Subject: Free Pint No.72 - Patents, Search Technology and MetaCapitalism Free Pint "Helping 32,000 people use the Web for their work" http://www.freepint.co.uk/ ISSN 1460-7239 5th October 2000 No.72 > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = IN THIS ISSUE EDITORIAL MY FAVOURITE TIPPLES from David and Daria Cohen FREE PINT BAR In Association with Factiva a Dow Jones & Reuters Company Reviewed by Simon Collery TIPS AND TECHNIQUES "Influence of the Internet on the Patent Process" By Caryn Wesner-Early BOOKSHELF "MetaCapitalism: The e-Business Revolution and the Design of 21st-Century Companies and Markets" Reviewed by Drosten Fisher FEATURE ARTICLE "All change for search technology?" By Pita Enriquez Harris PORTAL, EVENTS, GOLD AND FORTHCOMING ARTICLES CONTACT INFORMATION ONLINE VERSION WITH ACTIVATED HYPERLINKS http://www.freepint.co.uk/issues/051000.htm > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Download your FREE 30-Day Trial of BullsEye Pro, the Ultimate Research Assistant for Professionals. In the June 8th issue of Free Pint, Chris Sherman describes how "BullsEye, a desktop based meta search engine can also access many of the sites included in InvisibleWeb.com." With fine-grained filters and up to the minute trackers, you will control information rather than having it control you. Go to http://info.intelliseek.com/promotions/fp.htm and receive a 20% discount off the price of $249 if you purchase a copy by 12/31/00. > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [in721] >>> ABOUT FREE PINT <<< Free Pint is a community of business professionals who use the Web for their work. Members receive this free newsletter every two weeks packed with tips and articles by information professionals who share how they find quality and reliable information on the Internet. Sign up at for free access to the substantial archive of articles, book reviews, industry news and events, and have your research questions answered at the "Free Pint Bar". This newsletter is best read when printed out and viewed in a Courier font. > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = EDITORIAL The alcoholic associations for Free Pint have again been enhanced as we launch another new service on the site. If you've been keeping up with the latest at the Free Pint Bar then you'll have spotted Simon's new "Pub Crawl". This is a weekly look at a range of Internet and information industry publications for articles of interest to our members. I for one find it tremendously useful and hope you do too. Remember, if you'd like to receive the "Bar Digest" containing the latest Bar postings by email three times a week (including the Pub Crawl) then please send a blank email to or login to your account online and activate the subscription that way. 10% of our members now receive the Bar Digest so it is widely read. The chance to claim your real free pint draws nearer as the Free Pint Roadshow takes to the road in just 31 days. If you're anywhere near Loughborough, Sheffield, Newcastle, Manchester or Aberystwyth you're invited to join us for the evening at a local pub to network with other Free Pinters and the Roadshow sponsors Factiva. To find out more and indicate that you'd like to come please email or visit the page at: http://www.freepint.co.uk/student/roadshow.htm We're already making plans for a wider Roadshow early next year and it's looking likely that it won't just be limited to the UK! Watch this space ... My comments and questions about the unification of the Institute of Information Scientists and the Library Association in the last edition seem to have had their desired effect, prompting many postings at the Bar and in a number of other discussion lists. The stature of the information industry is of great importance to Free Pint and again I would urge you to make your voice heard regarding our professional future. We've packed as much as possible into Free Pint again today, including excellent articles on finding patent information online and the changing face of Internet searching as the deluge of new Web pages makes current search utilities increasingly unreliable. There are lots of tips as usual and Simon's super summary of the happenings at the Bar and Student Bar. I'm often asked if Free Pint will continue to remain free, and I can confirm that it will. The only thing we ask in return is that you help us spread the word. If you have colleagues or friends, students or readers who would benefit from knowing about Free Pint then now is the time to tell them about our community. Why not forward this copy to them or use our simple recommendation page on the Web site at: http://www.freepint.co.uk/reco.htm I hope you enjoy today's issue and I look forward to receiving your feedback directly by email or at the Bar. Kind regards, William William Hann BSc MIInfSc Founder and Managing Editor, Free Pint e: william@freepint.co.uk t: +44 (0)1784 455435 f: +44 (0)1784 455436 Free Pint is a trademark of Free Pint Limited http://www.freepint.co.uk/ > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = ONLINE INFORMATION FOR THE CITY *NEXT WEEK* Wednesday 11 & Thursday 12 October 2000 >>> Financial and business information to the desktop <<< The Baltic Exchange, London EC3, UK Check out http://www.online-information-city.co.uk Meet the leading business and financial information providers Attend FREE industry briefings from TFPL > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [li722] >>> YOUR MESSAGE TO 32,000+ BUSINESS INFORMATION USERS <<< Find out more about the benefits of advertising with Free Pint. http://www.freepint.co.uk/advert.htm > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = MY FAVOURITE TIPPLES from David and Daria Cohen * Mrltc.com - The best source of info on various health and long-term care related issues: * Copernic - Superb software addition for quality searching * Thebrain - the best way to organize related files and associated favorites/bookmarks * 2Bobs - a free comprehensive favorites/bookmarks * Dogpile - one of the best metasearchers David Cohen (San Francisco Bay Area) and Daria Cohen (Amsterdam) of The Cohen Group specialize in information brokerage and searches for small and mid-size businesses in the U.S. and The Netherlands. > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To submit your top five favourite tipples see the guidelines at or email > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = TARGETED BUSINESS CONTENT ON YOUR INTRANET Factiva, a Dow Jones & Reuters company, introduces Factiva Publisher, a news feed and server application that enables you to display strategic news alongside internally-generated content on your intranet. With Factiva Publisher, employees receive their own personal page, which increases both intranet traffic and intranet value. Find out more. Visit http://www.factiva.com/integration > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [fa723] >>> FREE PINT SUBMIT TO SEARCH ENGINES <<< Quick and easy submission of your page to the top search engines http://www.freepint.co.uk/submit/ > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT BAR In Association with Factiva a Dow Jones & Reuters Company Reviewed by Simon Collery http://www.freepint.co.uk/issues/051000.htm#bar Free Pint Bar - http://www.freepint.co.uk/bar [Note: To read a posting enter the message number in place of XXXX in the address ] The use of the term 'knowledge' in knowledge management (KM) has been a bone of contention on the Bar (5016). And it's been chewed and gnawed in other places too. While looking for articles for the new Free Pint Pub Crawl (5098, 5161), a review of information industry literature, I came across quite a number of items dealing with what KM is, what competitive intelligence (CI) is and what various other terms bandied about refer to. A devil's advocate might suggest that practitioners do know what they mean by the terms, but that they haven't managed to get the message across to non-practitioners yet. Whatever about semantics, most of us recognise good resources when we see them. We have been introduced to resources for aerospace and aviation (5083), youth parliaments (5099), languages for travellers (4989), apparel and fashion (5140) and UK events and exhibitions (4987). We also looked at the Wall Street Journal (5010) and a site for making weight and measurement conversions (5062). The amount of advice on how to manage and share favourite links (5024) and on database publishing (5141) has probably been beyond the wildest dreams of people who asked for it. However, we could still do with some advice on personalisation software (4998), storing Netscape Messenger emails (5180) and news feeds on Web sites (5003). On the jobs and training front there have been requests for database developers in Hong Kong (5017) and work in GIS and related areas (5153, 4997). Someone is looking for tips on working in the Netherlands (5152) and the online recruitment industry in the UK and Ireland (5158). And there have been queries about training in HTML (5091) and Microsoft engineering courses (4988) Search and retrieval is a truly multifaceted problem and two meta search engines I reviewed recently show how some developers are approaching it (5080, 5115). Another approach is to think vertical, demonstrated by a university course search engine (5042), a device driver search engine (5000), a search facility for journals (5166) and one for software (5038). A search tool for shareware available in the UK is still sought, if anyone knows of one (5055). Just how vertical must one get? Sources of information on Internet trends are always in demand and there are plenty around (5117). Merger and acquisition information is also available should you ever need such a thing (5133). However, I was unable to find a facility which would list connecting flights when you input the departure and arrival airport (5039) or a list of UK non-executive directors (5179). Other things not yet found include UK Ministry of Supply drawings dating from 1951 (5084) and an eighteenth century French painter called Lafargue (5020). There have been some familiar technical queries about generating PDF files from HTML files (5066), constructing and managing an intranet (4985), web hosting (5048) and documentation design (5007). Somewhat less familiar was a question about searching for a word that appears in HTML coding, but not on the site. This can be a way of finding out if someone has been tricking with your data and a solution to the problem was suggested, but we still haven't heard if it works yet (5011). However, we did find out why someone was getting 'trapped' on the Independent.co.uk site when the developers shed some light on the problem (5107). There have been more general questions about providers of library services (5037), ask-an-expert sites (5061), print versus electronic journals (5097), the information industry in Scotland (5009), healthcare .com companies (5006) and consumer finance (5162). You'd think these things would be straightforward enough, but the last two haven't been answered yet. Going back to the eighteenth century again, one thing still concerns me; are historians too teleological in their approach to Central European history in the period 1740-1919 (5002)? Now what could have brought that on, Dr Pangloss? Or is this another semantic problem? Free Pint Student Bar - http://www.freepint.co.uk/student [Note: To read a posting enter the message number in place of XXXX in the address ] With the new academic year starting, many things of interest to students are being announced on the Student Bar at the moment. There's a UK Web site dedicated to careers and careers advice for 16-24 year olds (1028), part-time work available in London for information students (1030), a student feature on a BBC TV programme (1031), lists of useful student sites (1033) and a new student-rate subscription for Information World Review (1035). Simon Collery, Content Developer > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To read a message: - Enter the id number in place of XXXX in the address , for example - For Student Bar postings please use the address - Alternatively, view this summary online with activated hyperlinks at > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Do you have a research question? Could you help other members? It's easy to post a message at the Bar or the Student Bar . Visit daily for "Today's Tipple" - a different Web site reviewed every working day at the Bar. Access the Portal archive of Tipples at . To have the latest Free Pint Bar postings sent to you every other day, send a blank email to . For the Student Bar Digest send an email to . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = With details of over 14,000 categorised business software packages and 8,000 IT suppliers in the UK, together with key contacts and service details, CSSOnline is the most detailed and comprehensive IT directory available today. Registered users can also opt to receive a snappy authoritative weekly newsletter and make savings on online purchases. http://www.cssonline.co.uk > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [li724] >>> MONTHLY UPDATES BY EMAIL <<< If you're a potential advertiser or author then you'll want to receive the monthly updates by email. Sign up today. Advertisers visit: http://www.freepint.co.uk/advert.htm Authors visit: http://www.freepint.co.uk/author.htm > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = TIPS AND TECHNIQUES http://www.freepint.co.uk/issues/051000.htm#tips "Influence of the Internet on the Patent Process" By Caryn Wesner-Early As with many other fields, the area of patents has undergone a number of changes because of the Internet. Some aspects of patents have become easier, such as finding patent information, and some have become more difficult, such as the whole issue of business method patents. Finding patent information is easier now than it has ever been. Most countries with a patent office have at least a presence on the Web, and many countries, including the US, have very complete and helpful sites. At the US Patent Office's site it is possible to find issued US patents, with drawings, back to 1976, and efforts are underway to bring the rest of the records, back to 1790, online as soon as possible. The British Library has put up an excellent gateway site for international patents called "Links to patent and other intellectual property information resources" at . Law firms and other companies also put up very complete and helpful patent-related sites. The Delphion Intellectual Property Network (formerly the IBM Patent Server) at provided access to images of issued US patents (back to 1971) before the US Patent Office site did. They offer a very powerful search engine, and patents may be printed out, or, if a better quality is needed, purchased. Recently the site has added international patent search capabilities, including European and Japanese. Law firms and universities put up sites full of articles, essays and advice for patent searchers and inventors. Before submitting a patent application, an inventor must perform a search for prior art (that is, previous related inventions). Literature searching for prior art is easier than ever because of the Internet. Many databases, such as MEDLINE (useful for drug and medical device searches) are free of charge, while many others, such as those put up by Elsevier, ProQuest, and IEEE are available by subscription. Other help for inventors comes from the aforementioned national patent offices and company-sponsored sites, but inventors also use the Internet to help each other. Inventor-sponsored sites, such as the Patent Cafe at , offer advice from people who've "been there, done that" on everything from choosing a patent attorney to appealing a case. One of the biggest changes in the patent scene is the subject of business method patents. While this was becoming an issue before the Internet really became a player, it has mushroomed in the past few years. Software, which used to be copyrighted, began to be patented in the mid-1980s, and, in the wake of software patents, automated methods of doing business have also begun to be patented. Many procedures which have been a part of business for decades, if not centuries, are being automated and patented. This leads to difficulty in defining prior art for computer-aided business methods - does the same procedure count as prior art if it used to be done with a pencil and paper? Finding prior art on computer-related patents is difficult as well because of the blinding speed of the Internet and other computer developments. Many methods have come into use without being patented just because they made sense and it would be too expensive and/or time-consuming to bother with a patent or because the originator was part of the Open Source movement. If someone later applies for a patent on such a business method it is often difficult to track down whether the specific method has already been in use, and if so, by whom and for how long. Illustrative of this are some high-profile recent cases. For instance, last fall Amazon.com took competitors by surprise by getting a patent on their "one-click" order method. Despite claims that this system had been in use for months, at least, by other sites, Amazon was successful in forcing competitors to discontinue use of similar systems. For exhaustive discussion of the Amazon patent and related issues, see the Patents DevCenter at . Changes in the patent system, both good and bad, are certain to continue for the foreseeable future. For every free prior art database there is an explosion of more and more information that needs to be searched. For every information and advice site put up to help inventors and patent attorneys make sense of regulations there is a change in regulation or interpretation. "Internet time" has become a factor in discussing terms of patents (for example, Jeff Bezos, during the excitement over the Amazon patents, suggested that software and business method patents should only be issued for a term of five years, rather than the usual 17-20). There is no predicting what changes may come in the future; all that is certain is that inventors, attorneys and patent offices will be running along behind trying to make sense of them. Useful patent sites ------------------- Intellectual Property dictionaries and glossaries These two are complementary - each site has terms that the other one doesn't have: Derwent Glossary of Patent Terms A Patent Glossary put up by The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society Intellectual Property --------------------- Community Plant Variety Rights Design, Patent, Trademark and Copyright Information by Da Vinci Design Resource "This site is monitored by John Moetteli, an international patent and trademark attorney." - from the site Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, Trade Secrets, put up by Long & Long (law firm) US Patent And Trademark Kids' Pages World Intellectual Property Organization Technology Market site for connecting buyers and sellers of intellectual property Mentioned in Edupage Sites for inventors ------------------- Patent Cafe by inventor Andy Gibb The Patent Crib Sheet for attorneys and inventors about how to "do" patents, put up by the Law Offices of Ernest Schaal United Inventors Association of the USA Inventor Resource Internet Pages. Information about inventing, inventors, obtaining a patent, evaluation, marketing and avoiding invention fraud USPTO Independent Inventor Resources Patents ------- Delphion Intellectual Property Network (formerly IBM Patent Server) Links to patent and other intellectual property information resources put up by the Patents Information service of STB, the science, technology and business wing of the British Library Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) - full text put up by WIPO Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) database (WIPO) PatentLawLinks.Com Links For Patent Professionals recommended by Research Buzz The Patent Information Users Group, Inc. "PIUG is a not-for-profit organization for individuals having a professional, scientific or technical interest in patent information" - from the site. Recommended in Free Pint as a Favourite Tipple U.S. Patent Law Put up by Cornell University USPTO Patent Databases Patent Bibliographic and AIDS Databases National Patent Offices ----------------------- Canadian Patent Database. Introduction search and view patents esp@cenet Home. UK Patent Office "Europe's network of patent databases". Search and view European patents European Patent Office Information about the EPO. Links to Esp@cenet for patent searching Industrial Property Digital Library - Japan. Search and display Japanese patents in English IP Australia. Search and display patents since 1979 Japan Patent Office (English language version). Information about the patent office, links to PAJ, which is where patents can be searched The UK Patent Office Information about the Patent Office. Links to Esp@cenet for searching US Patent and Trademark Office Home Page Link lists to national Patent Offices ------------------------------------- Ignatz: Patents & Intellectual Property links to many patent information sites, especially foreign Patent Offices. "This site was created for and is maintained for Ignatz by David P. Krivoshik [Mathews, Collins, Shepherd & Gould]" - from the site National Patent Offices on the WWW VERY complete! Put up by Pipers Patent & Trademark Attorneys, New Zealand Simon Saunders & Daniel Donovan's Resources: Patent Links from New Zealand Link list, especially for foreign Patent Offices Humorous patent/related sites ----------------------------- Gallery of Obscure Patents on the IBM Delphion site International Chindogu Society recommended by Sci-Tech Library News Patent Place. The world's First User Generated Cartoon Soap Opera Patently Absurd! Weird & wacky patents put up by the UK Patent Office PATSCAN's Collection of Bizarre Patents put up by The Univ. of British Columbia Pretty Strange Patents. A tribute to strange, wacky and unusual patents from around the world. Recommended by Netsurfer Digest "Totally Absurd Inventions explores the funnier side of our inventive spirit by featuring actual USA patented products!" - from the site Wacky Patent of the Month Wacky Patents put up by Leeds City Council (UK) Weird and Wonderful Patents put up by Brown, Pinnisi & Michaels, PC (law firm) > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Caryn Wesner-Early is a librarian, contracted to the US Patent and Trademark Office Scientific and Technical Information Center. Her hobbies are reading and cats, and she maintains a personal Web page at > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Related Free Pint links: * "Intellectual Property" links and articles in the Free Pint Portal * Read this article online, with activated hyperlinks * Post a message to the author now at the Free Pint Bar * Access the entire archive of Free Pint content > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 31 October Conference: Information Sources in Complementary Medicine. Organised by the British Library and the Foundation for Integrated Medicine. Aimed at information providers/health service workers/academics, journalists/doctors/complementary therapy practitioners and anyone else with an interest. It will focus on the range of information sources available, including internet sources. For further details go to http://www.bl.uk/services/stb/comp_med.html or telephone Tony Catarinicchia on 020 7412 7915. > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [bl725] >>> FREE PINT FACT <<< The choice to use a ".co.uk" domain name was a conscious one to highlight the fact that Free Pint is produced in the UK. We do actually own the ".com", ".org" and ".net" variations and they all automatically forward to the main Web site. For safety we also have a range of variations with a hyphen in the middle, such as "free- pint.co.uk". Finally, we've nearly completed the lengthy process of registering the trademark. Have you protected your online assets? > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT BOOKSHELF http://www.freepint.co.uk/bookshelf "MetaCapitalism: The e-Business Revolution and the Design of 21st-Century Companies and Markets" Reviewed by Drosten Fisher This book, written by two Management Consultants from PricewaterhouseCoopers, is a clear, intelligent attempt to understand the effects new technologies will have on the business world. It is not for the faint-hearted, however, and sometimes lapses into 'consultant-speak' or jargon. It generally makes good, sensible use of diagrams to illustrate concepts, although at times the diagrams are too convoluted and serve to obscure already complex concepts. On the whole, however, complex ideas are expressed clearly and illustrated with good concrete examples. The central tenet of the book is that a fundamental shift in the way in which the capitalist system operates is taking place. And quickly - the prediction is that the effects will be felt in the next 18 months to two years. The assertion is that there will be a dramatic shift away from the traditional business model which says that a business invests most of its assets in physical capital, then working capital, then human capital and has a small amount invested in brand capital. If you imagine the model of capital in a business as a triangle, with the largest element, the base, being working capital, the authors argue that the coming technological revolution will invert this triangle. Brand capital will therefore become the most important, followed by human capital. In the new business model, virtually no assets will be invested in physical capital - instead, production will be outsourced to a number of partners. Successful businesses serving consumers will be owners of brands, and focus on increasing levels of customer satisfaction. All other parts of their business will be outsourced to various suppliers. The authors argue that this will lead to the creation of communities of service providers, loosely grouped together by several major brands. These communities of service providers will then further combine into a 'Metamarket' or a group of branded service providers, competing to provide service offerings across a range of industries. Head spinning at this point? There are almost 200 pages of this stuff, and it doesn't get any easier... In summary, this is an interesting, intelligent, well-written book which contains some fascinating insights into the future of business. It is not for the lay reader, however, but potential or actual management consultants will find it a challenging and stimulating read. > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - I work as a Research Associate for Impact Plus plc. . Founded in 1990, Impact Plus is one of the fastest growing management consultancies in the UK and Ireland. It is our mission to make a positive impact on the business of our clients. We have an enviable reputation for delivering independent, practical, value-for-money advice. Impact Plus has offices in London, Edinburgh, Manchester and Dublin and has delivered in virtually every market sector. Impact Plus is also a principal member of E-I Consulting Group, with access to 1,800 consultants in 75 offices worldwide. > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Related Free Pint links: * Find out more about this book online at the Free Pint Bookshelf * Read about other Internet strategy books on the Free Pint Bookshelf * Read customer comments and buy this book at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com * Details: ISBN 0471393355; published by John Wiley and Sons; written by Grady Means, David Schneider * Search for and purchase any book from Amazon via the Bookshelf To propose a business-Web-related book for review, send details to . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Quiktrade, the premier ecommerce package http://quiktrade.globalgold.co.uk It's simple, it's quick and you'll be making money in no time! From as little as 35 pounds per month you can build your own international empire! Get ready for business now. Click here to start trading today: http://quiktrade.globalgold.co.uk/ or call us now at Global Gold on +44 (0)1992 303090. > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = [gg726] >>> FREE PINT BAR DIGESTS - REGULAR AND STUDENT <<< Want to receive the latest postings from the Free Pint Student Bar or the regular Free Pint Bar three times a week by email? For the "Student Bar Digest" email and for the "Free Pint Bar Digest" email > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FEATURE ARTICLE http://www.freepint.co.uk/issues/051000.htm#feature "All change for search technology?" By Pita Enriquez Harris If you thought you were just getting a grip on the whole web searching/search engine registration issue, think again. Technology is being developed which insiders believe may have the ability to turn the whole searching model on its head. For most people in the pharmaceutical industry, for instance, the ins and outs of web searching will have two main applications; to help them find information (which if they enjoy the benefits of a large organisation, they may still find is best and most reliably done by phoning their medical information department), and as one of the means by which they can promote their Web-based marketing campaigns. What if search engines became irrelevant? If search engines didn't have such a phenomenally hard task we'd all hate them. As it is, to be able to make any sense out of the one billion randomly-filed, uncensored collection of pages that comprise the World-Wide-Web is something for which the majority of Web users are very grateful. That doesn't mean we wouldn't like a better way to find information. And if you have anything to do with promoting a Web site to search engines you may have shared the frustration of many of your peers, that most search engines won't index your new Web pages for days, maybe weeks, and even then the content to which searchers are referred will be a couple of weeks out of date. You may have heard of Napster, the MP3 file searching application that has turned the music industry on its head and is the subject of a copyright infringement suit. What Napster and its ilk herald is a whole new way to search for information, one that could theoretically do away with the need for search engines like Google and Altavista - provided that all Web publishers cooperate and actively share their hard drives with the rest of the world. And there's the rub. Napster, and the more recent Gnutella are file-searching programs which work in a fundamentally different way to 'traditional' search engines. Google et al. use programs ('spiders'), which crawl all over the Web, deconstructing Web pages and recording their findings in their search index. When you search for a page in Google, what you locate is Google's reference to that page, and whatever Google found last time its crawler visited that page. With Gnutella, your search query is sent out to a network of computers that have been volunteered to participate. It works its way around the network until it finds some information to satisfy your query upon which the results are returned to you. Gene Kan, one of the original developers of Gnutella and a team at a new start-up Gonesilent.com have gone on to develop new Internet searching technology known as Infrasearch. Instead of relying on a central server-based index of the Web as its first port of call, sites that agree to be part of the network simply run a piece of software inside their databases, and share the very latest search results, with people searching for it via the Infrasearch site. For example, you might search for the latest news on "health economics" using InfraSearch about and if InPharm.com were running the Infrasearch search agent in its Web content database, you could immediately identify all of the stories about "health economics" that had been written on InPharm.com up to that minute. Real-time searching! It is an old-fashioned idea in Internet terms - the idea that you share out the workload of processing across a network of computers. Known collectively as Peer-to-Peer software, companies developing P2P software such as Gonesilent and Applesoup are being talked about as the Next Big Thing. The exact business model is something no-one seems worried about at the moment - but when Marc Andreesen, one of the founders of Netscape invests his own cash and describes this as something that will do "for search what the Internet did for communications," you can understand why venture capitalists have become interested. What might it mean to us, the regular users of the Internet, searchers of information and publishers of content? This raises quite a few questions. In a world where centralised search engines aren't so important, it is likely that we'd have to learn new tricks to promote Web sites. Why invest in expensive search technology for your own site when the Infrasearch engine inside your database takes care of everything? On the other hand, how fast will such an engine really be when it has to go at the pace of some of the slower computers hooked into the network? More importantly, how crucial a resource would something like Infrasearch ever become if enough people don't play along? Unlike 'traditional' search engines that will list even pages whose authors don't announce the pages' presence to the search engines, Infrasearch only works when enough people 'buy in' to the concept. And here, 'buy-in' means the whole bit; share and be truthful about your information - all the time. Did you ever hear about the practice of "Napster bombing"? This is where people mislabel their MP3 files to mislead people downloading files, so that you might receive porn when you were searching for something by the Spice Girls. It is the same principle as search engine spamming. You can't completely stop this, but 'traditional' search engines, because they have ultimate control over their precious search index, can do a lot to mitigate the problem. It is hard to see how a decentralised search like Infrasearch could do the same. Imagine the opportunity to misrepresent something to increase sales or drive advertising. People lie; it's in our nature. Larry Page, CEO of the search world's latest star, Google, is apparently not worried about the threat posed by this type of technology. I have to say that I'm with him here. I love what the Net can do and what it already has done for information sharing and communication. Nothing in business works properly if it completely requires everyone to play nicely with the other kids and eventually things only work well when the people running the system make money. Who, apart from the taxman, ever made a lot of money from getting people to behave? > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Dr. Pita Enriquez Harris is one of the founders of The Oxford Knowledge Company, which provides intelligent content solutions for Web sites and intranets, information monitoring services as well as training and software to assist companies with managing information from the Internet. Other articles by Pita Harris and free BullsEye Web searching software are available at Email: pita@oxford-knowledge.com > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Related Free Pint links: * "Internet Searching" links and articles in the Free Pint Portal * Respond to this article and chat to the author now at the Bar * Read this article online, with activated hyperlinks * Access the entire archive of Free Pint content > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = >>> ALL FREE PINT'S CONTENT IN ONE PLACE <<< The Content section of the Free Pint Portal gives you quick access to: * All Free Pint articles by year and industry * All issues by year and have them emailed to you * Archive of all the Today's Tipples at the Bar Visit today: > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT PORTAL http://www.freepint.co.uk/portal The Free Pint Submit service which I announced in the last edition has proven extremely popular. If you visit the Web site homepage then in the "Tools" box on the right-hand side you'll see "Submit to Engines". Simply enter your Web site address here and you'll be asked which of the major search engines you'd like to submit your site to. It can also be used directly at . New link sites are being added to the Portal constantly at and the Science category (among others) has just received a number of new entries. The resources we add are generally gateway sites or portals which provide a starting point for your research. In building the Portal we decided that it is much better for us to point you to expert sites who can indicate the best resources, rather than link to individual sites themselves. Therefore if you know of a good gateway site or portal which relates to one of our 88 categories then please let us know. Our eCommerce system is progressing well and we've just made a major shift in solution provider. We were previously with WorldPay but have moved to DataCash for their flexibility and range of options. Our secure server is in place and we're just waiting for the certificate which should be here by the end of the week. All of this will enable us to offer you a range of pay-per-view business information databases. I hope you'll enjoy being able to access these without having to pay a subscription charge or search fee. We've also been working on a major new service for the site which I'll be announcing shortly. We've been asked for it repeatedly by our members and so it will be a timely addition to the site. The Student Bar at is becoming increasingly popular and a number of resources have been added. We do ask for you input though on what you'd like to see here. Finally, there are now over 300 international topic categories in the live Free Pint News section at . If you haven't tried out this major free resource then please make a note to visit. News headlines are added constantly throughout the day and the full text of a story is only a click away. William Hann, Managing Editor > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The Free Pint Portal gives you access to the full range of Free Pint content by industry and country as well as a large number of selected external resources at . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FORTHCOMING EVENTS http://www.freepint.co.uk/events There are lots of events coming up in the UK over the next few weeks. There'll be the Online Information for the City exhibition in London and the eBiz Summit in Warwickshire. In the US, the Intranets EAST event will be taking place in Virginia and the Facets of Digital Reference event takes place in Washington this year. Back in the UK, William Hann will be talking at the SLA's Global 2000 conference and exhibition in Brighton, and the Association of UK Media Librarians Conference in Leicester. Overlapping with Global 2000 will be AdTech Europe in Amsterdam, Holland and the eRetailing 2000 conference in London, UK. Finally, don't forget the Free Pint Roadshow to which you are invited, which will be visiting Lougborough, Sheffield, Newcastle, Manchester and Aberystwyth in early November. More details at . Simon Collery, Content Developer Full details of these and many other forthcoming conferences and exhibitions in the online-information and Internet industries can be found on the Free Pint Events page . > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = FREE PINT GOLD The sort of financial information that was only available to professionals and large companies is now available to anyone with access to the Web, according to the author of our Tips article this time last year. The feature article expounds on the value of links to a site when it comes to evaluating the quality of that site. * Free Pint No.47, 7th October 1999 "Sources of UK Financial Information on the Internet" and "Getting Good References" . This time two years ago we had an article on the subject of viruses, how to recognise them and deal with them. We also had an article about coffee as a product and where to find information on it on the Web. * Free Pint No.23, 1st October 1998 "The Good Times are not about to end, unfortunately" and "There's an awful lot of coffee in Brazil: Coffee information on the Web" . 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William Hann, Managing Editor william@freepint.co.uk (c) Free Pint Limited 1997-2000 http://www.freepint.co.uk/ > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = CONTACT INFORMATION William Hann BSc MIInfSc, Founder and Managing Editor e: william@freepint.co.uk t: +44 (0)1784 455435 f: +44 (0)1784 455436 Rex Cooke FIInfSc FRSA, Editor e: rex@freepint.co.uk t: +44 (0)1342 316027 f: +44 (0)1342 316027 Simon Collery BA, Business Development e: simon@freepint.co.uk t: +44 (0)1865 434143 f: +44 (0)1784 455436 Address Free Pint Limited, FREEPOST (SEA3901), Staines Middlesex, TW18 3BR, United Kingdom (Please add a stamp if you would like to pay for postage) Web - http://www.freepint.co.uk Advertising - ads@freepint.co.uk Subscriptions - subs@freepint.co.uk Letters & Comments - feedback@freepint.co.uk Authors - http://www.freepint.co.uk/author.htm Latest Issue Autoresponder - auto@freepint.co.uk > = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Free Pint (ISSN 1460-7239) is a free newsletter written by information professionals who share how they find quality and reliable information on the Internet. 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