Today, Google entered into the world of desktop search bars with the introduction of the Google Deskbar. For those of you unfamiliar with the technology, the idea is to allow users to perform searches without actually having to launch their web browser in order to accomplish the task. In some cases the browser is launched to display the results of the search, but that is not a requirement.
Microsoft uses an integrated version of desktop search in their Explorer, but because Explorer has been basically a version of IE since Windows 98, it isn’t really a search option without launching a browser. Microsoft has so integrated the browser into the operating system that it is difficult to know when you are actually using the web browsing functionality.
In fact, the Google Deskbar uses a Microsoft API to display a mini-browser in the lower right corner of the screen to display search results. The Deskbar is still just a prototype application for Google that sprang out of their Google Labs division. Google has had an integrated search bar as part of the browser for quite some time. The primary difference between the deskbar and the search bar is that the deskbar lives in the taskbar section of the Windows environment (at the lower right corner near the date and time). That type of integration provides users with the ability to search whenever they like.
Two of the most exciting features of the Google deskbar is the ability to search based on a highlighted word in a document and the ability to add customized searches. The user can select text in the document on which they are working and press Control + Alt + G to quickly copy that text to the search bar. From there, they can either press enter or press a user-defined shortcut key to perform a customized search.
The customized searches give the user the ability to perform searches against any web search engine where the URL is the source of the search information. The Deskbar comes pre-configured with a stock quote function that searches Yahoo finance for any symbol that is typed in the bar followed by Control + Q. The user can set their own shortcut keys for the search, and the user is responsible for determining the appropriate URL to use. For instance, in order to search ebay for an item, the appropriate URL would be http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?&query={1}, where {1} would be the contents of the search bar.
There is another search bar that has been around for a while, Dave’s Quick Search Taskbar Toolbar Deskbar. Dave’s implementation uses Google to perform basic web searches and has built-in functions to search many different popular websites, including Microsoft Support Knowledgebase and others. I have been using Dave’s search bar for quite some time, but I am very impressed with the snappy performance of the mini-browser used by the Google bar. Further, Dave’s bar has so many custom searches that I find it difficult to remember the searches I want to perform and only using one or two of the custom options anyway.
That being said, I am switching to the Google Deskbar for its speedy response and customizable features.
Update: Other sites covering this item:
CNET: Google tests desktop search
Lockergnome: Brief: Google starts searching from the desktop
eWeek: Google unveils web searching software
PCWorld: Google adds desktop searching
Odd that no one is looking into how the Google deskbar actually works and how it differs from DQSD.
I can appreciate what you mean, Chip. The point of my blog is to provide general information that people who aren’t technical will be able to understand and perhaps be interested in.
Dave’s quick search bar is an open source product that has a LOT of functionality. Google’s product is not open source and can be customized to do a lot of the things that Dave’s bar does, but it does a limited subset of functions out of the box.
I believe Dave’s bar suffers from the feature bloat that can become common in the open source community. Software that performs a very specific function and has flexibility is great, but I don’t want to have to scroll through 200 menu items to find a search that I want.
The other feature I love about the Google bar is the mini-viewer, which is a function of IE that is integrated with Windows – no other browser currently offers the functionality.
The best part about DQSD is it’s extensive library of searches. It’s only bloat if you keep all the XML files; I’m sure everyone’s ‘favorite few’ are different. I’ve rarely used it’s menus, but I do use the ?<text> feature to pull up a specific search syntax.
One significant thing lacking in the Google deskbar is the ability to do complex searches. Once you define {1} in a custom search that’s it, there are no searches with multiple variable types or switches.
I’ve seen the minibrowser in WinAmp but never realized it was a Microsoft API. It would make an interesting add-on for DQSD. I noticed their gg.xml file just added most of the default shortcuts used in the Google deskbar.
I definitely see your point. The thing to keep in mind is that the Google bar is still in beta. There is no telling what functionality they will add if/when it goes to release.
I do agree that the complex search functions that are possible with DQSD are nice. My only comment would be that MOST users won’t even come close to using them anytime soon.