July 12, 2007 10:01 AM PDT

Yahoo plays catch-up with new suggestion feature

Yahoo's search has been updated with a "suggest" feature that brings up search queries it thinks you're looking for based upon what you type. Previously, the only way to get Yahoo search suggestions was with Yahoo's Firefox toolbar.

The company is promoting this new suggestion service as a way to speed up search. For people who struggle with correct spelling, suggestions can save a page load or two when a mistyped name yields the helpful, yet mildly patronizing "did you mean" message.

The new suggestion service is nearly identical to Google's; however, Yahoo users don't get the added benefit of seeing how many search results each query has.

Instead of your typing this absurdly long word in the search box, Yahoo will now try to guess what you're typing, and fill it in for you.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

Josh Lowensohn writes for Webware.com, CNET's blog about Web applications and services. E-mail Josh, or follow him on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/Josh.

Topics:: Search

Tags:: yahoo,; search,; suggestions,; suggest,; Google

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