OK, it’s no secret that I am NOT a fan of Microsoft. But, I did raise a brow about their new search, or should I say “decision” engine, Bing. So, I decided I would check it out and see if they are living up to the hype. Especially after Microsoft’s flop on “Live Search.”

I am not as impressed as Microsoft promised I would be.

But, being the democratic, let me say that I did like how Bing organizes its search results. Another feature I liked was the popup windows that provide additional information about the Website, along with the main link structure. Check out the figure below, this is an example of the pop-up window that displayed next to my professional site within the search results.

Overall, I have to say Microsoft did a decent job with Bing. However, Bing’s features are not enough to win me over from Google. And I don’t see it beating out Google in the long run, either. It’s not like Google engineers have been sitting on their asses. Just last month Google added a host of new search tools.

To use them, run a Google search, then look to the left of the screen, above the results. You’ll see a link that reads “Show options.” Click it and you’re set to do a deeper search on whatever topic you’re researching.

Let’s not forget the host of other tools Google offers, which I take advantage of every day (email, calendar, tasks, etc.) All if which are far better than Microsoft’s online tools.

Also, as a developer, Google’s APIs are a main asset to my projects:  code.google.com.

I am curious to see how SEO works with Bing. I am hoping there are not any major changes to the standards we’re already familiar with.