Israel Seed

Why GuruNet is a Natural Born Killer
By Jesse Berst, Editorial Director

From ZDNet AnchorDesk

Our 20-something Managing Editor Nicci Noteboom is always trying to get me to listen to electronica instead of jazz. Thinks I should wear Tommy Hilfiger instead of Armani. So when she insisted I check out a new instant information service instead of old-fashioned search, I was skeptical.

I reminded Nicci why I think search engines stink.

How few pages they index.

And pointed to new complaints that Yahoo, granddaddy of search engines, not only plays favorites (which we knew) -- but intentionally blocks specific sites from its search results.

Nicci persisted. She told me GuruNet is like having a reference assistant at your side. Its system tray utility works in any document -- email, word processor, Web page, spreadsheet. You highlight a word. The software analyzes the words around it -- the context -- to find the right definition. Through partnerships, the GuruNet database has dictionaries, encyclopedias, biographies, sports data, weather, real-time company info, word-for-word language translations and more.

Nicci was right. GuruNet is very simple, very slick, very useful. Which is why I'm nominating GuruNet as one of my Natural Born Killers. As with all my Natural Born Killer nominations, I am not recommending the company, the product or predicting whether or not it will succeed. Rather, I'm suggesting you study its innovations and approaches. Reminder: My NBK series is not about reviews or lab tests. It's about discoveries and new ideas that will be important whether or not the particular product succeeds.

THE BASICS
Using GuruNet is straightforward:

Download the free utility (see link in sidebar); it runs in the background

When you're in a document, press the Alt key and click on any word you want to know more about

A window pops up with a definition, plus relevant news, links, stock prices, weather

If you want more information, you can search from within that same window

THE DRAWBACKS
There are limitations:

The results you get are only as extensive and as accurate as the info in the GuruNet databases

You have to be online to get access to the definitions, so it isn't as useful with slow, dial-up connections

If you run a lot of other programs in the background, you could experience conflicts or problems

There are also at least a dozen projects similar to GuruNet in various stages of development. So there will be considerable competition. And I can also see Yahoo and other portals stealing the concept to keep searchers on their own pages.

Do you think the GuruNet concept has merit? Would you use it? Hit the TalkBack button to send me a message directly. Or jump to my to talk it over with other readers. And please take today's Quick Poll below. I have to admit Nicci was right about GuruNet. But I refuse to go to one of those raves she's so excited about.
www.gurunet.com

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