Google has announced it is making steps towards a universal search model that aims to search all Google’s content sources and deliver an integrated set of results. It has also updated its home page design and is testing out a new experimental search service.
The company says beginning today, it will incorporate information from a variety of previously separate sources – including videos, images, news, maps, books, and websites – into a single set of results. Over time it says it will also integrate additional types of content into search results as it advances toward delivering comprehensive universal search results.
“The ultimate goal of universal search is to break down the silos of information that exist on the web and provide the very best answer every time a user enters a query. While we still have a long way to go, today’s announcements are a big step in that direction,” said Google’s Marissa Mayer.
“The level and speed of search innovation at Google has increased. Most of this innovation addresses basic ranking algorithms and is often not obvious to users. Users just see more accurate results, more often, in more languages, which is our primary goal,” she added.
Google has also added new dynamically generated navigation links above the search results to suggest additional information that is relevant to a user’s query. For example, a search for “python” will now generate links to Google Blog Search, Google Book Search, Google Groups, and Google Code, to let the user know there is additional information on their query in each of those areas.
The homepage has also been updated with a new navigation bar, so instead of having links above the Google.com homepage search box, users will see a navigation bar on the top left side of the page with various Google search properties and popular products including Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs and Spreadsheets, and Picasa.
The company is also calling Aussies to try out its new experimental version of its search service called Google Experimental, available on Google Labs. This new test site provides users an opportunity to try out some of the latest search experiments and provide Google with feedback.
One of the first experiments to be featured on the site enables users to view their search results on a map or timeline. For instance, when someone searches for “Albert Einstein” on Google Experimental, they can choose to view the search results on a map that shows locations mentioned within web pages about Albert Einstein or on a timeline that illustrates the history of Albert Einstein’s life.
