Flickr Updates : Adds Search Box!
Yahoo’s Flickr photo sharing & tagging community is out of beta, is in gamma!, and has updated with all kinds of new features. The most prominent addition is that of an actual SEARCH BOX to the entire site. No longer do users have to download custom extensions to their browser or scroll to the bottom of the Flickr page to look for the “Search for Photos” link… no, no, no. Now we can actually search Flickr images and tags directly from the home page.
My first impressions are that navigation is much simpler around the site and there is a new absence of contextual advertising by Google AdSense or Yahoo Publisher Network within the photo pages. Instead of the photo page contextual ads, Yahoo has taken full advantage of the new Flickr search feature by adding Yahoo Search Marketing Sponsored Results to the right site of the photo search results.
The new search advertisements are sleek, well targeted (because they are search targeted ads and not content or tag targeted) and should result in an increase in Yahoo revenue from their Web 2.0 flagship.
Mark Flickr as one more effective and useful Yahoo Search powered channel to their ever-expanding portfolio.
George Oates lists the new Flickr updates on the Flickr blog:
* New Navigation
We’ve rationalized the site’s navigation, cleaned it up and (hopefully) made it much easier for both new users and experienced users. The new system breaks down into: You, Your Contacts, Your Groups & The World (aka Explore).Aside from that, there are some other large changes in the new release:
* New Search
Search has been greatly improved (with full booleans and multiple tags, you’ll be AND, OR, NOT and +ing and -ing your heart out), We’ve also added a search box to the top of every page and redesigned the results pages, so you can search for anything from anywhere.* New and Improved Organizr
We’ve given the Organizr a complete overhaul, aiming for maximum speed, more flexibility in searching and browsing while making your workspace bigger.* Person Menu
The pink balloon? Popped! Now you can mouse over anyone’s buddy icon and get a useful menu which lets you jump directly to their photos, profile, favorites and more.* More Photos
In our continuing efforts to show you the millions of photos on Flickr, we’ve bumped up the number of photos you can see on most pages around the site. (And, when you’re searching, you can toggle between seeing thumbnails or a larger version of each photo with some extra information.)
