Search Headlines & Links: September 15, 2006

Below, a recap of stories posted today to the Search
Engine Watch Blog, along with other items we’ve spotted but not blogged
separately:

From The SEW Blog…

• AOL
  Offers 5 Gigabytes of Free Online Storage
  In the not search-related but still useful category, AOL is now offering 5
  gigabytes of free online storage through its Xdrive subsidiary. All you need
  is an AOL screen name—no other strings attached. It’s an excellent service,
  very easy to use, and I highly recommend it for backups, extra storage, or
  just an extra locker for music, photos or other digital media. More info and
  free registration here….
• See Ads?
  Now You Don’t! Google AdWords Rotating Out Top Sponsored Links
  Google is now displaying or not displaying the top sponsored links (with the
  blue background) based on searcher behavior. What I mean is that if you, as an
  individual, tend not to click on ads, Google will drop off the top ads from
  the page and place them on the right side. I discovered this in the morning,
  and I have a quote from a WebmasterWorld member in my post named Google
  Testing Removing Top Blue Ads Based on User Behavior, which says that Google
  is in fact testing this. I personally tested it myself and noticed that if
  I…
• Google
  Adds Tabs To Personalized Home Page
  Last night Google has added the ability to add and manage tabs on your
  personalized home page. At the top of the page, you should see a “Add a tab”
  link. Clicking on that will enable you to add a tab to your home page, helping
  you keep your Google home page more organized. Both Garrett Rogers and I took
  screen captures of our personalized home pages. Garrett added a “work” tab, I
  decided to add a “feeds” tab, that contains all my feeds. This can be very
  handy for those who are big into Google Personalized home page….
• Windows
  Live Hot? You Won’t Know Since Referer Data Is Stripped
  Shocking, but true, Live.com Is Not Passing Referral Information, as I
  reported this morning. I spent the past 30 minutes or so debating with Danny
  and digging through my own log files and asking DaveN for his confirmation on
  this. Windows Live Search, which is now the default MSN search engine strips
  out the referer data, so you cannot track the traffic they are sending to you.
  After review, it seems like Live.com is using some sort of JavaScript to do
  some sort of click tracking, without using a URL string to track the click.
  That JavaScript appears to be…
• Search
  Forums Roundup: Sept. 15, 2006
  Today’s SearchDay, Search Engine Forums Spotlight, features our weekly links
  to this week’s hot topics from search engine forums across the web: Links to
  the week’s topics from search engine forums across the web: Which Web Services
  Do You Use? – Mining the Tail? – AdSense On Home Page – Does It Cheapen The
  Look? – What are the Barriers to Using Search Analytics? – Digg Dealing With
  the Same Problems as Google? and more….

Headlines & News From Elsewhere

• Tired of
  linking, Yahoo! starts! making! the! news!, The Register

• 
  Some of Google’s steps and challenges in emerging markets: Hungary, Gugli

• The A to Z
  Guide to Getting Website Traffic, Pandia

• 
  Some of Google’s steps and challenges in emerging markets: Hungary, Gugli
• The A to Z Guide to
  Getting Website Traffic, Pandia
• Gmail
  Plus Phishing, Google Blogoscoped
• Yahoo! and
  Gemstar Get Cozy, Motley Fool
• 
  Opening up the Merchant Referral Program, Official Google Checkout Blog
• 
  Google Related Searches, Google Operating System
• 
  Advertising Placements by Industry and Top Sponsored Links, August 2006,
  ClickZ
• 
  Are You Listening?, ClickZ
• 
  Planning for Panama, Part 2, ClickZ
• 
  Okay, Lets Make A Deal: You Don’t Promote Copyright Violations, And I Don’t
  Call You A Hypocrite, InsideGoogle
• How to: Fix your tiny
  site:domain.com results in Google, Threadwatch
• 
  HitTail: An Interesting Service, Searchblog
• 
  AOL’s Ted Leonsis To Give Up Duties; Stay on As Advisor; Management Reshuffle,
  PaidContent.org
• Evan
  Williams: How Odeo Screwed Up, GigaOM
• 
  Topix.net Vists up 24% in Past Month, Hitwise
• 
  Updated List: Business Search, Hoover’s 100: Most Searched For Companies on
  Hoovers.com, ResourceShelf
• 
  Google on the Ropes in China, Red Herring
• 
  Latest Search Numbers: Google Climbs Back Above 60%, Hitwise