Google Latest To Face Patent Troll Situation
Personalized Ads... Again

Google On A Stick

Surprises

from the pushing-the-software dept

Wed, Dec 28th 2005 1:11am — Mike Masnick
People have been saying that Google's software products (toolbar, desktop search) are increasingly important to Google's growth strategy -- which explains why the company has been pushing so hard to get people to use both lately. The latest, is that Lexar Media will be including Google's desktop apps on its USB flash drives, so that people will automatically have them. While it certainly doesn't hurt, you have to wonder how many people will suddenly be interested, just because it shows up on their USB drive. Also, it seems like Google's desktop search might not be the type of app you'd want on a USB drive -- since it could lead to odd situations depending on whose computer you plugged the drive into. Some people might not want you seeing their local files when you do a search, just because you're using a keydrive on their machine.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team

25 Comments

If you liked this post, you may also be interested in...

Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  • identicon
    Stoned4Life, 28 Dec 2005 @ 3:58am

    Weird search results

    "So.. uhh, Jimmy? I didn't realize you were so interested in.. umm, gay porn."

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Ben McNelly, 28 Dec 2005 @ 6:50am

    lexar smexar...

    I personaly dont use them anymore (toolbar, desktop search) because of privacy concerns. This new partnership with AOL has me warry of any "software" from google. I have un-installed everything google, and am "this" close to switching my home page, which has been google on every computer I ever use for the last 8 years....

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Alex Nguyen, 28 Dec 2005 @ 7:41am

      Re: lexar smexar...

      Paranoia, paranoia, PARANOIA! I trust Google�s privacy policy, don�t really give a hiccup about the Patriot Act. And I�ve got nothing to hide. I love Google, and don�t give one pencil shake if they don�t take over the world. Maybe they could help me find my socks. Google fanboy to the max!

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Anonymous Coward, 28 Dec 2005 @ 8:14am

      Re: lexar smexar...

      lexar smexar...
      by Ben McNelly on Wednesday December 28, @06:50
      http://www.j3one.com
      I personaly dont use them anymore (toolbar, desktop search) because of privacy concerns.

      Yet you could care less about placing your first and last name online (Ben McNelly), along with a link to your website, inwhich anyone could do a "whois" lookup and retreve your actual mailing address and telephone number... (708 1/2 Moffet Ave, Joplin, Missouri 64801 US. (417) 317-8227).

      What privacy concerns are you concerned about?

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Oh man..., 28 Dec 2005 @ 8:57am

        Re: lexar smexar...

        You are so owned!!!! :o)

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Anonymous Coward, 28 Dec 2005 @ 9:11am

        Re: lexar smexar...

        Shazam!

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Dave, 28 Dec 2005 @ 9:26am

        Re: lexar smexar...

        Wow!! now thats a burn

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Ben McNelly, 5 Jan 2006 @ 9:45am

        Re: lexar smexar...

        I purposefully am very transparent and not really worried about anybody stalking me or stealing my identity (oh jeez, there goes the $50 in my bank account..) Its more of a boycott than a "concern", I know people who would worry about such things. But i dont. But being up to date on the latest in technology, obviously google merging with AOL causes a little twinge because there is nothing trustworthy about AOL or their advertising policies. So my main concern is that AOL will get bonus info gathered by google, and it will be under the radar because it technicaly would not violate googles "privacy policy"

        And as for posting my crap for the world to see, I hope you feel proud. Any dweeb can see I am not trying to hide my identity, and many people in the web community know me on a first name basis. If someone wants to mess with you, they will, because you can find out about anything and everyone with a few google searches. If someone wants to stalk me, then its not that hard... what a newb. Do you think I just stumbled onto this whole "web" thing??

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    M. Spankie, 28 Dec 2005 @ 7:18am

    Funny

    I find it entertaining that so many folks are afraid of Google's search tool on their desktop. Do you not realize that you can find the same files with or without Google's search tools? They only search what you already have access to. It comes down to file management. If you have secure information on your computer that you don't want others to see, then either don't let others user your computer, or lock that information down with file security.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      DocMenach, 28 Dec 2005 @ 8:02am

      Re: Funny

      It is quite funny that anybody would be concerned with Google's desktop search. You would be able to find all the same files (albiet not quite as efficiently) with the search function that is built into windows. If someone lets you use thier computer, they are giving you access to all of thier unprotected files, redardless of Google's desktop search.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • icon
        Mike (profile), 28 Dec 2005 @ 9:15am

        Re: Funny

        It is quite funny that anybody would be concerned with Google's desktop search. You would be able to find all the same files (albiet not quite as efficiently) with the search function that is built into windows. If someone lets you use thier computer, they are giving you access to all of thier unprotected files, redardless of Google's desktop search.

        Yes, it's true that you can find the same files elsewhere, but Google's desktop search has the results show up in your standard search results -- so you're searching your own hard drive much more often and often when not intended. That's where it can lead to problems.

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

        • identicon
          Nunya, 28 Dec 2005 @ 11:04am

          Re: Funny

          I am an avid user of Google, Google Desktop Search, Google Earth, the toolbar and Gmail. I can understand the concerns but if you have the desktop search you don't have to use it and it will not show up in your standard search results. I use this quite often. It will also show files that will not show up in Microsoft's search on Windows. It shows you the .tmp's, cookies and much more. There is nothing about privacy issue as long as you don't use it. Hell hide the app on the computer for that matter.

          Lastly, Google doesn't take any of your information and use it or forward it to any other companies for that matter. Before you install anything you have to click whether you will let information be sent back to them or not.

          [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    DittoBox, 28 Dec 2005 @ 8:08am

    Slow news day?

    How is this news? The article specifically states:

    The offering is the first time consumers will be able to install Google applications from a USB Flash drive directly to their desktop to edit photos, find files and search the web using popular Google applications.

    What's wrong with including a few msi/exe installers for their products on a fresh USB stick? How will people find out I look at gay pr0n (which I don't, mind you)? Neither the search daemon nor the database is stored on your USB media, just the installs, if you don't want them taking up space just delete them.

    I use GMail and the Toolbar all the time, under thunderbird and firefox respectively.

    Use parted and mk'$fs' anytime you like. Poof! No google.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Mike (profile), 28 Dec 2005 @ 9:17am

      Re: Slow news day?

      How is this news? The article specifically states:

      Um. Even your quote says this is "the first time" that this is being done, which makes it news. It's not news that you can add installers to a USB stick (I have a few that have that already). What's news is that Google's apps are what's being offered, because it highlights how important these products have become to Google's strategy.

      Sorry if that wasn't clear.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        DittoBox, 28 Dec 2005 @ 12:31pm

        Re: Slow news day?

        I thought that google's desktop/picasa/toolbar software as a main strategy was already a given. The two main (safari too?) alternative browsers--opera and firefox--both use google as the default serach engine, firefox even uses google as a home page; Java also now includes the toolbar.

        I've thought that Google's main strategy was using desktop search tools and other programs that tie your main desktop usage into live google services (blog, picasa, desktop search, internet search) to provide "targeted ads" based on the search was their main strategy for quite some time now.

        The fact that Lexar now carries installers for google products just highlights that fact.

        My point about the blip that links to the article is still valid, it's both sensational and inaccurate, it goes so far as to suggest that "Google's desktop search might not be the type of app you'd want on a USB drive -- since it could lead to odd situations depending on whose computer you plugged the drive into." This is incredibly inaccurate since if you read the article it states *nothing* about your personal search database being stored on your USB thumbdrive, it's just an installer.

        Sorry if that wasn't clear.

        [ link to this | view in chronology ]

        • icon
          Mike (profile), 28 Dec 2005 @ 1:37pm

          Re: Slow news day?

          My point about the blip that links to the article is still valid, it's both sensational and inaccurate, it goes so far as to suggest that "Google's desktop search might not be the type of app you'd want on a USB drive -- since it could lead to odd situations depending on whose computer you plugged the drive into." This is incredibly inaccurate since if you read the article it states *nothing* about your personal search database being stored on your USB thumbdrive, it's just an installer.

          I wasn't saying that it would run on the USB drive either. My point was that people may install it naturally on whatever computer they use it on, and the actual owners of those computers might not appreciate it...

          [ link to this | view in chronology ]

          • identicon
            DittoBox, 28 Dec 2005 @ 2:07pm

            Re: Slow news day?

            Ahhhh, I see. :) Still I doubt many people would wantonly install google desktop, but I suppose there are a few idiots out there stupid enough to try.

            [ link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      dylan, 28 Dec 2005 @ 11:08am

      Re: Slow news day?

      You know whats funny though. Usually the first thing people do when they get a new flash drive is format it before use. That's what I always do. Which would kind of defeat the purpose of what google is trying to do.

      [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Bob Smith, 28 Dec 2005 @ 8:47am

    "Some people might not want you seeing their local

    I would have thought it would be assumed that there would only be an installer on the drive, and that the program would actually be installed locally. (Although I guess the user could install on the USB drive if they wanted to.)

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    mohamed harraz, 28 Dec 2005 @ 11:04am

    Why !!

    It this is something that the user is prompted to before getting on his/her PC then i think it's ok. But I really don't like having things installed on my PC...

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Mr.Stealth, 29 Dec 2005 @ 9:54am

    No Subject Given

    The reason I don't use Google Desktop is that my girlfriend knows how to use Google Desktop to find files. She doesn't know how to find files using Explorer or other file management tools.

    End of discussion.

    [ link to this | view in chronology ]


Google Latest To Face Patent Troll Situation
Personalized Ads... Again
Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

Friday

19:39 Important Announcement: Techdirt Is Migrating To A New Platform (0)
More arrow

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.