MSN Launches New Search Engine

fifeclub posted this at 23:06 — 1st February 2005.

Joined: Feb 2001

(I thought this discussion could go under "Search Engine Challenges" but this is just a comment and not a marketing challenge.)

I read today that MSN unveiled their new search engine technology today so I went there just to test it out. I'm a devout Googlist and only stray to Yahoo once in a blue moon as a last resort. Never the dreaded evil MSN. Here are my brief test results:

My name:
MSN = #2 (and that's good since there's somebody famous with my name on IMDb)
Google = Not found on first two pages (GoogleRank 1)

My sister's name:
MSN = #1
Google = #11 (GoogleRank 0)

A homebuilder's site I made (more info )
MSN = #3 (AMAZING considering how competitive that market is)
Google = Not found on first two pages (GoogleRank 0)

My old college's tv station:
MSN = #1
Google = #9 (GoogleRank 3)

So now this is bothering me. My brief test results on MSN's new search engine are so good that I don't know what to do. I love Google. I hate Microsoft. What should I do? I know... I'll post these comments here on TWF and ask you all to test it out. Pick a handful of search terms pertinant to you and see how the sites you're really looking for show up in the results. Post here and tell everybody if you (dare I say it) get better search results from MSN than from Google *gasp*. I'm hoping I'm wrong.

CptAwesome posted this at 00:48 — 2nd February 2005.

He has: 370 posts

Joined: Dec 2004

I was going to give MSN a good try, but they, like so many sites make 1 terrible mistake, they declared the background colour of the input box, without declaring the font color, so my white text, on black background settings show up blank on the MSN search. Some places with simply define the font colour, ALWAYS DECLARE BOTH.

My website (under an alternate nickname) comes up 1st on Google, and doesn't appear on the first page of MSN, and if it's not on the first page, it's not really there at all .

fifeclub posted this at 15:26 — 2nd February 2005.

He has: 688 posts

Joined: Feb 2001

I forgot to add that MSN search has a "question asking" agent that I also tested out. I threw it a few tough curveballs. It failed at a lot of them but surprised me by correctly ansering a few.

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