[Sigia-l] Google Needs People

[Tim Salam]

I may be missing something, but I don't seem what's cause for any alarm.  I
also don't see the "lies" Google has furnished the community.  I missed the
discussion on this list about it (saw it pass by), and still don't have the
time to revisit it, but here's my thinking...

How can "a news service compiled solely by computer algorithms without human
intervention" be seen as misleading?  It's quite clear that a computer
algorithm is compiling news items, without human intervention.  I'm surprise
this was misunderstood.

Peter, you also say, "We now need to deal with bosses, clients, and
colleagues who surmise that since Google can automagically build a
newspaper, entire Web sites and corporate portals will be next."  In case
nobody noticed, so long as there is technology there will be a) a need to
educate and b) those who just can't match it up with realistic expectations.
This is so inescapable, it's no longer worth noting.

I think the article went a little too far, that's all.  Google never claimed
or even implied that humans had nothing to do with the actual creation of
the news.  The keywords used were "generate" and "compiled"; the former can
be tenuously construed as meaning "created" but only if taken out of the
context of this matter, and the latter has nothing to do with creation
whatsoever.

Peter, you and Lou's first book are forever to be revered by me as what
catapulted me into this entire industry (see:
http://www.oreilly.com/cgi-bin/reviews?bookident=infotecture for my
fledgling March 2, 2000 post), so don't get me wrong when I say: "What's up
with that article, Peter?" :)

In short: Peter, I think you read between the lines when there wasn't
anything there.


Tim Salam
Vice President
Essemble IT Solutions
http://www.essemble.com
+1 602-246-0499 voice
+1 480-332-5521 cell
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