Google dumbing down search (instant search)

[newbitech]

http://www.valkrum.com/google-dumbing-down-search-instant-search/118

So its finally here, now google wants to predict your search. There are some interesting quirks however. Did google think that we were ALL too stupid to notice?

Here is a little test for those of you who haven't already turned off the most annoying thing to hit the web since IE6.

Type in the word "free" and list your top suggested results in order.

Here I will go first.

free:

online games
movies online
ringtones
games

now of course, as I toggle back and forth, we see that the top results are all the results for the first suggested result, "online games".

Is it just me, or are you also pissed that google has pretty much come out and slapped me in the face by assuming that the closest association I have to the word "free" is "online games"?

This to me is scary.

I'd like to see what others get in their search results suggested by google. Don't hit enter or search, just pay attention to what google is suggesting to you.

After you get the results for free, type in the letter "d" right after "free" as in "freed" for freedom.

All of a sudden the results are hyper-local with a google place page.

Freedom Highschool is the top suggestion. Lets add another letter, no change, and another for the full word.

"freedom" gets me the same local place page as the first result.

Once I hit enter, I get a completely new set of results, this time with freedom links to wikipedia, dictionary, oh but wait, what have we here for the day google instant comes out?

How about a little macfreedom.com.

Maybe google needs to get this product after this instant search release.


Freedom is a simple productivity application that locks you away from the internet on Mac or Windows computers for up to eight hours at a time. Freedom frees you from distractions, allowing you time to write, analyze, code, or create. At the end of your offline period, Freedom allows you back on the internet. You can download Freedom immediately for 10 dollars through either PayPal or Google Checkout.

Lets do a pitch in for $10 and send this link to google because they all obviously need some time away from the internet to write, analyze, code, and create.

[Reason]

ron p turns into ron paul

[Jim Casey]

Type in "how do I join" for laughs.

[Kludge]

ringtones
online games
games
movies online
fonts

[Kludge]

Type in "how do I join" for laughs.

:eek:

facebook
a network on facebook
the CIA
the FBI

[EndDaFed]

:eek:

facebook
a network on facebook
the CIA
the FBI

I think google is trying to tell us something about facebook. :D

[DamianTV]

Well, since I cant turn the shit off because I use cookies, I'll recommend that anyone else that is fucking annoyed by this switch their homepage to https://ssl.scroogle.org for a super simple google scraper with out all the fucking bullgoogle all over their "what used to be a nice and simple" homepage. It is starting to remind me of the HTML Diahhrea that spills out all over every other search engine.

[Golding]

Meh, I don't see anything insidious about it. I think it's an innovative improvement on the way search engines work. I like it a lot.

[DamianTV]

Never said it was insidious, I just dont like it, or googles cookes. The cookies are insidious, but what they are trying to do on their webpage, I just dont care for.

[newbitech]

wait till you try to go back to a previous search result after "exploring the query space".

[brandon]

I think it's pretty cool and you are all way to paranoid. If you don't like it just turn it off.

[nate895]

I hate the new system, especially since I am almost never searching for one of the top ten results. I liked the suggestions when it would just drop down, but now that it automatically goes to them when you have already conducted a search, I hate it. Google continues to do things that keep pissing me off.

[brandon]

then turn it off

[newbitech]

then turn it off

i cant.

I think it will actually be useful for my main focus with google which is SEO/SEM, but this little feature has definitely put a dent in googles ability to function as a research tool.

So I am back and forth. I have to always turn this thing off when I want to research, and leave it on when I am working for clients. How do you resolve that? I usually run 4-5 different browsers anyways, but I feel like I am losing something with this feature. Like my multi-tasking ability with google as a main tool just went to shit.

[nate895]

then turn it off

I was unaware until just now that you could do that, thank you. I barely ever go onto the "settings" page.

[Bruno]

Hasn't it been doing this for quite some time now?

[Baptist]

Grant money
Software
Wikipedia Free Encyclopedia
TheFreeSite.com
Software

Are not catered to me because I use Scroogle (http://www.scroogle.org/cgi-bin/scraper.htm). Have not used Google search in years.

[VBRonPaulFan]

wow, you guys are silly. they didn't change how the searches operate (they already censored out some crap for starters). all they're doing is pre-populating the search list to speed up load times for people doing searches. the general rule of thumb is that if people have to wait more than 2 seconds for a page to load, they start getting impatient and will go somewhere else. this was just an attempt for them to speed up getting results to the user, rather than forcing the user to type in their query, hit enter, and wait for a search/page load.

[TC95]

Type in "how do I join" for laughs.

That was funny!

[Mahkato]

I hate the new system, especially since I am almost never searching for one of the top ten results.

Sounds like you need to learn how to write better search queries.

[libertybrewcity]

why don't you attack the problem at its core and just use bing.com instead.

My first free is:

free credit report
free movies online
free games

I don't even have a credit card..

[UtahApocalypse]

This is the best new feature Google has launched in years.

[TC95]

I use startpage.com.