jatiN mahindrA doT coM

Marty from the aimClear blog emailed me a screen shot yesterday morning, which looked like Google experimental search results. I then spotted a WebmasterWorld thread that discusses the same thing Marty emailed me.

There is a new link in the Google results that says “Show Options.” When clicked, it opens up other grouping options. Robert, a WebmasterWorld admin also sees it and he describes the options as:

The main groupings select among…

- types of results (All results, Recent, Videos, Forums, Reviews)…
- time of results (with options between Anytime and the past year)…
- different types of what I’d call snippet displays (with options including standard or longer snippets, and snippets including image thumbnails)…
- and different views (including Standard, Wonder wheel, Timeline, and Search Suggestions)

Here is a screen capture:

When I try to search for the query that they spotted this with, I get a message from Google that reads:

The option you have selected is currently unavailable.

Is this a form of experimental search being forced on searchers?

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Related posts:

1. Google Gives Mobile Searchers More Options
2. Google Quietly Pushing More Links + Data in Snippets
3. Google Pushing AdWords Search Ads Closer To Free Listings
4. Google Presents New Image Search Options
5. Google Image Search Tests Left Bar Search Options
6. How Do Google’s New Search Options Affect SEO?
7. Google Wonder Wheel & Search Options Go Live
8. Google Searchology 2009: Search Options, Google Squared, Rich Snippets
9. Google Takes the Next Step in Personalized Search
10. Google Video Search Results Redesign Upsets Searchers
11. Google Begins Pushing New AdWords Interface on Advertisers
12. Google Adds More Search Refinements & Detailed Snippets