There has been some recent news in the last month that I want to talk about.
Google announced several weeks ago the new Google+ infected search results, where they attempt to shove as many aspects of Google+ in front of the user, whether the user wants it or not. This goes against something Google has said they never would do, for years and years - polluting their own search results with preferences of their products over competitors. Back in the late '90s and early '00s this is the exact reason many people switched to Google in the first place. All of ther competitors pulled bullshit such as this, and Google being the "good guy" did not. Zuckerberg and his monstrosity has them so scared that they've now abandonned their own principles in the name of market share.
In recent weeks, a new browser bookmarklet has emerged for improving Google web search results by eliminating the special tratment of Google Plus pages. The bookmarklet, called "Focus on the User", as John Gruber writes:
Open source “Don’t be evil” bookmarklet that uses Google’s own data to show social results ranked by relevance instead of promoting Google Plus above all others.
John Battelle wrote an article on the motivation behind and creation of the Focus on the User bookmarklet. Danny Sullivan also wrote an explanation as to how it works.
MG Siegler chimed in as well:
But again, the key issue here is that what Google is doing with Search+ is making Google worse. This bookmarklet illustrates that in a very effective way.
And, if all of that wasn't enough, Google's new privacy policy changes come to mind. These have gotten so much attention that main-stream sources are writing about it.
A good start is "Google's Broken Promise: The End of 'Don't Be Evil'" by Mat Honan (note, John Gruber says that "'Don't be evil' has been over for a long time."
The Electronic Freedom Foundation posted a good artile on their blog conceringing Google's privacy policy changes.
Danny Sullivan, at SearchEngineLand writes:
In many ways, this is Google growing up into the new portal it has become. Rather than people signing up for individual products, Gmail, YouTube and so on, they’re now signing-up for Google — or at least a single set of terms (in most cases) for all the company’s products. It’s similar to how you sign-up for Facebook, rather than individual products within Facebook.
Whether you like it or not.
MG Sielger wrote, over at the new PandoDaily, that the reason Google is making all of these user hostile moves is simply due to their continued need to be relevant (as their own ads, their primary revenue source, rely on this).
Sarah Lacy touched on both the topics of their privacy policy changes and their new compromised search results in an article called "Google: Do Yourself a Favor and Just Come Clean Already".
I wish to point all of these things out to you dear reader, because I'm beginning to feel that my thoughts I put down on pixel, some months ago, are starting to feel more and more like a very good decision.
Head over to the