It is time for our weekly search engine news wrap-up, and this time we provide you with several articles about the controversial new Google Buzz service.

Google Buzz is a new feature of Gmail that lets you broadcast comments, photos and other types of content to your network of friends. yes, it is very much a Twitter, Facebook kind of thing, and Buzz is clearly one of Google’s attempts at stealing some of the thunder of those two social networks.

Buzz is also part of Google’s attempt at turning Gmail into a sort of personal online content hub. It is already connected to the Google Reader, which allows you to read RSS and Atom feeds without leaving Google. you can use Google Docs to upload and share all kinds of files and documents. now you can also import your Twitter feed into Buzz. more types of content will follow.

Our immediate response was that this is just too much. we do not want all this information in our inbox. we are drowning. still, we can turn the service off, so that should not be too much of a problem.

The main problem with Google Buzz was the way it was set up. In order to help people build a network, Google decided to include your most active email and chat friends in your network by default.

Given that many hardly read all the legal yada yada the web sites push at us anymore, this means that Gmail users that accepted Buzz risked broadcasting who they were corresponding with to all the world. a psychiatrist using Gmail might have exposed his patients to his “friends”.

As soon as we realized this, we turned Buzz off. Google had made a huge PR blunder, leading to deep mistrust among many Internet savvy users.

Fortunately, Google reacted swiftly. Auto-follow is now auto-suggest. Buzz will now suggest people to follow, with the entire list pre-selected. Untick the ones you would like to exclude and you should be safe.

Picasa and Google Reader will no longer be connected to Buzz automatically. Moreover, there will be a new Buzz tab in settings, where you can disable Buzz completely.

Google says:

“For the tens of millions of you who have already started using Buzz, over the next couple weeks we’ll be showing you a similar version of this new start-up experience to give you a second chance to review and confirm the people you’re following.”

Google presents Google Buzz in the following video:

Buzz for Mobile is also controversial, as you may — if you are not careful — broadcast your exact location to friends and foes:

Here’s what other web sites and blogs have to say about Google Buzz:

• Google Apologizes, Continues to Tweak Buzz

  Google has just announced three tweaks to Buzz and, at the same time, offered an apology for what it calls a “challenging week” (SE Land Feb 13 2010)

• Google’s Brin Says he Is “Always Optimistic” About China Solution

  Brin also noted that he wished all those who underwent cyberattacks, as Google claims it has, would go public. (BoomTown Feb 12 2010)

• Google Buzz: Privacy nightmare

  First, you automatically follow everyone in your Gmail contact list, and that information is publicly available in your profile (Molly Rants Feb 10 2010)

• Using Google Buzz Can Expose Your Gmail Address

  Social Hacking Feb 12 2010: But by using Picasa, Google’s photo sharing service, it’s often quite simple to go from a numeric profile address to an actual username.

• Google may Offer Buzz Independently From Gmail

  Anyone who is established on one social network may discover that their name on the new Google Buzz network is long gone (SE Land Feb 12 2010)

• Millions of Buzz users, and improvements based on your feedback

  Google Blog: more visible option to not show followers/people you follow on your public profile and ability to block anyone who starts following you (Feb 11 2010)

• Top 10 Google Buzz kills : Privacy, Noise & Clutter

  I believe that GBuzz is a potentially great social sharing service if only Google would address these top 10 Google Buzz kills. (SE Journal Feb 12 2010)

• 5 Reasons why Gmail Buzz Privacy Isn’t all that Bad

  Even if someone is shown to follow you in Buzz, it does not mean they’re your contact, or that you email frequently with them, or that you even know them. (Blogoscoped Feb 12 2010)

• How Google Buzz is Disruptive: Open Data Standards

  Google Buzz data can be syndicated out to other services using the standard data formats called Atom, Activity Streams, MediaRSS and PubSubHubbub. (ReadWrite Feb 9 2010)

• FirstTake: What Google Buzz Means

  Google continues to aggregate other people’s social content, and become the intermediary. (Jeremiah Owyang Feb 9 2010)

• Microsoft and Yahoo Displeased With Google Buzz

  SE Journal: So, what do Yahoo! Updates and Google Buzz have in common? (Feb 10 2010)

• Google Buzz: The good, bad, & ugly Reactions

  It would be impossible to recap all the buzz about Buzz, but here’s a noteworthy selection of the good, bad, and ugly. (SE Land Feb 10 2010)

• Yahoo and Microsoft dismiss Google Buzz

  Microsoft claimed that Hotmail has offered similar services to customers since 2008 (techradar Feb 11 2010)

• Introducing Google Buzz

  Google Buzz is a new way to start conversations about the things you find interesting. (Google Blog Feb 9 2010)

• Google Launches Google Buzz, Apparently Thinks I Have too Much Free Time

  Google Buzz is sort of Twitter for GMail. (ResearchBuzz Feb11 2010)

• Google Buzz still has Major Privacy Flaw

  During new account setup, new users have to opt-out of publishing two lists: their followers and who is following them. (Silicon Alley Feb 12 2010)

• WARNING: Google Buzz has a huge Privacy Flaw

  When you first go into Google Buzz, it automatically sets you up with followers and people to follow. (Silicon Alley Feb 10 2010)

• Buzz – VERY annoying and potentially dangerous!

  Phil Bradley: Well, I’ve been playing around with Buzz for a few hours, and it’s driving me nuts. (Feb 11 2010)

Other search engine news:

• Google’s Brin Says he Is “Always Optimistic” About China Solution

  Brin also noted that he wished all those who underwent cyberattacks, as Google claims it has, would go public. (BoomTown Feb 12 2010)

• Bing Maps Imagery Release, February 2010

  Bing: In this release, we’ve added over 1 million square kilometers of new imagery! (Feb 12 2010)

• Google denies digital books plan is illegal

  Open Book Alliance still angry at proposed deal (techradar Feb 12 2010)

• New: Google Maps Labs

  Drag ’n’ Zoom: Click the Drag-and-Zoom button, then draw a box on the map to immediately zoom into that place. (Blogoscoped Feb 12 2010)

• SEO Industry Cries Foul Over Google SEO ‘Services’

  Norwegian Google AdWords blog offers site clinic (SE Land Feb 11 2010)

• Google Buys Social Search Engine Aardvark

  Aardvark is a social search engine that taps on the knowledge of the “expert crowd.” (SE Journal Feb 11 2010)

• hakia Serves Up Comprehensive Universal Search in New Design

  The results now return different sections of results, according to type. (SE Watch Feb 11 2010)

• Google kills Blogs Legally Posting Copyrighted Content

  Many labels and recording artists don’t fear the Internetz—and have realized blogs are a powerful tool for promotion. (Marketing Pilgrim feb 11 2010)

• Yahoo Search: This Is The “Dark Time” But We’ll be Back

  Yahoo! argues it is still in search (SE Land Feb 11 2010)

• Google baulks at Conroy’s call to censor YouTube

  Australia: Google says it will not “voluntarily” comply with the government’s request that it censor YouTube videos (The Age Feb 11 2010)

• Iran to suspend Google Gmail

  Government plans its own national email service (techradar Feb 2010)

• Microsoft and Yahoo Displeased With Google Buzz

  SE Journal: So, what do Yahoo! Updates and Google Buzz have in common? (Feb 10 2010)

• Experian Hitwise: Bing and Ask searches increase in January 2010

  Searches on Bing increased 5 percent and search on Ask increased 4 percent in January 2010 (SE Watch Feb 10 2010)

• Who’s Playing The 2010 biggest Search Geek Contest?

  The 2nd annual SMX biggest Search Geek Contest is designed to recognize the most capable experts in the field of SEM (SE Land Feb 10 2010)

• Think big with a gig: our experimental fiber network

  Google is planning to build and test ultra high-speed broadband networks in a small number of trial locations (Google Blog Feb 10 2010)

• They’re back: AP stories Reappear In Google

  In the peek-a-boo dance of the AP-Google negotiation, it appears that AP stories are back in Google News (SE Land Feb 10 2010)

• Now Google Is Matriarchal Biased

  SEO Roundtable on slavery and fatherhood (Feb 10 2010)

• SEMSEO and Pubcon conference shows big promise

  One of the highlights in a German searchmarketer’s year is the SEMSEO conference & Pubcon in Hannover. (Search Cowboys Feb 10 2010)

• Looking back at six Months of Yahoo! Search

  Since the summer of 2009, we’ve launched an amazing amount of new improvements in Yahoo! Search (Yahoo! Search Blog Feb 10 2010)

• Google leaps language barrier with translator phone

  GOOGLE is developing software for the first phone capable of translating foreign languages almost instantly (Times Feb 7 2010)

• Google Street View: now With more Polar Bears!

  Google announces its plans to map the snowier parts of the world using snowmobiles. (Marketing Pilgrim Feb 10 2010)

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