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| Helpful Hints | January 2002 |
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Outsmarting Smart TagsBy Jim DochertyEvery now and then, a marketing scheme or technology comes along that raises the ire of computer enthusiasts around the World. Such was the case last spring when Microsoft announced that a new technology known as Smart Tags would be included in the release of their latest operating system, XP. Smart Tags are a set of “buttons” that can be shared across all Microsoft Office applications. When applied, they turn individual words of text into hyperlinks that provide the user with a gateway to additional information about that word. For example, when clicking on the word “Manhattan” in a Word document, the user might generate a search on the Web and elsewhere related to the city (…or the cocktail, for that matter.) Smart Tags can also serve to automate routine functions in Microsoft applications like Word or Excel. Users can send mail, schedule a meeting, open contacts, etc. with the click of a specified button. On the face of it, the technology is a simple yet truly extraordinary leap from the static World to a dynamic one that holds the advantage of timely updates and even more information about any topic. However the waters quickly muddied when it was revealed that among those applications included in the launch would be the latest version of Internet Explorer. The 6.0 browser would provide the same dynamic links on any Web site, using the company’s own MSN Internet service as a search tool. By doing so, Microsoft would be given the ability to redirect users to a related site (of their choosing) when any specified word was clicked. These words could be sold to the highest bidder to create an effective, contextual advertising scheme using the traffic of others’ sites – at no charge to Microsoft. For example, the word “car” might be sold to General Motors so that whenever it appeared on a site being accessed with IE 6.0, the word would become an active link to the company’s home page. The mind boggles! After a very public outcry by individuals and consumer groups, Microsoft decided to shelve the concept in the launch of IE 6.0. However the technology is still an integral part of the XP operating system as it relates to other applications, and it is likely to quietly appear on future updates of Internet Explorer. Site developers are not powerless, however. A small snippet of html code will thwart Smart Tags in any future releases. Add this line between <head></head> to each page of your site to prevent Smart Tags from hijacking your well-earned traffic: <meta name="MSSmartTagsPreventParsing" content="TRUE"> But Microsoft isn’t the only company with marketing designs on your user base. Ezula already has a widely distributed product called TopText, touted as a “content enhancing feature” that turns Web pages into a sea of highlighted links to paid advertisers’ sites. The program often comes bundled unknowingly to the user with other downloads. Another, Surf+ from Intelsoft is marketed as a Pop-Up Manager and for enhanced privacy. However like TopText, the user might not even know that the program has been installed, letting the uninformed think that links were actually generated by the site itself. You can imagine the ugly possibilities when adult-content publishers secure access to common words… The following page contains information about protecting your content and user base from these programs: If you remain an active participant in the development of your site, you always have a better opportunity to protect it. |
