Yahoo has released a beta version of an Ajax-based search service dubbed “Alpha.” Alpha integrates normal web search results with other search “modules.” Alpha’s default modules include searches of other Yahoo offerings like Flickr, Yahoo News and Yahoo Answers as well as YouTube and Wikipedia.
If you login to a Yahoo account, Alpha can be customized to use any search module you’d like to create. I tried to create a Wired search module but I couldn’t get it to work. However, Alpha had no trouble creating modules to search the BBC and NPR.
All the module results are displayed in collapsable panes on the right side of the results page. By default all the panes are collapsed, but once you open one, Alpha remembers the setting and keeps it open on subsequent searches.
Surprisingly, even sponsored results are relegated to a side pane and thus collapsed and out of view by default. It’s a nice touch for users wanting to avoid ads, but seems unlikely to do much for Yahoo’s revenue stream.[ Ajax ]
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