FALCONIUM

The word “google” has become synonymous with “search.” Google the word “innovation” and you’ll come up with possible topics for an innovation club blog post. This and similar searches led me straight back to Google. What innovative ideas are behind the search engine?

Among other things, praise is scattered here and there on the Official Google Blog. One blog post, http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/eye-tracking-studies-more-than-me..., discusses Google's studies of how the eye scans and (unconsciously) selects search results. The User Experience Research Team monitored the eye movements of subjects to detect search result scanning patterns. It was found that the people search the page sequentially, and that Google successfully puts the desired result quite close to the top of the page. In addition, thumbnail images were found to be helpful, not distracting, by quickly guiding people to the desired web pages or avoiding undesired ones. (Go to the initial blog post for cool pictures and more detail.) This and other innovative studies minimize time wasted and maximize user satisfaction. Google acknowledges that eye-tracking is no substitute for monitoring the brain, but future studies are promised.

So next time you google something, or purposely avoid using Google, think about how you use search engines. Does Google serve you well, or do the studies miss their mark?

-Albert Chen