Evolutions rated or announced of the algorithm of Google and the content of results pages, the SERPs. Google performs 400 changes in the algorithm during the year, some are more visible and lead to big changes in traffic for some sites.
2. Evolutions rated or announced of
the algorithm of Google and the
content of results pages, the SERPs.
Google performs 400 changes in the
algorithm during the year, some are
more visible and lead to big
changes in traffic for some sites.
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3. Keyboard Navigation
Instant is enhanced with the possibility for the user to use the keyboard to select a row
among the rows in the suggestion box. This can have an effect on the traffic of sites.
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4. Google Instant
The real-time search goes on the main search engine: a results page is displayed as soon as you
start typing a query and its continuous changes based on the words you add.
A suggestion in light gray is proposed also to complete the application.
This works on Chrome, Firefox and IE8.
Instant Will it end optimization for search engines, as some think? This tends to personalize the
results page and then it changes the rules, but does not certainly removes the need for
optimization. This will at least disrupt statistics in GWT and Analytics.
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5. SVG indexed
SVG content now indexed either it is in a file to
include or embedded into HTML code.
Google can index the content of most types of pages and files.
The most common file types we index include:
• Adobe Flash (.swf)
• Adobe Portable Document Format (.pdf)
• Adobe PostScript (.ps)
• Autodesk Design Web Format (.dwf)
• Basic source code (.bas)
• C/C++ source code (.c, .cc, .cpp, .cxx, .h, .hpp)
• Google Earth (.kml, .kmz)
• GPS eXchange Format (.gpx)
• Hancom Hanword (.hwp)
• HTML (.htm, .html)
• Java source code (.java)
• Microsoft Excel (.xls, .xlsx)
• Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt, .pptx)
• Microsoft Word (.doc, .docx)
• OpenOffice presentations (.odp)
• OpenOffice spreadsheet (.ods)
• OpenOffice text (.odt)
• Perl source code (.pl)
• Python source code (.py)
• Rich Text Format (.rtf, .wri)
• Scalable Vector Graphics (.svg)
• Text (.ans, .asc, .cas, .txt, .text)
• Wireless Markup Language (.wml, .wap)
• XML (.xml)
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6. Realtime search
It now has a special page. Conversation may be followed in realtime on a chat. Gives results
mainly on Twitter.
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7. Interactive result page
As you type a query, and the function Suggest proposes to complete the text, another thing
may happen: if it is already displayed, the results page may change gradually depending on
keywords that you add in the query.
It is a function under test and only a few net surfers were able to observe it, but it has been
confirmed by Google.
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8. More than two results for the same domain
So far the same domain could not appear more than twice in one page of results (except with the
command site:).
Since August 20, 2010, that changed for some specific queries on which a site can be the one to many
results, it may appear more than twice.
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9. Harmful internationalization?
Some webmasters have seen their traffic increased from search engines other than Google
Google.com or that of their country.
So Americans can see the arrival of visitors who visit other ccTLD engines, such as google.co.uk
or google.fr for example, implying that the engine of other ccTLD includes U.S. sites in the
results.
This could reduce the audience for the sites in these countries.
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10. History
A history link appeared on the page of
search engine (on U.S. version only at first).
It will displays previous searches and make
to reappear results already found in the
past.
This only works when you are registered to
your Google Account, but it is accessible
from any computer or mobile. You can edit
the list and delete the results.
You have to activate this feature in the
configuration of the account at the option
"Save searches".
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11. Definitions at top
Many surfers use the search engine for the definition of a term. Google has so created a special section
that appears at the top of the result page and provides definitions from online dictionaries Merriam-
Webster, Dictionary.com, Answers.com, The Free Dictionary.
The snippets include pronunciation and grammatical information.
For now only on the English engine.
Example: Search for “stupendous".
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12. Google image modernized
The results pages of the image section enlarge images in a box when you move the mouse over the
images and display them in a window with the page that contains them in a grayed background, on
the principle of the lightbox.
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13. Caffeine builds a fresher index
Google announced June 8 that the new
indexing engine, Caffeine is finalized. It
offers a new index with 50% fresher results.
Its operation differs from the previous
system which was updating as a whole, by
waves. Caffeine updates the index
incrementally. New pages can be added and
made available for search as soon as they
are discovered.
The new architecture allows also to associate
a page to several countries.
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14. MayDay: The long tail evolves
• This was confirmed by Matt Cutts at the Google I/O in May, the radical evolution in the month of
April comes from the change in the algorithm, to promote quality content on the long trail.
• This is an algorithmic change in Google, looking for higher quality sites to surface for long tail
queries. It went through vigorous testing and isn’t going to be rolled back.
• Remind that the long tail is the set of queries with multiple keywords, each being rare, but which
together form the bulk of traffic to a site.
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15. Short answers
From the Squared engine as the previous technology, short answer is trying to directly
answer a query that looks like a question.
For example if one asks the "date of birth x", the engine will give a direct answer, date of
birth of the person, then follows a list of pages containing information related to the birth
date of x.
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16. Something different
In certain queries may appear in the sidebar to search by category, a new section: "Something
different" and a list of query below.
In the case of a search on an actress, it will be a list of other actresses.
This has been developed for the Google's alternative engine , Squared and integrated to the
standard search engine.
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17. Similar Sites
For a while the search engine has a feature sites offering similar content. The "similar" link to a
similar page near a result in addition to "cached" to the cached version.
This function becomes more important. We can now possibly find a block of sites similar to results
at the bottom of results page.
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18. Real time improved
MySpace, Facebook, Buzz, Twitter are
integrated in search results. When, after
viewing the results page you ask to show
more options and you clicks on "Update",
you can see activities on social networks
about the query, for a given period.
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19. Snippets for recipes
The recipes are displayed differently in results, provided that their page has an internal format that is
suitable. Google supports 5 formats including RDF and microdata.
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20. Site speed
• This is officially a ranking factor
• This was announced a few months ago, it became reality: a site that is too slow is now
downgraded in SERPs or at least has a chance to be in conjunction with other factors.
• Today we're Including a new signal in our search ranking algorithms: site speed.
• It is possible to know if your site is too slow from Google Webmaster Tools
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21. Microdata
• Microdata as specified in HTML 5 are now included in the description of the results if they
are defined in the page. They adds social data about the site.
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22. Assigning stars to results
Google abandons the SearchWiki service which imitated the principles of Wikia and allowed
users to annotate, vote for or delete pages in results. (Wikia dropped this service for a while).
But it retains a feature that is extended to the general search engine: the user can assign a star
to a link in results. When he returned on the search engine, links that received a star appear at
top of the page ion a special list.
This rating is personal, it does not change the results for other users.
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23. Local Search option
A new option "Nearby" appears in the panel of specialized search. It restricts searches to
regions. The advantage is that the search will no longer depend precisely on keywords but on a
region, without the need to found all the different terms used to designate towns and various
places...
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24. Sponsored links in results
As an experiment and for the cities of Houston and San Jose only, Google highlight sponsored
links in search results listings. They are marked with a yellow rectangle.
The sponsored links on the side or top of the page still remains, this is a new different service
named "Google Enhanced Listings", costing $ 25 per month.
This subscription does not guarantee a better position in results.
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25. Search engine and answers
• To add the feature of the Wolfram Alpha
engine, Google now wants to offer real answers
to questions from webmasters. For this it offers
a richer snippet (description under the link in
results) and includes the response in bold.
Clearly, if we ask how many people are living in
China, the snippet should contain the answer.
What we can easily check ...
• The difference with Wolfram is that the user can
click on the link for more details. In addition, the
snippet has a limited size, while Wolfram can
provide an answer on a full page ... that the
Web site linked by Google can also do.
Webmasters may have to change their writing
habits to adapt to that.
For example, to use Ajax to give to his visitors
an unique information. If the information is not
unique, they will find it in snippets of other sites
and it is not recommended.
The first search result used to look like this:
With today's improvements, the answer —1250 ft, or 381 m — is
highlighted right in the search result:
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26. The speed of a site will be a ranking factor in 2010
This is what Matt Cutts has just said in an interview.
"Historically, we haven't had to use it in our search rankings, but a lot of people within Google think that the
web should be fast.
It should be a good experience, and so it's sort of fair to say that if you're a fast site, maybe you should get a
little bit of a bonus. If you really have an awfully slow site, then maybe users don't want that as much.
I think a lot of people in 2010 are going to be thinking more about 'how do I have my site be fast, how do I
have it be rich without writing a bunch of custom javascript?"
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