I use I’m Feeling Lucky too, but not by using the button. More and more I find that I know what I want to see but I don’t remember the URL, but I know typing in a couple of specific keywords will take me there automatically. So I’m not even using the Google homepage directly, but I know Firefox’s automatic Google search will use the IFL command to take me to the right place.
The Firefox location bar is not actually “I’m Feeling Lucky”.
Whatever search method it is that’s invoked via typing a non-url in the Firefox location bar, it actually behaves like this:
- If #1 for this term is had and shoulders above the rest, redirect to #1.
- If there’s less difference between #1 and the others, show search results.
Try it with “coding horror” and then “llama”, for example.
You don’t have to feel lucky when they have the stats to know just how lucky you’re lucky to be. It’s shocking how perfect it is.
Dude, they know more about successful design than you… leave them alone.
Whatever search method it is that’s invoked via typing a non-url in the Firefox location bar
This is an interesting point; I never use the address bar this way, but I see what you mean.
It looks to me like firefox is judging whether or not the term you typed in the address bar matches a significant part of the “top three” URLs that come back from the search results. It’s certainly a nice feature.
I use the ‘lucky’ button all the time. I’ve learned keywords that will take me to my favorite web sites from any computer. For example, type ‘coding horror’ into google and hit the ‘I feel lucky’ button.
No lists to maintain, no urls to remember. Just a quick and easy way to get to your favorite site.
The ‘I Feel Lucky’ button is one of the most brilliant UI devices ever to spring from the mind of man.
If you are on a mobile/small device without keyboard buttons are very useful…
Speaking of awesome power over the Internet, it’s amazing how many times this magic button goes to Wikipedia.
they had a research that when the feeling lucky button is removed the number of searches (through search button) dropped.
I use searchninja.net for web search for two reasons:
- Less cluttered UI than google
- Cooler domain name
How can anybody take what you say seriously, anyway? You still use Internet Explorer.
When my parents want to visit a website and they have the address it goes like this:
- Open up “the internet” (that’s IE with Google as homepage);
- Type in www.example.org in the search box;
- Click I’m feeling lucky;
- Pray that this works. If not, bitch at the site.
When I wanted to show them the site of my new startup we were not indexed in Google yet (we were online for less then 24 hours ;)) so this method didn’t work. And I’ve seen it before, sometimes it’s the second result or something.
My mum just doesn’t want to hear anything about this thing called an “address bar”.
Anyway, guess we better leave it in there, because something tells me my parents are not the only ones…
how could Apple get away with completely omitting a “go” button in Safari … there is no “search” button next to Safari’s Google search field either.
Another interesting point; Safari for Mac/Windows appears to lack either a “Go” button, for the address bar, or a “Search” button, for the search box.
Quite odd for a platform that is so mouse-centric…
Do not use the blackie site, a copy of the Google home page but with a black background, it only saves power if you are using a CRT display. It does not save power if you are using a flat screen display, and if you still using a CRT display and want to save power get a flat screen they save huge amounts vs CRTs.
Using that site does help the owner since they get some ad revenue.
i use google for, perhaps, 6 years, and i have NEVER used the i feel lucky thing.
i actually didnt even know what was it for until like 6 months ago.
I"m usually not one to leave comments, but this blog post is an exercise in futility… Google has a very minimalist GUI. One more button isn’t what’s going to confuse a searcher. Although as people suggested both IE and FF have an auto search when you type a non ip in the address bar, that isn’t the point.
My point is - you are quite an interesting blogger…Don’t waste your time on being picky, write about something bigger and more interesting than a button on a site…
Wow, this is taking the internet nazi psychology to new heights. How bored does one have to be to write an entry like this?
I would really like a shortcut to access the I’m Feeling Lucky Function; I never press the I’m feeling lucky button, but more than 50% of my queries are queries for which I only click on the first result (like for example “Steve Jobs wikipedia”).
I use it all the time; I have a search shortcut in Opera; when I type “l codinghorror” it searches for “codinghorror” with Google’s Feeling Lucky. So it’s basically the quickest way for me to go to a page I know the tile of, but not the URL. You won’t believe how often I search for “l wikipedia [subject]”.
So OK, I don’t use the button, but I DO use the function
As other already mentioned I do not use the function directly but through my browser konqueror. There ggl is the shortcut for “I’m feeling lucky”. For example I use daily “ggl: mensa bonn”.
“So it’s basically the quickest way for me to go to a page I know the tile of, but not the URL.”
I second that.
it’s totally useful