NEWS> Google's Purchase Bloggles the Imagination
- From: Gleason Sackmann <gleason@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: NetHappenings <nethappenings@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2003 08:33:59 -0600
**************************************************************
Net Happenings - From Educational CyberPlayGround
**************************************************************
From: "David P. Dillard" <jwne@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wed, 19 Feb 2003 05:04:07 -0500 (EST)
Google has purchased Pyra Labs and with it the biggest light in the
growing firmament of blogs and bloggers, in the world of weblogs.
This acquisition drew immediate attention from the search engine media:
--------------------
+ Puzzling Out Google's Blogger Acquisition
SearchDay
February 18, 2003 - Number 466-67
By Chris Sherman
Associate Editor, Search Engine Watch
http://searchenginewatch.com/
<http://www.searchenginewatch.com/searchday/03/sd0218-bloggle.html>
Pundits are scratching their heads over Saturday's surprise announcement
that Google had bought weblog publishing heavyweight Pyra Labs, but a look
at the big picture reveals some intriguing scenarios for "Bloggle's" future.
Google's success has largely been attributed to an obsessive focus on
search. While other search engines succumbed alluring gewgaws,
transforming themselves into portals, Google's mission has always been to
"organize the immense amount of information available on the web."
********************************************************
FREE CLIP ART
Do your Students, Teachers, Administrators, Tech Eds
need to know where to go for great online resources
for the arts? Integrate the arts into the classroom.
<http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Arts/websites.html>
********************************************************
So why would Google buy Pyra Labs, developer of the widely-used Blogger
and Blogspot web self-publishing system? Is Google "selling out" to the
urge to become a portal? Are they morphing into a content provider? Are
they losing their laser-like focus on search? No, to all of the above.
This isn't the first time Google has purchased a web "community." Google
purchased the Deja Usenet newsgroup archives in February 2001, and now
runs them as "Google Groups." The interactive, often self-referential
nature of many weblogs has many similarities to newsgroup postings.
----------------------
EJournal also took note of the acquisition:
February 15, 2003
Google Buys Pyra: Blogging Goes Big-Time
posted by Dan Gillmor 07:41 PM
<http://weblog.siliconvalley.com/column/dangillmor/archives/000802.shtml>
Weblogs are going Googling.
Google, which runs the Web's premier search site, has purchased Pyra Labs,
a San Francisco company that created some of the earliest technology for
writing weblogs, the increasingly popular personal and opinion journals.
The buyout is a huge boost to an enormously diverse genre of online
publishing that has begun to change the equations of online news and
information. Weblogs are frequently updated, with items appearing in
reverse chronological order (the most recent postings appear first).
Typically they include links to other pages on the Internet, and the
topics range from technology to politics to just about anything you can
name. Many weblogs invite feedback through discussion postings, and
weblogs often point to other weblogs in an ecosystem of news, opinions and
ideas.
"I couldn't be more excited about this," said Evan Williams, founder of
Pyra, a company that has had its share of struggles. He wouldn't discuss
terms of the deal, which he said was signed on Thursday, when we spoke
Saturday. But he did say it gives Pyra the "resources to build on the
vision I've been working on for years."
-----------------------------
The world of business also took note as indicated by this article in
Forbes:
Internet
Google Goes Blog-Crazy
Arik Hesseldahl, 02.18.03, 4:12 PM ET
<http://www.forbes.com/home_asia/2003/02/18/cx_ah_0218google.html>
NEW YORK - Get ready for the third wave of blogging.
With its acquisition of Pyra Labs, Web-search juggernaut Google.com
apparently sees dollar signs in the business of letting anyone easily
publish their comments and thoughts on the Web.
Blogging, as it's often called, has become, in the last year, a trendy Web
toy for the stream-of-consciousness set. Pyra's Blogger, with more than a
million users, allows users to write and publish online almost as quickly
as a thought strikes.
As Internet trends go, the practice of publishing Web logs, or "blogs" for
short, has followed the usual trajectory. In 1993 having an e-mail address
was edgy, but by 1995 it was fairly common. So it has been with blogs,
which started to really enter the cultural consciousness last year.
While terms of the deal have not been disclosed, it marks the latest move
by Google.com to expand its offerings well beyond its universally popular
Web-search service. Last year it launched a beta-test of a news
aggregating service called Google News. In 2001 it acquired the archive of
Usenet discussion groups from Deja.com.
------------------------------
And representing the computer industry, PC World chimed in:
Google Goes Gaga for Web Logs
Search giant acquires Pyra Labs, to add popular blogging tools to its
growing list of online offerings.
Scarlet Pruitt, IDG News Service
Tuesday, February 18, 2003
<http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,109416,00.asp>
Search powerhouse Google has snapped up Pyra Labs, the company behind Web
log site Blogger, giving it a boost in both Web content and services.
The acquisition, which was disclosed in a posting on the Blogger site over
the weekend, will also allow Google to leapfrog into the burgeoning Web
log market, which has been gaining steam recently as increasing numbers of
Net users discover the ease of use and flexibility that the online
publishing medium affords them. Web logs are Web pages made up of short,
frequently updated posts, much like a diary.
Four-year old Pyra Labs, which is based in San Francisco, has managed to
make a significant foothold in Web logging--also known as
blogging--growing its base of registered users to over a million. The
basic service is free, although the company does have a premium version.
------------------------
The new procedure will be as follows:
Turn on your computer.
Log on to the internet.
Blog on to Google.
The question remains whether one will be able to purchase a steady stream
of ideas through froogle.blogle.google (?) Just wondering.
Sincerely,
David Dillard Research Librarian
david@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
ECP RingLeader
http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/ringleaders/davidd.html
Temple University
(215) 204 - 4584
jwne@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
**************************************************************
The Net Happenings mailing list is a service of
Educational CyberPlayGround - http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/
**************************************************************
If you have any questions, concerns, suggestions, or
would like to sponsor the Net Happenings service -
<http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Community/Subguidelines.html>
Subscribe | Unsubscribe | Change Email Preferences -
<http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Community/NetHappenings.html>
**************************************************************
Other related posts:
- » NEWS> Google's Purchase Bloggles the Imagination
