Google a one trick pony? | The Coffeehouse

Google is a great search engine, or it is the great search engine. But Google as a company haven't shown that they are good at anything else.

Their other products are gMail, and Desktop Applets and now Google Spreadsheets. None of which are competitive in the market... GMail is an alright mail provider, but it hasn't stolen a large amount of market share from Hotmail or Yahoo! Mail ... And after trying out Google's new spreadsheet web-app, I can honestly say that it will not be a huge hit... Excel from Office 95 puts it to shame in almost every way, as does Calc from OpenOffice.

Everyone expected Google to be this new innovative company that would come in and create something nobody had thought of... Has it? What do so many tallented engineers spend all day doing? This junk?

Maurits

+1. Google's killer-app is their context-sensitive advertising. Alas, instead of leveraging their revenue productively they're frittering it away on fun little toys.

There's a huge opportunity for other companies¹ to enter the context-sensitive advertising space and take some of that huge profit margin away.

¹Microsoft? Yahoo!? AOL?

jamie

picassa was great

google earth was great

as for writely and spreadsheets - they are great for normal - casual user - good enough to start amassing a userbase

gmail - that got msn and yahoo onboard with free gigs of email pretty quick

the 3d app to make your home in google earth - id call that innovative

basically - everything they do is innovative.. that doesnt mean its without its flaws

there is still no real UI for google
if they ever invent one - and let the picassa UI team build it - look out

Maurits

jamie wrote:

google earth was great

Sure, but what's the business model?

jamie

Maurits wrote:

jamie wrote: google earth was great

Sure, but what's the business model?

i assume your joking ...but if you are not - its targeted ads - that become UNads

if google gets to no where you live and you search for BBQ - it could show you paid results for bbq from home depot, canadian tire and rona - at locations closest to you - with prices

here Search becomes the ad. advertising becomes invisible and useful. google is happy getting paid to point people to companies. people are happy to have exactly what they are looking for

the Goffice "lite" online stuff would point people to Staples, Kinkos, others

..and ms is making 12 versions of windows Wink

Maurits

Google Earth billboards... interesting.

arunpv

I feel Google is sorta of innovative...

1. They reintroduced what we call the Web Search. MSN/YHoo or any other company never thought web Search to be a big deal:(
2. Email - with 1G space. Where was MSN or Yahoo when Gmail was introduced what with 2MB and 5MB... pls..
3. Google Maps - AJAX... one of the best innovation ever made...
4. Google Desktop Search. Even though Windows Search sucks in Windows XP MS didn't care to do anything about it until Google introduced DSK Search... too bad M$ Sad

4. Google Groups -- Searchs thru multiple groups. As for Microsoft, tell them to fix that st*pid MSDN search.. Sad

5.Picasa
6.New Notebook extension in firefox its cool. From home i enter some info and at work i can check or add new items to it.....
7. Google Toolbar
8. Web based Calendar,spreadsheet. Microsoft had the software for years still didnt do anything for the web.

and this list goes on on... Microsoft first need to fire CEO S Bummer... Cool

then i think company will improve.... its going down.... look at Vista.. by the time its released its almost XP with glass feature... it may or may not have that too... who knows..... Big Smile

PerfectPhase

arunpv wrote:

3. Google Maps - AJAX... one of the best innovation ever made...

And where did AJAX first appear? Outlook Web Access, years and years ago. Everyone ignored it as it was an 'evil' microsoft only feature until FireFox implements it as well, someone gives it a buzzword name and all of a sudden it's the greatest thing since sliced bread!

jamie

PerfectPhase wrote:

arunpv wrote:
3. Google Maps - AJAX... one of the best innovation ever made...

And where did AJAX first appear? Outlook Web Access, years and years ago. Everyone ignored it as it was an 'evil' microsoft only feature until FireFox implements it as well, someone gives it a buzzword name and all of a sudden it's the greatest thing since sliced bread!

haha XML = channels in ie4
CSS = ie4 coolbars ...oops strike that

Red5

PerfectPhase wrote:

arunpv wrote:
3. Google Maps - AJAX... one of the best innovation ever made...

And where did AJAX first appear? Outlook Web Access, years and years ago. Everyone ignored it as it was an 'evil' microsoft only feature until FireFox implements it as well, someone gives it a buzzword name and all of a sudden it's the greatest thing since sliced bread!

Couldn't agree more.

ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP")

arunpv

Red5 wrote:

PerfectPhase wrote:

arunpv wrote:
3. Google Maps - AJAX... one of the best innovation ever made...

And where did AJAX first appear? Outlook Web Access, years and years ago. Everyone ignored it as it was an 'evil' microsoft only feature until FireFox implements it as well, someone gives it a buzzword name and all of a sudden it's the greatest thing since sliced bread!

Couldn't agree more.

ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP")

Big deal... Yes. I agree Microsoft created it but what did they do with it... blah blah blah .. until its utilized properly its of no use. Well, thats where Google took the advantage and showed the world what the technology can do... why including desktop search, they didnt invent anything, just optimized it...... Cool

What you got now ??? Cool

Red5

arunpv wrote:

Big deal... Yes. I agree Microsoft created it but what did they do with it... blah blah blah .. until its utilized properly its of no use. Well, thats where Google took the advantage and showed the world what the technology can do...

I guess the definition of Innovative could describe what you were saying.

I was more thinking of it's initial introduction. Google definitely found a cool way to implement/market it though.

sbc

Maurits wrote:

jamie wrote:google earth was great

Sure, but what's the business model?

They do sell various versions of Google Earth as well:
Google Earth - Products

Plus
Pro
Enterprise

Fusion
Server
Enterprise Client

Google SketchUp also looks good (plus they have a commercial version you can buy).

jamie

i could be wrong about above - but at least i hope thats where they are going with adsence - to make it invisible

the company to make ads just "go away" but provide real results (they getpaid for) will be the winner

my money is on google for that

MS is out announcing Live stuff again today and touting ads

why is it when i think of MS and "ads" i picture huge flash movies - but when i picture google i think of Results that show the bbq im looking for / closest/cheapest?

who knows

jamie

Manip wrote:

Google is a great search engine, or it is the great search engine.

actually the very first line in this thread said it all. period.

Another_Darren

Manip wrote:

GMail is an alright mail provider, but it hasn't stolen a large amount of market share from Hotmail or Yahoo! Mail

Yeah that's right. All those millions of gmail accounts were a sudden rush of new webmail users and none of them realised hotmail and yahoo mail were available. What? Honestly were did they get the all the new email users from? I switched from Yahoo to Gmail and an bet Yahoo still count me as an active user (or for 6 months at least).

Manip wrote:
And after trying out Google's new spreadsheet web-app, I can honestly say that it will not be a huge hit... Excel from Office 95 puts it to shame in almost every way, as does Calc from OpenOffice.

Can you point me to the press release of interview were Google state that their online spreadsheet is aimed at or positioned to compete with Excel? From what I've read they say it complements Excel. I create a holiday plan as xls at home and want to share with my friends, I upload to google and send a link to my friends. Once they've all done their changes and download as xls again!

I'm amazed at the journalists and bloggers who have managed to dream up this idea that google are pitching this as an Excel replacement. How do you make the connection?

Another_Darren

arunpv wrote:

I feel Google is sorta of innovative...

1. They reintroduced what we call the Web Search. MSN/YHoo or any other company never thought web Search to be a big deal
2. Email - with 1G space. Where was MSN or Yahoo when Gmail was introduced what with 2MB and 5MB... pls..
3. Google Maps - AJAX... one of the best innovation ever made...
4. Google Desktop Search. Even though Windows Search sucks in Windows XP MS didn't care to do anything about it until Google introduced DSK Search... too bad M$
4. Google Groups -- Searchs thru multiple groups. As for Microsoft, tell them to fix that st*pid MSDN search..
5.Picasa
6.New Notebook extension in firefox its cool. From home i enter some info and at work i can check or add new items to it.....
7. Google Toolbar
8. Web based Calendar,spreadsheet. Microsoft had the software for years still didnt do anything for the web.

and this list goes on on... Microsoft first need to fire CEO S Bummer... then i think company will improve.... its going down.... look at Vista.. by the time its released its almost XP with glass feature... it may or may not have that too... who knows.....

It's interesting how the pro-MS people pull this list apart rather than do one for MS? The whole point of a debate it show each sides benefits, the point of an argument is to attack each other.

And one for the list Google Browser Sync to sync your bookmarks, cookies, settings, etc between machines! (Requires a browser that supports more than one platform;) )

Maurits

Another_Darren wrote:

Google Browser Sync to sync your bookmarks, cookies, settings, etc between machines! (Requires a browser that supports more than one platform )

... or two machines running the same platform, surely.

jamie

Another_Darren wrote:

Can you point me to the press release of interview were Google state that their online spreadsheet is aimed at or positioned to compete with Excel? From what I've read they say it complements Excel. I create a holiday plan as xls at home and want to share with my friends, I upload to google and send a link to my friends. Once they've all done their changes and download as xls again!

I'm amazed at the journalists and bloggers who have managed to dream up this idea that google are pitching this as an Excel replacement. How do you make the connection?

DCMonkey

arunpv wrote:

4. Google Groups -- Searchs thru multiple groups.

You've never heard of DejaNews I guess.

arunpv

DCMonkey wrote:

arunpv wrote:
4. Google Groups -- Searchs thru multiple groups.

You've never heard of DejaNews I guess.

Yes I do remember now its part of Google now... Cool

But my point is Microsoft has everything what Google is trying to create or creating... but still i don't anything coming... why?
too lazy/over confident/too much money on hand/corporate politics?
Whatever it is its not good for M$....

kettch

arunpv wrote:

by the time its released its almost XP with glass feature

I'm sorry, but that's a rather uninformed idea that I've seen way too many times on this forum.

Yes, several rather important features were pulled from the final release. However, the mass of new and completely re-written/architected features that are in there makes this very different from XP.

Besides, Vista is at it's core Windows 2003 rather than XP.

Please, bash Vista all you want. It doesn't bother me. What does bother me is not trying to know anything about the product other than that it has a different skin.

And as for google, so I don't completely crap on this thread:

Frankly, I'm not impressed with them any more. Give me something substantial, a product that is more than gimmicky. Search is substantial and making search better is substantial, but dozen's of silly little widgets that I rarely or never use is not substantial.

It's ok to be a one trick pony as long as it is a really cool trick. However, when the other ponies learn that trick, you need make it cooler. I don't know, add a backflip or something.

arunpv

kettch wrote:

arunpv wrote: by the time its released its almost XP with glass feature

I'm sorry, but that's a rather uninformed idea that I've seen way too many time