Jimcs50
08-16-2006, 03:09 PM
INTERNET
Google has way to see who Googles what
By TARA DOOLEY
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
Will there ever be an end to new ways to waste time at work?
Not if the fine folks at Google have anything to do with it.
Google eliminated the need for introductory questions on many a first date and challenged the mirror as the narcissist's accessory of choice has a new toy. It's called Google Trends (www.google.com/trends). And it offers a way to sneak a peek at what everyone else is Googling.
"It has what we call a stickiness quotient, especially when people start using the tool," said Raja Shah, product manager for Google Trends.
Tool is a word that gives Google Trends a utilitarian feel that will be washed away after the searcher plugs in concepts, names or events.
For example, a search on Monday of Cruise, Aniston, Pitt, Jolie and Cage turned up a graph charting the movie stars' Google traffic since 2004. You'll also get a list of cities with the most searches on the actors. Orlando, it would seem, has the greatest number of Googles for these stars — and the favorite is Aniston. New York City was more interested in Cage, and Atlanta searchers had their eyes on Pitt.
Now there's valuable information.
The tool (let's indulge the fantasy) grew from a nose-to-the-workplace-grindstone effort to improve Google's search quality, Shah said. It was launched as a fun feature in May, joining Google Zeitgeist as a way to list search popularity. The Zeitgeist site started in 2001, and on it Google employees offer national and international lists of hot searches. Last week, the top three in the United States were word game Scrabble, girl singing group Danity Kane and the film Talladega Nights.
Unlike Zeitgeist, Google Trends allows users to create their own searches. It does not boast any claims of scientific statistics or sociological insight. It does not offer information about what interests Google users in a particular city.
So you can't search by the city of Houston, but you can search topics you'd think Houstonians would be interested in. Sure enough, Houston ranks No. 1 for searches on Yao Ming, Ken Lay, Andrea Yates, rapper Paul Wall and oil. St. Louis tops searches for God and sex, and Salt Lake City takes top honors in the search for money and Jesus.
"You get an insight into the trends of our overall search traffic," Shah said.
But plug a few terms, and here's what you get:
• Jesus: Salt Lake City tops the list followed by Oklahoma City and St. Louis.
Sex with Sheep: Portland Oregon :)
• Joel Osteen: Jacksonville, Fla., then Houston and San Antonio.
• Hurricane Katrina: Baton Rouge is at the top, and Houston is fifth.
• Breast implants: Las Vegas leads the list, followed by Salt Lake City and Orlando. (Houston doesn't make the top 10.)
Not that Google is all about wasting time. Anyone who frittered away a day looking for search trends can get organized with a real tool: the Google Calendar.
[email protected]
Google has way to see who Googles what
By TARA DOOLEY
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
Will there ever be an end to new ways to waste time at work?
Not if the fine folks at Google have anything to do with it.
Google eliminated the need for introductory questions on many a first date and challenged the mirror as the narcissist's accessory of choice has a new toy. It's called Google Trends (www.google.com/trends). And it offers a way to sneak a peek at what everyone else is Googling.
"It has what we call a stickiness quotient, especially when people start using the tool," said Raja Shah, product manager for Google Trends.
Tool is a word that gives Google Trends a utilitarian feel that will be washed away after the searcher plugs in concepts, names or events.
For example, a search on Monday of Cruise, Aniston, Pitt, Jolie and Cage turned up a graph charting the movie stars' Google traffic since 2004. You'll also get a list of cities with the most searches on the actors. Orlando, it would seem, has the greatest number of Googles for these stars — and the favorite is Aniston. New York City was more interested in Cage, and Atlanta searchers had their eyes on Pitt.
Now there's valuable information.
The tool (let's indulge the fantasy) grew from a nose-to-the-workplace-grindstone effort to improve Google's search quality, Shah said. It was launched as a fun feature in May, joining Google Zeitgeist as a way to list search popularity. The Zeitgeist site started in 2001, and on it Google employees offer national and international lists of hot searches. Last week, the top three in the United States were word game Scrabble, girl singing group Danity Kane and the film Talladega Nights.
Unlike Zeitgeist, Google Trends allows users to create their own searches. It does not boast any claims of scientific statistics or sociological insight. It does not offer information about what interests Google users in a particular city.
So you can't search by the city of Houston, but you can search topics you'd think Houstonians would be interested in. Sure enough, Houston ranks No. 1 for searches on Yao Ming, Ken Lay, Andrea Yates, rapper Paul Wall and oil. St. Louis tops searches for God and sex, and Salt Lake City takes top honors in the search for money and Jesus.
"You get an insight into the trends of our overall search traffic," Shah said.
But plug a few terms, and here's what you get:
• Jesus: Salt Lake City tops the list followed by Oklahoma City and St. Louis.
Sex with Sheep: Portland Oregon :)
• Joel Osteen: Jacksonville, Fla., then Houston and San Antonio.
• Hurricane Katrina: Baton Rouge is at the top, and Houston is fifth.
• Breast implants: Las Vegas leads the list, followed by Salt Lake City and Orlando. (Houston doesn't make the top 10.)
Not that Google is all about wasting time. Anyone who frittered away a day looking for search trends can get organized with a real tool: the Google Calendar.
[email protected]