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Googles New Look and Layout
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This post has been deleted.
Ok the problem is that with the old design you simply entered a search term, clicked the pages from Ireland radio button and got your results.
With the new version, you need to perform a search and then filter them with the "pages from Ireland" link.
To be honest, it's no biggie, just a little annoying.
It now takes me about 0.00002 of a second to remember to stop looking for it under the search bar!
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Firstly, Google's main product is the search results. The old design had them displayed with nothing to the left meaning the beginning of each line was easy for the eye to catch the left hand edge. The options positioned in that space has undermined that ease.
Agreed, however the changes they have made allows you to filter the results and make the experience (and possibly the results) better. Therefore I would say it's a good compromise.Secondly, the logical place for the options is somewhere before the search box. Reading left to right and top to bottom, as we do, users set the options and then perform the search. They could put all the options above the search box using dropdowns which they already use in that space. The user path here is down a bit, down another bit, execute as opposed to down to the left and then back up and execute.
Sorry Tricky I have to disagree with you on this one.
As some that constantly used the filerting options, I wouldn't have wanted to have to specify what I wanted from the outset. The reality is that I only ever use those filtering options if I needed to perform a more specific search (which is quite a lot!!).
For example, if I performed a search, I would generally trust the first few results Google offered me. It would only be if I felt that the results were not specific enough that I would use the extra options. So I would be happy to click the options on the left handside.
For me, the filtering options are most powerful when I'm not finding exactly what I'm looking for. They're not something I would want to use all the time for generic searches such as "latest premiershop scores" etc. That's because those type of searched generally give you what you want without filtering.Personally, one thing that has always perplexed me is the damned awfulness of Google's markup, especially considering the simplicity of their pages.
I'm going to avoid respondong to this point entirely! That could really open up another can of worms :PGoogle ain't so perfect afterall!
I think this is one point that everyone should note.
A lot of people assume Google is the "Internet". It's as if Google themselves created it.
People forget that Google is only around since 97/98ish and there are plenty of people on this here forum that are around longer than that!
Yes Google deserve a lot of credit, but they are by no means the be all and end all and they certainly aint perfect!0 -
Sorry Tricky I have to disagree with you on this one.
As some that constantly used the filerting options, I wouldn't have wanted to have to specify what I wanted from the outset. The reality is that I only ever use those filtering options if I needed to perform a more specific search (which is quite a lot!!).
For example, if I performed a search, I would generally trust the first few results Google offered me. It would only be if I felt that the results were not specific enough that I would use the extra options. So I would be happy to click the options on the left handside.
For me, the filtering options are most powerful when I'm not finding exactly what I'm looking for. They're not something I would want to use all the time for generic searches such as "latest premiershop scores" etc. That's because those type of searched generally give you what you want without filtering.
Oops, my bad. Mixing up the before and after a bit. Should really have said between the search box and the results.0 -
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I tend to get a bit picky after checking over quarter of a million Irish domains and websites and trying to make sense of the Irish webspace.My god, didn't we all get a little touchy!?! I can see why (literally) there are so many opportunities for SEO on Irish websites.
It still looks like Google is moving towards a universal search without getting it quite right. The emphasis is, I think, purely financial in that it is meant to focus user attention on the advertising. Some of the other kinds of search were not used but that may have been down to user choice. This integrated, universal search is particularly dangerous in this regard.For me it's quite clear why Google designed the page like this. They have some great search features that people simply weren't using (or enough people should I say!). Search has evolved and it's Google's way of putting the power into the every day users hands. The simple fact is, that something had to change to give us all greater flexibility when we are searching.
Google's geolocation, like that of most search engines, is not precise. It is a combination of IP based discovery, domain name (.ie) grouping and some semantics. However a percentage of Irish websites are hosted outside of Irish IP space and on gTLD domain names so Google is left with its analysis of a website's audience, WHOIS data (where it uses it) and site content. People have come to rely on the 'pages from $country' button and moving it from beneath the search box (right centre of the user's focus) to the left hand toolbar is a very stupid move.Yes there is one thing that annoys me a lot and that's the "pages from Ireland". To access these results now takes two clicks as opposed to one in the past. But I can live with that, because I no longer have to click "show options" which is something I use on a regular basis.
No. But it will be very interesting to see what the other search engines make of this. Bing has been ramping up over the last year or so and it has been working hard on developing its product. Ask.com is getting back into the market too. In terms of market share Google would probably have 85-90% of the Irish market. Yahoo's share is a legacy share. Will Bing take advantage and start pushing its cleaner SERPs?It's really not worth fighting over though is it? :P
Regards...jmcc0 -
Bing already have their options on a right hand sidebarBut it will be very interesting to see what the other search engines make of this.
. They're just not as useful as Google's options.
Do you work in SEO, jmcc? Maybe concerned that Google's new features are making your efforts [even more] redundant by sourcing relevancy from real-time updates and certified news sources?
Wondering why the abundance of love for 'cleaner SERPs' and 'organic listings' when for me, as a user, I often get very *relevant* results from these new real-time, etc, listings.0 -
I tend to get a bit picky after checking over quarter of a million Irish domains and websites and trying to make sense of the Irish webspace. I can see why (literally) there are so many opportunities for SEO on Irish websites.
Well you should really take a break from looking at all those sites then, life is too short! :PIt still looks like Google is moving towards a universal search without getting it quite right. The emphasis is, I think, purely financial in that it is meant to focus user attention on the advertising. Some of the other kinds of search were not used but that may have been down to user choice. This integrated, universal search is particularly dangerous in this regard.
I don't really get what you are getting at here when you say universal search but it's no surprise that Google are thinking about how to improve their monetisation opportunities. Wouldn't you if 97% of your turnover was based on advertisements? Especially when spending habits appear to be going the downward route.
I think it's really unfair to think that all their decisions were based entirely on financial factors. If the financial guys had their way, I'm sure the whole site would be an advert!!
So if their changes have made the ads stand out a little more, so be it - to the joe soap it looks like they've a load of new features thrown in to boot!Google's geolocation, like that of most search engines, is not precise. It is a combination of IP based discovery, domain name (.ie) grouping and some semantics. However a percentage of Irish websites are hosted outside of Irish IP space and on gTLD domain names so Google is left with its analysis of a website's audience, WHOIS data (where it uses it) and site content. People have come to rely on the 'pages from $country' button and moving it from beneath the search box (right centre of the user's focus) to the left hand toolbar is a very stupid move.
Yes most people that work in this industry know this - but that doesn't make the "pages from Ireland" a bad feature. Right it's not 100% accurate but it does a job that I'm certainly happy with.
Oh and I agree moving the button is a pain - but I wouldn't say a stupid move. Some small studies shown recently suggest the % of use is quite small.No. But it will be very interesting to see what the other search engines make of this. Bing has been ramping up over the last year or so and it has been working hard on developing its product. Ask.com is getting back into the market too. In terms of market share Google would probably have 85-90% of the Irish market. Yahoo's share is a legacy share. Will Bing take advantage and start pushing its cleaner SERPs?
I can't see the changes Google have made affecting their visitor numbers at all. In fact many people have started using Bing because of the usability features it brought to the table - Google have done something very similar to Bing.
As far as I'm concerned, the only thing that will stop people from using Google is bad SERPs or someone else providing better SERPs.0 -
Yep.Well you should really take a break from looking at all those sites then, life is too short! :P One "Welcome To The Frontpage" Joomla site is too many.
Integrating as many kinds of search (geographical, blog, news etc) as possible in the hope the user will find some of it interesting.I don't really get what you are getting at here when you say universal search
Well it is a business and the "do no evil" thing has been left behind.but it's no surprise that Google are thinking about how to improve their monetisation opportunities. Wouldn't you if 97% of your turnover was based on advertisements? Especially when spending habits appear to be going the downward route.
Not all their decisions but this does go some way towards more effectively monetising their SERPs and trying to increase user time on site.I think it's really unfair to think that all their decisions were based entirely on financial factors. If the financial guys had their way, I'm sure the whole site would be an advert!!
It is one of the better ones covering the Irish webspace. I use it constantly when searching.Yes most people that work in this industry know this - but that doesn't make the "pages from Ireland" a bad feature. Right it's not 100% accurate but it does a job that I'm certainly happy with.
Its use may be linked to the proficiency of the user - the casual user may not even bother as they search, get the result and leave.Oh and I agree moving the button is a pain - but I wouldn't say a stupid move. Some small studies shown recently suggest the % of use is quite small.
Perhaps Bing is now using the sparse SERPs design that Google used to use. The quality of its results is still patchy.I can't see the changes Google have made affecting their visitor numbers at all. In fact many people have started using Bing because of the usability features it brought to the table - Google have done something very similar to Bing.
Google's biggest nightmare. To date, Cuil, Bing and the others have not managed to do that.As far as I'm concerned, the only thing that will stop people from using Google is bad SERPs or someone else providing better SERPs.
Regards...jmcc0 -
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Agreed.Deleted User wrote: »You're right. I'm in the wrong there.
Apologies jmcc, we'll agree to disagree I can be a bit aggressive at times so I apologise.
Regards...jmcc0 -
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The options on Bing seem to be on a horizontal toolbar at the top (both Firefox and IE8). There's a left hand "related searches" option on Bing but no right hand sidebar. Bing apparently uses this space for website previews. The advanced options are on a link just below the search box on the right but they are not obtrusive.Bing already have their options on a right hand sidebar. They're just not as useful as Google's options.
Even a right hand toolbar on Google's interface would be more useful as most people are right handed and the distance traveled by the mouse pointer would be less. This is why Google has its main vertical advertising block on the right in what is the opposite of the Google heatmap. With a text based page in English, the user's attention is going to be moving towards the right as they read the text, they will end up looking at the right and will only return to the left to begin a new line. So to select an option, the mouse pointer will have to move across the page.
Other than for my own sites, no.Do you work in SEO, jmcc? Maybe concerned that Google's new features are making your efforts [even more] redundant by sourcing relevancy from real-time updates and certified news sources?
Regards...jmcc0 -
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![[Deleted User]](/applications/dashboard/design/images/defaulticon.png)
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