37 
So, not content with merely having our souls, it looks like Lord Zuck wants to rule the world of search as well. By now, you’ve probably heard that Facebook is holding a big dramatic press conference this evening, at which they’ve promised to unveil something big. Problem is, Facebook’s press conferences are normally dull tedium-fests, so we’re not holding our breath on this one.
Way back in 2010, Facebook held a press conference, promising the international hordes of journos something “exciting”. It turned out to be Facebook email. (Yes! That, right there, was the first time you’ve though about Facebook email in two whole years.) In 2011, they promised “something awesome” — which turned out to be a Skype tie-in that nobody’s used since. Basically, Facebook’s big launch speeches turn out to be a massive flailing white elephants that everyone gets really excited about and then very quickly forgets.
This means that Pocket-lint’s rumour that the “big announcement” is a search engine is actually quite believable. While speculation’s running rampant about the mythical “Facebook phone”, history would suggest that it’s actually some petty software-end upgrade that Zuck, like a proud billionaire daddy, wants to show off to the world to prove how clever he is.
Pocket-lint suggests that the search would expand to content beyond Facebook, in an attempt to make Facebook a good homepage for people, and allow them to bypass Google altogether.
While I would welcome a re-vamped search (a feature Facebook sorely needs because its current search makes the Yellow Pages look advanced), I don’t think Google has anything to worry about, yet. Google tried “social search”, and although it’s a decent product, it hasn’t really taken off.
Google has a fairly solid stranglehold on the search market at the moment, and it’s sure as hell going to take one killer product to kick them off their extremely high horse. Going from the history, this new Facebook product won’t be some killer project at all; but there’s a fair chance that it will be an improvement in search of some kind. Either way, we’ve only got until 1800 GMT wait. [Pocket-lint]
The First GIF Search Engine Is Hilariously Bad
Google Just Made Bing the Best Search Engine
Careful, Microsoft's So.Cl Networking Site Wants to Share Your Web Searches
yep totally agree, no one will care, and if i find any of my family or friends using it, i will beat them with a wet fish named George until the pass out
What did George ever do to deserve that kind of fate?
well george slept with my wifes, brothers,daughters,friends, moms, sister spongebob squarepants doll and did nasty things to it, we still cant get the gimp mask off it
He has a facebook account.
Compare and contrast –
“Google’s tried “social search,” and it’s ended up pretty terribly, because nobody uses its social network” – Sam Biddle Giz US
“Google tried “social search”, and although it’s a decent product, it hasn’t really taken off.” – Chris Mills Giz UK
This is why I love Giz UK and am so thankful we are no longer stuck with the US site.
Spot on.
I think that while the premise for ‘social search’ wasn’t a bad one, especially with the wealth of data Google has about each user, they were lacking the number of users pumping social data (i.e. links & interactions, rather than just a blinkered personal profile) into the system.
Which is where the push to tie G+ to everything that you do with Google will reap the dividends longer term, so announcing ‘social search’ in 12 months might have been a better idea.
Copy & Paste, so accurate quotation.
mind you, he’s shite at telling the time/date.
Maybe I’m missing something here, but isn’t it much harder technically to make a good search engine than it is to make a social network?
Yes, which might prove somewhat problematic if you’ve fallen at the first hurdle….
I notice you didn’t say “good social network” there.
Yes, I did pause for a moment while writing that
Isn’t said announcement today? (albeit at 20:00 GMT)
Or even 18:00 GMT today (which proves I can’t tell the time)
“By now, you’ve probably heard that Facebook is holding a big dramatic press conference tomorrow”
Yes, they seem to be having problems with timezones.
Less problems with timezones and more problems with my brain. Apologies, changed.
Facebook first needs to learn/decide where and how they will make their revenue and it has to be solid, then they can start announcing “big” things.
Facebook is trying to make revenue the same way most of the internet makes revenue – adverts.
If this is true they’ll struggle to kill Bing search never mind Google. Knowing facebook they’d want to put all of your search terms into your news feed for all to see. “tw@tpanda searched for ‘ways to kill my neighbour’ and 4 other related topics”
I think you’ll be seeing a lot of “x searched for ‘how to close my facebook account ‘”
I’m not sure they could kill AltaVista, let alone Bing.
I REMEMBER THAT!!!!!!
Misty water colour memories of homescreens gone by. Those were the days…..sigh…….
Look, Zuck isn’t that clever – he had a great idea that turned into the multinational sh*tfest that is Facebook. He lucked to the max. Name ONE great idea that he’s had since? (Apart from the roads, aquaducts, sanitation etc.)
He didn’t even have the idea for facebook, he stole it from the winklevoss twins.
F*** it Zuckerberg. Why not just build an Office Suite directly into Facebook while you’re at it, then perhaps a photo editing product (call it Photobookshop, for example) and just have everyone doing everything in one browser window.
And then build a browser-based FacebookOS that would power a low-end Facebook…book?
Don’t give too much away – Zuck will have these ideas before we know it.
Facebook search?
Facebook – blocked on countless work, school and college PC’s.
Google – isn’t.
Now THIS is why Facebook search will never take off:
http://static.happyplace.com/assets/images/2012/07/5018480c84302.jpg
http://static.happyplace.com/assets/images/2012/04/4f81a6d283c8a.jpg
Brilliant
hahaha i really hope we see more of this
What FB should do is partner with someone like Yahoo! to access their ‘answers’ data. That way search could be an extension of the posting process.
You post a wall message and a flag appears telling you there are answers from the internet for the question; or something along those lines.
*shudder* You always know you’re desperate when you’re searching Yahoo Answers.
The number of pathetically idiotic questions and responses on that site makes me weep for humanity.
Yawn. Give me a redesign of the home page and I’ll be happy to be your product for a little while longer.
Perhaps you don’t use the Skype integration, but I do, and I assure you it is very useful. I notice that the readership here have a particular distaste for Facebook, which I find kind of frustrating. You know what? All my friends use Facebook, the people on my degree use a group as meeting grounds for helping with revision, I have groups for separate projects on there, I can keep up with old school friends, I can message, send pictures to and video call my girlfriend and close friends. These messages also end up on everyone’s smartphones that I know (regardless of platform). I can also subscribe to feeds of information from useful sites just like with Twitter or G+.
Here’s the deal: everyone my age is on Facebook. Facebook does just about everything, and honestly, it did most things first. So why the hatred? Some of you guys just seem bitter about Facebook having a ton of success, and I simply don’t get it.
just about everything a social network needs to* I should say
Except for transparent, easy to use privacy settings that don’t change regularly, a clear, good layout that’s easy to find everything, and a way to filter out the complete crap that many people talk about, and only leave, you know, the important stuff. I’m pretty damn computer literate, and Facebook completely bamboozled and obfuscated me on many occasions. It tries to do everything, and does it at best in a mediocre fashion IMO. You like it? That’s great, but about 600,000 people in the UK over Christmas might agree with me!
http://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2013/01/the-world-must-be-ending-facebook-actually-lost-users-in-the-uk/
And it’s nothing to do with their success – Google is mighty successful, but you won’t hear me moan about their stuff unless they give me good reason to!
Rant over, have a great day
Interesting, but I would politely suggest that some of it might be down to age? None of my friends at University have any trouble with Facebook, and nobody ever suggest they dislike Facebook. I’m also a big lover of the timeline view – as far as I know no other social network gives such a great overview of your own digital life (while some may find it creepy, I quite like the ability to look over the pictures that were uploaded, songs I listened to most, etc. from the past year/month/whatever). But the privacy scares I would say are the primary reason for people leaving – they personally don’t bother me and I see a lot of people spreading crap on there.
The filtering I can agree with – sponsored posts and stuff like that are my only frustration, since often they are completely alien to what I like anyway and therefore completely pointless. But yeah, I’m willing to put up with that because it’s simply the best way of keeping on top with social groups.
Oh, and you too ;P.
Everyone is on Facebook, and its a tremendously powerful piece of software. But that doesn’t make it likeable. How many roads do you actually “like”? Something being essential doesn’t make it wanted.
I would love to delete my Facebook account. but if i did i would loose the best (and sometimes only) avenue for communication with my friends and family.
The feeling of being trapped, having to use software you hate in an environment you loathe, just because that’s what everyone uses, doesn’t make for a very heartwarming experience.
Oh fair enough, I quite like Facebook though, I guess I don’t understand why people dislike it so much.
im sure alot of people love it, but my newsfeed is full of “going down me nans lol” and “just had a cup of tea lol”. Then 400,000 pictures of children in various costumes, or covered in various degrees of chocolate and mud. then at least a million invites to play jewel quest.
i hate it, i hate it so very much.
Oh haha XD. I’ve rigorously filtered mine over time, so I only tend to see stuff I like. Even then, I tend to avoid just browsing the newsfeed and wait for notifications to arrive or chat with people over messenger.