A couple of months ago, Microsoft conducted a research study where they found search engine branding had an impact on the perceived quality of results. Now, months later, Bing is launched and people are once again ranking the quality of search results. At first, there were direct side-by-side comparisons, but of course there’s no better challenge than a double-blind experiment.

Michael Kordahi, which I feel compelled to disclose is a Microsoft employee, has set up such an experiment, dubbed “BlindSearch” which you can try here. On the site, you enter a single search query which results three sets of unbranded results. After viewing the results, you are given an option to vote on one set of results, which then reveals the provider and adds it to the tally.

At the time of writing, Google is in the lead with the tally standing at “Google: 40%, Bing: 31%, Yahoo: 29%” out of 355 votes.

Update: Approximately half an hour after posting, Bing takes a slight lead over Google. (Google: 36%, Bing: 38%, Yahoo: 26% | 641 votes)

Update 2: A thousand votes later, Google and Bing are tied. (Google: 39%, Bing: 39%, Yahoo: 22% | 1757 votes)

Update 3: Three’s the magic number, for Google. (Google: 40%, Bing: 37%, Yahoo: 23% | 2554 votes)

Update 4: Google is taking a stronger lead with another thousand votes. (Google: 43%, Bing: 32%, Yahoo: 25% | 3520 votes)

Update 5: It appears the application has exceed Yahoo API’s daily limit. Michael is aware of the problem and looking for a workaround. Yahoo results has since been fixed.

From: http://www.istartedsomething.com/20090607/bing-vs-google-vs-yahoo-blind-search-engine-test/

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We were waiting for Google Chrome to become available for Linux for a couple of months.Today they released unstable version of Google Chrome.For the ones who do not know, it is NOT CHROMIUM, this is Google Chrome.Chromium is an open source browser project. Google Chrome is a browser from Google, based on the Chromium project.(However, they totally look same :) )Installing Google Chrome will add the Google repository so your system will automatically keep Chrome up to date.If you do not want to add the repository you can just use this command before the installation to disable it :
$sudo touch /etc/defaults/google-chrome
Installation :
Get the i386 deb (for 32 bit systems) from here or amd64 (for 64 bit systems) one from here.Now install it via double clicking the deb.
Now you can access Google Chrome via navigating Applications > Internet > Google Chrome or google-chrome command.
PS : At the moment there is no flash plugin, printing, complex text, complex tab dragging and gears support for Google Chrome like Chromium.Why would we use Google Chrome instead of using open source Chromium?

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Google Reader, the online feed aggregator provided by the Mountain View search engine giant, has made its way to Google Desktop, the software that works with Mac OS X, Linux and Windows and makes searching the user’s computer as easy as performing a web search. The Reader Google Desktop gadget has been developed by software expert James Yum as part of his “20% time” (one day per week, Google allows software developers to work on any ideas they might have about improving the company’s online services).
“Wherever there are gadgets, RSS feed readers are never lacking, and Google Desktop gadgets are no exception. Until now, there hasn't been a good way to combine all your feeds into a single gadget. With the new Google Reader gadget, you can now track your feeds and Google Reader subscriptions directly from your desktop. The Google Reader gadget is designed to be familiar for existing Reader users, yet compact like our other Desktop gadgets," explains Google Desktop expert, James Yum.

In order to benefit from the gadget’s functionality, here is what you must do:
- First of all, you need to install Google Desktop; if you do not have it, a download location is provided below.
- You need to download and install the Reader Google Desktop gadget (download location provided below).
- Sign into your Google account and select a subscription; the Reader gadget will automatically be updated with new posts.
- Click an item to open a larger view which allows you to see a preview of that item and perform certain tasks(start, share, email).
- Keep in mind that the Reader Google Desktop gadget does not fully render full HTML feeds. According to James Yum this is “due to a technical limitation of Google Desktop gadgets.” But if you click on an item title, your browser will fire up and you will be directed to the original web page where the item is displayed.
James Yum again: “The Google Reader gadget runs with the latest Linux and Windows releases of Google Desktop gadgets and is open sourced under the Apache 2.0 license. We hope this gadget is a fun and useful way to access your Google Reader subscriptions. Please give it a try and tell us what you think.”
If you would like to get the Reader Google Desktop gadget, a download location is available here.
If you would like to get Google Desktop, a download location is available here.
In related news, Google Reader has enhanced its social networking offering by allowing the user to set up custom feed bundles and share them with friends (details here).

 

From: http://www.findmysoft.com/news/Google-Reader-Gadget-for-Google-Desktop/

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