The History of Online Search: How Searching Online Got Started
The online search that we use so easily nowadays did not simply start with the invention of the Internet. Libraries started using 'online search' with local computers to find a certain book in the library that the person needed or wanted to check out. It was through this system that the Dewey Decimal system became something of the past. Now people simply had to log onto the computer type in what they were looking for and everything was logged into the computer so that the program can easily find the book or manuscript that the person is looking for. It was this program and the use of the computer that made finding a book easier and is technically the first online search history that people can claim. However, once the Internet was invented, the opportunities to enhance online search were there, and many people capitalized upon this.
When the Internet first became popular, there was a simple list of Internet sites that people could search through and it was nothing like it is today. People simply did not have to worry about finding the right website since they are able to look through the list. However, as more and more websites became available, it was clear that something other than a list of the websites available would have to be made in order to have these websites be found by those that are looking for them. In 1993, the first web search engine was released, though it is nothing like what people expect with a search engine nowadays, it was called the W3Catalog and was made by someone at the University of Geneva. There were several other first search engines that came out, though none of them really did what people were hoping to get done and because of this a lot of these were simple ideas that faded with time.
In 1994, WebCrawler came out which was probably the first search engine that was able to find websites based on one word that the person types into the search engine box. This was also the year that Lycos was introduced, which worked in the same way that the WebCrawler worked, however, was the first one that the public was interested in. It was these two search engines that set the game for what search engines are today. It wasn't until 2000 that search engines really became what they are today and that was when Google really went to the top of the list with their search engine.
Now we have search engines such as Yahoo!, Bing, Google, and Ask that we use on a daily basis. They scout the Internet to find the terms that we spell out in the search engine bar no matter if they are in the same order or not. We have come a long way since the first online search that was basically searching for someone in a building and listing the websites that are available online. It is still amazing to consider just how far we have come with online search and it is something that people should not be dismissing easily.
We sorted out some interesting webpages you should definitely check out if you want to know more about search engines