WebWord

Search has really just started. We’re not even close to where we could be for two important reasons.

The first reason is obvious. Search sucks. No matter how good Google might be, for example, it isn’t eerily accurate yet. It is good, no doubt. But, it doesn’t always work. Search engines still have a hard time grappling with the fact that users are searching for a way to make mom happy versus mothers day present. If only pesky users would act more like machines!

A related problem with Search is that users are so different. There are regularities but users are finicky little animals. Rascals! Therefore, search engines will always have difficultly. Stated differently, users aren’t machines, machines aren’t users.

The second reason is far less obvious. This is where you should pay attention. No one — and I mean NO ONE — has a good handle on what “information” really is.

Here are a couple of mindbombs regarding Search. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to search through all of your cell phone conversations? Wouldn’t it be nice to search through your medical history, and the medical history of your relatives (if they allow it)? Wouldn’t it be nice if Search anticipated my questions and provided guidance before I asked them?

But it doesn’t stop there. Search is only about 10% of the real equation. If you are looking for a present for mom on Mother’s Day, you have motives, emotions, and desires. You’re looking to solve a problem, not just get an answer or purchase a product.

The key to this way of thinking is to examine humans in relation to information. Humans consume, alter, update, and delete information. They filter. They notice patterns. They make decisions.

Search is so wickedly far behind it isn’t even remotely funny. We’re cavemen writing on the wall. When future generations look back at us now, they will not understand how we could possibly function in our current environment.

I’m happy to say that Search is mostly useless. It is the wrong answer to the wrong problem. I’m happy in that I know that I am an ignorant monkey. This is unlike most folks who incorrectly think Search is really useful. It ain’t, folks, and you shouldn’t buy the hype.

Related: Visiting The Ghost

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 5th, 2005 at 3:19 pm and is filed under Technology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.