Google to help Yahoo

[Vadi]

So, there's this big storm over Microsoft buying Yahoo. While most of blogs are focused on the searching thing, there's another part to this - Yahoo supports a -lot- of open-source applications. They open-source code, fund development, and generally are simply excellent. They also recently acquired Zimba, which is an OSS alternative to Outlook.

Now with Microsoft buying them, all that could go to hell easily. And with $45 billion (with a 60% premium) counted here.. petitions or blog posts won't do much. You need an entity with an equally large bank account to help out.

And it looks like Google has decided to do such a thing!

http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=7875&tag=nl.e622

Personally, I think that's fabulous. Yes, there are issues with Google, I see many europeans don't like the privacy issues, but that can be ignored for this case - simply because there aren't many companies who really can help out.

What does everyone else think?

[Mr. Picklesworth]

In terms of open source, I have nothing at all against Google. They handle Google Summer of Code, and recently they started up the Highly Open Participation Contest.
Both are doing terrific things for the open source community and for education.

I have not found their exclusivity with certain services to be much of a hindrance, and I for one accept that they need a solid source of money. At least the people at Google seem to know what to do with it!

Besides, their advertising service deserves its popularity. I noticed today that I earned 46 whole cents off a single click.

[zcal]

The Power Rangers always start off fighting the Putties and the episode's new monster on the playground, in a park, in an abandoned warehouse... But can they end it there? Certainly not! Call in the huge robots!

Buildings are crushed, trees are uprooted, power lines are flung about like epileptic electric eels. How many civilians must be squashed between the metallic toes of a 150 ft robot before the world is saved?

Did I just hear the Red Ranger's call?

[Tom Mann]

In regards to the comments in the link Vadi left, A lot of people seem to be concerned about Google being an internet monopoly on the site you posted, but unlike Microsoft people are still welcome to go to any other site if you dislike Google that much. Microsoft wouldn't even give you that. I rooting for Google for the sake of not having to suffer an IE-only page when I log onto BT Internet (powered by Yahoo!)

[SunnyRabbiera]

Go Google!!!!

[Lostincyberspace]

GO GOOGLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[a9bejo]

I often get the impression that people talk about companies like they are people: They talk about companies as if they were good or evil, friendly or mean.

Companies are not people. They do not have good or bad intentions. They are more like wild animals: They are on your side if you got something to eat, and you need to be careful if you are the thing they feed from.

Microsoft makes money by providing software platforms on which other companies build application on. Nearly everything Microsoft produces is such a platform: From its operating system/software framework/programming language/RDBMS to its media console or its silverlight runtime - Even their office suite is made as a software platform. I think Microsoft is the only existing company that really produces and sells the complete stack needed to build software by itself. That's of course why Microsoft needs to fight the free software movement: FOSS is a direct competition to the companies market strategy.

Google makes money by collecting data and selling personalized ads. Free Software is very useful for Google, because it makes a cheap infrastructure for software. But everything Google does is made to lock you into the Google data center, and to make you feed it with information about you: The APIs Google offers that are used for mashups, the integration between all the services like iGoogle/Search/Gmail/Office/Maps/Desktop Search that make it hard for you to switch and adds every single piece of personal information about you into the Google database.

When it comes to your personal freedom to own, modify and distribute software, Microsoft is working against you and Google is working for you. But if it comes to your right for privacy (which is a essential prerequisite to a working democracy), Google is working against you too. So I think I don't think that I like to see Microsoft/Yahoo merge. But I definitely don't see Google on my side too.

[billgoldberg]

Google says microsoft would become to big?

Google already owns 85% of its market in europe.

In respons to this childish and arrogant reaction by google I blocked all of their know addresses in my /etc/hosts and I now use Altavista (wich has a search function for audio and video !!!!).

http://www.saku.nl/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/Google-is-evil.jpg

[rowanparker]

billgoldberg's reaction seems a little extreme.
I think the Google services I use are very good (search, gmail, etc).

But really, who cares if a script reads your emails and displays ads about them. I mean, it's not as though a person is reading it. And yeah, they save what you search for or whatever, but thats for statistics isn't it? It isn't used to look up on you (afaik thats illegal).


Back on topic, I'm glad Google are doing this. I'd rather anything than Microsoft.

[akiratheoni]

Google might be dominating the search industry, but it's because they're actually good at what they do... but for Microsoft, they're dominating the OS market because they're using their power of a crappy OS to lock you into it. Go Google!

[billgoldberg]

You could say extreme.

But I want privacy on the web, google is the opposite of what I want; so they're out.

[Vadi]

Hey!

If you failed to read the OP, I said to discard your privacy issues.

But it seems billgoldberg is all for the deal, so okay ;)

[tbroderick]

What does everyone else think?

It's an obvious ploy to get Microsoft to spend more money. I know Microsoft is the Evil Empire to a lot of people, but Microsoft+Yahoo would only have about 1/3 of the search market with Google having the remaining 2/3.

[Vadi]

This topic is not about the search market share.. there are thousands of those about that.

This is about Yahoo being a very important player in the open-source world. Getting bought.

[Polygon]

cause defenitly google is gonna do something with your info, they are going to single you out, out of the millions upon millions of people who use google every day, they are going to look at what web pages you visited.

just use an anonymizer or a proxy server and stop complaining lol. Also google identifies you through a cookie, so if you clear your cookies, to google you look like a new person.

and to that guy who blocked google: too bad altavista sucks. I searched for a simple phrase and i got results that sorta matched but google is still way better.

anyway, to the OP, google doesnt want to buy yahoo, they wouldn't be able to. They are just saving their buts and trying to make it so MS does not buy yahoo.

[ubuntoy]

last time i checked, Yahoo has snubbed its Linux messenger.

[tbroderick]

This topic is not about the search market share.. there are thousands of those about that.

This is about Yahoo being a very important player in the open-source world. Getting bought.

Right, I was just responding to 'Google to help Yahoo' which has nothing to do about open-source.

[Vadi]

... okay. Arguing against a fact is silly, and it would be even sillier to defend it, so I'll just leave it at that.

[hhhhhx]

YAY!!! :)

[solitaire]

It's a case of "Its the Devil you know" or "The Devil you know"
Both are equally terrible but Google's lack of "Upholding human rights" when trying to get in to the China Market puts them at a slightly lower standing in my moral view..

Hate M$ as well but It's taking of Yahoo will hopefully bring some compitiion into the area :)

[diskotek]

tagin the article "choose your poison" is explains much... monopoly is monopoly...

[a9bejo]

cause defenitly google is gonna do something with your info, they are going to single you out, out of the millions upon millions of people who use google every day, they are going to look at what web pages you visited.

It's it not about what Google can or want to do with the data. It is about what anyone in the future could do with your data. The data are there, centralized and accessible. You cannot trust the people who run your government your 2020. But these people then have access to a register that contains enough information to destroy democracy (That is, if you currently live in a democratic country). The problem is that the data of millions get collected in a central place. The chance that no one will make use of them at any time in the future to do you harm is next to zero.

In my country, the government has now access to internet traffic , Telefon calls or emails, so they can "fight terrorism". And the next step is the RIAA arguing that these data can be used to fight illegal music downloads.


just use an anonymizer or a proxy server and stop complaining lol.

The problem does not go away because you can "opt out". First, most people do not know what an Anonymizer is. Second, they usually choose good services over their privacy concerns. I'm not different: While I do not search much with Google (I'm using Yahoo and Ask.com ), I use many of the other services from them, like Gmail, Docs or Scholar. I am concerned about privacy, but I also want (and need) to use the software that makes me most productive.

I do not fear companies that only produce bad products as much as I fear the ones that allure me with good ones.

[Trail]

Google might be dominating the search industry, but it's because they're actually good at what they do... but for Microsoft, they're dominating the OS market because they're using their power of a crappy OS to lock you into it. Go Google!


What he/she said.

I am not particularly happy with using google, and i would very much like an alternative, but Microsoft clearly is not what I'm looking for.

[quanumphaze]

I'm worried about the merged IM clients.

MSN and Yahoo! combined would have the majority of IM users and would effectively kill Jabber since we will have to sign up anyway to talk to everyone, why bother with Jabber to talk to the few friends that use it too. Don't expect a Linux client any time soon.

Also expect many of Yahoo's services to be IE only in coming years once they start making changes.

[Christmas]

In respons to this childish and arrogant reaction by google I blocked all of their know addresses in my /etc/hosts and I now use Altavista (wich has a search function for audio and video !!!!).
I don't think a billion dollar company like Google starts 'arrogant' reactions. Although I'm not familiar with insides of such transactions and offers, I'm sure what they did is just business. Such a company wouldn't permit to suddenly decide childishly 'let's annoy Microsoft h3 h3 h3'.

[Vadi]

It's a case of "Its the Devil you know" or "The Devil you know"
Both are equally terrible but Google's lack of "Upholding human rights" when trying to get in to the China Market puts them at a slightly lower standing in my moral view..

Hate M$ as well but It's taking of Yahoo will hopefully bring some compitiion into the area :)

Competition of open-source funding and development?

Ha, ha. Microsoft-Yahoo competing with Google in giving away money and time to open-source projects. Man, you crack me up!

[altariel]

most of yahoo afaik still depends heavily on FreeBSD (a customized version but nonetheless) :( :( ... and stupid M$ will trash that infrastructure the same way they trashed hotmail back then (which also was run under FreeBSD)

[phrostbyte]

You could say extreme.

But I want privacy on the web, google is the opposite of what I want; so they're out.

Give me a break. Microsoft, Yahoo, AltaVista, everyone tries to get into your privacy! Microsoft's OS even literally sends personally traceable information back to Microsoft every week or so. Google might be the largest Internet company but they aren't the most evil!

[JAPrufrock]

Microsoft is the devil, not Google. There is only one devil.

[leftorvo]

Microsoft is the devil, not Google. There is only one devil.

they all do bad things. what makes them differant are the good things they do. the good things dont make us forget the bad things though.

[ubuntu-freak]

Google says microsoft would become to big?

Google already owns 85% of its market in europe.

In respons to this childish and arrogant reaction by google I blocked all of their know addresses in my /etc/hosts and I now use Altavista (wich has a search function for audio and video !!!!).

http://www.saku.nl/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/Google-is-evil.jpg


Huh? Someone needs to take a chill pill.

Nathan