow indicated overnight that Dow stock was not readily tradeable then Dow could blame NYSE for the subsequent price fall. A low Google ranking will adversely affect a comany's throughput of potential customers - if that ranking is not achieved in a scrupulously equitable manner (on both sides) then sadly I think there might be an argument for discrimination. They have, if not a constitutional right, then a legal right to equal treatment. If and it’s a big if, Google staff or its algorithms can be shown to be discriminatory then there is a case.
To adjust Jesse’s analogy — if NYSE somehow indicated overnight that Dow stock was not readily tradeable then Dow could blame NYSE for the subsequent price fall.
A low Google ranking will adversely affect a comany’s throughput of potential customers — if that ranking is not achieved in a scrupulously equitable manner (on both sides) then sadly I think there might be an argument for discrimination.

]]> By: john t unger http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10925 john t unger Tue, 21 Mar 2006 01:01:27 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10925 KinderStart should probably have just hired me (or anyone) to make them a blog if they wanted more google juice. But, hey, if they'd rather become world reknowned for acting like whiny, self-important losers with a chip on their shoulder I can see how the ideas central to blogging wouldn't be as appealing as just siccing a lawyer on someone. Obviously, they'd have a hard time with diplomacy, transparency, integrity, authenticity, etc. I don't think I'd want to work for people like that. Glad I'm not a lawyer. My clients tend to behave a lot more like adults than these people. KinderStart should probably have just hired me (or anyone) to make them a blog if they wanted more google juice.
But, hey, if they’d rather become world reknowned for acting like whiny, self-important losers with a chip on their shoulder I can see how the ideas central to blogging wouldn’t be as appealing as just siccing a lawyer on someone. Obviously, they’d have a hard time with diplomacy, transparency, integrity, authenticity, etc.
I don’t think I’d want to work for people like that. Glad I’m not a lawyer. My clients tend to behave a lot more like adults than these people.

]]> By: Jesse http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10924 Jesse Tue, 21 Mar 2006 00:22:25 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10924 I think that google could skate around the attempt at discovering algorithms pretty easily. They wouldn't necissarily have to prove that the algorithm lowered the page rank, all they would have to prove is that no single employee did it. For kinderstart to claim damages against action taken directly by google, they should have to be able to prove that it was done intentionally, and probaly prove that that intent was malicious. My personal opinion is that this is just a completely meritless case. Google page rank is merely and indicator of a sites worth, much like the NYSE is an indicator of a companies worth. If DOW chemical saw their share price drop by 80%, it certainly wouldn't be blamed on the NYSE maliciously devaluing it. I think that google could skate around the attempt at discovering algorithms pretty easily. They wouldn’t necissarily have to prove that the algorithm lowered the page rank, all they would have to prove is that no single employee did it. For kinderstart to claim damages against action taken directly by google, they should have to be able to prove that it was done intentionally, and probaly prove that that intent was malicious.
My personal opinion is that this is just a completely meritless case. Google page rank is merely and indicator of a sites worth, much like the NYSE is an indicator of a companies worth. If DOW chemical saw their share price drop by 80%, it certainly wouldn’t be blamed on the NYSE maliciously devaluing it.

]]> By: Haarball http://gapingvoid.com/2006/03/20/this-is-utterly-appalling/comment-page-1/#comment-10923 Haarball Mon, 20 Mar 2006 23:14:54 +0000 http://gapingvoid.com/?p=2323#comment-10923 Yep, this is pretty blatant PR whoring. It could also be an attempt at extorting Google to reveal some of their algorithms, whcih would of course be disastrous. A court may want Google to show their algorithms in order to prove that the dropping of Kinderstart.com was in fact an automated one based on their algorithms and not a subjective, manual change made by the company - which could classify as discriminations. This is how they could be thinking, I don't know. The case is not strong enough for this to happen, though, for the reasons that have been pointed out here and elsewhere on the blogsphere. Easy Google win now, although I don't like the look of it. What if the situation I describe above could actually hold up some time in the future? A company saying, "pay up or reveal your technology". Yep, this is pretty blatant PR whoring.
It could also be an attempt at extorting Google to reveal some of their algorithms, whcih would of course be disastrous. A court may want Google to show their algorithms in order to prove that the dropping of Kinderstart.com was in fact an automated one based on their algorithms and not a subjective, manual change made by the company — which could classify as discriminations.
This is how they could be thinking, I don’t know. The case is not strong enough for this to happen, though, for the reasons that have been pointed out here and elsewhere on the blogsphere.
Easy Google win now, although I don’t like the look of it. What if the situation I describe above could actually hold up some time in the future? A company saying, “pay up or reveal your technology”.

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