Ask.com launches new blog search tools
Ask.com Thursday brought its popular search technology and features to the so-called blogosphere, at Ask.com and Bloglines.com.
Its new Blog and Feed Search searches blogs, feeds and news with a variety of search tools and features.
Ryan Massie, IAC Search and Media senior product manager, said the Oakland company had been poised for the move since it acquired Bloglines in February 2005. Massie explained that blog users, usually more tech-minded than the average Internet user, want the added functionality, and more importantly, the enhanced filters and sorting features that help separate quality content from unwanted material and spam.
The service sorts results by relevance, date or popularity, and filters according to number of subscribers and other conditions.
High-tech preview functions are also included. Moving the cursor over a binoculars icon shows a tiny preview, and an item can be expanded to its entirety on the search-result page, even with images or video.
In addition, users can instantly subscribe to feeds, on Bloglines or other services, such as Google Reader and My Yahoo.
The launch comes two months after Ask.com, a division of IAC/InterActiveCorp, redesigned its site, going to a simple interface along with a column of search tools.
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