A backward step for Google Search?
2009-09-05 19:40:52
I am disappointed that Google seem to be removing the link bar from the top of its search results pages.
Whilst useful to most users of Google search in that after you have searched for your phrase, you would be just one click away from an images, news or maps search, this feature was vital for anyone whose disability makes web-browsing difficult: the links were available at the top left of every page - One tab and spacebar press away for each of the associated links.
Now a user would have to click the 'back' button on their web browser to get back to Google Home, so they could re-select their search type.
Unusually for Google, the disappearance of this feature seems to be intermittent, which in my opinion is the worst situation of all. As a visitor and a web-designer, I can see both sides of this and I feel frustrated by the layout change from page to page.
For example, when searching earlier, a search for "web design" showed no link bar. Searching for "web design" again, a few minutes later, saw the re-emergence of this feature. The same search shortly afterwards then lost the link bar.
I do wonder if the intermittent performance is a sign of either a bug/fault in Google search or their attempt to trial a new feature. I hope this is the case and if it is a trial, I hope they shelve these plans as soon as possible. Not even a search for "web design screenshot" could make a link to Google images appear, which I expect would slow down a lot of Google's loyal users.
If this feature is lost without a suitable replacement, I would consider it a backward step for Google.
Furthermore, I took a look at their accessible search project. Although a wonderful idea, the large blue box that seems to magnify the first result obscures the new Javascript activated options panel. Also it is not immediately clear if or how the large blue box can be moved onto the subsequent search results. I know this is a Google Labs project, but the haphazard way the Javascript options panel seems to have been introduced is cause for concern.
I like Google for its innovative approach, but when things like this happen, it shows how much we rely on them for *everything* on the internet.
Whilst useful to most users of Google search in that after you have searched for your phrase, you would be just one click away from an images, news or maps search, this feature was vital for anyone whose disability makes web-browsing difficult: the links were available at the top left of every page - One tab and spacebar press away for each of the associated links.
Now a user would have to click the 'back' button on their web browser to get back to Google Home, so they could re-select their search type.
Unusually for Google, the disappearance of this feature seems to be intermittent, which in my opinion is the worst situation of all. As a visitor and a web-designer, I can see both sides of this and I feel frustrated by the layout change from page to page.
For example, when searching earlier, a search for "web design" showed no link bar. Searching for "web design" again, a few minutes later, saw the re-emergence of this feature. The same search shortly afterwards then lost the link bar.
I do wonder if the intermittent performance is a sign of either a bug/fault in Google search or their attempt to trial a new feature. I hope this is the case and if it is a trial, I hope they shelve these plans as soon as possible. Not even a search for "web design screenshot" could make a link to Google images appear, which I expect would slow down a lot of Google's loyal users.
If this feature is lost without a suitable replacement, I would consider it a backward step for Google.
Furthermore, I took a look at their accessible search project. Although a wonderful idea, the large blue box that seems to magnify the first result obscures the new Javascript activated options panel. Also it is not immediately clear if or how the large blue box can be moved onto the subsequent search results. I know this is a Google Labs project, but the haphazard way the Javascript options panel seems to have been introduced is cause for concern.
I like Google for its innovative approach, but when things like this happen, it shows how much we rely on them for *everything* on the internet.