> We've discussed Google here before: would anyone notice if a few Google > servers went missing for a while? Seems to me, probably not, and > according to some in the discussion that is on low-cost hardware.
Google is VERY interesting. It is highly inconsistent and extremely erratic - yet few notice and no one cares. See http://google.fergusons.dk/ Google is not just one homogeneous database with the kind of consistency you require to run an enterprise. It's LOADS of databases, which are all updated on the fly and out of sync with each other. The expression used on the web site cited above - "the Google dance" - is a brilliant description. It can be very confusing - you do a Google search and spot an item. An hour later, you realise it was more useful than you thought and try to find it again. And you can't. The major Google databases have a cycle supposed to be four weeks but actually closer to nine. Exactly which database you get when you type in your search is in the lap of the gods. It's a triumph of form over function - sizzle over steak. -- Phil Payne http://www.isham-research.com +44 7785 302 803 +49 173 6242039
