A week or so after I bloged about my dream search box, Yahoo! internally released a new search feature called Open Shortcuts that was functionally equivalent to my hack (the timing, AFAIK, was completely coincidental). Well, as of yesterday, this feature has apparently become publicly available. Read more over at the Yahoo! Search blog.

Despite working at Yahoo! (though not in the search division), I admittedly still use Google as my default search engine. For me, the main reasons that I haven't been able to switch (I've tried, I swear!) are:

• Google's result are marginally better (more relevant, less spam) than Yahoo
  
• I like the weather forecast display better on G
  
• I like the stock ticker display better on G
  
• Google's calculator is better (try: "0xef to binary","e^4", "14!" --none of these work on Yahoo!)
  

Open Shortcuts is kind of cool because it does lower the barrier for conversion. I can set my default search engine to Yahoo! and selectively send queries to Google with 3 extra key strokes. Or I can send my stock symbol lookups to Yahoo! Finance (which, at the end, is usually what comes up as the #1 result on Google anyway). But then, 3 extra key strokes to lookup a 4 letter ticker symbol adds 60% more work... and that's a lot.

The other cool thing about Open Shortcuts is that it adds stickiness to search. Since the shortcuts are completely customizable, once you've set things up the way you like them and get used to it, you're likely to keep using the product. Whereas with generic non-customized search, the cost of switching is practically zero (assuming equivalent functionality and quality). [Tagged: yahoo search open+shortcuts ]

In Jakob Nielsen's comments about the Internet userbase exceeding one billion, he says:

The Mac, for example, already matters less than you think. Although it has a prominent role in the U.S., it's hard to refer to a company with single-digit market share as "dominant." In Asia, the Mac is practically nonexistent.

I disagree with his assessment. Apple has a noticeable presence and market share in Japan, and at one point, something like 55% of Apple's international sales were from Japan. The only reason why Apple has practically no marketshare in the rest of Asia is because most of Asia (population-wise, that means China and India) can't afford Macs. But with economies modernizing in those countries and as disposable incomes increase, I think there's a very good chance Apple will see significant growth in those markets. [Tagged: macs asia jakob+nielsen ]