Aug 13, 2009
In light of Bing, Yahoo! tests out new SERP UI
TweetI typically rotate my search behavior — cross-referencing SERPs between Google and Yahoo!. I find that comparing the differences between both makes my searching behavior more rich. For a query, I might find one set of results via Google, but notice a nugget or two in the Yahoo! results. Or vice versa.
Today I ran a query via the new Yahoo! toolbar while spot checking for source quality, and was met with this new SERP UI.
Definitely a step away from the previous version, making use of the left rail in a much more dynamic fashion. It reminds me of a project involving real-time “live” search from back in the day. Here’s the same query with the present UI for comparison:
In light of the recent Bing news, it’s nice to still see some tweaking going on behind the scenes. The first two related concepts seem totally appropriate, but the last two seem a little garbage-y to me. What do you think? Does a left-rail of dynamic modifications help balance out the page? Does it improve discover-ability?
The frame around the entire set of results is nice, but the left navigation is weak and obstructive. Plus there are now less results above the fold… at least it looks that way from your screenshots.