Weekly Recommender Log

This week I continue my exploration of the iGoogle Recommendations Tab. And still it puzzles me.

I am told that the 6 categories of recommendations on this page - all in their own little content boxes - are updated every day, that's right, every day. This sounds strange to me. Google has built a huge company by tossing out recommendations right and left. What could they possibly be doing that takes a day? I am not all that impatient, it's just that this seems so much different than their normal business practice.

And then there is the almost total lack of recommendations. That's a little strong but I only have recommendations in one of the six boxes. And, one of the boxes continually shows an error message.

So, I am left with one of six to work with. It is the Recommended Pages box. In it I find a link and heading for 50 recommended pages, each with a opportunity to vote the link up or down. As a whole, it is a pretty lame list. I don't see how more than a handful could have been based on my search history or my iGoogle profile.

But, in the interest of forwarding the technology, I dutifully click though all 50 recommendations and give them a thumbs up or down (mostly down unless it matches some part of my online persona).

I can't wait to see what the next round brings my way. Let's hope that it won't recommend anymore weather sites for Dayton Ohio.