How it's seen in corporate America (Score 1)

The truth is, what can be googled about you will play a role if you want a new job.

My job is basically being a CIO/CTO type for a segment of a F100 company. In my experience, every person that comes to meet with with me, salesperson, interviewee, or consultant has googled me and done some research on who I am. There's plenty out there.

LinkedIn shows that you do actually work the field and have not faked your resume. LinkedIn is also helpful since many people circulate open jobs and resumes through the networks.

Recruiters and HR people will google you.

I don't tend to google people for work, excepting for interviews. What I'm looking for it to get a sense of the personality. Because without a good personality, even the most skill person can become a liability to a team.

IMHO, a technology professional that is invisible to a dedicated search is actively trying to hide.

My advice is to have a limited public presence on the net. Enough that if someone is looking for you, they see you appear on the net and that see that Mr. Whoopass is a real person and different than Mr. Wayne Whoopass, serial killer. LinkedIn is good for this, since serial killers don't visit LinkedIn.

All it would take is a simple vanity domain with a couple pages to establish an identity.