So asks Craig Silverstein, my favorite JAM* quotemiester, in this FT article.
“It’s clear that a list of links, though very useful, doesn’t match the way people give information to each other,” says Mr Silverstein. The question that he says Google – like others – is now trying to address is: “How can the computer become more like your friend when answering your questions?”
That means giving direct answers to questions, extracting data from online sources rather than giving links to web pages. It also means doing a better job of divining what the searcher is looking for, tailoring results more closely to what, based on past experience, appear to be the user’s particular interests.
A focus on answers? Hmmm. Sounds like Yahoo, AOL, and MSFT’s approach. Not to mention, Ask…
*JAM: Joints After Midnight.
My answer to that question is ICQ. The easiest way to communicate to all your friends at once)