subject: LinkAdage's Take On Google's New Search Engine Patent [print this page] Has Google thrown the cyber world a curveball? Let's fill in some blanks and connect a few dots regarding the recently-filed patent application for Google's latest Search Engine algorithm - Search Engine 125. For those unfamiliar with the inner workings of search engines, each Search Engine uses its own unique formula for determining that all-important ranking for each web site. Remember, users who query a Search Engine rarely look beyond the first page, so if you want to increase visitor traffic, step one is to develop your website in a way that matches the major search engine's ranking algorithms. You need to find out what the search engines like and make sure you feed it to them.
Now, over the years, the formulae used by search engines to rank a site have grown more complex. Pre-2000, search engines didn't do much more than count keywords on a site. The more times the words 'limburger cheese' appeared on the site, the higher the site's limburger cheese search engine ranking position (SERP). Of course, the key then became to develop SEO text with limburger cheese mentioned in every header, twice in subheads and at least once in every paragraph. Hardly compelling reading, except for the most avid of limburger cheese fans.
So, the Google, Yahoo, and MSN search engines moved to improve the quality of their SERPs, to provide users with helpful, expert information. Changes were made to the keyword algorithms (the weighing formulae), awarding more points for things like the quality of inbound and outbound links to and from a site. This meant that quality links from a relevant 'authority' site - a highly-prized designation, will move your site up in the SERPs.
Well, on March 31, 2005, Google applied for a patent on its latest search algorithm. For those who have no fear of their brains exploding from buzzword overload do a search on "Patent Application 0050071741" to read the entire patent. The patent application describes "a method for scoring a document comprising: identifying the document; obtaining one or more types of history (sic) data associated with the document; and generating a score for the document based on the one or more types of historical data."
Apparently (or not), Google has determined that historical data associated with each site is an essential ingredient in developing the highest quality search results for users who query. And just what kind of historical data are we talking about here? Well, things like:
LinkAdage's Take On Google's New Search Engine Patent
