Articles about Search

Little brings more emotion to daily life than music. For many people it's a part of the psyche, lending meaning to everyday events, leaving memories that are specifically associated with a particular song. For instance, reggae songs can bring visions of summer, while Air Supply dredges up memories of middle school dances.

Bing now wishes to help you find all of those sappy songs, in video form -- though the search engine also promises to help find the newer and less sappy ones as well.

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While Google is known for its "doodles", Bing remains more stately, opting for beautiful photography, but Halloween is about, not just treats, but also tricks. It's a time for scary movies, ghost stories and children working the neighborhood streets in search of candy hand-outs.

Today, Microsoft's search engine goes the extra mile, opting for an interactive background image, as opposed to the usual high-resolution image that appears each day.

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Facebook's Graph Search is being updated to include more information from the social network. The personalized search engine previously allowed for searching of people, photos, places and interests when it was launched back at the beginning of the year. Now posts from you and your friends as well as status updates can be included in searches allowing you to get even more specific about what you're looking for.

Also included in the update is the ability to search for status updates, photo captions, check-ins and comments. There are various ways in which searches can be used to hone in on the content you're looking for, and natural language searching is the order of the day. Want to see the posts your online contacts have made about Microsoft's latest operating system? Just search for "posts about Windows 8.1 by my friends". Results can be limited by date as well, so you could search for "posts about Nexus 7 from the last month".

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It is no secret that with the introduction of Windows 8.1, SkyDrive, the Microsoft cloud-based storage solution, will get much deeper integration. But now the company is detailing a bit more than what had already been gleaned from the RTM, announcing a new Smart Files feature, incorporating Bing with it.

Smart Files has been merged into SkyDrive in version 8.1 of Windows, but the company has revealed more details about how it will work and what customers can expect.

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Piracy is a problem, a big problem. A few days ago I wrote about the consequences of piracy and the fact that it is far more than just the copyright holder who is affected. While I believe that piracy should be viewed as something other than theft, it is obviously still wrong. The label "wrong" sounds almost belittling, but there are few people who would deny it is an issue that needs to be tackled.

The obvious targets when cracking down on piracy are the people who are illegally downloading music, movies and software they are not entitled to, but this does not really nip things in the bud. Piracy is a very complex issue, and as with any complex issue a scapegoat is needed. The Motion Picture Association of America is understandably keen on stemming the flow of illegally downloaded films and it is pinning the blame, at least partly, on Google.

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Two days ago Apple rolled out its latest mobile operating system offering, iOS 7. To compliment this new release, Microsoft is making sure to keep up with the latest version of the OS, by pushing out a brand new version of the Bing app. The company is hitting Apple hard with integration right into the heart of the platform.

"With the release of iOS 7 this week, you can now experience Bing search results in Siri", the software giant announces. The Bing search within Siri aims to deliver various types of results, keeping you from going to the web browser to view the same list of results. Microsoft explains, "for example, when you ask Siri a question, you will either see a specific answer or search results from Bing, including web links, related searches, images and video".

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The Google homepage changes little, though minor tweaks here and there have been known to take place. The company, and its customers, largely prefer a sleek, clean look. Minor changes to properties contained in the top menu bar and the color of said bar have been the biggest changes we normally must learn to deal with.

Today, that status quo is upset by a major, at least in relative terms, design change to that tried and true interface. The menu bar across the top of the screen disappears and is replaced by a new pop-up menu.

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If there's one thing that I wholeheartedly dislike about the tech world it's being told about a brand new product that really appeals, and then having to wait ages for it. It's like that someone who told me about it wants to toy with me, psychologically torture me and, when I couldn't care less about that new and shiny thing, give it to me. Of course, I'm now blowing things out of proportion, but I want you to understand, at some level, how it feels when I'm entrusting part of my tech life to Microsoft.

For some incomprehensible reason, in 2013 Microsoft is still using the expression "rolling out". It defines a vague date of availability for any new changes that it announces. How outdated is that? You may think that Microsoft's roll outs have a specific role, of insuring extra stability and providing a seamless transition, to the new version for its users. But that is, in my opinion, such a pathetic excuse that only a two-year old who is baited with candy by his parents might be inclined to believe.

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In August, Microsoft's search engine Bing launched a contest for all the photographers out there, calling for them to submit images for a chance to win a rather nice prize package. Professionals and amateurs alike were invited to send in images depicting hometown pride by grabbing a stunning shot of the local environment.

Today this contest reaches its most crucial juncture. Bing has narrowed the choices down to ten and now the decision moves to the people.

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In its continuing effort to thwart the evil Google (except when partnered with it) Microsoft announces another improvement to its search engine alternative, this time in the form of video. Microsoft terms this update "completely reimagined", but users can be the judge of that.

"We know there is more than one great video service out there and that’s why we showcase the best the web has to offer. On Bing you can not only find great videos from YouTube, Hulu and Vimeo, but also content from Dailymotion, Vevo, MTV, CBS, MSN and more", says the Bing video search team.

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In today's search market, simply having the audacity to take on Google seems somewhat absurd, but Bing, despite the long odds, continues to plug away at it. Sometimes it is with innovation, sometimes with mud-slinging. Today, thankfully, it is the former. The Microsoft search engine, in the midst of the Steve Ballmer news, is announcing another improvement to its offerings.

The latest change comes in the form of a new product search experience. "Harnessing the depths of our index encompassing tens of millions of individual products and trained by advanced machine learning, Bing will now show you relevant products directly in the main results page. You no longer need to waste time navigating to a dedicated 'shopping' experience to find what you’re looking for. Based on your intent, we'll serve the best results", promises the Bing team.

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Microsoft already seems to spend a lot of time pushing Office 365 into schools, but the company is beginning to now move down the same path with Bing. Today the company announces a brand new initiative named, unimaginatively but accurately, Bing for Schools.

What's more, the search engine is taking a philanthropic approach, claiming this is "designed to improve digital literacy for students by putting technology in classrooms, helping students learn how to use the power of search, and making sure they can do it in a safer, ad-free environment".

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Those on newer versions of Android are likely very familiar with Google Now, the increasingly more functional personal assistant for phones and tablets. Google has ambitions for this service that move beyond the mobile market and onto your computer via the company's website.

"Ever had trouble checking your flight’s status on the go because it meant digging through your email for the flight number? Or wanted to just quickly see whether your package would arrive on time, without having to look up the tracking info first? You’ve told us it would be much easier if you could skip the fuss and just ask Google", says Roy Livne, Product Manager at Google.

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Five years have passed since the search tool Everything first appeared, and the program's amazing speed gets it fans ever since. It's easy to see why, too -- there's no fuss, no complexity, just enter part of a file or folder name and results appear just as quickly as you can type.

What is a little more surprising, though, is that the program's last stable release was back in March 2009. But there's no need to worry, Everything isn't dead, just "resting", and a series of betas released this year show that the developer is determined to make up for lost time.

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Looking for a cool image to add to your blog? Need that perfect picture for your new business presentation? It sounds simple enough, but in many cases you could be breaking the law, as many images on the internet are simply not free to use and rights must be checked. Bing now wants to help you with that.

The search engine introduces a new option to its web service -- Usage Rights. "We are excited to offer the 'Search by License' feature for Bing image search. At Bing, we love helping creative artists whether you’re a blogger, teacher, student or even a small business owner looking to market your latest creation", says Bing Images Program Manager Rizwan Ansary.

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