[publicfig]

I definitely think that's an incredibly legitimate concern and wouldn't want to dismiss it because it's such an important issue. It is also important to remember, though, that a lot of these changes are made in ways that (seemingly, at least) attempt to prevent sites from gaming the search algorithms. I have seen the quality of results I'd expect from a Google search go down, and I attribute that to quite a bit of factors, including Google's self interest. I also try and consider just the massive rise in general content available through the web, the further and further growth of it as a tool for manipulative information or propaganda, as well as its growth as a marketplace. I only mention these things because I think a lot of people, including myself, will tend to ignore a lot of the external factors that forced as well as allowed Google's search and results algorithms to be in the position they are in.