
Posted by
Brad on

Thursday, December 11th, 2008
Hot on the heels of Yahoo, search mega-stars Google has finally released their list of the top searches for 2008. Topping the worldwide list this year is Alaskan governor and former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin, who beat such notables as the Olympics and actor Heath Ledger to take the top spot. While Governor Palin might have literally been “on the top of the world,” she was merely seventh in the US. That prize goes to President-elect Barack Obama. Other major categories include fastest rising figure overall (Barack Obama), fastest rising news figure (Sarah Palin), and biggest trendsetter (Facebook).
A few weeks ago, we published a report by the London Times claiming that Microsoft was willing to purchase the search rights from sometimes competitor, sometimes dance partner Yahoo. While the deal in and of itself was proven to be “pure fiction,” the idea that the supposed deal was based upon was intriguing enough to get people talking. Among said people is Ivory Capital, an investment firm that holds about 1.5% of Yahoo’s stock. Under the Ivory deal, all search holdings would be sold to Microsoft, giving Redmond total control of both the Yahoo and the Windows Live search franchises. Yahoo would then implement the new combined engine into all of their services, essentially becoming a Microsoft affiliate. Desipte the labeling, Yahoo would still be entitled to 80% of the ad revenue derived from their sites. Neither Yahoo nor Microsoft have anything to say concerning the Ivory proposal at this time.
Elsewhere, the folks at Google Code have announced the development of Native Client, a new programming scheme designed to allow web-based applications to run code from a variety of sources. Native Client, according to its programmers, is based around the idea that the user should not have to sacrifice security for functionality. While other systems, most notably Microsoft’s ActiveX, offer many of the same usability features, the securities features are mediocre at best. Native Client is also said to be linked to Javascript, which could in theory provide a faster, safer experience for all users. Although the new scheme isn’t even close to being finished, a development kit is available at the Google Code website.
In less tech-y Google news, the company’s Book Search service has been updated to include magazines. “Today, we’re announcing an initiative to help bring more magazine archives and current magazines online,” writes Google engineer Dave Foulser on the Official Google Blog. “We think that bringing more magazines online is one more important step toward our long-standing goal of providing access to all the world’s information.” Each piece is searchable by magazine type, article name, and keyword. At press time, dozens of magazines have been included in the service, including Popular Mechanics, New York Magazine, and Ebony.
And finally: Every now and again, even the best of us need a little clipart. The main problem, however, is actually finding something useful. For most of us, the search is an hour long ordeal that includes scouring forgotten file folders, floppy disks that barely work, and the occassional tour of Flickr. If you don’t feel like going through all of that, yet still need some art, give WPClipart a try. The site is is a literal “clipart repository,” featuring roughly 23,800 pics covering scores of diverse topics and ideas. The files can be loaded in the “traditional” JPEG format, lossless PNG, or in one massive chunk. While you shouldn’t exactly be expecting Da Vinci, WPClipart is full of great looking, public domain art for a price that everybody loves — free.