Thanks for the feedback. I hadn’t factored sandboxing into my thinking at all. But as you say it’s a double-edged sword.
I assume the way SEO techniques get around this is to initially ‘interrogate’ the algorithm through throwaway, high-risk websites, and then any robust techniques discovered slowly make their way up the ladder to established, highly conservative websites. Of course at any chance you risk getting caught (and it depends on the repulsiveness of the techniques as well) but that’s always a risk when you’re building on someone else’s platform. If a website depends on its standing in Google search results, you can say it’s building on their platform.
Also an interesting point about LessWrong’s optimization. I guess now we know we count two Search Engine Optimizers in our midst, the Powers that Be can get in touch with you guys..
Thanks for the feedback. I hadn’t factored sandboxing into my thinking at all. But as you say it’s a double-edged sword.
I assume the way SEO techniques get around this is to initially ‘interrogate’ the algorithm through throwaway, high-risk websites, and then any robust techniques discovered slowly make their way up the ladder to established, highly conservative websites. Of course at any chance you risk getting caught (and it depends on the repulsiveness of the techniques as well) but that’s always a risk when you’re building on someone else’s platform. If a website depends on its standing in Google search results, you can say it’s building on their platform.
Also an interesting point about LessWrong’s optimization. I guess now we know we count two Search Engine Optimizers in our midst, the Powers that Be can get in touch with you guys..