The internet is not the same place it used to be. That is how it should be although sometimes I miss the way things used to be. In the old days, it was much easier to find individuals that created content and posted it on the web to share with others of their same interest. Notice the key word there is “find”. There are still many individuals out there that are trying to share themselves and their interest, in fact many more than ever before, but the hard part is finding them.
Search engines are not doing it. In the past they were tools of marvel. They would look at all the web had to offer and bring it to your doorstep offering a wide palette of choices to explore. The term surfing the web actually meant something because you would surf your way across a tidal wave of individual and commercial sites that offered a wealth of information. For every page that was a 'skip it' there were at least three others that had something to offer. And those that had common interest would link up in a ring so that you could enjoy numerous different pages from different individuals with similar interest. It was great to find so many others out there that shared your interest in cars, and planes, obscure books and such.
Now there are so many web sites that have learned how to game the search engines or have bought themselves a place at the top, that it is making it nearly impossible to find the truly content rich pages that made the web such a remarkable place to begin with. I have tried to find some pages on ultralight aircraft that I had run across in the past but have been unable because I could not think of the right combination of words to use in a search engine that would lead me to my target. Even though it says there are 2,250,000 pages found for my search of ultralight aircraft there are only so many that are actually useful. Many don’t refer to my topic at all. And if you are like me and want to get off the beaten path by selecting something that isn’t listed on the first ten or even 100 pages only to find that the search engine gives out after the first 200 references (if they are even able to give you that much).
It doesn’t seem to matter which search engine you are using either. IWON, Ask, Yahoo, MSN, Google, Dogpile, Jeeves, etc., all seem to give similar results. That may be because there have been so many mergers and consolidations taking place that many sites are using the same search engine even if under a different name. I’m afraid I can’t even recommend one as being better than the others. I don’t have one high enough on my favorites list to recommend. Yes I use more than one as the need arises and when it comes to surfing new ground I can’t say that any of them stands out above the rest.
Most of the search engines have taken on a life of their own with main pages and personal pages that deliver information overload if you let it. All the information they think you will need is loaded right there on their pages so that you never have to leave, which is a pretty good business model if you are trying to sell ads and deal in pages viewed and stickiness and repeat/return netizens, but the goal is business oriented and so the content becomes more and more controlled and directed.
This is what happened to AOL as they tried to pretend that they owned the web and that is why they expected you as the costumer to pay them to access it. Thank you free market. Competition comes in and offers alternatives and pretty soon you aren’t the only game in town and if you don’t adjust you are no longer a part of the game at all.
So what is a person to do? First, there needs to be a product of worth, second it must be made available, and third it needs to be made known. The first two have their own challenges but the third is one of the hardest to establish, especially in this day of noise. We have all seen the ads on TV and even during the Super Bowl announcing their new web site. I wonder if they worked. Some have because you still remember the name but a good share have found the quick way to being nothing more than the answer to a trivia question that most people will get wrong. The other way of course is word of mouth. Where would many of the sites you visit be if you hadn’t heard about them from someone you know? How would they last beyond next Tuesday if they didn’t have something to offer to make it worth your while to go there? Word of mouth still takes me to more places than advertising.
So if you have a favorite search engine that hasn’t been overcome with itself, or one that you think still delivers the goods, leave a comment telling us which one and more importantly why. These are the ones you like and would recommend only. The bad ones get enough attention as it is. Keep surfing the independents.
This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.
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