Mashups and its Impact on Search Engines

Globally, search engines are pivotal to help users find information stored on computer systems. Crawler-based search engines are the most familiar automated script for browsing the worldwide web globally. Crawler search engines are programs that are used to navigate relevant content globally, in a systematic manner that provides up-to-date data on a particular search engine that is used by the user (Jain, 2013). The working of a search engine is divided into two parts: the crawling and the indexing (Jain, 2013). The crawler involves a program that retrieves web pages for usage by specific search engines when a user accesses the web (Jain, 2013). In the crawling process, the spider or the crawler visits the pages that are included in the search and grasps all the content linked to the pages (Jain, 2013). Once the content is retrieved, the indexing process starts in the database, which involves stripping stop words, clutching the location of certain words in the page, backing up links and images among others (Jain, 2013). The data is used to rate the page and as the primary method that a search engine uses to determine whether the page should be displayed or not and the order to be followed in the presentation (Jain, 2013). Lastly, after the data has been processed, it is broken down into some files, shifted to different servers, or loaded into the memory of the computer system where a user can access it when performing a search (Jain, 2013). Notably, web crawlers trail links from one page to another and index the content of the pages; thus, they do not visit the websites regularly (Jain, 2013).

How has the utilization of mobile technologies impacted search engines optimization practices?

Technological advancement has foreseen the growth of the smartphones that utilize the search engines to retrieve specific content required by the users using the mobile data network (Miller, 2016). Mobile technology has been one of the trends that have been utilizing the search engines, since a considerable percentage of users perform their searches on the mobile devices (Smith, 2016). Consequently, mobile devices penetration has been colossal through the introduction of mobile application, thus, impacting significantly on the usage of the search engines (Smith, 2016). Majority of the mobile devices users use relevant search engines to access the content of particular applications for their usage. Moreover, the apps have spawned a new market for retailers to sell their products and services (Smith, 2016). As a result, consumers use search engines to retrieve certain services that are offered by various companies and use the same platform to convey their concerns and feedback, hence, contributing immensely to the optimization of the search engines (Smith, 2016). For instance, the real estate industry has implemented the trend through the introduction of the 3D mobile apps that can be accessed through various search engines (Smith, 2016). The applications convey the concept and design of numerous properties to potential buyers before the start of the construction process. Lastly, the mobile technology has improved on communication globally, with the majority of the users using various communication platforms such as Skype (Smith, 2016). The platforms can be accessed through the search engines for communication enhancement, hence, impacting significantly on the optimization of the search engines.

Describe how mashups create new benefits and functionality from existing data or information

Mashups in web development involve web pages that integrate the data of various sources to create a single new service that is displayed in a single graphical interface (Merrill, 2009). Mashups involve amalgamation, visualization, and aggregation to make the existing data more useful for personal and professional usage (Merrill, 2009). A mashup application encompasses three different participants (API/content providers, the mashup site, and the client’s Web browser) separated by both network and organizational boundaries (Merrill, 2009). The API provides the content to be mashed, thus, facilitating data retrieval through various Web protocols such as REST, which exposes the existing data by parsing the provider’s Web pages intended initially for human consumption (Merrill, 2009).

On the other hand, the mashup site encompasses the generation of the mashed content directly within the client’s browser through the JavaScript (Merrill, 2009). The mashups applications combine both the server and client logic to achieve data accretion through the usage of the existing data supplied to them by the user base, hence, making at least one data set local that can execute complex queries on numerous sourced data that would be improbable within the client’s web browser (Merrill, 2009). Lastly, the client web browser renders the application graphically and allows the users to interact with it through the assembly and composition of the aggregated content, thus, creating new benefits and functionality to the user (Merrill, 2009).

References

Jain, A. (2013). The Role and Importance of Search Engine and Search Engine Optimization. International Journal of Emerging Trends &Technology in Computer Science, 2(3), 99-102.

Merrill, D. (2009, 7 24). Mashups: The new breed of a Web app. Retrieved 10 2, 2018, from IBM: https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/library/x-mashups/index.html

Miller, M. (2016, 12 23). SEO in 2017: Mobile optimization as a competitive advantage. Retrieved 10 1, 2018, from Search Engine Land: https://searchengineland.com/seo-2017-mobile-optimisation-competitive-advantage-265760

Smith, J. (2016, 11 19). Impact of Mobile Technology in Business Communication.

Retrieved 10 1, 2018, from Business2community: https://www.business2community.com/tech-gadgets/impact-mobile-technology-business-communication-01704702