Google, the Internet’s most widely used search engine, announced an update last week called Google Instant that automatically refreshes the page with results as a search query is typed, forgoing the need to press the enter button.
At a press conference in San Francisco, Google Vice President Marissa Mayer held a presentation that was all about helping people find information and save time.
“It’s actually searching before you type,” Mayer explained in a video demonstration showcasing the new feature. “We’re predicting what query you do.”
Mayer compared Google Instant to a list of historical achievements that have allowed people to find information faster, such as the introduction of the encyclopedia and the introduction of compact discs.
Kansas City, Mo., freshman Devin McCarthy, a pre-business major, uses Google to conduct research for his studies. He said he welcomes the change to the search engine.
“I think it helps since it’s coming up with the best topics,” McCarthy said.
Mayer said this is an update to Google’s auto-complete feature, which updates a list of search results as a search query is typed, complete with spell-checking capabilities. By using a special algorithm, Google Instant guesses what users are trying to type.
Mayer said Google Instant will save users time, about two to five seconds per search.
“We know it takes about nine seconds to enter a search into Google,” Mayer said.
Blake Winslow, a student at George W. Truett Seminary, said the new feature is unnecessary. “It’s already so fast,” Winslow said. “So I don’t see how speed was an issue.”
A report released Tuesday by The Nielsen Company, a firm that measures media ratings, concluded that Google is still the most used search engine. Microsoft’s Bing search engine took second, replacing Yahoo.
Yahoo announced in August that it would be using Microsoft’s Bing engine to handle its searches in an effort to stay competitive with Google. Through the partnership, Yahoo has agreed to give Microsoft a portion of ad-revenue generated from searches placed on its website. Yahoo and Microsoft will still remain competitors, despite the partnership.
Spring junior Bryan Eberhard, a finance major, sees this as an attractive deal for Microsoft, but doesn’t think Google should be scared just yet.
“It’s worth Microsoft to stay competitive because I’ve noticed on campus that Bing is the default search for browsers on many of the computers,” Eberhard said. “I used to use Google because it was the default search engine.”
Winslow said that despite Google’s changes, it’s still his preference for conducting searches on the Internet.
“Other search engines have too much going on; that’s distracting,” Winslow said. “I like Google because it’s simple and straightforward.”
Microsoft has not announced if it would be making updates to Bing that would parallel Google Instant search.