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Brian's Buzz on Windows has changed its name to the Windows
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APRIL 8, 2004 — Issue 27
Errant junk filters strike again
I've written
many times that Internet service providers (ISPs) are
mishandling the growing menace of spam by imposing crude "junk-mail filters"
that delete legitimate messages without notifying the intended recipients
of that fact.
This affected several of my readers personally when the last issue of
Brian's Buzz was sent out on March 26. AOL "bounced" about 88% of the
newsletters that had been sent to subscribers who use aol.com e-mail
addresses. The problem was also severe at subsidiaries owned by AOL, including
cs.com (which bounced 88%) and netscape.net (96%).
As the world's largest ISP, AOL is constantly targeted by spammers and
receives 1 to 2 billion spam messages per day. As a defensive measure,
the ISP's bot filter simply deletes huge quantities of mail without ever
delivering it, and errors are inevitable.
Only 3% of Brian's Buzz subscribers use AOL, CompuServe, or Netscape e-mail
addresses. But that's too many for me to be complacent about. And it's also
a warning to the rest of us that our own ISPs and corporate e-mail servers
might be deleting legitimate mail without letting us know.
To protect yourself, take the following steps:
1. Use your "approved senders" list. Make sure the e-mail address
of any sender you want to hear from is placed into your e-mail program's
Address Book and any "approved senders" list it may use. Do this for the From
address of Brian's Buzz, which is contained in the image below:
2. Watch for bounce notifications. I started a policy last month of
sending a short, plain-text notice to any subscriber whose newsletter
was bounced, if it appears that your ISP didn't inform you. I have to wait
72 hours to do this, which is the standard e-mail time-out period for
delivery errors. So my notifications go out on the fourth or fifth day
after each newsletter is sent.
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3. Re-send missed newsletters to yourself. I've implemented a new
feature on your Brian's Buzz
preferences page.
If an issue of the newsletter is bounced by your ISP or corporate server,
you can now go to your preferences page and re-send the current issue to
yourself. You can do this more than once, if need be, until your "approved
senders" list is properly configured to allow your legitimate mail to get
through.
I've taken one other step to help you get the newsletter. I suspect that
AOL's bot filter might have blown a gasket when it found ads that were included
in the last issue from two online advertising networks. I don't know whether
it was the Wall Street Journal ad or the Kaplan College ad, but I've
temporarily removed all advertising from the newsletter until I investigate
further.
A publication that pays people who do extensive research into
Windows, as this one does, can't afford to give up advertising for long.
But I want to identify any potential problems that might affect readers before
sponsored links are once again accepted.
The real cure for spam is to have strong multinational laws that ban it
(it's theft of services) and to put repeat offenders in the pokey.
Until that day arrives, we'll just have to look out for each other.
Thanks for your support! —Brian Livingston
TOP STORY — info you need to make Windows work
SPECIAL REPORT: What's really going on with Google
By Brian Livingston
Google.com is a search engine, not a Windows program. But Google
is running on so many desktops — and so many computer
professionals use Google to look up technical-support information —
that it almost seems at times like a built-in Windows applet.
That's why I've taken a very public interest in the quality of search
results that Google is providing to Windows users (and everyone else).
The news hasn't all been good. I published a column in eWeek on
Feb. 17 providing several examples of searches on technical
subjects that no longer produced very relevant hits in the top 10 results at
Google. I followed that by printing several readers' comments — most of
them critical of Google — in the Feb. 26 issue of Brian's Buzz.
After several weeks of study since then, I've learned several little-known
details about the ubiquitous search engine that so many of us have come to
rely upon. I'd like to share them with you now, in hopes that the art of
Web searching can be improved for us all.
The problem with "junk" pages
Google is by far the most popular search engine in the world, handling
35% of all Web searches, according to a recent
story citing comScore Media Metrix figures.
That compares with 27% of all searches conducted from Yahoo's
network of sites, 16% from AOL/Time Warner sites, and 15% from Microsoft
sites, such as MSN.
Google's dominance in the technology marketplace is even stronger. Citing
StatMarket figures from May 2003, the search engine's Web site flatly
states that "Google sends more search traffic to
technology sites than all other search engines combined" (graph, left).
The broad reach of Google can send enormous quantities of traffic to whichever
sites show up in the top 10 on particular searches. This attracted the interest
of thousands of Web site owners with something to sell. An entire cottage
industry called "search engine optimization" (SEO) sprouted in the past few
years to manipulate Google's ranking system. SEO techniques usually focused on
the fact that Google's computerized formulas gave extra weight to the words
found in a Web site's title and headings, and the words in links that point
to such sites.
Rankings on many search terms became so loaded with "junk" pages —
sites with little content but lots of optimization tricks — that even
many SEO consultants felt Google was being abused.
"Google has been delivering questionable returns for several months now,
with spam and duplicate listings often making it into the Top 10,"
wrote Jim Hedger of SEO firm Stepforth.com in a Nov. 2003 PDF
report.
When I interviewed Google executives in preparation for my eWeek
piece, they denied that any particular problem had arisen
with the relevance of the search results. I noted that Google Groups,
the index of Usenet postings, often provided better technical links than
the main Google index. Peter Norvig, Google's director of search quality, told
me in response, "These are the types of questions that have always been best
answered on Google Groups."
In fact, top Google officials had for months been planning and implementing
a major overhaul of the ranking formula to combat the takeover of the
listings by the most "optimized" sites.
Google co-founder Sergey Brin
told the AP on Feb. 17 that the search engine had made
"five significant changes to its algorithmic formulas." The update, dubbed
"Brandy," was rolled out across Google's thousands of servers worldwide
over a four-day period from Feb. 17 to 20, according to a Sitepoint.com
article
by Alex Walker.
The Brandy update, Walker explains, allows Google to give more weight
to Web pages that bear words similar to but not identical to
the terms that a searcher typed in. A person searching for travel
insurance, for example, might be shown sites that use other words,
such as holidays or medical. This is called
latent semantic indexing.
The update also places more weight on anchor text, which is the
wording in links that point to a given Web page. Equally important, says
Walker, is that Google is now downgrading the importance it previously placed
on words that appear in page titles, headings, and other HTML tags.
A major impact on small e-commerce sites
The Brandy algorithm, and an earlier change made on Jan. 23 known as
"Austin", was intended to soften the blow that had been
caused to many Mom-and-Pop e-commerce sites by Google's "Florida"
update on Nov. 16, 2003.
Just before the crucial Christmas online buying season, the Florida update
drastically altered Google's ranking system. Google's aim was to cut out
"spammy" Web sites that were manipulating the index. The effect, however,
almost entirely eliminated many legitimate small businesses from the first
several pages of rankings on numerous commercial terms.
A site that is often critical of Google's weaknesses,
Google-Watch.org,
published an amazing study of this effect. The organization showed that
certain two-word search terms produced an entirely different list of top 100
sites in December 2003 than had appeared in November 2003.
More than 90 listings disappeared out of the top 100 search results that
previously appeared, according to Google-Watch, when searches were
performed on the following 2- and 3-word phrases (among many others):
airport parking
apartment finders
birthday balloons
car import
cheap business cards
cheap glasses
condo rental
dental plans
free movie clips
hair removal
homeowner loans
limo for wedding
mcse boot camp
medical transcription jobs
nanny agency
payday loan
satellite dish
tshirt printing
ultrasound jobs
used office furniture
web designing
wooden flooring
work boots
The organization not only published a complete
list
of Google's "poisoned phrases." It also made available a remarkable online
tool
that allows anyone to see the difference in the top 100 listings that
Google produces — with and without the Florida filter in effect.
A search on airport parking, for example, previously showed
ElPaso-Airport-Parking.com, a parking service in Texas, and
SeaTacPark.com, a
private operator of parking lots near the Seattle-Tacoma airport, in the
top 100 listings.
The new algorithm isn't necessarily an improvement in relevance. The top
two Google results on a search for airport parking are now
Parking4Less.co.uk
and ParkAndGo.co.uk, two
private parking operators in Britain — not ideal, "information-rich"
sites about airport parking in general.
But the new ranking formula is definitely a big, big shake-up. This has
generated plenty of speculation about the motivations for the changes.
A detailed flow chart that shows how this all works
Vaughn Aubuchon, a technical writer who maintains an
"Internet
mini-encyclopedia", developed an intricate
flow chart on the way the new system penalizes
various sites.
The chart itself looks like spaghetti, but Aubuchon's written explanation
that annotates it makes sense. In a nutshell, here's how he speculates
that the penalty system works:
- If a Google user's search terms are in the list of
"poisoned phrases," certain Web sites will be penalized in the
search results that appear;
- The rating penalty is imposed if any ONE of the following is true:
- The site is listed in a commercial category of
the directory Google uses; or
- The site in included in Froogle, Google's e-commerce search engine;
or
- The site has been search engine optimized, with common search terms
having been inserted into several HTML tags — such as the site's title,
headings, and alternate image text — as well as the body text; or
- Links to the site mainly come from "link farms" and other information-poor
sites, rather than "expert sites," as determined by Google's new
Hilltop Algorithm.
The Hilltop Algorithm, which was introduced with the Austin update,
is a patented methodology that two researchers provided to Google to help
it find "authority" sites, including those in .edu, .gov, and .org domains.
These sites — and sites they link to —
are reported by Aubuchon to be exempt from the penalties.
How these top-of-the-hill sites are selected has become yet another factor
in the speculation about the changes.
The "profit has finally won out" theory
Google-Watch goes so far as to allege that the list of "poisoned phrases" is very
similar to the search terms that fetch the highest bids from advertisers
in Google's AdWords program.
Specifically, the site says, many Mom-and-Pop e-commerce sites "feel that
they are being deliberately forced to bid on AdWords so as to enhance Google's
profit margins in the months before [Google is] filing an IPO."
It's impossible to know whether this is true or what Google's internal
discussions were.
When I asked Nathan Tyler, a Google public relations representative,
about the recent upheavals, he replied: "Generally speaking,
we can't get into the specifics about changes to our ranking algorithms."
He added, "Google frequently changes its algorithms to improve the overall
quality and accuracy of its search results. This is why it is common to
see movement in the ranking of sites on Google search results pages."
Tyler did not respond to a follow-up question seeking a response to
Google-Watch's specific allegations about e-commerce and Google's AdWords
program.
Will the results really improve?
There's some evidence that the new Google algorithm is even more open to
manipulation by "spammy" sites than it was a few months ago.
On Mar. 25, the principal behind Google-Watch, Daniel Brandt (who goes by
the online handle "Everyman")
announced in a forum that he had succeeded
in making a particular Web page the No. 1 result at Google on a search for
out-of-touch executives.
The joke is that he was able to make the No. 1 listing be Google's
corporate
information page, which shows pictures and biographies of co-founders
Sergey Brin, Larry Page, and other officials.
This effect is similar to other recent "Google bombs," in which
dozens of Web logs used the same anchor text to link to particular sites.
The cumulative effect of all those links was to make searches such as
french
military victories and
weapons of mass destruction go to satirical sites.
But Brandt's recent demonstration is stunningly different. He was able to
manipulate Google's corporate info page into the No. 1 position by creating
anchor text on only eight different Web pages.
Brandt says this proves how easy it is for shady and "spammy" sites to
get high rankings in Google by setting up numerous sites that use the
same anchor text in their links to each other.
Meanwhile, competing search engines are mimicking Google and showing the same
anchor-text vulnerability. Google's corporate info page was soon the No. 1
result for searches on out-of-touch executives at Yahoo, MSN,
AllTheWeb, and AltaVista, Brandt reported.
"Google should not use terms in external links to boost the rank of a page
on those terms, unless those terms are on the page itself," Brandt
explained in an
interview. "This is a no-brainer. But it means another CPU
cycle [increasing the cost] per link, which is why Google won't do it."
How you can use this information
1. Small businesses and large corporations. Does your company rely
on search engines to send visitors to your site? If so, you owe it to yourself
to visit Google-Watch's demonstration page.
Type in a common 1- or 2-word phrase that's associated with your business,
such as computers or xp professional. The demonstration shows
you a "toxicity score" for the search term, and shows you the sites that, as a
result, no longer appear in Google's top 100 results (perhaps yours!)
You should compare these results with actual searches on Google, to ensure
that the ranking algorithms used in the demonstration are still effective.
If your site is, in fact, being penalized because of the "poisoned phrases,"
try reducing the number of times these words are used in titles and tags
on your pages, so they're not "over-optimized." Since Google makes major
updates to its index only about every 30 days, you may have to wait a month
to see if this helps.
2. Individual Web searchers. Do you use Google to search for technical
information about Windows? If so, you should familiarize yourself with other
search engines that may produce more relevant results.
The biggest alternatives available to you (in my order of preference) are:
You can quickly compare the results from Google and the alternatives by using
a metacrawler, such as HotBot. When you perform a search at HotBot, it
returns listings from three different search technologies:
-
Clicking the HotBot button displays results from Inktomi.
- Clicking the Google button returns results from Google; and
- Clicking the Ask Jeeves button returns results from Teoma.
Another good bet is Dogpile. This metacrawler includes results from
Google, LookSmart, Yahoo, and others.
You can display the results from the different search engines intermingled
on the page or have the results grouped by engine. (Tip: Use the Preferences
link to establish this setting.)
Search engine technology is rapidly changing. Increased competition
among the players can only be good for those of us who depend on these
services to find technical information about Windows and other topics.
Don't become dependent upon a single search solution. Make yourself aware
of the strengths and weaknesses of each alternative.
To send me more information about this, or to send me a tip on any other
subject, visit
WindowsSecrets.com/contact. You'll receive a gift certificate for a book,
CD, or DVD of your choice if you send me a comment that I print.
RECOMMENDED READING — my book reviews of tech topics
To help my readers who are outside the United States (who represent about 20%
of my subscribers), beginning in this issue I'm including informational links
that are country-specific. Availability and editions of books may
differ by region, so use the info links for your country, where shown.
Hardening Windows
Yes, we all know that the default installation of Windows isn't secure.
But do you know, in step-by-step detail, what to do to shut down nonessential
services that are at risk and close obvious points of attack?
Hardening Windows is just the book to fill this need. It isn't a
very large book — only about 200 pages or so. But size doesn't matter
when it comes to following this comprehensible series of procedures that will
make any Windows machine more secure.
The author, Jonathan Hassell, runs an IT department at a university in
North Carolina, and his mixed environment of Windows servers, Suns, and
Unix flavors has taught him well. Fortunately, he knows how to convey that
experience on to us. More info:
United States /
Canada /
Elsewhere
Active Directory By the Numbers: Windows Server 2003
If you can see Windows Server 2003 making its way into your company sooner
or later, then Active Directory is going to be a part of your future,
whether you like it or not.
You might as well get up to speed by reading Active Directory By the
Numbers. The book covers Group Policy Objects, remote installation of
Windows, updating things with Microsoft's Software Update Service, and more.
This is useful stuff, whether you'll be called upon to implement it next
year or yesterday.
More info
Defensive Design for the Web
In the spirit of that famous earlier tutorial, Web Sites That Suck,
now comes a new book that teaches us how to make great company portals
by looking at examples of crummy ones.
Defensive Design for the Web, brought to you by the team at 37signals,
is a must-read for anyone who gets anywhere near the beginnings of a new
product page, survey form, or checkout process for a real-world site. Just
avoiding one of the mistakes that the authors make you painfully
aware of — how many different ways are there to type an
address, anyway? — could save you thousands in development time.
More info:
United States /
Canada /
Elsewhere
FORWARDING INSTRUCTIONS — news gains value when it's shared
Please share this information with your colleagues
You're encouraged to refer your friends and colleagues to this free
newsletter. Because most e-mail programs don't correctly display a formatted
message that's been forwarded, simply call people's attention to
the permanent Web address of this issue:
BriansBuzz.com/w/040408.
HERE'S A TIP — you'll get a better newsletter if you choose the paid version
You're reading the free version of Brian's Buzz on Windows
Subscribers to the paid version receive additional information in each issue,
plus they are entitled to a bonus download at least once every
calendar quarter.
This month's bonus download for my paid subscribers is Dan Appleman's e-book,
Everyday Security and Registry Tricks. As I described in the
March 11
issue of Brian's Buzz, this 16-page PDF e-book is available for every reader
who upgrades to a paid subscription between March 18 and April 18.
To upgrade, simply make a contribution of any amount that you choose.
If you contribute before April 7, 2004, you'll immediately be sent
the full, paid version of this week's newsletter. That issue
contains complete instructions that enable you to download your copy
of the bonus e-book. You'll also get immediate access to all past paid
Brian's Buzz newsletter content.
In addition to the bonus download, some of the extras in this week's paid
version of the newsletter are:
- Helping users to not always run as "Administrator."
Logging into Windows with fewer privileges than "all power" is a great idea,
but you need to know these tricks to make it really work.
- Get free certificates to fix Outlook 2003. Incessant security
warnings for no apparent reason can drive you crazy after you install Office
XP Service Pack 3 — but there's a free and powerful workaround.
- Registry hack works for both Word 2002 and 2003. Microsoft has
actually revised a Knowledge Base article that I pointed out a discrepancy
in last issue, and the new procedure has even wider applicability.
To upgrade to the paid version, please visit
WindowsSecrets.com/upgrade.
Thanks in advance. —Brian Livingston
BRIAN'S BOOKSHELF — new e-books from the author
Spam-Proof Your E-Mail Address
This 27-page e-book in PDF format gives you step-by-step instructions
that can eliminate 97% of the spam that would otherwise clog your e-mail
account. You could call it "Brian Livingston's Spam Secrets." The book
is the result of months of experiments and tests I conducted, and I now
receive little or no spam to the addresses I used as guinea pigs. These tests
show that you can actually reduce your volume of spam to practically nothing,
not just battle an unstoppable and ever-growing flood. The methods I describe
work with Windows, Apple, and Linux and don't require any filters or block
lists — but you can use those in addition to the book's techniques, if you wish.
More info
WACKY WEB WEEK — playing for you the Internet's greatest bits
The Subservient Chicken
Someone in a chicken costume rises from his perch and moves to the center
of the room, facing you. He just sort of gazes at you, as if waiting for
you to do something.
That's when it hits you — of course! there's an input box right
there, beseeching you to enter commands — which is why the site
is called SubservientChicken.com.
The bird-man actually obeys your orders. Try "flap your wings," "throw
pillows," "jump up and down," "build fort," "moonwalk" — and those
are just the ones that I tried before I was dragged off to do some real,
ahem, work. This site gives the Submit button a whole new meaning...
The mini-movie, with you as the director, is actually sponsored by the
corporate site of Burger King. I don't know why they think this animation will
sell fast food. "Have chicken your way," I guess. But it's exactly the kind of
weird thing that I know my normally businesslike readers will find hilarious.
Make the chicken dance
CLOSING REMARKS — the best is yet to come
In this section, I provide links to columns I've published recently
that you might find useful.
Password protection? Surely you're joking!
A major player in "password recovery utilities" is an international company
known as Passware, with offices in Tallinn, Estonia, and Moscow, Russia. The
firm's flagship product, Passware Kit Enterprise 6.0, ia a veritable Swiss Army
Knife that can crack the passwords of almost any software you can think of.
More info
A mysterious solution to your security problems
Imagine a circuit board that fits into any machine running Windows or Linux,
stops virus activity without requiring updated 'signature' files, and thwarts
hackers and malware. A Ukrainian company claims to have developed just such
technology.
More info
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