Google gets personal

apcmag informs about the new 'personalization' feature of Google. :

Personalised search services collect information about the subjects which interest you, so a search engine knows in advance that you are interested in computers and not fruit. Google’s version of personalisation does just this. After completing a profile, searches made at http://labs.google.com/personalized produce not just the usual list of results but also a “personalisation slider” to apply your profile to search results.

Set the slider to maximum and all results are subjected to an analysis based on your profile. Select minimum and the results revert to Google’s standard service. Set the slider to somewhere between these two extremes and it will adjust the balance to reflect the placement.

The flipside for Google is that your profile also has the potential to allow it to charge more for advertising. At present, the profile is stored on users’ hard drives as a cookie and advertisers’ greedy mitts are kept away from its potential for targeted advertising.