Google Sucks!

OK. We are in the information age. We are flooded with information including an incredible amount of spam, but I digress. We have amazingly powerful, networked and often wireless computers of all sizes and shapes that should in theory help us master and exploit the information that's coming our way. But no! Google is king of search engines but is reminding me more of a poor Microsoft product that stands on its laurels than anything else.

It's too bad because being able to get the information we need when we need it is crucial to our productivity and probably even to our satisfaction and perhaps even happiness. If I could find that ideal apartment I've been looking for, that would help make me happier, no doubt.

Correct me if I'm wrong. But, Google is not innovating much. They've got their so called mysterious search technology that seems to be about as complicated as multiplying the number of hits by a weighted average of the number of hits of the pages that are hitting. Great! That means I always get the megasites and index and aggregator sites at the top of my searches. I get the *big* sites. And top that off with a bunch of paid sites that get in the way at the top of the lists.

What I'm looking for is usually the smaller sites run often by one person who does it as a labor of love. Someone who doesn't have an axe to grind. So I get good information with authentic voice not corporate speak.

And, frankly, I want a desktop tool that I can set so that my preferences and perhaps list of searches I find valuable are used. I don't want Google to decide whose on top of the lists. Let me tell it what *my* priorities are and go from there.

And then add in what software like Grokker is starting to explore. Putting information into meaningful clusters. This is important and I hate it that we've got a practical monopoly in the search engine industry slowing down and squelching the innovation we need to take advantage of all this information processing horsepower we have at our disposal. Google is better than nothing, but let's get on with it!

References:
Microdoc News - Online Magazine about exercising personal power in the Information Age: Is Google Keeping Up With The Information Revolution?. Jan 13, 2004.

eWeek: Vivisimo, Grokker, Teoma Engines Help to Narrow Search Results. Jan 2, 2004.

Comments

[christianhauck]

I have the grokker test installation, the 30 days license expired just some days ago, but I can't really decide to buy it. Just invested into hardware (WIFI, bluetooth presenter, etc.) and can't decide to spend another 50.- for a just anotehr license. Nevertheless, it's amazing. Such a different design!

[Janet Tokerud]

I'm sure glad that they've taken initiative in this really important software category. I hope there will be a Mac OS X version soon for me to playl with. I've heard that one is planned.

[bccc1xhack]

Googles cool man, it realy is u know,your just jellous that you don't run a great seach engine

HEHE
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BCRXTTT33hack1#1#
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OWOWOWOOWOWWO

[Janet Tokerud]

Google is the best search engine out there. That's a great accomplishment. What I'm looking for is the next step. And it's great the O'Reilly Press has got the Google hacks book out there. I even own it. But, I'm talking about the gap between the best search engine and what's needed and possible.

[Andrew Abcana]

ur rite google does suck i cant find nething that i need to find out for research

[Maria Turnerle]

Google might be an amazing search engine. The want to do no evil." I read in the New York Times article last month that 40% (or more) of employee are temps (underpaid at a set rate with no benifits). Yet the company is profitable? Do they really know what they're doing or is it just an illusion? Maria Turnerle

[google manager]

Let's all use msn.com instead of google.com!

[Dimples]

GOOGLE is the only search engine I have used for tons of years. It's fast, it's interesting, it's easy to use and makes surfing sensible.

[GlobalLeader]

I think he who can write the best search engine should throw the first stone.

[Janet Tokerud]

I was and am writing as a user of search engines. I'm talking about the difference between the *best* at the moment and what we really need a search engine to do. There's a big gap. Google is better than everyone else, I don't contest that. It just could still be much better.

[GooGOO]

Hay Hey Hi, Why not use some different engines? check out www.searchenginesinternational.com for a boat load of choices, hot links to a whole lot of other search tools.

[Anthony Cea]

If you want to see a study on how Google favors and directs search traffic to their Adsense Publishing partners websites, go to http://www.webcenter.squarespace.com to look at how Google has corrupted the SERP's to make money at searchers expense

[pgmjsd]

Insightful article. I wish more people would give thoughtful, constructive criticism as you have.

Personally, I believe that it is only a matter of time before someone else figures out how to do it better, handling the fringe searchers. I also think that people get a little to caught up in the 'mystique' that Google deliberately cultivates: They don't employ every single smart person in the universe.

My own viewpoint tends to center on the fact that Google is more like a TV network now. Their product is *not* the search engine, it is the searchers (you and I) that are being sold to the advertisers. Once you understand the service in that context, things fall into place.

It is for this reason, that I hold little hope for Google becoming 'better' in the way that I would like it to.

[Janet Tokerud]

Thanks, Joshua. I also appreciate your Google post on your blog with all the links to other sites. I just read the Google Watch site for the first time. Wow! Well-written. The Big Brother article is definitely a good read to counter-balance the Gee Whiz technology bias (blindness) that many of us have.

[Eric]

if google sucks, then I would hate to think what the other search engines do! :)

Google gets me what I want much more reliably than anything else out there. Grokker is probably the most "innovative thing out there", but it bites. Innovative does not equal useful.

[Janet Tokerud]

As I said above, Google is really good but there's lots more to do. I pointed out some of those things to do. I will look into the problem you had with the comment format. I just wish I knew what browser/platform you are using but you didn't leave any contact info.

google's mantra is DON'T BE EVIL

i like it

peace ;)

[Janet Tokerud]

Yes. I'm glad they have that mantra. As long as their 2 founders hold sway, we should be fine. Also, since I made this post, all sorts of interesting innovations have been coming out from Google. Also, a bunch of competition in the search space will keep them on their toes. Looking good.

[FireSeven]

That is a silly thought - that it would only take a few months to put together the best free email system in the world.

[Rob]

Just read the page evilgoogle.com it will tell you about all my experiances. I would just chalk it up to they are part of the russian mob, they have everyones trust now, and then they are going to make their move..

[GmB]

Google use to be the best search engine on the web. Lately i would say the last 3-4 months something has changed and now they suck.

I can't find what i'm looking for now most times than not. I use to put in a search string eg. golf-fishing-utah and get several dozen results and now when i do search strings all i get is a few not really relavant results.

I am not the only person who has noticed the change. I am really disappointed, Google was absolutly the search engine that i swore by, but not something really has changed, and i have to say it really sucks.

I am thinking of actually trying out other search engines now to see if they fair any better. However i have to say that i am disappointed beyond measure, because i have for years and years found this search engine to not only be reliable, but a great aid to me in anything i wanted to research or just look up out of curiosity.

[jenny]

If google sucks, what search engines are better?
P.S.I found your sight through google

[webdog]

Google was a good until they decided that only site that get high hit numbers are the ones we are looking for.

[Janet Tokerud]

Exactly.

uhh first of all you find this sight by typing google sucks in their search engine.... ironic. But anyways you have to know HOW to use the search engine, there are OVER 5 billion web pages.. keep in mind google doesnt take into consideration every page on every web site... this probably means that there are at least a billion web sites on the web. Now web search engines were created to help you find a site your looking for without spending an enormous amount of time.... can you immagine guessing each and every one of those??
COMPUTERS CAN NOT READ YOUR MIND. If they could then they could easily create a search engine that found exactly what you were looking for. But untill that day comes you have to learn how to USE the search engine. Trying to find a apartment to rent? Try looking for supersights that would list your town and use those. or look for ads by typing out town and apartment. All google has to work with is what you tell it... if you tell it a bunch of shit it looks through all those damn web pages for you and gives you every one that fits into what you said... It cant think, you cant ask it a question, just learn to use it. Frustraiting but if you give a lot of thought into it its near impossible to find exactly what your looking for. Since any one of the sights its returning could have been exactly what you were looking for.... what do you want from it???