Google Releases Major Blog Search Blogroll Algorithm Update

The much awaited update to the Google Blog Search blogroll detector algorithm has finally been pushed through.

An updated Google Groups thread has Googler, Jeremy Hylton saying:

We have launched a ranking change that reduces the number of results that are returned because of blogroll matches. There are still problems to work out, but this change appears to be a big improvement over our earlier fix. We had originally planned to launch an experiment for link: queries, but decide more recently to release this change first. We are still working on the link: change and expect to have that ready in a few more weeks.

We did expect to see an update for how Google Blog Search responds to the link query, but as Jeremy said, that won't be released yet for the next few weeks. But the blogroll matching detector, which matches for keywords in the blogroll sections of sites, should no longer return results for those keywords.

Why does this matter? Well, lets say you are like me and you track who links or mentions you via Google Blog Search. If someone has the Search Engine Roundtable in the blogroll, and the do a daily blog post, even if that blog post doesn't mention the Search Engine Roundtable, blog search would show that new blog post as a match. Why? Because it is in the blogroll and Google thinks it is part of the content of the blog post. Google said they fixed this issue but they do want feedback at the Google Groups thread.

Forum discussion at Google Groups.

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posted rustybrick in Google Search Engine at March 27, 2009 1:23 AM Comments (7)

Comments

Since the Blogsearch isn't indexing as many blogs as it used to anyway, the link fix is a complete waste of everyone's time.

Posted by Michael Martinez at March 27, 2009 11:36

Michael, We're indexing just as many blog as we ever were. The problems you wrote about in February are pretty much fixed, I think.

Posted by Jeremy Hylton at March 27, 2009 14:18

Jeremy, if you're indexing just as many blog posts as ever, why can I not find old blogs you used to index that are still being updated?

There is a real disconnect here between what you're telling us and what I'm seeing.

Posted by Michael Martinez at March 30, 2009 17:20

I should clarify, I suppose. I'm just a little peeved that AdSense for Video is being discontinued while AdSense for Search is not.

While you did resolve the issues I documented in February, the other issues I've been unable to document because I had no way of knowing that many blogs would lose visibility with your October 2008 update are still there.

Google Blogsearch is just not as useful as it once was.

Posted by Michael Martinez at March 30, 2009 17:28

I think that Blogsearch foesn't index the seem number of blogs as it use to be. I hope that google is working on to fix that problem and adjust PR of blogs. The wind of change most of the time comes with bad result at first then it turns to be benefic. I am talking that way cause I've experienced lately site optimizer the result that my visitors can't get to the site so I was obliged under the request of my visitors to deal with the problem and when I eleminate the Javacode the site turns to work normal. I'd like to use that tool too but I am waiting for it is to be stable like others.

Posted by No Name at March 31, 2009 10:02

Let's just be patient on Google and see what they do next :-)

Posted by Shawn Drewry at April 1, 2009 19:11

is it the end of wordpress user ?

Posted by Kafe Blogger at April 10, 2009 00:31

Google Releases Major Blog Search Blogroll Algorithm Update

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