Web Dragons

A recent Forrester Research survey found more users had used a search engine in the last four weeks than had used email, making web search the Internet's new killer app. And while we know nothing about search engine technology of the particular flavor of engine we use, we nevertheless count on the authority and trustworthiness of the information we receive. In fact, we are so trusting of it that we use the web to build our own knowledge structure--and we do it in public, too, rather than in the privacy of our own library. In the meantime we are witnessing a radical convergence of online and print information, and of commercial and non-commercial sources, as new online distribution initiatives are begun every day. This book introduces the changing ways in which we locate information on the Web, and how what is presented to us as a result of our search is determined. It is critical, in part, in its presentation of the problems of web spam and of the current centralized approach to web searching--and presents solutions that give power to users rather than the advertisers and the search engines. In the eye-blink that has elapsed since the turn of the millennium, the lives of those of us who work with information have been utterly transformed. Pretty well all we need to know is on the web; if not today, then tomorrow. Its where we learn and play, shop and do business, keep up with old friends and meet new ones. What makes it possible for us to find the stuff we need to know? Search engines. Search engines web dragons are the portals through which we access societys treasure trove of information. How do they stack up against librarians, the gatekeepers over centuries past? What role will libraries play in a world whose information is ruled by the web? How is the web organized? Who controls its contents, and how do they do it? How do search engines work? How can web visibility be exploited by those who want to sell us their wares? Whats coming tomorrow, and can we influence it? We are witnessing the dawn of a new era, starting right now and this book shows you what it will look like and how it will change your world. Do you use search engines every day? Are you a developer or a librarian, helping others with their information needs? A researcher or journalist for whom the web has changed the very way you work? An online marketer or site designer, whose career exists because of the web? Whoever you are: if you care about information, this book will open your eyes and make you blink. It presents a critical view of the idea of funneling information access through a small handful of gateways and the notion of a centralized index - and the problems that may cause; provides promising approaches for addressing the problems, such as the personalization of web services. It is presented by authorities in the field of digital libraries, web history, machine learning, and web and data mining.