Search engines or internet portals have existed since the early days of the internet. But it was Google, a relatively late user, that later became the main target of finding anything on the World Wide Web.
Search engine definition
A search engine is a program that searches the Internet and searches web pages based on the keywords entered. The search engine consists of several parts, including:
- Algorithms that rank results by importance
- Search engine software, such as logical operators, search fields, and display format
- Database
- Spider or "crawling" software that reads web pages
Inspiration for the name
The popular Google search engine was invented by computer scientists Sergey Brin and Larry Page. The site is named after Google - the name of number 1 followed by 100 zeros - in a book by James Newman and Edward Kasner Mathematics and Imagination. The name of the founders of the site represents an immeasurable amount of information that a search engine must search for.
PageRank, Delivering Search Results, and Backrub
In 1995 Brin and Page met at Stanford University when they graduated in computer science. In January 1996, the couple began collaborating on a search engine program called Backrub, named for its ability to analyze backlinks. The result of the project was a very popular research article entitled 'The Anatomy of a Vast Hypertext Search Engine'.
This search engine was unique in that it used the technology developed by PageRank and determined the relevance of the site by taking into account the number of pages along with the importance of the pages that went back to the original site. At that point, search engines ranked the results based on how often a search term appeared on a website.
Then, buoyed by Backrub's overwhelming criticism, Brin and Page began developing Google. It was a very powerful project at the time. He worked from his dormitories, building a network of servers with cheap, used, and borrowed personal computers. Credit cards were even used to buy terabytes of records at discounted prices.
At first, they tried to license their search engine technology, but in the early stages of development, they couldn’t find anyone who wanted their product. Brin and Page then decided to keep Google and find further resources, improve the product and present it to the public when they had the finished product.
Initial funding
The strategy worked, and after further development, Google’s search engine eventually turned into a hot commodity. Andy Bechtolsheim, co-founder of Sun Microsystems, was so excited that after a quick presentation on Google, he told the couple, "Why don’t I write you a check instead of discussing all the details?"
Bechtolsheim's check was $ 100,000 and was issued to Google Inc., although Google did not yet exist as a legal entity. However, the next step did not take long: Page and Brin were formed on September 4, 1998. The check also allowed them to raise $ 900,000 more for their first round of funding. Among other investors was Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos.
With sufficient resources, Google Inc. opened its first office in Menlo Park, California. Google.com was launched, a beta search engine (test status) that responded to 10,000 searches daily. On September 21, 1999, Google officially removed the beta from the title.
Ascent to prominence
In 2001, Google applied for and received a patent for its PageRank technology, invented by Larry Page. At that point, the company moved to a larger space in nearby Palo Alto. After the company finally went public, it was feared that the rapid growth of the one-time start-up would change the culture of the company, which was based on the company's motto "Do No Evil". The pledge reflected the commitment of the founders and all employees to do their work objectively and without conflict of interest or bias. To ensure that the company remained true to its core values, the position of Director of Culture was created.
During the period of rapid growth, the company introduced a number of products, including Gmail, Google Docs, Google Drive, Google Voice and the Chrome web browser. It also acquired YouTube and Blogger.com video streaming platforms. Recently, there have been hikes to various sectors. Examples include a smart speaker (Google Home), Android (mobile operating system), Stadia (game), Pixel (portable hardware), Nexus (smartphone), Chromebook (laptop), broadband access (Google Fi), self-driving autonomous and many other companies. However, search advertising revenue remains a major source of revenue.
In 2015, Google underwent a department and staff restructuring under the conglomerate name Alphabet. Sergey Brin became chairman of the newly formed parent company Larry Page, CEO. Brin's place on Google was taken by the promotion of Sundar Pichai. Alphabet and its subsidiaries together rank among the 10 most valuable and influential companies in the world.
10 Fun facts about Google
Google's iconic 'stick figure' logo was designed after the Burning Man festival logo. The founders used a stick to tell customers and users to close the store to attend the first Burning Man festival.
The check for $ 100,000 written by Sun's Bechtolsheim lay intact in his desk drawer for weeks: it took Bryn and Page to set up the company as Google Inc., as it said on the check.
In its early heyday, Google hired a chef named Ayers Charlie. His claim to fame? Ayers was a chef often used by The Grateful Dead.
In 1998, Google hired its first employee, Silverstein Craig. Google now has more than 89,000 employees.
Google New York has placed a Google sales associate at Starbucks (SBUX) in New York City - Get Report. Today, Google employees report that they are working on a 2.9 million square foot complex on Eighth Avenue in New York City.
Google is known for its unofficial April fool's jokes. A real joke was the launch of Gmail on April 1, 2004, which users considered a joke. Today it is one of the most popular email platforms in the world.
The big takeover of YouTube by Google did not happen at the offices of the tech giant. Instead, YouTube co-founder Steven Chen suggested a place no one would recognize them: Denny's in Palo Alto, California. The $ 1.65 acquisition was reportedly squeezed on mozzarella sticks and iced tea.
Hollywood has associated itself with cultural phenomena in the past, and Google was no different. On October 14, 2002, the term "Google" was used in the hit TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer".
One of Google’s first regular visitors was a dog named Yoshka, brought to work every day by his owner Urs Hoelzle, who had hired him in advance for Google. Today, the company is considered one of the friendliest jobs in the United States.
Google is also known in another area related to animals. The company occasionally hires goats to “mow the grass” at a location in Mountain View. The goats, numbering a few hundred, chew grass blades for another week and leave a well-fertilized property until they return.
Google 2021 and beyond
Today, Google continues what it calls “the relentless search for better answers” as its core philosophy.
The company also continues to develop its range of all-star products and services, transforming its corporate structure in 2015 with parent company Alphabet, which now runs Google, and its expanded presence with offices in 50 countries across the country. world. How wide is it? Alphabet posted sales of $ 110.9 billion and net profit of $ 12.6 billion in 2017.
Sergey Brin and Larry Page didn't fare badly either. Google's co-founders now have a net worth of $ 55.4 billion and $ 54 billion, respectively. Far from a dorm room at Stanford, it remains one of the most compelling business success stories, one that grows every day.
