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Author Topic: Search Algorithms: How Do They Work?  (Read 15383 times)

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« Reply #25 on: January 03, 2017, 10:41 »
+4
that is what all stock media sites are going to use in their search algorithms, and there is no secret recipe.

Well, that was all conjecture.  Lol.


« Reply #26 on: January 04, 2017, 13:46 »
+2
Every stock photo company is going to use the same algorithm for search results.

Absolutely not.

« Reply #27 on: January 04, 2017, 14:55 »
0
There are ways that searches change that push various images or whole portfolios up and down in the search. For instance location search. I wish I had paid closer attention when I changed my address since it didn't change any of my photos (at least at the moment I did it) but suddenly my location was drastically different and if that is a factor in what images get shown to buyers... Sure the big picture is that keywords and sales are a huge factor, but do you take portfolio into account or just the image? So many factors can make the difference between good sales and poor sales and we are pretty much at the mercy of the search. Sure nobody can make the buyer buy an image they don't want, but with for example at SS 3850 pages of fireworks pics having your generic image on page one meant a lot of sales and having it not on the first 3 pages means almost no sales (an example I know for a fact since one of my images went from the first line of the first page to I have no idea where one day and sales did the same).

Maybe they make a secret deal with Nikon and those files get a boost. Or boost "pro" cameras, or whatever random thing they decide to boost. If their testing shows more sales they go with it even if it might help or hurt any one port or even the whole site in the long run.

« Reply #28 on: January 05, 2017, 05:30 »
0
Every stock photo company is going to use the same algorithm for search results.

They don't have to use exact code to be using the same algorithm. Algorithms can have variances.

They are all going to prioritize and code their search algorithm based on the data they have available, and they are all going to prioritize the results based on sales revenue first and views last, just as I describe.

There is a very limited amount of data to search (sales, titles, keywords, and quality scores, etc). the algorithms will be similar and simplistic. there is no company that is going to have a magic formula that is going to produce amazing search results. all the programmers are going to come up with similar algorithms. its not rocket science.

« Reply #29 on: January 05, 2017, 06:11 »
+1
Every stock photo company is going to use the same algorithm for search results.

They don't have to use exact code to be using the same algorithm. Algorithms can have variances.

They are all going to prioritize and code their search algorithm based on the data they have available, and they are all going to prioritize the results based on sales revenue first and views last, just as I describe.

There is a very limited amount of data to search (sales, titles, keywords, and quality scores, etc). the algorithms will be similar and simplistic. there is no company that is going to have a magic formula that is going to produce amazing search results. all the programmers are going to come up with similar algorithms. its not rocket science.
Not in my dictionary and you say yourself they will be similar which doesn't mean the same.

« Reply #30 on: January 05, 2017, 06:56 »
+2
So, to review, all sites' sorting algorithms are different.  Got it.

ShadySue

  • There is a crack in everything
« Reply #31 on: January 05, 2017, 07:07 »
+1
So, to review, all sites' sorting algorithms are different.  Got it.
And within a site, the algorithm could change weekly, daily or hourly.

Move on, nothing to see here.

« Reply #32 on: January 05, 2017, 07:51 »
0
'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less.' Lewis Carroll

gyllens

« Reply #33 on: January 05, 2017, 09:34 »
0
Every stock photo company is going to use the same algorithm for search results.

They don't have to use exact code to be using the same algorithm. Algorithms can have variances.

They are all going to prioritize and code their search algorithm based on the data they have available, and they are all going to prioritize the results based on sales revenue first and views last, just as I describe.

There is a very limited amount of data to search (sales, titles, keywords, and quality scores, etc). the algorithms will be similar and simplistic. there is no company that is going to have a magic formula that is going to produce amazing search results. all the programmers are going to come up with similar algorithms. its not rocket science.

I dont get this?  from where do you get they are all going to use the same algorithm? I have never heard of that.

« Reply #34 on: January 05, 2017, 11:03 »
0
SS is adding +1.000.000 new images per week and not 100.000 as was previously mentioned...

That every contributor receives a reasonable profit is also part of this business, so I think that the search algorithms also contemplate that.

The big problem is the number of contributors are growing faster that sells and money is less per capita day to day... old discussion... more images, more contributors but the same number of sells per day...

« Reply #35 on: January 05, 2017, 11:44 »
0
So, to review, all sites' sorting algorithms are different.  Got it.
And within a site, the algorithm could change weekly, daily or hourly.

Move on, nothing to see here.


And even if we did know what a particular sort algorithm was, there's nothing we could do about it, and even if there was, most agencies take a very dim view of people who do try to play the system.

« Reply #36 on: January 05, 2017, 11:57 »
0
A few years back iStock admitted that the searches included location data of sales. In other words, images that sold in the USA but not in Europe would end up higher in the USA searches than in the Europe searches. People from various locations on the planet compared identical searches at near identical times and found the results sorts much different. So the concept of doing an mathmatical analysis for a search result is certainly fundamental. We can guess on some common parameters such as Sales, Sale per Month, dollars, Dollars per Month, portfolio sales, exclusive vs non, and such. We don't know the long tail factors (such as world location) that might also be involved. We don't know the weighting of each factor in the math formula. Sources like iStock most likely do not use sales stats from the partner sales in the iS main site search. There are so many possible variables and weights that we just don't know how searches from one site compare to searches of another site.

« Reply #37 on: January 07, 2017, 07:25 »
0
you said: " from where do you get they are all going to use the same algorithm? I have never heard of that."

to solve any problem, there will be many algorithms to solve the same problem. there will always be 1 algorithm that is better than the others. programmers will always choose the best algorithm (or the obvious one).

a stock media web site is basically a database driven web site, no different than a real estate site, ecommerce site, or any search engine. they use keyword density algorithms. the algorithms are very simple.

stock media search engines are so obvious, and simple, the algorithm is so basic, they will all use a keyword density search.

the most basc search:
select * from table where keywords like '%keyword%' order by sort_rank desc

not difficult.

« Reply #38 on: January 07, 2017, 07:47 »
0
you said: " from where do you get they are all going to use the same algorithm? I have never heard of that."

to solve any problem, there will be many algorithms to solve the same problem. there will always be 1 algorithm that is better than the others. programmers will always choose the best algorithm (or the obvious one).

a stock media web site is basically a database driven web site, no different than a real estate site, ecommerce site, or any search engine. they use keyword density algorithms. the algorithms are very simple.

stock media search engines are so obvious, and simple, the algorithm is so basic, they will all use a keyword density search.

the most basc search:
select * from table where keywords like '%keyword%' order by sort_rank desc

not difficult.
define "better" thats why your assumptions are wrong

SpaceStockFootage

  • Space, Sci-Fi and Astronomy Related Stock Footage

« Reply #39 on: January 07, 2017, 07:55 »
0
you said: " from where do you get they are all going to use the same algorithm? I have never heard of that."

to solve any problem, there will be many algorithms to solve the same problem. there will always be 1 algorithm that is better than the others. programmers will always choose the best algorithm (or the obvious one).

a stock media web site is basically a database driven web site, no different than a real estate site, ecommerce site, or any search engine. they use keyword density algorithms. the algorithms are very simple.

stock media search engines are so obvious, and simple, the algorithm is so basic, they will all use a keyword density search.

the most basc search:
select * from table where keywords like '%keyword%' order by sort_rank desc

not difficult.

So that's how Google works right, purely on keywords?


 

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