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View Full Version : Freebase: the Next Google-Killer or Over-Hyped Start-Up?


jhlim
03-09-2007, 01:32 PM
i read this on the blog here today(see below)..it's talking about the next google-killer from this startup Metaweb Technologies.

what's amazing how many ppl are trying to recreate a better search engine than GOOGLE! I am not sure how they intend to do that when Google's a goliath with piles of cash at their disposal.

(NY Times)http://fly2.ws/metaweb_search
(wikipedia's got a new search engine!) http://fly2.ws/wikipedia_Google

And for Wikipedia to go after google/yahoo..that's such a stupid thing to do..as these two search engines feeds them so much traffic...it's shooting themselves on the foot!


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http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/blog/

Freebase: the Next Google-Killer or Over-Hyped Start-Up?


The New York Times is once again breathlessly heralding the "launch" of a Google-killer.

Back in January, the NYT covered Powerset and Hakia in "Looking for the next Google." In today's story, "Start-Up Aims for Database to Automate Web Searching," the NYT covers Metaweb Technologies' plans to create a semantic Web database, to be called Freebase, which founder Danny Hillis envisions as "a centralized repository that is more like a digital almanac."

It's being billed as a cross between a search engine and a database, which would mean that its goals will be similar to those of Google Base -- adding structure to data that otherwise does not have structure, and letting content owners edit that metadata.

"It’s like a system for building the synapses for the global brain," Tim O'Reilly, CEO of O'Reilly Media, is quoted as saying in the NYT story. O'Reilly talks about Freebase on his blog, where he is a bit more cautiously optimistic than the NYT, saying, "While freebase is still VERY alpha, with much of the basic functionality barely working, the idea is HUGE." O'Reilly does a great job covering what Freebase could be, once it is built.

cbp
03-10-2007, 12:59 AM
How many times have we seen new threads started announcing the next Google killer by new forum members who make this as their first post .....yawn

jhlim
03-10-2007, 01:16 AM
i totally agree with u about google killer. but search has still a lot of room to improve. I see a lot of spam results on both my fav SE (GOOG and YHOO). In a way it's good to see all these startups out there..it will keep my fav SEs on their toes! :cool: