Comments on: What is Not a Search Engine? http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/ The most wonderful search engines you've never seen! Sat, 30 Aug 2008 00:18:10 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2 By: iAdvert.mobi » Weekly Wrapup, 30 July - 3 August 2007 http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-2277 iAdvert.mobi » Weekly Wrapup, 30 July - 3 August 2007 Sun, 05 Aug 2007 01:26:39 +0000 http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-2277 [...] published a 3 part series defining a) What is a Search Engine? (an article by Nitin Karandikar), b) What is Not a Search Engine? (by Kaila Colbin) and finally c) What is an Alternative Search Engine? (by ASE editor Charles [...] […] published a 3 part series defining a) What is a Search Engine? (an article by Nitin Karandikar), b) What is Not a Search Engine? (by Kaila Colbin) and finally c) What is an Alternative Search Engine? (by ASE editor Charles […]

]]> By: Kaila Colbin http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1803 Kaila Colbin Thu, 02 Aug 2007 21:26:15 +0000 http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1803 Hey there Dmitri, I had a look at your site, and I really like what you guys are about. There's heaps of value in being able to deliver concise summaries in a few seconds. I'd love to hear more about how things go with you as you grow. Please keep me posted. All the best, Kaila Hey there Dmitri,

I had a look at your site, and I really like what you guys are about. There’s heaps of value in being able to deliver concise summaries in a few seconds.

I’d love to hear more about how things go with you as you grow. Please keep me posted.

All the best,
Kaila

]]> By: Dmitri Soubbotin http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1802 Dmitri Soubbotin Thu, 02 Aug 2007 20:41:16 +0000 http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1802 You are right Kaila, SenseBot currently takes results from the Big 3 and produces a summary on the topic of the query. The uniqueness of the offering is that the boundaries of individual pages are crossed, and the summary is created on the topic overall rather than on each individual page. The idea is to enable the user to grasp 80% of the answer in a few seconds, without the need to wander through often irrelevant pages. In your definition, we would be an interface to a search engine, until we start crawling our own results. You are right Kaila, SenseBot currently takes results from the Big 3 and produces a summary on the topic of the query. The uniqueness of the offering is that the boundaries of individual pages are crossed, and the summary is created on the topic overall rather than on each individual page. The idea is to enable the user to grasp 80% of the answer in a few seconds, without the need to wander through often irrelevant pages. In your definition, we would be an interface to a search engine, until we start crawling our own results.

]]> By: Kaila Colbin http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1631 Kaila Colbin Wed, 01 Aug 2007 22:37:05 +0000 http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1631 Brian: "Power and streamlining" nails it. When we first started using search, we were so surprised to find anything at all that we wanted to find as much as we can. Now that it's a given we'll be able to get far more information than we'll ever want or need, search engines have to focus on discernment to distinguish themselves. Sounds kind of like Maslow's hierarchy of needs -- as each gets satisfied, the next one on the list takes over in importance. Dmitri: Thank you! Yes, I agree, this is more of a conceptual discussion. I suppose what it comes down to is the point of difference you might sell to a VC (or a Google Director of Acquisitions). In the offline world, McDonald's, from a financial perspective, is a real estate company. I'm not very familiar with SenseBot (although I'll be checking you guys out as soon as I finish this!), but it sounds from your description like your primary point of difference is something other than the unique results you're able to serve up. Is that a fair assumption, or have I completely misunderstood? I really appreciate your feedback, and I'll make sure to read Nitin's piece now as well :-) Brian: “Power and streamlining” nails it. When we first started using search, we were so surprised to find anything at all that we wanted to find as much as we can. Now that it’s a given we’ll be able to get far more information than we’ll ever want or need, search engines have to focus on discernment to distinguish themselves. Sounds kind of like Maslow’s hierarchy of needs — as each gets satisfied, the next one on the list takes over in importance.

Dmitri: Thank you! Yes, I agree, this is more of a conceptual discussion. I suppose what it comes down to is the point of difference you might sell to a VC (or a Google Director of Acquisitions). In the offline world, McDonald’s, from a financial perspective, is a real estate company.

I’m not very familiar with SenseBot (although I’ll be checking you guys out as soon as I finish this!), but it sounds from your description like your primary point of difference is something other than the unique results you’re able to serve up. Is that a fair assumption, or have I completely misunderstood?

I really appreciate your feedback, and I’ll make sure to read Nitin’s piece now as well :-)

]]> By: Dmitri Soubbotin http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1571 Dmitri Soubbotin Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:51:21 +0000 http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1571 Very interesting post, Kaila - takes a lot of courage to take on a topic like this! I think the distinction you make between an interface and a "pure" search engine is useful, although more conceptual than practical. Some search engines would start as interfaces in your definition (SenseBot is no exception), but can add crawling in the future, or integrate with a crawler. And vice versa, Google started as a pure search engine, but is building more and more interfaces on top of it. See also Nitin Karandikar's post on the conceptual architecture of search at http://blog.softwareabstractions.com/the_software_abstractions/2007/05/a_conceptual_ar.html. Very interesting post, Kaila - takes a lot of courage to take on a topic like this! I think the distinction you make between an interface and a “pure” search engine is useful, although more conceptual than practical. Some search engines would start as interfaces in your definition (SenseBot is no exception), but can add crawling in the future, or integrate with a crawler. And vice versa, Google started as a pure search engine, but is building more and more interfaces on top of it.
See also Nitin Karandikar’s post on the conceptual architecture of search at http://blog.softwareabstractions.com/the_software_abstractions/2007/05/a_conceptual_ar.html.

]]> By: Brian Hayes http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1466 Brian Hayes Wed, 01 Aug 2007 04:24:48 +0000 http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1466 I think it's time to put the motor under the hood. I've enjoyed the formation years of the web and both search and many aggregation portals. But I want promises delivered. I want power .and. streamlining. Kaila is urging greater 'intelligence' from search when she says, "interfaces will be a key point of difference in a society that is increasingly overcrowded with information." Most pundits have forgotten to put demands on Search. Heavy demands. We're past the good days when search was a novelty, and we're not finished with developing search where it won't drive us nuts. We've filled our tanks. Now we need to see whether we're happy with the mileage. Lately everyone is too busy with Facebook to notice the flaws. For instance, when Google is criticized, it's not for the functionality of its search. When Google is loved, it's for peripheral services. But now it's time to discredit ordinary search. Thanks Google, for the good years, but Personalization fails to deliver the bargain discounts I've wanted and forgets that I hate plaid summer shorts. Page Rank fails to eliminate repetition, treachery and utter junk. And Search has buried me in more trivia than I can sort in any lifetime. Maybe newspapers will stop losing their esteem and take responsibility by helping us with huge bins of information and not merely feeding news. I'm longing for a new series of aggregation portal. I don't want to search infinity nor just a zipcode, but I yearn for a new portal based on the wisdom we've gathered after a few years on the Internet - a combination of my town's librarian, my college professor, my small town paper and overhearing what's being said over morning coffee before the doors open for business. Perhaps never the best or the latest, this kind of news and advice works and it keeps me away from the endless little problems of Washington graft and the bounties of Afghani opium. Goo-Off might be a better front page to Google's engine. Goo-Off can eliminate government brochures posted in 50 Agencies plus re-posted 50 times from each State plus 50 times from non-profits making a buck distributing government brochures plus 50 times repeated in official-sounding snippets stolen to peddle bogus cures for cancer. Goo-Off might be a wise offshoot to save Google's usefulness and prestige. Oh, for an adequately filtered page that helps find a good cheap cup of coffee and knows I like it intravenously. I think it’s time to put the motor under the hood. I’ve enjoyed the formation years of the web and both search and many aggregation portals. But I want promises delivered. I want power .and. streamlining.

Kaila is urging greater ‘intelligence’ from search when she says, “interfaces will be a key point of difference in a society that is increasingly overcrowded with information.”

Most pundits have forgotten to put demands on Search. Heavy demands. We’re past the good days when search was a novelty, and we’re not finished with developing search where it won’t drive us nuts. We’ve filled our tanks. Now we need to see whether we’re happy with the mileage.

Lately everyone is too busy with Facebook to notice the flaws. For instance, when Google is criticized, it’s not for the functionality of its search. When Google is loved, it’s for peripheral services. But now it’s time to discredit ordinary search.

Thanks Google, for the good years, but Personalization fails to deliver the bargain discounts I’ve wanted and forgets that I hate plaid summer shorts. Page Rank fails to eliminate repetition, treachery and utter junk. And Search has buried me in more trivia than I can sort in any lifetime.

Maybe newspapers will stop losing their esteem and take responsibility by helping us with huge bins of information and not merely feeding news. I’m longing for a new series of aggregation portal.

I don’t want to search infinity nor just a zipcode, but I yearn for a new portal based on the wisdom we’ve gathered after a few years on the Internet - a combination of my town’s librarian, my college professor, my small town paper and overhearing what’s being said over morning coffee before the doors open for business. Perhaps never the best or the latest, this kind of news and advice works and it keeps me away from the endless little problems of Washington graft and the bounties of Afghani opium.

Goo-Off might be a better front page to Google’s engine. Goo-Off can eliminate government brochures posted in 50 Agencies plus re-posted 50 times from each State plus 50 times from non-profits making a buck distributing government brochures plus 50 times repeated in official-sounding snippets stolen to peddle bogus cures for cancer.

Goo-Off might be a wise offshoot to save Google’s usefulness and prestige. Oh, for an adequately filtered page that helps find a good cheap cup of coffee and knows I like it intravenously.

]]> By: blog.vortexdna.com » Blog Archive » What is not a search engine? 2nd of 3 now live http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1458 blog.vortexdna.com » Blog Archive » What is not a search engine? 2nd of 3 now live Wed, 01 Aug 2007 03:08:20 +0000 http://altsearchengines.com/2007/07/31/what-is-not-a-search-engine/#comment-1458 [...] those of you following this series, my contribution, ‘What is not a search engine?’ has gone live over at AltSearchEngines. I invite you to read it, digg it, comment on it, [...] […] those of you following this series, my contribution, ‘What is not a search engine?’ has gone live over at AltSearchEngines. I invite you to read it, digg it, comment on it, […]

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