Elliot: EXPG ExperIntelligence.
As you suggested, I took a look at EXPG's new search site at webdata.com.
I wasn't familiar with the company, but I was familiar with their product WebBase, which is a second-tier, web-to-database application tool that never gained the following that Microsoft's ASP, Allaire's Cold Fusion and others have. I can see from EXGP's chart that the company suddenly shot up when it announced their search engine site. Having experience in creating database driven web applications, but not succeeding in the development tool market, it makes sense to instead produce the end-user retail sites that are receiving such high valuations. While I am certain that the company hopes these sites will make money, even if they don't, producing them was sure to increase their stock price.
The WebData concept seems like a knock-off of iSleuth, only that the action post forms are not located on WebData's own internally generated pages, as they are with iSleuth. With WebData, the search forms are pulled from the originating site and displayed within a your choice of frame sets, vertical or horizontal, with advertising located within the frame.
iSleuth's approach of displaying multiple forms on a single page at first seemed more convenient than WebData's method. But after reviewing a few forms on iSleuth, I found that iSleuth didn't always provide you with the full search options available on the original search form. iSleuth does provide a direct, frame free link to the original form if you prefer, but then what is the point of having multiple forms on a single page? With WebData in a vertical navigation mode (and a decent connection) I was able to switch between different forms very quickly. From an operational point of view, WebData's system would seem easier to implement and maintain than iSlueth since they would only need to capture and maintain links and descriptions rather than entire forms. (iSleuth does have lots of forms that don't work).
One thing I found annoying about WebData is that upon choosing a main search category, they present you with the choice of vertical versus horizontal frame navigation...on each and every sub-category link. Seems like it would be better to choose one or the other format as a preference item, and then have the means to toggle back and forth between modes. Also, if you go directly to a sub-category from the WebData home page where a few sample sub-categories are offered, you don't get to choose your frame preference.
WebData's home navigation is similar to Yahoo's. Personally, I prefer an explorer style, expanding/contracting vertical navigation index on the home page, similar to iSleuth's.
I generally don't care for frames, and I particularly don't like viewing a web site inside someone else's frames. The screen always looks more cluttered, and the original page is often truncated. The big boys have stopped using frames and they also make sure their sites work at 640 X 480 resolution. So long as you have a big, high-resolution monitor (I use a 19" set at 1024 X 768 resolution), and the navigation links within the frames are simple, easy to read text, I don't have a problem with WebData's use of frames. But you can forget about using the WebData site with 640 X 480 resolution. There is no space left on the screen to view the form. Even at 800 X 600, it is barely adequate.
With WebData's frames, you also don't get to see the actual form's URL in the browsers's location window, only the URL of the WebData frame. I learn a lot about a site from viewing its URL, and I use the URL to navigate to other directories within the domain.
WebData appears to be implementing the concept of contributing editors, perhaps similar to miningco.com or suite101.com., but I don't see evidence of any editors actually in place. This is not something that will happen overnight. It took years for the Mining Company and Suite101 to build up their base of contributing editors.
With WebData, multiple searches of the major search engines can be performed only one at a time. What's the point??? Actually, even the concept of simultaneously meta-searching major search engines like Yahoo and Excite is now so widespread that no web site can bank on that feature to distinguish themselves. The principal benefit of an iSleuth or a WebData is easy access to the other thousands of specialized databases and indexes on the web, which I do believe is a valid feature. But before we start comparing these indexes to the likes of a Yahoo or an Altavista, which has over 140 million pages indexed, keep in mind that these specialized searches are indexing at most a few thousand pages, which makes them susceptible to being copied.
From a longer-term perspective, EXGP may be the safer bet. They have developed custom applications for several years and can continue do to so, even if the WebData site doesn't pan out. They are also developing comparison-shopping engines, an area that should see strong growth. They have eleven full time employees. Their losses are modest for someone in this business (less than 70k on revenues of 900k). See:
sec.gov
While EXGP's earnings statement certainly would not support a market cap of $22 million, at least they appear to be a going concern. SLEU, on the other hand, has essentially no revenues and no announced prospect for funding their working capital requirements. SLEU doesn't have an existing, paying customer base, nor does it have existing packaged products like WebBase. SLEU's technology, beyond Sally Elliot's original index, consists of the same revenue sharing programs many others offer (including SLEU's shopping comparison engine provided by Inktomi.)
Overall, I think iSleuth has a cleaner, clearer presentation than WebData and currently contains more database links. As a short-term investment, iSleuth may experience more investor attention simply because their site appears more polished. Let's face it, at this point most of these companies are primarily in the business of selling stock, and mostly to people whose only due diligence consists of visiting the company's web site. The people who invest in the stock, judging from these boards, could care less about a company's long term earnings potential and their only interest in the stock is its potential in the short term to be purchased by someone with stock more inflated than their own.
In short, the downside with EXGP is likely to be less than with SLEU, but their short term upside may also be less. I will stay away from both for now and will wait to hear more from SLEU regarding working capital funding and a business plan that distinguishes them from the rest of the pack before investing. Soar has asked me to look at MXNT. That will be my next research project.
Wow, that was a long post! Thanks for listening.
HH
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