What is a search engine?
A search engine is a software application that helps users find information on the internet. It operates by reading or “crawling” web pages, storing the information it finds in a massive index, and then presenting relevant results when a user poses a question. They use algorithms to sort the results based on relevance, popularity, and quality of content so that the user receives the most helpful information first. Let’s describe what a search engine is.
Major duties of a search engine
Crawling: Automated scanning to collect data.
Indexing: Storing and organizing the gathered data in a search database
Ranking: Sorting the search results in terms of relevance and usefulness to the user’s query.
Fetching: displaying a list of websites or data that closely matches the user’s search.
How search engines crawl the web
Crawling is the first step in discovering what users want. Web crawlers, or spiders, are programs running on computers that go to sites on the web to gather information that will subsequently be indexed by search engines.
Indexing process
After a page is crawled, its details are processed and stored in a database, referred to as an index. When a query is made, it searches the index to generate the most useful information.
(The process of search, or search, is where the magic happens. When you enter search terms, the engine navigates the stored data to provide relevant results. The process is crucial in providing the correct information users require in a timely and efficient way.)
Some examples
1.General purpose search engines
They are widely used and provide results from a broad range of websites
Developer: Google LLC
Features: Undoubtedly the most popular search engine globally, known for its powerful algorithms and broad data indexing.
Good for: Almost everyone; it’s the most thorough search engine with rich search across text, images, video, and scholarly articles. Google’s enormous index and advanced algorithms make it best for both daily and very specialized searches.
Strength: It uses robust algorithms and AI to rank and predict user intent.
Global Use: Most famous search engine in the
BING
Developer: Microsoft
Features: Microsoft’s response to Google, Bing, is built into other Microsoft products and offers rewards for utilizing its search services.
Good for: Users who are heavily invested in the Microsoft ecosystem (Windows, Office); Bing is part of Microsoft’s offerings and rewards users for searches that can be exchanged for gift cards and other rewards.
Microsoft’s answer to Google, Bing, is integrated with other Microsoft services and offers rewards for using its search services.
Strength: Strong integration with Microsoft products.
YAHOO
Developer: Originally Yahoo lnc (now powered by Bing)
Features: Once a dominant name in digital services, Yahoo! Search is known for its web portal and variety of other services like Yahoo! Finance and Yahoo! News.
Good for: Users looking for a blend of search results and topical news. Yahoo’s integration with services like Yahoo Mail, Finance, and News provides a well-rounded user experience.
Strength: Still popular in some regions; blends search with content.
DUCK DUCK GO
Developer: Duck Duck Go Inc.
Features: Most popular among privacy-oriented users, DuckDuckGo promises not to track its users’ search history. Does not spy on users or personal data and offers anonymous surfing.
Good for: Privacy-conscious users who prefer not to have their search or browsing history tracked.
2. Specialized search engines
These are tailored for academic, scientific or niche information.
GOOGLE SCHOLAR
Google Scholar, developed by Google, is geared to locate scholarly literature in a broad variety of disciplines.
Key Features:
- Searches for scholarly articles, theses, books, abstracts, conference proceedings, court opinions, and patents.
- Covers content from scholarly publishers, universities, research institutions, and scholarly sites.
- Illustrates how often a paper is cited and the citing publications.
- Authors may create profiles to track citations and publication numbers like the h-index
Why to use Google Scholar:
- Most suitable for students, researchers, and scholars looking for credible, research-driven information.
- Acts as a mechanism for the discovery of academic materials that are not easily available through standard web searches.
YUMMLY
Yummly is used for recipes and cooking that has been specifically created to assist users in finding, saving, and preparing dishes based on their preferences, nutritional requirements, and ingredients at hand.
Key Features:
- Clusters recipes by ingredients, cuisine, cooking time, dietary requirements (e.g., vegetarian, gluten-free), allergies, etc.
- Learns your preferences over time to suggest dishes you’re likely to enjoy.
- Recipes come with step-by-step cooking instructions with timers, videos, and voice instructions to guide hands-free.
- Save recipes and automatically create shopping lists or even connect with grocery delivery services.
Why People Use Yummly:
- For inspiration when they have no clue what to cook.
- For meeting nutritional requirements or food allergies.
- As a recipe assistant for new or complicated recipes.
3. Privacy focused search engines:
These emphasize user privacy and do not track searches or data.
STARTPAGE
Features: It provides Google search results without tracking you. It’s for people who desire the strength of Google search without the data gathering, profiling, or targeted advertising that normally accompanies it. Startpage is favored by privacy-conscious users, journalists, and anyone who’d like to avoid Big Tech spying but doesn’t need a less powerful search.
Strength: Anonymous access to Google quality results.
MOJEEK
Origin: Operates under UK
Features: Mojeek is a privacy-friendly search engine distinguished in that it creates and conducts its in-house search index—contrary to most privacy-friendly search engines, which are based on Bing, Google, or Yahoo output.
People use mojeeek for :
- Mojeek has real search autonomy from Google and the rest.
- To prevent surveillance capitalism and ad-supported tracking.
- As a medium of unrestrained, unrestricted web discovery
What is the biggest search engine in the world?
The answer is Google.
Why Google is the largest search engine:
Market share:
- As of recent data, Google holds over 90% of the global search engine market share.
- Billions of searches are performed on Google every single day.
Global reach
- Available in over 150 languages and used in every country
Features that make Google the biggest:
- Fast and efficient search algorithms
- Individualized search results
- Integration with services like Gmail, YouTube, Maps, Drive, and Android
Is ChatGPT a search engine?
No, it is not.
ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence computer program developed by OpenAI.It is intended to comprehend and produce human-like text. You can talk to it, query it, use it to help you write, learn, program, and lots more.
How is it different from a search engine?
- ChatGPT differs from it in its operation, what it offers, and how it engages with the user.
- Whereas a search engine such as Google spiders the live web to provide a list of associated websites in answer to a query, ChatGPT is a conversational AI that produces human-like answers based on what it was trained on. Rather than providing links, it offers direct answers, explanations, or creative output in a conversational format.
- ChatGPT does not access real-time data unless it is web-connected, while search engines spider and update material from all over the internet continuously.
- This makes ChatGPT perfect for learning about complex subjects, spewing out ideas, or engaging in an exchange of conversation, while search engines are best used to find up-to-date information, check facts, or bring up individual web pages.
Conclusion
A search engine is an extremely handy device which allows for searching the internet for information efficiently and quickly. From general-purpose search engines like Bing and Google to privacy and niche engines like DuckDuckGo and Google Scholar, every one performs a distinct function. Among all of these, Google is the biggest and most used search engine globally because of its speed, accuracy, and various services.
But what you should know is that ChatGPT is not a web search engine. It is a conversational AI model that has been trained to provide knowledge based on what it was trained on — not for real-time web searching.
