This week, we're taking a look at possible changes in Google's ranking algorithm.

In the news: Google launches Google SMS and Google Print, Yahoo lets you preview its new home page design, further information about a Google browser and more.

Table of contents:

• Facts of the week
• Search engine news of the week
• Articles of the week
• Recommended resources
• Previous articles

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People with connections to Google developers pointed out that Google was working on better ways to determine the quality of web site links.

Google's problematic ranking algorithm

The problem with Google's current algorithm is that many people don't link to relevant pages anymore. Many people just link to web sites with a special PageRank and they only accept links from pages with a special PageRank. This dilutes the quality of the links and the quality of Google's search results.

Google has recognized the problem. Among other many other things, Google might show bunk back links, it might not update PageRank, or it might manually penalize some sites for buying or selling PageRank links to solve that problem.

What does this mean to you?

We've mentioned it in our newsletter before: it's not important to get as many links as possible. It's important to get links from related web sites. The PageRank of a web page is not important. The content of the other web site is important.

If you see a good web site with good content that has a low PageRank you should trade links with that site if that web site is useful for your visitors. One day, that page might have a higher PageRank and it will still link back to you.

Which links are the right links for your site?

Ask yourself: Is the web site related to your site? Would it make sense for web surfers if they linked to you and you linked to them? Could visitors of the other web site be interested in your site? If you find a web site you would want to visit or your visitors would want to visit then link to it and ask for a link back to your site.

Google changes its rules on a regular basis. Although the rules regularly change, Google always tries to do the same: it tries to find the most relevant pages for a special topic. If you trade links with related pages and if these links are relevant to your web site visitors, your web site will be one of the pages that Google finds relevant because your web site is relevant.

How to find and manage relevant link partners

If you haven't tried it yet, download a copy of our link popularity tool ARELIS now. ARELIS is a software tool that helps you to locate potential link partners. It also helps you to contact these link partners and to manage them in an easy to use program. In addition, ARELIS creates custom link pages in your web page design with a few mouse clicks. You can find further information here.

Link building is an essential part of successful web site promotion. If incoming links didn't have a great impact on search engine results, Google wouldn't put so much effort into making it harder to manipulate them. Download ARELIS now and build real incoming links from related web sites to improve your search engine rankings.

Google launches Google SMS

"Google SMS (Short Message Service) enables you to easily get precise answers to specialized queries from your mobile phone or device. Send your query as a text message and get phone book listings, dictionary definitions, product prices and more. Just text. No links. No web pages."

Google launches Google Print

"To use Google Print, just search on Google as you normally would. For example, do a search on a subject such as 'Books about Ecuador Trekking,' or search on a title like 'Romeo and Juliet'. Whenever a book contains content that matches your search terms, we'll show links to that book in your search results."

Search engine Gigablast is growing

"Gigablast has grown its search engine index from 450 Million to 650 million pages during the last few months."

Kanoodle.com launches BrightAds

Pay per click search engine Kanoodle launches a new advertising program that is similar to Google AdSense: "BrightAds, Kanoodle's sponsored links product for search engines and content sites, generates maximum revenue with unsurpassed relevancy."

Preview Yahoo's new home page

"We made the Front Page simpler and easier to use. The new design is coming soon, but you can start using it today."

Search engine newslets

• FindWhat.Com and Verizon expand their relationship.
• The search engine IceRocket.com now offers a web log search.
• Google has an official dog policy and they call themselves a "dog company".
• On a lighter note: "Teenagers addicted to Google" (movie).

Investor doesn't see browser in Google's future

"Google board member and investor John Doerr said Tuesday that despite speculation, the search giant would not enter the Web browser market, but he predicted others would. [...] Doerr later joked, however, that just because he was on the board of Google didn't necessarily mean he knew what they were doing."

Amazon.com's A9 adventure

"The new engine and toolbar launch Amazon.com into the search arena, but why aren't consumers worried about privacy? [...] Moreover, a searcher’s login name can be tied to their purchase history on Amazon in order to further personalize their search experience. As we’ve seen, any time purchase and behavioral information is tied to personally identifiable information, there are usually privacy concerns."

AOL readies standalone browser

"As the hubbub of alternative Web browsers keeps growing—from speculation over a so-called 'Gbrowser' from search-engine leader Google Inc. to the many advances in the open-source Mozilla project - in the background, America Online Inc. has been quietly testing its own Web browser, dubbed 'AOL Browser,' for more than a month."

Yahoo! aims to get personal

"Yahoo will become much more personalized to users' individual tastes. That would build on the Sept. 30 revamping of its site, including the addition of more ways to customize MyYahoo, which has 20 million users. 'Everybody uses Yahoo a little differently,' said Yang. 'We have to allow more control to the users.'"

Yang tells Google founders to enjoy it

"Jerry Yang has some advice to the two Stanford graduates now running archrival Google - enjoy it while it lasts."

Another 5 star rating for ARELIS

Our popular link popularity tool ARELIS has received another 5 star rating. This time it's from 3WDownload.com:

"ARELIS is a top-rated software program that helps you to build a powerful business network quickly and easily.

Your business will benefit in many ways from that network: You'll get highly targeted visitors to your web site, you'll benefit from new business contacts and your web site will get a higher ranking on search engines because of higher link popularity.

ARELIS helps you to establish many high quality reciprocal links that point to your web site. It is the first software program that provides a serious, spam-free reciprocal links solution for professional webmasters."

Just send us some words about your successes with IBP or ARELIS and you might get featured in this newsletter along with your web site address.

• Google's new web page spider
• Why valid HTML code is important to your web site
• Amazon's new search engine A9
• Use Internet directories to get more visitors
• Compare your web site to your competitors
• Google's link command and better ways to do it
• View all past issues...