Thursday, September 9, 2010

Google Instant is here!

Yes, I'm feeling a lot of euphoria and weightlessness! But I was said that it's normal. Google Instant is rolling out slowly. So, as with any other product, you may get it later depending on your location. For now, it is available to only people who are logged into their Google Account.

Now, I had read a lot about this feature a few weeks ago. I thought it might be okay, just a new feature. How better can a search engine become in these times? But this is really marvelous. In a nutshell, here's what it is:

  • If you've got it, you can start using it by going to the Google homepage, where everything seems to have gotten a bit bigger. The search bar is longer too.
  • Now, as you type in something, the results will start showing, and what you see is similar to what you would when you would search with the amount of text you've entered right now.
  • If you stop make an error, you'll be shown the traditional 'Did you mean...' correction. 
  • So, all this means that you get the results live under a drop-down of suggestions, with the usual left pane, with options to search for news, images, blogs and stuff.
Here's a look at Google Instant (click the image for a bigger view):


My first views about this new feature is... Fantastic! It will save a lot of time, of course, but what got my attention is the simple fact that this new feature will give the searcher a lot more results, which are relevant. Why? You ask? Well, conventionally, we used to key in our terms and hit the return key. But now, as we see the results as we type, we have a lot more results coming up, not just the ones on the first page that came up conventionally. Good thinking, Google.

Here's a list of some really great facts straight from Google:


Click the image above to go to the Google Instant homepage, where they have a FAQ, if you need it, including the bleeding obvious instructions to turn the feature off. Only some really big fool would do that, anyway.

To wrap up, here's a pretty cool comparison between the new and old Google search performances.

Want more first looks? See my take on the new Priority Mail feature of Gmail. Or, check out my posts on the secret game in the new YouTube player, some basic keyboard shortcuts for Google Chrome or on how to add smooth scrolling in Chrome.

Update: Google Instant seems to work without logging into your Google Account now.


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