Some new approaches to search:
The article below is about Handwrite, a new way to enter search terms in
Google.
This is significant in at least two respects: 1) It helps solve the
touchscreen typing fiasco that has proliferated on iPhones and Android
devices, and 2) it makes it even easier to search in Google relative to our
own search.
Why they (or some third party) can't add arrow keys in the onscreen
keyboard is beyond me...
Handwrite works fairly well, in my limited experience.
Also worth noting is AskWiki, an app that was originally released in
Germany. It features voice recognition and the following logic:
The focus is to find short and smart answers for direct questions, e.g.
"Wann wurde Einstein geboren?" (When was Einstein born?) or "Wer ist der
Leiter von BMW?" (Who's the head of BMW?).
This is done by analyzing the tables and subchapter headlines that appear
in Wikipedia articles.
This App uses Google Speech Recognizer for recognition of voice and the
database of Wikipedia. AskWiki runs on the mobile phone without using an
additional server.
**
The Handwriting is on The Wall for Google Mobile
Search<http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MobileMarketingWatch/~3/1LLZ_jxEBp…
Posted: 27 Jul 2012 01:37 PM PDT
[image: The Handwriting is on The Wall for Google Mobile Search]Internet
search giant Google is pushing its mobile search capabilities to new
heights this week.
As announced by the company on the Official Google
Blog<http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2012/07/make-your-mark-on-google-wit…ml>,
there’s a new way for you to interact with Google: Handwrite for web search
on mobile phones and tablets.
Say you’re standing on a busy street corner, in a bumpy taxi ride, talking
with a friend, or sitting on the couch with your tablet. Handwrite enables
you to search by just writing letters with your finger most anywhere on
your device’s screen—there’s no keyboard that covers half of the screen and
no need for hunt-and-peck typing.
To get started, Google says, simply go to
Google.com in your mobile
browser, tap on “Settings” at the bottom of the screen and enable
“Handwrite.” Refresh the homepage and then the feature is all yours to
enjoy.
Handwrite has, for the time being, been enabled for iOS5+ devices, Android
2.3+ phones and Android 4.0+ tablets, with support offered in 27 languages.
For more tips and tricks on how to use Handwrite, check out Google’s Help
Center guide
here<http://support.google.com/websearch/bin/answer.py?hl=en&p=sbw_h…
.
--
Phil Inje Chang
Product Manager, Mobile
Wikimedia Foundation
415-812-0854 m
415-882-7982 x 6810