Vertical search is not a new area of web apps but I learned something new about it recently. I attended a panel of CTO’s from the space yesterday at the Silicon Valley Web Builder event. Participating companies included Simply Hired, Spock, MEDgle and Riya. Each representative took a couple of minutes to conduct a product demonstration. Spock is still in a private beta, so it was neat to see it in action . My first impressions were very positive.

What’s interesting is that even though these are all search companies, none of the products are competitive. You might think this a very natural dynamic. After all, each vertical is necessarily focused on different slices of web content. But there’s more that makes search a different app as you move from vertical to vertical. It’s not simply a matter of different information. For me, the dividing line between these apps is rooted in how users interact with that information. The way the search process is organized to help users negotiate that interaction can vary widely from app to app. Read more »

• Impact of Universal Search
• Chatting with the MEDgle.com Founders
• First Look at Spock
• Google May Employ Simply Hired

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I attended The Semantic Conference this week in San Jose. One of the most interesting talks was given by Mills Davis, who is a recognized expert in this area. Mills spoke about his Semantic Wave project and research. One part of the research hypothesizes an adoption cycle for different phases of the web. In other words, different paradigms for the organization and use of web content. They shift over time as the industry and technology matures. I will post this slide of his presentation soon.

The framework looks at two dimensions for the advancement of the web. First, there is the strength of the semantics. That refers to the degree of knowledge representation in the way information is defined for computers. You can have weak or strong semantics surrounding the same given piece of data (say, my contact information). The other dimension is the degree of reasoning capability of tools and applications. This is a smart way of framing the opportunity because it highlights essential trade-offs. Read more »

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Video is getting a lot of attention on the web today and rightfully so. But what does this mean for the text-web (you know, information produced in plain-old written form)?

Some Internet analysts are predicting that video will dominate the web content within 5 years.

I don’t agree with that statement despite being very bullish on video web apps.

Video has a huge and growing place in media consumption. No big revelation. One testament to its growing influence on the web is Google Universal Search, which subtly integrates video (along with map, book, blog and image) content into traditional search results. But it’s simplistic to believe that anything produced in text today can be better consumed in video. The written word is and will remain the optimal form for a lot of content. Yes, the same news story can be transformed into news video. But the relevance of one over the other is a function of user needs. Read more »

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Have you noticed that print media is coming to resemble web pages?

Consider the re-design of the Financial Times (first edition of new design on April 23rd). The front page demonstrates four common facets of web content. At the top, there are tabs that highlight key content that sits inside. Not everything can make it to the front page of course. These look like a cross between tabs on a web page (which typically represent different channels or recurring sections) and the slideshow concept. By slideshow, I mean bubbling-up programming from inside the site in a visual manner with some text summary. Slideshows are often implemented in the form of scrolling content vignettes. It’s the experience you find on AOL or Yahoo’s main page, NBA.com or even Rhapsody. If the FT front page were digital, you could just imagine the scroll from one tab to another drawing your attention to 3-4 items beyond the front page that the editors think is great copy. Read more »

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You may have read about P&G’s major decision last week to reduce product packaging sizes in its liquid detergent business. The company intends to double concentration of detergent in smaller bottle sizes. Yes, the change is better for the environment and will trim costs, but could there be something deeper at-work here?

P&G is well-known for its attempt to differentiate through product design. Alan Lafley (CEO) has described it as the company’s core competency. In the case of products like detergents, more concentrated packaging makes a lot of sense from a user experience perspective, which is what design is all about. Who wants to lug around or store in the supply closet a container bigger than it has to be? Why not simplify the experience while promoting social responsibility?

Last week’s news is just another sign that product packaging is experiencing rapid transformation. It’s taking place across consumer categories as we enter an era where companies attempt to leverage design for competitive advantage.

There’s no better example of this upheaval in packaging than on the web through the deployment of interactive technologies such as Ajax and Flex. Read more »

• P&G to concentrate on less packaging

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Amazon’s share price rose 40% over a two-day period last week (its highest level since April 2000) after it released earnings. That’s a lot of volatility for a company which went public 11 years ago (May 1997). Volatility in the financial markets speaks to the degree of unpredictable change. Given the scale and apparent stability of Amazon’s core business, high levels of volatility are surprising. One explanation for the sudden price movement provided in the financial media has been the extent of shorts on the stock.
Those positions were naturally covered on news of positive earnings. But there’s a deeper issue at hand. Amazon is a highly innovative company in a highly innovation medium. It’s not lost on Jeff Bezos that e-tailing may not always be the biggest franchise opportunity for the company.

Read more »

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