Google Alters Search to Handle More Complex Queries by Claire Cain Miller.
From the post:
Google on Thursday announced one of the biggest changes to its search engine, a rewriting of its algorithm to handle more complex queries that affects 90 percent of all searches.
The change, which represents a new approach to search for Google, required the biggest changes to the company’s search algorithm since 2000. Now, Google, the world’s most popular search engine, will focus more on trying to understand the meanings of and relationships among things, as opposed to its original strategy of matching keywords.
The company made the changes, executives said, because Google users are asking increasingly long and complex questions and are searching Google more often on mobile phones with voice search.
“They said, ‘Let’s go back and basically replace the engine of a 1950s car,’ ” said Danny Sullivan, founding editor of Search Engine Land, an industry blog. “It’s fair to say the general public seemed not to have noticed that Google ripped out its engine while driving down the road and replaced it with something else.”
One of the “other” changes is “pushy suggestions.”
In the last month I have noticed that if my search query is short that I will get Google’s suggested completion rather than my search request.
How short? Just has to be shorter than the completion suggested by Google.
A simple return means it adopts its suggestion and not your request.
You don’t believe me?
OK, type in:
charter
Note the autocompletion to:
charter.com
That’s OK if I am searching for the cable company but not if I am searching for “charter” as in a charter for technical work.
I am required to actively avoid the suggestion by Google.
I can avoid Google’s “pushy suggestions” by hitting the space bar.
But like many people, I toss off Google searches without ever looking at the search or URL box. I don’t look up until I have the results. And now sometimes the wrong results.
I would rather have a search engine execute my search by default and its suggestions only when asked.
How about you?
[…] FAQ: All About The New Google “Hummingbird” Algorithm Search Engine Land (“pushy suggestions”). […]
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