Google's New Look

[Markxxx]

Today Google went from having 2 columns, one for search results and one on the far right for ads to having three columns. One on the left for navigation, the center column for search results and the far right column for ads.

I can say I do not like the new look of Google (http://searchengineland.com/meet-the-new-google-41286). It may be 'cause I use a large screen resolution of 800 X 600, which makes the page look busy and cramped.

What about you? Do you like it?

[AmunRa]

I have two 1680x1050 monitors and it still just looked wrong to me. I'm sure it will grow on me eventually and I will forget that it ever looked any different in no time.

[Peremensoe]

Just hide it.

[Freudian Slit]

It sometimes does the new look thing for me and sometimes it doesn't. I'm not sure why.

[AmunRa]

It sometimes does the new look thing for me and sometimes it doesn't. I'm not sure why.

Same here.

[Discipline]

It sometimes does the new look thing for me and sometimes it doesn't. I'm not sure why.

Because they're testing click-through rates.

[Floater]

Today Google went from having 2 columns, one for search results and one on the far right for ads to having three columns. One on the left for navigation, the center column for search results and the far right column for ads.
It did? Not on my computer.

[ShibbOleth]

It did? Not on my computer.

This. Looks exactly the same to me, which is just one column of results. I see I can expand that to two, but never noticed whether that was there before or no. I kind of like it the way it is now, with one, clean column, but I am simple minded.

[TruCelt]

It looks the same to me.

[GuanoLad]

It changed for me today, and I'm already used to it.

It's better than the disastrously crap YouTube redesign, and seems to have removed some of the things I didn't like about Google's previous design. So at least one thumb up for me.

[Perciful]

I think it was definately time for a change. They moved Google to the left and now Google Beta has more color. It is still very Googlish to me. ;)

Google Over The Years (http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2008/10/google-homepage-time-lapse.html)

[Rushgeekgirl]

I don't see a difference when I sign out of Igoogle. Will that change in appearance as well?

[Trepa Mayfield]

I didn't notice until just now, so I guess that means it's good.

[MovieMogul]

I was tempted to vote "Hate It" but that's a knee-jerk response; once I take some time to see if the changes actually benefit me or not, then I'll feel more justified in passing judgment.

[Balthisar]

Mostly I detest the larger-sized input box for enter search terms. Mozilla on Windows doesn't render it very nicely.

[Peremensoe]

Just hide it.

Wait, how do you hide it?

I hate it. Adds nothing that I can see (tools were already available if you wanted them) and takes up space.

[Patty O'Furniture]

I hadn't noticed until I saw this thread. For some reason the ads aren't showing up at the moment, and I am not doing anything to block them.

But I like the left side option bar because I was always having to go into preferences to turn on and off the language search preferences. Now I can just click in that area to search in X, Y and Z languages.

I say it's a worthwhile improvement.

[Snowboarder Bo]

It changed for me today, and I'm already used to it.

It's better than the disastrously crap YouTube redesign, and seems to have removed some of the things I didn't like about Google's previous design. So at least one thumb up for me.

I haven't yet seen the Google change, but I agree that YouTube now not only looks like shit, it's hard as fuck to navigate through the related videos, find information about the poster (or about the video, sometimes), and just generally sucks ass.

[by-tor]

I don't like the new look at all. It is misaligned in my browser/font size. For now it seems that if you go to: http://www.google.com/webhp?hl=all you can have the old look back.

[badlyburnttoast]

Wait, how do you hide it?

I hate it. Adds nothing that I can see (tools were already available if you wanted them) and takes up space.

If you use chrome: https://chrome.google.com/extensions/detail/jcacnmibccjjonfihgnieefkingolocb

There is a plugin for firefox (and probably IE) too but I don't have a link offhand.

[badlyburnttoast]

If you use chrome: https://chrome.google.com/extensions/detail/jcacnmibccjjonfihgnieefkingolocb

There is a plugin for firefox (and probably IE) too but I don't have a link offhand.

Too late to edit....

For now you can also change your interface language.

Search for something, pick search settings, then pick something else under interface language at the top. I use pirate but there is also some other funny onces and, of course, actual other languages.

Of course they might eventually add it to those too, but for now it works.

[control-z]

I don't like the larger font in the search box, and I don't like the clutter.

Google, remember why you succeeded in the first place. Simplicity.

[A Spoonful of Awesome]

Too late to edit....

For now you can also change your interface language.

Search for something, pick search settings, then pick something else under interface language at the top. I use pirate but there is also some other funny onces and, of course, actual other languages.

Of course they might eventually add it to those too, but for now it works.

Awesome. Never thought of messing with that. All my searches are now column-free.

And in Bork.

[BigT]

There's just no reason to change something without allowing people to shut off the change. Yes, setting the home language to all does fix it, but it also shuts off a bunch of other features. It makes a lot more sense to let people hide it that don't like it.

I wish designers would realize that there will always be people who like the older interface, and they need to provide a way to accommodate them. People hating change is not inevitable, if you let them choose.

Anyways, I'll quickly cover how to add the hl=all option to the search box in Firefox. Find your google.xml file and add<Param name="hl" value="all"/>
above the line<!-- Dynamic Parameters -->

Where to find the google.xml file?

32-bit Windows:

C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\searchplugins\google.xml

64-bit Windows:

C:\Program Files (x32)\Mozilla Firefox\searchplugins\google.xml

MacOS X

/Applications/Firefox.app/searchplugins/google.xml

Linux
depends. Type whereis firefox to find where firefox is installed, and go to the searchplugins subfolder.

[Manduck]

I like it because of something that happened yesterday: I googled "samsung scx 4300 review" to find reviews of a printer I was think of buying. Usually when you do that you get 100 shopping sites and maybe 2 or 3 pure review sites, but the new google has a link to the left that says "fewer shopping sites", and when you click that it removes most of the shopping sites from the results list, leaving mostly review sites.

[BigT]

I lamented not being able to help out people on IE, since there's no easy way for a user to install a plugin. So made a website and designed a plugin to do it for you. If you already have a Google plugin, you may have to remove it. I may consider changing the name on it so this doesn't happen.

Anyways, to get Google without the new column when searching from IE, go here (http://trlkly.drivehq.com/searchplugins). I'll probably make it Firefox compatible in a little bit.

[Gustav]

I actually liked the functionality but still voted hate it, because it takes up too much screen space on my netbook. There was no need for a big fat column for this, some icons with mouseover descriptions would have been plenty.

[MeanOldLady]

I thought I did something wrong at first. I don't like it.

[MovieMogul]

I was tempted to vote "Hate It" but that's a knee-jerk response; once I take some time to see if the changes actually benefit me or not, then I'll feel more justified in passing judgment.Well, after trying to do an image search on Beta today, I officially hate it now. Hate hate hate hate hate. :mad:

[Patty O'Furniture]

Wow that's a whole lotta hate. What specifically was the problem with the search?

[MovieMogul]

Wow that's a whole lotta hate. What specifically was the problem with the search?Well, I was trying to do an image search of a keyword. But on Beta? Not an option. At all.

The menu listing on the side has "Everything" (:rolleyes:), followed by "Video", "News", "Books", "Blogs", etc. But a tag for "Image"? Nope.

Now, having conducted other searches on Beta today, the Image option sometimes comes up within the listings themselves. But for other searches I did (ones I know have image results in the old version), it not only came up with nothing, but provided no link--even within Advanced Search--to explore this possibility further.

Blech. :mad:

[Dewey Finn]

I really like their logo today. In honor of the 30th anniversary of Pac-Man (and wow, does that make me feel old), the logo is in the middle of a Pac-Man screen. But the really fun thing is that the game is playable.

[Patty O'Furniture]

I'm still not getting it. Here's my image search for "daisy" (http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL1473/5747827/15966180/387481488.jpg). Lots of image results. I also have the Images link on the left side, but even if I didn't it's still up at the top. Am I somehow not using the same Google you are?

I think it's also cool that I can choose size and predominant color of the picture, in case I'm looking for something specific.

[MeanOldLady]

I, too, hate hate hate hate hate :mad: the new Google. I've greasemonkeyed it away since I can't find any options on the site itself to hide their highly pointless and annoying extra side menu. For whatever reason (thank the GODS!) it does not appear on the screen at work. If it did, I'd have to find a new search engine. I hate it that much.

But yeah, Pacman was fun to play today.

[pricciar]

Well, I was trying to do an image search of a keyword. But on Beta? Not an option. At all.


Are you talking about the beta that provides SSL capabilities? That's the only beta search I have come across, so I am assuming that you are. If so, that is only set up to do web searches. Not, image or map searches.

From the SSL FAQ


#
# At this time, search over SSL is supported only on Google web search. We will continue to work to support other products like Images and Maps. All features that are not supported have been removed from the left panel and the row of links at the top. You'll continue to see integrated results like images and maps, and clicking those results will take you out of encrypted search mode.

[MovieMogul]

Are you talking about the beta that provides SSL capabilities? That's the only beta search I have come across, so I am assuming that you are. If so, that is only set up to do web searches. Not, image or map searches.Yes, that's what I'm talking about. But I didn't choose the beta--it was what the site defaulted to when I did the usual google URL. The fact that it's not supposed to do image searches is immaterial when I didn't want that beta option but was compelled to use it (or nothing).

[pricciar]

That is odd. The only way you are supposed to hit the beta is if you set use a secure connection. Using "https://" instead of "http://" is supposed to be the only way to use the SSL version of google.

[TBG]

Hate it. Installed the firefox extension to put it back as soon as I found it.

Don't rely on all that hl= stuff to fix it, they'll slowly but surely weed out those options, just like they did when they added the damnable left bar on iGoogle.

I don't see why they have to change this stuff and not even give the option to use the old one. Is this Google or We Say So (http://www.tvacres.com/images/dinosaurs_boss.jpg)?

[MovieMogul]

That is odd. The only way you are supposed to hit the beta is if you set use a secure connection. Using "https://" instead of "http://" is supposed to be the only way to use the SSL version of google.Thanks for the clarification. My IE memory didn't appear to be noticing the difference, so whenever I would type in Google in the URL box, the beta was the option I was getting as a choice. That appeared to be the default (and still is). Now, I'll just have to remember to delete the "s" each time.

Still, the beta sucks. :mad:

[Pleonast]

I didn't even notice the difference.