Google's fresh start for its engine

Google has tweaked its search in order to deliver the newest, most recent results possible.

By adjusting its ranking algorithm the search engine giant is able to deliver the most relevant and up-to-date findings, based on the information the user is searching for.

Last year the Caffeine web indexing system was rolled out with a claim of 50 per cent fresher results – this new algorithm, apparently, builds on the Caffeine.

A blog post by Amit Singhal, a Google Fellow, admits that context can affect the meaning of ‘up-to-date.’

"Given the incredibly fast pace at which information moves in today's world, the most recent information can be from the last week, day or even minute.” he explained.

Traditionally, Google search results give more weight to a site that is popular in terms of the number of links to that site, whereas now, time is of the essence.

“Depending on the search terms, the algorithm needs to be able to figure out if a result from a week ago about a TV show is recent, or if a result from a week ago about breaking news is too old."

As Singhal explains, “Different searches have different freshness needs.” An event or hot topic that is trending at that moment on the web, will deliver a different level of freshness to a recipe, for example.

When searching for a conference or awards ceremony, Google will assume the searcher requires details of the most recent occurrence of the event.

“This algorithmic improvement is designed to better understand how to differentiate between these kinds of searches and the level of freshness you need, and make sure you get the most up-to-the-minute answers," said Singhal.

With 35 per cent of searches predicted to be affected, and as information continues to move at break-neck speed, has Google developed a tweak that helps the user keep up?