

Chrome extension "Awesome Screenshot" messes with Google search results - antimora
http://www.seroundtable.com/google-amazon-treatment-13881.html

======
arnorhs
Btw. if somebody's looking for a good screenshot application that
automatically creates a URL when you take a screenshot, I can't recommend this
software enough: <http://getcloudapp.com/>

You can also drag files onto the icon and all kinds of stuff - there's also a
keyboard shortcut to upload the contents of the clipboard to a URL.

Works well and is available on all platforms.

Edit: (ouch, harsh down-votes) Sorry, not all platforms, only OSX and Windows
(AFAIK). The windows version was built by a third party on top of their API
and works exactly the same way: <http://fluffyapp.com/> \- I use both versions
daily and I'm addicted.

Re-edit:

\- a beta linux client: [http://abhinandh.com/post/2755166494/cloudapp-for-
linux-and-...](http://abhinandh.com/post/2755166494/cloudapp-for-linux-and-
windows-py-cloudapp)

\- ipad and iphone clients: <http://bluenubeapp.com/> &
<http://cloud2goapp.com/>

\- android client: [http://android.appstorm.net/reviews/utilities/share-
easily-w...](http://android.appstorm.net/reviews/utilities/share-easily-with-
droidcloud/)

\- wordpress plugin: <http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-cloudapp/>

~~~
est
Works on all Mac platforms.

~~~
arnorhs
There is a pc version built on their API that works exactly the same way:
<http://fluffyapp.com/>

------
WesleyJohnson
Though only really useful to those who can read code/program themselves, I
find the "Extension Gallery and Web Store Inspector" extension to be useful
for this kind of thing. It gives you an omnibar icon when you're viewing an
extension in the Chrome Web Store/Extension gallery which let's you view the
actual permissions the extension is requesting, a list of Chrome API calls it
makes and you can also go in and view the actual code of the extension. I tend
to do this before installing any extension.

[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/bbamfloeabgknfklmg...](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/bbamfloeabgknfklmgbpjcgofcokhpia)

------
joel_liu
Hi All, This is Joel, developer of awesome screenshot. I am so sorry to add
the amazon search result in google search result page without info our users
first. It's such a bad decision.

This additional features was designed to scratch our own itch. Because when I
search some shopping items in google, I always want to check them in amazon at
the same time.

In the spirit of transparency, we should disclose that this feature does bring
small amount of revenue to us, which enables us to continue to improve this
product.

Since so many users don't like it, we already updated a new version(3.2.1) to
remove this feature.

~~~
swombat
Good of you to come out and apologise for it (and remove the hidden feature),
but this kind of fails the plausible deniability test...

"I mistakenly added a feature that would show our referral links to half a
million users in their search results" isn't really believable.

~~~
joel_liu
The intension is to make a small mount of money from the referral links while
it still helps some users. However, I did it in a wrong way. Maybe we should
did it like this: 1) Disable it by default. 2) Ask user's permission to enable
it 3) Tell users why we add it.

------
tslocum
This article fails to mention that the result-tampering is provided as a
default-enabled option.

Here is a screenshot: <http://imgur.com/7C5oM>

~~~
bemmu
With an option like this clearly visible, might this be an acceptable way to
make money with a Chrome extension? There certainly don't seem to be many
options available for developers, apart from the other highly annoying way of
periodically throwing the user to a "your extension has been updated!" page
with ads on it.

~~~
yuvipanda
Would've been absolutely fine if it were:

1\. Disabled by default 2\. Publicized properly (and not sneaked in)

~~~
EternalLight
Not in my opinion. I think you owe the user a clear indication about that it
is an add, and from who the add comes. Just modifying pages like that is
malware behavior.

If they clearly tell me it's their add then I can chose if I want the
extension or not, so removable adds is less of an issue.

------
iaskwhy
Just in case anyone's looking for an alternative, you can try the similiar
Screen Capture by Google:
[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/cpngackimfmofbokmj...](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/cpngackimfmofbokmjmljamhdncknpmg)

------
yuvipanda
We used this everyday at work, but it's gone now.

But, I wonder how many people will actually notice this and remove it. Unless
this creates a huge storm, I don't know how many of it's supposed half a
million users will care.

~~~
antimora
And I actually was about to spread the good word about this extension to my
coworkers because this extension is very useful compared to other screenshot
tools because it can capture the whole page instead just the screen area.

~~~
tuxychandru
Webpage Screenshot does full-page captures, in case you're looking for a
replacement.

[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/ckibcdccnfeookdmba...](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/ckibcdccnfeookdmbahgiakhnjcddpki)

~~~
moe
Sorry, but 'Webpage Screenshot' is a _terrible_ implementation (it doesn't
even have a save-button!).

If you want to recommend an alternative then why not point to google's own:
[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/cpngackimfmofbokmj...](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/cpngackimfmofbokmjmljamhdncknpmg)

~~~
tuxychandru
I didn't know an official Google extension existed for this, until I scrolled
further down the thread!

------
samarudge
I'm guessing they added an affiliate tag to all the Amazon links so they could
make some money from it, wonder how successful it has been. Is it a popular
extension?

~~~
antimora
Very popular. It's got 422,340 users and 12,925 of 5 star ratings.

Here is the link to the extension:

[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/alelhddbbhepgpmgid...](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/alelhddbbhepgpmgidjdcjakblofbmce)

And apparently there is a corresponding Firefox addon as well, which has
166,107 users. So in total I presume there are over 1/2 million users.

------
drivingmenuts
Acc. to this article ([http://blog.arpitnext.com/2010/08/googles-reply-on-
chrome-ex...](http://blog.arpitnext.com/2010/08/googles-reply-on-chrome-
extension-developer-fee.html)), Google does not review add-ons by third-party
devs _at all_.

Which makes me think we shouldn't be installing any of them.

------
MattBearman
They probably could have got away with it if they'd just added their affiliate
code to Amazon links that showed up organically, they just got greedy.

~~~
dspillett
That would probably be in breach of Amazon's affiliate policies though, IIRC
editing other peoples links (replacing codes, or adding yours to a link that
has no affiliate code) is frowned upon and a reasons to have your account
closed.

As this is providing extra links rather than changing existing ones, it
shouldn't be against Amazon's rules.

I'll no doubt irritate Google though as it could affect their ad revenue. I
wonder if it would be possible to detect this sort of thing: implementing some
sort of checksum on the content they send out and checking it with client-side
script to tell the user that the page had been modified. It would flag up
changes some users are expecting (from deliberately written/installed add-ons
or greasemnokey scripts, and would not be able to identify the source of the
change, so it wouldn't be perfect. And of course add-ins changing the page
could just remove the checking code - but that would be a nice big red sign to
say _never trust a line of code released by this company/person again_ and
would be an arms race (though Google probably has the resources to keep the
upper hand in that).

~~~
nikcub
viglink provides an API that automatically adds affiliate links to your page
or software product and it supports Amazon

~~~
dspillett
That is adding your affiliate code to _your_ links to Amazon, not links
created by anyone else, so should be in accordance with the rules.

------
erikb
Do people really install an extension with the fabolous name of "Awesome
Screenshot"? It already sounds like spam and/or at least trojan software.

Edit: This post is not trolling. I really often got the recommendation to
install that plugin but always didn't because I already thought it can't be
good, after reading the name and surfing the web for some years. I mean
everybody here knows spam emails and these trojans many people had on their
machinese 10 years ago, right?

