Google News – Just Another Article Announcer?

In Google’s recent battle towards becoming an international news center, I’ve come to notice that the results delivered from Google News seems like nothing more than the articles we publish everyday. So I ask, doesn’t it seem like Google News resembles an article directory of some sorts?

Google News World: news.google.com

Google News Canada: news.google.ca

Google News UK: news.google.co.uk

I only mention this because when submitting my internet marketing articles, I often wonder if they show up within Google News? 9 times out of 10, they do! In fact, they usually show up within 48 hours of being indexed from other top related websites.

How does Google News select it’s content?

Right now, it seems that “news centers” & “press release companies” related to your field online are profiting from these search results. When you think about it, wouldn’t a press release be a form of news anyways? Possibly…

If you take a good look at the websites who deliver the content within Google news, you will notice that only a select few are providing all of the results. Again, it’s possible that Google’s news algorithm is still in its infant stages and probably has a lot of uphill battles to conquer.

It may be in Google’s best interest to assemble a team of experts in different fields to accept articles/news submissions in order to keep the news source within the Google kingdom.

There is Only A Fraction of Results Showing:

While searching through the GN section, you will also notice a relatively small portion of actual search results coming up. Only a fraction of a percentage of results get listed within the GN search results compared to the same results within the regular search results found on Google’s main page.

Only the sections on the left deliver actual real-time news. These are: Top Stories | World | Business | Sci/Tech | Sports | Entertainment | Health. These links provide real-time results delivered from credible news sources online.

Google News Alerts – Ezine anyone?

When you think about it, you are giving Google your email address to get related articles to the search term delivered to your inbox, how does this differ from any other regular newsletter? Are we going to start seeing Google AdWords within the news alerts? Will they consider giving large corporations the opportunity to advertise within their email alerts as a one time mailing! I hope not.

More and more we are seeing less of the Google we once knew and have come to love (A search bar with some great results). Since Google’s IPO, the development team at GG are starting to launch applications online that are starting to resemble what we now know as the great Yahoo Portal.

Will there be any difference? Probably not.

One Great Point About Google News:

They have given you the ability to customize your page to show whatever news topics you want. Simply look at the right side for a button that says “Customize this page New!”. Once you click on this link a drop down box shows you all the main topics you have listed within your page. Simply click on the topic you wish to customize or remove. The best part of it all is that you can click on “Add a custom section” and simply search for the topic you wish to have listed on your page.

All in all you can create an entire custom news page (author articles) that relate to your industry.

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Small Employer Worksite Wellness: 5 Program Models to Consider (Look Them Over Today)

Small employers need worksite wellness programs too. As a small employer, you care about and want healthy employees don’t you?Wellness programs have traditionally been the province of the large employer, basically leaving the smaller employer out of today’s explosion in employee health management.This is unfortunate as the small employer needs wellness programming just as much as the large employer. Small employers make up the majority of US employers and employ a large percentage of today’s workforce. I am defining small employer as being an employer with less than 100 employees.Traditionally within worksite wellness, each employer creates, for the most part, their own internal, stand-alone program utilizing internal employer based resources, or the resources provided by a contracted vendor, such as the health insurance company or a wellness program vendor. This independent, self-sufficient model is not, in my opinion, either viable nor the best strategy for the small employer to employ.There is certainly no reason why a small employer cannot, on their own, create their own internal, stand-alone program utilizing internal employer based resources, or the resources provided by a contracted vendor, such as the health insurance company or wellness program vendor.Another strategy a smaller employer might be to still go it alone by putting together programming based on free or low-cost Internet-based interventions. This strategy, while maybe being a low-cost strategy in terms of dollars actually spent, is a high cost strategy in terms of the time and energy required to put all the various interventions together into a cogent implementation plan and then executing the plan. The smaller employer would probably find this time and energy to be better used though elsewhere in the business.Five alternative worksite wellness program models a small employer might utilize involve cooperation, collaboration, anchor model, cluster program model and an employer – community partnership model.Cooperative ModelIn the cooperative model, small employers would band together to deliver a wellness program to their collective employees through some type of cooperative agreement. Each employer makes a contribution in the cooperative model, with the nature and size of the contribution potentially varying with each employer. While potentially better than going it alone, the cooperative model presents challenges such as:• The collective contributions may still fall short of what is needed for the cooperative to institute a successful program on its own• A cooperative approach would not address any unique needs an individual employer may have based on the uniqueness of their workforce or work environments• An employer would not necessarily bring its strengths to the cooperative process. What is lost when an individual employer’s strengths are not utilized in the process?Collaborative ModelIn the collaborative model, small employers also band together to deliver a wellness program to their collective employees through some type of collaborative agreement. Through a collaborative arrangement, each employer contributes their strengths to the process. While potentially better than going it alone and a cooperative agreement, the collaborative model also presents such challenges as:• The collective contributions may still fall short of what is needed for the collaborative members to institute a successful program on their own• A collaborative approach would also not address any unique needs an individual employer may haveAnchor ModelThe anchor model is based on the anchor store concept found in shopping malls. In this model, a larger employer serves as the anchor for a wellness program that includes both the anchor company and the anchor employer’s nearby smaller employers. I see this model as being best suited for a shopping center, or an industrial or commercial park.Cluster ModelThe cluster model could involve either a cooperative or collaborative arrangement between neighboring businesses. I see this model as being best suited for a main street or designated section of a downtown.Employer – Community Partnership ModelI believe this is a much better model for the small employer to undertake. In this model, the level of employer linkage to community based resources and programs decreases as the employer grows in employee size.If you are a small employer, which worksite wellness program model appeals best to you?

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A Review of Popular Medical/Health and Fitness Apps From 2011

With an “App” for just about everything these days, users are continually evolving in their desire for App driven interfaces. Initially created to expand the capability of the iPhone, the App movement has gone well beyond its expectations and seems to have no limit in sight. A new area of growing popularity is medicine, health and fitness. With users more conscientious and knowledgeable than ever about their heath and wellness, apps have adapted and facilitated the process of delivering medically related information and software. The following article will look at some of the most popular Medical/Health & Wellness applications of 2011 and describe how they found their niche in a niche market.The first application that has earned strong following amongst emergency and cardiac physicians is the airstrip – cardiology application. With the ability of physicians to check a patients electrocardiogram while outside the point of presentation on their iPhone, this application truly revolutionizes efficiency in cardiac medical care. With the ability to provide a preliminary analysis and display a history of ECG readings, the airstrip app allows for quicker, more informed decision making. It is clear why airstrip has gained such praise.With workout programs coming and going, it is hard to determine which one will actually work. P90X has made following its paid program one step easier with the P90X iPhone workout app. The main P90X interface allows a user to see the workout of the day, track his or her current progress, and see his or her nutrition journal; all while on the go. The workout program is, as its name indicates, a workout plan that takes 90 days to complete. The unique feature of this workout program is the ability to perform its routines with a limited amount of fitness equipment in the comfort of ones home or office. The portability makes this app especially attractive to those always on the go.The next application was designed with the student or science geek in mind. Anatomy 3D allows a user to look at three dimensional models of an organ system in the human body from the comfort of their iPad. The application takes visuospacial learning to a new level by allowing the operator to pan zoom around the displayed model to truly get an intuitive idea of where the landmark exists and how it functions in coordination with the neighboring anatomy. This is a great tool for brushing up on or learning human anatomy for the first time.Finally, Mobile MIM expands the bounds of the radiology dark room to the extent of a campsite or airport. With the ability to retrieve recent diagnostic images from CT, MRI, SPECT, and PET modalities, a radiologist can now truly be on the go. While the platform notes that images should always be reconfirmed in the dark room, the ability to make a preliminary read for immediate treatment is now possible from both an iPhone or an iPad. The innovative software allows the user to pan through images and read diagnostic history for the presentation being viewed. Though extremely niche within a niche, Mobile MIM is growing in popularity amongst radiologists.The Apps of 2011 have both left their impact and planted the seed of innovation for future developers to ponder.

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