A new way to search pictures

A new way to search pictures Gulf News Report Published: February 09, 2008, 01:04

Luckily for oSkope, a lot of internet users like to dig around and play with websites, because at first glance, oskope.com looks like a dud.

It isn't. What looks like just another attempt to search for pictures is actually a good way to sort products, images and video from such major sites, such as eBay, in a way the original domain doesn't permit.

But first things first: oSkope isn't a general search engine. It will only search Amazon, eBay, Flickr, Fotolia, Youtube, and Yahoo! Image search.

While that may sound like a very limited search, the site does allow you to search web sites associated with the domain name.

This means that not only can uses search amazon.com they can search all of Amazon's regional websites, including www.amazon.co.uk.

What really sets the site apart is the how it displays the results.

First, users don't see lists of texts, but images of product, videos or just the pictures themselves.

Move your pointer over the images and you'll get additional data, such as how much the product costs, the time remaining on an auction, or size of the image.

Viewing options

Users can choose various viewing options, including lists or stacks, but the most usable option is the graph. Users looking for items on eBay will be able to sort their results by price and duration of the auction.

Amazon users will be able to see products on a graph comparing popularity and price.

While the graph works best with consumer related sites, the option is also there for the video and photo sites. While you might not care how old a file is or how long it's been online, the graph makes it easier to sort though the massive number of videos and graphics out there.

The site also has the ability to zoom in and out and the ability to save individual search results into a holding folder. With its limited searching ability, it hard to gauge how useful the site will be, but if the site can expand, it may be the first to offer a serious Web 2.0 version of the standard search engine.

http://www.oskope.com/