Move over Google, Microsoft is making a big splash into the search business. Results are fresh, complete and relevant. Lately the search engine kings have, in my opinion, become complacent and arrogant.
Google’s index was months old for quite a while, now that it’s more up-to-date it is still far from complete. Pages seem to get dropped for no apparent reason, making their directory quite useless.
DMOZ, The Open Directory Project is the largest, most comprehensive human-edited directory of the Web. It is constructed and maintained by a vast, global community of volunteer editors. Many of these editors are dedicated and devoted individuals; some of them are also arrogant and complacent. How they decide if your site is “worthy” of being added to the directory I don’t know. I waited several months to get our site added to the local Asheville directory for Web Designers. I still have not been added to the general Web Design directory and have never heard a word from any of the editors to acknowledge my submission or give any reason for not including it, it just doesn’t show up. It seems the volunteers doing the Asheville section of the directory are far more responsive to submissions than some of the other sections.
Yahoo. Here is arrogance at its highest level. From Yahoo’s own submission page: “Your payment and participation mean that within 7 business days Yahoo! will review your site and consider it for inclusion in the Yahoo! Directory… Important note: Use of the Yahoo! Express program does not ensure that your submission will be accepted for inclusion in the Yahoo! Directory or that it will receive the site placement or description that you request.” What is the cost for this review, with “no guarantee of inclusion?” $299.00! … Per year!!! Sorry, but I don’t give $299.00 to anybody for (very possibly) nothing. Because Yahoo charges so much for mostly nothing their directory is also very old and very incomplete.
Enter Microsoft. This is the behemoth that many seem to hate for its arrogance. But wait! Their directory seems really complete and includes a site that I just created less than a week ago! And I didn’t even submit it to MSN or anyone else because it is really not complete yet. This is awesome! Given a choice, I would have never chosen Microsoft to put these other search engines in their place. But, I have to admit that, they have done an awesome job of producing results that are fresh, complete and relevant. Isn’t that what we are all looking for in a search engine?
I can usually bash Microsoft with the best of them but, this time, I have to sing their praises instead. Hopefully, by the time they get arrogant and complacent (in this area), one of the others will get the message and give them a run for their money. Competition is good, wherever it comes from, if it helps to create new and better products for all of us to use.