Google Base Launches
November 16, 2005 1:38 PM Subscribe
Google Base launches. Is it me or does this look a lot like craigslist?
Is it me or does this look a lot like craigslist?
It's not you, it is every single one of the thousands of blogs that have posted about this today that have noted the obvious Craigslistiness (and Ebay...and Del.icio.us...) of Google Base.
posted by tpl1212 at 1:42 PM on November 16, 2005
It's not you, it is every single one of the thousands of blogs that have posted about this today that have noted the obvious Craigslistiness (and Ebay...and Del.icio.us...) of Google Base.
posted by tpl1212 at 1:42 PM on November 16, 2005
Is it me or does this look a lot like craigslist?
Only if I can buy drugs on it.
posted by wakko at 1:43 PM on November 16, 2005
Only if I can buy drugs on it.
posted by wakko at 1:43 PM on November 16, 2005
All your google are belong to us.
posted by loquacious at 1:48 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by loquacious at 1:48 PM on November 16, 2005
I don't see much of anything. Am I missing something? Is there a gallery of apps or views of the database somewhere? All I see are a couple examples and then it wants me to add data to it.
posted by mathowie at 1:51 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by mathowie at 1:51 PM on November 16, 2005
Craigslist is successful because its so simple, Google used to be simple and now they're just soooo smart.
I'll stick to using Craigslist.
posted by fenriq at 1:55 PM on November 16, 2005
I'll stick to using Craigslist.
posted by fenriq at 1:55 PM on November 16, 2005
Is it me or does this look a lot like craigslist?
I didn't see any blurry and not-so-blurry closeups of guy's wangs, so no.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 1:56 PM on November 16, 2005
I didn't see any blurry and not-so-blurry closeups of guy's wangs, so no.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 1:56 PM on November 16, 2005
Am I missing something?
Did you try searching for something?
posted by Kwantsar at 1:57 PM on November 16, 2005
Did you try searching for something?
posted by Kwantsar at 1:57 PM on November 16, 2005
a) Recognize that many popular sites are basically just databases that collect and return information, often for fees on either side.
b) Since you're Google, create a generic Google interface for such data... and do it for free.
c) Leverage Google super brain to prevent listings from being overloaded with spam?
d) Profit?
e) Disrupt economic model for many profitable sites?
posted by VulcanMike at 1:58 PM on November 16, 2005
b) Since you're Google, create a generic Google interface for such data... and do it for free.
c) Leverage Google super brain to prevent listings from being overloaded with spam?
d) Profit?
e) Disrupt economic model for many profitable sites?
posted by VulcanMike at 1:58 PM on November 16, 2005
The front page is too complicated. I want to browse, not search. Popups for categories sucks.
posted by doctor_negative at 2:02 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by doctor_negative at 2:02 PM on November 16, 2005
If they open up an API like they have for thier search stuff, Google base could be really useful as a way of hosting large files or sets of photos.
Mathowie,
Try searching for something, or clicking on the "See items posted by others." links.
You can view items by tag simply by using the tag as a search item. You can view items by author using a search criterion of "author: walljm", and for an individual item, if it has address info in it, they will post a link to google maps.
posted by walljm at 2:05 PM on November 16, 2005
Mathowie,
Try searching for something, or clicking on the "See items posted by others." links.
You can view items by tag simply by using the tag as a search item. You can view items by author using a search criterion of "author: walljm", and for an individual item, if it has address info in it, they will post a link to google maps.
posted by walljm at 2:05 PM on November 16, 2005
what is this google everyone seems to be talking about?!?!?
posted by jdg at 2:06 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by jdg at 2:06 PM on November 16, 2005
If google can keep this from getting crammed with spam, I'll be impressed.too late.
posted by boo_radley at 2:14 PM on November 16, 2005
I'd LOVE to see this become THE SITE for For Sale By Owner home sales. Think of it as a national FREE MLS database.
Wow.
posted by BrodieShadeTree at 2:17 PM on November 16, 2005
Wow.
posted by BrodieShadeTree at 2:17 PM on November 16, 2005
...the Google Base interface, however, including the Help Content, is currently available only in English, English UK and German.
Heh. It's over, UK! America is the English language!
posted by languagehat at 2:24 PM on November 16, 2005
Heh. It's over, UK! America is the English language!
posted by languagehat at 2:24 PM on November 16, 2005
The three car marquees listed for sale on my view are MB, Porche and Prius. That says something about this but I'm not sure what.
posted by Mitheral at 2:41 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by Mitheral at 2:41 PM on November 16, 2005
It's like craigslist without the interface. Which kind of misses the point. Is the idea that I'm supposed to type "New York dresser for sale" into the search box to find things?
posted by smackfu at 2:53 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by smackfu at 2:53 PM on November 16, 2005
One thing I don't get is the "reference article" stuff-- are you meant to go copy reference articles from publications and put them there?
posted by cell divide at 2:54 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by cell divide at 2:54 PM on November 16, 2005
One thing I don't get is the "reference article" stuff-- are you meant to go copy reference articles from publications and put them there?
posted by cell divide at 2:55 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by cell divide at 2:55 PM on November 16, 2005
Hey, look, google is doing something, lets try to classify it by comparing it to numerous other sites we swear allegiance to now that Google isn't cool anymore, while ignoring the obvious benefits of centralizing all of this information.
If you want to snark, snark on the terrifying prospect of one company controlling everyone's data.
posted by phrontist at 3:17 PM on November 16, 2005
If you want to snark, snark on the terrifying prospect of one company controlling everyone's data.
posted by phrontist at 3:17 PM on November 16, 2005
Well, I'm in there, anyway.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 3:29 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by DrJohnEvans at 3:29 PM on November 16, 2005
Well, I was going to upload all of metafilter so we wouldn't have to ever deal with JRuns again, but I got bored after entering the first two comments for this story..
http://base.google.com/base/search?q=metafilter+46728
posted by rajbot at 3:31 PM on November 16, 2005
http://base.google.com/base/search?q=metafilter+46728
posted by rajbot at 3:31 PM on November 16, 2005
Huh. I wanted to see what kinda of editorial jobs were in San Francisco, and I got a little excited about this one. Too bad it's in Washington DC.
Located in Washington, D.C., AAJC is affiliated with the Asian Law Caucus in San Francisco ...
Google, you have failed me.
posted by mrgrimm at 3:57 PM on November 16, 2005
Located in Washington, D.C., AAJC is affiliated with the Asian Law Caucus in San Francisco ...
Google, you have failed me.
posted by mrgrimm at 3:57 PM on November 16, 2005
I think part of the idea is that this will eventually show up alongside regular Google search results.
Which may, or may not, be useful, depending on your point of view.
posted by dhartung at 4:12 PM on November 16, 2005
Which may, or may not, be useful, depending on your point of view.
posted by dhartung at 4:12 PM on November 16, 2005
the obvious benefits of centralizing all of this information.
centralized information is boring. I think if blogging over the last couple years has shown us anything, it's that people like to look on the edge of the internet, not in the boring middle.
posted by menace303 at 5:10 PM on November 16, 2005
centralized information is boring. I think if blogging over the last couple years has shown us anything, it's that people like to look on the edge of the internet, not in the boring middle.
posted by menace303 at 5:10 PM on November 16, 2005
http://base.google.com/base/search?q=metafilter+46728
Same two results by typing 'metafilter' by itself. Those two posts are the entire representation of MeFi at Googlist. I mean google Base.
posted by IronLizard at 5:25 PM on November 16, 2005
Same two results by typing 'metafilter' by itself. Those two posts are the entire representation of MeFi at Googlist. I mean google Base.
posted by IronLizard at 5:25 PM on November 16, 2005
http://base.google.com/base/search?q=metafilter+46728
Same two results by typing 'metafilter' by itself. Those two posts are the entire representation of MeFi at Googlist. I mean google Base.
O RLY?
posted by mrgrimm at 6:12 PM on November 16, 2005
Same two results by typing 'metafilter' by itself. Those two posts are the entire representation of MeFi at Googlist. I mean google Base.
O RLY?
posted by mrgrimm at 6:12 PM on November 16, 2005
Damn, but they're fast.
posted by IronLizard at 7:29 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by IronLizard at 7:29 PM on November 16, 2005
I really don't see this as a Craigslist clone at all. Either I'm missing the point of Craigslist (which looks to me like classified ads with featuritis) or I'm seeing too much in Googlebase (which looks like a freeform database useable for essentially anything, with classified ads given as an example)
posted by arto at 8:00 PM on November 16, 2005
posted by arto at 8:00 PM on November 16, 2005
it doesn't seem so much like craigslist to me...craigslist in each site is kind of its own community, with postings relevant to that community...i think san francisco craigslist reflects the personality of the city, in a way more vague than I could explain very well...and the search is already narrowed down to your immediate area (as opposed to everywhere) when you view the page...and yeah, you can specify location with googlebase, but if i were someone posting a message or ad i would be more confident of getting some kind of response posting it on a local board than throwing it out into a worldwide listing and hope joe or jane blow knows how to construct a well-formed query i order to find it...
...but I think it is a neat idea, the idea of an online database and trying to explore what kinds of information would be useful to seek that way...but it seems like an idea that's on its way to somewhere rather than one that has arrived...
posted by troybob at 8:08 PM on November 16, 2005
...but I think it is a neat idea, the idea of an online database and trying to explore what kinds of information would be useful to seek that way...but it seems like an idea that's on its way to somewhere rather than one that has arrived...
posted by troybob at 8:08 PM on November 16, 2005
yeah, i don't care whether craigslist users think it looks like craigslist; it can be so much more. i see it as google putting their big toe into the semantic web water.
i hope it'll be interesting to watch develop.
posted by piranha at 8:54 PM on November 16, 2005
i hope it'll be interesting to watch develop.
posted by piranha at 8:54 PM on November 16, 2005
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posted by delmoi at 1:40 PM on November 16, 2005