Comments on: Google Reads

Google Reads

sierray — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 09:47:56 -0800

The world's largest card file? "Google is in talks with several publishers to build a service that would allow Web surfers to search the full text of books online, according to a report this week from Publishers Weekly's online site."

By: thanotopsis

thanotopsis — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 09:53:19 -0800

Far be it for me to cry Sour Grapes when we're speaking of the Great Googly Moogly, but when Amazon gets it done already, why should we look other places? Admittedly, it would be nice to have this feature without the obvious commercialization -- but Amazon's commercialization is a matter of convenience. If I want to look for books "similar" to what I'm viewing over Google's proposed index, will it be smart enough to match up subject matter, author, and content?

By: Dunvegan

Dunvegan — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 09:57:12 -0800

Interesting...today on the Amazon.com home page near the top of the left column there's a new and prominent Google search box. Is there merger music between Amazon and Google if Amazon's new Look Inside The Book search feature is playing the tune. Anyone know what's going on twixt these two?

By: ed

ed — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 10:08:18 -0800

when Amazon gets it done already, why should we look other places? For the same reason that Information Please sits next to The World Almanac on your bookshelf. Healthy competition encourages the best out of businesses, with each alternative offering its own unique advantage. Personally, I'd love to see a Mozilla-style open source project devoted to this type of search. Remove the business component and turn this idea into a pursuit of knowledge, rather than commerce. You might just be able to simmer down the Authors' Guild if you could convince them that it was more library-like in nature. Maybe.

By: dougb

dougb — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 10:11:17 -0800

That search box isn't so new. In April they did a deal which included that box as well as "sponsored links" on Amazon search result pages. Personally, I highly doubt Google and Amazon will merge. I don't think Google would except a takeover offer from anyone short of God himself, and even that's questionable.

By: Razzle Bathbone

Razzle Bathbone — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 10:27:38 -0800

Possibly even better is that Google is in talks with OCLC to put library holdings onto Google as well. If this is true this will be a boon to researchers. LISNews

By: silusGROK

silusGROK — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 11:39:12 -0800

Google offering it means sites that sell books, but happen _not_ to be part of the Amazon juggernaut can offer the service. That, in my humble opinion, is a Good Thing™.

By: elpapacito

elpapacito — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 11:47:07 -0800

It will be kind of "fun" to see what demons and lawyers will be summoned when they'll sue each other for patent infringment ; bet Amazon will patent this new book thingie in a snap.

By: Twang

Twang — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 14:08:00 -0800

I thought that Amazon (test case?) interface looked familiar.

By: Hildegarde

Hildegarde — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 14:23:16 -0800

Wow, and when google gets a piece of worldcat, it may just develop sentience and start picking us off. Good thing Arnie is governor of California, that's all I'm saying.

By: drobot

drobot — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 14:37:11 -0800

This seems like a cool idea - I just hope they make a separate 'book' tab instead of integrating w/ the regular old google search. At a certain point the 'catalog' of things to search will get so large that it will be prohibitive to sift through the results to find what you need. I already have this problem with Google, although maybe my problem is with the size of the web.

By: stbalbach

stbalbach — Wed, 29 Oct 2003 15:40:15 -0800

drobot, I think a lot of people will need to learn more sophisticated searching techniques is the answer. For example searching on "needles" brings up everthing from sewing needles to drug needles. But searching on "needle -sewing" will exclude the sewing results. There are a lot of tricks like that to learn in Google that can narrow search results down pretty quick.

By: IshmaelGraves

IshmaelGraves — Thu, 30 Oct 2003 05:54:14 -0800

Let's not forget the Million Book Project..