Bing! the backup search engine
If I haven’t made it clear yet – I’m a Google man. I’ve been pretty much in awe of nearly every Google has churned out for years. However, Bing is … fun. I’m not sure if it boosts your productivity and I’m sure that the results are inferior (I’ve done a bit of checking), but the format is very pleasing to the eye and everyone needs a backup.  Moreover, it’s a Microsoft product, so you might see it appearing elsewhere in the near future (like on your new PC).
First of all, check out the tour page before testing – there’s a bunch of tips and although the search engine is not exactly intuitive, it’s certainly effective. Â You can easily find hotels, health tips, or even automobile stats using plain English queries. Â I’m not crazy about the results from the maps functionality, but the flight status information is fun and easy to use.
The advantage to Bing is the categorized result filtering to the left of the screen. Â Try typing Ipod in and your are given options for how to refine your search (shopping types, buying guide, reviews, FAQs). Â The actual results are not improved, as you’re still relying on the web – they are not adding content – but the pertinence of the result set does increase. Â I can see how some might even prefer this product to Google’s search, as the “decision engine” does simplify your life. Â Not interested in shopping results? Â Don’t filter by that value…
Just for fun, here is a search for “Just an Asterisk”: http://www.bing.com/search?q=just+an+asterisk. Â However, here is the same google search: http://www.google.com/search?q=just+an+asterisk. Â You’ll notice that this blog is the first option in Google, but not even present in Bing (although who knows? Â This article might move us up the Bing engine results…)
Try it out. Â Obviously, I’m lukewarm about this new search engine. Â However, the idea of this blog is introduce new and exciting technologies. Â Bing seems like it should be on the radar. Â Maybe one day you’ll say – I read about that on JAA…
~ab
PS: For those looking for even more search engines to play with, try www.cuil.com. Â It’s a hoot…
I also wanted to suggest Bing’s travel page for searching for good prices on flights. A friend recommended it to me and it’s actually quite simple. I like the layout of the flight search a lot better than expedia, orbit etc. And it has a nice feature that allows you to track if a flight’s price is going up or down–almost like gambling–so you know whether it’s a good time to buy a ticket or if it would be better to wait…
-JAA’s #1 fan :)
BING search engine is just as good as Google. In my own personal experience, Google does give more releveant search result than Bing but the difference is very small. **
Thanks for the comment Carmen. It has been a while since I wrote this article. Maybe it’s time for a review.
~ab