Google Plus - Unraveling The Thoughts Behind Google's Social Media Quest

Google Plus remains somewhat of a mystery. Presently not allowing anyone to join this new endeavor. The one thing that seems to be clearly evident is that this project has in its roots, a desire to learn deep, intimate details about a user's habits and personal preferences. At face value, yes, this could be viewed as being for strictly business purposes, meaning that ads delivered would be highly relevant and useful for the seller and the user (buyer). A wise person has to also contemplate the darker side of allowing any information aggregator to amass data that could be compromised or used for unintended purposes. Is Google's knowledge of your circle of friends really important for you?

With who else might persoanl data be shared? This could be the "permanaent record" we were all warned about in grade school, lol. Sharing "innocently acquired" data would be a breach of trust that would be a huge slap on the face of personal freedom. For Google, sharing this treasure trove of date would generate a LOT of cash, and/or garner a LOT of favor with the federal government (i.e., Federal Regulators, Dept of Justice, etc.)

I really admire Google for so many things, but the desire to "keep a folder on what I do" is one adventure I'll have to skip. Personally, I see this as being a LOT about Google, and only a LITTLE about the avaerage person. From the perspective of the avaerage internet user, "they're fixin' what ain't broke".

For another perspective you can view a fresh article by Barbara Ortutay at this link >> Google social net is about preserving leadership

How To Create XML Sitemap - XML Sitemap Doctype

How to Create an XML Site Map

Many people ask about the differences in an HTML and an XML sitemap. A simple explanation is that an HTML sitemap (or PHP, etc.) lists links to pages for site visitors to use much like a book's table of contents. A XML sitemap helps search engines to locate and better index pages on a website. Below is a generic example of how to create an XML sitemap.

The lastmod refers to the last date that the particular page was modified/updated. The priority tells search engines the relative importance of the content on the specified page relative to other pages. An About Us page typically would have a lower priority than a page concerning more specific information on products or services. You should not list on your site map any utility pages such as Site Map, Contact, Privacy Policy, etc. The XML sitemap should be placed on the same directory level as your site's pages. Do not link to the XML sitemap from your website pages. Ideally you should submit your XML sitemap to Google and other search engines, although search engines will find it when crawling your website's hosting service.

The use of a well constructed XML sitemap is a highly recommended, and takes only minutes to create. If you remain uncertain how to do this, contact us and we can create a XML sitemap for your business website.

A hot new post in Mashable reports that Google is set to retire the Blogger and Picasa brand names. The products will survive under new names.

A snippet from the Mashable article >>

Say goodbye to the Picasa and Blogger names: Google intends to retire several non-Google name brands and rename them as Google products, Mashable has learned.

The move is part of a larger effort to unify its brand for the public launch of Google+, the search giant’s social initiative.

Blogger and Picasa aren’t going away, of course — they’re two of Google’s most popular products. Instead, according to two sources familiar with the matter, Google intends to rename Picasa “Google Photos” and Blogger will become “Google Blogs.” Several other Google brands are likely to be affected, though our sources made it clear that YouTube would not be rebranded. The technology giant shut down Google Video, its failed web video service, in May.

Periodic Table for SEO Elements

By James Hobson
For those who may not have heard about the nifty new SEO Periodic Table graphic available at Search Engine Land we recommend taking a peak at it.

Here is a snippet of their introduction:

Search engine optimization — SEO — may seem like alchemy to the uninitiated. But there is a science to it. Search engines reward pages with the right combination of ranking factors, or “signals.” SEO is about ensuring your content generates the right type of signals. Our chart below summarizes the major factors to focus on for search engine ranking success. The Search Engine Land Guide To SEO explains factors in more depth, with tips and a tutorial on implementing them.

This cool illustration was created by Column Five, and is under copyright protection for Third Door Media.