Yahoo Directory/Search Engine: A Closer Look

Undecided which is the way to go? Well after learning a little bit more about Yahoo, you might have a harder time deciding! Are we supposed to be making the selection of which route to go easier? Sorry! It’s just that they’re all so great!

Yahoo! Directory, was created by Stanford graduate students, Jerry Yang and David Filo, and was launched in 1994.

It started off as a subject directory with an index of sites compiled into categories. However, in 2002, it made a shift from subject directory to subject directory/search engine by teaming with Google to produce crawler-based listings for its main results. 

 In 2004, it began using a search technology of its own that looks and acts very much like Google. Despite the fact that the Yahoo! Directory page has a crowded and busy appearance, the Yahoo! Search page began by sporting a rather spare, clean look similar to that of Google. Now, however, it's beginning to get a little busier.

 The Advanced Search page also has a cleaner, less cluttered look and provides the searcher with a suite of advanced search options. 

SEARCHES IN:

• Own subject directory
• Web 

DEFAULTS TO:

OR

SEARCH OPTIONS:

Main Directory Page

• Provides box for Web searching on top of page
• Offers smorgasbord of links, as typical of directory pages

Main Search Page

• Searches the Web using its own search technology
• Supports (+) and (-) signs
• Supports double quotes (" ") for phrases
• Offers links to searching by Image, Video, Audio, Directory, Local, News, Shopping, etc.
• Offers links to email, breaking news headlines, and stock market updates

Advanced Search Page

• Supports Boolean-type searching with phrases, "all of these words," "exact phrase," "any of these words," and "none of these words"
• Supports field searching "any part of the page," "title," or "URL," using drop-down menus
• Allows user to specify page update ranges (anytime, or within past 3 months, 6 months or year)
• Supports site/domain searching with radio buttons
• Supports searching by file format
• Allows customized filtering option
• Supports searching by country
• Supports searching by language
• Allows setting results per page from 10 to 100
• Provides product web search options

OTHER SEARCH OPTIONS AND FEATURES:

• Links to Yahoo! News, for breaking news and headlines
• Links to topic and region-specific Yahoos!
• Supports automatic truncation, with wildcard (*)
• Maintains a stop word list; does not search for stop words unless typed as part of a phrase within quotation marks