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Librarian Central |
Google Custom Search Engine: A Powerful Tool for Knowledge ExpertsBy Dan Appleman, Developer and SearchDotNet.com Webmaster
Google does a great job of indexing web sites, but let's face it, you don't need 700 pages of results when you do a search – what you really want is for the answer you need to appear in the first few pages. And while Google's search algorithms are good, they can't read your mind. Searches often return numerous duplicates, especially popular terms that attract "troll" sites – websites that just republish content they find on the web in order to attract traffic (and advertising revenue). Site rankings generally take into account the popularity of a site, but not necessarily the expertise of the authors (which is why Wikipedia results almost always come before more traditional encyclopedias). Finally, a general search returns results for every subject area in which the term appears. For example: when people search for "Vista", they are most likely interested in how to use the new Vista operating system to perform a task. But when a software developer searches for Vista, he or she is probably interested in how to write software for it that works correctly. When I first heard of Google Custom Search Engine, it was to me as if lightning had struck. I realized that it had enormous potential to solve the problem faced by me and other software developers. In fact, I was so sure of it that by the end of that day I had launched a new Google Custom Search Engine called SearchDotNet.com for developers writing software for Microsoft's .NET platform. SearchDotNet.com searches the very best .NET sites, blogs and forums. Thousands of developers now use it every day to get authoritative, relevant results with a minimum of duplicates. As an expert in the field (who is expected to have good answers to questions that come my way), it has become my own indispensable first resource. Here's an example of how effective it is. Consider the page one results for a search for "Vista". On Google you'll of course get results from Microsoft.com, the inevitable Wikipedia entry, plus information on Volunteers In Service To America (Vista) and the city of Vista, California. On SearchDotNet.com, a search for Vista will retrieve technical articles including software development information from Microsoft, and four blog entries about Vista written by the Microsoft developers who were actually involved in the development of the new operating system (blog entries that, due to low traffic, would be on a distant page in the results of a full search). Every single entry refers to the Vista operating system; most contain information for software developers. I believe that Google Custom Search has the potential to completely change the way we search for information. Whether you are a software developer, educator, librarian or dedicated hobbyist, subject area-specific search makes it possible for information experts of all kinds to provide a valuable resource to their clients – searches that produce results that are authoritative and relevant, yet still take advantage of the full power of Google's search capabilities. |
Search is everything. Okay, perhaps not everything, but finding the information you need to work as a software developer today is like searching through a library whose size doubles every year, but where any book more than a few years old is thrown out due to obsolescence. Worse, much of the information is repeated across multiple volumes, while critically important information is often buried in a tiny pamphlet hidden on a remote shelf where it's nearly impossible to find.
