Scobleizer: “Small” PR headache for Google ahead…
blogger@wordpress
· 3 years ago
Sad. But i think this was something that slipped out un-intentionally. Someone was designing a page based on Yahoo's. Started with a spoof that should have slipped out. Still it was a mistake.
But nothing to worry for google. fanboys were already countering that this was Microsoft's brilliant under hand tactic to get back at Google.
Robert Scoble
· 3 years ago
Blogger: probably. Or someone thought it was a Microsoft page and it was OK to use as a template.
But, everyone probably thought this was a "small" story. Problem is that the memes attached to it (that Google'rs can't do their own code, and even when they steal, can't do it very well) are pretty serious ones.
Of course Microsoft stealing something from Apple isn't exactly new.
Robert Scoble
· 3 years ago
Bob: nope. Look at Zune. :-)
blogger@wordpress
· 3 years ago
Robert@5 Yes. I do know that it wasn't by google. And i do think it will pass off as funny. But it left a bad taste when i read through.
Particularly the part about "How to make sure google ignore my requests?" which implies it's just a matter of mailing 'press@google.com' to get Google's responses. May be in some parallel universe. what do i know!!
rexdixon
· 3 years ago
Ha! Nice one. It's not "smart to copy". It's smart to copy smartly. :)
Seriously, when I lack time, I do post a few sentences and link to other articles. When I do have the time, I have cranked out a few more words.
As far as the ad goes, Google vs Yahoo - Yes, that was blatant, and maybe it was Google saying "Hey, we are #1, what are you going to do?" If nothing else - it makes for great reading on the blogs.
Now the Google PR hack will send out a cute reply and everyone will go gaga about its PR machine and how un-evil it is. And what's up with M$? It allows Google to piggyback on IE7 or is it the other way around?
Ha ha... The biggest winner in this holiday reason is Microsoft IE Team!
It shows even Google is catching up the trend on browser version upgrade.
Yahoooo! The entire SV pick up the news that IE team is coming in town soon. And Yahoo top brain will be moderating the "Browser War: Episode II Attacks of the DOMs".
Merry X'mas Microsoft! Nice piece on the Vista Economic Impact PR.
PRoales
· 3 years ago
Wow, what incredibly bad advice.
Follow Scobble - Have story end up on front page of WSJ
Do Nothing - Have story limited to the digg crowd
Why make this into a major issue, when no one but the blog's knows or cares right now?
TAG
· 3 years ago
Robert,
You are cheap. If you think that after stealing it's fine to settle for pizza to drive in limo - you are wrong.
Just like you have protected Microsoft RSS team then stolen image was replaced with Goatse - you are now protecting Google.
I remember how you have reacted then somebody reposted content of your blog. I think you even put large blame on innocent programmer that day. So - stealing is good as long as somebody does not steal from you ?
Copyrights exists for some reason - and it's not to break them - but follow.
Robert Scoble
· 3 years ago
TAG: I don't care that my content was copied. I cared that that guy's software trackbacked to every post (and everything I linked to) which was a real nuisance. My stuff is copied all over the place.
But, that is a separate point anyway. I am pretty sure I made the point above that it's evil to just wholesale copy someone else's work. Did you not see that?
Robert Scoble
· 3 years ago
PRoales: many a story has ended up on the front page of the WSJ WITHOUT having a PR team react. Why look like an asshole? Why let a competitor define you in the marketplace? Especially one that has done stuff just as bad?
Sean
· 3 years ago
I nominate this as the stupidest, most unimportant, overhyped story of the year. WHO. CARES. I want to stop reading about this already. PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!
joeduck
· 3 years ago
Robert I think your first post about this was more enlightened than this one. Google lifted a graphic plus design ideas, which is trivial but bogus behavior.
Yahoo's advertising UI copycat behavior would seem to me to be more like "copying" a blog layout or navigation features of other sites as innovation comes along.
Matt cleverly but unfairly implied this was a debate only about design rather than design and graphic nabbing.
PRoales
· 3 years ago
Scoble: I agree that many stories end up on the front page of the average Americans newspaper without a PR response or push. I dont think this story is one of them. ValleyThink maybe getting seeping in..
Does Google really look like "an asshole" as you suggest they might if they dont respond? I say no. Online open source culture makes many understand that sharing is good and that sometimes attribution gets forgotten, mistakes happen, evil? no. asshole? no. Mistake yes.
This does not require a proclamation from Mountain View across all the land, it requires at most some personal phone calls over to Sunnyvale.
I would expect that Legal and PR are recommending that no formal apology go out as well. Why muddle YouTube implications over something that is limited to a digg story only? Why make this a real story?
You mention they are letting "a competitor define you in the marketplace?" Are they really? Is Yahoo releasing press attacking Google? Maybe Im missing your point here, if so please let me know.
" Re:Really? Strange that 'spreadsheet' would give.. (Score:3, Insightful) by Assmasher (456699) Alter Relationship on Fri Dec 08, '06 01:15 PM (#17167052) (Last Journal: Sat Apr 03, '04 04:10 PM)
Their not tight lipped about their criteria, they're tight lipped about the exact algorithm involved (understandably so), but it still doesn't explain how they rank #1 for spreadsheet. Seriously.
Remember when Google released 'Scholar'? The very next day (this is something other people critical of Google adwords like to mention) somehow, with very few links to this new product, the word 'scholar' had Google showing up as #1.
Yeah, sure they play fair ;)... It's a fair coincidence that ALL of these words show Google as #1?
intranet, spreadsheet, documents, calendar, word processor, email, video, instant messenger, blog, photo sharing, online groups, maps, start page, restaurants, dining, and books
Some? Yes, all? No way. Not spreadsheet, not documents, certainly shouldn't be for e-mail or instant messenger."
=========== According to the above, a Google search for any of the terms intranet, spreadsheet, documents, calendar, word processor, email, video, instant messenger, blog, photo sharing, online groups, maps, start page, restaurants, dining, and books, all bring up Google as the number 1 item. The allegation is that Google is rigging its search results to point to itself.
TAG
· 3 years ago
Robert:
"that it’s evil to just wholesale copy someone else’s work"
You are spin doctor. You did this during your work at Microsoft by answering to each and any comments in blog or press and you are still doing this.
Your message was following - it's fine to steal as long as you pay for pizza. And instead of my question who and why has stole this design - it become - "Bad bad Google. They don't know that food at Yahoo is not free - why they did not send a pizza to their office ?".
This way instead of several million dollars lawsuit - this issue started to sound like after-party discussion who has to pay tips and how much.
TAG
· 3 years ago
Stanley:
Google is based on page rank - probability that visitor will visit random page on Internet. For Google.com domain this probability is 100% ;-)
CajoleJuice
· 3 years ago
It seems like a pretty insignificant incident, but Christ, to completely copy the page like that is pretty pathetic of whoever coded the page.
theskilled
· 3 years ago
Wow.
Talk about a person without skills.
arkile
· 3 years ago
Cry baby much? shut up about google. wahhh wahh wahh
Robert Scoble
· 3 years ago
TAG: >Your message was following - it’s fine to steal as long as you pay for pizza.
I never said that.
But, once your company has made a mistake, it's a good idea to do something nice to the competition you ripped off.
You call that "spin." Whatever.
Anand Iyer
· 3 years ago
Google lacks the touch of Microsoft which copies in style making the original creator wonder whether it was copied from us :)
TAG
· 3 years ago
Robert:
Something nice is: $1.6 billion - Microsoft vs. Sun $225+ million - Intergraph vs. Intel and even $280+ million - Google vs. Yahoo (over 6,269,361 - Overtune - source of all GOOG money)
But definitely not a pizza.
Nail Connedy
· 3 years ago
What's up with Microsoft using the same IconFactory's image as Apple? It's a free image.
Plubius
· 3 years ago
Google is becoming more and more evil as the days pass by...
Robert Scoble
· 3 years ago
TAG: copying a Web page isn't the same as using monopoly power against competitors or buying a key piece of technology which has been protected by patents.
Thanks for noticing.
kruston
· 3 years ago
Hey: WHO CARES?! Its a big wild web and anyway YAHOO COPIED GOOGLE'S WHOLE INTERFACE a couple of years ago; right down to layout and name of links, everything.
All Comments
But nothing to worry for google. fanboys were already countering that this was Microsoft's brilliant under hand tactic to get back at Google.
But, everyone probably thought this was a "small" story. Problem is that the memes attached to it (that Google'rs can't do their own code, and even when they steal, can't do it very well) are pretty serious ones.
I find this incredibly arrogant. May be some find it funny.
http://daringfireball.net/2006/12/microsoft_wor...
Blogger: that wasn't done by Google, though. I liked it, though, but lots of people think I'm arrogant, so there!
http://daringfireball.net/2006/12/microsoft_wor...
Of course Microsoft stealing something from Apple isn't exactly new.
Particularly the part about "How to make sure google ignore my requests?" which implies it's just a matter of mailing 'press@google.com' to get Google's responses. May be in some parallel universe. what do i know!!
Seriously, when I lack time, I do post a few sentences and link to other articles. When I do have the time, I have cranked out a few more words.
As far as the ad goes, Google vs Yahoo - Yes, that was blatant, and maybe it was Google saying "Hey, we are #1, what are you going to do?" If nothing else - it makes for great reading on the blogs.
Rex
http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/ie7-promo-page/
I know it would suck to have someone copy your HTML layout on a page that is seen thousands of times a day.
http://theappleblog.com/2006/12/11/microsoft-gi...
If yes, then you better buy an apple for Apple.
The biggest winner in this holiday reason is Microsoft IE Team!
It shows even Google is catching up the trend on browser version upgrade.
Yahoooo! The entire SV pick up the news that IE team is coming in town soon. And Yahoo top brain will be moderating the "Browser War: Episode II Attacks of the DOMs".
Merry X'mas Microsoft! Nice piece on the Vista Economic Impact PR.
Follow Scobble - Have story end up on front page of WSJ
Do Nothing - Have story limited to the digg crowd
Why make this into a major issue, when no one but the blog's knows or cares right now?
You are cheap. If you think that after stealing it's fine to settle for pizza to drive in limo - you are wrong.
Just like you have protected Microsoft RSS team then stolen image was replaced with Goatse - you are now protecting Google.
I remember how you have reacted then somebody reposted content of your blog. I think you even put large blame on innocent programmer that day. So - stealing is good as long as somebody does not steal from you ?
Copyrights exists for some reason - and it's not to break them - but follow.
But, that is a separate point anyway. I am pretty sure I made the point above that it's evil to just wholesale copy someone else's work. Did you not see that?
Yahoo's advertising UI copycat behavior would seem to me to be more like "copying" a blog layout or navigation features of other sites as innovation comes along.
Matt cleverly but unfairly implied this was a debate only about design rather than design and graphic nabbing.
Does Google really look like "an asshole" as you suggest they might if they dont respond? I say no. Online open source culture makes many understand that sharing is good and that sometimes attribution gets forgotten, mistakes happen, evil? no. asshole? no. Mistake yes.
This does not require a proclamation from Mountain View across all the land, it requires at most some personal phone calls over to Sunnyvale.
I would expect that Legal and PR are recommending that no formal apology go out as well. Why muddle YouTube implications over something that is limited to a digg story only? Why make this a real story?
You mention they are letting "a competitor define you in the marketplace?" Are they really? Is Yahoo releasing press attacking Google? Maybe Im missing your point here, if so please let me know.
Good dialog.
- PRoales
Google has more serious issues, as pointed out by this slashdot post:
http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=210734&...
"
Re:Really? Strange that 'spreadsheet' would give..
(Score:3, Insightful)
by Assmasher (456699) Alter Relationship on Fri Dec 08, '06 01:15 PM (#17167052)
(Last Journal: Sat Apr 03, '04 04:10 PM)
Their not tight lipped about their criteria, they're tight lipped about the exact algorithm involved (understandably so), but it still doesn't explain how they rank #1 for spreadsheet. Seriously.
Remember when Google released 'Scholar'? The very next day (this is something other people critical of Google adwords like to mention) somehow, with very few links to this new product, the word 'scholar' had Google showing up as #1.
Yeah, sure they play fair ;)... It's a fair coincidence that ALL of these words show Google as #1?
intranet, spreadsheet, documents, calendar, word processor, email, video, instant messenger, blog, photo sharing, online groups, maps, start page, restaurants, dining, and books
Some? Yes, all? No way. Not spreadsheet, not documents, certainly shouldn't be for e-mail or instant messenger."
===========
According to the above, a Google search for any of the terms intranet, spreadsheet, documents, calendar, word processor, email, video, instant messenger, blog, photo sharing, online groups, maps, start page, restaurants, dining, and books, all bring up Google as the number 1 item. The allegation is that Google is rigging its search results to point to itself.
"that it’s evil to just wholesale copy someone else’s work"
You are spin doctor. You did this during your work at Microsoft by answering to each and any comments in blog or press and you are still doing this.
Your message was following - it's fine to steal as long as you pay for pizza. And instead of my question who and why has stole this design - it become - "Bad bad Google. They don't know that food at Yahoo is not free - why they did not send a pizza to their office ?".
This way instead of several million dollars lawsuit - this issue started to sound like after-party discussion who has to pay tips and how much.
Google is based on page rank - probability that visitor will visit random page on Internet. For Google.com domain this probability is 100% ;-)
Talk about a person without skills.
I never said that.
But, once your company has made a mistake, it's a good idea to do something nice to the competition you ripped off.
You call that "spin." Whatever.
Something nice is:
$1.6 billion - Microsoft vs. Sun
$225+ million - Intergraph vs. Intel
and even
$280+ million - Google vs. Yahoo (over 6,269,361 - Overtune - source of all GOOG money)
But definitely not a pizza.
Thanks for noticing.