Glasnost at Google?

What I love about Google is its capacity to surprise everyone by suddenly changing the rules and throwing a spanner into everyone's works.

Examples would be the decision to buy Urchin and then give the software away as Google Analytics.  In the UK agency scene, the forthcoming removal of agency commissions - sorry, "best practise funding" will similarly require a rethink of many well-established business practises.

In that spirit was a long blog entry a week or so ago from Udi Manber, an Engineering Vice President in Google's Search Quality team.  Udi Manber wrote one of the standard textbooks on algorithms (I can't honestly say that I've read it myself!) and before joining Google was the Chief Scientist at Yahoo! and then the Chief Algorithms Officer at Amazon.

It's an interesting post as he gives away a lot of detail about the processes Google goes to in terms of safeguarding search quality.  And he also promises that this is the start of a process of more openness in this area.

I think that this is an important step forward.  Given the importance of search results to many different parts of online marketing, it doesn't seem right that the entire process should be shrouded in mystery, or revealed only in the veilled mutterings of the high priests of natural search agencies.

Anyway, whilst I'm being nice about Google, I loved the logo they produced for Charles Rennie Mackintosh's birthday on the 7th June.  Since this was a Saturday, many people will have missed it, so here it is again - lovely work!