I saw a reference to Eurekster today. While I didn’t think the world really needed another search engine, it brings an interesting idea to it. Dare I say that it’s the most interesting new idea I’ve seen since Google?
While Google ranks its pages based on the number of people linking to it, it can still lose relevance. A recent search I performed looking for tips on building things out of brass was a good example. If I’m interested in something that not many people think about–which seems to happen a lot these days–then Google’s system starts to break down.
Eurekster keeps track of what links you visit and how long you stay there in an effort to learn what you find interesting. Then, when you search again, pages similar to the ones you spent time with should bubble to the top.
If you dare, you can also link yourself to other people with similar interests so that what they like colors your results.
I tried using a Genealogy “search group” to see if it colored my results. It did, but the results were hardly earth-shattering.
Time will tell how well this will work. It seems to be use that puts the intelligence in artificial intelligence.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.