Google Answers FAQ

[intelliot]

Adieu to Google Answers

11/28/2006 10:22:00 PM
Posted by Andrew Fikes and Lexi Baugher, Software Engineers

Google is a company fueled by innovation, which to us means trying lots of new things all the time -- and sometimes it means reconsidering our goals for a product. Later this week, we will stop accepting new questions in Google Answers, the very first project we worked on here. The project started with a rough idea from Larry Page, and a small 4-person team turned it into reality in less than 4 months. For two new grads, it was a crash course in building a scalable product, responding to customer requests, and discovering what questions are on people's minds.

Google Answers taught us exactly how many tyrannosaurs are in a gallon of gasoline, why flies survive a good microwaving, and why you really shouldn't drink water emitted by your air conditioner. Even closer to home, we learned one afternoon that our building might be on fire.

The people who participated in Google Answers -- more than 800 of them over the years -- are a passionate group committed to helping people find the information they need, and we applaud them for sharing their incredible knowledge with everyone who wrote in.

If you have a chance, we encourage you to browse through the questions posted over the last 4+ years. Although we won't be accepting any new questions, the existing Qs and As are available. We'll stop accepting new Answers to questions by the end of the year.

Google Answers was a great experiment which provided us with a lot of material for developing future products to serve our users. We'll continue to look for new ways to improve the search experience and to connect people to the information they want.

What is Google Answers?
Google's search engine is a great way to find information online. But sometimes even experienced users need help finding exactly the answer they want to a question. Google Answers is a way to get that help from Researchers with expertise in online searching. When you post a question to Google Answers, you specify how much you're willing to pay for an answer. A Researcher will search for the information you want. When they find it, they will post it to Google Answers, and you will be notified via email. You will only be charged for your question if and when an answer is posted to it.

Your question will also be publicly viewable on the Google Answers website so other registered users can add their insights and share the benefit of the research. Users who provide comments will not be paid for their posts, but they may add interesting perspectives to the data gathered by the Researcher. Your identity and personal information will not be revealed to either the Researcher or the community of registered users at any time; instead you will be identified only by a Google Answers 'Nickname' that you select.

While our Researchers will do their best to help with every request, some questions simply don't have clear answers (e.g., "Should I have married my high school sweetheart?"). And sometimes, the price posted for a question is too little to justify the time commitment required for an answer. It's also possible the answer to your question is simply not available. If you do receive an answer, but are not satisfied with it, you can first request additional research through an "Answer Clarification" request. If still unsatisfied, you can request to have your question reposted for a new answer, you can apply for a refund, or you can give the answer a poor rating.

[cvrk3]

similar to askjeeves. is it not?

[monkee]

Originally Posted by cvrk3

similar to askjeeves. is it not?

Yeah it is, only it's narrows the possibility of the answer and you have to pay for google answer.
I tried it once and it worked.

[cvrk3]

good concept.

[dude66]

thanks for that but there not giving anwers ike that for free

[Casper128x]

Correct, it's not for free. It starts off at 2.50 and could go up in the hundreds.

[Random]

Sorry, but I dont know where to ask, but can you tell me If there is any representation of Google Inc. in Russia?

[www.fokusservice.com]

I have added a sitemap for my page http://www.fokusservice.com and still google crawrels didnt catch it. I dont know how long does it take. Help.

[sujate]

how to increase traffic with my website

[trichnosis]

thanks for this great info